Saturday 20 March 2010

Built like a Bear or a Racehorse

Everyone talks about body types such as endomorph, ectomorph or mesomorph but there is a simplier explanation to body types. This simplier explanation means your a bear or a racehorse, yes not quite what you expected I know but hear me out.

If you look at those that train in the gym on a regular basis you will tend to notice that many people do not fit into one of the three specific body types of endomorph, ectomorph or mesomorph. The reason why most people dont fit into one of these types is because many people have charactaristics of a combination of two of these types.

Now forgetting these body types you can see whether someone fits into the simplier explanation of being a bear or a racehorse, but what does this actually mean?

Built like a bear

If your built like a bear it means that you find it very easy to put on muscle and tend to carry a higher fat percentage, the problem is that you are bulky but dont have definition. A bear also suffers with the issue that by trying to cut up by losing fat they also lose alot of muscle in the process.

Bears tend to eat less often than a racehorse yet still put on weight (fat or muscle).

Built like a racehorse

If your built like a racehorse you find it very hard to build muscle mass yet tend to be lean, carry a low fat percentage and is well defined. A racehorse enjoys being well defined but really suffers with trying to pack on the muscle even if they train exactly the same as a bear.

A racehorse is able to eat all the time but not put on weight (fat or muscle).

Summary

Now I know I am a bear, I put on muscle quick while carrying a higher fat percentage but also find it easy to lose my muscle gains if I dont eat enough.

So what are you a bear or a racehorse, do you find it easy to pack on the muscle and fat yet struggle with definition like a bear or are you well defined yet struggle to pile on the pounds in muscle like a racehorse?

Sunday 14 March 2010

Secret to Strength and Size

When it comes to the secret to strength and size there are many articles that profess to tell you exactly what the secret to strength and size is, truth be told its not a huge secret its a simple formula to success.

When it comes to the secret to strength and size the answer to getting huge gains in strength and size all you need to do is follow a few training principles, which are:

  • Ensure the three big lifts of the Bench Press, Squat and Deadlift are used every week with one ever training session.
  • Ensure all training sessions are completed every week with the minimum of three per week.
  • Every training session try to increase the amount of weight or reps carried out on all exercises, or just the big lifts.
Now these supposed "Secrets" dont sound like they will make a huge difference but they definatley will. Many people carry out the bench press every week but alot of people neglect the squat and deadlift.

Interestingly the deadlift is probably the best exercise there is as it utilises more muscles than nearly all other exercises so if carried out regularly carrying you will see your strength and mass increase quite quickly. To me the deadlift is the king of all weight lifting exercises.

The squat further supports this by building your leg muscles further giving you overall strength and size with the bench press carried out also.

The idea behind not missing training sessions and using extra weight or reps on every session is to push your muscles so they repair bigger and stronger every time you train.

If your new to training and you follow the secret to strength and size above then you are sure to see a big difference in a matter of 12 to 16 weeks (thats only 3 to 4 months!).

Saturday 13 March 2010

A Moment of Motivation

In the UK there is a hive of activity at the moment as people who dont normally carry out any training are donning their sports clothes to carry out many sports activities. The reason for this is because it is time for Sports Relief, a part of the Comic Relief charity event.

Sports Relief helps raise money to transform the lives of poor and vulnerable people in the United Kingdom and across the world.

Now although this site is mainly about weight lifting I thought it important to talk about one person raising money for Sports Relief in a way that many would not believe.

In the United Kingdom there is a legendary comedian called Eddie Izzard, some may know him from his time in the United States as an actor. Eddie Izzard decided to supports Sports Relief by carrying out a special act to raise money for this great charity.

Eddie decided to really push himself to the limit with this special act and from doing so has become inspirational and motivational for others, so what has he done?

With little training (5 weeks in total) Eddie embarked on running forty three marathons in fifty one days (yes you read right!), this meant Eddie was running a minimum of twenty seven miles a day for six days a week for seven weeks in a row.

Now one marathon is enough even for the most well trained athalete so how did a middle aged comedian with little to no training manage this great feat?

Easy motivation and mind over matter, the supporting documentary about this great feat is an amazing watch and really does show the pain and elation he went through achieving all forty three marathons.

