tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21197841157904301602024-03-12T19:07:21.651-07:00Storm Force FitnessStorm Force Fitness was designed specifically for life in the fast lane!
Storm Force Fitness provides everything you need for fat loss from a proven progressive nutrition system, downloadable exercise programs with videos and photos, the progressive flexibility system and the abs manual. Not got time to read? Download the audio presentations and listen on your iPod anywhere!Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-50852105971017611662009-06-04T04:26:00.001-07:002009-06-04T04:27:36.846-07:00Storm Force Fitness Blog Has Moved House!Thanks for dropping by - we've actually moved the Storm Force Fitness blog to its new home at <strong><a href="http://www.worldstoughestworkouts.com">World's Toughest Workouts.</a></strong><br /><br />Hop on over there and jump on the subsrciber list to get on the Inner Circle for free programs.<br /><br />See you there,<br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-91467294267050678422009-05-09T05:53:00.000-07:002009-05-09T09:59:36.228-07:00The boredom of fat lossIs anyone else bored of ‘build muscle, burn fat’ training?<br /><br />Having spent the week training on the beaches of Thailand whilst on a fitness masterminding event, it struck me once again that the ‘build muscle, burn fat’ training programs which have infected the internet are well off-track.<br /><br />I don’t want to mention specific programs but if you’ve done any searching for fat loss programs on the internet you’ll know what I mean! <br /><br />The thing is there is nothing wrong with wanting to build muscle and burn fat but as far as I’m concerned it’s a very negative way to approach fitness.<br /><br />Essentially all you’re doing is making good all the cock-ups you’ve made over the last few years! Good on you for taking the steps to do it, but there’s more to life than just repairing weaknesses.<br /><br />Many athletes and coaches will tell you that you’re only as good as your weakest link. This may be true in some cases but if you only ever work on repairing weaknesses you’re never going to actually improve your physical abilities or become better able to take on new challenges.<br /><br />Imagine yourself in 30 years telling your grandchildren all your life stories. Would you rather tell them about the time you were fat and lost 10lbs in 4 weeks or the times you climbed mountains, took on multi-terrain challenges, completed Marine style assault courses, trained in the forest with logs and trees and bears….<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FARnbRBWKGg&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FARnbRBWKGg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Okay maybe not bears.<br /><br />If you’re carrying more flab than a polar bear than yes, you need to solve that problem but the key to real, long-term, mind-blowing results is to NOT focus on fat loss.<br /><br />I heard of a guy who lost an astounding amount of body fat by doing just that. I think he lost about 10 stone by believing he was an athlete and living like an athlete. He got up at 5am to train before work, as an athlete might. He also trained after work. He ate like an athlete.<br /><br />The guy lifted heavy weights like an athlete and performed intense intervals like an athlete.<br /><br />He did NOT weigh himself everyday.<br /><br />He then decided he would give Muay Thai a go once he got to a weight that would allow him to take the punishing training. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivU8Cjd_qiJLmATIAp7rZXaSQPx98emQY41Nuwnac6aYfCK4yVIwSZ6BOuTnTXQTi3T95Beko_aVIpwzMHI21hDVd8ohzBAj6AvBhgS0649ImqJltxl3d0uQ70Loc7wWnlDQ8XZS4U6b0/s1600-h/kickboxer.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 125px; height: 125px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivU8Cjd_qiJLmATIAp7rZXaSQPx98emQY41Nuwnac6aYfCK4yVIwSZ6BOuTnTXQTi3T95Beko_aVIpwzMHI21hDVd8ohzBAj6AvBhgS0649ImqJltxl3d0uQ70Loc7wWnlDQ8XZS4U6b0/s400/kickboxer.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333849327804390098" /></a><br /><br />He did NOT weigh himself everyday or train for fat loss. <br /><br />He trained to be a Muay Thai fighter and soon looked AND PERFORMED like one.<br /><br />The key difference in finding something that you actually enjoy enough to continue indefinitely is between training that motivates you and training that inspires you.<br /><br />The first is what you get with a 6 week fat loss program. <br /><br />Motivation soon dwindles because fat loss in itself is not a rewarding enough goal for all but a very small minority who are obsesses with their bodies. Even then you have to question how fulfilling their life is.<br /><br />You then search for other fat loss products for some reason even though the last lot bored you! This is why most people have every famous fat loss e-book on their hard drive but they’re still fat.<br /><br />To find training that inspires you indefinitely, you need to find challenges with real meaning and excitement!<br /><br />You may have heard of pleasure versus pain. <br /><br />When you buy a fat loss product, the clever marketer has preyed on your pain and told you how crap life is because you’re fat. This motivates you. <br /><br />6 weeks later you either haven’t lost weight and get demoralised, or you reach a point when you don’t need to lose fat and you lose interest in training.<br /><br />Then you get fat again and the cycle continues.<br /><br />For permanent results and creation of a body that looks AND performs like an athlete you need to train as if you truly believe you are an athlete, a competitor in a sports event, or even a soldier whose life could depend on their fitness.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlxOicfrkMdcK_iN35hR5HqcHT4pRD8IpBtRNbWm6cqq-brMoW2zMMKjwmPv4Eaa-5Rr8xJxwLIAUEOfOAgOzxRYLL4uCO3SI3xHr4qxGQ0nUmB8-mHer85mkr9Gi2_Fo2dGSegXONL7w/s1600-h/gymnast.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 86px; height: 126px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlxOicfrkMdcK_iN35hR5HqcHT4pRD8IpBtRNbWm6cqq-brMoW2zMMKjwmPv4Eaa-5Rr8xJxwLIAUEOfOAgOzxRYLL4uCO3SI3xHr4qxGQ0nUmB8-mHer85mkr9Gi2_Fo2dGSegXONL7w/s400/gymnast.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333869337512463634" /></a><br /><br />Move yourself towards the pleasure end of the spectrum by training for experiences that will make awesome stories when you’re older! <br /><br />There are infinite possibilities out there you just need to stop being blinkered by the meaningless fat loss bullshit that I really believe is ruining what the fitness industry should be about.<br /><br />That’s my rant over, now I want to hear your side of the argument!<br /><br />This may all seem kind of weird coming from the creator of the Fat Loss Action Blueprint but this needs to be said.<br /><br />I’ll be honest with you.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><strong>FLAB</strong></a> works damn well and gets great fat loss results but the only reason I wrote it in the first place was because I felt some need to jump on the internet fat loss bandwagon.<br /><br />Hey, we all make misinformed choices - some are just more willing to admit them than others and do something about it!<br /><br />My attitude has now completely changed with regard to fat loss and I hope this get you thinking!<br /><br />Let me know your thoughts….<br /><br />How has fat loss training worked for you in the long and short terms?<br /><br />Have you found other ways to inspire you which have helped you maintain a long-term focus and inspired you to achieve more with your life than losing a few pounds?<br /><br />Please leave your comments below!<br /><br />Jon Le TocqJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-50698705385191934992009-05-05T08:58:00.001-07:002009-05-09T10:45:02.675-07:00More Holiday Workouts From ThailandIf there's one thing that gets the vein in my head popping, it's people who think they can't workout without a gym. <br /><br />What a load of crap. <br /><br />I am sitting right now in my towel after a short but tough 20 minute workout in the pool at our villa. <br /><br />Fortunately I am not one of the poor sods who think aqua aerobics will help them lose weight. <br /><br />Instead my session went like this (in a lightning storm!)<br /><br /><OBJECT class=BLOG_video_class id=BLOG_video-5bae565d2d7cc38d height=266 width=320 contentId="5bae565d2d7cc38d"></OBJECT><br /><br />Set the clock at 20 minutes. <br /><STRONG>Perform 10 lengths of the 10 metre pool as fast as possible. <br />20 push ups on the side of the pool. <br />10 lengths <br />20 burpees <br />10 lengths <br />10 one arm push ups each side <br />10 lengths <br />10 jump squats, 10 burpees <br />10 lengths <br />10 one arm push ups each side 10 lengths</STRONG> <br /><br />The lesson of the day....I'm rubbish at swimming. <br /><br />Ah well, definitely burnt off the chicken satay and fried veggies. <br /><br />More holiday updates soon! <br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-29939156709084569402009-05-03T19:26:00.000-07:002009-05-03T19:50:51.720-07:00Marine workout on the beachI'm in Thailand for 10 days.<br /><br />For most people this means boozy night at the beach bar, lie-ins and too much rice.<br /><br />Well, after a low carb lobster meal last night, the organiser of this 'fitness mastermind' event in Phuket, Dax Moy, revealed a nasty surprise.<br /><br />At 6.30 am this morning we were all up and before we could dive into the usual lucious fresh fruit breakfast, we hit the beach.<br /><br />What followed was neither nice nor pretty but highly effective!<br /><br />Dax used to serve in the marines so had something special up his sleeve for us.<br /><br />Today dawned the Magic Hundred beach workout, which went as follows.<br /><br />(Before starting, mark out a 100m strip of soft, sandy beach)<br /><br /><strong>100m sprint<br />100m swim back<br />100m push ups (push ups for distance so you have to push up and forward every rep)<br />100m walking lunge back<br />100m jump squat<br />100m seal crawl back<br />100m roll<br />100m swim<br />100m sprint in water back</strong><br /><br /><strong>Descriptions:</strong><br /><br />For the seal crawl, lie on the sand and drag yourself 100m using your legs as little as possible. Imagine you have no use of your legs and you'll get it!<br /><br />For the roll, perform forward rolls for the distance.<br /><br />We had intended to add a 100m rock throw but couldn't find any suitable rocks or logs!<br /><br />The swims were an absolute killer because it was virtually impossible to get any momentum due to constantly breaking 4-5ft waves!<br /><br />So if you ever tell me you couldn't train on holiday because you couldn't get to a gym, you will get some stick!<br /><br />This was fun in a sick kind of way and as you can see there was absolutely no equipment needed, yet ruined us!<br /><br />Full body exercises, power endurance, strength, core strength in the waves, upper body, lower body, mental toughness, grind, but most importantly out in the wonders of nature.<br /><br />Think outside the box guys, there's so much out there to inspire your fitness goals.<br /><br />I'll have the video soon!<br /><br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-14211663910593166102009-05-02T09:44:00.000-07:002009-05-02T10:13:14.014-07:00Beach workouts in Thailand!Thailand rocks!<br /><br />I'm well into my fitness masterminding event just outside of Phuket and we just got back from being caught in a true Storm Force rain shower!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlJzhai3wp5LsyKIf70uMDPsgEN7cfMkC74Gldf9YKBSX7Jxn1LH34dOyiZIonzirX0IENBfx9P5RQTUI5V9wV02sI4xpZ8sIng_uyNeOoXlGAkDFGaWxQS4rWCivKBag_6NOS-kQq9C0/s1600-h/IMGP0987.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlJzhai3wp5LsyKIf70uMDPsgEN7cfMkC74Gldf9YKBSX7Jxn1LH34dOyiZIonzirX0IENBfx9P5RQTUI5V9wV02sI4xpZ8sIng_uyNeOoXlGAkDFGaWxQS4rWCivKBag_6NOS-kQq9C0/s400/IMGP0987.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331273825541553234" /></a><br /><br />There's something awesome about swimming in the dark, in warm bath water being pelted by warm rain with giant flashes lighting up the sky!<br /><br />What more do you want after a day of producing killer fitness product ideas and sunbathing!<br /><br />However, I thought I best let you know that there hasn't been any slacking on the training as we've managed to get in a beach sprint session.<br /><br /><strong>8 rounds<br /><br />100m sprint on soft sand followed by a light jog or swim back to the start</strong><br /><br />Perfect interval session!<br /><br />The sand provides great resistance and the soft nature of the sand whilst being friendly on the knees also forces you to develop pull from your hip flexor muscles as less force can be generated b pushing on the sand by your back foot!<br /><br />Try it on your holidays this year!<br /><br />Tomorrow I'm going for a double whammy of 10k beach run for Tough Guy preparation with a quick bodyweight-swim circuit like this.<br /><br />Working with a partner I'll be doing the following for 20 minutes:<br /><br /><strong>One person completes 10 lengths of the 10m pool at our 5 star villa.<br /><br />The other person must do burpee-push ups until the swimmer is finished.<br /><br />Switch and repeat for 20 minutes!</strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi46nztqQ2qlVxBRe4prxlFtdRvGX34zcM4bQSCLdqsk7h5HY9Zcx7XsFiUldvC-m5sb75IBIY4Fjp5FoylbBme0lsCypD_wxcKh4fT4nWfWK_bPrH1M8StQZoIHj_nAtrl7NR0xOQHgK8/s1600-h/IMGP0994.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi46nztqQ2qlVxBRe4prxlFtdRvGX34zcM4bQSCLdqsk7h5HY9Zcx7XsFiUldvC-m5sb75IBIY4Fjp5FoylbBme0lsCypD_wxcKh4fT4nWfWK_bPrH1M8StQZoIHj_nAtrl7NR0xOQHgK8/s400/IMGP0994.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331274352986345874" /></a><br /><br />(That's the view out of our 'office')<br /><br />Short, sharp and very effective.<br /><br />If I can't find a partner willing to take on the challenge I'll do 10 lengths to 30 burpees continuously.<br /><br />There is no reason to shy out of workouts when you're on holiday guys so stop looking for reasons not to do it!<br /><br />I could easily make excuses about time (despite what you may think I'm working hard and didn't finish masterminding until 3am, last night!), the heat, the need to relax etc.<br /><br />The fact is my Tough Guy race in July isn't going to change date or allow me to make excuses - it will try to bring me down no matter what!<br /><br />Look for the things you CAN do when your daily routine and equipment changes!<br /><br />Nature provides the best gyms I ever find and they're different every time!<br /><br />Keep an eye out for more crazy workouts this week!<br /><br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-37204002270816684122009-04-28T04:56:00.000-07:002009-05-08T00:31:23.782-07:00Butt kicking of the yearSome people are asking just how tough Intense Conditioning really is going to be and wondering if they really work hard enough when they train.<br /><br />Well, here's the workout I did this morning - the video is from when I did it last year.<br /><br />It will answer both questions.<br /><br />This very workout is in Week 9 of the <a href="http://www.intenseconditioningworkouts.com"><strong>Intense Conditioning program </strong></a>with a couple of slight tweaks.<br /><br />Quite simply it will kick you in places you've never been kicked.<br /><br />Guys, this is what I mean by a true metabolic weight session - the intensity when done properly is mind-numbing!<br /><br />If you want abs, a lean athletic body, unstoppable conditioning, bigger muscles or anything else you need to be willing to give it everything.<br /><br />This doesn't mean selling your soul to fitness or living at the gym!<br /><br />However, you need to be able to zone out of your troubles for those 45 minutes when you give 100% to whatever session is in your program - and love it!!!<br /><br />You also need to be following your nutrition plan all week. <br /><br />By all means reward yourself ONCE per week but remember what REWARD means.<br /><br />You don't earn - you don't get! Be strict with yourself.<br /><br />Anyway here's the session - go on I dare you to try it.... (VIDEO BELOW)<br /><br />4 Rounds of....<br /><br />20 swings<br />20 snatches (10 each side)<br />20 swings<br />20 jerks (10 each side)<br />20 swings<br />20 snatches (10 each side)<br />20 swings<br />40 single arm rows (10 each side)<br />20 swings<br />50 push ups<br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5xokVPjbUxI&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5xokVPjbUxI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-29996788191544484512009-04-27T08:16:00.000-07:002009-04-27T08:26:03.871-07:00Intense Conditioning workouts - more sneak previewsSometimes I get bored of talking and hearing about fat loss!<br /><br />I know that sounds stupid but fat loss really is pretty simple if you just decide you want to do it!<br /><br />Admit it, we're all getting a little tired of hearing about transformation contests, 'awesome abs' and magic fat loss programs!<br /><br />What's not so simple, but a lot more exciting, is designing and following programs which lead to increases in strength, power, aerobic and anaerobic conditioning all at once!<br /><br />So I set to work....<br /><br />In just a few weeks I'll finally get to unleash Intense Conditioning.<br /><br />The 12 week program takes you through a 4 week 'pain tolerance' phase whilst practicing certain strength techniques and exercises you probably haven't used or have neglected for too long!<br /><br />(Oh and you'll no doubt see your body fat drop too!)<br /><br />It's time to get serious about training! If you like drilling yourself into the ground - you'll love this!!!<br /><br />In Week 5 we move into combined strength and conditioning training to optimise all areas of your fitness without having to focus solely on one.<br /><br />If you want to be a powerlifter or pack on muscle for the sake of it, this isn't for you. <br /><br />If you want to be lean and athletic it most definitely is! <br /><br />You need to be ready to commit to your training though - this doesn't work with half-arsed attitudes and 'train when I have time' mentalities.<br /><br />Stay tuned folks - you'll want to get hold of this........<br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/16_ah36HJOE&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/16_ah36HJOE&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GgOtY6zlhaM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GgOtY6zlhaM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br />Check out some of the previews!Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-36278543185881648692009-04-24T03:58:00.001-07:002009-04-24T04:02:08.198-07:00Doctors are screwedWell they're not but they should be.<br /><br />As as I am concerned we shouldn't need doctors.<br /><br />We also shouldn't need people like me.<br /><br />Why?<br /><br />Because disease and illness is caused by environmental factors. <br /><br />Environmental factors are caused by man.<br /><br />When I went to Borneo last year, our guide told us about how all the medicines 'you Westerners' spend billions on can be found for free in Borneo, in the wild.<br /><br />We were shown how termites could be used to clamp, seal and repair flesh wounds - it astouneded me.<br /><br />In the good old days, nature healed all.<br /><br />Here's a great video from the legendary Paul Chek on why you should never need a doctor again.<br /><br />He can come across as a little eccentric at times but the point is he knows his stuff and you need to listen up!<br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/v58uFxhK5qM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/v58uFxhK5qM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-56488321990301108142009-04-23T08:31:00.001-07:002009-04-23T08:52:14.121-07:00Counting caloriesI just had an email from Petra in the US who got awesome results following the <a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com">Fat Loss Action Blueprint.</a><br /><br />We were talking about calories and how many calories were in a particular recipe in <a href="http://www.fatlosscookbook.com"><strong>'Cooking For The Fitness Lifestyle'</strong>.</a><br /><br />I used to think calorie counting was the key to fat loss.<br /><br />However, whilst it is useful as a guide especially for those who have no idea what to eat or how much for fat loss, consider the following....<br /><br /><strong>Recipes</strong><br /><br />When you look at a recipe and it says it contains 350 calories how can you accurately replicate that when all eggs are different sizes?<br /><br />I include calorie amounts in the cookbook as a guide but clearly it's not going to be 100% as your eggs may be bigger than mine!<br /><br /><strong>Burning calories</strong><br /><br />If you have found out you should eat 300 calories 5/6 times per day to burn body fat, what happens if you walk up an extra 10 flights of stairs a few times that day because you're at a conference and the lift is broken?<br /><br />What if it's 10 degrees colder and you are shivering more - should you adjust for summer and winter?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiubeh6y_y5iR26Chp8cX5O7pDrLOUV6LtymkqMl2NCaIxC5M_cVde-UzCng7wiUtMxdfRCAecvuVlAZDe3bK2NEX_8gm-_DJweWOmiksawmVWhcmqOHkPq9B3JrhBd9PUEkKMcGlYAw3Y/s1600-h/cold.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiubeh6y_y5iR26Chp8cX5O7pDrLOUV6LtymkqMl2NCaIxC5M_cVde-UzCng7wiUtMxdfRCAecvuVlAZDe3bK2NEX_8gm-_DJweWOmiksawmVWhcmqOHkPq9B3JrhBd9PUEkKMcGlYAw3Y/s400/cold.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327914743019645314" /></a><br /><br />What if you have some labouring to do at home because you're doing up your porch?<br /><br />What if your wife helps you with the labouring on Saturday but has to take the kids to a party the next day?<br /><br />What if you play a better football team this week than last week so you have to run around more and work harder?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPGyN48uWTflwXvVvGusdW-gf8O8gKw7I0PwiqHeLzd4LyvlafkY8rpgsm_dhyH8mnIWEhP6knQtcXS4DIy2MOlLFUaBHV2VliC9oE_6W5IXaUFfx6DfCyhP-L0VxDIHY0DU9HTIv42nA/s1600-h/fireman+sam.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 224px; height: 165px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPGyN48uWTflwXvVvGusdW-gf8O8gKw7I0PwiqHeLzd4LyvlafkY8rpgsm_dhyH8mnIWEhP6knQtcXS4DIy2MOlLFUaBHV2VliC9oE_6W5IXaUFfx6DfCyhP-L0VxDIHY0DU9HTIv42nA/s400/fireman+sam.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327914379988045394" /></a><br /><br />What if you have a physical job like a fireman? Some days you'll be sat down a lot because fortunately no-one needs you help. Other days you could be in action for 5-6 hours in a row. What do you do then? Are you going to whip out your scales and have an extra half an egg whilst you heroically hoist Mrs Jones out of her top floor window to make up for it?<br /><br />What if Mrs Jones has packed on some pounds at Christmas, tripped over the fairy lights and sparked that fire. She weighs more than she did in November so it's going to require greater exertion to get her out - are you going to have to carbo load when you get back to the station?<br /><br />I think you get the point!<br /><br /><br />It is physically impossible to accurately calculate how many calories you need each and every day so I really suggest you don't bother once you have gained insight into how big a meal size should be using estimates from reliable sources.<br /><br />This is a perfect example of how many people spend so much time trying to create the perfect nutrition or training plan when they would be better off just getting the kettlebells out and beasting themselves.<br /><br />The calories then take care of themselves!<br /><br />This is the basis of the forthcoming Intense Conditioning program - worry about what matters!<br /><br />Train hard.<br /><br />Use high, low, no carb days in a cycle to trick your body into dropping body fat.<br /><br />Eat clean, natural food.<br /><br />You can't fail to get results.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvo-_2PsUNPewgn6k0daJwvat9j-osh0vdEjwyC5D3iC1a6wZ1SdbFkpj-YO0I65ybLzE9C6mmZFZEOqYVRMC0tJMS7GsSXJD4l90eW4xysYD4-ITfjfrIY4hLq0cP8P_kjEkw8NR02qk/s1600-h/web.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 314px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvo-_2PsUNPewgn6k0daJwvat9j-osh0vdEjwyC5D3iC1a6wZ1SdbFkpj-YO0I65ybLzE9C6mmZFZEOqYVRMC0tJMS7GsSXJD4l90eW4xysYD4-ITfjfrIY4hLq0cP8P_kjEkw8NR02qk/s400/web.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327915100609148418" /></a>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-80301925326708575162009-04-23T06:23:00.000-07:002009-04-23T06:42:45.551-07:00Intense Conditioning is coming!Intense Conditioning will soon be released! I and a few of my trainer friends around the world have been following it for the last few weeks as well as a couple of my clients. <br /><br />The program brings together everything you need to know to rapidly increase your strength, power and conditioning without needing any specialist equipment!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7QLPOLi8tyHJt2DMkq4s42ZDwObpL0K2WgSpcYT9SW3-w0TfVTxg5KTWn3_1UTeCVz6oOFoHPOjDdfmfaMxGZxzDk-U8mCiphVa2bn5pzEQa2YAuiXvHoiSKriX7UwnW4bf4PudE10pw/s1600-h/header.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 77px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7QLPOLi8tyHJt2DMkq4s42ZDwObpL0K2WgSpcYT9SW3-w0TfVTxg5KTWn3_1UTeCVz6oOFoHPOjDdfmfaMxGZxzDk-U8mCiphVa2bn5pzEQa2YAuiXvHoiSKriX7UwnW4bf4PudE10pw/s400/header.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327881702952400642" /></a><br /><br />Too many people these days get fixated with 'kettlebells are better than dumbbells', 'bodyweight is for beginners', 'I need to be a member of gym to get results'.<br /><br />Stop the bickering, stop the excuses and get on with it - you'll see awesome results!!<br /><br />The truth is...<br /><br />...you don't need to be doing the same exercises week in and week out<br />...you can increase strength without big, rusty squat racks<br />...you don't need to spend more time in your gym than the staff<br />...intense is fun!!!<br /><br />I watched a program about gastric banding the other day and got really wound up at how pathetic and foolish these people are.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9oOv8a0nchEykS9R_v647WwvJrv4UA43ajNEQQCZuQf2bCvkTdy35A6TEzzJZrjaKUwlGWJxcGsQsH__0k2ayQGyumnVgQ-jBjn69AJFAOhaynMvihDO_NfxKYdfPeIh_xth3RANnRtM/s1600-h/fatty.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9oOv8a0nchEykS9R_v647WwvJrv4UA43ajNEQQCZuQf2bCvkTdy35A6TEzzJZrjaKUwlGWJxcGsQsH__0k2ayQGyumnVgQ-jBjn69AJFAOhaynMvihDO_NfxKYdfPeIh_xth3RANnRtM/s200/fatty.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327880904839076338" /></a><br /><br />If you want me to feel sorry for you because you have rammed yourself full of crap foods when you knew what damage it was doing, then think again!<br /><br />Too many of us make the effort to turn down the filth you have been drip feeding into your arteries and whilst you were marvelling at the stars of Eastenders we were out throwing kettlebells around and trying to figure out just what it would take to get the damn things over our head just a few more times!<br /><br />I love new challenges and I love not knowing what the next workout will bring! It keeps me motivated, mentally stable and most importantly lean and athletic!<br /><br />Then I realised, why worry about people like that?<br /><br />There are always going to be lazy, fat people around so I need to get used to it! <br /><br />I am delighted to help those who are willing to take responsibility and stop using words like 'too hard', 'like it too much', 'have to entertain a lot so can't' and 'haven't got time'.<br /><br />That's what the <a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><strong>Fat Loss Action Blueprint </strong></a>is for.<br /><br />Instead I should be focussing on those who really love fitness for what it is, who don't have a cardiac arrest at the thought of breaking a sweat and who understand that a love of fitness and the euphoric feelings it gives you everyday!<br /><br />So I will soon be unleashing Intense Conditioning, with all the workouts you need to shed body fat, increase strength and improve staying power and mental toughness!<br /><br />And that's just for starters!<br /><br />As you can see it's not for girls though....<br /><br /><OBJECT class=BLOG_video_class id=BLOG_video-f823f495a1431b31 height=266 width=320 contentId="f823f495a1431b31"></OBJECT>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-50459851417924886792009-04-21T12:28:00.000-07:002009-04-21T12:37:15.051-07:00Jon talks strength and conditioning with Alwyn CosgroveFollowing on from my interview with Craig Ballantyne, I hooked up with world-renowned coach Alwyn Cosgrove.<br /><br />If you've never heard of this guy, I strongly suggest you google him and see what you find!<br /><br />I've yet to find someone who gets such strong points across INSTANTLY!<br /><br />Let's see what he had to say about periodising your training, nutrition, carbs and which people influenced him throughout life....<br /><br /> ********************<br /><br />JLT: Hi Alwyn thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to chat strength, conditioning and fat loss with me. I know your straight up attitude is something a lot of people have warmed to and admire, myself included! <br /><br /><strong>AC: No problem, Jon</strong><br /><br />JLT: Now, I love spending time with people who just want fast results without all the unnecessary trimmings. However, sometimes there is a need to go beyond just ‘working out hard’ all the time. <br /><br />What are your thoughts on periodisation, in particular linear versus<br />undulating versus the conjugate model when it comes to getting an<br />athlete or Joe Public in top shape? Does it depend on the individual and their sport or is there one best way in your opinion?<br /><br /><strong>AC: Well, it depends on a lot of variables. For the general population with general goals, usually fat loss, an alternating linear approach seems to work best. In other words Weeks 1-4 we would work with sets of 12 reps, Weeks 5-8, 8 reps, Weeks 9-12: 10 reps, Weeks 13-16: 6 reps.<br /><br />For general strength, the science has shown undulating periodization to be superior, but the same researchers showed it to be less effective for muscular endurance.<br /><br />The conjugate system works well for athletes who need to peak multiple times<br />or have long seasons, but in our experience the rate of progress is somewhat<br />slower and requires more recovery.<br /><br />As with most things – there’s never one right answer.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Awesome thanks for that! Take note readers again we have another expert confirming that you shouldn’t be searching for that perfect program. The perfect program for your next door neighbour may not be for you.<br /><br /><strong>AC: Precisely.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Moving on do you think periodisation or cycling practices should be applied to nutrition as well or do you believe you have a set of rules which must be applied all year round for top results?<br /><strong><br />AC: You may have heard me say before that methods are many, principles are few, methods may change, principles never do.</strong><br /><br />We use the same principles year round and look for 80-90% compliance to the<br />principles. We may add extra “rules” for weight class athletes or when<br />someone is peaking but it’s always the same philosophy.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.alwyncosgrove.com/non-sexy-training-and-nutrition.html "><strong>(These principles can be found here)</strong></a><br /><br />JLT: My thoughts exactly – everyone’s always looking for ‘new’ when it’s adhering to the proven stuff that gets the job done. What are your views on carbohydrates? Do you agree with only eating carbs after training, before and after training?<br /><br /><strong>AC: For fat loss it’s a very effective strategy, for hypertophy then it’s<br />overly restrictive as we need to be getting sufficient calories in to stimulate muscle growth.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Right so would you ever cycle carb intake with individuals such as low-medium-high days?<br /><br /><strong>AC: We have used it but we don’t emphasize carb cycling too much to be<br />honest. <br /><br />I can see the effectiveness of it, but in our experience it hasn't been that much more effective in the average client over time - and for most of them it creates too much hassle and stress. Using a 90% compliance to a set of principles allows flexibility and more "life".</strong><br /><br />JLT: So again we’re saying that compliance with a good program is better than half-hearted efforts at perfectly designed nutrition and training strategies especially in the general public looking for all-round results and fat loss.<br /><br />Back to training…what are your views on deloading from training and why? For instance do you recommend every 4th week as a light week, every 6th week as<br />complete rest etc or do you believe simply taking enough rest during<br />each week is enough?*<br /><br /><strong>AC: We start a new program every four weeks and we use week one as a deload<br />week – when we teach the new exercises. <br /><br />The new stimulus is usually enough to create forward progress, so we reduce the volume and intensity that week.<br /><br />It’s always worked better with our clients than deloading in later weeks.<br /><br />So week one: introduction week, week two: base week, week three: overload<br />week, week four: shock week - then week five we start over with a new<br />routine but it's intro week so volume is reduced.<br /><br />I like a half week off after 8 weeks of uninterrupted training.<br /><br />Basically on a 3 days per week split such as Monday, Wednesday, Friday - you'd just miss one workout and then a full week off after 16 weeks.<br /><br />Again on a MWF SPLIT, you'd miss Wed and Fri and get back to the gym the next monday - so it's seven days not nine days as some people do it.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Interesting – that would work well and I could see how using a kind of teaching week would be very effective especially for beginners. I like to use ‘practice days’ along the way for certain individuals and programs which give recovery time but enable you to accelerate gains on exercises you need to work at.<br /><br /><strong>AC: Yes that would work too but we still need some extended recovery breaks.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Definitely, as we said earlier it’s all about the individuals especially as some beginners just don’t train hard enough to warrant long rest breaks!<br /><br />Right Alwyn, once you’ve had a tough training sessions, what are your top post-training recovery methods in terms of dynamic versus static stretching, ice baths, cold showers, power naps etc. How do you make sure the individual is in top condition for the next session?<br /><br /><strong>AC: Static stretching, foam rolling and post workout nutrition are going to<br />be 90% of the picture</strong>. <br /><br />That will address the quality of the muscle tissue (the density) and the length and tension, while feeding the system.<br /><br />A recovery strategy has to be built around the training strategy – it’s hard<br />to answer this question without a specific training regimen in mind.<br /><br />JLT: Fair enough we don’t want to be putting any more generic advice out into the fitness world! Let’s move on to your career and progression.<br /><br />What are the biggest mistakes you made in your early days with clients<br />in terms of your approaches to nutrition, training and the mental<br />aspects of getting results?<br /><br /><strong>AC: I don’t think I made any mistakes per se. <br /><br />I always worked as hard as I could and did the best I knew how. We have just learned more. <br /><br />For example we all thought that high carb low fat diets were the best, aerobics was<br />best for fat loss, crunches were good for abdominal work etc.<br /><br />We weren’t making mistakes – we just learned more!<br /><br />I think of what we do similar to medicine. If you were a doctor who prescribed a drug to patients in the 80’s and subsequent studies in 2009 found a better, safer, more effective drug – then you’d change. <br /><br />It doesn’t mean you made a mistake before – we just know more now. you're only making a mistake if you don't stay current.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Yeah I’m glad you said that because it makes me sad when people get so attached to a particular method that they refuse to consider an alternative no matter how long it has failed to produce results!<br /><br /><strong>AC: Exactly, at the end of the day you need to keep reassessing and testing to keep improving. That rule applies to the average gym member trying to lose fat as well as us as coaches.</strong><br /><br />JLT: For sure, now your famous for your ah-ha moments amongst other things! What are your five biggest ‘ah-ha’ moments which really shaped the direction of your training philosophies?