I often run/jog/walk the Lost Bluff trail here in my hometown. It is a very challenging trail to run. One that requires you to be alert, as there are many dangers like sleep hills, and descents, exposed tree roots to trip on, and if its in the summer, sweltering heat.

The trail claims to be 2.2 miles through rigorous terrain, I find it to be 1.62 miles using gps.

I ran this trail at around 1 p.m. when the heat was a blistering 102F and heat index of 113F.

When I was done I could ring out my tank top and get a half a cup of sweat from it.

If you want to test your stamina, endurance, and cardio, you will want to give this trail a try. Once you get it down pat, your only competition will be that of your stop watch as you try and beat your last time. My best time was 23 minutes. I average about 26 minutes.

In the video below, I take you with me on my jog, using a pair of mini dvr sunglasses that I purchased online.

So that it would not be completely boring, I threw in some still shots of the trail and some extra footage taken by the dvr sunglasses.

All of this was shot using the dvr sunglasses, the music was obtained from royaltyfreemusic.com and all of it was edited on an iMac using iMovie.

This is a large video, about 26 minutes in length so I had to break it down into two parts due to the limitations of YouTube.

Sorry for all the shake, it is on my head and I was jogging after all. Hopefully the music and still shots and sometimes video scenes that do not shake, will help you tolerate it and watch it all the way to the end.

Part One.

Part Two

If you don’t know what IRC is, it’s Internet relay chat, and in that channel (#bodybuilding) we discuss all things diet and exercise.

The video that was posted was about 9 minutes long and very informative.

I’ve been trying to explain this to people for years. Now it’s put into an easy to understand simple video.

The video covers the acidity and alkalinity of several foods and drinks and how your body struggles to maintain an internal balance.

Some things not covered in the video are facts about the artificial sweeteners used in the diet sodas that also do harm to your system.

Did you know that aspartame turns to formaldehyde in your body? Why put your liver through such hell?

I’ve covered that before on this site, feel free to look for it, or email me for a link.

Check put the video link below.

I had the pleasure of being interviewed recently by a fitness professional from NYC, Certified Personal Trainer, Geovanni Derice. The interview is below and I think you’re going to like it… I reveal some of the hardest hitting strategies for getting rid of that stubborn stomach fat to uncover those flat six pack abs that everyone wants.

“GD: Welcome Mike to our 4-ever-Toned Fitness Journal. For those who do not know you, please tell us a few things about yourself and how you can help our readers with their fitness and health.

MG: Thanks for having me, Geo. Well, to go back a little, I have been heavily involved in fitness and sports for about 17 years now, ever since I was a teenager. Being involved in sports in high school got me interested in strength training and conditioning.

At that point, once I started feeling more energetic, getting stronger, and looking better, I was instantly hooked for life. I’m 33 now and still addicted to the way living a healthy and fit lifestyle makes me feel energetic, confident, strong, and youthful on a daily basis.

I decided earlier in my 20′s that I wanted to make the commitment to help other people experience the excitement of being fit and getting in the best shape of their lives, especially since we’ve reached an epidemic of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, depression, etc. That’s why I became a fitness professional. It just gives me so much satisfaction to help others, who have struggled for years to get in good shape, and show them that it can be done, and it can be fun in the process.

I’ve expanded over the years from just reaching local individuals with personal training, into being able to help people all over the globe achieve their fitness goals with the reach of the internet. I only hope that my passion for fitness inspires people to take action and improve how they look and feel for life.

GD: Now Mike, there’s so many things out there as to what works and what does not work… if you had to pick 3 things that work time and time again to get flat lean abs, what would they be?

MG: The first and most important thing to get control of in order to lose your belly fat and get flat abs is cleaning up your diet. Exercise is important, but your diet is king when it comes to losing body fat so that you can see your abs.

There’s so much confusion these days about what a healthy diet that promotes fat loss really is… after all, we are bombarded by conflicting messages in the media about what is healthy and what is not, and you have all of these gimmicky diet books about low carb, low fat, high protein, vegetarian, fasting, Atkins, South Beach, liquid diets, and hundreds more. There’s so much conflicting info, that the average consumer doesn’t even know where to start when it comes to eating for fat loss.

