Ab Exercises Simple and Well Defined

Abdominal or ab exercises are exercises specifically designed to strengthen and tone the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the body’s midsection. Because a trim core and waist is so highly desirable in modern culture, these exercises have become exceedingly popular. This fact is only heightened by the fact that many, if not most, ab exercises requires little if any expensive equipment.

It is often overlooked that different ab exercises are designed to pinpoint certain areas of the abdominal system, which contains four distinct sections: upper abdominals, lower abdominals, love handles, and lower back. Each section of the abdominal system is distinct and each has certain ab exercises that work best in strengthening and toning it specifically. Whether the goal is to build core strength for sports or bodybuilding, or just to achieve that ultra-desirable trim torso-look, the most effective method is to do a variety of ab exercises targeting all abdominal areas, not just focusing on a single section.

One of the great attractions of ab exercises is that they require little equipment and so are much easier to work out than other areas of the body, such as the legs, back, or chest. While there are many fine equipment options out there, some basic ab exercises can, if practiced regularly, provide a good workout. The most common ab exercises are the sit up, crunches, reverse crunches, and pilates. Pilates is a low intensity workout that involved light aerobic exercise and stretching, and has become a favorite ab exercise of women. Crunches and reverse crunches are some of the simplest and most efficient workouts there are: you simply lie on your back and either crunch up with your upper body (crunches) or draw your lower body toward your upper (reverse crunches). These two basic exercises will work out your entire abdominal system, with particular focus on the large upper and lower sections, offering optimal benefits for the greatest degree of convenience. Sit ups, on the other hand, offer limited benefits to the abdominals and can actually damage the back.

Because these exercises can be done at home, they require little in terms of equipment. An exercise mat is always useful for keeping comfortable and clean while doing ab exercises, many of which involve lying on the ground. Other ab exercises can be done with special weight lifting benches. Dumbbell plates in lower weights are great ways to add resistance to many ab exercises for a more intense workout. Perhaps the most flexible and fun option in ab exercise equipment is the medicine ball, which provides an incredible variety of uses and positions for your ab exercises, allowing you to target any muscle area.

An often-overlooked benefit of ab exercises is that keeping a strong, durable core can actually prevent or alleviate back pain. This, combined with the fitness benefits and body shaping ability of ab exercises, makes them some of the most important in the realm of fitness. It’s always a good idea to discus a potential workout and your goals for it with a doctor before you begin. Remember, with the huge variety of ab exercises out there, some work well and are highly beneficial, while others are poorly designed and destructive. Knowing which to use for your goals is key.

Alexander Sutton is the owner of Home Fitness Equipment located in Salt Lake City, UT. He has been an avid fitness enthusiast for over 15 years and has been involved in fitness competitions and several world-class athletic competitions.

For more information about home fitness equipment or ab exercises please visit his website at http://homefitnessequipment.org

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Alexander_Sutton

Bodyweight Exercises: How To Bench Press 500 Pounds

Everyone wants a bigger bench. It doesn’t matter if you’re training for track, bodybuilding, or fat loss, the bench press is where it’s at.

The question is how do you start crushing those higher numbers? There’s an easy answer: Begin by utilizing a concept called conjugate periodization, to improve both strength and speed, which are the two keys to a championship bench.

Dynamic Effort

The first bench day of the week will be geared towards speed production. After a full warmup, perform eight sets of three repetitions on the straight bar.

Loading on these will follow a three week wave, with 50% of your one repetition max (1RM) during week one, 55% for week two, and 60% for week three. Week four would start over again with 50%.

Developing a higher bar speed will help eliminate sticking points and assist in blowing a heavier weight off the chest.

In order to protect the elbows and prevent deceleration, accommodating resistance should be used during these speed sets. Attached chains or bands de-load at the chest and become heavier up towards lockout, which follows the human strength curve. Cycle these tools in the same waves as the bar weight. Use chains for one three week cycle, bands for the next, and plate weight only for the third. That’s an easy nine weeks of variation.

Following the speed sets, accessory work would be performed. These exercises would build the shoulders, arms and back. Special emphasis would be placed on weaker areas. For instance, if you were lacking in lockout strength, more work for the triceps would be required.

Maximum Effort

The maximum effort bench workout would take place three days after the dynamic session.

On this day the emphasis is geared toward building strength. But rather than using the straight bar on a flat bench, every other variation should be used, one per day, working up to a 1RM.

So, we have board presses, floor presses, rack lockouts, fat bar, cambered bar, decline bench, incline bench, high band tension, weight releasers, any lift that builds the muscles needed for regular benching.

Exercises for this day are used for a limit of three weeks in a row. Advanced lifters would switch every week.

The constant variety prevents nervous system burnout, while allowing constant maximum effort. Technique won’t be lost, because no matter what lift is performed on ME day, the speed sets are still done with a straight bar on a flat bench.

After the max effort lift is taken to a 1RM, accessory exercises are performed in the same manner as on dynamic day, to build more muscle and overcome weak points.

Sample Program

Week 2 Dynamic Effort Day

A1. Speed Bench 8x3 (55% 1RM)

B1. Chest Supported Row 7x6

B2. Dumbbell Triceps Extension 7x6

C1. Rear Delt Fly 3x10

C2. Hammer Curl 3x10

Week 2 Maximum Effort Day

A1. Fat Bar Two Board Press, up to 1RM

B1. Weighted Chinup 4x10

B2. Supinated Grip Kettlebell Triceps Extension 4x10

C1. Body Row 3x8

C2. Face Pulls 3x12

Additional Notes

Make sure to squat and deadlift as well. Having a strong pair of legs lets you build a stable foundation to push from.

Always work on keeping your shoulders healthy with external rotation exercises. The warmup is a perfect time to address this, as would be a short extra workout.

Conclusion

The conjugate method has consistently built champion bench pressers, and it can do the same for you. Bench going nowhere? Give these methods a try, today!

Lucas Wold is an elite strength and conditioning specialist located in central Washington state. Working with athletes of all levels, from adolescent beginners to Olympians to professionals, he focuses on spreading the most effective training methods to as many people as possible. He can be reached through his website at http://www.BeastAthletics.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lucas_Wold

How to keep Your bosom perfect

Everyone wants to have a good brench. I'll show you a few simple exercises.

Bodyweight Exercises: Top 10 Exercises Without Weights

If you hate to go to the gym, you are not alone. The good news is - you can get results in the comfort of your own home with some simple home bodyweight exercises.