<br /><br /><strong>AC: Well my Top 5 ah-ha moments can be found on T-Nation – go check them out as there’s too much to go through again here!<br /><br />http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/cosgroves_five_ahha_moments <br /> <br />Aside from that article, the realization that I had more people in my facility on any given program than most research studies had enrolled really forced me to analyze and look at the data we were collecting. That really refined our programming over time as we were getting so much data on a regular basis!</strong><br /><br />JLT: So we should always take ‘science’ with a pinch of salt and test for ourselves?<br /><br /><strong>AC: Yes, I’m not saying scientific research isn’t necessary - that would be stupid - but never just accept things as gospel!</strong><br /><br />JLT: Okay good advice! Next question…who has had the most profound effect on your career or life in general so far and why?<br /><br /><strong>AC: When I was in high school in Livingston I was in Higher mathematics class. I<br />have no idea how I got there as I was clearly the dumbest kid in the class!<br /><br />Sat next to me in the class was a guy, Keith Wilson who spent his spare time (at 14 years old) working for a company converting the program code for an arcade computer game to a home version. He used to hand in his homework on a floppy disk.<br /><br />Me? I was drawing sharks on the back of my notebook.<br /><br />So while studying quadratic equations, (something that has been oh-so-useful in my life...) it was clear that I didn't understand it. I asked the teacher to go over it again. <br /><br />He sighed an exasperated sigh - but he went over it again.<br /><br />I still didn't get it.<br /><br />So I asked again. The teacher sighed loudly and said "Okay - the rest of you take a five minute break while I go over this again for Alwyn's benefit....." and then mumbled "for whatever good that will do"<br /><br />Obviously I felt pretty small at that point. And of course the whole class heard him and laughed.<br /><br />And I still didn't get it.<br /><br />And I never asked a question to this teacher again.<br /><br />And I failed the exam for the class.<br /><br />This teacher was a man who had a chance to make a kid feel better and help him, or put him down and make him feel worthless. He chose the latter. Why? Just because he could. That's the kind of person he was.<br /><br />Another person in my life was my Taekwon-do instructor - Derek Campbell. My Dad was made unemployed and we could no longer afford lessons. I went to my instructor and told him that we just couldn't afford lessons anymore and I'd be back when my Dad got a job.<br /><br />He told me to show up early for the next class and become his assistant - teaching beginners. He would pay me with free lessons.<br /><br />I went on to become a fourth degree black belt, and seven time UK national champion as a result.<br /><br />This teacher was also a man who had a chance to make a kid feel better and help him, or put him down and make him feel worthless. He chose the former.<br /><br />Why? Just because he could. That's the kind of person he was. He changed the<br />course of my life. <br /><br />One person changed a kids life and made it worse. One person changed a kid's life and made it better. I remember both of them.<br /><br />We have all had, and remember these people in our lives - the only question to ask is ...<br /><br />What kind of person are you?</strong><br />JLT: Hmmm something worth thinking about. I always think an attitude of gratitude will eventually get you where you want to be!<br /><br /><strong>AC: Yeah for sure.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Okay let’s time warp. If you were a newbie to the strength and fitness game now, what three things would you prioritise to accelerate the success of both yourself as a trainer and your clients’ results?<br /><br /><strong>AC:<br /><br />1) Be the best.<br /><br />The difference between where you are now, and where you want to be can<br />usually be closed by education. Who do you need to meet? Who do you need to<br />intern with? What books do you need to read? What DVD’s do you need to<br />watch? What seminars do you need to attend? Make a list and start checking<br />them off.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Education all the way! I think that applies to general fitness fanatics as well. <br /><br />I love the phrase ‘Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’ <br /><br />People need to stop hunting for cookie cutter programs and actually learn a little along the way so they can be more adaptable.<br /><br />Next?<br /><br /><strong>AC: <br /><br />2) Understand the mindset of the client. This is something I got from Dr Kara Mohr. <br /><br />Put yourself in the clients’ shoes. Try to understand what it’s like for them in their lives to make fitness a priority. That doesn’t mean you need to coddle clients or accept excuses and rationalizations, but think about what it means for a 300 lb women who is joining your gym and this is the first exercise she’s ever done.<br /><br />Signing up is a huge accomplishment – these things need to be acknowledged, supported and celebrated. Having that sense of caring and understanding can take you far.<br /><br />If you’re a trainer - are you in the best shape of your life?<br /><br />How many trainers reading this are in the greatest shape of their lives<br />right now?<br /><br />How many are extremely happy with their own fitness?<br /><br />How many trainers hire and use another trainer?<br /><br />We know how valuable and useful a trainer can be to someone? Yet most trainers don't use one. Why? You don’t need one? Does a doctor need another doctor? Does a hairdresser cut their own hair?<br /><br />Why do you think you don't need one? Think of all those reasons and understand that the prospective client thinks that too. They don't know what you know - and they still feel that "they'll hire you once they lose ten pounds".<br /><br />Most trainers don't understand the mindset of the client or prospect.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Wow I like that! Fat trainers annoy me. What else?<br /><br /><strong>AC: <br /><br />3) Continue to “sharpen the saw” by investing in yourself on an ongoing basis<br />The only thing worse than not attending a seminar in the last three months is not attending a seminar and thinking that it doesn’t matter. <br /><br />When you decide to stop learning (and it IS a decision) you will stop growing and you will stop earning.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Okay food for thought and I better go find a seminar to go to….<br /><br />Let’s finish off with what are the three things or people you wish would vanish off the face of the fitness industry forever?<br /><br /><strong>AC: Seriously? The fitness industry? <br /><br />I don’t care. <br /><br />I focus on doing a great job with my clients and that’s really all you can focus on. <br /><br />There isn’t anything in the fitness industry that bugs me too much. I guess the<br />in-fighting that seems to go on bothers me a little but to be blunt, I’m too<br />busy to even think about that kind of stuff.<br /><br />I’d like it if we could get rid of cancer, but getting rid of step aerobic instructors doesn’t really concern me.</strong><br /><br />JLT: Wise words. I think even if you’re not a trainer and you’re taking in this interview, you need to think about that. Focus on what gets you results and forget about trying to take down other people. If you’re getting good results tell people how, if you’re not, you’ve got other priorities right now!<br /><br /><strong>AC: Exactly. Learn how to get results then share the knowledge!</strong><br /><br />JLT: Right let’s wrap it up there. Alwyn thanks for your time - there’s a lot to think about there for trainers and fitness fans alike. Can you tell us where can people find out more about your methods and philosophies?<br /><br /><strong>AC: No problem. They can check out <a href="http://www.alwyncosgrove.com">http://www.alwyncosgrove.com</a></strong><br /><br /><br />Note - To find out more about periodization and what it means, check out <a href="http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/alwyn3.htm "><strong>Alwyn’s article </strong></a>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-62144787043852409082009-04-20T12:52:00.000-07:002009-04-20T13:25:28.207-07:00Top notch fat loss combinationI had an email from Brad Pilon of EatStopEat the other day saying how fad diets were still outselling his program ten, twenty, a hundred fold.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr6DkcvhyMAqHQkL-5IE5-jSRvCWcVgHwgzVD3L2gH3hsrXFB66DUPHJz8jDLDd7CP9jKTfxeKhRtkdvVyfOo5Clw2y-Bs-74VVYvR_pPSiIX8g8AzdFwyh3GeT-CFoCQ7Ki82ocqHWwk/s1600-h/eatstopeat"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 160px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr6DkcvhyMAqHQkL-5IE5-jSRvCWcVgHwgzVD3L2gH3hsrXFB66DUPHJz8jDLDd7CP9jKTfxeKhRtkdvVyfOo5Clw2y-Bs-74VVYvR_pPSiIX8g8AzdFwyh3GeT-CFoCQ7Ki82ocqHWwk/s200/eatstopeat" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326869118694817266" /></a><br /><br />I agree with him.....it's sad and ridiculous.<br /><br />I personally follow intermittent fasting for many reasons, not just keeping my body fat under 10%.<br /><br />There's the reduced food bills, increased growth hormone, mental control....<br /><br />I also know many trainer friends of mine who also do it.<br /><br />On top of this I have some guinea pigs trialling a new strength and conditioning program.<br /><br />James this week reported being 11lbs down after 8 weeks combining the training with intermittent fasting (and the photos show it) (it's not even supposed to be a fat loss program but hey)<br /><br /><strong>What's this got to do with you?</strong><br /><br />Well next week I am off for a fitness masterminding event in Thailand where I intend to fast at least once simply because I know Dax Moy and the gang will no doubt be sliding a Tiger Beer my way on various other days, between bungee jumps and hammock time!<br /><br />Don't wanna be putting on body fat with my fancy new beach shorts on.....<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6bFW5T3ykrxKZTyEf0wzrwro7YHYF9n0IE6UKHNW1Wfj5YstKUrooNC0OARClJPdk5OV5vNMuRFLn8JF_Ebn6Y_tv-E0amr9eqWkqZk_JMCd4VM_pKPLRbv3lQ5YHGXP_Q8OarvTE1EE/s1600-h/fat+man+on+beach.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6bFW5T3ykrxKZTyEf0wzrwro7YHYF9n0IE6UKHNW1Wfj5YstKUrooNC0OARClJPdk5OV5vNMuRFLn8JF_Ebn6Y_tv-E0amr9eqWkqZk_JMCd4VM_pKPLRbv3lQ5YHGXP_Q8OarvTE1EE/s200/fat+man+on+beach.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326871603774272338" /></a><br /><br />This is the beauty of intermittent fasting! You can let go <strong>A BIT </strong>on certain days, knowing you'll make up the calorie deficit on others to still lose body fat.<br /><br />No calorie counting, no protein v fat v carbs, no 'points'.<br /><br /><strong>What you gonna do for me then Jon?</strong><br /><br />What I am going to do is giving you an opportunity to get hold of the two most powerful things I have used with my clients to accelerate fat loss and stave off the boredom associated with healthy food!<br /><br />If you head on over to EatStopEat to grab a copy of Brad's program using this link (my affiliate link) and email me the receipt, I'll send you a copy of the 'Cooking For The Fitness Lifestyle' e-cookery book for free.<br /><br />=========> <a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat"><strong>EatStopEat plus 150 recipe e-cookbook combination please</strong></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG2aPkSjh2mw9kfEa9GzK7fXRdfhG0sRXXJBRIA-9J6K-RxOxLOStOYKoHE-NXWG1o8BnOXS38EV9mknexYxQ_Xy01fswZsCWUSdwINUC90jG4otU-dl9vGBhVimoe-4ISpjJuAsOo5ek/s1600-h/Fat+Loss+Cook+Book+cover+3D.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 168px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG2aPkSjh2mw9kfEa9GzK7fXRdfhG0sRXXJBRIA-9J6K-RxOxLOStOYKoHE-NXWG1o8BnOXS38EV9mknexYxQ_Xy01fswZsCWUSdwINUC90jG4otU-dl9vGBhVimoe-4ISpjJuAsOo5ek/s200/Fat+Loss+Cook+Book+cover+3D.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326868719583217698" /></a><br /><br />Simple as that.<br /><br />(If you don't want me to make any affiliate commission and don't want the cookery book just go to the normal <a href="http://www.eatstopeat.com"><strong>EatStopEat</strong></a> link and get the e-book - that's how much I think you should start intermittent fasting if you're struggling to find a nutrition plan that fits your busy schedule)<br /><br /><strong>The catch?</strong><br /><br />You have to do this by Friday 24th April 7pm GMT (London time baby!).<br /><br /><strong>Why so soon?</strong><br /><br />1) Because I want to be safe in the knowledge that when I am resisting all the temptations of a 5* villa in Phuket, you'll be doing it with me.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.margaputra.net/photos.asp "><strong>Check out where I'm staying</strong></a><br /><br />2) I don't want to have to deal with too many emails whilst I'm whooping Charlotte Ord in some sprints on the white sands outside our team villa... (Don't tell her if you know her....)<br /><br />3) The truth is people put so much weight on this fasting thing when it's actually easier than everyone thinks. As soon as they do it, it's almost an anti-climax because it is so easy to get through the day.<br /><br />A week later you're 2-3 lbs down with no crazy, long-term starvation tactics - happy days!<br /><br />I just want you to get on this as soon as possible instead of thinking about it, analysing whether it's for you and, as usual, finding excuses.<br /><br />Remember, if you keep doing the same things and following the same methods and they haven't shown results yet, they never will!<br /><br />So <a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat"><strong>go get EatStopEat now</strong></a>, email your receipt to <strong>jon@stormforcefitness.com</strong> and you'll soon have an awesome combo of intermittent fasting and 150 Storm Force Fitness approved meals.<br /><br />Good times people - use them wisely!<br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-50862310022995232832009-04-17T11:05:00.000-07:002009-04-17T11:09:56.902-07:00Le Tocq's Fitness Credo<strong>***Please print this and keep it with you - read it every day***</strong><br /><br />If you’ve ever read Kekich’s Credo, you’ll know it’s a set of life principles which should be on anyone’s daily reading list if they want to reach their potential in life.<br /><br />These principles are generic in nature, created from the life experiences of Dave Kekich.<br /><br />As I read through them I looked at each one and realised that they could be directly applied to any attempts at improving your physical fitness whether you’re an athlete, bodybuilder or Joe Average looking to shed some fat.<br /><br />If you can live your life by these principles, your results will amaze both yourself and those around you.<br /><br />Keep them in the forefront of your mind by reading them regularly and trust in them when it seems even willpower can’t get you through.<br /><br /><br /><strong>This is Le Tocq’s Fitness Credo (adapted from Kekich’s Credo)</strong><br /><br />1. People will do almost anything to stay in their comfort zones. If you want to see physical change you must force your body well beyond the limits you perceive. Strive to discipline all areas which effect your results – training, nutrition and recovery. This will involve applying yourself in the face of fierce opposition from both your social environment and yourself. To develop discipline 1) set clear experience based goals with challenging deadlines – in other words, visualise the event you will be able to experience once that goal is achieved, 2) find what’s really important to you by breaking goals down further and further until you have clear emotional reasons to achieve them – get to the root cause no matter how much thought and effort it takes. You may find that goals isn’t actually as important as you first thought and 3) steadily but surely replace all bad habits with positive thought and action.<br /><br />2. Time is your most valuable resource. Don’t waste time messing with minor details. The best results are usually achieved by those who understand that intensity of training trumps length of workout every time. Choose full body exercises, choose intervals, choose heavy. Forget isolation exercises for burning fat, and forget drinking ice cold water, walking an extra flight of stairs and chewing gum to burn more calories. Life has far more to offer than the inside of a gym so get outside. The most important choices we make in life are how we use our time.<br /><br />3. Think carefully before telling yourself that you will achieve a certain goal. Often we think we want to lose weight, run a certain distance or look a certain way because of outside influences. Promises to ourselves are the easiest ones to break but the most damaging as well. Choose your goals carefully and find the emotional reason for them. Once you have qualified yourself for that goal see it as a contract which cannot and will not be broken.<br /><br />4. Real regrets come only from knowing you could have given more. The scoreboard, race times and scales will show only a number – your result. All you can do is give 100%. The lower this percentage drops, the more your results will deteriorate. If you have given 100% don’t berate yourself – it wasn’t meant to be.<br /><br />5. Always be thankful for the results you have achieved and the physical abilities you have to at give it your all. Some people will never have these gifts.<br /><br />6. Always re-invest your results. Do not sit back and admire yourself too much but invest your new found strength, power or lean, athletic body into a new activity which provides yet another fresh challenge.<br /><br />7. You’ll be successful and see great results when you like what you are becoming but also when you have a passion for the journey. Love what you do because one day the results will fade but the memories of the journey will live on.<br /><br />8. Learn from those who have gone before you with success. If someone has got what you want, ask them how they got it. They may not be willing to help you, but you’ll be no worse off.<br /><br />9. Train for the best results but prepare for the worst. Pay attention to recovery and preventative measures like foam rolling, stretching and sleep. Repair is much harder than cure and the worst feeling is one of ‘I wish I had….’ when an injury happens which you saw coming a few weeks ago. <br /><br />10. In competition, never show weakness. Work on these weaknesses in training but when you step on the field of play leave doubt behind – there is nothing more you can do now. Assume the opposition is better than you but also know you can beat anyone – this will make you raise your game every time.<br /><br />11. Never start chasing a goal without a solid, well-researched written plan. You may let someone else do the research for you but ensure they have the credentials to do so and the evidence to prove they did it.<br /><br />12. Success comes quickly to those who can engage a high level of concentration for a sustained period of time. Quick fix diets, 5 minute workouts and anything else which does not require a degree of commitment, sacrifice and dedication will reap little reward.<br /><br />13. If you put in the effort the upside of training will take care of itself – results will flow. However, protect against the downside where things can turn nasty. Work on mobility, stretch, sleep, avoid alcohol and cigarettes and do anything else required to prevent you slipping up. If it’s not working, stop doing it. If it is working, let it loose!<br /><br />14. The primary purpose of fitness is to feel great about yourself. Looking great helps this. Keep reading and learning so that you can increase the value of each training session.<br /><br />15. Reward yourself only for results. Treat yourself only when it is deserved. Whatever you reward you get more of. Reward a ‘bad week’ and you will get more bad weeks.<br /><br />16. Training competence requires knowledge. If you would not feel confident teaching another, then you do not believe enough in your training and need to go and learn more for yourself.<br /><br />17. Your body does not like effective training – accept that. Intense training is the only way to force results but your body does not like the stress and will let you know. It will get defensive, forcing you to paddle upstream if you want to see results.<br /><br />18. If it works, do more of it, but only until it no longer works. This will happen with every single program you ever use without exception.<br /><br />19. Leverage your fitness lifestyle. Use it for more than one purpose. Get outdoors, have a great session, enjoy it, save money on gym fees and get better results all in one go. It is possible if you take the time to learn how.<br /><br />20. Rationalizations for why you stopped one rep short or slowed down 20m from the end are nearly always convenient evasions of the truth. The truth is you mistakenly listened to the sensors telling you to stop, you got lazy today or you lacked mental strength. <br /><br />21. Always have seemingly impossible goals which you make a life or death situation! Visualise them intensely by creating clear, focussed pictures or scenes in your mind about what life would be like if you achieved them. This will force you to use your time effectively and direct every action towards these goals. You will find new ways to achieve them because you have to.<br /><br />22. The value of every fitness program diminishes past a certain point – usually sooner than you think. Measure everything so you can spot the warning signs and move on. Don’t flog a dead horse.<br /><br />23. Everything you experience or think is the result of the momentum and ideas created by those who have gone before you. Surround yourself with the right people whose shoulders are worth standing on, then appreciate how far you can see when you’re up there.<br /><br />24. Enthusiasm often trumps knowledge. 100% commitment to a mediocre program will often reap more results than half-hearted efforts with the most complicated, detailed super-program. Your enthusiasm will be infectious and draw others into your training circle, pushing you all further.<br /><br />25. Buying cookie-cutter programs will only get you so far. Your training and life in general will be much more fulfilling if you take time to learn why certain methods work. Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish…..<br /><br />26. Religiously nourish your body with proper nutrition, exercise, recreation, sleep and relaxation techniques. Do not underestimate any of these factors nor lose focus on any of them for any length of time.<br /><br />27. The choice to exert effort in everything you do or become lazy but hide it well, is what determines how far you can go in life. You must make this choice every minute or every day. You will see that those who excel in training are usually those who excel in everything life has to offer. Not reaching your true potential is a waste of life and training time.<br /><br />28. An active body is essential but so is an active mind. Stimulate it from all angles or you will regress.<br /><br />29. Learn to communicate with yourself and those around you. Explain why you must go to the gym when they want to go the pub but learn to do it in such as way as to encourage them into your circle rather than just push yourself away from theirs. Listen to their rationalisations then talk them round based on what you know is fact from your experience of intense exercise and healthy eating.<br /><br />30. Identify and replace all external authorities. You must be in control of every aspect of your life. Learn how to train anywhere, free from the constraints of commercial gyms which control how you can train. Prepare your own food rather than relying on what the local sandwich bar can provide. Be the ruler of your own timetable and take control of everything. Don’t expect others to set meaningful goals for you even if you pay them to do so.<br /><br />31. Consciously make every effort to be 100% honest with yourself at all times. The higher the likely cost or reward, the more this strength will be tested.<br /><br />32. Never compromise when you know you are right and have the evidence to prove it. Similarly, do not assume knowledge until you have done your research. If you know your training method works do not be talked around. If you cannot prove it will work for the person asking you questions, do not pretend.<br /><br />33. If the long-term future of a program or goal is no longer viable, suitable or rewarding, walk away. Every minute you delay is a minute longer it will take to reach the next goal you set which really is right for you. Qualify yourself for every goal in the first instance then keep reassessing. You won’t want the same things forever.<br /><br />34. Invest in a personal trainer, online program or fitness tool only when you have thoroughly researched it. Do not fall for deadline deals or limited offers. If your instinct rather than your quick fix radar says yes, buy it immediately. When you o make sure you read it as soon as possible and implement it without excuses about time, kids, birthdays, Christmas or any other rationalisation for the fear of hard work.<br /><br />35. Stress will kill you. Learn the difference between eustress and distress. Sore muscles and lactic acid build up will benefit you eventually, injuries will not. Remove all sources of physical and mental stress and never play through a serious or potentially serious injury. Your goals will seem trivial when you cannot walk for a few months or your back hurts every time you sneeze.<br /><br />36. Money isn’t as important as you think. Invest it in your health and wellbeing before any material goods. The greatest reward is longevity, and the greatest cost is not having it.<br /><br />37. Mental and physical fitness are the most important elements in life. Optimising these will lead to improvements in all other areas – business, social and family. It will teach you hard work, honesty, goal setting and planning, enjoying the journey, respect, discipline, control and how to remove yourself from the trivial and place yourself in ‘the zone’ for the time you are training. This can be your escape.<br /><br />38. If it doesn’t require hard work and toil it’s probably not worth much.<br /><br />39. Develop a philosophy around your health and fitness lifestyle which guides every action. Don’t be reactive – this nearly always leads to negative action. Have principles and stick by them. This applies to alcohol, cigarettes, processed sugars, late night clubbing and cream cakes. This way you will never have reason not to love yourself or feel guilty.<br /><br />40. That goal is not impossible. The bigger the goal the bigger the reward but the time and energy required doesn’t increase at nearly the same rate.<br /><br />41. Do not try. Do or don’t.<br /><br />42. Lead by example. If you want to convince people that they need to live a fitness lifestyle, show them, don’t tell them.<br /><br />43. Take full responsibility for actions and mistakes. Similarly, remember to take credit for successes.<br /><br />44. If you always take the path of least resistance you will walk the journey of least reward. Choose a heavier weight, put your trainers on when it’s raining and miss that fourth Christmas party.<br /><br />45. Vividly visualise victory at all times whether it is over your inner demons that try to drag you back or if it is over an adversary on the sports field. Let your animal instincts rule in competition.<br /><br />46. First impressions last. If you walk on to the gym floor or sports field with doubts in your mind, they will linger until you go home. Always put your best foot forward and teach yourself how you want to act. Teach people how you want them to talk to you and treat you. If you need encouragement to achieve your goals, teach them what to say and do.<br /><br />47. The right thing is usually the hardest option. Self-esteem is more important than short-term losses in popularity so do the right thing and go to the gym.<br /><br />48. If you let yourself get away with laziness or lack of control with your nutrition once, you’ll do it again and again and again. Set rules and live by them.<br /><br />49. Respect other peoples’ goals. They may not train like you or have the same goals but don’t disrespect them. By all means explain why you prefer your methods, but if they still disagree, let them be.<br /><br />50. Your own results are the ultimate form of proof.<br /><br />51. Build relationships with people who help you to improve mentally and physically. Surround yourself with what you want to become. Associate with people who share your values and leave behind the naysayers. They’ll come knocking one day. Never close your door.<br /><br />52. If you have no control over something, leave it be. Don’t take it personally.<br /><br />53. Spend time learning about health and fitness but don’t forget to actually implement what you learn. Unapplied knowledge is useless.<br /><br />54. Choose your training partner and training environment very carefully. It could be the difference between a special achievement and a wasted part of your life.<br /><br />55. Enjoy your training. Treat is as an adventure. There is so much variety available that it is criminal to just focus on thing. Care about results but also love the process. Lighten up and you will live longer. Even if you don’t you’ll have enjoyed much more of it!<br /><br />56. Identifying exactly what you want from training hard is a difficult process. Once you know, get your head down and charge.<br /><br />57. Sheer will power, integrity and competence are the most potent force in fitness and sport. <br /><br />58. Who you are, what you achieve in and out of training and sport, and where you currently stand in life is solely down to you. The reaction to any of these is what matters, not the situation itself. Every minute is another chance to change direction.<br /><br />59. Desire must be a fire that burns constantly. Accept that permanent dissatisfaction is part of being a high-achiever, but learnt to manage it.<br /><br />60. Your mind, body and spirit must work as one so pay attention to relaxation techniques which bring everything back into alignment. Do this on a daily basis. Do not place too much focus on just weightlifting, just cardio or just yoga. They all have their place and must be part of a holistic approach. You must take time to see how they all link up.<br /><br />61. Deceive others and you will suffer yourself. Don’t lie about what you can lift, the times you can run or how good you are. It will slap you in the face eventually – the truth is always exposed.<br /><br />62. If you constantly hunt for security in how you feel you will fail. Set goals well beyond ‘losing some weight to feel better’ because being secure in yourself is the lowest form of happiness and the easiest one to slip out of. Aim to shock yourself and your peers.<br /><br />63. Ensure every step you take in your fitness lifestyle benefits everyone around you but accept that at times you will have to work harder than others to bring change about. Your family and friends will often be unaware of the good it will do them – keep the faith.<br /><br />64. Review the philosophy behind your training and nutrition beliefs at least once a year. New research, new goals, and new experiences can all change the way you think. You don’t have to hold the same views all your life – it’s okay to develop a new perspective.<br /><br />65. Don’t envy others’ results. Learn lessons from them then apply your new knowledge with vigour and excitement. Thank them for the lesson.<br /><br />66. Spend nearly all of your time on what you love doing rather than seeing the brief time you get to do it at weekends as a bonus. Delegate what you don’t like and free up time for the sports and activities you love. You may earn less money but who cares it doesn’t matter. If it doesn’t give you more time to do what you love, there is no point to what you are doing.<br /><br />67. The euphoric feelings of an intense workout develop self-esteem and will set you up for the rest of the day. Do the most important things early in the day before the day takes over. <br /><br />68. If you ever get bored of your training or nutrition you have your eyes shut. If nothing excites you, create something. Every new sport or game was started by someone, somewhere – they were bored too.<br /><br />69. There is no such thing as a great training program until it is taken from the page into the training area. E-books are useless until printed out and used.<br /><br />70. For maximum training results identify what is needed to make your life exciting. Knowing what every exercise will do for your performance is the essence of inspiring your training time.<br /><br />71. Seek and master the complicated aspects of fitness. The truth is that fat loss and most other fitness problems have been made unnecessarily complicated in the pursuit for greater profits. Once you find a simple solution for your greatest fitness concerns and confusions you will see all resistance you created in the past disappear.<br /><br />72. Always leave your options open. Don’t tie yourself down to a particular gym, training regime or nutrition system. Options give you power and power enables you to see the truth without being blinded by marketing ploys and quick fixes disguised as solutions.<br /><br />73. Preparation wins the day every time.<br /><br />74. Cultivate a degree of patience. Drive is necessary for success, but so is taking time to see where best to create your next foot print.<br /><br />75. Persistence wins the race in the end. No wall is too strong to be knocked down and no door will remain locked forever. Keep knocking.<br /><br />76. Thinking about things for too long, trying to do things without solid action and considering every detail of every option will get you nowhere. Paralysis by analysis is a ball and chain. If you’re 80% sure a training program will work, try it. If it works really well, tell everybody else.<br /><br />77. Have an attitude of gratitude. Be thankful for everything and do all you can to help everybody gain, not just yourself. There is more than enough to go around. Givers will gain. This goes for helping beginners get into exercise and nutrition when they may at first frustrate you. Remember you once wore those shoes.<br /><br />78. Risks are necessary but don’t be a fool. Go for one rep max testing occasionally but way up the reward of achieving that final lift. An extra 5kg is not worth a long-term injury.<br /><br />79. Don’t trample on people to achieve your goals. Succeed in sport and competition with honour.<br /><br />80. Write down everything that happens in training and nutrition. Problems are impossible to correct if you have nothing to ponder over.<br /><br />81. Just get started. Don’t deliberate too long. Take the first steps, then adjust along the way. It is much easier to say sorry for messing up or having to make changes, than to forgive yourself for not trying. Join whatever club you need to join, phone whoever you need to speak to. Do what it takes to start on your fitness goals immediately.<br /><br />82. Ask question after question after question. Just because someone says it’s right doesn’t mean it is. Some of the top experts in every field disagree on certain things.<br /><br />83. Enjoy your training and enjoy the results. If you can’t enjoy either of these, question why you are doing it. Every crisis is a chance to prove your strengths. If you need to make changes fast to achieve your goals, see it as a challenge to thrive on. You will grow.<br /><br />84. You will get older. Enjoy youth, movement and activity whilst you can.<br /><br />85. When it’s a matter of produce or starve, people never starve. Apply this principle to your training. Give the results such great importance that you have to find the solution.<br /><br />86. Fill your every thought with positive expectation and demand the best on all fronts. Attitude and desire are worth far more than knowledge in many cases. You can learn skills any time.<br /><br />87. Help others achieve their own goals and add value to their own health and fitness plans. You will see fast improvements in your own.<br /><br />88. Lasting happiness comes only by creating values on which you build you principles. These principles will guide your life. Give more than you take and you will be happy. You will see many, many different ways to lose weight, shed body fat and build muscle. Look closer and you will see that the methods which work are built on a small number of matching principles. Concern yourself more with the foundations than the pretty décor. This is what will save you when times are tough.<br /><br />89. Problems never go away. Sort out injuries and sort out dodgy equipment which is stopping you from giving 100%. If you’re scared of something commit to doing it regularly until the fear subsides.