Not Your Average Fitness Tips

Archive for the ‘Ideal Body’ Category

I recently completed Joel Marion’s Xtreme Fat Loss Diet.  It’s a rapid fat loss diet designed to help you lose up to 25 pounds in 25 days.  Are the Xtreme Fat Loss Diet results really that impressive?  What sacrifices are you going to have to make along the way?  Read my Xtreme Fat Loss Diet review to find out the answers to these and more. Continue Reading…

As you get leaner, one of the biggest challenges is measuring body fat percentage and measuring muscle mass percentage.  If you’re trying to lose a lot of weight, the scale is just as good a tool as any.  However, when you’re trying to lose the last 5-10lbs of fat while preventing muscle loss, the scale alone won’t necessarily help.  How can you effectively measure your weight loss results if you don’t know your body fat percentage or muscle mass percentage?  Based my recent experience, your best bet is to combine a variety of different methods.  Even then, it’s tough to definitively determine anything in the short term. Continue Reading…

With summer only a few weeks away, I thought now was the best time to discuss a protein sparing modified fast and other rapid weight loss diets.  Rapid weight loss diets can help you lose 10 lbs in 2 weeks, but they are not sustainable for long periods of time.  I’d caution that these types of short term dieting approaches are extremely restrictive and require intense focus and effort.  Empty your fridge and shut off your cell phone because the protein sparing modified fast and other rapid weight loss diets only allow a strict menu of choices.  These diets tend to be low in carbs as well.  Some people do fine on low carb diets; others are irritable and miserable.  If you’re the latter group, your friends will probably hate you for 2 weeks.  That’s why rapid weight loss diets should only be done for special events or once in a lifetime occasions.  If you want to lose 10 lbs in 2 weeks, then here are a few strategies to get you there.  Some of these are excerpted from my free How to Get a Beach Body in 2 Months report. Continue Reading…

What are somatotypes?  In short, somatotypes represent three different body types known as ectomorph, endomorph, and mesomorph.  Dr. William Sheldon developed the original system on classifying these body types.  Put bluntly, an ectomorph is long and skinny, an endomorph is short and fat, and a mesomorph is v-shaped and muscular.  These are extremes and in reality most people are a combination.  Now, anyone can look in the mirror and try to assess where they fit in based on these three body types.  However, the bigger question is: can assessing your somatotype help you design a more appropriate diet and exercise routine? Continue Reading…

How to lose stubborn body fat is quite a challenge.  What is stubborn body fat?  Well, stubborn belly fat is the most common problem for men while fat centered around the waist, hips, and thighs is the most common problem for women.  Now let’s be clear here; we’re not talking about an extra 10-20lbs you may be carrying.  We’re talking the remaining fat you have when you’re within 5lbs of your ideal weight (around 10-12% body fat for men and 17-20% for women).  Notice that these body fat percentages are pretty good for the average person so you’ve undoubtedly worked hard to achieve a relatively lean, defined body.  This is when fitness becomes a challenge. Continue Reading…

There’s no doubt that Hollywood actors and actresses develop some of the best bodies for their roles.  It often prompts the question of how these stars of Hollywood workout.  People in general seem fixated on taking their favorite celebrity’s workout and applying it to their own body.  However, a lot of people fail to consider a fundamental question: are celebrity workouts and diets effective?  Can a Hollywood workout really help you build a better body? Continue Reading…

A big challenge when undertaking a diet and exercise routine is how to measure the results.  Have you ever been shocked to see your weight increase after working really hard on a new program?  Unfortunately, weight does not capture the full picture as you may have actually added muscles mass.  To provide a clearer picture, you should also take into account your body fat percentage.  There are a variety of ways to measure body fat, and I will go through the best methods that you can use at home. Continue Reading…

Since I started exercising years ago, I’ve always had a dynamic set of fitness goals.  I never had a set of ideal body measurements that I could work toward though.  What is the perfect body anyway?  Like many people, I always equated the perfect body with bigger muscles.  However, this isn’t necessarily attractive to everyone.  If that were true, then Hollywood stars would all be bodybuilders.  That’s far from the case when one of the hottest bodies in Hollywood belongs to a very lean, well defined Taylor Lautner.  So what are your ideal body measurements?  Below I describe how to get the perfect body. Continue Reading…