Monday Muscle - 3 Must Do Exercises For An Impressive Back

If You Want An Impressive Back Then These 3 Moves Are Crucial

Your back is one of the most important body parts to train and train hard to ensure that you have a balanced physique. I've seen guys who have an impressive chest or arms but then their back is underdeveloped and it makes that physique look weak, unimpressive and unbalanced. There are a lot of different exercises that you can do for your back because your back is one of the largest muscle groups so training with different angles and exercises is key.

In this article I'm going to share with you 3 very important exercises that you must incorporate into your back routine if you're looking to get that mind blowing back to complete your physique. These 3 moves are crucial when it comes to building your back because they hit your back from the lower section to the top.

Deadlifts

Deadlifts are a crucial exercise

Main Muscle Worked: Lower Back

Secondary Muscle Worked: Arms, Legs, Front Delts, Middle Back

Sets: 5 Reps: 10 Weight: Heavy but controlled

Deadlifts should be a staple in any back routine as it's an excellent power move to build your lower to mid back. A lot of guys will shy away from doing deadlifts because they believe that it's a dangerous exercise which is only true if done with improper form - any exercise done with improper form is dangerous. The key to deadlifting is to build up your strength slowly, this means that one rep max shouldn't be utilized until you have full control of the weight you're lifting and you have nailed down the proper form. Once you have done this, you can then start to increase set weight by 10-20lbs each week or every other week. Don't try to lift too much too soon, if you're lower back isn't developed well enough, the stress could cause serious injury, especially if your form is not right.

Wide Grip Lat Pull down

Main Muscle Worked: Lats

Secondary Muscle Worked: Arms, Shoulders

Sets: 5 Reps: 15 Weight: Moderate but keep intensity high

Wide grip lat pull downs are one of the best lat builders that you can incorporate into your back workouts. Make sure that you're pulling weight that you can control - this means a stretch at the top followed by a squeeze of the lats at the bottom. If you cannot do this then you have to lower the weight, as you won't be doing much good for your lats.

Bent Over Rows

Correct form for bent over rows

Main Muscle Worked: Middle, Upper back and lats

Secondary Muscle Worked: Arms, Lower Back

Sets: 3 Reps: 12 Weight: Heavy but controlled

One of my favorite exercises and a very good back builder to add thickness to your back as well as your lats. Bent over rows should be done by keeping your chest up while bent over and using your hips to stabilize yourself. If the weight is too heavy, either lower it or use a weightlifting belt to reduce stress on your lower back. Make sure to pull the barbell toward your belly button, not your upper chest or middle of abdomen. Pulling toward your belly button will hit your lats nicely and also activate your middle and upper back muscles as well. Try to keep a nice pace throughout each set and as always make sure you can control the weight.

I hope you enjoyed this article!

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Fat Loss Friday - Watch Out for the 9 Signs of Dehydration

Our bodies are composed of a lot of water. For adult males, its 60% while for the ladies, its 55%. Imagine if the water levels go down significantly, all sorts of problems can set in.

We are made of water so drink up

Whether you're physically active or just going about your everyday routine, you can get dehydrated. But how do you know you're already lacking fluids or just being affected by the summer heat? Watch out for the 9 signs of dehydration.

Always Hungry. 

Most of the time, thirst is mistaken for hunger. People unnecessarily eat rather than drink. This is because the part of the brain which indicates hunger and thirst is the same area. How do you know thirst from hunger? Hunger happens gradually, not suddenly. So if you become hungry all of a sudden, reach for a glass of water first and not for a sandwich.

Sudden Sweet Tooth. 

The lack of water reduces the liver's release of glycogens for energy. The brain sends this as craving signals, which you may interpret as a sign to grab a chocolate bar. When you have that craving, reach for a high water content snack, like a watermelon. Not only will your thirst be quenched, but you get to satisfy your sweet tooth in a natural way.

Dry Skin. 

