• 2 trimmed and rinsed chicken breasts
• 4 medium tomatoes
• 1 6oz. jar marinated artichoke hearts
• 1 4oz. can brandywine mushrooms
• 1 Box Brown Rice Pilaf
• Rosemary
• Basil
• Black Pepper
• Garlic Salt
• Onion Powder

  Posted by Travis Harwood, CSCS Lead Trainer at Athlon Elite

Many gym goers workout with the intention of targeting their “problem areas.”

–They do side bends to create chiseled obliques where flabby “love handles” exist…

–They do crunches to get rid of that “beer belly”…

–They do “butt exercises” to tighten those “saddle bags”…

And though these individuals are avid, dedicated fitness enthusiasts, and though they spend months, or even years in the gym, they often see little or no improvement in these zones, and there is one simple reason:

There is no such thing as “spot reduction.”

“Spot reduction,” or the practice of exercising a specific area with the intention of burning the fat surrounding that area, is an age old fitness flaw.

Human physiology simply doesn’t work this way.

So here is the truth, and the secret to those tight abs and glutes you’ve always wanted:

If you want to shred the fat around your “problem areas,” you have to BURN off the fat.

HOW DO YOU DO THIS?  Well Athlon Elite’s "BURN PROGRAM" of course…

Burn Calories
Research has shown that intermittent bouts of high intensity exercise are the best workouts for crushing calories: Remember the KISS principal, use more calories than you consume and the weight comes off.

Train With Weights (or resistance)
Resistance training builds more muscle, the more muscle you have the higher your metabolism will be, and the more calories you will burn throughout the day. Also, building the muscle while burning the fat will create that “toned-up” physique, once those “winter layers” are all peeled off.

Eat Food… A Lot!!!
Yes, that’s right; eat food all the time, six times a day at least. But eat the right kinds of foods, AKA “thermic” Foods.  Thermic foods are those which have a positive effect on metabolism, rather than a negative effect on hormonal regulation and digestion.

DO’s: Veggies, Fruits, Greens, Whole Grains, lean protein, good fats.

DONT’S: Sugar, Processed foods, refined carbohydrates.

Drink Water
Water plays a vital role in virtually every function of the human body.  Take your body weight and multiply it by .55 and that is the amount of water in ounces you should be drinking a day.

WRITE IT DOWN
In a recent study The Kaiser Permanente Group examined the diets of 1700 American’s on a fat loss plan and it was found that those who wrote down everything that they put into their bodies DOUBLED the fat loss results of those who did not.

Enough said…

Call us soon.  There’s only 5 spots left in our Summer Shape-Up Program.

Check it out here…

Summer Shape-Up Program

Posted by Amy Kistler, certified personal trainer at Athlon Elite.

The study of more than 14,000 women found that those with moderate or high aerobic fitness levels were much less likely to die from breast cancer, said Dr. Steve Blair, an Arnold School researcher and a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine.

This study, published in April of 2009 in the Journal, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, was one of the first studies to actually measure women’s fitness and compare the fitness levels to the numbers of women dying from breast cancer. Other studies have asked women to self-report their fitness activity level and compared these levels to the number of women suffering from breast cancer.  But, comparatively, this recent study is much more accurate because there is no room left for error or misrepresented information from the women.

Women between the ages of 23 and 83 with no previous history of breast cancer were chosen to be involved in the study. Women were placed into categories of low-level, moderate, and high level activity.

• Low level activity consisted of less than 150 minutes of exercise a week.
• Moderate level activity consisted of any type of moderate exercise for more than 300 minutes per week or high intensity training for 150 minutes a week.
• Finally, high intensity activity would be about 45 minutes a day of moderate intensity exercise or about 30 minutes a day of high intensity exercise, like we do here at Athlon Elite.
  

The study, by researchers at the University Of South Carolina Arnold School Of Public Health, showed that women who were involved in moderate to high level exercise were less likely to die because of breast cancer. The study also confirmed that women who were involved in exercise had lower body mass index, better cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, and fewer chronic conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. 

"Women in the study’s lowest fitness category were nearly THREE times more likely to die from breast cancer than women in the MOST FIT GROUP," said Dr. Steve Blair, an Arnold School researcher and past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. 

Therefore, physically fit women placed in the high activity levels of exercise have less fat, healthier hearts, a decreased risk of dying from cancer and most likely will lead healthier and all around happier lives!

Don’t you want to be a part of this high activity level group?  Here at Athlon Elite, we can get you there and keep you there. Not only can we help guide you to live a healthy and happy lifestyle, but we can also help teach you how to improve your quality of life.  Don’t wait any longer, come in and join the fitness fun!

“JUST DO IT!"

