How To Build Muscle To Boost Your Metabolism

Muscle is responsible for approximately 20 percent of your body's total daily energy expenditure, while fat contributes about five-percent. Gaining more muscle raises your metabolism, helping you burn more calories at rest, according to the University of New Mexico. Use a variety of strength building activities to build muscle and boost your ability to burn fat and lose those unwanted pounds.

Resistance Exercise

Chest Shoulders and Triceps

Do the seated chest press to strengthen and build your chest, anterior deltoids and triceps muscles. Do three sets with a weight that allows you to do 12 to 15 repetitions. The last couple of reps should require some effort.

Upper Back and Biceps

Build your upper back muscles and biceps with three sets of 12 to15 repetitions of lat pulldowns. Using shoulder-width underhand grip, exhale as you pull the bar down to the top of your chest.

Legs Hips and Butt

Do barbell squats to target your quadriceps, hips, butt and hamstrings. Hold a barbell across the back of your shoulders, keep your head up, bend your knees and push your hips back as you lower yourself into a squat. Stop when your thighs are parallel to the floor, then push up to your starting position. Keep your back straight throughout the movement. Do three sets of 12 to 15 repetitions 

Bodyweight Exercises

Legs Hips and Butt

Do body-weight squats to tone your legs and butt. Stand with your legs approximately hip-width apart, with both arms extended in front of you. Keep your body upright and your back straight as you drop into a controlled squat by bending your knees and pushing your butt back. Stop when your thighs are parallel to the floor and push up to your starting position. Do three sets of 15 to 20 repetitions.

Chest Shoulders and Triceps

Do pushups to strengthen and build up your chest, shoulders and triceps. If you are unable to do full pushups, perform knee pushups by keeping your knees on the floor. Do three sets of as many repetitions as you can

Upper Back and Biceps

Do pullups to strengthen and tone your upper back and biceps. If you are unable to do full pullups, place your feet on a bench and push off with your legs as you pull your body up. Do three sets of six to 12 reps.

Abs

Do crunches to to work your tummy muscles. Lie on your back on an exercise mat with bent knees and feet flat on the floor. Place you hands on your thighs, exhale and tighten your abs as you raise your shoulders and slide your hands toward your knees. Keep your lower back pressed against the mat. Do three sets of 12 to 15 repetitions

Other Activities

Clean your home regularly to maintain a pleasant and hygienic environment and build lean muscle tissue. Move furniture, push and pull a vacuum cleaner, and mop the floor to build up your arm and shoulder muscles.

Maintain your garden or yard regularly. Sweep your yard with a long-handled broom to work your legs, arms and shoulder muscles. Lift and stack up items to tidy your yard and work your legs, back, shoulder and arms. Gardening activities can be pretty strenuous. Pushing, pulling, bending, twisting and lifting as you rake, break up soil, weed, fill up and lift trash bags gives you an effective full-body workout. Your girlfriends will wonder how you stay so trim without regular gym workouts.

Take regular brisk walks, especially uphill. Climb stairs instead of using escalators. According to a survey of American Council on Exercise certified fitness professionals, walking uphill and stair-climbing rank among the top activities for burning fat and shaping the muscles of your legs and butt.

Tips

Do your weighlifting or bodyweight exercises two or three times a week on non-consecutive days. This helps you recover between workouts. Start with light weights and gradually increase your weights as you get stronger. If you prefer not to go to the gym, do body-weight exercises at home

 References

• University of New Mexico: Controversies in Metabolism[ http://www.unm.edu/~lkravitz/Article%20folder/metabolismcontroversy.html ]
• Weight-Control Information Network: Physical Activity Myths[ http://www.win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/myths.htm#activitymyth ]
• American Council on Exercise: American Council on Exercise (ACE) Certified Professionals Say Do More Squats, Lunges[ http://www.acefitness.org/pressroom/263/american-council-on-exercise-ace-certified/ ]
• American Council on Exercise: Bodyweight Squat[ http://www.acefitness.org/acefit/fitness_programs_exercise_library_details.aspx?exerciseid=135 ]

My books may interest you:                    

Teenage Muscle is available on Amazon Kindle
The Last Great Heavyweights is available on:
Amazon Kindle
Barnes and Noble Nook
Apple ibooks
Smashwords
Scribd 
Inktera

Excessive Cardiovascular Exercise May Sabotage Your Weight Loss Efforts

 Cardiovascular exercise has numerous benefits. It strengthens your heart and lungs, burns calories and sometimes fat and can help you build endurance. However, you can get too much of a good thing. According to exercise physiologist Dr. William Wong, excessive cardiovascular exercise can have significant disadvantages, such as joint injury and loss of muscle tissue. Losing muscle tissue can inhibit your ability to burn fat.

 Burning Calories and Fat

 Your body uses carbohydrates and fat as energy during cardiovascular exercise. Low-intensity cardio such as walking, uses mainly fat. The contribution from carbohydrates rises as you increase your intensity, for example, by running. You expend more energy and calories at higher intensities. For example, Harvard Health publications says if you weigh 185 pounds and walk for 30 minutes at four miles-per-hour, you will burn 200 calories. Running at six miles-per hour will burn 444 calories. According to IDEA Health and Fitness Association, the higher energy expenditure means you burn more overall fat.