Let's say you're out for a run. A good SPF cream will take care of your skin right? While it's true the cream moisturises and protects, you also need good fluid intake to keep your skin from drying. Even the best moisturiser can't keep the skin from drying because of dehydration.

Cramps. 

If you're physically active, cramps are a good indicator that your fluids are on the low side. Muscles are composed of over 70 percent of water, imagine when you hit 40 percent or less because of sweating, muscles can cramp up. All that sweating depletes sodium and potassium levels as well, so besides water, a sports drink may be necessary.

Dry Mouth and Smelly Breath. 

Stay hydrated

Salivary glands use water to produce saliva, when there is a low supply, the glands reduce production significantly, leaving you with a dry mouth. But it does not stop there, the lack of saliva and warm environment promotes bacteria build up which then results in bad breath.

Headaches and Dizziness. 

There is a fluid sack which envelops the brain, protecting it from the impact of sudden blows. If the fluid sack's water level significantly decreases, expect severe headaches. Also, when you're dehydrated, there is a tendency for your blood pressure to decrease, leaving you dizzy. Some even experience disorientation.

Reduced Sweat. 

This one's a bit more basic, you don't drink much and you're dehydrated, your body can barely produce sweat even on a very hot day.

No Twinkle in your Tinkle. 

Urine is another indicator of dehydration. If you have dark urine, and has a really pungent smell, then you lack fluids. Urine should be clear or light yellow. Some vitamins and medicine can affect the colour of your urine, but they will only make it into a darker shade of yellow.

Constipation. 

Your bowels need enough water to successful pass stool, without it you'll be constipated. Being well hydrated also helps your intestines absorb nutrients from digested food.

What's your best option to prevent dehydration? Well, you can always buy bottled water, but in the long run you'll be throwing away lots of money and adding plastic to landfills. So you're better off buying a reusable drinking bottle.



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Wednesday Video - 5 Must Eat FOOD for a Flat Tummy

Do you feel bloated or tired at the end of a meal? Do you always feel lack of energy? Do you struggle to lose weight despite cutting back on excess calories & doing regular exercises?

The SECRET to rapid weight loss & a flat tummy comes down to your DIGESTIVE HEALTH! You could be eating the cleanest, nutrient-rich diet in the world, but if you're not digesting well, you won't be absorbing all the nutrients from your food. As a result, wastes build up, you retain water and your body converts excess calories to fat.

Watch this video to discover 5 foods for better digestion

Monday Muscle - How To Bench Press 225

Today I will be teaching you how to bench 225 pounds.

Step 1: Get a training partner. 

Train with a partner

I put this as number one because you need someone who is going to challenge you. Not only this, but you need someone that is going to be there to spot you if the weight is too heavy and it gets stuck on you. You have to be fearless in the bench press. If you are bench pressing alone and you are scared the weight is going to get stuck on you, then you will not use as much weight as you possibly can.

Step 2: Get on a program. 

A 225 bench press is not miraculous by any standards, but it is definitely a step in the right direction. If you tell a person that you have a 225 bench press, they will definitely be impressed to say the least. The reason that you need to get on a program is because you need to develop overall strength. You do not want to have toothpick legs while your upper body is the size of a house. Getting on a program will teach you the essentials for weight training. Whether this is switching up volume, sets, or reps.

Step 3: Start small. 

A big mistake that many people make when on the adventure of increasing their bench press is that they start too big. The idea of strength training is to make gradual gains every week. You may want to start each week by adding 5 pounds, after starting at a weight that you can easily manage. After this, you may want to add 2.5 pounds per week. It shouldn't be a surprise that many people should start with just the bar (45 pounds) and work up slowly from there adding 5 pounds per week. This will not only help you not plateau, but it will improve your form and avoid injuries until your muscles and joints get used to a heavier weight.

Step 4: Be consistent. 

