I wanted to take a few minutes to explain my current training program. I’ve talked a little bit about my current nutritional strategy, but I haven’t included anything about training. So that’s what I’m going to cover real quick like.

The program that I’m following does have a detailed workout program that tells you the what, where, when and how of training. Honestly though I didn’t pay it much attention. My area of focus is on the nutritional side of things, I know how to lift things up and put them down. There’s nothing wrong with Mark’s training program, I just have my own proprietary blend of training that has given me excellent results over the years. If it aint broke, don’t fix it.

My Weekly Training Schedule

Right now I’m training 5-6 days a week (6 if I can get my ass out of bed on the weekends). I have found through trial and error and years of training, that my body responds the best to training each muscle group individually. This means I dedicate a day of the week to a specific muscle or muscle group. Here is what I do on a weekly basis. I’ll provide a little explanation of this split below.

Monday - Back, Biceps & Core
Tuesday - Chest & Triceps
Wednesday - Quads, Hamstrings, Calves & Core
Thursday - Delts & Traps
Friday - Biceps & Triceps
Saturday - Quads, Hamstrings, Calves & Core
Sunday - OFF

Here’s some reasoning behind my training schedule. I like to train Back first thing on Monday because everyone and their mom does chest. This means you have every meat head in the gym fighting for all of the bench press stations and cable machines. I don’t like to fight or wait for equipment so I hit my back. There is literally no one doing back on Monday, all the machines are wide open. This makes super setting hassle free and gives you the freedom to do whatever exercises you want. This isn’t the main reason I train my back on Monday though.

The main reason that Monday is back day, is because I don’t like my back and leg day to be…back to back. Training back on Monday gives my lower back an extra day off before I have to torcher it again on leg day. There are also a number of excellent back exercises (T-Bar Rows) that can fatigue the legs, I don’t want to do that the day before I do heavy squats.

This layout also allows me to have space between my chest day and shoulder day. I like this because I am able to lift heavy on Tuesday and Thursday without worrying about over training my shoulders. Sometimes I like to hit my Traps twice a week. This split allows me to hit them on Monday and again on Thursday, giving me a solid amount time for recovery between workouts.

I’ll be honest I have core planned for 3 days a week, but right now I’m really only doing it on Wednesdays. I’m working on getting up earlier so I don’t skip these core sessions but you know how it is. In my defense I do a lot of big lifts that utilize my core, it’s not quite the same but it is better than nothing.

Biceps and triceps on Friday is just convenient and fun. It also fits nicely, so why not. Earlier in the week I usually do 1-2 exercises for the biceps on back day and 1-2 exercises for the triceps on back day, but nothing super heavy or intense, just enough to get some blood in there. Friday is all about intensity. The arms are well rested and my energy levels are high so I take advantage of it.

As you can see I don’t split up my quads and hamstrings like a lot of people do. Instead work both, however Wednesday I might focus more on hammering my quads then more focus on my hamstrings on Saturday. I guess my reasoning behind this is that both muscle groups are recruited so much in compound exercises like the squat, leg press and lunges that you almost have no choice but to lift them together. This is just the way I do it.

I want to get more in depth about how I train, the exercises, the reps, the recovery intervals etc, but this post is getting rather lengthy so I’ll stop for now. Again this is just one of my favorite splits / schedules. As I’ve mentioned everyone has their own ideas on what muscle groups to train and when, this is mine. The truth is that you just need to experiment with different options to see what works best for you. Your comments are welcome back on my Facebook page. Thanks for reading!

If you’re not aware, I’m currently following a program called Total Six Pack Abs. A program for people who want to shed body fat while maintaining muscle. I’m doing this for a number of reasons, mainly to try something new and learn from it. I have my own way of dieting, but I want to try some other strategies. With that said my current daily nutrition may come as a shock to some of you. The recommended fat intake is rather high, specifically the saturated fat intake. I’ve never made it a point to eat this much fat, but I don’t believe in doing anything half ass either. So I’m following Marks program to the T, high saturated fat intake and all.

I’ve had several people ask about what I’m eating each day to reach my daily caloric and macro nutrient goals (exlpained here). The short answer to that is, a lot of meat, some dairy, nuts, seeds and a protein shake once or twice a day. In the beginning I was writing everything down, but that annoyed me so I came up with an idea for an excel spreadsheet that would make this process much easier. My lovely, intelligent wife created the spreadsheet for me, so the real credit belongs to her. Below is a screen shot of that spreadsheet filled out.