Bodyweight training CAN be effective. It CAN be a substitute for weights, if necessary. Training using your own body weight as a source of resistance is a time tested technique to get results fast.

Here are the ten best bodyweight training exercises that give you great workouts and great results - without the gym.

1. Supine Pull-Ups (works major muscles in back, shoulders, and biceps) Use two chairs and a pole - a heavy broom handle works well. WARNING: make sure the chairs are stable and that the broom handle is strong enough to take your weight. You could be SEVERELY injured if the pole were to break or the chairs to slip. Lie on your back underneath a low bar. Grab the bar with a wide overhand grip. Pull up. Lower and repeat for 6-8 reps.

2. Supine Biceps Pull-Ups (biceps, some back) Use the same chairs-and-pole arrangement from #1. Sit underneath a low bar. Grab the bar with a reverse grip (palms facing you), hands about shoulder-width apart. Keeping your body upright, pull up until your chin just clears the bar. Focus on the tension in your biceps, trying to relax the rest of your body. 6-8 reps.

3. Push-Ups (chest, triceps, shoulders) The key when targeting the chest with Push-Ups is the direction in which your elbows travel. As with bench presses, the elbows must move AWAY FROM THE BODY to target your chest, and be kept CLOSE TO THE BODY to target the triceps. Place each hand just outside your shoulders, slightly behind the line of your shoulders. Hands pointing straight ahead, upper body rigid as a board. 6-15 reps.

4. Tent Push-Ups (primarily upper chest) Assume the position in #3, but walk your feet forward so your body is bent at the waist, and your hips are up high in the air. Bending at the elbows, lower yourself until your nose touches the floor. Push up. Repeat. 6-8 reps.

5. Push-Ups, Triceps Position (you guessed it - triceps, and some chest) Begin with fingers facing forward in position from #3, hands slightly LESS than shoulder width apart. Lower your body to the floor keeping arms in against your body. Push up. 6-8 reps.

6. Triceps Dips With Chairs With your hands behind your back, support yourself on your palms at the edge of a chair. Your hands should be touching; your elbows should angle outward. Dipping in this position relieves a lot of stress on the elbow and shoulder joints. Lower yourself, keeping your back close to the chair. Bend your elbows back and slightly to the sides. Keep your body angled slightly forward throughout the motion. Press yourself up until your arms are straight. 6-15 reps.

7. One-Legged Squats (front thighs, glutes, hamstrings) Stand perpendicular to a wall, about arm's length away from it. Extend your arm out to the side and place your palm against the wall at just under shoulder-height. Angle the foot farthest from the wall at 45 degrees. Bend the other leg back. Keeping your body upright, lower yourself until the non-weight-bearing knee is close to (but not touching) the ground. Support yourself by leaning against the wall. Press yourself back up to starting position. Repeat 6-8 reps.

8. One-Legged Hamstring Bridges Lie on your back with one leg extended, heel on the ground. Hold the other leg up off the floor. Pushing through your heel, flex your hamstrings to lift your body. Lower and repeat for 8-10 reps. Repeat with other leg. You can control the resistance and the degree to which the glutes contribute by changing the distance you place your heel relative to your butt.

9. Lunges Begin the lunge by taking a large step forward, keeping your head up and torso erect. Lower your hips and allow your trailing knee to drop to a point just before it touches the floor - never let the knee touch the floor. To return to the start, push off with your forward leg and then step back when the knee is completely straight. Repeat with other leg, 10-15 reps each leg.

10. Stair Running Stair running isn't usually considered a resistance exercise, and in fact, it makes hefty demands on your cardiovascular system. However, it also does an incredible job of conditioning the lower body. If your knees are in good shape, try doing 10-20 one-story sprints, preferably two stairs at a time. As you get stronger, work up the number slowly, keep one hand on the stair rail to catch yourself if you lose your balance. Give yourself a bigger challenge by wearing a backpack filled with nice and heavy books.

Article Directory: http://www.articlecube.com

To read reviews on home exercise equipment and learn how to choose the best exercise gadgets for your needs, visit Nitin Chhoda's new site guide to exercise equipment.

Quick Lose Weight: Exercising In Heat, Lose Weight!

Flaxseed, called linseed in some countries, is a good source of dietary fiber, omega-3 fatty acids, and lignans.

Flax seed oils is the form in which the oil was extracted from the seed. Omega-3 fatty acids which contain the majority of flax seed health benefits are very susceptible to heat.

Flax seeds may come in different colors, but the colors don’t anything to do with the value of their nutrition. They are all equally beneficial to you. A comprehensive approach to treating cognitive disorders should include foods and supplements that benefit the overall health of brain cells. These include omega-3 fatty acids found in flaxseed and fish.

In one study men with prostate cancer who ate an ounce of ground flaxseeds (almost three tablespoons) a day as part of a very-low-fat diet were able to slow the progress of their cancers between the time they were diagnosed and the time of surgery.

Exercising In Heat

Summer is officially here. Finally you can pack away your jackets and get outside. Summer offers extras hours of daylight and with it the opportunity to spend even more time enjoying outdoor activities. For many, this means more time doing physical activities and playing sports. So, it’s important to remember the potential dangers that also come with exercising in hot conditions. As long as you know the dos and don’ts of working out in the heat, then you can fully take advantage of all the fun of summer.

What you should do:

• Drink plenty of fluids. It’s extremely important to stay hydrated. If you’re thirsty then you are already dehydrated; drink before you feel a need to. Be sure to drink throughout the day (stick to non-caffeinated beverages, preferably water). Also, drink 15-20 minutes before beginning your workout and every 15 minutes throughout the exercise.
• Eat regularly. The heat can decrease your appetite, but it’s important to eat normally. Try to eat small meals 5-6 times per day. Include lots of fruits and vegetables. Aside from being nutritious, fruits also tend to help with hydration.
• Wear light, loose fitting clothes that can breath. Cotton is always a good choice. If your outdoor activity produces a lot of perspiration, consider clothing that is designed to wick the sweat away.
• Wear sunscreen. Even if you exercise early in the morning or late in the evening, if the sun can reach you then you can get burned. Not only is a sunburn bad on the skin and potentially dangerous but it also hinders your bodies ability to stay cool.

Flaxseed has recently gained attention in the area of cardiovascular disease primarily because it is the richest known source of both alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and the phytoestrogen, lignans, as well as being a good source of soluble fiber.

