About Me
Hello everyone and welcome to Not Your Average Fitness Tips. I’m a regular average “Dave” here to offer you fitness tips that may seem unconventional or out of the box. Like many of you, I’m busy trying to balance a job, family, social life, and fitness. I aim to maintain a lean, athletic look through diet and exercise without spending hours in the gym.
Since the birth of my first child in August 2009, time has been at a greater premium than ever. I had to put aside exercise while adapting to lack of sleep. When my son was 3 months old, I decided that I had foregone working out long enough. Try telling your wife that you’re getting up at 5:30am to exercise when your son is up every 2-3 hours and prepare yourself for a verbal lashing. I had to come up with a better plan, a routine that would allow me to get the full benefits of a workout in half the time. Moreover, this meant I was going to have to increase my focus on dieting as well.
Family...my favorite reason for staying fit while enjoying life!
What can I offer you?
My biggest goal is to filter through the dearth of misinformation and poor advice available online. So many sites promote the bodybuilder’s approach to getting in shape. However, do you really want to be big and puffy like a bodybuilder or would you rather be lean and defined like a Hollywood actor/actress or Abercrombie model? I’ll offer my experience with the bodybuilding approach and then show you the method I’m using now to reach levels of body fat I haven’t seen since high school, when I exercised hours on end.
If you’re looking to become a bodybuilder, I suggest you move on. This site is targeted for the busy individual who needs some straight advice about how to lose fat, get ripped, and look great.
Why listen to me?
Since I started exercising 15 years ago, I’ve tried all sorts of approaches to exercising. It wasn’t until recently (particularly after my son’s birth) that I found the best approach to getting lean without spending hours in the gym.
I’m not a bodybuilder, physical trainer, dietitian, or doctor, so what good am I? Well, first of all, this means I’m completely unbiased, allowing me to keep an open mind about unconventional approaches. As a regular average person who works in an office every day, I also know how challenging it is to get in shape when you have other commitments stretching your free time.
More importantly, one thing I do better than anyone is sort through information and extract the key takeaways. After literally years of searching for diet and exercise tips, I’ve finally found what is, in my opinion, the best advice around to get lean and muscular.
Consider me your information filter and human test subject…all I’d like to do is save you the time it took me to find the answers to getting fit without dedicating your life to obsessive compulsive eating and exercise. Trust me; I know from personal experience that you don’t want to go there.
Where to Begin?
Best Fitness Tips: I’ve categorized all my best articles to help you easily find the information you’re looking for
Fitness in a Flash: my free diet and exercise guide to help you get lean, defined muscles without spending hours in the gym
How to Get a Beach Body in 2 Months or Less: my free book on fat burning workouts and diets for men and women
Please share your experiences too!
Aside from passing along what knowledge I can, I look forward to hearing your feedback along the way. I truly believe that we can learn from each other’s experiences. I’m confident that the fitness tips I’m offering will give you that lean and defined muscular look, whether you have 20+lbs or 5lbs of stubborn fat to lose. Let’s work together to get you in the best shape of your life…without dedicating your life to working out.
Thanks for reading.
Dave
The obligatory photo…I won’t grace the cover of Men’s Health any time soon, but I believe in a good balance between having a lean, athletic build and living the “Eat, Drink and Be Merry” mantra.
P.S. I’d like to thank Rusty Moore of Fitness Black Book for being my inspiration in starting this blog. Rusty’s site really helped push me toward my goal of getting lean and toned, not bulky (the “Hollywood look” as he describes it).
I really liked your article on HIIT from ezine. I would like to your permission to reproduce it on my blog. (with full bio & links of course). Thanks.
Bill
torchthefat.blogspot.com
Bill,
You absolutely have permission to reproduce the article on your blog. Glad you enjoyed it.
Dave
Hi Dave,
It is doubly great to find you and your blog.
First, I too have learned a lot from Rusty at FBB and his Visual Impact along with ESE is a real life saver.
Wish you and your great family all the best, while looking forward to more great content from you !!!
Bill
Bill,
Thanks for the kind words. I only wish I had known what I know now back in my teens and 20s when it was much easier to get in shape.
Dave
Hi Dave,
Know that feeling. So just consider life full of those lessons.
If we learn from them, then that makes it worth it !!
Have a Great One !!
Dave, I know how life can pressure you sometimes. I think you are in really really good shape. Keep it up my friend. Now you will be a health, willpower and discipline role model for a for the little guy too!