Be consistent

This is the most important step. If you are not consistent with your training, you are going to end up with a lousy bench press. You have to bench press at least one time a week. This will improve your form and it will get you better at the movement. If you are not consistent with your training you will never make any progress. Even if you are not increasing the weight each week, that is okay. The key is to stay patient and keep hitting the weights week in and week out. Eventually your numbers will start to increase.

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Fat Loss Friday - Torch Fat Through High Intensity Interval Training

Understand High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and why several trainers, amateurs and professionals all declare it to be the most effective method with regards to physical activity, removing stubborn fat and increasing aerobic capacity.

There are quite a few tried and tested training and exercising programs all maintaining to accomplish the desired results. Some are more effective than others; some have little effect at all (although consuming a healthy diet, you often always see some gains).

Always try to consume a healthy diet

One of the proven programs for burning fat that actually works is High Intensity Interval Training, known as HIIT, and this method is outstanding in accomplishing results. Sports scientists have been getting excited over HIIT for years, it is becoming frequently more common amongst amateur and professional athletes, and should be built in any fat burning or lean muscle workout regime. Standard steady state cardio still has its advantages; however, nothing quite gets rid of excess fat and increases overall levels of fitness in the quickest time possible quite like HIIT. Would you more enjoy spending up to an hour casually jogging or cycling along at a relaxed and steady pace in the morning, after your heavy lifting, or on your days off? Alternatively, would you refer to get it done with under twenty minutes, feel anxiously out of breath, be sweating furiously and really feel as if you have worked out at your maximum level?

Intense exercise burns fat far better during and after the activity than steady state cardiovascular activity, which is fact. The so named fat burning zone, which is the rate of intensity at which you burn the most fat when exercising, is not the level of intensity at when your body burns the highest amount of calories. After performing HIIT, your body carries on burning calories and fat even when at rest, this because your metabolism has been rapidly increased.

HIIT generally consists of combining intervals of steady state cardio with periods of quicker and more intense cardio. This not only increases the overall number of calories burned, it also enables you a quick recovery so you can perform the intense intervals with maximum effort. Research shows this has a massive effect on fat and calorie burning during and after performing cardio activity.

When doing HIIT, you also see a gain in aerobic and anaerobic performance. What this generally means is your performance will improve covering both long and short distances, which makes HIIT an excellent option for both sprinters and marathon runners looking for stamina and endurance.

HIIT isn't confined only to running

Studies have also proven that gains may occur when involved in heavy lifting, as participants have been able to accomplish more reps on the heavy compound exercises such as squats and deadlifts, whilst recovery time between sets seemed to have shortened at the same time.

To totally appreciate the concept behind this, you have to think about the energy systems within your body. If an adequate level of oxygen is present, your body uses aerobatic energy paths. Once this supply of oxygen diminishes, it changes to follow the anaerobic paths. To hit the anaerobic zone, some extreme and intense cardio needs to be performed. HIIT therefore means you reach the anaerobic zone helping boost your resting metabolic rate by increasing what scientists call excess-post oxygen consumption (EPOC), it is understood EPOC may result in improved V02 max. EPOC is basically your body working harder to repair following intense training, which needs increased energy and hence higher calories burned. A greater V02 max means more calories and oxygen can be managed by your body hence improving ability over a given time period.

When you have a depletion of oxygen (represented by the EPOC), all your blood sugar has been burned off by your body, which means your body begins to burn fat as an energy source. Using fat as energy is appealing in the period post training. The vast majority of energy is burned during actual exercise when involved in aerobic activity, whereas when following short intervals of anaerobic exercise (HIIT) vast levels of energy are burned during and for many hours following.

You can create a HIIT regime pretty much any way you want, it could be circuit training, performing burpees, cycling or up-hill sprints, anything that will result in your heart rate pumping. The crucial thing is to make sure you can perform the activity for as fast and intense as you can for twenty to sixty seconds. You can then recover for anything from twenty seconds to as much as four minutes. You might be thinking that four minutes is too long to catch your breath, however after many circuits of flat out sprinting in between you soon start to realise how taxing HIIT can be.