The second thing that works time and time again, is to focus on the intensity of your workouts and focus on working the body as a whole in order to get the best metabolic response to lose that stubborn stomach fat.

In order to really get lean, the workouts should have a high intensity, with short rest periods, working the largest muscle groups of the body, instead of trying to isolate specific small muscles like the biceps, triceps, or calves.

For the third thing, let’s talk about actually training the abs specifically. When it comes to training the abs, if you want real results, I always recommend forgetting about the crunches and sit-ups for the most part. They are ok for someone that is really deconditioned, but most people that already have some training under their belt need a much better stimulus for their abs than crunches. Crunches are one of the abs exercises that actually provide the least amount of resistance, and remember that resistance is what develops and tones the muscles.

I provide a ton of great abs exercises in my book, but one of THE highest resistance exercises for the abs, is hanging leg raises (but NOT the way you see most people at the gym doing them). The key to doing these and actually working the hell out of your abs is to curl your pelvis up as you raise your legs. Almost nobody ever does this right. To be honest, the majority of people cannot do this at first, but I provide some strategies in my book as to how to progress to doing these correctly.

GD: What are people doing wrong when it comes to developing the coveted “6 pack abs”?

MG: Well Geo, I know this sounds funny to most people, but the MAIN thing that people are doing wrong to get those flat 6-pack abs is… are you ready for this?

They spend entirely too much time focusing on training their abs! WAY too much time spent on abs exercises. Sounds crazy, but it’s true.

Remember, having a flat and visible six pack of abs is all about getting down to a low body fat percentage. In order to do that, your workouts must focus on stimulating a fat burning hormonal environment in your body, and increasing your metabolic rate. That just does not happen when you focus too much time training a small muscle group like the abs.

Instead, you must use the majority of your time focusing on training the largest muscle groups of the body like the legs, back, and chest. That’s what stimulates your metabolism and the fat burning hormones that will get you truly lean and sporting a flat sixxer!

GD: Which exercises are the top exercises that people need to do if they are to get maximum definition with their midsection?

MG: When it comes to developing the abs themselves, I again refer to any kinds of hanging abs exercises, as well as some good floor abs exercises like lying leg thrusts (all described and illustrated in my book).

However, maximum definition in the abs and midsection comes from losing body fat, and the most effective exercises featured in my program for that goal are various forms of swings and snatches (unique dumbbell or kettle bell exercises that almost nobody ever does in normal gyms), squats, dead lifts, lunges, step-ups, clean & presses, mountain climbers, sprinting, and other full body exercises and calisthenics. If you want great looking flat abs, focus on those instead of focusing so much on training the abs directly!

GD: When it comes to diet Mike, people really have tried millions of ways to get one thing… and that is fat loss. What recommendations have you used to successfully help your clients lose body fat and keep it off?

MG: I have included a fully comprehensive discussion of this topic in my book, which accounts for almost half of the book, but I’ll try to make some nice simple generalizations to get people started on the right path immediately. The most important thing is that your diet is as natural and unprocessed as possible. It almost always comes back to the over processing of food that makes it unhealthy, and makes it totally wreck your metabolism and hormone balance in your body.

For example, why eat refined grains, when you can eat whole grains (even better are sprouted grains, as I usually recommend limiting grain foods overall for best results).

Why eat refined sugar, when you can get natural sources of sugar from a high nutrient whole food like fruit. Why eat highly processed, refined, and hydrogenated vegetable oils (these are THE worst thing in the modern diet), when you can eat natural sources of healthy fats like nuts, avocados, fish, eggs, coconut milk, organically raised meat, and so forth.

The point is to not fall for some gimmick like extremely low carbs (although I do believe in a fairly reduced carb intake as that is a big problem for most people), low fat, super high protein, or any other combination that has you focusing on one macro-nutrient vs. another.

Your body needs all macro-nutrients to thrive and obtain a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc. Trying to cut an entire food group out just works against what your body needs. I get into much more detail on this vitally important topic towards losing body fat (especially that stubborn stomach fat) for life in my book.