Yavor
Yavor,
I certainly appreciate the support. I still have quite a bit of room for improvement in the looks department, but I’ve made great progress in the health department. My latest physical showed cholesterol well below normal and good cholesterol way above normal so something is working. Ultimately, that’s the real end goal when exercising. Living long enough to enjoy everything life has to offer!
Dave
Dave,
Didn’t know you had an interest in Grip training. If you’d ever like a guest post, I’d be glad to hook you up. Hit me with an email at Jedd dot diesel at gmail dot com.
Jedd Johnson
http://www.dieselcrew.com
Jedd,
I’ve always enjoyed grip training. Looks like you have a lot of good info on your site. I’ll let you know about the guest post.
Dave
I just found your site and everything you have said so far sounds so easy and manageable for any average person! I have recently started going back to the gym and am finding myself surprisingly BEYOND committed to it! I have always thought fasting would be such a great thing if done in moderation. And I am going to give this a try! Thank you SO much for having this site! I can tell it will be a HUGE help to me in the future!!
~Lauren
Lauren,
I’m glad you enjoy the site! As you read through, feel free to ask any questions…hopefully I’ll be able to help you overcome challenges I’ve faced along the way. Congrats on getting back to the gym as well! Stay motivated, that’s the key to a successful long term fitness program.
Dave
Thank you! I will have several questions I am sure!
Dave
Just read your ebook – nice work man! I like your idea of releasing free for a short time -hopefully it goes viral!
Jeff
Thanks for the compliment Jeff!
Hello, I love your site and have already told 5 others! I need your advice. I have lost 100# in the last 2 years. I have 70# more to go. But I want to go geronimo, you know biggest lose style. I am 5’6″ and weigh 200. In the last 6 months I have gained 15#, I was 185 but have plateaued at 200. These past months I have been so burnt out on dieting and exercising, I quit. But I am back in the game now. I work a lot and don’t have time to research. Would you advise me on an eating and exercise program that I would get the most results? My BMI is 33. I might be getting married this summer. Please please help me. I read you HIIT article and loved it. I was thinking of sprinting on the tread for 20 min followed up by 20 of cardio on the elliptical. I don’t know… What is your advice. I would be happy to send you before and after pics too. Thank you so much!!! ~Traci
Traci,
I’m glad you enjoy my site and hope your friends do as well. Congratulations on losing 100lbs. I’m sure it took extremely hard work. Unfortunately, it sounds like all that hard work took a toll on you. That’s why I generally recommend 4-6 weeks of really intense diet/exercise followed by 2-3 months of maintenance mode to keep you sane.
As for a specific program, I always encourage a diet that’s not really a “diet.” If you feel like you’re restricting food, you’re more likely to fail. Personally, I enjoy intermittent fasting. It’s not for everyone but it allows me to eat my favorite foods and still stay relatively lean. Just find a way to eat less calories every week without feeling like you’re eating less or sacrificing your favorite foods. You can read more about diets here: http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/health-and-nutrition/cheat-stop-eat-your-way-thin-cheat-diet-intermittent-fasting-healthy-eating
Since you’ve read my article on HIIT, you probably know I like to do short, intense intervals followed by steady state cardio, followed by longer intervals. This will depend on your fitness level though. Sprinting on the treadmill for 20 straight minutes wouldn’t really be sprinting. Sprinting is an all out effort. If you haven’t done HIIT before, you might want to start with a 5 minute warmup on the treadmill, and then do intervals. Run really fast for 30 seconds (maybe at a 7 or 8 out of 10 intensity) and then walk for 45-60 seconds. Keep repeating for 10-15 minutes. Once you get really good, you might be able to sprint at a 9 or 10 out of 10 intensity but only for 15-20 seconds. Follow the intervals with 20 minutes of elliptical. If you still have any energy, you could do some longer intervals on the treadmill after. Maybe 1 minute run at intensity 5 or 6 followed by 1 minute walk for 10 minutes.
Finally, resistance training can be just as important for weight loss. If you haven’t used weights before, you can read my post on beginner workout routines: http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/beginners-workouts/workout-routines-for-beginners-strength-training-exercises
Sorry for the long winded reply. I also cover a lot of these topics in my Fitness in a Flash book, so download that for free at the top of the page if you’re interested.
Please let me know how else I can help along the way. Be sure to check with your doctor as well if you have any health concerns. Remember not to push too hard, too fast. Good luck, I know you can do it!
Dave
Dave,
Im a male ballet dancer, and although most people would assume we are all in great shape, fact is the cardio portion of ballet training isn’t that rigorous. My girlfriend (also a dancer) and I have always exercised outside of our 4 hours of daily class, and though that may sound like alot of “exercising”, the class is more about practicing positioning with some jumps and turns thrown in. Would you have any advice for dancers who want to improve their cardio fitness level?