You can see the foods I’m eating and how much of that food in the left column and the breakdown of Protein, Fat, Carbohydrates and total Calories to the right. Even further right is an area where I’ve entered in my personal goals for each of the macros above and total calories for that day.  According to the spreadsheet I was 1.25 grams of protein short, and 3 grams of fat short for the day, carbohydrates where dead on. I was over my total calories by 9. Not bad.

Some of you may notice that these numbers don’t add up, this is because I subtract dietary fiber from the total carbohydrates of a foods. In other words, I don’t count fiber since it isn’t digested and has not impact on blood sugar levels. My 60 grams of carbohydrates a day would be higher if I where to count fiber. For example the quest protein bar that I eat each day (dude these are good!) contain 21 grams of carbohydrates but 17 of those carbs are dietary fiber. So it only counts as 4 carbohydrates towards my daily goal of 60. Yes 17 grams of dietary fiber is a lot.

If you read my previous post, you may have also noticed that I’ve lowered my fat intake from 160 grams a day, down to 130 grams. This is a big jump, a reduction of 30 grams equals 270 calories from my daily intake. I could definitly notice the difference, but I’m not starving and I’m still maintaining strength and energy throughout my workouts. If I lose more than 1.5 pounds in the next week I’ll add 15 grams of fat next week.

As far as my weight loss results, they’ve been consistent. Last Friday I weighed 200.5 lbs, this week I was down to 199 lbs, so thus far I’m right on track. Currently the only thing I’ve changed is my diet. I’m still training 5-6 days a week and I have not implemented any extra cardio to my weekly regimen. That may change in the weeks to come, we’ll see.

Just a couple more things then I’ll be done with this long winded, caffeine fueled post. The one thing I need to do better with my current diet is eat more vegetables. They will help fill me up and we all know they are good for us with all the fiber, vitamins, minerals and such. So my Brocoli, Aspargus, Spinach, etc will increase in the days to come.

Last thing. I wanted to give you guys the spreadsheet that I’ve been using to track my nutrition. I’ve found it super helpful and easy to use. Maybe some of you could use a little tool like this, maybe not. Either way you can download it below. It is a Microsoft excel spreadsheet, so obviously you’ll need excel to use it. It is pre-loaded with all the foods I eat. Just select the foods in the drop down menu. If you need to add more foods or adjust things go to the “virtual refrigerator” sheet at the bottom and enter in the adjustments. Let me know if you use it and if you think it’s helpful. It’s helped me get to within 9 calories of my daily goal.

Download Macro Spreadsheet Here!

*Note: I’m currently exploring new dieting techniques that are explained in detail in the Total Six Pack Abs program created by Mark McManus. This type of diet is not for your average Joe. It’s a short term diet for bodybuilders or anyone looking to burn body fat while maintaining as much muscle as possible. If you want to learn more about Marks program click here to visit his site.

Currently I’m 12 days into my fat burning project for 2012. Technically I started following the Total Six Pack Abs program on March 1st, but I had cleaned up my diet a lot by the middle of February. So about a month of strict eating with now cheats and almost 2 weeks on this specific program.

My goal at the start of this process was to try and lose about 1-2 pounds a week, this insures that the weight lost is mostly fat not muscle. When I did my body comp on the 17th of February I weighed 205 lbs. On March 2nd I weighed 202.5 and just this last Friday I was down to 200.5 lbs. About a month into the project and I’m down about 5 lbs. So far so good.

I’ve had several people contact me wanting to know more about the dieting strategies that I’m using for this cutting cycle. As I’ve mentioned before I’m trying to incorporate some new ideas this time. One program that was mentioned to me by a successful figure competitor was the Total Six Pack Abs program developed by a trainer named Mark McManus (you can learn more about his program here).

The concept of his program is low carbohydrates, high protein and really high amounts of fat. The exact amount of each nutrient as well as overall calories is unique for each individual and the exact equations and steps to figure that out for yourself is included in his program.

I have used low carbohydrate or ketogenic dieting strategies in the past with decent success. My issue has always been that I lose weight too quickly. Yes, to quickly! The problem I’ve always had when cutting my carbohydrates or minimizing them is that I didn’t replace enough of those lost calories via fat or protein. Cutting my calories to severely caused me to burn muscle as well as fat. That’s not my goal this time around. I want to shed as much body fat as possible while retaining as much muscle as possible.

