Fit and Youthful Life

Guest Author: Rando Meresmaa


The best way to burn fat is the combination between nutrition, cardio training, weight training and motivation. If you leave out one of these factors then losing fat permanently is impossible. It is not enough to only do cardio or weight training, or even worse only using strict diets without any training at all. All of these factors have their own place, some are more important than others but all of them are important to achieve permanent fat loss.

Weight training

The primary fat burning effect of weight training into play comes after the workout from the increase in Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and from the increase in post-exercise metabolic rate. During weight training workouts, you are burning primarily sugar. The more muscle mass you have the more calories you burn.

For example:

BMR (men and women) = 370 + (21.6 X lean mass in kg)

If a man weighs 85 kg with 25% bodyfat then his lean body mass (LBM) is 63.75 kg

If we do the calculation then his BMR is 1747 calories. but if another man who also weighs 85 kg but he has 8% bodyfat then he would burn 2059.12 calories. That is an extra 312.12 calories. But for most people the extra increase in resting metabolism is not enough to lose fat permanently.

Cardio training

Weight training has a bigger effect after a workout but cardio has a bigger effect during a workout. Because aerobic exercise uses oxygen and is therefore fat-burning in nature. If you do a 30 minute cardio (aerobic) workout then you are a bit leaner after the 30 minute workout then before. All calories burned will have an impact on fat loss because overall calorie balance is what really matters. Sustained fat burning, oxygen-utilizing aerobic exercise is critical for fat loss. It is really not important if you do steady state cardio or high intensity interval training (HIIT), what matter is how many calories you have burned.



Instant Skin Tightener

Guest Author: Yuri Elkaim


Interval training (HIT) involves a combination of high and low-intensity training within a single workout session. In this session, the individual alternates between a bout of higher intensity exercise followed by a lower intensity or “active recovery” bout. This type of training is in contrast to the more familiar “steady state” exercise where the intensity is much lower but longer in duration. Interval training is awesome for fat burning and aerobic conditioning but let’s have a look at some more reasons to use interval training for your cardio workouts.

What are the benefits of interval training?

1. Intervals vastly reduce boredom. Traditional steady state cardio training can become quite boring. HIT offers more variety and excitement to your workouts.

2. Interval training increases post-exercise energy expenditure (calories burned following exercise) more than steady-state exercise, which means that more fat is burned. After intense exercise, the body needs extra calories as it works to repair muscles, replace energy stores (i.e. carbohydrate) and restore the body to its normal state (e.g. reduce heart rate). As this can take many hours, you will keep on burning more calories long after the workout is over. In fact, research shows that metabolic rate is higher for several hours following interval training compared to steady state exercise.

3. Interval training stimulates the respiratory system, cardiovascular system and nervous system to a greater degree. Therefore, more fat and carbohydrates are burned to support the expanding energy demands of the body during, and after, intense exercise.

4. Interval training increases the activity of enzymes involved in fat burning. Research has shown that after a bout of interval training there is more fat in the blood (i.e. free fatty acids), which is an indication of more fat, being used for energy production.

5. HIT burns more calories. As an example, 30 minutes on an Elliptical machine using a steady state program will burn roughly 292 calories, whereas 30 minutes of intervals will burn approximately 584 calories!

6. HIT causes a greater increase in VO2max (aerobic capacity). By stimulating your cardiovascular system to work closer to its maximum capacity for a longer duration than steady state exercise.

7. HIT allows for better time efficiency. For instance, a typical 30 min steady state run on the treadmill could be reduced to 10 – 15 min of HIT due to its demands on the aforementioned systems.

8. HIT results in increased amounts of circulating growth hormone (GH) following exercise. This promotes an increase in lean body mass and increased fat burning. This does not occur to the same extent with steady state exercise. This is particularly beneficial for those looking to maintain their muscle mass and at the same time reduce body fat.

9. Interval training makes use of both aerobic (type 1) and anaerobic (type 2) muscle fibres. This is in contrast to steady state exercise that only makes use of type 1 fibres. By increasing the conditioning of these type 2 muscle fibres you will greatly increase your capacity to tolerate high-intensity exercise, which means an increased opportunity to exercise at higher levels that burns a lot of calories.