GD: Thank you very much Mike for sharing with us all of this great information.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this interview and plucked several nuggets of info to get you motivated and started on showing off your flat abs shortly. If you don’t already own a copy, be sure to pick up a copy of the Truth about Six Pack Abs book and discover the entire system Mike developed for ridding yourself of that extra ab fat for good!

We have all been welcomed to a new day by a tickle in our throat, alerting us that something is not quite right.  The question is, is this abnormal scratch forecasting we’ll be a little under the weather or that a major storm is about to blow through our body?  And the even bigger question is, should we forgo our routine gym visit or get in there and brave the potential hurricane?  After all, isn’t there some myth that we can actually sweat out our sickness?  Can a work out really liberate these toxins, or will it simply release needed energy and a chance to quickly heal?  Unfortunately, there is no universal answer to this widespread question.  Listen to your body, evaluate your symptoms, tap into your energy level, and empathize with your immune system; together you can predict the weather and plan your activities accordingly.

If the weather is slightly overcast and you have a simple head cold, a light to moderate work out can provide some sunshine. A slight increase in endorphins can make a sad immune system smile.  But remember, these clouds can also eventually produce rain, so don’t overwork a body that’s functioning under par. If you hear your immune system cry, then slow down or stop all together and prevent a natural disaster!

If the storm is definitely coming and the winds have begun to blow, keep the damage to a minimum and steer clear of all aerobic activity.  If you have a fever, any chest congestion, a cough, shortness of breath, or nausea, the only movement your body should make is to walk from your bedroom to the couch.  In this case, heat is not a result of sunny skies, and a fever means your heart is beating faster and working harder.  If you choose to a chance a work out in this dangerous condition, a further increase in body temperature and heart rate will add stress to an already taxing situation.  This trauma will not only add to the intensity and longevity of an illness, but in extreme cases the virus can cause damage to the heart muscle. If the tornado is right outside your home, STAY PUT!

Another important thing to keep in mind is that the gym is one of the germiest indoor facilities around; how sick is that!  If you feel up for some mild exercise, think twice about hitting the gym with an immune system that’s down.  You don’t want to invite new germs to enter your body while trying to get rid of these evil creatures.  Nor do you want to spread this evilness and allow their dark army to grow. Consider a home work out, or an outdoor activity such as a brisk walk. (provided the weather obeys of course)

Illness is your body’s way of telling you it needs a vacation from everyday life.  If you’re too sick to work, you’re too sick to work out.  Don’t feel guilty for skipping your fitness regimen; that will only add to your headache!  Look at it as justification to relax and an opportunity to catch up on your growing tivo list.  If you have any doubt in your congested head, then take the safe route and forgo a sweat session.  Just think, if you follow the road to recovery, the quicker it will lead you back to the gym.  And be sure to ease back into your exercise schedule.  Slowly the sun will come out from under that cloud, and before you know it you’ll see nothing but blue skies!

They are at wits end and they don’t know what to do. They’ve “tried it all” and they believe it’s impossible for them to lose fat.

Many of them have lost fat and gained it  all back, and more. Some of them have struggled with losing fat all their lives and have never been successful with it. One lady from Alabama wrote to me last spring, “I have been trying to lose about sixty pounds for over 23 years. I quit! I’m resolved to the fact that I will be fat for the rest of my life”

How saddening that comment is. but I’m happy to tell you this lady, with a little guidance, is now 65 pounds lighter than she was one year ago.. and she has some muscle tone. Needless
to say, she no longer believes that she’ll be fat for the rest of her life.

I tell you this simply to illustrate the fact that you don’t have to give up on fat loss. YOU can lose fat, but you  have to be willing to do what it takes.. and here’s what it takes!

If we look at people who have been successful at fat loss *and* maintaining that loss, a couple of things are very apparent. These two factors are present in the lives of most of them:

1. They do some form of aerobic exercise 5 to 7 days a week. These people aren’t exercise wimps! They know how critically important this is to their fat loss maintenance and they get
out and do it! They average 45 minutes a day with the range being 30 to 90 minutes a day.

This not only burns lots of calories, but, perhaps more importantly, it elevates their basal metabolic rate.