Using the Total six pack abs diet I’m currently eating about 2,560 calories a day. That total is made up of 220 grams of protein, 60 grams of carbohydrates and 160 grams of fat! As I drop weight I re-work the calculations and adjust these numbers so I can continue losing at a rate of 1 pound a week.

At the end of this week I get to start implementing 1 carb load day a week. So far I haven’t caved in to my sugar cravings, but I’m sure I’ll have my moments of weakness in the weeks to come. The increased fat has definitely helped fight those cravings so who knows, maybe I’ll be able to hold out. That’s all for now, feel free to post any questions or comments on my Facebook page.

A Note About Weighing In:  When you weigh yourself you want to account for factors that can affect your weight. Those factors include the time of day that you weigh in, eating or drinking food, having a full stomach or bladder etc. It’s obvious to me that you will weigh less in the morning, before eating, on an empty stomach having gone to the bathroom if need be.

You also want to have either nothing on or the same exact same thing on each time you weigh yourself. For this project I weigh myself once a week each Friday morning under the circumstances listed above. Controlling these factors is the only way to get an accurate measurement of your weight and monitor your progress.

If you’re a fan on my Facebook page (or you like, subscribe or whatever) then you might already know that I’m in the first couple weeks of a focused fat burning program. I’ve had a few people message me and tell me that I don’t have any weight / fat to lose after seeing my “before” pictures. It’s true I don’t have a lot of fat to lose. In fact at 215 pounds and15% body fat, that means that out of the 215 pounds only 33 pounds of it is fat, the rest is muscle (and bones, organs, fluid and various tissues).  So why am I trying to lose weight?

I think about this stuff a lot, it’s my passion it’s what I like to do, so naturally I like to try and learn more about it. Over the years I’ve gained weight and lost it just for the fun of it. I’ve weighted as much as 225 pounds and usually drop to around 190-195. It’s fun and I have clients that want me to teach them how to gain and lose weight, so it makes sense that I know how to do it. Anyways, I’ve always just done what I know when it comes to cutting up and bulking up. I’ve never really experimented with other dieting techniques before, why would I, I know it all right?

As I’ve gotten older my ego has become more tame (yes it’s true!). It has occurred to me over the past few years and at a greater rate in the past year, that I don’t know everything when it comes to health and fitness. I’ve become complacent in terms of expanding my knowledge in my area of expertise. I’ve been lazy.

With that said, I made a new years resolution this year to learn more from other professionals in my field. I’ve subscribed to blogs, newsletters, Facebook pages, youtube channels and the like. It’s been fun and yes, surprisingly I’ve learned a lot already. After years of dismissing the dieting and training strategies of other trainers I have to say its been a breath of fresh air to throw my criticism out the window and look at even the oddest ideas with an open mind.

This takes me to my current fat loss project. As I’ve already said, I gain and lose weight all the time, but I’ve never really, truly focused my efforts 100%. What I’m trying to accomplish in the next 12 weeks is something I’ve never attempted. Not only that, but the dieting strategy I’m experimenting with is completely different than anything I’ve ever done. It’s only partially made up of my own ideas, mostly this process is the work of another fitness professional and his years of trial and error. I’m even weighing my food to the precise gram/ounce and hitting my numbers almost exactly on a daily basis. I’ve never honestly done that and I’ll tell you, coming from a guy who knows a little bit about nutrition, you have no idea what or how much you’re eating until you document and weigh out your food!

So I’m on this fat burning / learning adventure and I’m documenting the process right here on my blog. I’ll discuss the dieting strategy that I’m using and how it differs to conventional weight loss programs. I’ll talk about obstacles that I encounter and how I over come them. I’ll show you the foods that I eat and share some of the recipes that I use and come across. I already have some pretty solid topics lined up for later this week and I’m going to hook you guys up with some pretty slick tools that I’ve already created to simplify the dieting process.

If anyone reading has any dieting tips, meals or recipe’s that they would like to share, that would be awesome! You can post them along with questions and general comments in the thread below each post or on my Facebook page. That’s all I have for now, check back soon for updates!

How To Do Lunges: An excellent exercise for the lower body is the lunge. In order for this exercise to be affective without you need to know how to do lunges correctly. I see people mess this exercise up all of the time. If done incorrectly the wrong technique could lead to unnecessary aches and pains, even increasing the potential for injury. No need to worry though, with a couple of tips you’ll be doing the perfect lunge in no time!