Researchers found low incidences of breast cancer and colon cancer in populations that have high amounts of Lignan in their diet. The effects of flaxseed on blood glucose levels are not clear, although hyperglycemic effects have been reported in one case series. However, this should not deter you from getting healthier with flax seed oil!

But you should be drinking a lot of water after consuming the seeds.

* Use common sense and don’t attempt strenuous activities that your body is not accustom to. Stick to exercises that you are very familiar and comfortable with.

One of the EFAs in flaxseed oil--alpha-linolenic acid--is known as an omega-3 fatty acid.

• Check the weather forecast. It’s best not to participate in intense outdoor exercise sessions when the heat index registers in the dangerous zone.
  

What you should not do:

• Don’t try to diet by sweating. Excessive perspiration is not the key to permanent weight loss. Any decrease in the scale would simply be a result of water loss, not fat reduction.
• Don’t adapt the "no pain, no gain" motto. Ignoring your body’s signals could be dangerous. Heat-related illnesses come with warning signs. Be sure to learn how to recognize them and what actions to take.
• Don’t forget to drink plenty of liquid when swimming. Just because your body is surrounded by water does not mean that you are well-hydrated. As with any land exercises, you need to regularly replenish lost fluids when in the pool.
• Avoid physical activity during the hottest part of the day, which usually is between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
• If you want (or need) to be working in very hot temperatures, don’t do it until you become acclimated. Try to spend only a few minutes per day in the hot conditions for the first couple of weeks and then add time gradually each day.
• Avoid extreme changes in temperature. Don’t hop from being extremely hot and sweating excessively right into an ice cold, air-conditioned environment. Try to cool your body down slightly before exposing it to the extreme temperature variation.

Whether you have to work outside or do it for enjoyment, following the above tips will help you stay cool and safe during the dog days of summer. So, don’t spend the season cooped up, get out there and have some fun!

Why is Flaxseed called the miracle food? Find out at http://www.flaxseedfitness.com Flaxseeds also contain omega-6 fatty acids in the form of linoleic acid; omega-6s are the same healthy fats found in vegetable oils.

Men who eat fish frequently have a lower risk of prostate cancer. Stomach and intestinal cancers also appear to be less common in fish eaters.

These beneficial fats play important roles in brain, nerve, glandular, and eye functions. In addition, they are involved in the transport and metabolism of cholesterol and triglycerides.

Randomized clinical trials have shown that omega-3 fatty acid supplements can reduce cardiovascular events (death, non-fatal heart attacks, non-fatal strokes). They can also slow the progression of atherosclerosis in coronary patients. Flax Seed muffins pregents Cancer? How to do take Flax Seed? Find Flax Seed Recipe today! Omega-3 for health! I don’t recommend you buy ground up flax seeds as found on websites or in health food stores. Once you grind your flax seeds, you need to use them in your drinks or food soon after grinding so they don’t lose their nutritive value.

Article Directory: http://www.articlecube.com

Among the women given flaxseed, blood levels of total cholesterol dropped 6%! Find out more!

Bodyweight Exercises: Quick Bodyweight Training Tips

No bodyweight workout program is complete without a weight training regimen. If you are including weights in your exercise program you already know how much weight training helps. If you are not using weights you need to start. Read this article and get some tips to help you improve your weight lifting results.

The first tip is to keep records of your weight lifting. This is something that I rarely see in the gym. Keep a notebook with you and record how much weight you lift and how many repetitions you do. This will let you know what you need to do next time to improve your strength. If you do not keep a record of the weight you lift you will find it hard to remember and improve on that weight the next time you lift. This will also give you a record of how you have improved over time.

The next tip is to not overdo it. Do not work out a muscle group more than one time per week. You have to give your muscles enough time to heal after a workout. If you lift weights too often you will actually be tearing down your muscles instead of building them up. Divide your muscles into two or three groups and just work out each group once a week. Make up a workout schedule with these groups and stick to it.

The last tip I have for you is to make sure that you eat properly. You need to eat healthy foods high in protein if you want to build muscle. Try drinking a protein shake within an hour after working out. Its an easy way to give your muscles the protein they need. Also consider taking a good multi vitamin.

Follow these tips and you will be well on your way to a healthier body. Just remember to have patience because results do not happen overnight. Stick with it and you will get there. Good luck.


Find certified personal trainers at the authors website on personal training and fitness.

Bodyweight Workout: Super Fast Fat Burning Workouts for Outdoors

I've got just a quick tip today to help get you started on your summer beach body with fast workouts that can be done anywhere. Now that it's nice outside, why not take some of your workouts outdoors, instead of the stuffy old gym? One of the points I'd like to make with this article is that your workouts don't have to be long drawn-out 2-hour events in order to get great metabolism boosting, muscle sculpting workouts.

Here's an idea for an outdoor workout that literally takes me 10-20 minutes, but has me drenched in sweat and pumped up by the end...

There's a little playground and a softball field at the end of my road. So on a nice day, if I decide I just want to get a real quick outdoor workout in, I run over to the field, spend a couple minutes limbering up, and then... depending on how I feel, do about 10-20 minutes of the following exercises with almost no rest in between:

• 50, 75, or 100-yard wind sprints
• hill sprints (if you have a hill nearby)
• pushup variations
• walking lunge variations
• bodyweight squat variations
• box jump, squat jump, or lunge jump variations
• pullups on the playground monkey bars
• mountain climbers on ground

Sometimes I'll rotate through all of these exercises and sometimes I'll just pick a couple of them and just keep alternating. Whatever I choose, I keep the rest periods very short (10-30 seconds at most) so that the intensity stays as high as possible. This really maximizes the fat burning hormonal response and metabolism boosting response you get from these workouts, given the brief duration of the workout.

Believe me, if you do this at a high speed clip, you'll get a killer workout in as little as 10-20 minutes, and then you can get back home and get on with your life.

Even if you're not in super shape right now, you can just take it at a little lower intensity to ease yourself into it. It's worth it! Working out in the outdoors and breathing in the fresh air definitely has a stimulating effect, and some studies I've seen have indicated that you possibly burn more calories exercising outdoors compared to indoors. So give it a try... You have nothing to lose, except a little of that extra belly fat!

About the author:

For more killer ideas on quick but effective workouts visit Fast Fat Loss Workouts for Busy Men.

Michael Geary (CPT) is a recognized Fitness Expert, contributing writer for Muscle & Fitness Magazine, and author of the internationally-selling book, The Truth about 6-Pack Absfat burning and muscle sculpting programs

Bodyweight Workout: Lose Stomach Fat & Love Handles The Right Way

Losing stomach fat and love handles is a struggle for you right? I can bet that you are thinking that you have tried almost every strategy in the book to try to get rid of your stubborn stomach fat, but you just never seem to get results, right?