2. They do some type of weight training 2 to 3 days a week. This has a tremendous affect on basal metabolic rate and muscle tone. Success at maintaining a fat loss is much higher in
people who have weight trained while they were losing fat versus those who haven’t.

Now, obviously, healthy eating habits are also very important. However, most of these people say that their exercise habits seem to dictate their eating habits.. meaning that if they
can be consistent with exercise, their eating habits seem to fall into place.

I’ve had many clients tell me that their daily  exercise puts them in a “healthy” frame of mind and helps them to make better food choices.

Bottom line; when they are exercising consistently, their eating habits are better.

I firmly believe that a major factor in most peoples frustration with fat loss is that they haven’t been told the truth about exercise. You see, twenty minutes, three
days a week isn’t going to cut it for fat loss. If you’re serious then you have to get serious about exercise.

It’s all about changing your basal metabolism through exercise. It’s about looking at exercise as a part of your daily routine, just like brushing your teeth. It’s about viewing exercise as something you’re doing to get healthy and feel great!

It’s hard to argue with the idea that you need to eat enough of the right kinds of food to build muscle. But that doesn’t tell you which are the best foods for muscle growth. With all the hype and conflicting advice available, that’s a trickier question. Fortunately, there are some basic facts that help clear things up. Here’s the information you need if you’re going to pick foods to grow muscle.

You’ve Got to Eat Enough to Grow Muscle

You know you have to work hard to stimulate your body to build new muscle. But not everyone realizes that actually building new muscle tissue takes a lot of energy too. Your body has to burn a lot of energy when it builds new muscle. That means you may well have to eat more than you are now to give your body the calories it needs to build bigger muscles.

But don’t get crazy about this. Stuffing yourself with jelly donuts or other junk foods will increase the number of calories you get, but loads of sugar and fat and empty calories won’t help your body build big muscles. You have to choose healthy foods for muscle growth or you’ll just get fat. That’s where the rest of this article comes in.

Protein Makes Up Your Muscles

When you work out hard enough to build new muscles, you’re in reality damaging the muscles that you want to make bigger. Your body responds to the damage by rebuilding the muscles a little bigger and stronger to handle the stress. And since muscles are primarily made of protein, the protein you eat is the construction material your body uses for the work. If you don’t get enough protein, your body won’t be able to make the muscle stronger or even repair the damage you do working out. You’ll fail to make your muscles bigger. In fact, over time, they’ll get weaker and you’ll end up hurting yourself.

Getting the protein you need has got to be your most important eating objective to succeed at. The best sources of high-quality protein are chicken (particularly the breast), turkey, and fish. Eat large quantities of these three high-protein foods. You can also benefit from lean red meats, eggs, and nuts, but you should get most of it from turkey, chicken, and fish.

Carbs Give You Energy

Carbohydrates are your body’s main fuel. Without enough carbs, you won’t be able to work out hard enough to build muscle. And even if you do get in the workout somehow, without enough carbohydrates, your body won’t have enough energy to repair the damaged tissue, much less make the muscles bigger and stronger.

But the kind of carbs you eat matters a lot. Simple carbohydrates, like bread or table sugar, give you a short burst of energy, while at the same time giving you a large number of virtually nutrient free calories that your body is very likely to store as fat. Complex carbs like whole grain breads, fruits, and vegetables give you a slower, but longer lasting supply of energy, contain lots of nutrients, not empty calories, and are much less likely to end up as fat. Eat lots of complex carbs, go real light on the simple ones, and you’ll find that you have the energy you need for muscle growth.

Fat is Not all Bad

While everyone seems to be against eating any kind of fat, you do need to eat some fat to be healthy. Fat is another energy source and building block for your body. The biggest problem with fat is that we get too much of the wrong kinds of fat. The kind of fat we get too much of is the kind of fat you see around the edges of a steak, or the kind that’s in foods like margarine. Fish and nuts are good sources of the Omega-3 healthy fats that your body needs. If you trim the excess fat from meats, don’t eat the skins of your chicken and turkey, and include lots of fish and the occasional handful of nuts in your diet, you’ll be all set.

Are You Ready to Go for It?

And that, my friend, is the information you need to start eating in a way that supports your attempts to build muscle. As you read this, you probably saw several ways you could change your diet to make it more more effective for building lean muscles. Start applying this information and you should see more progress.

