Fitness

I’m sure you have seen the numerous ‘Before and After’ physique transformation pictures in the bodybuilding and fitness magazines and on the internet. They seem to be everywhere, right? You have probably even wondered if it is really possible to make such a dramatic change in only a few short months. I had my doubts as well; that is until I became one of those people in the magazines! That’s right, I was named 18-35 year old class champion in the AST Sports Science World Championships physique transformation contest, allowing me to gain exposure in many of the fitness and bodybuilding magazines and all over the internet. How did I do it? Let me tell you first that it took much more than a “magic supplement” and a good photographer. It was the most dedicated and disciplined 13 weeks of my life, but it was all well worth it when I was able to finally succeed in building the type of body I have always dreamed of! Would you like to do the same? With the right tools, information, motivation, and dedication, you absolutely can!
Now, let me tell you right from the start that making this kind of dramatic transformation (especially in a 3-4 month time frame) is not easy at all! It takes a tremendous amount of hard work, dedication and commitment on your part. I can’t emphasize that enough so if you are not willing to put in the type of commitment necessary then it is probably not a good idea to embark on a transformation journey at this time.
However, if you are fed up with mediocre or no results and ready to get into the best shape of your life then read on, soak in the information, get motivated, get to work, and in as little as 12 weeks you can be a completely different you!

1) Have a Reason Why

Before you embark on something as dramatic as a total physique transformation you have to have a very good reason “why” you are doing this. If not, there is simply NO WAY you will stick you your plans and reach your goal. Period! The reason can be to win a physique transformation contest, a bodybuilding contest, or to make your ex’s head spin when you see him or her at your reunion. It does not matter what that reason is, only that it is important to YOU. Make sure you take the time to ask yourself exactly why you are doing this, and be sure to remind yourself of this reason(s) throughout your transformation journey.

2) Motivation

Motivation and your reason why work together synergistically. Its great to have a reason why, but its important that you generate the type of motivation necessary to make sure you follow through by doing what you are suppose to do. Motivation is the reason that we get out of bed in the morning and start our days. It is what drives us to get to the gym and work harder than the day before. Motivation is the reason that great ideas are turned into great accomplishments. Motivation is what drives us to get things done!

3) Have a Deadline

In order to make a significant physique transformation you MUST have a clear starting date and end date. Trust me on this one! You don’t necessarily have to compete in a contest, but without a clear deadline it is way to easy to get off track. Without a deadline it becomes much easier to have the piece of pizza or cheesecake at dinner. Why not? You can finish your transformation goal “a little later” than planned. You see where this is going? A firm deadline creates focus and purpose. Focus and purpose produces results!

4) Keep a Training Journal

A training journal is a very valuable tool during any health and fitness program. It allows you to accurately track your progress, but more importantly holds you personally accountable for everything you do or don’t do. If you want to make a truly outstanding physique transformation then keeping a training journal is ABSOLUTELY ESSENITAL! If you can’t discipline yourself enough to keep track of your workouts and nutrition then you can forget about making the kind of transformation that has friends and family shocked and amazed at how incredible you look. Review (or have your fitness coach or personal trainer review) your training journal on at least a weekly basis as well. This will literally force you to do what you are suppose to do because who wants to let their fitness coach read that they are not staying on track? Once you get the hang of keeping a journal it actually becomes quite enjoyable. You don’t have to stick to strictly sets, reps, and calories. Write about how you felt that day or a particular challenge you overcame. A training journal kept during a physique transformation can serve as an excellent resource for future fitness endeavors, and can also be used to motivate others to make their own transformation.

5) Controlling Calories

To make a truly amazing physique transformation you need to be very lean so that the body you have sculpted with all your hard work is not camouflaged by body fat. There are 101 different diets that will allow you to lose body fat and reach your goals, but the bottom line is that in order to lose fat you absolutely must consume less calories than you burn on average every day, every week, and every month. Carefully and honestly assessing your calorie intake, expenditure, and progress will allow you to make sure you are staying in a slight calorie deficit so that your body burns body fat as fuel.

These five tips offer a great start for your own physique transformation. There is no way I can include everything in this one article, but you can get all 27 of my best tips in my new E-Book “27 Must-Have Tips For A Complete Physique Transformation.” You can get your FREE copy by visiting http://www.completephysiquetransformation.com

© Russ Yeager’s Health and Fitness 2006 All rights reserved.
Use of this article is permitted for your newsletter, website, or other publication as long as the content is not altered including all active links.

Russ Yeager has been called a “Physique Transformation Expert.” His passion is helping others make dramatic improvements to their physiques, health, and level of life happiness. Russ is a Certified Fitness Trainer (CFT), writer, amateur bodybuilder, nutrition and fitness coach, and owner of Russ Yeager’s Health and Fitness. For more information visit http://www.russyeager.com

Tags: body transformation, build muscle, Burn Fat, fat loss, physique, transformationbody transformation, build muscle, Burn Fat, fat loss, physique, transformation

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One of the most asked questions I get while training others is how many reps and sets of an exercise are needed to achieve lean muscle growth, strength increase, and an overall improvement in body composition.

Reps

The desired repetition range for both men and women for just about all exercises is four to six repetitions for your last, heavy sets.

That doesn’t include warm-ups or acclimation sets, just your last sets.