I am sure you see hundreds of commercials and advertisements that make all kinds of wild miracle claims that you can get rid of your stomach fat in no time with their supposed magic pill or hyped up stomach melting supplement. How about all of the bogus infomercial abs-gadgets out there claiming you can eliminate your stomach fat in only 2-minutes a day just by throwing on some worthless "abdominal belt" around your belly, or sizzle away the abdominal fat and love handles by using their patented "ab-rocker-roller" thingymajig.

Please someone inject some sanity! I hope you have been insulted by these fraudulent scamsters and the gimmicks that they are pushing on you every day by trying to lure you into believing that a stomach fat reduction miracle is possible in 2 minutes/day.

So let us set the record straight and get past all of the gimmicks and scams and get right down to the reality and hard science regarding the strategies & techniques that really do help you to get rid of your stubborn stomach fat and keep it off for life!

1) The 1st important aspect that we will talk about is how you structure your workout programs. In order to stimulate stomach fat loss, you need to eliminate so much wasted time doing all the various abs exercises and hundreds of reps of sit ups, crunches, side bends, and torso twists in the hopes of "spot-reducing" your love handles and stomach fat.

I am sure by now that you know (if you have read any decent reputable fitness publications over the last decade) that spot-reduction is a myth and it simply DOES NOT occur. The truth is, you can't lose your stomach fat or love handles by doing exercises that target the abdominals or obliques. Unfortunately, although most people do understand this aspect by now (or at least they should), most still devote WAY too much of their workout time trying to isolate the stomach and love handles with hundreds of abs and obliques exercises.

Now don't get me wrong, a certain amount of abdominals and core exercises in general are great and they do help to strengthen and help you maintain a healthy back and core. But the truth is that exercises directly targeting the stomach and obliques should only be a small portion of your workout routines. To get the best fat loss results, the majority of your training time should be focused on big multi-joint exercises that work the largest muscle groups of the body like the legs, chest, and back.

That is one of the TRUE secrets for getting rid of that floppy stomach fat for life. Focusing the majority of your time on big multi-joint exercises for the largest portions of the body causes a large increase in your metabolic rate both during the workout, and for 1-2 days after the workout. This style of exercise also stimulates an increase in production of fat-burning hormones in your body. You just do not receive this type of metabolism boost and hormonal response by wasting all of your time with hundreds of "abdominals-pumping" and obliques exercises.

So you want to lose your stomach fat right? Well, get your butt under a barbell and do some squats, some deadlifts, some step-ups, some lunges, some chest and back exercises. It doesn't necessarily matter if it is barbells, dumbbells, or even bodyweight exercises... the focus should be on full body multi-joint exercises at a high intensity. Yes, that also means no 10-minute rest periods between sets while you "exercise your jaw" with half of the people at the gym.

If you want to lose your stomach fat for good, this requires some intensity and focus during your workouts! Anybody who tells you that you can eliminate your stomach fat with your butt parked on the couch watching TV with some "abdominal-belt" strapped to you, or doing only two minutes of crunching with your "ab-roller-rocker" is simply lying to you!

2) The second important aspect to eliminate your flabby stomach fat is your nutrition program. The first thing you should realize is that "dieting" only works against your body's instincts in your effort to lose the belly fat. The problem is, if you follow any of these gimmick diets like low-carb, or low-fat, the soup diet, or anything else that restricts 1 or more of the macro-nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, and fat), what usually happens is that you actually lose lean muscle and essentially lower your metabolic rate. This only makes you fatter in the long term, because when you start to eat normal again, you now have a lower caloric maintenance level due to the lowered metabolism.

I could go into even more details, but you are basically messing up the processes in your body related to your hormonal balance, the muscle glycogen process, blood sugar, insulin, etc. This stops your body fat loss dead in its tracks!

It's important to stop being suckered into the diet gimmicks, and understand that we are meant to eat a balanced diet full of a diverse variety of foods from healthy natural sources of proteins, carbohydrates, AND fats. This gives your body all of the macro-nutrients as well as all of the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and enzymes that the body needs to hum along as a well-oiled fat-burning machine!

I have dozens more strategies to help you lose your stubborn stomach fat faster... the natural way, but this article can only be so long, so look below to grab a free report encompassing some of my most effective fat-loss tips and strategies to help you lose that stomach fat and uncover those hidden six pack abs of yours.

By: Michael Geary

Grab your FREE report which reveals over 27 additional specific secrets for stomach fat loss and increasing your metabolism at Lose Stomach Fat & Love Handles Faster Michael Geary (CPT) is a recognized International Fitness Expert, contributing writer for Muscle & Fitness Hers Magazine, and author of the internationally-popular book, The Truth about 6-Pack Abdominals. Michael is also the owner of 4-Minute Workouts for Busy Men

Bodyweight Exercises:10 Tips For Rapid Fat Loss!

Copyright 2006 The Fitness Consulting Group

Are you looking for that “jump start” to rev your metabolism and get you bathing suit ready? The following ten tips will improve your workouts and ignite your metabolism. Try some or all of these tips, but beware, the result may be a number of admiring second glances and stares when you don that bikini or pair of trunks.

1. The majority of your workouts should be composed of free-weight or cable exercises.

Compared to machines, free-weight and cable movements often require more skill, create muscular balance, and have a greater metabolic cost. For example, it is more difficult to balance the weights, and to coordinate muscles when performing free-weight exercises. Although this may sound like a disadvantage, it is actually a benefit. By balancing and stabilizing free-weights or cables you are working more muscles through a greater range of motion resulting in more muscles developed and more calories burned.

2. Use mostly compound (multi-joint and multi-muscle) exercises.

When focusing on improving body composition, you can't worry about “detail” exercises, so you should use exercises that'll get you the biggest bang for your buck. Isolation exercises can be used at the end of a workout to work on a specific weakness, but only do the bare minimum.

Virtually every savvy fitness professional is privy to the fact that compound exercises recruit the most muscle groups for any given body part.

If you seek lean muscle and the increase in metabolism that comes with it, you must choose exercises that allow for the greatest load. One of the main reasons why squats are superior to leg extensions for quadriceps development relates to the fact that the load you can expose the quadriceps to is much greater with squats. That’s why presses and dips will give you great triceps development, while triceps kickbacks will do little for triceps development and even less for the metabolism.