10. Because of the high-intensity of this exercise and the increased use of anaerobic type 2 muscle fibres there is an increased use of the body’s glycogen (muscle-stored carbohydrates) stores. This is very beneficial for fat loss as the body will conserve carbohydrate following exercise and thus use fat as an energy source for the body’s energy requirements. The more glycogen you use during exercise the more fat you will burn following exercise!

Guidelines for Interval Training

1. Intensity of high-intensity interval

2. Intensity of low-intensity interval

3. Duration of high-intensity interval

4. Duration of low-intensity interval

5. Number of Intervals

Because of its versatility, HIT offers 1000s of different program variations. This is great for those looking for variety and change. After all, the body adapts best to changing stimuli. Furthermore, this type of training can be done on any cardio machine. Again, switching between machines periodically will stress your body differently and lead to the best results!

It is recommended that the intensity for the high-intensity interval range between 75 – 100% of your maximum effort. This will depend on the duration of the interval, as the longer the interval, the lower its intensity.

The recovery interval should range in the 55 – 65% of maximum effort.

The ratio of work to recovery can be varied and will depend on your fitness level and desired goal. For instance, I recommend starting at a work : rest ratio of 1:4 for beginners. As an example, this could represent a high-intensity (work) interval of 15 seconds followed by a 60 second recovery interval. If you are more advanced you can play around with this ratio for increased difficulty.

What you will notice is that over the duration of the interval training session your average heart rate will tend to drift upward. This is due to the fact that, depending on the interval protocol and your fitness level, the length of your recovery bouts will not be sufficient to allow your heart rate to fully return to rest; thus, you end up working at a greater percentage of your maximum heart rate even while you recover.

Here is a sample 10-min interval training workout that is sure to leave you exhausted:

1. 10 seconds at 100% effort

2. 20 seconds at 60% effort

3. Repeated 20 times



Become Wrinkle Free NOW

Guest Author: Roger Leblanc




Many people who are seriously into weight training shy away from doing cardio exercise because they think that it will eat away at their hard won muscle mass. While there is a valid concern for those thinking of running a long distance marathon, most of these fears are unwarranted. Basically, the concern is that as you are running, the body may run short of fuel in the bloodstream for immediate use. Although the body has a mechanism for replenishing energy by breaking down fat deposits, this doesn’t always happen quickly enough. The body compensates by breaking down proteins to use some of the amino acids for fuel. Therefore muscle is wasted.

While this basic analysis is correct, the body builder’s fears are exaggerated. A short run of say twenty to thirty minutes, especially before lifting, will not break down hardly any muscle mass. Almost al the fuel used will come from what is already present in the blood stream and the energy stored in the liver. This is especially true if you ate at least a moderate high carb meals a few hours before. Actually, a good meal of complex carbs fully digested followed by a 20 minute run is an excellent warm up for a good hour of lifting in the weight room. This is a prime reason to run. It warms the cardiovascular system up for your lifting routine. You will get better workouts and with better workouts, better gains. Following this logic, a light to moderate run will actually help you to gain muscle rather than lose it! But the warm up should not be the only motivation for cardio exercise.

There are several outstanding reasons for adding cardio to your regimen. Cardio is the best way to exercise your heart and lungs, it is the most efficient way to cut fat, and it will boost your metabolic rate more naturally and efficiently than any pill on the market. So how much cardio should you do? That is a hard question to answer. Some suggest that you could start to lose muscle after about a half hour of running. Though they may be literally correct, you should take this with a very large grain of salt. The muscle that you lose even after an hour run is miniscule. Furthermore, since you train with weights on a regular basis, you are continually sending signals to your body to save and to build more muscle. Lifting and running done on a regular basis will condition your body to efficiently handle both the running and the body building. Essentially, when your body is conditioned, what is likely to happen is you still lose a miniscule amount of protein after a run of an hour or so, but your body adds that protein back in a short time. A hardcore professional body builder trying to bulk up for the next Mr. Olympiad may think twice about running that much, but you and I could do it without any net loss over the long run. The only real issue is whether your gains could slow by a margin of 2 – 3% or so. The benefits of cardio to your overall health to your energy level is well worth a theoretical miniscule slowdown, and it is the best and most natural way to get cut.