Thanks
David and Elle
David,
First of all, you bring up a great point about exercising…you’re training for a very specific skill and I’m sure practice helps with timing and leg strength but doesn’t necessarily help your conditioning or even fat loss.
Next, there’s a long and short answer to your question. The short version is that I recommend HIIT (high intensity interval training). Oddly, you’d think the best way to improve aerobic conditioning would be to perform aerobics. However, research has shown that HIIT and other activities that involve anaerobic exercise improve both anaerobic and aerobic capacity better than aerobic exercise only.
Depending on how experienced you are with fitness, the above might have left you scratching your head. So here are a few posts where you can get some more information and read my recommendations:
1. Aerobic vs. Anaerobic exercise (the basics)
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/beginners-workouts/aerobic-vs-anaerobic-exercise-low-intensity-vs-high-intensity
2. HIIT workout (30-45 minute routine)
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/best-workout-routines/best-cardio-for-weight-loss-hiit-workout-routine
3. Advanced HIIT training (a variation that helps improve VO2 Max)
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/best-workout-routines/advanced-hiit-training-high-intensity-interval-training-workouts
4 Tabata protocol (4 minutes of very intense exercise)
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/best-workout-routines/tabata-protocol-4-minute-fat-burning-cardio-workout
Sorry if that’s information overload, but hopefully one of these posts resonate with you. I’m happy to discuss in more detail if you’d like.
One final thing, you say practice isn’t too rigorous but if you implement HIIT, just be careful of overtraining.
Dave
Hey, really great blog posts… I’ve enjoyed reading through your blog because of the great style and energy you put into each post. I actually run AceHealth.org, a blog of my personal research and experiences. If you’re interested, I would love to have you on as a guest blogger. Please send me an e-mail, and I can give you more information. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Bob,
Glad you’re enjoying my blog. I’d be happy to write a guest post for you. I’ll email you.
Dave
Hey Dave,
I can see that everything is going well over here. I’m very impressed with your results and dedication, as always. Your hard work is clearly visible over the many sites I visit.
I am wondering if there’s a way I could email you with a couple questions I have? They aren’t intensive, just a couple surface questions if you have the time.
Ahmed,
I’ll email you separately.
Dave
I love the shout out to Rusty… He is a real inspiration and has helped me out TREMENDOUSLY!!!
Congrats on taking action toward a leaner, better life man!
Surfs up,
Sal,
Rusty has also been very helpful and a great inspiration to me. Glad to hear you feel the same.
Dave
Dave,
You don’t look like you’re in your thirties to me; I’d say like 25 at most. I guess it’s all that clean living and you’re ultra-lean IMO.
I’m so envious that you were able to implement eating right and exercise at such a young age (and yeah, compared to me, you’re young, lol). My one regret is that I waited until the age of 35 to really take my health/fitness level seriously. Hindsight and all that…
I’m happy that you’re living a healthier lifestyle. Life’s much sweeter when you’re in better physical condition.
Toni,
I have the baby face thing going for sure…still get carded on a regular basis. Thanks for the compliment on my fitness level as well; I definitely have flaws and areas of improvement though. It’s all about balance though.
Dave
Dave,
Did you ever wrestle? You look a lot like the guys on the wrestling team did when I was in high school; very similarly built.
Anyway, I was curious to see if you ever got down to 6% body fat to become ripped? I know you said you hover around 8-10%. If you did, was it hard to maintain it?
And your son looks so cute in that photo too. Reminds me of my older one, in particular (my younger one is blond). They are really adorable at that age despite being a lot of work!
Toni,
I did wrestle in high school…feels like a long time ago! I’ve never tried to get my body fat that low…I guess I’ve never been willing to put aside some of my bad eating habits to try to get there. I think it would be very challenging to maintain year round as body builders and fitness competitors don’t even stay that low forever. Can’t believe it but the picture of my son was taken a year and a half ago…amazing how fast he’s grown! Well worth all the effort he requires!
Dave
Dave,
I have lost over 100 lbs in the last 22 months and have seemed to hit another plateau. Problem is I have a deadline in which I need to break through this plateau for (in 6 weeks). I workout daily, sometimes twice if my day is too hectic. I am looking forward to your Beach Body Report as this might be just what I need to break through, but I don’t do the facebook thing. Is there any way you could e-mail it to me?
PS Your site is amazing, headed off to do a HIIT session now!