<br /><br />90. Laugh at yourself whenever you can. Take training seriously but don’t let it control you.<br /><br />91. When someone shouts too much about how great their programs or methods are, realise that they feel a need to do this due to a lack of quality in other areas. You will hear about the best from others.<br /><br />92. Snowball your results. Build on success and never, ever regress to where you started.<br /><br />93. The best investment in health and fitness is the one that gives you the knowledge to understand why you are doing certain things. Only then can you hope to get through the tough times when it hurts and certain things don’t quite make sense. Having faith in the principles based on the research you have gathered will see you through.<br /><br />94. For every exercise you do, every weight you put down too early, every extra bite you would take, ask yourself how you would feel if the world had seen you do it. If it would embarrass you, make a promise there and then never to do it again.<br /><br />95. Whatever you tell yourself you are and whatever you think about all day, you will become. Remember that moments of weakness when the fridge door is open can undo hours and hours of hard work.<br /><br />96. Be sceptical of your own beliefs. Don’t just read books which confirm what you think you already know. At the same time, don’t jump from one bandwagon to the next.<br /><br />97. Anxiety about your physical and mental state is usually down to feeling out of control. Take steps to learn what you need to learn to be in complete control of your results.<br /><br />98. Always be alert. Watch others who are getting great results. Never assume anything is fact until you have proof in front of your eyes. Don’t let emotions rule reason in making a big decision. Don’t buy a fitness product based on the emotions the marketer stirs up in the two minutes you are reading the sales letter. Take time to check if it matches your principles and gut instincts. Observe – Study further – Test on yourself – Test on others. If all the results match up, accept it as fact and add it to your principles.<br /><br />99. It takes a wise person to learn from his mistakes. If a program or diet didn’t work the last time, ask yourself why. If you really did follow it to the letter, disregard it from your methodology. It may work for someone else but it doesn’t for you. Learn from the mistakes and successes of others. This will save you a lot of time and money.<br /><br />100. The purpose of a fitness lifestyle is to prolong life as long as possible but also to enjoy playing the game at the same time!<br /><br />Thank you to Dave Kekich for providing the foundations of this Fitness Credo. I hope it helps guide as many people in their fitness journeys as the original.<br /><br /><br />Please forward this to everyone you think it will help!<br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-71025381344221575612009-04-15T08:15:00.000-07:002009-04-16T00:55:34.770-07:00Jon versus Craig BallantyneThis week I managed to grab Turbulence Training's Craig Ballantyne on the phone to pick his brains on fat loss and why he uses certain methods.<br /><br />(Note to self - interview people in the same time zone as you next time...)<br /><br />I often get asked what's better out of my own Storm Force Fitness methods (such as the <strong><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com">Fat Loss Action Blueprint</a></strong>) and <strong><a href="http://budurl.com/TTWorkout">Turbulence Training</a></strong> so I thought I'd get hold of Craig and see if we could figure it out.<br /><br />Now rather than give the answer that lines my pockets, I say the same things every time I get asked that question and this still rings true even after speaking to Craig.<br /><br /><strong>1) </strong>They both work very well, very fast because they're based on.....<br /><br />.... clean nutrition which is easy to follow<br />.... weight training and interval methods over 'cardio'<br />.... intensity over duration<br />.... enjoying fitness and a love for training adn the feelings that follow<br />.... supportive communities<br /><br /><strong>2) </strong>They are both created and continually improved by guys who love fat loss and fitness and have created profits from a love of what they do and not the other way around.<br /><br /><strong>3)</strong> They are both great for fast fat loss if you complete the programs from start to finish and don't wander off half way through or pick out the bits you like.<br /><br /><strong>4)</strong> They are both useless if you buy them and leave them on your hard drive for 'when you've got time'. Funnily enough that time never arrives.<br /><br />Craig and I have very similar views on a lot of things to do with training and nutrition for body fat but it's always good to hear WHY two experts share the same views.<br /><br />If they do, then maybe, just maybe it's because we know <strong>DAMN WELL </strong>that these methods work <strong>every time</strong> as opposed to the magazine writers who largely guess or create piecemeal articles from lots of different sources.<br /><br />Here's 40 minutes of me questioning Craig on everything from supersets and intermittent fasting to why he doesn't listen to the peanut butter haters.<br /><br />(And don't worry I specifically told him we weren't going down the no cardio route!)<br /><br />We got so much covered I had to make 4 videos!<br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wLoGH6LyfN4&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wLoGH6LyfN4&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/VHzgXKs-3Xc&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/VHzgXKs-3Xc&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/32qLoZ-6j24&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/32qLoZ-6j24&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pc0o2HuLauk&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pc0o2HuLauk&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br />Check out the <a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><strong>Fat Loss Action Blueprint</strong></a> and <a href="http://www.budurl.com/TTWorkout"><strong>Turbulence Training</strong></a> for fast working fat lossJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-27034639092037188942009-04-13T09:38:00.000-07:002009-04-13T10:27:11.819-07:00Are you a chubby Easter Bunny?Yes I had a Cadbury's Creme Egg AND 3 beers - what you gonna do?!<br /><br />Like Christmas, Easter time usually brings banter about whether or not I am going to touch certain food and drink.<br /><br />Like Christmas I let myself have a treat, control it, enjoy it, don't feel in the slightest bit guilty, then make sure I burn it off with a beasting!<br /><br />It is also untrue that I got my family boiled eggs for Easter!<br /><br />This Easter's beasting came in the form of a 10k cross country race. As you know I'm not a big fan of long cardio for fat loss, but I am having to do such events in preparation for Tough Guy!<br /><br />Yet again though this weekend proved a few points about fat loss and conditioning.<br /><br /><strong>1)</strong> I completed the course in around 43.30 - not an awesome time by any stretch but considering it was mainly grass, had some nasty hills and I only run once per week to protect my joints (and muscle mass) I was fairly happy - this keeps me on target for a circa 40 min road 10k by summer, but I know I can get more out of my legs.<br /><br />The day you are satisfied with your training and your performances is the day you embark on a slippery slope - remember that!<br /><br /><strong>2)</strong> I, my girlfriend and my clients who also took part beat many of the club runners who do nothing but run. <br /><br />We do a combination of metabolic weight training and intense interval conditioning with one 'aerobic' run per week (if that) to put some miles in the legs and get used to the distance.<br /><br />This is the video for my personal training studio showing some of the guys and girls who ran today. It'll give you some ideas as to the kinds of training you should be focussing on to lose fat whether you are a beginner or more advanced trainee.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5pkrBWzNRE8&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5pkrBWzNRE8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />This is how the FLAB was created - by testing and developing programs which work for real people who don't have hours and hours for training and who can't bear the thought of cardio work!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Z8Owp6rbKAdFIYYQbniMw8CdkbJ8kRa-vQdJSGCrgtPwtN4cykHDJ2CCteGPOWXDAi-eOjda6uxHCzeOqEVaN0THMgfELK4pAy-ASLNi1o4KQ0SUnSrTyrGgizS65YJrimeXdIGzbVk/s1600-h/BLUEPRINT.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 76px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Z8Owp6rbKAdFIYYQbniMw8CdkbJ8kRa-vQdJSGCrgtPwtN4cykHDJ2CCteGPOWXDAi-eOjda6uxHCzeOqEVaN0THMgfELK4pAy-ASLNi1o4KQ0SUnSrTyrGgizS65YJrimeXdIGzbVk/s200/BLUEPRINT.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324219547208201714" /></a></a><br /><br />Get the FLAB before the holidays roll around ======> <a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><strong>Click here</strong></a><br /><br />This goes to show that strength work does more for improving endurance running and pain tolerance than pavement pounding.<br /><br />I spoke to a few people who ran good times but 'couldn't break the XXXX barrier'. All they do is run and run and run to improve it - this WILL NOT work!<br /><br />We've all been chopping minutes off our run times in the past 6 weeks with no signs of slowing down by focussing more on strength work than just TRYING to run faster.<br /><br /><strong>A metabolic weights workout might look something like this:</strong><br /><br />5 rounds as fast as possible of...<br /><br />20 kettlebell swings<br />10 jump squats<br />10 jumping pull ups<br />5 <strong><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6neX_K5Pus">renegade push up-row</a></strong><br />250m row on Concept 2<br /><br />Try this and it will smoke you taking less than 30 minutes.<br /><br /><strong>3)</strong> If you are worried what one creme egg or one chocolate bar over the Easter weekend will do to your waist line, the rest of your year is seriously uncontrolled and lacks focus!<br /><br />You can't undo 51 good weeks with two bad 3 day spells at Easter and Christmas. <br /><br />It's when you let your poor control of your taste buds take over on a weekly basis that you're in trouble!<br /><br /><strong>4)</strong> I am approaching the end of my temper with so-called international experts who send emails out saying you can get an awesome workout done in 5 minutes.<br /><br />Don't be so stupid - if you believe this you are having your intelligence insulted.<br /><br />Short workouts are VERY effective when done properly but '5 minute workouts to burn fat' - give me break!<br /><br />That will get you another small hole on your credit card but not a lot else. <br /><br />If you truly want change, you need to be prepared to FIND 20-45 mins x 4-5 per week.<br /><br />Less can certainly be more but don't let the marketing hype get to the 'quick fix node' in your brain!<br /><br />Jon<br /><br />If you did over-indulge over Easter and have decided now is the time to rip off a stone of body fat in 6 weeks ready for your holiday, grab your copy of the Fat Loss Action Blueprint here =======> <strong><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com">Click here for the FLAB</a></strong>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-55002881471973344772009-04-08T09:35:00.001-07:002009-05-08T00:38:34.736-07:00Get stronger without weights or getting bulky?'I want to get stronger'.<br /><br />Oddly enough <strong>I seem to hear this more from girls than blokes. </strong><br /><br />Well I've been using an old technique which gets far too little use - the girls and the guys using this are getting much stronger, much faster and with no added bulk.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKhGxVVudq8R7vnbBsV-r5iz48Nx9_gNPTHvqC027GLFyTP-ZXZet17gZfk4OW9wsq3xwoPeBaH47qcpij5DzmFH8vBuRPsFhsa6NPDeHpHRhzkF24EniRDtznTm91FrylZgYx00N2skI/s1600-h/strongwoman.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 202px; height: 216px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKhGxVVudq8R7vnbBsV-r5iz48Nx9_gNPTHvqC027GLFyTP-ZXZet17gZfk4OW9wsq3xwoPeBaH47qcpij5DzmFH8vBuRPsFhsa6NPDeHpHRhzkF24EniRDtznTm91FrylZgYx00N2skI/s320/strongwoman.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322629377214176930" /></a><br /><br />These are the latest guinea pigs following my <a href="http://www.intenseconditioningworkouts.com"><strong>Intense Conditioning 12 week program</strong></a>. The aim is to sky rocket stamina, endurance, strength and power all at the same time - and it's working.<br /><br />This is what James said (bear in mind he has been dropping body fat at the same time)<br /><br /><em>"I started with my pair of 16kgs but after the first set of Jerks I switched to the 20kgs. I still knocked them out.<br /><br />In the past, I would have done 3 dips then moved on to the next exercise. This morning I knocked out all the sets and reps like I was fresh"</em><br /><br /><strong>Being strong doesn't mean you need to be bulky.</strong><br /><br />Many blokes are so obsessed with just getting bigger so they LOOK stronger, that they forget that, when it actually comes down to it and they are being challenged on a sports field or in an arm wrestle with their 9 year old sister, size often counts for nothing.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaqGgaq8ZCSKsNfiLynnhAjpRvqmNMw6rpvoJH4Ef-l94yzMzSShFFYH9awErvz6hrFG2NIFkq8EL_nzUU3hsTYpgHj47ZgLQYPe5g1Fxhnjn-cDT3SS45JxYAalmvx7_4lruBCJafTsA/s1600-h/stronggirl.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaqGgaq8ZCSKsNfiLynnhAjpRvqmNMw6rpvoJH4Ef-l94yzMzSShFFYH9awErvz6hrFG2NIFkq8EL_nzUU3hsTYpgHj47ZgLQYPe5g1Fxhnjn-cDT3SS45JxYAalmvx7_4lruBCJafTsA/s320/stronggirl.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322629859226633858" /></a><br /><br />Don't get me wrong if you want to be superstrong (like powerlifter strong), then you're going to have to get bigger.<br /><br />However, there is a oft forgetten way to increase strength and power which doesn't require any of the following:<br /><br />- A gym which is deliberately kept rusty to keep girls out<br />- A squat rack covered in chalk<br />- Steroids<br />- Vein popping weights and chains<br /><br />This is great news for those of us who just want to be functionally strong.<br /><br />I'm like you - I want to be lean, strong and fast without looking like (or training like) a bulky bodybuilder.<br /><br />By this I mean I want to...<br /><br />...jump higher<br />...jump longer<br />...jump higher for longer<br />...run faster<br />...run fast for longer (yes improving your 10k requires increases in strength and power endurance not just another Sunday pavement plod)<br />...be able to perform lots of pull ups and be capable of lifting heavy weights<br /><br /><strong>What is this secret?</strong><br /><br />Well as usual it's not so much a secret but more of a forgotten art.<br /><br />This art form is the use of isometric contractions.<br /><br />Isometrics come in various shapes and forms but essentially they are defined as 'creating tension without any change in the length of the muscle'.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnxmt0iCrIRq_7TZ4DF1SlD-hRVpSVeb2MGBnPhsXB_f8eHzme4CwD9AUfvYfO68NpbnXe8RSB0dx9PMjU9W8uI_Jd-JcLgkR52mNeE97t12Hb4fKUE8z_ZIGfLUsImyBnE30sDjHBei0/s1600-h/stress.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnxmt0iCrIRq_7TZ4DF1SlD-hRVpSVeb2MGBnPhsXB_f8eHzme4CwD9AUfvYfO68NpbnXe8RSB0dx9PMjU9W8uI_Jd-JcLgkR52mNeE97t12Hb4fKUE8z_ZIGfLUsImyBnE30sDjHBei0/s320/stress.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322630392739270354" /></a><br /><strong>Not all tension is good!</strong><br /><br />Isometrics are a great addition for those who want to increase strength without adding muscle by having to do heavy weight training such as 5 x 5 reps of deadlifts or squats, or for those who don't have access to the equipment they need.<br /><br />This training essentially involves creating near maximum tension in a muscle without moving the joints in question.<br /><br />This can be done either by simply tensing them on the spot or trying to move an immovable object.<br /><br /><strong>Examples:</strong><br /><br />Trying to push over a brick wall<br /><br />Trying to perform the action of a dumbbell shoulder press against the resistance of a partner who is stronger than you<br /><br /><strong>Why do them?</strong><br /><br />Isometric contractions enable you to focus on creating maximum tension in the muscles you need to be stronger, such as the quads, hamstrings and glutes for those looking to jump higher.<br /><br />This will improve the firing patterns from your brain to your muscle enabling you to recruit more of the muscle fibres.<br /><br />The result is a stronger you!<br /><br /><strong>How do you do them?</strong><br /><br />All will be revealed soon but my favourite method focusses on being able to generate explosive power.<br /><br />It goes something like this...<br /><br /><strong>For the chest</strong> <br /><br />Use this to improve push up and bench press strength and punching power if you do marital arts, boxing etc.<br /><br />Push with 80% of your maximum effort against a wall with both hands for 3-5 seconds.<br /><br />Your elbows should be at about the angle they are at the bottom of the push up (the hard bit where you struggle the most!)<br /><br />Make sure you have a strong split leg stance so you don't fall back.<br /><br />Rest 10 seconds.<br /><br />Repeat the wall push.<br /><br />Straight away perform 8 explosive push ups off the floor. If you are just learning to do push ups you would just do normal push ups as fast as possible.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiytvkyVD2W-DJdkFwcjK5PF401VwT0dmVhlEVqv1KD6HEHI-php9l6wIS4hfv3kDsY9CgU18dVOpmmN9LlYjniKMo-zTNdkyhNO81GaR9GKlSTabSdMkigTDitTjnT8VHYH-lYwduSj0Y/s1600-h/birckwall.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 228px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiytvkyVD2W-DJdkFwcjK5PF401VwT0dmVhlEVqv1KD6HEHI-php9l6wIS4hfv3kDsY9CgU18dVOpmmN9LlYjniKMo-zTNdkyhNO81GaR9GKlSTabSdMkigTDitTjnT8VHYH-lYwduSj0Y/s320/birckwall.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322630890023332498" /></a><br /><strong>Wear proper attire when doing brick wall isometrics please!</strong><br /><br /><strong>For the legs</strong><br /><br />Use this to increase your vertical jump.