There is one and only one reason a muscle has for gaining lean muscle tissue and getting stronger….

….Progressively increased overload.

You need to progressively “force” the muscle into growing and getting stronger or it will not.

In order to increase overload, you need to increase resistance. In order to increase resistance, you need to increase the amount of weight, or work, you are doing.

Lower repetitions of an exercise will allow you to increase the overload to that muscle instantaneously. This forces the stimulation of new muscle fibers that will be recruited to handle the additional stresses that will be placed upon the muscle.

The repetition range for optimal muscle fiber stimulation will be between four and six repetitions for just about every heavy set of an exercise you do.

Low reps will not cause women to “bulk” up. Low reps will
strengthen and “tone” your muscles quicker than higher reps.

Lighter weights and higher reps will basically keep you from making optimal gains. If you can do ten repetitions of an exercise, the weight is too light to achieve overload.

How do you know what weight to use? If you can do more than six repetitions on your heavy sets for an exercise, the weight is too light. If you cannot do at least four, the weight is too heavy.

So the low down on reps is 4 to 6 for all heavy sets. Warm up sets and intermediate can be 8 to 10 reps, but to get the muscle stimulating benefit of weight training, you must use lower reps to create enough of an overload.

Sets

The amount of heavy, intense sets per exercise will be between one and three sets, depending on the order of the exercise.

When you are warmed up, the number of all-out, intense sets will be three at the most, and on some exercises, just one or two sets.

It is the overload that causes the muscle to grow, not the
amount of sets you do. There is no “universal law” which states that if you double the amount of sets you perform, you also double the results.

The key is to stimulate, not annihilate, the muscle into
responding and growing. You do this with two, very intense sets of four to six repetitions. This will efficiently stimulate the muscles more than doing more sets with more reps at a lighter weight.

If we were doing bicep curls, we would do our warm-ups and then two heavy, intense sets of four to six repetitions. This exercise is now done. You have effectively overloaded the bicep muscles and will then proceed to the next exercise, if there is one.

As you can see, it is all about quality over quantity when it comes to producing results.

It is so much better to do one or two heavy sets at maximum intensity than 3 or more at an easier level.

More is not better….better is better.

Fitness Consultant Shawn Lebrun has helped over 13,000 individuals lose fat and build muscle in less time. To
read more about what he can do for you, please check out
his site at Shawn Lebrun Fitness.com

Tags: bodybuilding, build muscle, Burn Fat, lose fat, muscle building, weight lossbodybuilding, build muscle, Burn Fat, lose fat, muscle building, weight loss

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Are you a goal oriented person? If you are, then you probably know that all successful people in life know the basics of setting and achieving their goals. If you want to achieve a healthy life, then setting fitness goals should be no different than anything else you do.

Setting fitness goals gives you motivation and drives you for the short or long term success. Goal setting helps you obtain the knowledge necessary to achieve. If you plan and organize your time to exercise and eat the right meals, you’ll get the best out of your efforts.

Setting clearly defined fitness goals will also measure progress and provide accountability. Holding yourself accountable will help you through the challenging days (such as ordering pizza at work). Your self-confidence will sky rocket as you learn more about your capabilities.

The first thing you need to do when setting fitness goals is to have a vision of where you want to be a month from now or a year from now. Your vision of yourself must be clearly defined. For example, a good short term goal would be “I want to lose 8 lbs in one month”. Then break down your goal into smaller targets so you can easily hold yourself accountable to complete it.

When using this weight loss example: you want to set weekly goals for that month to lose 2 lbs a week. Then write down the steps necessary to lose 2 lbs a week. Use these steps as your plan to success.

Having a good attitude has a big impact on setting and achieving your goals. You must be realistic with yourself and think about anything that would hold you back from loosing weight.

Realize any behavior challenges you may have ahead of time. It will give you a mindset to attack any issues you may encounter during your path to success. For example, if you love go out to eat with co workers, try to plan your order ahead of time so you eat clean and healthy for that meal.

Leading a healthy lifestyle is for the most part dependent on your time management skills. Most people fail because they often have bad time management skills and lack of persistence. Planning your work outs and meals ahead of time will decide success or failure.

Your family should never be left out of your plans. Do not to put your family aside. If you plan your workouts during family obligations you are setting yourself up for failure. Find out what time blocks you can control (such as waking up earlier) and use that time to plan your work outs.

I’m sure someone said, “A life filled with work really stinks”, or something like that, is very true. Take advantage of life’s pleasures: set up a cheat day once a week to eat what ever you want. Having a day with no rules provides the mental break needed to continue with your fitness objectives.

Create a fitness-to-do list for the day. Write down at least three things you want to do that will help you continue your new fitness lifestyle. This will help you set the tone for the day. In my opinion writing down your fitness objectives provides a mental agreement with yourself to complete those objectives.

Once you learn the basics of setting your fitness goals, you will be able to effectively lead a life of health and fitness. It will be more realistic to you and you’ll soon be an expert on achieving your goal of leading a healthy life filled with a new found energy that you will love.

To really learn on how to create your fitness goals and achieve them, read our review of the burn the fat feed the muscle e book at http://www.addfitness.com. The burn the fat feed the muscle book will provide the no frills physical fitness information you will need.

Tags: Burn Fat, Loose WeightBurn Fat, Loose Weight

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