Bethany,
I’d be more than happy to email you the report. If you don’t receive it in the next couple days, just leave me another comment here and I’ll try again. Congratulations on your amazing transformation and I hope some of the tips in the report will help keep you headed in the right direction! Feel free to ask me any other questions as well.
Dave
hi there great site am wondering how i would be able to contact you directly.
Marc,
You can either sign up to receive Fitness in a Flash and reply to that email address, catch me on Facebook, or I could email you directly with the address you provided when you commented. Let me know your preference.
Dave
I love the new photo of your family…so sweet. I’m taking that it was from your son’s birthday party. Toddlers are the cutest, lol.
Toni,
You are correct…2 years old already, how the time flies!
Dave
Hey Dave, I’ve got a couple questions to ask ya but I can’t find a contact sections anywhere. Any chance you could email me?
I just down loaded the pdf and so far it looks good. I have 23lbs of fat to get rid of my years end. Will use this as part of my HIIT program. Nice job – nice looking family!
Bill,
I hope you enjoy the free report. Feel free to ask me any questions on your quest to lose 23lbs.
Dave
Dave,
I was wondering if you knew of a good online site that’s all about anatomy with color pictures and everything. My body’s been transforming (almost weekly!) from the weight training and quite frankly, I’d like to know what the heck is going on as anatomy was never my strong suit. I want to be able to bookmark too so I can reference it whenever I want. I googled around but the sites I found only showcased *really* rudimentary sketches of anatomy and muscular structure. Hoping you can help. Thanks in advance.
~Toni
Toni,
What about anatomy are you specifically interested in? I might be able to focus my efforts better if I knew that. However, here’s a starting point:
http://www.innerbody.com/
http://www.fitstep.com/Advanced/Anatomy/Anatomy.htm
http://www.gwc.maricopa.edu/class/bio201/muscle/mustut.htm
Dave
Dave,
I just want to reference the muscles that are becoming more defined; their proper names and the function they serve. It’s hard to tell from a basic black and white crude sketch; color photos would be more helpful. I’ll check out the links you gave – if I need more, I’ll let you know. Thanks again.
Toni
Toni,
I think the links will be helpful but I’m happy to search for some more if you’d like.
Dave
Dave,
Everyone I know keeps telling me that I should be foam rolling along with my warm-up prior to exercising for mobility. I’ve never had an issue with mobility even being the age that I am (40). I’m confused as to what to do. I do properly warm-up; I don’t just ‘jump into’ lifting weights all of a sudden, in case you were wondering.
~Toni
Toni,
You could certain add a foam roller to your warm up routine or even after exercising. Personally, I don’t use one. I do PNF stretching to improve flexibility 3 days per week in the morning along with my core work and forearm training. If you’re concerned about injuries, it might not be a bad idea. Alternatively, if you get injured or feel muscle soreness, you could simply add it at that time.
Dave
Dave,
I’d *heard* that women are supposedly more flexible than men, something to do with the hips(?). Also, maybe my ‘non-issue’ with mobility could be attributed to my background in Pilates and Yoga. Just a thought.
~Toni
Toni,
It’s my understanding that women are naturally more flexible as well due to connective tissues that are designed to stretch during childbirth. Pilates and yoga would certainly help flexibility.
Dave
Dave,
I am a volleyball player so I am 5’10 and 155lbs. Not fat at all but very solid. How do i go away from the muscle look to the lean physique without gaining weight.
Katie,
There’s a lot of directions I could go with your question. First, have you checked out the Best Fitness Tips section:
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/fitness-tips
That way you can scan through some info and see if anything appeals to you. You could also read through this post as a starting point:
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/best-workout-routines/best-weight-loss-workout-routines-for-women-at-the-gym-at-home
I’m happy to go into plenty more details about what you can do.
Dave
Dave,
Does ‘growing’ bigger legs have to do with age, gender, training style and/or genetics? The reason I ask is because in the program I’m following they are a lot of squats and lunges (lots of variations) which I do.
Everyone kept telling me that my thighs would get huge and my pants wouldn’t fit anymore. Well, almost three months in, nothing like that has yet to happen. My thighs measured 18″ at the start of the program and while I haven’t measured them again, they appear leaner, firmer and a bit more defined.
Just curious.
~Toni
Toni,
All of the above! I’d say training legs definitely impacts their growth the most. If you’re training your legs to failure utilizing cumulative fatigue, they’re likely to get bigger. If you’ve been focused more on lifting heavy weights and avoiding failure, you’re less likely to get bulky legs and more likely to get firmer, denser legs. That being said, some people naturally have bigger or smaller legs. My problem with training legs is that my waist tends to expand in size as my legs expand. While I think my legs could stand to gain a little, I don’t want the added inches on my waist so just utilize HIIT to give them a more naturally lean, defined look.