While all this information will surely help, its really only a small portion of what there is to know when it comes to muscle building foods. And we haven’t even touched on ways to make your diet work with specific workouts. For that kind of information, you will want to get yourself a complete muscle building plan.

2. Increase your muscle mass! The more lean muscle you have,
the more calories your body will burn even at rest. Muscle
is extremely active metabolically. Do some resistance training,
add some muscle, and crank up that metabolism.

3. Never let yourself get too hungry, or too stuffed. It really
is all about moderation. Time your meals so that you eat before
you are starving . . . doing this one simple thing will cause you
to almost always eat less. When you do eat, stop when your
satisfied not when you are so stuffed you cannot even get
down another bite.

4. Double up on your cardio training. From time to time it may
be beneficial to the fat-burning process for you to split your
cardio training into two short sessions rather than one longer
one. Studies suggest that people who do 30 minutes of morning
cardio and then 30 minutes of evening cardio lose more fat
than those doing just one 60 minute session.

5. Eat more high fiber foods. Most of us do not get enough fiber
in our daily diets, and that’s just a shame. Fiber not only
promotes overall general health, but also can significantly
aid in your fat-burning efforts. Leafy greens and salads are
ideal sources of fiber.

Fill up on fiber. Choose whole grains, fruits and vegetables, high fiber cereals, dries beans, lentils, or other legumes. Your goal is 25 to 30 grams daily. Food hihg in fiber make you feel full without lots of calories.

Drink a glass of water before each meal and you’ll get a feeling of fullness. By sipping water throughout the day, you’ll know when you’re really hungry. Drink at least eight 8oz. glasses of water daily. I drink 1-1 1/2 gallons daily.

Eat more fish. Fish and poultry have less calories then beef, lamb and pork. Veal has the lowest calories of the meats, but it is higher in cholesterol than beef or lamb.

Limit your salt intake. Instead spice up your diet with pepper, lemons, basil and oregano (or Mrs.. Dash) and you’ll never miss
salt. Your blood pressure will improve and you’ll lose fat faster! Buy salt-free salsa and sugarless jam as snacks. They taste great on baked tortillas or whole wheat crackers. Also find lower fat substitutes that satisfy your taste preferences.

Think “healthy eating” instead of “diet”.  A “Diet” is an on again off again thing, healthy eating is a life long process. So if you’re still hungry and it’s not time to eat, take a walk, call a friend, or put on a swimsuit and check on the airfare to  Jamaica!

Pain During or Just After a Workout
During a workout, repeated contractions cause lactic and other acids, as well as proteins and hormones, to build up in muscle tissue. This can cause pain even without injury. But if you experience a sharp, continuous pain, or pain accompanied by a burning sensation, stop lifting and get it checked.

Cramps
These happen when muscles, often in the calves or feet, knot up in intense contractions. Cramps occur most commonly in endurance
sports like cycling and running, where the athlete loses a lot of fluids through sweating. This is why it’s very important to stay well-hydrated during exercise. If you do get cramps, the best way to stop them is to gently stretch the cramped muscle.

Injury
When working out with weights you need to be in full control of both the weights and your own body as it lifts and uses the weights. Careless weightlifting can result in injury. Not warming up, attempting to lift too heavy a weight, using momentum or jerky movements, letting the weights drop, not using correct form, or forgetting to stretch or cool-down after your workout can indeed result in injury.

The following injuries can occur as a result of carelessness:

1.Tendinitis:  This is inflammation of the tendon and can occur if you begin your first set with too heavy a weight and/or are not properly warmed-up. Rest is the best treatment for this painful injury.

2.Fascia injuries: Can occur if you suddenly jerk or pull the weight. Fascia is basically the packaging tissue of muscle. When fascia is torn, it becomes inflamed and the pain is severe. The injury should be treated with cold packs and wrapped with an ace bandage.

3.Ligament injuries: Can occur when people use momentum and jerk the weight to accomplish a lift. This injury is treated by using
cold packs and rest.

4.Sprains or muscle tears: Are uncommon if you warm-up, stretch, and cool-down properly and implement safety precautions and
principles.