Muscle Tissue and Your Metabolism

Your metabolism determines the rate you burn calories and fat at rest. Muscle tissue elevates your metabolism. Men generally have more muscle and less body fat than women of the same age and weight. As you get older, you lose muscle, your metabolism slows and you gain fat.

Keep the Cardio in Check

 Prolonged cardio, for example, more than 90 minutes, may deplete your glycogen stores--carbohydrates stored in the muscles--This makes your body burn muscle for energy. This isn't desirable says Exercise Scientist, and American Council on Exercise-certified personal trainer, Pete McCall. Burning muscle reduces your amount of lean muscle tissue. This depresses your metabolism and inhibits fat loss.

The After-burn Effect

Minimize the risk of excessive cardiovascular exercise by substituting regular cardio with high-intensity interval training. This involves short spurts of intense exercise followed rest intervals. Apply this to any cardiovascular activity. For example, on the elliptical machine, warm up at a gentle pace for five minutes. Work at an intense pace for one minute, then drop to a sedate pace for two minutes. Repeat the intense pace and sedate pace sequence five times for a 15-minute fat-burning workout. According to the ACE, HIIT increases your heart rate, burns calories and increases your metabolism post-exercise, enhancing your ability to burn fat.



References

• Mahler's Aggressive Strength: A Conversation with Dr. William Wong on Training, Testosterone, Growth Hormone, Acting like A Man, and Rites Of Passage
• Harvard Health Publications: Calories Burned In 30 Minutes For People of Three Different Weights
  
• IDEA Health and Fitness Association: Burning Fat: Myths and Facts
  
• American Council on Exercise: 6 Workout Rules To Ignore
• American Council on Exercise: Resting Metabolic Rate: Best Ways to Measure It—And Raise It, Too
  

Diet To Lose Belly Fat

Excess Belly fat increases the risk of serious disease. According to the Mayo Clinic, the risk includes stroke, heart disease, diabetes, cancer and sleep apnea. Learn which foods pack on the stomach fat, and should be avoided at all costs, and those foods that help get rid of stomach fat and should be an integral part of your diet.

Breakfast Cereals

The food companies aggressively market breakfast cereals as healthy and nutritious. Brightly packaged, lined up on supermarket and grocery store shelves, they are certainly enticing. A glance at the list of ingredients will horrify you: Sugar, molasses, honey, glucose syrup and dextrose. Glucose and molasses are simple sugars, dextrose merely another name for sugar, and the cheap honey in these cereals has the same impact on your body as a simple sugar. It is no wonder these cereals taste so good, and alas, also pack on the belly fat.

Simple Carbohydrates 

Eliminate or reduce simple carbohydrates in your diet. This includes all flour products such as crackers, tacos, bagels, muffins, bagels, cookies, cakes, doughnuts,  pasta, noodles and bread. Avoid chocolate, sweets, pretzels, white rice and French fries. These foods are rapidly absorbed, provide quick energy, and an insulin spike which drives the excess sugars to the fat stores on your stomach. 

Complex Carbohydrates

Restrict complex carbohydrates like oats, whole grain rice, sweet potatoes, potatoes and yams to one or two meals a day. These provide sustained energy without an insulin spike that adds fat to your stomach. Replace the complex carbs with a variety of green leaf vegetables. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, green beans, carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes will add volume to your dishes without the extra calories The added fibre helps your body expel waste products and toxins that may lead to water retention and a bloated belly. 

  

Wheat Products

Contrary to conventional nutritional wisdom, wheat is not a healthy food. The type of wheat we eat today is far removed from the wheat our ancestors ate thousands of years ago, let alone what our grandparents ate 50 to100 years ago Today's wheat is heavily hybridized for commercial reasons; to increase crop yields and improve baking properties and taste. According to American cardiologist, Dr William Davis, the change in the biochemical structure of wheat has lead to an upsurge of various health issues such as celiac disease, gluten insensitivity and other auto-immune problems. Dr Davies says wheat products also spike blood sugar levels, causing insulin to drive the excess energy into your fat stores, including belly fat.

 

Protein

Eat protein with every meal. Focus on sources like lean cuts of meat, fish and poultry and free range organic whole eggs, beans and lentils. Whole Eggs are nutrient dense,contain a variety of vitamins and minerals and omega-3 fatty acids. Nutrient dense foods help you control your appetite so you consume fewer calories. Protein helps you maintain lean muscle tissue. Lean muscle tissue elevates your metabolism. A high metabolism helps your body burn belly fat more efficiently.

Fats

Use healthy fats in your cooking. These include virgin olive oil, organic butter and organic virgin coconut oil.  Organic coconut oil contains medium chain triglycerides or MCTs that are not stored as fat but used as energy by the body. A study at the Division of Healthcare Science Research Laboratory Kanagawa Japan, found that subjects given MCTs over a 12 week period lost more fat deposits compared to those given a blend of rapeseed and soybean oils.