Dave
Dave,
Makes sense because I’ve not been training to failure but using heavy weights (well, heavy for me anyway) so hence the firmer, denser appearance.
Funny, that you mention waist size b/c I measured mine this morning and it hasn’t changed even with the addition of nine(!)pounds. I could see where unknowingly expanding your waist would be a real concern though.
Toni
Toni,
Great to hear you’re adding muscle in the right place! As you know, waist size can be an important part of overall health.
Dave
Dave,
I finally got around to taking some progress pictures since I’m three months into my program. If you like, I’ll send you the link when I get the album complete. I blocked out my face for privacy purposes as it felt very strange taking photos in my bathroom in the middle of winter in my bathing suit. I’d love to hear your feedback about how I’m doing.
Anyway, it might be awhile as we are in the process of overhauling our home office and upgrading our computer. Just thought I’d let you know though.
~Toni
Toni,
I’d be happy to take a look at your pics if you think it will help improve your focus or be a way for me to offer any suggestions. Of course, the most important judge of your appearance is you. From everything you’ve told me, you’re doing great and you should be proud of where things stand.
Dave
Dave,
Thanks, I’d appreciate it. Sometimes I’m not sure if family and/or friends might ‘sugarcoat’ their reactions to what I’ve been doing, fitness-wise. I think I look…okay but it would help immensely to get an unbiased opinion from someone that doesn’t know me personally. I’ll post the link here as soon as it’s ready.
~Toni
Toni,
Happy to offer an unbiased opinion. I’ll remove the link after I look at it.
Dave
Dave,
I was wondering if I could email you my progress photos instead of posting a link on this thread, if that’s okay with you. You don’t have a contact button on the banner so I have no idea what the email address is. I don’t want to assume it’s the same one that’s on the bottom of the Fitness Report. Just let me know here. I’ll check back periodically. Thanks.
~Toni
Toni,
You can simply reply to the Fitness in a Flash email or any of the follow-up emails. If you don’t have any of those, I can post my email here for you. If I don’t talk to you, have a very Happy New Year!
Dave
Dave,
Do you mind very much posting the address here? I’ll send you the email sometime after the holiday. Thanks and have a good new year too.
~Toni
Dave,
FYI: I did send the email last night (12/31/11) so you can remove the link if you wish.
~Toni
Toni,
I received your email but today has been busy. I’ll try to craft a full reply tomorrow. The short response is that I think you’re in great shape. When you throw in the fact that you have kids, you’re in amazing shape. The big question is where to go from here. Unless your goal is to look like a runway model with visible ribs (not to my liking at least), then you probably shouldn’t lose any more weight. Alternatively, I’m not sure you’d want to add much muscle mass since you may risk looking like a bodybuilder (certainly not to my liking). Even too much training can lead to results that may not be what you’re hoping for…have you seen the recent pics of Cameron Diaz…she looks far too masculine in my opinion. Before I offer any more thoughts, I’d be curious if you have a particular goal in mind. Is there an ideal celebrity you’d like to look like? Do you just want to remain healthy, gain strength, and maintain your weight? Hope you had a fun time celebrating last night!
Dave
Dave,
I knew you were most likely busy with the holiday and all, not a problem. I guess my ideal body/physique would be Jessica Biel but I don’t know exactly if that’s possible given my genetics. I really just want to be healthy and strong at this point. And yes, I have seen photos of Cameron Diaz lately and she looks very manly, I agree.
Thanks for the (short response) comments about how I’m doing. I still think there’s always room for improvement though. Funny that you mention me having had kids and looking like I currently do as you’re not the first person to focus in on *that* particular point. Others seem to zero in on the fact that I look like I do at the age of 40.
I’d be curious to hear more of what you think in your more lengthy response.
~Toni
Toni,
Jessica Biel is a good one…a lot of women would love to look like her. You’re really not that far away. When you take into account that you’re not a celebrity being paid ridiculous sums of money for being in amazing shape, it’s even more impressive. And yes, the great thing about exercise is that it makes you look a lot younger….and hopefully feel a lot younger too!
Using Jessica Biel as a benchmark, here are some thoughts:
I’d focus on low rep, heavy weight training for your upper body, particular shoulders and back. Jessica has a very nice back. I couldn’t entirely see yours but from the looks, you could add a little more definition. Having nicely defined shoulders is also a plus. I’d say the rest of your arms look good.
I think your abs look great. Keep up the planks, leg raises or whatever else you’re doing. I’d focus on the lower abs if anything. Jessica may be slightly better than you there. I think your obliques/side abs are better than hers.