Any time you do have inflammation or swelling, use the R.I.C.E method of reducing damage and speeding healing. For injuries,
R.I.C.E. is nice.

1.Rest: When you are hurt, stop your workout immediately and take weight off the affected area.

2.Ice: Wrap ice in a towel and hold it against the injury for 10 to 20 minutes, three or four times a day until the acute injury diminishes.

3.Compress: Wrap the injured area in a snug, but not tight, elastic bandage.

4.Elevate: Raise the injured limb and rest it on a pillow to reduce swelling. Strength training provides many important benefits that cannot be achieved by any other exercise or activity. However, when enjoying this great form of exercise, be sure to pay attention to pain and soreness so that your program is not only effective, but safe as well.

Good luck: I hope you enjoy all the wonderful benefits of a safe and effective strength training program.

The first thing your body will burn is stored carbohydrates in the form of glycogen.  The next is muscle tissue, only then does it grudgingly dip into the fat stores.  This is why most diets don’t work, especially “starvation” diets.  When you suddenly cut off the food supply, a survival mechanism kicks in causing the body to store every little bit of fat that it can!  This results in weight loss, but not much fat loss, and as soon as you DO eat something, it immediately gets stored as fat to replace any that was used.  This is NOT what you want, so you have to fool the body into thinking it doesn’t need fat. Here is a list of effective ways to do this, and you won’t even have to starve yourself! It’s never easy though.

Change your eating habits

Don’t diet! Make a permanent change in how you eat 1)  Limit, but don’t cut out high fat foods:  Dietary fat can be stored if taken in excess, however, some fat intake must be maintained to prevent the body from storing every bit of fat it does get. (see #6 below).

2)  Limit high sugar and high glycemic index foods (including fruit):  Simple sugars (and many “complex”carbohydrates) get easily converted into fat, and can also be the cause of high cholesterol. Glucose, fructose, and sucrose are all simple sugars and maltodextrin (common in many “weight gainer supplements) has a very high glycemic index putting it in the same category as simple sugars.  I’m not saying not to eat fruit, as they contain many beneficial vitamins, just don’t overdo it. Keep it to 2 or 3 pieces a day.

3) Eat more frequently:  Yes, you read that right!  Eat 5 or 6 smaller meals a day (or 3 main meals and 2 -3 healthy snacks, protein shakes work well). There are several reasons for this, they are:

With smaller servings, your stomach will shrink and you will get full faster.

Digesting burns a surprising amount of calories, eat more often and burn more calories!

When you eat a large meal, the body takes what it needs, and saves the excess as, guess what?  FAT.  Smaller meals prevent this even if you eat the same amount overall.

4)  Never eat before bed:  Plan your last meal to be at least 2 hours before bed.

5)  Eat slowly:  It takes your stomach about 20 minutes to signal the brain after it is full.  If you eat too fast you will  think you are still hungry and eat more.  If you’re still a bit hungry after eating, do something to take your mind off food for at least 20 minutes and you’ll most likely forget about the eating.

6)  Don’t totally cut out fat:  Keep some fat in your “nondiet”, as it helps get your body into a “fat burning mode”.  Keep it  “low to moderate fat” not “no fat”.   try to stick to the  “good” fats such as those from fish, flax oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil, olive oil, peanut oil.

7)  This won’t be easy so give yourself a break sometimes. Allow yourself one “treat” a week, or even a day where you can eat whatever you want, and really enjoy it!

8)  Eat foods that take lots of energy to burn:  These include most vegetables (especially the fibrous ones) and protein sources such as meat.   Cut the visible fat off of red meat and remove the skin from chicken.
Water-packed tuna is very good (if you like it).

9)  Take it easy on complex carbohydrates as any excess gets easily converted to fat.  This includes rice, pasta, potatoes, and any “starchy foods”.  Eat these regularly, but not too much at one time.  If you want to lose fat faster, cut down on these foods and replace with protein and fat.

10)  The breakdown should be about: 40% protein, 30% complex carbohydrate, and 30% fat.  This can be varied but keep the protein high and control your bodyfat by manipulating the carbohydrate content.  Most of the fat in your diet will come from the protein sources (meat and dairy).