Get started in our "Summer Shape-Up Program" for a very affordable entry level price.  Check it out by clicking the link below:

Summer Shape-Up Program

Here’s an easy read on 7 things you can do to control your bodies stress response (which is really getting in the way of your fat loss and muscle growth goals)!

Read it and post any comments or questions at the bottom this post…

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29777933/

Sometimes “expert advice” isn’t found in one person, but in a set of principles.  And the set of principles that I’m most fond of is called the KISS principle….

Keep It Simple Stupid!

All the time I hear folks tell me that they’re not losing weight like they thought they would, or, why aren’t they gaining weight, why is their body comp not changing, etc. They’re frustrated, confused, and feeling helpless.

But if most of them just made things simple, progress would follow.

What does “make things simple” mean?  Isn’t the body kinda complicated?

Well, we know that weight loss happens only when the body is in a negative energy balance (in other words, when there are fewer calories coming in than going out).

And we know that weight gain happens only when the body is in a positive energy balance (in other words, when there are more calories coming in than going out).

From this knowledge, we can infer two things:

   1. If you aren’t losing… you’re not in a negative energy balance.

   2. If you aren’t gaining… you’re not in a positive energy balance.

Of course, it does get a bit more complex than this but again, most folks get lost in the details.  So let’s keep it simple for now.

The Energy Balance Continuum

Weight Loss

Assuming you’re following the Athlon Elite diet plan and training at least 5 hours per week following the Athlon Elite "Burn" prescription, and still not losing, the explanation is simple:

You’re not losing because, for whatever reason, you’re not in a negative energy balance.

So you must create one. How can you do that? Well, there are three viable ways:

   1. Eat less
   2. Exercise more
   3. Eat less and exercise more

In the end, it’s pretty simple, no? Typically I recommend the following strategy (again, assuming you’re following the Athlon Elite diet plan and training at least 5 hours per week under the Athlon Elite "Burn" prescription yet have still stagnated):

• 1. Increase exercise volume to 7 hours per week following the "Burn" prescription
• 2. If stagnation occurs again, decrease calories by about 250 per day
  
• 3. If stagnation occurs again, increase exercise to 9 hours per week still following the "Burn" prescription
• 4. If stagnation occurs again, decrease calories another 250 per day
  

Your upper limit of exercise volume may be 10-12 hours per week, so make sure to cap it there while manipulating calories the rest of the way.

Weight Gain

Assuming you’re following the Athlon Elite diet plan and supplement prescription, training at least 5 hours per week following the Athlon Elite "Growth" prescription, and still aren’t gaining, the reason is simple:

You’re not gaining because, for whatever reason, you’re not in a positive energy balance.

So you must create one. How can you do that? Well, there are three ways:

   1. Eat more
   2. Exercise less
   3. Eat more and exercise less

(Note: when trying to gain weight, it’s important to maintain your exercise volume at about 4-5 hours per week as you still need a strong stimulus for muscle growth. Judging by the overall health status of the North American population, “Eat lots and don’t exercise at all” doesn’t appear to work very well for making you buff. So don’t take this argument to its logical conclusion.)

I recommend the following strategy (again, assuming you’re following Athlon Elite’s diet plan and supplement prescription and training at least 5 hours per week yet have still stagnated):

• 1. Increase calorie intake
• 2. If stagnation occurs, decrease non-weight training calorie expenditure and make sure your weight training is stimulating growth (hence, following Athlon Elite’s "Growth" strategy)
• 3. If stagnation occurs again, increase calories again and continue to manipulate them as you don’t want your exercise volume to fall too much
  

That’s it.

Most of the time, it’s just that simple.

• * Follow the Athlon Elite diet plan. And really follow it, not half-assed “Oh, I sometimes eat vegetables.”  Follow the macro-nutrient, calorie-intake and nutrient timing recommendations. And be compliant.

• * Train at least 5 hours per week using adequate intensity and the "Burn" or "Growth" prescription.

• * Follow the steps above as indicated for meeting your goals.

• * Lather, rinse, repeat until ripped and/or huge!!
  

99.9% of all of the individuals I’ve worked with in my career who have properly followed the steps above have succeeded.  Only those with serious medical issues don’t respond.  So make sure that during the course of your own transformation, you remember these simple lessons. Having learned them there’s absolutely no excuse for not getting closer to your goals.

Still having trouble?  Don’t be confused…

If you’re having trouble, get help simplifying it all, and as they say… "Buy Speed" by consulting with an Athlon Elite trainer today.  In fact we have a super-sweet deal going on right now…

a six-week Summer Shape-Up program for a dirt cheap entry-level price!  Check it here:

The Summer Shape-Up Special

Click the link above and get started now creating that amazing summer body (before it’s too late… only 15 spots available)!

Just click the link… It’s really that simple.

Until Next Time,

Ryan