A good rule of thumb is to use lifts that will allow you to use the most weight. These will have a systemic effect on your body that'll help maintain or increase your muscle mass, and in turn ignite your metabolism.

3. Super-set or group exercises.

Perform either non-competing muscle group training or antagonist training. Non-competing muscle group training would involve doing a set of a lower body exercise, and following it up with an upper body exercise Antagonist training is executed by alternating exercises that target opposing muscle groups (e.g. chest and back). The list of benefits includes: quicker recovery, greater strength levels and shorter workout times.

This design can be a huge advantage in your mission to burn fat. If you alternate exercises for opposing or non-competing muscle groups, you’ll be able to keep your heart rate elevated and burn calories like a blast furnace!

4. Keep rep ranges, in general, between 8 and 12.

Through research, it has been determined that the best range for hypertrophy (muscle gain) is roughly between 8-12 reps. Since the main focus of your resistance training efforts is to gain lean body mass and stimulate your metabolism, this rep range fills the bill perfectly. “High reps for tone and fat loss” is the “big kahuna” of all training myths! Somehow the aerobics, yoga and Pilate’s community have convinced us that when we perform bodyweight exercises or light resistance training for high reps, our muscles magically take on a beautiful shape without growing or bulging. On the other hand, if you challenge yourself with moderately heavy weights, your body will take on a bulky, unflattering appearance. If you believe this, you probably still believe in the Tooth Fairy!

5. Rest only 30 to 60 seconds between sets.

When you keep the rest periods under one minute, it’s easier to stay focused on the task at hand and keeps your heart rate elevated. In addition, it forces your muscles to recover more quickly between sets, along with keeping your nervous system revved up.

If your first movement in an upper/lower body superset is squats, you might want to rest 60 seconds before attempting your second movement. However, if your first exercise is a fairly "easy" exercise, like lat pull downs, you might only wish to wait 30 seconds before doing the second part of the superset.

6. Every session should consist of approximately six to eight exercises. Why? Because empirical evidence has shown that normal trainees can consistently maintain six to eight exercises per session without burning out.

It’s imperative to base your exercise selection around compound, multi-joint exercises. Seventy-five percent (75%) of your exercises for each session must be compound exercises. Six single-joint isolation exercises are not going do the trick. Sure, you can perform a few isolation exercises, but the majority of your exercise choices should be multi-joint.

7. Perform Total Body Workouts

First and foremost, you must drop the notion that a muscle group can only be trained once or twice a week. Fitness enthusiasts from the past didn't train that way and you shouldn't either. The more frequent muscle producing / fat burning sessions you can have, the better.

8. Cardio is not the cure-all for Obesity

Cardiovascular exercise aids in the creation of a caloric deficit, but the caloric expenditure during cardio is temporary. Strength training addresses the core of the problem by permanently increasing the rate at which the body burns calories by adding muscle. The best programs will include both strength training and cardiovascular training, but the core or the programs effectiveness is resistance training.

9. When you do cardio, do it first thing in the morning.

Do your cardiovascular training first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. You’ve gone 8 or more hours without eating, so your blood sugar levels are at their lowest when you first wake up. After about 10-15 minutes of cardio training on an empty stomach, you’ll have burned up all your remaining blood sugar.

Once your blood sugar is used up, the only remaining source of fuel your body has to continue with your cardio exercise is your stored body fat.

10. Vary your pace during your cardio training sessions.

Don’t maintain a constant steady pace while you’re on the treadmill or elliptical machine. Numerous studies have shown you’ll burn more calories and more fat if you train in intervals.

Start out by going for 1 minute at your normal walking pace. Then, for the next 30 seconds, speed it up to a run. After the 30 seconds at an increased pace, slow back down to your original pace for 1 more minute. This is known as an interval. Repeat this interval style cardio for 10-20 minutes.

Performing your cardio in this “interval” fashion will allow you to burn more fat and calories in less time than just keeping a nice steady pace. This will increase the results you see while reducing your time on the treadmill, stationary bike, or whatever form of cardiovascular training you do.

Learn 10 tips that will shave time off your workouts and unwanted pounds from your body.

Pat Rigsby is the owner of Fit Systems Personal Training and Wellness. He is also a published author of several fitness related books and articles. You can learn even more about how to accomplish your fitness and weight loss goals in less time at his website http://www.full-schedule-fitness.com , where he explains several highly effective workout routines that can help you reshape your body in as little as 4 minutes per day.

Three New Powerful Workout Styles That Burn Fat And Build Muscle Fast

If you've been looking for a different training technique to break out of a rut, eliminate the boredom, and bring on new results, "complexes" may be just what you've been looking for. If you've never heard of "complexes" before, the basic concept is that instead of repeating the same exercise for multiple reps to complete a "set", you sequence one rep of several different exercises right after one another and repeat the sequence several times to complete a "set".

No, this is NOT circuit training... it's much different. It's basically like performing a routine of exercises, instead of just mindlessly performing a typical "set" of one specific exercise. This type of training is excellent to work a huge amount of musculature in a short amount of time, and definitely takes your workouts to a whole new level of intensity. The conditioning aspect of this type of training is amazing, as you'll find yourself huffing and puffing after repeating a sequence a mere two or three times. If I had to venture a guess, I'd have to say that this type of training probably elicits a good growth hormone response as well, due to the large amount of full body work completed in a given time period. But that's just my guess.

I like to incorporate about 5 exercises into my complexes. Any more than that and you might start to forget what's next in the sequence. Here’s an example of a killer barbell complex that really gets me fired up:

Example Barbell Complex

1. high pull from floor (explosive deadlift right into upright row in one motion);

2. barbell back to thighs, then hang clean (explosively pull bar from knees and "catch" the bar at shoulders);

3. barbell back to floor, then clean & press overhead;

4. barbell back to thighs, bend over, then bent over row;

5. barbell back to thighs, then finish with Romanian deadlift

Use a weight that you can still handle for your weakest lift of the bunch, but keep it heavy enough to challenge you. Try to repeat the sequence 2-3 times without resting... That's 1 set. You could progress over time on this routine by increasing the amount of times you repeat the sequence in each set, or by adding sets on subsequent workouts before eventually increasing the weight. For example, say you completed the above complex with 155-lbs for 3 sequences per set for 3 sets in todays workout. Next time you perform the workout, try to do 155 lbs for 3 sequences per set for 4 sets. Once you successfully complete 5 sets with 155, increase the weight 5 or 10 lbs next time, and drop back to 3 sets. This is a great way to make improvements over time, while cycling your training volume.