How To do Lunges Correctly

The first step is to take a step. A big one. One of the most common mistakes I see people make when performing this exercise is staying to compact. They take a small step forward instead of really lengthening their lung. These small steps cause them to put unnecessary stress on their knees. What’s more is that by taking smaller steps the individual isn’t putting themselves into position to maximize the effectiveness of the exercise.

To do lunges correctly your first step should be long enough that it enables you to touch your opposite knee to the floor, while keeping your front knee behind your toes. At this point the top of your front leg should be parallel with the floor and your knees and hips should be bent a 90 degree angle. Another indicator that you’re doing this exercise correctly is the stretching sensation you’ll feel in your hamstrings and gluts.

There are several variations of the lunge. My personal favorites are the alternating lunge, walking lunge and swinging lunge. Each one is just a little bit different in how they affect your body and the muscles that are used. You can do lunges with just your body weight or you can increase the intensity of the exercise by using additional weight such as a pair of dumbbells or a barbell.

While the lunge is a lower body exercise, most people fail to realize that it can be an incredible core workout as well, especially when the weight is positioned on your shoulders. In order to do lunges correctly your back needs to be straight and your abs tight throughout the entire exercise. The only way to accomplish this is to maintain a strict isometric contraction in your core the entire time you’re lunging.

In addition to working your hamstrings, quads, gluts and core, lunges also help to develop better balance and flexibility. If you’re up for a challenge and you have the room, try doing a few sets of reverse walking lunges. They are the same as a standard walking lunge except for the whole lunging backwards part. It does however require a lot more balance to perform a reverse walking lunge.

When you know how to do a lunge correctly it can be one of the best all round exercises for developing lower body and core strength while burning an impressive amount of calories. If you’re new to exercise make sure you take the time to learn and develop proper lunge technique. I’ve included one of my Youtube videos about proper lunge technique, be sure to watch it if you have any questions about how to do this exercise.

Does protein make you fat? Many people are under the impression that protein should only be consumed by those who are trying to gain weight or build massive amounts of muscle.  This is simply not the case, protein should be consumed by everyone, it’s an essential nutrient that our bodies require to function. So the short answer to the question “Does Protein Make You Fat?” is No it doesn’t. However eating too much of any nutrient, including protein, can cause you to gain weight.

As I’ve already mentioned protein is an essential portion of the diet, and humans need a certain amount of protein on a daily basis. These molecules play a vital part in the regeneration of body tissues, including muscle.

Furthermore, protein has many other roles at the molecular level, it even serves to boost the immune system. So not only does protein not make you fat, it actually assists you in losing weight by aiding the recovery process and helping to build calorie burning muscle.

So how much protein should you be eating? It depends on who you ask. Most nutrition experts will tell you that your body requires less than 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. So a 140 pound female would only need to eat about 65 grams of protein a day according to this suggestion. This estimate is a little bit low when compared to suggestions commonly made by fitness professionals. Many of the top trainers suggest that their clients eat 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. This same 140 pound female would need to eat 120-140 grams off protein a day.

If you’re unsure how many grams of protein you’re eating each day, I would encourage you to keep track for a week or two. This way you’ll get a pretty good idea of how much protein you’re eating on a daily basis.

Once you’ve tracked your nutrition for a few weeks you can easily determine if you need more protein in your diet. You can get protein from several sources. Here is a short list of some of the best sources of protein:

• Meat
• Chicken
• Turkey
• Pork
• Beef (lean)
• Nuts & Seeds
• Dairy
• Milk
• Yogurt
• Cottage Cheese

There are plenty of other foods that are high in protein, if you prefer to eat them feel free, these are just a few of my suggestions. If you find it too difficult to prepare foods high in protein another option to consider is a protein supplement.

Protein powders are a quick, convenient way to get your protein. I know there is a bit of a stigma as far as their taste, but there are actually plenty of good tasting products available, you just have to try a few to find one you like.

So “Does Protein Make You Fat?” say it with me, NOOOO! If you’re adding some extra pounds it’s most likely not from excessive protein consumption, it’s probably from excessive food consumption. Specifically refined, processed foods that are high in carbohydrates and saturated fats. If you want to point your pudgy finger at any nutrient point it at high glycemic carbohydrates and saturated fats.