<br /><br />Isometrics are a bit harder to do with the legs without certain equipment but a great way is to sit in a wall squat (back against wall with knees at ninety) holding two weights.<br /><br />Sit for 60 seconds creating as as much tension as you can in your legs and bum.<br /><br />Immediately perform 8 jump squats getting as high as you can.<br /><br />Perform 4-5 rounds of each exercise.<br /><br />If you do this once or twice per week in addition to your usual training you will soon find yourself getting a lot stronger in all the exercises you find hard!<br /><br />Remember all athletic performance requires stress and now you can't use the excuse of a lack of equipment!<br /><br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-86543372957606317642009-04-06T01:04:00.000-07:002009-04-06T01:31:34.470-07:00The doctor speaks on fat loss pillsToday I'm handing over my blog to a doctor I know here in Britain - we often have interesting dicussions about the state of British health!<br /><br />Here's what she had to say in response to a rant I had about the recommendations MOST doctors give out being relatively useless in solving Britain's obesity crisis. <br /><br />Now before I get set upon, there ARE some doctors who, because they actually train themselves and really do eat healthily, give out recommendations beyonhd the usual 'moderate exercise 3 times per week and 5 a day' rubbish!<br /><br />Unfortunately these people are sadly in a very small minority. <br /><br />My own doctor is overweight. (The guy below is not my doctor by the way!)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLsPJHThUbA-PfORqehmlCzDF2cwLPMB8_9XFhuVuFyfLYSl_uwrv_27UdHKlhR9cZexiqdnrN0pBOQf6R2DiUXhzGoC3EzuoDeXmuKKFh8qRve4IGKopxrVGqhlqUUJKyg46ldgm_ueE/s1600-h/fat+doctor.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLsPJHThUbA-PfORqehmlCzDF2cwLPMB8_9XFhuVuFyfLYSl_uwrv_27UdHKlhR9cZexiqdnrN0pBOQf6R2DiUXhzGoC3EzuoDeXmuKKFh8qRve4IGKopxrVGqhlqUUJKyg46ldgm_ueE/s320/fat+doctor.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321491794907282850" /></a><br /><br />It's a disgrace and hard to see a way past it, especially when you see the problems doctors face.....<br /><br />**************************************************<br /><br />"Most of my overweight patients are over 40, don't possess a pair of trainers <br />and think that healthy eating means having salad with their third takeaway <br />of the week. <br /><br /><strong>They take little responsibility </strong>for their own predicament, always having an excuse ready, and, if they want a solution to their weight problem (and believe me, many don't), want someone else to fix the problem for them.<br /><br /><strong>The only medications available to facilitate weight loss are useless without <br />significant lifestyle changes</strong>, and are never something I suggest to people. <br /><br />However, <strong>the pressure to prescribe can be great from those who have read articles in the latest women's magazine</strong>. <br /><br /><strong>To date I have not had anyone who has lost a significant amount of weight with them</strong>, mainly because they fail to make big enough changes to their diet and exercise regime, divulging all responsibility to the medication and me.<br /><br />Take a recent patient who in 6 months has lost only 10kg (9% of their original weight) <strong>despite taking sibutramine (an appetite suppressant), </strong><strong>in comparison with my 9.5kg (14%) in under 3 months</strong>. <br /><br />The <strong>perpetual excuses of parties, friends visiting and lack of motivation </strong>abound.<br /><br />The new fad for gastric banding is also taking over. <br /><br />I have a patient with a BMI over 50 (yes, over 50) who says <strong>she can't eat less as she has to entertain with work and it would be embarrassing </strong>to not partake in the food and drink as she does. But <strong>she would like a gastric band as that would give her an excuse to say no. </strong><br />Therein lies her problem.<br /><br />No responsibility and passing the buck to someone or something else.<br /><br />Equally many of those I see have zero knowledge of what a healthy diet and exercise plan looks like. <br /><br />People who contact you for either exercise and/or diet advice are already, by definition, aware that how they live needs changing and are taking proactive steps to make changes. <br /><br />Most of the people who come in contact with me have no real insight into their predicament.<br /><br />Advice has to be tailored to their educational level and level of understanding of the problem. Initial suggestions to 'exercise more and eat 5 a day' are often major progress in their lifestyle. <br /><br />For someone who regards walking up 1 flight of stairs at work a couple of times a day as exercise, getting them to take a walk at lunchtime is a big step.<br /><br />So, enough of my ranting. I am converted, I know what needs to be done, but persuading the unwilling masses is a task not even I can achieve."<br /><br />********************************************************<br /><br />See the problems the Western world faces?<br /><br />I lay the blame squarely at the feet of the media and the government.<br /><br />We are all programmed by what we see and hear all day so for those who have been brought up on crap magazines and quick fix media hype, can we really blame them.<br /><br />To a certain extent I believe it is there responsibility to find out what they need to do but I guess it could be argued that they think they <strong>are</strong> taking that action by reading those magazines.<br /><br />Is there anything we can do other than have the government impose much stricter rules on what can be advertised? <br /><br />What can we expect when our own leader has more 'Chins' than a Chinese phone book?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmDdh6Xf9Icgb8LlxC75Othbqu5YPY779FR7SeG_FgySOVG2VYkgBxdo3sPLdxopg9dDl-w0CkntF3faUR1Ml4LeM9mhbayIPpJ2IEt9iSkxWVKGnSU8Aq51f2cKGSQgJXNA_Fqnqffc4/s1600-h/gordon+brown.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmDdh6Xf9Icgb8LlxC75Othbqu5YPY779FR7SeG_FgySOVG2VYkgBxdo3sPLdxopg9dDl-w0CkntF3faUR1Ml4LeM9mhbayIPpJ2IEt9iSkxWVKGnSU8Aq51f2cKGSQgJXNA_Fqnqffc4/s320/gordon+brown.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321492447016727730" /></a><br /><br />No amount of shouting and raving from people like me can overcome the mulit-billion dollar marketing campaigns of the big firms.<br /><br />Surely it should have gone through lengthy testing before being allowed to be advertised?<br /><br />How do we implement this?<br /><br />It's a sad state of affairs guys and we all need to start sitting up, taking notes and doing something about it.<br /><br />Our doctor claims it is a big step for people to start walking each day but is it when there is concrete evidence that interval training, weight training and 95% clean diets are the only way to force life-changing fat burning processes in the human body?<br /><br />How can we say it is a success if someone loses 1.5 stones but still has a very high risk of cardiac complications, diabetes and various other diseases. They will more than likely die early.<br /><br />I also see problems with 'tailoring' advice to individual needs if I'm honest. It's like the failed attempts at downgrading cannabis to prevent drug use.<br /><br />We pander to people rather than telling them straight "You're obese adn unless you do exactly what I tell you, you will die."<br /><br />We all know gastric banding won't work in the long-term as it just gives people an excuse to start again with their crappy lifestyles.<br /><br />Like the global warming issue, something big needs to happen and fast or do we face irreversable damage to the human race?<br /><br />What are your thoughts?<br /><br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-36698227665014373472009-04-02T07:24:00.000-07:002009-04-02T09:12:49.432-07:00The Fat Loss Results LadderA few years back when I decided I was going to commit my life to ripping fat off people and getting them as close to athletic status as possible, I began to wonder if one thing was more important than the other.<br /><br />See most people fail at fat loss attempts due to a perceived lack of time.<br /><br />They <strong>do</strong> have time but the perception is there.<br /><br />I needed a way to prioritise certain elements to deliver fast results in the short-term to buy me time to change these perceptions.<br /><br />Unfortunately the world is impatient especially personal training clients.<br /><br />Man they can get nasty if those pounds don't come off immediately! <br /><br />I got inspired by Alwyn Cosgrove's 'Hierarchy of Fat Loss' but since then I've developed a comprehensive list of my own.<br /><br /><strong>This is the 'Fat Loss Results Ladder'</strong><br /><br />A lot of these I struggled to prioritize over another as my truthful answer is 'Do them all, now!' if you want great results.<br /><br />However, there is some kind of logic to this which pretty much goes...<br /><br /><strong>Mental stability --- Nutrition --- Intense training --- Recovery --- Tweaking</strong><br /><br />If you are struggling for results, then work your way down the ladder, ticking them off as you go. If you hit one that you are not adhering to, sort it out immediately and you will more than likely see results. If not move on to the next and the next.<br /><br /><strong>1 - Set STORM goals which have solid emotional attachments</strong><br /><br />Specific, Timed, Operations-based, Relevant, Measurable.<br /><br />Have you made sure you qualify for these goals and you know exactly what is required of you? <br /><br />Are you willing to pay the price for this goal in terms of finances, time and sacrifice?<br /><br />Try the <a href="http://www.budurl.com/magichundred"><strong>Magic Hundred</strong></a>, like I do- it's revolutionised my approach to life!<br /><br /><strong>2 - Eat lean protein, vegetables, healthy fats 95% of the time</strong><br /><br />This means eliminating coffee, alcohol and all processed sugars - FULL STOP.<br /> <br /><strong>3 - Perform heavy resistance training and / or metabolic resistance training,<br />involving all muscle groups 2-3 times per week</strong><br /><br />I prefer metabolic weight training as found in the <a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com">Fat Loss Action Blueprint</a>. It's fun, it's intense and it delivers great conditioning at the same time!<br /><br /><strong>4 - Perform high intensity interval training and or sprint interval training 2-3 times per week</strong> <br /><br /><object width="320" height="265"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IkwJv3rvNCM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IkwJv3rvNCM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br />200-400m sprints are optimal if going by distance.<br /><br />Alternatively, use time e.g 1 minute hard, 2 minute recovery pace x 8<br /><br /><strong>5 - Drink 30-50ml of water per kilo (2lbs) of bodyweight every single day</strong><br /><br />Water has more power than Barack Obama - it rules EVERYTHING in your body.<br /><br /><strong>6 - Eat 70-120g of lean protein every day</strong><br /><br />Small ladies towards 70g, big lads towards 120g<br /><br /><strong>7 - Eat a protein based breakfast at home, everyday</strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib4EOlEIRwQC3vXG75YLxLXR6UovWSy0uEOuFqsAapOd7MoWOpEFhbiyd-cKN62-7fJt5x_NPkl1Uzffmu5pa3e-2WZecK5Xvx0sUCA3oMszvQQqiX14Oc6odhDuDxr18nHe9wrSkgJMQ/s1600-h/Asparagus+Herb+Omelet+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib4EOlEIRwQC3vXG75YLxLXR6UovWSy0uEOuFqsAapOd7MoWOpEFhbiyd-cKN62-7fJt5x_NPkl1Uzffmu5pa3e-2WZecK5Xvx0sUCA3oMszvQQqiX14Oc6odhDuDxr18nHe9wrSkgJMQ/s320/Asparagus+Herb+Omelet+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320109723163582610" /></a><br /><br />Use eggs where possible or a good protein supplement, but try to avoid sugarry cereals even the 'healthy' ones which aren't such as Special K.<br /><br />If you don't know how to make healthy breakfasts get <a href="http://www.fatlosscookbook.com"><strong>'Cooking For The Fitness Lifestyle'</strong></a><br /><br /><strong>8 - Make sure you really are busting your butt and sweating hard in your training sessions</strong><br /><br />You should struggle to finish a session - this means not giving up at the first sign of lactic acid!<br /><br />Get a training partner who is fitter than you to make this happen!<br /><br /><strong>9 - Ensure you are cutting your rest, adding weight or adding reps every single week</strong><br /><br />Sessions should get <strong>harder </strong>and more intense as you progress <strong>not</strong> easier!<br /><br /><strong>10 - Restrict carbs to only after training sessions for recovery</strong><br /><br />Refuel your muscles ready for the next session, then let your body feed on fat at all other times.<br /><br /><strong>11 - Fast 1-2 times per week for 24 hours</strong><br /><br />I do this regularly following the <a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat"><strong>EatStopEat</strong></a> program. <br /><br />I drink nothing but water for 24 hours once per week, which minimises my body fat and helps me clear out the few chemicals which do enter my body!<br /><br />You'll love this program and it may just change your life and body - that's how much I value it.<br /><br /><strong>12 - Make sure you are totally focused on short and intense rather than long and moderate paced aerobic exercise</strong><br /><br />Forget aerobics and long-runs. They're so 90's (said in high school cheerleader style).<br /><br /><strong>13 - Add 10-15 minutes aerobic training at the end of each session</strong><br /><br />Intense training releases fatty acids into the bloodstream. Moderate paced cardio can then help burn this instantly.<br /><br />Get to bed before 10.30 at least 4 times per week<br /><br /><strong>14 - Have a deload week every 4 weeks to allow muscle recovery and regeneration</strong><br /><br />Recovery is where the magic happens. Constant bashing of your body will lead to backwards steps rather than forwards<br /><br /><strong>15 - Make sure you are mildly (or very) anxious before training</strong><br /> <br />Your last session should have you a little nervous about the next - believe me it's good for you as you know you're training hard enough!<br /><br /><strong>16 - Eat only organic food</strong><br /><br />Less chemicals in the body mean less fuzz to prevent your internal systems working as they are designed to.<br /><br /><strong>17 - Add fish oil supplements</strong><br /><br />Strong evidence to suggest this can help burn fat and keep everything healthy.<br /><br /><strong>18 - Forget the irrelevant stuff!</strong><br /><br />Forget about very minor issues like walking up stairs instead of the elevator, chasing the dog around the park, chewing gum, drinking ice cold water etc!<br /><br />Too much time is wasted on the things that account for such a small amount of calories that it doesn't really make any difference!<br /><br />****************************************************<br /><br />There you have it - the Fat Loss Results Ladder from Storm Force Fitness.<br /><br />If you are tempted to skip rungs because they don't suit you, you have the answer right there to your fat loss problem!<br /><br />You must be willing to <strong>make </strong>changes if you want to <strong>see</strong> changes.<br /><br />The key - <strong>GET ON WITH IT!</strong><br /><br />Jon<br /><br /><strong>Resources to help:</strong><br /><br /><a href="http://www.budurl.com/magichundred"><strong>Magic Hundred - Goal Getting</strong></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.budurl.com/magichundred"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhi-n0LVSpiTSvXNgan10-DYvbjrdcC967uwZEgv0Np_3lWnp2ZjLOQMGUm4_zkNCC-Zsq23GihDtJED027CAMJ7O0VdTLPiczETrWndrp5-jo8s4lIo1oBMazG-W9HiXhrNVK0G7s8A/s1600-h/mhundred.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 224px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhi-n0LVSpiTSvXNgan10-DYvbjrdcC967uwZEgv0Np_3lWnp2ZjLOQMGUm4_zkNCC-Zsq23GihDtJED027CAMJ7O0VdTLPiczETrWndrp5-jo8s4lIo1oBMazG-W9HiXhrNVK0G7s8A/s320/mhundred.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320107877994839250" /></a></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><strong>Fat Loss Action Blueprint</strong></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAaC8mXH1SJBY_9YGL9HRt-pd-mzoGWtQ2DHEg11j2C0ToAcpJgZGaiEiaapGO6bqh33y6buJLs-MTcOp9m1a9k-VPfpnjHaWnDurHOEBBwpSKaIea51wKPelRvBQAhFc8PYNX2FttyCo/s1600-h/FLAB+e-book.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 256px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAaC8mXH1SJBY_9YGL9HRt-pd-mzoGWtQ2DHEg11j2C0ToAcpJgZGaiEiaapGO6bqh33y6buJLs-MTcOp9m1a9k-VPfpnjHaWnDurHOEBBwpSKaIea51wKPelRvBQAhFc8PYNX2FttyCo/s320/FLAB+e-book.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320107518615770978" /></a></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.fatlosscookbook.com"><strong>Cooking For The Fitness Lifestyle</strong></a><br /><br /><a href="http://http://www.fatlosscookbook.com"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbQjsEe79nQw548qgQyusxElYueWD_qqdoeuuHEpIMhX9JfidzVwpJSALVW47LYr1upjAD2s64rDovDAJxNYk4A99eXlK0hS1Uthq5oRm1eTMyHrU3c9sCK8tfiFUFCUy_xvodZGKpcu8/s1600-h/cover.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 247px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbQjsEe79nQw548qgQyusxElYueWD_qqdoeuuHEpIMhX9JfidzVwpJSALVW47LYr1upjAD2s64rDovDAJxNYk4A99eXlK0hS1Uthq5oRm1eTMyHrU3c9sCK8tfiFUFCUy_xvodZGKpcu8/s320/cover.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320107018366794466" /></a></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat"><strong>Eat Stop Eat - Intermittent fasting for fat loss</strong></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYlwPrjxEP18oL26RwmsKRMZA3OMO9WE1NCL4osnhGXorh6nwbqlYq3Kx04SwNHcUKrbKB8ONX9Z3wQyf03WQPsbHtuV7qnYQ2-uAoRrRFcnDJBEL3DrhmXGVAFOCyvKRlyH8y_s9vAdw/s1600-h/eat+stop+eat.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 203px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYlwPrjxEP18oL26RwmsKRMZA3OMO9WE1NCL4osnhGXorh6nwbqlYq3Kx04SwNHcUKrbKB8ONX9Z3wQyf03WQPsbHtuV7qnYQ2-uAoRrRFcnDJBEL3DrhmXGVAFOCyvKRlyH8y_s9vAdw/s320/eat+stop+eat.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320107273864989858" /></a></a>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-45508631468997819982009-03-30T07:20:00.000-07:002009-03-30T08:11:00.888-07:00The deal with proteinWhen men were men and girls did cardio, protein was for those who sought nothing but arms big enough to get stuck in a cat flap.