Now I'm going to show you a great kettlebell complex that really kicks my butt. I've been training with kettlebells for a little over a year now, and can definitely say that they have dramatically improved my strength, body composition, and overall physical capabilities. If you're not familiar with kettlebells, they are an old eastern European training secret that has just started to take the US by storm over the last few years.

Many elite athletes are using kettlebells as their preferred training tool for serious results. If you would like more info on kettlebells just go to TruthAboutAbs.com and click on Fitness Programs. I'd recommend just starting off with one bell and learn all of the single kettlebell drills first, before delving into the double-bell drills. Just one kettlebell coupled with some bodyweight exercises can literally be enough to comprise your own home gym, without any other equipment necessary. Or you can just incorporate kettlebell training into your normal training routine once or twice a week to shake up your routine and stimulate new results.

Example Kettlebell Complex

1. one arm swing

2. one arm snatch, keep the bell over head;

3. one arm overhead squat;

4. bell back down to bottom, then one arm high pull;

5. bell back down to bottom, then one arm clean & press

As with the barbell complex, repeat the sequence (without rest) 2-3 times with each arm. That's one set… and one hell of a killer set at that! Try increasing from 3 to 4 to 5 sets on subsequent workouts with a given weight before increasing your sequence reps. If you're not drenched in sweat with your heart beating out of your chest after that complex, you either went too light, or you are a mutant freak!

Alright, since most people will have easier access to dumbbells instead of kettlebells, now I'll show you how to compile a good dumbbell complex.

Example Dumbbell Complex

1. upright row with each arm separately, then both together;

2. front lunge with one leg, then the other;

3. back lunge with one leg, then the other;

4. curl to overhead press;

5. keep dumbbells at shoulders and squat

Again, the same type of sequencing and progressions work great with the dumbbell complexes. I think a great strategy is to alternate barbell complexes on one day with kettlebell or dumbbell complexes on alternative training days. For example, you could do barbell complexes Monday, kettlebell or dumbbell complexes Wednesday, and back to barbell complexes on Friday. Maybe hit some sprints and bodyweight drills on Saturday; then Monday would be kettlebell or dumbbell complexes again, Wednesday would be barbells again, and so on. Give this program a try for a month (if you dare), and you will be one hardened individual!

By: Michael Geary

Check out Mike's site Quick Workouts for Busy Men at BusyManFitness.com. Michael Geary (CPT) is a recognized International Fitness Expert, contributing writer for Muscle & Fitness Magazine, author of the internationally-selling book, The Truth about Six-Pack Abdominals6-Pack Abdominals blog at TruthAboutAbs.com. Also see Mike's

Bodyweight Exercises And Amazing Lunges

If you want to gain functional strength, muscular endurance and quicker first step reactions, something all athletes and Martial Artists need, you’ll start adding lunges into your routine.

There is no other group of exercises that packs as much punch for training as the Lunge Evolution. Nearly all traditional bodyweight and traditional weightlifting exercises are one-dimensional, you are locked in place in a stable atmosphere. With squats you stand in one place, with the bench press you lie on your back, with pushups you are stationary on your hands and feet.

Lunges are the exact opposite. They are multi-dimensional, and as you’ll soon discover, the last stage of the evolution packs all the punches of Proprioception, teaching your body where it is in space. When your body has a better understanding of where it is when you’re not fully balanced, they benefit are quicker movements, reactions and faster movement patters.

Breaking down the Lunge into several of the movement patterns that take place in the exercise, you can see:
1. A squat
2. Running
3. Throwing a punch
4. Rotational trunk movement
5. Controlling an unbalanced load with one leg in the air, as in a punch or kick
6. And on and on…

The gains of lunging have to be seen and felt to be fully appreciated.

As with any exercise, you should start at the conservative level and gradually up the intensity. When a stage becomes easy, and you’ll know when this happens, you move on to the next stage. You’ll do yourself no good jumping into the hardest part of the evolution, that will only lead to your frustration and inability to get the very most out of the training.

The Lunge Evolution

The stages of the Lunge Evolution are as follows:
1. Lunge
2. Weighted Lunge
3. Weighted Lunge and Rotate
4. Proprioceptive Weighted Lunge and Rotate



The Lunge
The Lunge is done with no weight and begins to get the body use to using its’ lunging muscles. When starting out, repetitions should be very conservative, even in the single digits as you begin to get those hamstrings use to the work.

1. From a normal standing position
2. Take a long step with the right leg…
3. As the left knee barely touches the ground…
4. Take your next step with the left leg
5. Keep your torso straight


The Weighted Lunge

The Weighted Lunge increases the challenge by forcing a body using forward momentum and stepping to manipulate a weight. This is akin to teaching the moving weight of the body’s limbs to stay within the body’s balance plane and use efficient movement patters. When the body throws a punch, if the hand gets out of the body’s balance plane, all bets are off. This is something that happens when you throw one punch too many on a punching combination.

1. Lift a medicine ball, or weight, only light weight is needed
2. Take a long step with the right leg…
3. As the left knee barely touches the ground…
4. Take your next step with the right leg
5. Keep your torso straight
6. Maintain balance as you continue to hold the weight over your head

The Weighted Lunge and Rotate

The Weighted Lunge and Rotate now adds in the rotational movements of the torso. Every strike in the Martial Arts contains rotational movement. This is also true of a jab and front kick, there is just not as much rotational movement in those strikes, but it is there. There is rotational movement in nearly any athletic movement you can think of.

1. Hold a medicine ball or other weight above your head
2. Step with the right foot while bringing the left knee to barely touch the ground
3. As this is done, rotate the medicine ball to the side of the forward leg, in this case, the right one
4. Step with the left leg forward, right knee barely touching the ground, and medicine ball having traveled up above the head and over to the left side
5. Continue until finished, using distance in place of repetitions for this exercise


The Proprioceptive Weighted Lunge and Rotate

The last piece of intensity added in is forcing the body to balance itself from the ground up. This is accomplished by wearing Proprioception footwear. I use Jumpsoles with the Proprioceptor Plug inserted in the bottom, it’s like walking on two mini stability balls.

When you can do this exercise for 20 yards, you’ve arrived.