Your legs look nice and toned. Jessica’s legs are definitely thinner but I wouldn’t recommend going that route since you’d probably have to lose muscle in your legs to get there. Her butt looks a little tighter as well. You’d have to walk a fine line between tightening your butt without adding muscle to your legs. HIIT at an incline or on an elliptical might be able to help but it would be very tough.
That’s really all I can offer. It’s no surprise to me since I know you’ve done your research and have worked very hard to achieve your current look. Ultimately the biggest challenge will be staying in maintenance mode. It’s easy to have a goal to increase muscle or lose fat. It’s much harder once you get there because you don’t have any direct purpose except to stay in shape. Getting stronger and staying healthy through cardio are both great long term goals that you can pursue regardless of how good your body looks.
Happy to offer any more insights as needed!
Dave
Dave,
You have more confidence in my appearance than I do! Anyhow, the suggestions you make are ones that I can fully agree with.
But specifically the ones you make about the tightness of my glutes and lower abs, is that totally realistic considering that Jessica is ten years younger than me and has never given birth? I’m not arguing but I’m not sure how a 40 year-old woman who’s been pregnant twice can seriously achieve a washboard stomach and great glutes. I want to keep my expectations achievable and not overeach only to be disappointed, that’s my concern.
I also am surprised to hear you say I could close to her physique since I always thought that she was someone who built muscle easily and I’m not. I guess if I could even get halfway that would great.
Funny that you make the recommendation about low reps and heavy weight because that’s exactly what I’m doing now; 6 reps with a total of 40lbs (two 20 lb db) which is a lot of weight for me, believe it or not. Jessica does have a great back, I agree.
I’m doing a lot of planks and prone cobras for the abs, plus keeping the diet as clean as possible. I’ve always had good side abs, even at 20% body fat, they were the first to “present” themselves.
Her legs are thinner but I agree about not wanting to risk losing muscle simply for the sake of a slightly thinner appearance. I’m a size 2 in pants so I think I’m doing alright.
Thanks so much for taking the time to view the pics and give some helpful advice.
I think the takeaway for me is that I’m way harder on my appearance than I should be but continue with what I’ve been doing thus far.
~Toni
Toni,
You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished. I thought I mentioned the age and childbirth thing but guess I got sidetracked. That’s what I get for trying to rush a comment when my son was starting to wake up from his nap. Obviously your body changes based on both of those things which is why I’d never expect you to fully achieve a Jessica Biel body…her body measurements are as close to ideal as anyone could expect. The lower abs in particular would be challenging and probably require an unreasonable amount of effort. Do you do kettlebell swings by the way? Nice exercise for the glutes and other leg muscles that wouldn’t necessarily result in excess mass gain.
Since I may not have made it clear, I’d agree with your takeaway that you’re harder on yourself than you should be…most of us are though! Realistically I think you could go into a maintenance mode workout if you wanted to where you only exercised 3-4 hours per week. You’d still maintain a great look. Obviously more exercise would give you more leniency for eating but that would require a bigger time commitment as well. Doesn’t seem like you’d want flexibility to eat more anyway.
Keep up the good work with strength training. Don’t forget to change things up every couple months. You could even go as low as 3 reps if you really want to focus on strength gains. Overall just take it easy on yourself and realize that you are probably in better shape than 95%, if not 99% of the population. And more importantly, you haven’t had to sacrifice your family or lifestyle to get there!
Dave
Dave,
I’ve been meaning to ask you forever. How the heck do you attach a photo to your response like you have?
~Toni
Meaning a photo as an avatar.
Toni,
If I recall, I set it up through gravatar.com.
Also, one more comment on the prior subject that I forgot to mention. I’m sure you realize it, but celebrities don’t necessarily maintain phenomenal bodies year round. Many get in great shape for a specific role. So in the comparison, I was really comparing you to Jessica Biel at her best. In addition, I doubt you did anything to artificially improve your appearance such as eliminating salt or fasting or other tricks to limit water retention. If you implemented any of those short term tricks that celebrities or models used, you’d be an even closer comparison. Obviously there’s no reason to do those tricks unless you’re planning on submitting photos for a competition or planning on entering a fitness event.
Dave
Dave,
A fitness event/competition at my age?!? I think not. Anyway, I do understand that celebrities don’t always stay in peak condition; it all depends on what role they are preparing for, etc. Maybe I’m closer to Jessica at her off-times then, that makes shooting for her look more doable.