<br /><br />However, times have changed and now girls do weights (if they have any sense) and cats themselves are fat enough to get stuck due to being fed the same rubbish their owners eat.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK-PJIt1airMBS6FRBY3CvB1JGm3tvG7UgCtLj6ektLWeJf78DRJYbfPojKVevIuKmkUifY_BEScI8u7QKt_EvNcxM3NzSBJHE7_TKhw1Xh_RrCrcoFVChbw0M2Q8RAEh-dJIe1nwBXDw/s1600-h/fatcat.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 302px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK-PJIt1airMBS6FRBY3CvB1JGm3tvG7UgCtLj6ektLWeJf78DRJYbfPojKVevIuKmkUifY_BEScI8u7QKt_EvNcxM3NzSBJHE7_TKhw1Xh_RrCrcoFVChbw0M2Q8RAEh-dJIe1nwBXDw/s320/fatcat.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318995874592840034" /></a><br /><br />With this new found wave of girls with great, toned bodies and metrosexual men with crap hair cuts came the multi-billion dollar protein industry with everything from 'Red Carpet Body Shakes' to 'Maxi Bicep Pump Magic' with more colours than a Willy Wonka golden ticket bar.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX0cTqOJHIKQZfN7nwFYRY_hA0xnx3pdxQ-KANi4iaKWYT_WZjNXJ3McexXLl7R9ACYCCWQiyybUJjBnCDoXXsHvgzcnerxbOcIiclESsi4yFJ7EdF6kgoPIQkOgsXZVWyegjrV4cE6Tw/s1600-h/peterandre.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 223px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX0cTqOJHIKQZfN7nwFYRY_hA0xnx3pdxQ-KANi4iaKWYT_WZjNXJ3McexXLl7R9ACYCCWQiyybUJjBnCDoXXsHvgzcnerxbOcIiclESsi4yFJ7EdF6kgoPIQkOgsXZVWyegjrV4cE6Tw/s320/peterandre.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318995990953982594" /></a><br /><br />I too got suckered into thinking more protein equals more muscle.<br /><br />However, after reading Brad Pilon's <strong><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat">Eat Stop Eat</a></strong> e-book which comes with 'How Much Protein?' my eyes were opened wide to some interesting truths.<br /><br /><strong>1)</strong> Nearly all research confirming the need for 5-6 meals per day all containing protein, has been funded by supplement companies. <br /><br />You can work that one out for yourself.<br /><br /><strong>2)</strong> Having shovelled as much protein in as possible to build muscle, was I really that much bigger over a few years? <br /><br />The answer is 'not really'. <br /><br />Surely if muscle growth was directly correlated to protein intake I would have nearly twice as much muscle as I had when I ate three meals per day containing protein, compared to six.<br /><br />Brad goes on to discuss how many of the guys we see guzzling shakes and bars as soon as they're off the gym floor rarely make noticeable progress unless they are on the 'magic juice'.<br /><br />This would indicate it is actually something wrong in their training programs.<br /><br /><strong>3)</strong> There is strong evidence that past eating 70-120g of protein per day, extra protein will not be used to build extra muscle. (Small females towards the lower end and big boys towards the top)<br /><br />Annoyingly, these amounts are the same as what was first discovered around 1900.<br /><br />That was 100 years well spent then.<br /><br /><strong>Girls listen up</strong> - many of you (and some blokes) do not get ENOUGH protein. You should be aiming for 70g of lean quality protein each day if you want to add muscle and burn more fat for a curvy, lean body.<br /><br /><strong>4)</strong> Much of the research 'proving' that protein intake above these amounts led to greater lean muscle tissue is actually flawed as they are based not on measuring lean muscle tissue but on positive nitrogen balance in the body.<br /><br />Brad tells us that at this time, there is no way to accurately measure lean muscle tissue increase and no concrete evidence that positive nitrogen balance means a proportionate increase in lean muscle tissue.<br /><br /><strong>5)</strong> There is little evidence to suggest we are able to put on more than 2-5lbs of pure lean muscle tissue (not including water) over about 8 weeks.<br /><br />You really must <strong><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat">see the review of the research</a></strong> that Brad provides to fully grasp these concepts!<br /><br /><strong>Self-experiment</strong><br /><br />As always I had to experiment on myself before agreeing or disagreeing with any of this.<br /><br />Along with the intermittent fasting of the <strong><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat">Eat Stop Eat program </a></strong>(I did one 24h fast per week instead of two as I'm not looking to drop weight), I reduced my protein intake from around 170g per day to 100-110g.<br /><br />Bear in mind I am doing this during a 12 week tough conditioning program which isn't focussed on heavy lifting. I'm focussed solely on improving endurance, stamina, and power-endurance during this program which includes one long run each week.<br /><br />You would therefore expect a drop in muscle mass due to lower protein intake if what we thought we knew about protein was right.<br /><br />However, in the last 4 weeks my weight has remained exactly the same at 79kg with my body fat reducing slightly as can be seen below.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mSlSOs_FdO9dk1koZG3sCH0hmvb_YlvAaCPITFAuZgxMTzTqfBSD4l7bphSYqvjyy_3-Jvn7L_y5Pp52vnKvGMTqTYdI71IeZG75NUef7Rof7uSZaghhd7aGv75y9cGBkUR7QZhNQJA/s1600-h/1-5.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 129px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mSlSOs_FdO9dk1koZG3sCH0hmvb_YlvAaCPITFAuZgxMTzTqfBSD4l7bphSYqvjyy_3-Jvn7L_y5Pp52vnKvGMTqTYdI71IeZG75NUef7Rof7uSZaghhd7aGv75y9cGBkUR7QZhNQJA/s400/1-5.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318998265274295442" /></a><br /><br />The other benefits of using Pilon's program are four fold:<br /><br /><strong>1) </strong>My food bill has gone down by 20 GBP per week (about $30).<br /><br /><strong>2)</strong> It was nice to have a day without having to worry about eating times and I got a lot more done because I timed it with my busy Fridays.<br /><br /><strong>3) </strong>It made me realise that a lot of my 'hunger' is merely because I and the crappy fitness magazines have programmed me to think I need food (including lots of protein) every 3 hours or I am going to waste away.<br /><br />This has also been great for self-discipline.<br /><br /><strong>4)</strong> It automatically creates a calorie deficit for fat loss without needing to measure portions or rule your life by food times.<br /><br /><br /><strong>Before you protein monsters dismiss this, listen up.</strong><br /><br />Anyone that knows me well enough knows that the concept of Jon Le Tocq going 24 hours with nothing but water is absurd. I am an eating machine capable of devouring obscene amounts of food when required in eating competitions.<br /><br />Thoughts about doing this bounced around my head for a good ten days but I ALWAYS experiment if I think it will bring clients and readers better results when they have stuttered to a halt.<br /><br />You will surprise yourself and could completely change your approach to food both for yourself and for clients if you are a trainer!<br /><br />I strongly suggest you check out Brad's program as soon as possible to <strong><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat">discover the truth about protein.</a></strong><br /><br />Failing that, just experiment on yourself for a few weeks - you'll surprise yourself and could save a packet!<br /><br />PS Brad has some very interesting thoughts on protein supplements...<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.budurl.com/eatstopeat">Eat Stop Eat</a></strong>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-56253644030053515432009-03-28T11:26:00.000-07:002009-03-28T11:58:08.885-07:00The single leg squatI have a love-hate relationship with this exercise!<br /><br />I love the effects on leg strength and hip/knee stability.<br /><br />I hate how much concentration it requires to avoid falling off a table with a kettlebell shaped hole in the head.<br /><br />The single leg squat and its variations should be one of the first players on your team sheet when designing a workout if you are looking to develop leg strength and power for sport or just functional strength.<br /><br />Performed properly it will do wonders for developing strength through full range of motion on one leg - something sadly neglected in a lot of strength programs when too much emphasis is put on size and the 'big three' of squats, deadlifts and bench press.<br /><br />Sport is not performed on two legs or lying on a bench, so why train like that.<br /><br />These exercises clearly have their place in a strength program but they are not the be-all and end-all unless you're a powerlifter.<br /><br />It takes time to learn and will require patience and significant amounts of flexibility and mobility work - so don't be impatient.<br /><br />Here's me wobbling through my best ever in terms of weight!<br /><br />You'll see me doing it off a high table - this is a good move for tall people who may not be able to get optimal results from working on the floor. Due to lever problems from having legs like a giraffe it can become rather awkward!<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Kkeak0l6yQ8&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Kkeak0l6yQ8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-43674297194615440852009-03-26T14:32:00.001-07:002009-03-26T15:23:37.771-07:00The evidence for intervals trumping aerobic cardioHere's some evidence as to why interval training must be a regular, tough, sweat-fest of a session on your training timetable!<br /><br />This really is just some of the piles of research I have next to me!<br /><br />Let's look at some answers to sceptics, aerobics fans and those who 'don't have time'...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_b59O6XTGPuJUsj5Pn1cwV3ZjHmlPSOJk1NPRKbvf048PoDultbAJ5-fEYtwkde7B1PGLvISalv_1sR79Yc9L2zpkL0XJ9vMWNQH0WtLu0pKIhv-h11zE8QasAiT6lkIQGTOeuPCk40w/s1600-h/slobbing"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 118px; height: 89px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_b59O6XTGPuJUsj5Pn1cwV3ZjHmlPSOJk1NPRKbvf048PoDultbAJ5-fEYtwkde7B1PGLvISalv_1sR79Yc9L2zpkL0XJ9vMWNQH0WtLu0pKIhv-h11zE8QasAiT6lkIQGTOeuPCk40w/s400/slobbing" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317625082392112114" /></a><br /><br /><strong>But I want to improve my stamina for running / cycling etc</strong><br /><br />Gibala et al (2006) compared low volume sprint training with high volume endurance (typical of running fanatics).<br /><br />Both groups performed 6 sessions over 14 days.<br /><br />The HIIT group performed 4-6 x 30 second intervals @ 250% of VO2 max (very hard!) with 4 min rest inbetween.<br /><br />The endurance group performed 90-120 min cycling at 65% of VO2 max (moderate).<br /><br />The HIIT group did 2.5 hours of training over 2 weeks whilst the endurance group did 10.5h.<br /><br />The results?<br /><br />Muscle oxidative capacity improvements was similar in both groups so muscle endurance capabilities will have improved at about the same rate, but the HIIT group spent 8 hours less doing it over 2 weeks!<br /><br /><strong>Aerobic exercise burns fat so it's better for fat burning</strong><br /><br />5 well trained distance runners were tested at each of the following:<br /><br />2 hours @ 24% of VO2 max (low intensity)<br />10 minutes @ 81% of VO2 max (relatively high intensity but continuous)<br />2 minutes on 2 minutes off @ 89% of VO2 max (high intensity intervals)<br /><br />(Brockman et al, 1993)<br /><br />After one hour of finishing the sessions, oxygen consumption was significantly higher following the intermittent exercise.<br /><br />After just 40 minutes, oxygen consumption had returned to base level in the walking test. This means no more fat burning until you do mroe exercise.<br /><br />This means metabolic rate was much higher - more calorie / fat burning whilst at rest!<br /><br /><strong>I've heard you burn more calories at the time of aerobic exercise.</strong><br /><br />This MAY be true but check this study out!<br /><br />A 20 week endurance program was compared with a 15 week High Intensity Interval Training program. (Tremblay et al, 1994)<br /><br />Over those weeks, the endurance group burned 120mJ of energy during exercise whereas the HIIT group burned 57.9mJ.<br /><br />Surely endurance wins then?<br /><br />Not when you consider that the HIIT group showed more pronounced reduction in body fat!<br /><br />So they trained for 5 weeks less but lost more fat - SHORTER TIME TO RESULTS!<br /><br />When they adjusted the results to compare fat loss in proportion to the cost of energy of the exercise sessions, the HIIT group lost 9 TIMES as much fat.<br /><br />It should be pretty clear now why I force home the point that how many calories you burn in a session is largely irrelevant - ignore calorie counters on cross-trainers etc!<br /><br /><strong>Yeah lots of science but does it work for real people?</strong><br /><br />Testimonial shots from normal people following <strong><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com">http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com</a></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTaUfUfr45LUaS7qpKrEqbmsOJ9lo6lLit6Ehqg853Wr_wtm0mJv3ACjV2NWa9aJoQTCFAXvyTCKJgklGrjfC6mmtcj2G934AfCMLwAZpaxSxYQRETiHb9MaUaJhE9afk3ifypQpBuKRw/s1600-h/JASONCHANGE.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTaUfUfr45LUaS7qpKrEqbmsOJ9lo6lLit6Ehqg853Wr_wtm0mJv3ACjV2NWa9aJoQTCFAXvyTCKJgklGrjfC6mmtcj2G934AfCMLwAZpaxSxYQRETiHb9MaUaJhE9afk3ifypQpBuKRw/s320/JASONCHANGE.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317623557606750034" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7eIzXAY2uVsWRJutem4j03wJf_r3LhvNfe964SO_eD207yJovmFKPupc7PiGZenr-iZMJ828GXsrMNtHPGfPyUzoWr8WsGsLkHIh-n752nbf0VKg-51Um8a8wIA2CgnJrQ6JLDHbr_S0/s1600-h/petrachangefront.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7eIzXAY2uVsWRJutem4j03wJf_r3LhvNfe964SO_eD207yJovmFKPupc7PiGZenr-iZMJ828GXsrMNtHPGfPyUzoWr8WsGsLkHIh-n752nbf0VKg-51Um8a8wIA2CgnJrQ6JLDHbr_S0/s320/petrachangefront.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317623398325002818" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcXWRG0bFkU2q4Xo3PfrAa6Yp-2y6_mmvjz6C4gFF1H_7dGXP5gqAuSO11ELlRs-UxLHddJlgKVq8yvBBrVhT7LpRS2Jw-k5FUzERNphA6hO8RVypDLu6-izbEY4mfYl68nuCbTikPQOQ/s1600-h/TOMSTRANSFORMATION.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcXWRG0bFkU2q4Xo3PfrAa6Yp-2y6_mmvjz6C4gFF1H_7dGXP5gqAuSO11ELlRs-UxLHddJlgKVq8yvBBrVhT7LpRS2Jw-k5FUzERNphA6hO8RVypDLu6-izbEY4mfYl68nuCbTikPQOQ/s320/TOMSTRANSFORMATION.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317623216258725890" /></a><br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com">http://www.fatlossactionblueprint.com</a></strong>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-48706491784861468522009-03-25T02:25:00.001-07:002009-03-25T02:52:46.271-07:00The reason you're failingI've seen this so many times, it's time to write an open and honest letter to those who are getting nowhere.<br /><br />Look, I love you guys and I love the emails I get asking questions but sometimes we all need a slap to wake us up, so that's what I'm delivering today!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyrn9VF-_XjLbY6_eLed99ALRYhF48ZUxblO_icOa7tRmdPs1_fxYCVV3echTMTFW3lwvXydOZ5OKmnZN7iNnRzBpkKTdOFQ8_ntClE5vS7VJp4FliX4kPbkxs5TRab3IvTmk_FbQLPU/s1600-h/slap.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyrn9VF-_XjLbY6_eLed99ALRYhF48ZUxblO_icOa7tRmdPs1_fxYCVV3echTMTFW3lwvXydOZ5OKmnZN7iNnRzBpkKTdOFQ8_ntClE5vS7VJp4FliX4kPbkxs5TRab3IvTmk_FbQLPU/s320/slap.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317059372403160802" /></a><br /><br />I have had personal training clients, mentor clients and FLAB followers say something very similar to this....<br /><br /><strong>"Hi Jon, I've hit a plateau and not really losing any weight. Can you help explain it? I'm not sure this program is working"</strong><br /><br />The answers are invariably the same on all fronts.<br /><br />1) You say you're following the nutrition guidelines then I find out from your food diary that you're..... <br /><br />...still having 4-5 glasses of wine per week<br />...staying out late on weekend nights<br />...having high levels of carbs for breakfast when you're not training until that evening if at all<br />...not drinking nearly enough water<br />...having far too many treats<br />...still drinking coffee because you mistakenly believe it helps your energy levels<br />...you're still eating bread and milk because you like it<br /><br /><strong>(Bonus tip - don't post photos of you getting pissed on facebook then act confused about lack of results...)</strong><br /><br />If I ask you to eliminate ALL processed foods and eat clean, healthy foods ALL the time, this is what you must do.<br /><br />Doing it 80% of the time will get you nowhere.<br /><br />You are either following guidelines or you are not. <br /><br />Consequently you are either getting results or you're not! It's that simple.<br /><br />If you are overweight, and then embark on following the Storm Force Nutrition Blueprint or any other clean eating plan, you WILL lose body fat unless you have some serious medical condition.<br /><br />Even then it will more than likely still work very well.<br /><br />Yes these changes may be difficult at first but that's the way it is.<br /><br />Noticeable results require noticeable changes. You must accept this, immediately not in 4 weeks time.<br /><br />2) Not MAKING time to get 4 or 5 intense metabolic weight training sessions done each week.<br /><br />Doing one, even if it is personal training is not NEARLY enough and won't make the slightest bit of difference.<br /><br />Don't think that by having taken the step to get a trainer or mentor you are about to discover some magical method which brings results.<br /><br />Yes it is a huge step but only if you do EXACTLY what you are told.<br /><br />I don't waste time with people by giving out exercises like bicep curls and tricep extensions for fat loss.<br /><br />Everything you are told to do is for a specific reason so if you don't do it regularly, as a priority and with intensity which leaves you needing you recovery time, only mediocre results will follow if at all.<br /><br />Even when I train myself I doubt whether I can get through some sessions but I am so focussed on my goals that I push my limits as much as I can.<br /><br />This FORCES your body to change - it literally has no choice.<br /><br />And no pilates, yoga, golf and taking the dog for a walk do not count WHATSOEVER.