1. Wearing Proprioception footwear, hold a medicine ball above your head
2. Step with the right foot while bringing the left knee to barely touch the ground
3. As this is done, rotate the medicine ball to the side of the forward leg, in this case, the right one
4. Step with the left leg forward, right knee barely touching the ground, and medicine ball having traveled up above the head and over to the left side
5. Continue until finished


Increased Athleticism

When I work with athletes, many feel the effects of lunges sometimes after only a couple of training sessions. Their feelings are always the same as they tell me they feel stronger, more athletic and quicker.

The reason for the increased athleticism is the Proprioception training that’s taking place. With the Lunge Evolution, the smaller micro-muscles of the spine become engaged, and essentially are woken up by this exercise and told they are needed. I refer to these muscles as the “athleticism muscles”.

No matter what sport you play, when you start adding Lunges to your training, you’ll be amazed by the gains you produce.

About the author:
Joe Driscoll is a former Martial Arts world champion and the author of "Conditioning and Beyond" and several other books on fitness, conditioning and Martial Arts Training. Find out more about Joe and his training concepts at http://www.FightingShape.com. His blog is at http://www.JoeDriscoll.com.

5 Best Tips For Building Muscle At Home Easy and Quickly

By: Darren MacLeod

I have always believed that you have a much better chance of reaching your fitness goals if you join a gym and get advice from a professional trainer or coach. However, many MuscleandStrength.com readers do not have the time, money or desire to join a gym and prefer to workout at home. I believe that working out home has a its disadvantages, but the one huge advantage it does have is…you don’t have to leave the house!

If you are one of these people that plans to workout at home then this article is for you! Like I just mentioned, you will have a far better chance of achieving your goals when you join a gym but it is possible to get into shape and build muscle without leaving your home with limited equipment.

So here at my top 5 tips for building muscle at home:

1) Don’t waste your money on “miracle” gym equipment
Getting in shape takes time, motivation and hard work. If you are not willing to put in those three things then you may as well not start. Avoid gym equipment that says “get in shape in 5 minutes a day”, or “flatter abs in 14 days”. These types of equipment are a total waste of money! You can literally do hundreds of exercises just using a set of dumbbells and a barbell, and these happen to be some of the cheapest pieces of gym equipment. If you are unsure of what equipment best suits your needs you should consult a fitness professional (see tip 5).

2) Wherever possible, use your bodyweight
If you have limited equipment, bodyweight exercises are your friend. You can potentially pack on a huge amount of muscle without ever lifting a dumbbell or barbell. Good bodyweight exercises to do at home include chin ups, wide grip pull ups, dips, bench dips, push ups and bodyweight rows.

3) Plan your diet around your workouts
If you have the flexibility of working out at home then you also have the ability to plan your meals around your workouts. Diet makes up 70% of the building muscle process so you can see how important it is. Make sure you eat a good serve of complex carbohydrates about one hour before your workout and a nutritious meal containing protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals within 1 hour of finishing your workout. You should spread your meals out evenly throughout the day. Eat six small meals throughout the day instead of three large ones. This promotes a fast metabolism and limits fat storage.

4) Avoid distractions
One of the problems with working out at home is getting easily distracted. If possible, set up your gym equipment in an empty room with a stereo so you can focus on working out and not what’s happening around the house. A friend of mine who has a home gym told me he often used to put his favorite bodybuilding DVDs on while he was training to keep him motivated. This is an awesome tip to stay motivated at home. Another tip would be to try and workout when no one else is home.

5) Consult a fitness professional
I recommend this for people who are new to weight training and home workouts. Even if you have trained in a gym before, working out at home is much different and a fitness professional with working out at home experience should be able to help you out. In addition to helping you with your home gym setup, he/she will be able to plan a good routine and give you some tips to maximize the equipment you’ve got. You should be able to get all the help you need in one or two sessions so it shouldn’t break the bank!

These are just a few important tips for those of you working out at home. If you are serious about workout out at home for the long term, I would recommend that you pick up a few more basic pieces of equipment. These include an adjustable bench, weight rack (this can be used for bench and squatting) and a good range of dumbbells and weight plates.

If you have any more questions about working out at home head over to the forum on MuscleandStrength.com, our members will happily help you out with some free advice. Well, good luck with your home workouts and thank you for reading this article. See links below for further information.


Learn how to build muscle, gain weight and shape up by reading this free muscle building information. Muscle&Strength.com has over 700 page of free info including muscle building supplement advice.

The Best Bodyweight Exercises for Sexy Thighs and a Toned Butt

When searching for the best Bodyweight exercises for the thighs, you see TONS of ads promoting all of these fancy so-called inner-thigh blasters, thigh squeezers, thigh-toning machines, etc. Take my word when I say that you do NOT need any of these ridiculous "thigh-blasting" gadgets to tighten and tone-up your legs, butt, and hips for good.

As always, the best exercises for the thighs come in the form of free-weight or bodyweight exercises. You really need not look any further than various forms of exercises like lunges, squats, deadlifts, and step-ups to get those toned thighs that you want. In addition, there are plenty of variations of these basic exercises to choose from, so in reality, it is simply a waste of time messing with all of these inner-thigh gadgets and fancy thigh machines.

Here's an example of one of the most effective thigh exercises that you can do. I'm sure you have done some variation of lunges before. There's probably about 20 different versions that you can try and they all kick butt!

One of the best variations of lunges are walking lunges (and a couple ways to do these slightly different to change the emphasis). Instead of standing lunges where you either lunge forward or lunge backward for 1 step and come back, with walking lunges you keep traveling forward on each step for anywhere from 10-30 steps, and then you turn around and come back that same distance.

A couple ways to improve on these and get better results over time is to increase your distance each time or start carrying dumbbells to increase the resistance. Walking lunges done right are a real thigh-burner!

Here's a couple tips to keep in mind when performing walking lunges:

1) Step far enough forward so that your front shin stays approximately vertical and your front thigh is approximately parallel to the floor at the bottom of the lunge.

2) Your leg behind you while lunging should have a bend in the knee at the bottom but your knee should come just short of touching the floor. Try not to touch the back knee to the ground during walking lunges.

3) Pause for a second at the top of each step before you lunge forward again for your next step.

Ok, now that you've mastered the basic walking lunge, let me give you a couple ideas for lunge variations that change the emphasis a little bit for working the outer thighs, inner thighs, and buttocks in a slightly different manner.

One variety is to step at an angle outward on each forward step. A second variation is to step at a slight angle inward on each forward step. The inward stepping version of the walking lunge is also called a cross-over lunge, and it really stretches out the buttocks and hips.