I also think that my having gone through childbirth is a bigger obstacle than my age IMO. I do KB swings at the end of my workout so better/tighter glutes are attainable. I agree with you that lower abs like hers might be a pipe dream due to the fact that my stomach was stretched out twice from pregnancy; the skin is only so elastic. Quite honestly, I’m estatic that they look as decent as they do considering what I looked like those first few months following both births!
You are correct, those photos were actually taken after lunch on a non-workout day so nothing artifical going on there. In fact, I honestly thought my stomach looked kind of bloated from all the food in a few of the pics. Although I don’t normally eat much salt but I didn’t fast either so that’s *pretty much* how I normally look. I’m still blown away by the fact that you think I’m not that far off from how she looks because I consider her to the “gold standard” of a fit, healthy woman.
I’ll check out gravatar.com. I thought that’s where I’d have to set it up. Thanks.
~Toni
Toni,
I think you are definitely closer than you think. I’ll bet if you were getting paid millions of dollars to get in elite physical condition, that you could almost get there…the childbirth obstacle is a big one though. Regardless, for someone who doesn’t have to be in amazing shape for a living, you’re doing extraordinarily well. Do yourself a favor some time and take pictures first thing in the morning before having anything to eat or drink. Do it after a night where you stop eating right after dinner so you’re in more of a fasted state. I’ll bet that would really help your lower abs show. Then do a side by side comparison and see how you think you compare. It will be hard to get her ideal hour glass curves but if you look at individual features, I think you’ll find that you’re almost there.
Dave
Dave,
I didn’t take a pic but I see what you mean. Looked at my abs in the mirror this morning while I brought up a pic of Jessica in a swimsuit on my phone. They do resemble hers more when I’m in a fasted state. The lower abs did appear to be show more, flatter and firmer too. I’ll have to remember that the next time I head to the pool, no food or drink beforehand!
~Toni
Hello
I can’t seem to find a contact section and I would like to ask you a couple of questions. Could you please email me?
Thanks
Sandra
Toni,
Throw in a set of planks or breathing ab exercises I’ve discussed on the blog before you go to the pool as well…optimal ab definition! I like to get a little pump in my muscles by doing pushups and a few other bodyweight exercises but that’s more of a guy thing.
Sandra,
I will try to email you tonight.
Dave
Dave,
Is there a threshold I shouldn’t go above when weight lifting so I won’t add much more muscle mass so I don’t look like a BB? Is there a weight quantity that you can pinpoint that I shouldn’t go above (like 40# db’s for instance)? I just want to continue to gain strength while remaining lean but still look like a woman. Hope that makes sense.
~Toni
Toni,
In my opinion, it’s not the amount of weight that’s the threshold…it’s how you lift. If your muscles are completely expended after using 40lb DBs for 6 reps, then I would recommend only doing 5 reps until you can easily perform them. Training to failure is what ultimately leads to big muscles. Heavy lifting while avoiding failure should increase skeletal muscle but create leaner, denser muscles. If you feel like the heavy lifting is creating muscles that are too big, you could always take a break and shift to circuit training or just reduce the weight. Remember that muscles will shrink if you don’t use them so that’s always an option.
Dave
Dave,
This program is not written to have the lifter train to failure so I guess I have nothing essentially to worry about at this point. Is Visual Impact for Women written that way?
~Toni
Toni,
That’s a good thing since a lot of programs miss that point. VI for Women is all about heavy weight, low rep strength training while avoiding failure.
Dave
Dave,
Going back to what you said about my lower abs…do you think the less-than-taut appearance could also be due to loose skin? I never really noticed any significant loose skin there (even after childbirth) until I leaned out considerably several months ago. Granted, weight training combined with gaining a few pounds has helped, a little. But the fact remains, I still have some looseness of the skin in that area, unfortunately. It’s not really noticeable unless I perform a plank or pushup. If I’m standing upright, it looks okay, I guess. What do you think?
~Toni
Toni,
Loose skin is certainly a possibility…especially after losing weight after childbirth. Unfortunately, it only disappears over time. In other words, stay lean enough for long enough and it will adapt to your leaner body. See what happens over the next 3-6 months.
Dave
Dave,
I’ve heard that before but does that apply if you’re a little older?
~Toni
Toni,
In my opinion, everything still applies when you’re older…sometimes things just take longer! I’m sure genetics play an issue as well. Either way, as long as you don’t all of a sudden let yourself go, you should be in good position to test this theory out!
Dave
Dave,
Just out of curiosity, were you ever above 11% body fat? I ask because you mention in the above post above having foregone exercising for awhile due to your son’s birth.