The marathons Eddie ran literally took him around the whole of England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland starting in London and finishing in London for a total of 1160 miles ran.

Now if this is not motivation I dont know what is, to me this proves that anyone can achieve their training goals no matter what they are as long as they can put their mind to it with the right motivation and drive.

To find out more about Eddie Izzards run or make a donation to the Sports Relief charity Click Here!

If your interested in watching the documentary of Eddies marathons why not watch them on BBC iPlayer (only available until the end of March 2010)

Episode one
Episode two

Monday 8 March 2010

Gut Busting Abs

For those who are of a vain nature there are two main features men wish to work on, these are the biceps and the abs. Today I wish to talk about building gut busting abs that perfect, yet elusive six pack that many men aspire to.

We all know that feeling of summer rolling around the corner and that feeling is never more evident than now. I am sure many of you are looking at booking your summer holidays and thinking “Ive only got 3 months to get in shape”. Truth be told the main focus of getting in shape is that beach bod with a six pack that will attract the ladies.

So how do you get gut busting abs?

Well firstly you have to understand that like all muscles you cannot train your abs EVERY day, although many people do try. To get the best out of your abdominals its best to train them three days a week with a days break between each session.

If you go to the gym regularly then build it into the end of your workout, unless you feel you don’t have the discipline to do this where you need to make it the start of your workout so your ab workout gets done.

Your three ab training days should be broken into three different ab sessions, session one control, session two power and session three endurance.

Control – This means take it slow so you take three seconds to raise your body and three seconds to return back down, this will really get your abdominal muscles going and you WILL feel the burn.

Power – Lift your body as quick as possible and take one second to return back down, as you start finding this easy add light weights to make it harder.

Endurance – This session is about lots of reps with two seconds to raise your body and one second to return to your starting position.

Many people simply do sit ups or crunches to build their abdominals, they don’t realize there is many variations of ab training that can really push the boundaries and improve their abdominals.

If you carry out three sessions a week following the three ab training types mentioned you can see huge advances in a matter of weeks rather than months.

Sunday 7 March 2010

Back on Track

Okay so I wrote a post back at the start of January about being back in training, the issue is that it was a bit hit and miss because of my back injury.

I am proud and happy to say that as of three weeks ago I am really back in training and am training five days a week as per the training schedule on my previous journal post

Its been 8 months of not being able to train properly and it has really got to me many times. In the eight months of no/little training I have seen my weight go down yet my stomach get bigger as well as my strength and fitness decrease.

The past three weeks of full training is already correcting the strength, fitness and stomach issue well and I am hoping within weeks Ill be right back where I was.

I have been having physio every week and have also found running really helps my back as it stops my back from tightening up.

I am having what I hope is my final physio appointment in two weeks and am also seeing my consultant, given my huge advances it should mean no injections or surgery which is what I am after!

So overall my back is better, im back in action in the gym and running oh and I am a very happy bunny.

P.S Im back in Bulgaria in three weeks, this time for a two week stint!

Tuesday 2 March 2010

Eating Pork to Build Muscle

Many people tend to shy away from pork and concentrate on eating Chicken when it comes to building muscle and staying lean but I feel that pork gets a bad rep when it is really a great meat to eat when wanting to bulk up and lose fat.

Firstly did you know that Pork actually carries fewer calories per 100 grams than chicken? Shocking isn’t it, but it is true. For 100 grams of pork you will get 103 calories where 100 grams of chicken carries 150 calories.

Pork not only has less calories than chicken per hundred grams it also has more protein! Chicken carries eighteen grams of protein per hundred grams while pork actually has twenty grams of protein for one hundred grams.

Pork is also a great provider of B3, B6 and B12 vitamins which are vitamins that support the break down of carbohydrates and fats in the body. Pork is also high in Zinc which supports the production of testosterone in the body.

I tend to have pork once or twice a week to keep variation in my diet and to offer a great alternative to chicken as eating the same meat all the time can become mundane. When choosing my pork I always go for fresh steaks that are lean and don’t carry much fat.

Now you have found out that pork carries less calories and more protein than chicken what are you waiting for? Why not buy a fresh pork steak today and enjoy being a pig!