Go ahead and give these lunge variations a try and I guarantee that you will be firming up those thighs in no time. Whatever you do, just please say no to the fancy thigh machines and inner thigh squeezers, and use these more effective bodyweight exercises and free weight exercises, and you'll be much better off for it.


See below for more innovative exercises for the thighs and workouts that will have you showing off your new sexy toned legs.

Get your FREE instructions and photos of more of the best exercises for the thighs at Best Butt, Hip & Thigh Exercises

If you're interested in learning the top methods for getting a flat sexy belly, go to Lose Your Belly Fat

Michael Geary (CPT) is a recognized International Fitness Expert, contributing writer for Muscle & Fitness Hers Magazine, and author of the internationally-selling book, The Truth about Six-Pack Abdominals. Another recommended resource for fat-loss is Lose Fat and Build Muscle

Bodyweight Exercise: Putting Body Weight to Work

In Geezer's perfect world, there would be no Bodyweight exercise equipment heavier than 1.5 liters of wine (and no 1.5 liter of wine would sell for more than $15) and swimming pools would sprout new lanes every time someone showed up in a Speedo. In his next-to-perfect world, there would be no exercise equipment, and people would simply use their bodieis to hone their bodies. How would that work? Not so great. In this piece, the L.A. Times tell us exactly how not great, and looks at the potential of using our bodies for things like push-ups and pull-ups and other exercises that put one at odds with the force of gravity. The piece comes with a bodyweight exercise starter kit that includes instruction for two exercises:

Push-ups:Work your chest, shoulders, triceps and upper back.

• Hands approximately shoulder-width apart.
  
• Back, hips and legs in straight line.
  
• Lower yourself to three to five inches off ground.
  
• Don't brace feet against the wall (unless your can't do push-ups without this aid).
  
• If you can't do even one, start from your knees.
  
• Take two seconds pushing up, five seconds as you let yourself down. Hold the bottom position for two seconds.
  

Squats:Work your glutes, quads and hamstrings.

• Feet shoulder-width apart.
  
• Heels flat throughout exercise.
  
• For balance, lift arms out in front.
  
• Reach back with your rear, as if attempting to sit on a chair.
  
• Don't let your knees pass beyond the plane of your toes.
  
• Go down no farther than the point where thighs are parallel to floor. Or just go down as far as you can comfortably, and increase depth as you progress.
  

Fast Bodyweight Exercises Secrets

Now today I want to talk about bodyweight Exercises. About what it can and can't do for you. And show you a few Bodyweight exercises as well.

On the weekend, I worked out with an ol' buddy of mine. Now Joe, my buddy, is a lawyer in the big city. He's chained to a desk, a big change from his University days of varsity sports, or his high school days working on the farm.

Now for a guy like Joe, who wasn't meant to be stuck behind a desk for 10 hours per day, bodyweight training was a real godsend.

The athletic movements were just what he needed. The challenges of mastering his bodyweight in both upper and lower body exercises was exhilarating, and liberating compared to the days he spends behind the desk.

Not surprisingly, Joe also liked my favorite exercise (the Y-squat or Overhead squat) because it opened up his chest, stretching his tight pecs, and strengthened the muscles of his upper back.

Why just tonite I did 10 reps of the Y-squat because my upper back was starting to tighten, and 4 hours later, my upper back still feels as relaxed as it does after a good night's sleep. (Just do your bodyweight squats with your arms up in a Y-position, keeping your shoulder blades back - feel the tension back there during the exercise and it will help release the stress!)

And with each new exercise, Joe would challenge his body to increase his range of motion, to "unstick himself" if you will, from the deskbound posture that he ends up with after another 50-60 hour work week (he doesn't work that much, for a lawyer).

And as I said to Joe, it is really important to get working on stuff like the Y-squats and stick-ups when he's young, so that his shoulders aren't all tied up like some of the older executives I see in the gym...that can't even lift their arms overhead...so that's why we use the Stick-up exercise with these guys.

But don't worry, it's never too late to make improvements - just be consistent with your bodyweight training. If you are in really bad shape and all twisted up, you'll have to master basic postural exercises like the Bird Dog and the Plank. Those can help take away your back pain.

If you are a desk jockey, you need to use as many different exercises and movements as possible. And the bodyweight manual, with almost 100 exercises, will challenge your strength and mobility, endurance and agility.

It will make you feel alive.

You want a quick burst of energy? Forget about Starbucks, and their drinks so loaded with caffeine that they make Red Bull look like kid's stuff. In the same amount of time (or less) that it takes you to walk to Starbucks, and order one of their ridiculously-named beverages, you could do a circuit of bodyweight exercise that will:

• invigorate you
  
• 
  
• loosen you up
  
• 
  
• increase the blood flow to your brain
  
• 
  
• burn more calories and fat than any caffeine-loaded beverage ever will
  
• 
  
• improve your health
  
• 
  
• give you sustained energy boost, not a massive artificial increase in alertness followed by a crash
  
• in your motivation that you get from caffeine
  
• 
  
• You want stress relief in less than 30 seconds? One set of 10 Y-squats or Stick-ups will give you that.
  
• 
  
• Now I do get asked a lot, "Can you build muscle with bodyweight exercises"?
  
• 
  
• And the truth is yes, but...
  

For some guys, they can literally build a cover model body with bodyweight exercises (I was just at a magazine photoshoot with a fitness model that does only bodyweight training and boxing and he was leaner, buffer, and better than some weight-trained fitness models)...

It all depends on where you are in your physical development...but certain exercises like Chins, Dips, Single-leg Squats, Shoulder-press Pushups, Glute-Ham Raises, and Pullups, will help you gain muscle. And you can do these at home, while on the road for business, or when you have to workout an inadequate fitness facility.

But for many other people - and I should say the majority of people, they will need some weight exercises to build muscle. (If you have the option, just start using dumbbells for as many of the bodyweight exercises as you can - you'll find you won't need much weight to gain muscle when using the 1-leg deadlifts, Bulgarian split squats, and the like).

Another popular question, "Can I use bodyweight training in place of regular interval training".

And the answer of course, is yes. If you are looking for a new form of interval training, then I recommend a 6-exercise bodyweight circuit alternating between lower and upper body exercises. Those are some kick-butt, fat-burning, get-leanin' workouts. And all can be done at home, in less time than it would take you to drive to the gym and back, let alone do your workout.

Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men's Health, Men's Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training fat loss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men's Fitness and Maximum Fitness magazines and all over the Internet, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat, gain muscle, and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week. For more information on the Turbulence Training workouts that will help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment, visit http://www.TurbulenceTraining.com