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWY3Lltu0PZVH2kGUX8-DBfOC5k7NKjQfA7xuTn-coTLodWbdBW-7wTSPIXbyp8kBy8nhPNNeawZfAZ48Gk7qgffXA8dimDvlbSgl4e-vP1tklVDzNhxw5dMAyushlnibLQwe4W4xJVOk/s1600-h/fat+man+golf.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 255px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWY3Lltu0PZVH2kGUX8-DBfOC5k7NKjQfA7xuTn-coTLodWbdBW-7wTSPIXbyp8kBy8nhPNNeawZfAZ48Gk7qgffXA8dimDvlbSgl4e-vP1tklVDzNhxw5dMAyushlnibLQwe4W4xJVOk/s320/fat+man+golf.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317060500973775330" /></a><br /><br />These may be done in addition to prescribed programs but DO NOT replace what you should be doing for your fat loss / muscle building training.<br /><br />3) You keep altering your program because of social events or not having enough time.<br /><br />You need to start making time to get all of the required training in every single week.<br /><br />Chopping the intervals in half because you had to meet your friend is going to chop your fat loss results in half if not more.<br /><br />If you want life-changing results, you need to start living the lifestyle required, not just do it for 2 weeks whilst motivation is still high.<br /><br />You need to develop mental strength through solid goal setting so that you can do it day in, day out.<br /><br />You need to learn to turn down social invitations if you are too weak to avoid alcohol when you're there.<br /><br />Also, blaming your work schedule is not productive. Yes I'm sure you do have lots of appointments but if you want results you need to MAKE time.<br /><br />Many people have done this with great results and they are busier than you!<br /><br />If you're not willing to do this, please don't blame the program.<br /><br />It is your fault and YES, you DO have a choice you are just not willing to make it.<br /><br /><br />Every moment is a chance to start again.<br /><br />If you messed up last week don't dwell on it but take the necessary steps to stop it from happening again!<br /><br />So have a think and be honest with yourself whether you're on one of my programs or someone elses.<br /><br />Are you REALLY doing it 100%?<br /><br />Jon<br /><br />PS If food boredom is killing you get the <strong><a href="http://www.fatlosscookbook.com">Storm Force cookbook</a></strong>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-17444281188369414212009-03-23T02:52:00.000-07:002009-03-23T15:27:14.976-07:00How to structure a training weekThis post is no doubt going to leave me open to those who disagree and tell me that you should have a clear linear periodisation plan that first builds strength then converts it to power etc.<br /><br />Put your toys back in the pram and your periodisation textbook back on the shelf. Science is great, real world results are better.<br /><br />Just to prove how powerful this can be, I yesterday ran 8.25 miles in 58 minutes which included 8 x 50m STEEP hill climbs up and down on grass at half way and a fairly steep road hill at about 7 miles.<br /><br />Whilst this is not anything that special to a 'runner' I run once per week because I have to get ready for an endurance event I am doing in July.<br /><br />I hadn't run until February.<br /><br />I have also maintained my muscle and kept body fat at about 7% rather than ending up like a stick thin Sunday Shuffler / Pavement Pounder.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipppk4tr3ZwizBZ1E1evC5t6cb_Qg0EXFI0wLtnN8C1ZMXlP3NX4vNXr_Z9746KtAQ_uPZWi23eN6T3CNUIorm1RnJTYi_5offnW5vcq0oxUEp3LQ2gQ4tZu0LYusXfayv3T5Zx0lxPs8/s1600-h/IMGP0899.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipppk4tr3ZwizBZ1E1evC5t6cb_Qg0EXFI0wLtnN8C1ZMXlP3NX4vNXr_Z9746KtAQ_uPZWi23eN6T3CNUIorm1RnJTYi_5offnW5vcq0oxUEp3LQ2gQ4tZu0LYusXfayv3T5Zx0lxPs8/s320/IMGP0899.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316322126403463122" /></a><br /><br />I can also...<br /><br />- Deadlift 2.5 times my bodyweight<br />- Squat 2 x my bodyweight<br />- Perform a single leg squat with a 32kg kettlebell<br />- Perform 15-20 single arm push ups<br /><br />This isn't a brag and there are many people who could outperform that, however the point is that people tend to believe that you can only have good endurance OR be strong OR maintain muscle.<br /><br />Consider that I also have kind of bodytype which qualifies me for the Grasshopper Olympics and has had me labelled 'lanky streak of ****' by my Grandad and 'gangly' in local newspaper sports reports.<br /><br />If you want to be the BEST at any of the above, then no this training isn't ideal, but the vast majority of us out there want to be capable of many things all at once - it makes life much more enjoyable and gives us much more potential!<br /><br />My training philosophy is to build lean athletic bodies which, whilst they won't win bodybuilding competitions nor half-marathons, are capable of holding their own in ANY competition.<br /><br />They are capable of sprinting faster than most, running 10k faster than most and looking better than most. <br /><br />Clearly the need for such abilities will fluctuate but the point is you have a great base of everything so that you can be ready to specialise for any event as required.<br /><br />So what does a training week look like for me at the moment?:<br /><br /><strong>Monday - Anaerobic Conditioning</strong><br /><br />A challenge such as 5 rounds as fast as possible of:<br /><br />30 extreme kettlebell swings<br />15 burpee-pull ups<br />10 kettlebell jerks<br />10 sprints across my studio<br />No rest<br /><br />Repeat until 5 rounds are complete<br /><br /><strong>Tuesday - Strength</strong><br /><br />Dumbell snatch <br />4 x 5 reps 45 sec rest<br /><br />Superset of 1 leg squat with 2 kettlebell press <br />4 x 5 each side 60 sec rest after press<br /><br />Superset of 1 arm push up with pull up (using weighted vest)<br />4 sets stoppping 1 rep short of failure<br /><br /><strong>Wednesday - Anaerobic conditioning</strong><br /><br />Hill 'sprintervals'<br /><br />Treadmill on steep incline (or find a nice hill outside - I live in the city centre!)<br /><br />8 rounds of 45 seconds at high speed - 90 seconds rest between each interval<br /><br />15 minutes steady run at 75-80%<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IkwJv3rvNCM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IkwJv3rvNCM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>Thursday - Rest</strong><br /><br />Mobility and flexibility work )e.g foam rolling and developmental stretching<br /><br /><strong>Friday - Strength</strong><br /><br />1 arm dumbbell clean and press<br /><br />Superset of barbell front squat with weighted pull up <br />4 x 5 reps - 60 seconds rest after pull up<br /><br />Superset of 1 arm dumbbell chest press with single arm row <br />4 x 5 reps each side - 60 seconds rest after pull up<br /><br />Glute-ham raise<br />4 sets to 1 short of failure<br /><br /><strong>Saturday - Rest</strong><br /><br />Mobility and flexibility<br /><br /><strong>Sunday</strong><br /><br />Long run (at the moment due to requirements for Tough Guy event)<br /><br />*****************************************<br /><br />This is just one week.<br /><br />4 times per week is core work using varied sets, reps and exercises.<br /><br />Each week certain variables will change.<br /><br />I might do one arm pull up strength practice or side-to-side pullups.<br /><br />I might do kettlebell snatches instead of dumbbells.<br /><br />I might use isometrics and complex training (not complexes) to increase strength and power.<br /><br />Sometimes I'll do more strength and less conditioning.<br /><br />Please do not take this as a 6 week program or anything like that, it is purely to demonstrate how to mould strength training with conditioning without burning out.<br /><br /><strong>What if I can't train that much?</strong><br /><br />If you only have time to train three times per week you might do 15 mins heavy strength work at the start of a session followed by 20 minutes conditioning.<br /><br />There is no set way of training so don't get caught up in performing the same sessions every week just so you 'get better at it'.<br /><br />If it hurts, makes you sweat, is balanced in terms of muscles used and gives certain energy systems enough recovery time, it will work.<br /><br />And don't forget to <strong><a href="http://www.fatlosscookbook.com">eat well!</a></strong><br /><br /><br />JonJon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-30447172294770225562009-03-20T00:43:00.000-07:002009-03-20T01:04:59.826-07:00Best fat burning exercises or best exercises for burning fat?I often get asked what are the best fat burning exercises.<br /><br />It's a good question!<br /><br />We all want to know how we can get the most from our time and burn the most fat without having to spend hours in the gym.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqeALj5nCjOqSTq4_6WehGicZpSM-y_8JueYD4y8sE_DK0DOen7n20iTa6ZlzUXG9LGpsew5qlQNPpPCpgnZEbMOp-knFesL3a99N8H3J6z3sKnymSevEtCKXQDE3EhMmK06pNELlDV4/s1600-h/GUERNSEY07+110.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqeALj5nCjOqSTq4_6WehGicZpSM-y_8JueYD4y8sE_DK0DOen7n20iTa6ZlzUXG9LGpsew5qlQNPpPCpgnZEbMOp-knFesL3a99N8H3J6z3sKnymSevEtCKXQDE3EhMmK06pNELlDV4/s320/GUERNSEY07+110.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315177532161129522" /></a><br /><br />The truth is there is a big distinction between these two questions:<br /><br /><strong>What are the best fat burning exercises?<br /><br />What are the best exercises for burning fat?</strong><br /><br />Sound the same?<br /><br />They're not!<br /><br />Fat burning occurs from the following actions:<br /><br />1) Creating an oxygen debt in your training. <br /><br />In other words your training must cause significant increases in body heat and lactic acid so that a much higher intake of oxygen than usual is required to help remove the lactic acid (a toxin) and cool your body down to it's preferred temperature.<br /><br />The result is a greatly elevated metabolic rate as these processes occur as fast as possible to return your body to homeostasis ('the norm' - the level at which your body is comfortable and doesn't feel threatened in anyway)<br /><br />2) Building lean muscle or at least maintaining a good level of lean muscle.<br /><br />Muscle burns calories, so more muscle burns more calories.<br /><br />3) Consuming less calories than you burn<br /><br />We all know that to lose fat you must eat and drink less than you burn through your base metabolic rate (what you burn just to keep your vital organs working), daily activities and exercise.<br /><br />Most people grossly overestimate what they burn in the gym and what they eat at meals. Half the time they actually forget all the little things they nibbled on.<br /><br />This can be very frustrating if youw ork hard at the gym and see no results but it's VERY common.<br /><br />Those three points are the simple truths behind fat loss.<br /><br />The problem is that everyone focusses on what happens in their training and so ask the question "What are the best fat burning exercises?"<br /><br />The answers are not squats, deadlifts, thrusters or anything else because if you are not performing them with high intensity they STILL won't have an effect because you have not created an oxygen by working hard enough!<br /><br /><strong>So the best exercises for fat burning are in fact:</strong><br /><br />1) Train with a partner or team who will push you beyond your mental limits and get you much closer to your physical limits. This will create huge levels of oxygen debt and ramp up your metabolic rate for anything up to 36 hours after your training session.<br /><br />Yes these exercises should be based around squats, deadlifts, lunges, pull ups, chin ups, push ups, burpees, sprints, kettlebell swings, kettlebells snatches, dumbbell swings, dumbbell snatches and bent over rows.<br /><br />However, if you are not working at at least 80-90% when performing them and getting very hot and uncomfortable, your results will be severely limited!<br /><br />Use supersets, circuits, timed challenges and anything else which maximises work rate and physical stress and minmises rest time.<br /><br />This must be done 4-5 times per week for at least 20 minutes each time.<br /><br />2) Write out a food diary for just one week and count the calories consumed - you'll be shocked.<br /><br />Then make sure 95% of your diet comes from lean protein, vegetables and small doses of health fats.<br /><br />Combined with Point 1) this will create a calorie deficit.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmClD5kW3LBFw-XT2MI9K_MG7F9exN83WEnL2vPN5NwLSCJlzvxxRvINNpkpHmWiqy2924eGa5KFZAN-N3s0TZHwzx9LR2pqu0I1gKf9Z7w0Mf6ns1zmRGjhiq8caFplhcdADyaCaiV2A/s1600-h/Smoked+Salmon+and+Dill+Frittata+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmClD5kW3LBFw-XT2MI9K_MG7F9exN83WEnL2vPN5NwLSCJlzvxxRvINNpkpHmWiqy2924eGa5KFZAN-N3s0TZHwzx9LR2pqu0I1gKf9Z7w0Mf6ns1zmRGjhiq8caFplhcdADyaCaiV2A/s320/Smoked+Salmon+and+Dill+Frittata+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315177864869215458" /></a><br /><br />3)Ensure you also perform heavy strength training to build or at least maintain lean muscle tissue.<br /><br />This will not burn fat as you perform it but it WILL elevate your metabolic rate for a good while after and give you a better body shape.<br /><br />There you have it!<br /><br />The best exercises for burning fat.<br /><br />Jon<br /><br />Don't forget today is the last day to get the <strong><a href="http://www.fatlosscookbook.com">Storm Force Fitness fat loss cookbook at 40% off</a></strong>Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2119784115790430160.post-59436993634209731472009-03-17T08:04:00.000-07:002009-03-18T01:46:18.366-07:005 reasons to love metabolic weight trainingI used to be one of those kids who blindly bundled into the local leisure centre gym with a list like this from Page 19 of Men's Health Issue 116.<br /><br />Squat (with bad technique) 3 x 10<br />Leg press - hamstring curl 3 x 10 superset<br />Dumbell press 3 x 10 with small dumbbells<br />Bent over row (with bent back to contribute to spine fracture) 3 x 10 or until lower back hurts<br />Bicep curls 3 x 10 supersetted with tricep extension 3 x 10<br /><br />You get the message....<br /><br />This was before a 30 minute 'fat burning' run on the treadmill in front of 'A Question of Sport' on the TV.<br /><br />Needless to stay I stayed skinny and never really saw any improvements in ANYTHING!<br /><br />All I got was overuse injuries, boredom and flack from my Mum for taking so long at the gym that I was late for tea.<br /><br />10 years on I am the world's biggest fan of metabolic weight training.<br /><br />Why?<br /><br /><strong>1) It involves weight training</strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZSkxvcr8llZhx-3WPbLBqofRHA9-VY6SsK_NZMe0M3KnHGt1rjXVrzshFLjwyd6GO8Y2V2N0Bb8ppY8qu-lD1MKbcZJ3f5y-ztyIN90iSEeicFtiEkQLMEkXNdPPBuAB48brBHHzJu6E/s1600-h/IMGP0161.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZSkxvcr8llZhx-3WPbLBqofRHA9-VY6SsK_NZMe0M3KnHGt1rjXVrzshFLjwyd6GO8Y2V2N0Bb8ppY8qu-lD1MKbcZJ3f5y-ztyIN90iSEeicFtiEkQLMEkXNdPPBuAB48brBHHzJu6E/s320/IMGP0161.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314177774935331154" /></a><br /><br />Weight training which goes beyond pink dumbbells and aerobic-style step up and press manouevres, builds lean muscle tissue.<br /><br />Lean muscle tissue burns calories so the more you have the more you burn!<br /><br /><strong>2) It is also based around interval training</strong><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/A7ucVAZH80c&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/A7ucVAZH80c&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />This not only causes a release of growth hormone to help with muscle growth but when done for short, near maximal bursts of 20 seconds, it uses mainly fast twitch muscle fibres which grow thicker and faster than the slow twitch fibres which domintate in steady state cardio.<br /><br />Again this means more muscle and a greater metabolic rate at rest.<br /><br />Also the anaerobic nature of well-performed interval training creates an oxygen debt. In other words, your metabolic rate will increase in order to haul in more oxygen for all the necessary repair processes including cooling your body down and removing lactic acid from your muscles.<br /><br />It can take around 24 hours for full restoration to occur. String three of four such sessions together over a week and you have a recipe for a permanently elevated metabolism!<br /><br />The beauty of intense, anaerobic interval based training, either in traditional cardio style or using weights (I love kettlebells!), is that if you work hard enough during the intense burst, your heart rate will fall between intervals but still be high enough to be within the 'aerobic zone' as people like to call it.<br /><br />So you can see how anaerobic training can improve aerobic performance but NOT the other way around.<br /><br /><strong>3) It is exciting and can be based around time challenges, repetition challenges etc</strong><br /><br />This means every sessions can and should be different - the key is intensity!<br /><br />The variety means you are much more likely to stick to such a program.<br /><br /><strong>4) You can perform such sessions anywhere and with any equipment. </strong><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/SOIpVmj12Tc&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/SOIpVmj12Tc&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Again the focus is on intensity rather than the monotonous repetition of having to perform 3 x 10 barbell back squats with 5kg more than last time, every week for 8 weeks.<br /><br /><strong>5) You are more likely to develop different elements of fitness</strong> by combining power and strength work with anaerobic endurance thus becoming more athletic than the guy who may have big thick muscles but can't jump over a stray cat due to poor agility.<br /><br /><br />You may not become a specialist in any of them but you will have low body fat (if you're nutrition is right) and be a much healthier and athletic individual!<br /><br />You'll also find that your aerobic endurance capacity gets ramped up at the same time with no real focus on it!<br /><br />If you want to be a champion 10k runner you need to do long runs - fact.<br /><br />Those who want a lean, atheltic body need metabolic weight training - fact!<br /><br />What you thought you knew isn't working to have a think about opening your mind!Jon Le Tocq, Storm Force Fitnesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07313007156398198847noreply@blogger.com4