Other Foods

Reduce your alcohol intake and avoid all sodas. Avoid potato chips, so-called fat-free or low-fat products, and processed foods particularly those containing HFCs -- high fructose corn sugars. A 2004 study reported in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition notes the increased use of HFCs in the U.S. mirrors the rise in obesity. The unique way in which the body metabolizes HFCs contributes to increased fat storage and belly fat.



References
1. Mayo Clinic: Belly Fat in Men. Why Weight Loss Matters
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/belly-fat/MC00054

2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: How to Use Fruits and Vegetables to Help Manage Your Weight.
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/fruits_vegetables.html

3. Asian Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Effect of Dietary Medium- and Long-Chain Triacylglycerols (MLCT) on Accumulation of Body Fat in Healthy Humans.
http://apjcn.nhri.org.tw/server/APJCN/volume12/vol12.2/fullArticles/Kasai151.pdf

4. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Consumption of High-Fructose Corn Syrup in Beverages May Play a Role in the Epidemic of Obesity.
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/79/4/537.full

5. Truth about Abs: Are Whole Eggs or Egg Whites Better for You?
http://www.truthaboutabs.com/whole-eggs-or-egg-whites.html

6. Truth About Abs: Is Whole Wheat Damaging Your Body?
http://www.truthaboutabs.com/whole-wheat-unhealthy.html

  

Four Ab Exercises To Do At Home For A Flat Tummy

The beauty of ab exercises is you don't have to take time to go to the gym. Simply roll out your exercise mat or lie on the carpet and knock out a few repetitions of ab crunches, reverse crunches or any number of ab exercises. But remember ab exercises alone will not flatten your tummy. Accompany your ab exercises with cardiovascular activity to burn off excess tummy fat, and an appropriate nutritional plan.

Bicycling Manoeuvre
According to a  study by the American Council on Exercise the bicycling manoeuvre is one of the most effective ab exercises. Lie on your back on an exercise mat. Raise your shoulders and lift both knees until they are 90-degrees to your body. Place your hands on your temples. Crunch up and touch your right elbow to your left knee. Straighten your left leg, then touch your left elbow to your right knee. Repeat this bicycling motion for as many reps as you can. Do three sets

Wall Pulses
Sit on an exercise mat in front of a wall. Lean back and rest your shoulder blades against the wall. Place your hands palms down on the floor alongside your hips. Raise your legs and bend your knees. Exhale and tense your abs as you pull your knees toward your chest.You should feel an intense burn in your abs after a few reps. Do three sets of as many reps as you can.

Crunches
The ab crunch may be the most commonly practice ab exercise, but most people fail to perform it properly and end up using their hip flexors, or hurt their lower backs. Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place your arms across your chest or hands on your temples. Ensure your back maintains contact with the floor, exhale and tense your abs as you lift your shoulders, shortening the distance between your sternum and navel. Imagine your abdominal wall is an accordion being squeezed. Inhale and relax your ab muscles as you return to your starting position. Do three setrs of as many repetitions as you can.


Reverse Crunches
Adopt the same starting position as in crunches, but place your arms palms down, alongside your body. Lift your legs cross your ankles and bend your knees. Exhale and tense your abs as you pull your knees towards your chest by lifting your hips. Inhale and relax your abs as you return your legs to their starting position. Do three sets of as many repetitions as you can.






References.
1.American Council on Exercise: http://www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/BestWorstAbExercises.pdf
2.The University of New Mexico: Super Abs Resource Manual, Len Kravitz, Ph.D.http://www.unm.edu/~lkravitz/Article%20folder/abdominal.html


Teenage Muscle. A Guide To Muscle Building For 15 and 16 Year Old Teens

How To Gain Muscle at 15 or 16

As you hit your mid-teenage years of 15 and 16, you become more aware of your body.
You want to gain muscle.
It may be for a variety of reasons:
You wish to be stronger and faster to improve your performance in a sport such as football, basketball, baseball, tennis, hockey, rugby, athletics, or another specific sport of your choice.
Or perhaps you simply want to look good with a lean muscular body and a 6-pack.
Or you feel you are a bit small for your age, and would love to add some muscle to your slight frame.
So you put together your savings or convince your parents to shell-out for a gym membership.
You are naturally a bit uncertain on your first visit to your local gym. Gyms can be daunting places, especially to a 15 or 16 year old beginner.
You are faced with rows of complex looking machines and racks of dumbbells and barbells some of which the Incredible Hulk would have trouble lifting.
Intimidating looking muscle-men prowl about, hogging the equipment, and daring you to get in their way so they can squash you like a bug.
If you are lucky, a gym instructor might show you how to navigate your way around the bewildering array of machines, but after that, you are left to your own devices.
You are left with many questions:
Which equipment should you use?
What exercises should a 15 or 16 year old beginner start with?
What are the best muscle building exercises?
How long should your workouts last?
How do you go about setting up a workout program to help you gain muscle?
How often should you go to the gym?
What should you eat to help you gain muscle?
Building a muscular body you can be proud of takes much more than simply going to the gym and lifting weights.

 Learn how to gain muscle quickly, safely and effectively