Also, why are the abs sometimes the only muscle to be real visible on females? It didn’t take a whole of extreme effort or time on my part to get my abs in shape. Conversely, my shoulders and back seem to be taking a lot longer to sculpt. Maybe it’s due to genetics and/or the fact that losing fat is much easier than building muscle.
~Toni
Toni,
However, if memory serves, I’ve been around 18-20% several years ago when I really let myself go.
I haven’t been above 11% since starting this blog
As for abs, obviously seeing them is related to having low body fat. A lot of women simply eat well and perform cardio to lose weight. That means you won’t see muscles that are developed. For women who use strength training combined with diet and cardio, I expect you’d see a lot more developed muscles. See how you look in the next few months as you continue to get stronger.
Dave
Dave,
I didn’t really believe it until I saw the pics. I still have a ways to go but I’m encouraged because I do see progress albeit small even in just a month’s time. I’m going to continue to document my progress and have to send you some updated pics down the road so you can make some more helpful suggestions. Thanks!
I took another round of progress photos today which are spaced about four weeks apart from my other ones. I *think* I’ve actually made some progress on those areas that we spoke about
~Toni
Toni,
Nice to hear you’ve made noticeable progress in the past month. I hope you also took my advice and took photos in the morning in a fasted state so you could really see yourself at your best. I get the feeling I won’t be able to offer many more suggestions by the time you send me more photos. Maybe it’s time for you to write a fitness book of your own!
Dave
Dave,
Yes, I did take your advice on the photos. Anyway, I had a question about the v-abs. Are they due to a low body fat or genetics? And are they mainly considered a masculine trait? Some of the women I know consider the v-shape to be downright gross and ou-of-place on a female. Hearing that has made me really self-conscious. Do men consider regular women with that v definition unfeminine? For the record, I really didn’t do anything special to get them beyond eating well and training normally.
~Toni
Toni,
Like most abdominal muscles, v-abs are most visible with low body fat. Where you carry excess fat can be genetic so the front of you stomach may have more fat than your obliques. Maybe you make more use of your obliques than you realize which helps give you that look. I don’t know if v-abs are necessarily a masculine trait but there’s not much you can do about it. The only thing I could think is to stop doing side planks and other exercises that focus on obliques and instead focus on regular planks or leg raises. Just remember that there’s only so much you can control when it comes to creating the “perfect body.”
Dave
Dave,
I’ve been doing on IF on non-workout days cause it’s easier but if I do fast on a workout day, how would I go about incorporating a post-recovery drink into the mix? I workout mostly in the mornings but sometimes in the early afternoon – before I would break the fast at dinner. Would I have to move the workout to the evening after dinner or not? Just wondering.
~Toni
Toni,
You can still exercise on fasting days. Ideally, you’d exercise a couple hours before breaking your fast. So if you eat dinner at 6pm, you could exercise at 3 or 4. You might be able to get away with exercising at 1 or 2, but you may risk some muscle loss. That’s one time I would definitely recommend BCAAs. Obviously, you could exercise after dinner as well.
Dave
Dave,
I’ve always avoided fasting on exercise days because it seemed more complicated. I think, given the options you’ve outlined, working out after dinner is most doable. Thanks.
~Toni
Toni,
Hope it works for you. Otherwise, just keep fasting days as off days from exercise. Whatever works best.
Dave
Dave,
Was wondering if isometric butt squeezes done daily will help tighten the glute area?
BTW, it’s nice to see your wife embracing resistance training with VI for Women. Sounds like she’s off to a good start.
~Toni
Hi Dave,
just stumbled upon your website while searching through google, great website! supports all the knowledge i’ve gathered over the years, could you message me your email so i could ask a few questions please?
keep up the good work, and well done for doing so while having a family!
Patrick
Toni,
I’ve (somewhat obviously) never tried isometric butt squeezes but they do have the potential to tighten your glutes. Doing them daily will essentially condition your butt to remain tighter by improving the mind to muscle link. If you decide to add them, let me know how they work. My wife has done some light weight training in the past but this is her first foray back into it in 3+ years.
Patrick,
I sent you an email. Let me know if you didn’t get it.
Dave
Dave,
I’ve been doing the isometric glute exercises for about two weeks now and I swear that they are working. It’s not really noticeable in how I look in a pair of jeans yet but I can see a slight difference when I’m getting dressed. I guess they work much like planks do for your core, makes sense. Although I will say that I think they *additionally* have helped with all the other glute exercises I’ve done too. It can’t hurt to do them though.
~Toni
Toni,
Glad to hear they’ve been helping. Pretty simple addition to your routine so no reason to stop.
Dave