Cardio exercise has significant health benefits and should not be avoided for those overly concerned with a muscular physic. The truth is cardio actually improves physic because it cuts fat from your body and enhances definition of your muscular build. The substantial benefits gained by cardio are more than worth any small decrease in muscle building. Anything up to one hour of cardio training when combined with a regular lifting program will provide a well balanced program for both physic and health.



Smooth Away Wrinkles Instantly

Guest Author: Danny Nicholas


I believe anti-aging is multidisciplinary and is based on individual choices. Anti-aging is a lifestyle! Each person chooses how to progress down a certain path to health and well being. Below is a list of factors to consider in designing your own personal anti-aging program.

Rev Up Your Metabolism

Aging is accompanied by a decrease in your metabolic rate and an associated increase in your fat storage. As such, your body fails to burn excess fat as we grow older. To combat this anti-aging effect we need to control our metabolic rate by increasing daily activities. The best way to do this is to perform a 20 minute cardio-vascular fitness program a few days a week to help rev up your metabolism. The best time to perform this fat burning workout is when you wake and before breakfast. This is the perfect time to workout because while you slept, your body depleted all the carbohydrates in your system, and since you have an empty stomach your body is forced to use your fat stores to provide energy for the workout.

Keep Your Heart Strong

Growing older also means a reduction in the ability of the heart to pump blood through the circulatory system. In addition, build up in the arteries also contributes to this reduced ability. Since your heart is a muscle its function and circulatory capability can be improved by aerobic exercise. Remember to always consult your doctor when starting any fitness program. However, I once heard a doctor say that if they could put exercise into a pill form, it would be the most prescribed pill known to mankind. As such, using exercise to keep the heart strong is an important factor in any anti-aging program.

Your Brain is a Muscle Too!

Anti-aging research has shown that memory capacity declines if the brain is not involved in mental functions. Mental inactivity causes poor memory function or in some cases memory loss. Playing games, participating in social activities, problem solving, reading and writing will all help “exercise” the brain. Exercising your brain will not only improve cognitive function but will also help eliminate boredom and depression.

Lung Capacity

Did you know that the oxygen uptake test, the one where they measure your lung capacity while your on a treadmill, is so accurate that if they gave a group of people the test and then had that same group run a distance race they could predict how each individual would place in the race before the race ended. With aging comes a reduced elasticity of the lungs and thus a reduced oxygen uptake or breathing capacity. Aerobic or cardio exercise is an anti-aging solution that will increase the breathing capacity of the lungs.

Increase Your Lean Tissue or Muscle Mass

As you age your metabolism slows and you begin to lose muscle. Actually, muscle loss is a symptom of aging. However, you can increase muscle mass, burn fat, and increase your metabolism all at the same time. This is accomplished through an aerobic weight training workout. By using light weights that you can repeat 12 to 15 times per muscle group you will not only increase muscle mass and metabolic rate but also reduce fat stores. In addition, strength training exercises will increase your lean tissue which in turn increases your basal (resting) metabolic rate. Combining an aerobic weight training workout with a diet high in protein and low in fat is a good start for any anti-aging fitness program.

Stay Flexible

Stretching should be a part of any natural anti-aging fitness program. You not only warm up your muscles for the workout but also prevent any unnecessary injuries during the workout. Staying flexible will also eliminate any muscle cramping that is sometimes associated with aging. Moreover, being limber helps you perform better in your day to day anti-aging activities.

Your View of Yourself

Does growing old mean avoiding the bathroom scale or looking into a mirror? The way you perceive yourself is very important to your overall physical, mental and spiritual self. People are flocking to doctors for expanding waistlines and hair loss. Their buying anti-aging skin care products and cosmetics for younger looking skin and the list goes on. Your long-term whole-body physical, mental and spiritual picture of yourself is an important factor of your anti-aging program.

Bridge the Gap

Taking the steps necessary to take care of yourself will help you “bridge the gap” to a longer life. Developing a solid anti-aging program and strategy is essential. Without a plan or a process things are just left up to chance. You yourself can only implement the steps that will take you down the path of becoming a centenarian.

In conclusion, anti-aging overall is multidisciplinary. It involves, in part, the 12 factors discussed here but also total whole-body wellness and longevity. It involves incorporating the ingredients of wellness and longevity into your lifestyle. Anti-aging is an individual process – you decide what ingredients are part of the program. Anti-aging is what makes you feel good. It is what makes you “anti-age”!