HIIT torches fat in a short time

To start HIIT for the first time, you need to warm up for a good five minutes before sprinting at your most intense level for say thirty seconds, before slowing down over the next thirty seconds so you are able to perform the same intensity at the same max effort for a further thirty seconds immediately after. If you cannot, then you need to either decrease your maximum intensity interval or lengthen your recovery interval. Remember it is the max effort you put into the exercise, rather than the time it takes. It is not necessary to achieve 100% on every high intensity interval; you can choose to build up to your max level if you want to. Once you hit it, you can pyramid back down. Similar to resistance training, just ensure you mix up the intensity. Completing pyramids might help to avoid over-training and injury, however; maximum fat burning and metabolic rate will be through maximum intensity.

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Wednesday Video - High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) vs. Cardio

We look at the highly trending HIIT cardio and how it stands against traditional, low-intensity cardio. Can HIIT dethrone low-intensity cardio as the best fat and calorie burning exercise? This video explains it all

Monday Muscle - Can High Intensity Training Help You?

Workout tips and weight loss advice can be found everywhere you look. They are online, on television, in advertising and just about anywhere you turn. But is there any value in any of these tips?

Unfortunately, the answer is generally no. Most people offering their advice are more interested in taking your money than helping you lose weight or get healthy. It really is sad but all too true.

So are there any good health tips online? Have any studies led to fitness breakthroughs? Is there something all the scam artists don't want you to know?

Mike Mentzer popularised High Intensity Training

This time the answer is yes. Scientific research has been conducted into a relatively new field of exercise known as High Intensity Training, or HIT. These studies have uncovered incredible results that you absolutely need to know.

First, High Intensity Training is the premise that by decreasing the duration of exercise and increasing the intensity, you can still get a good workout. Instead of the traditional workouts of mild intensity and long duration, HIT followers workout for about 10 minutes and exert almost all the energy doing so.

The benefits are staggering. Research has shown HIT to increase metabolism and weight loss as well as increase muscle mass faster. The exercises to achieve these results are not the same, but the principles are.

If you want to achieve optimal weight loss, then HIT can work for you. Incorporate sprint intervals into your jog for a month. If you normally jog on a treadmill for thirty minutes, try jogging just fifteen minutes, then every five minutes try to do an all out sprint for thirty seconds.

This simple change in your routine can dramatically improve your results. Not only will you burn more fat during and after exercise, you will sleep a lot better as well. As you get more fit, increase the duration of your workout and decrease the time between sprints.

If you want to increase muscle mass dramatically, then HIT is perfect for you. Instead of doing endless sets of various weight lifting routines, you only need to do three exercises: bench press, seated row and squats.

The bench press is a "core" exercise

These three exercises will work nearly all of your muscle groups.

Start with the bench press. Find a weight you can barely lift ten times. Now cut that weight in half and do ten reps, only take ten full seconds per rep.

That means take five seconds to put the bar up and another five seconds to let the bar down. This will be much slower than you are used to doing the bench press. It will also be a lot harder than you think to get to ten reps.

After the tenth rep, have a spotter help you do two negative reps. This means they will lift the bar for you and you simply have to let it down. It is a lot harder than it sounds.

Immediately after finishing the bench press, move to the squats. Follow the same format as with the bench press. Use light weight, move slowly and get the negative reps at the end.

Finally, finish with the seated rows. Follow the same principles as before. Once you are finished your muscles will feel more fatigued than they ever have.

This method of working out has shown incredible results for those who have been following a routine. Try High Intensity Training for just one month and see if you notice incredible results like thousands of others.

Cade Lennox is a fitness and health expert who writes articles about exercise, nutrition and more. He has also authored hundreds of treadmill reviews.

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