Fellow Bloggers

I have recently taken more time to read other peoples blog to generate a higher knowledge of what you guys want and also knowledge of fitness for me, as they say you never stop learning!!! Now Born Fitness is one of these must reads!! Here I came across a blog written by Adam Bernstein on the growing dilemma for me of dropping carbs for fat loss. This has been a major part of my blogs recently as myself, and I’m sure many others are trying to drop weight for their summer holidays. 

He goes on to state how a “low carb” diet is one of the most misunderstood terms of nutrition in the fitness industry, to which I totally agree with him on. He mentions how creating a flexible diet plan is the way forward, this is being used more greatly in the fitness industry over the last few years with the boom of applications, mainly through apps such as myfitnesspal. Michael Kory, who is an ever developing Vlogger is huge on this. When creating this diet plan he a leads to certain points which have to be taken into account. 

Total training hours: A training plan which you design will coincide with the diet plan. For me these are essential as they compliment each other. With good nutrition you will get such a better workout, guaranteed.

Target bodyweight: You must have a goal at the end of it. Many people go wrong by just saying ‘I want to look ripped’. You must know your goal weight!!! When you know your target body weight it will allow you to work your macros out to which then, you can plug into myfitnesspal and get you on your way to getting the body you want. 

Body fat: this is very much like the above, you have got to know where you are, to get where you want to go. Again this will help you set goals which in turn will keep you motivated to carry on when reaching said goals. 

The one thing that I would like to add to this is carbs is the one thing in your diet which you can change so much and will in turn have such a great overall effect. Even as minimal as adding 50 grams extra a day can have such a huge effect. In its basic form carbs are a energy source, so if you are depleting yourself of carbs your body will never be as efficient as it could be. This will of course mean you won’t be able to push yourself as hard in the gym. Low carbs restrict the muscle from energy meaning it will fatigue faster. However if you have a high carb intake, especially prior to exercise the muscle will be full and what I often find is an unreal pump. 

I often cycle my carbs throughout the week, keeping the body guessing. Whenever I train legs my carb intake rises by 60 grams that day, this is split between pre and post workout. Days where I am not training I will minimise my intake as I am not training and therefore don’t need as greater energy. These are all different things you can do. Play around with carbs, it effects people in many different ways but once you know what works for you stick with it!!! You will notice such a difference. 

So there you have it Born Fitness is a great blog which you need to get reading if you haven’t already. Adam Bernstein is a wealth of knowledge, always posting up little tips to help. If you're really into your flexible dieting then Michael Kory is definitely a guy to check out on youtube, some of his recipes are incredible, plus they're yummy!!!!!!

Hope this helps

Jack

The accessories that I'm currently using, all a must have!!!!!

What Accessories should I have?

This is one thing I quickly wanted to discuss as there are always little bits that can help and aid you getting the most out of your workout and in the kitchen at home.

A food blender is the first and this is a must in my eyes in anyone's kitchen. Now everyone believes that the nutribullet is the best on the market, however you really don't need to spend that much on one. I've just got a Tefal blender which was like £25 from John Lewis, it does everything you need. Post workout smoothies's, blending my pancake mixture, even as far as making my own nut butters, it's all been done in this one blender. This is a must.

Frylight is another must have cooking spray for the kitchen. Unlike most cooking oil which you have no control over and end covering your whole dinner in unwanted oil, therefore meaning extra unwanted calories this you just simply spray on. 1 spray = 1 calorie, simple!!! They have introduced different flavoured versions, plus a new coconut oil based spray all great alternatives.  

Now to the gym!!! The first product which I don't know where I would be without is my trusty smart shake shaker, I just love them. The shaker has a stack based system on the bottom to hold supplements, nuts, just about any small snack. The filtering system which comes with the shaker also means you don't have to worry about any lumps, however this also depends on what powders you use. The last important thing of all is the longevity and how easy it is to wash. For some reason you never seem to get the smell like from others once you've used them a while, plus you drop them and they never break. I'm always dropping stuff!! They have a carabiner on the shaker as well which means it's easy to transport, just attach it to a strap on your gym bag. 

Last but not least myprotein, their straps are just amazing. Their hand wrap straps I've been using a lot recently when training back and trainings to hit my traps, they work a treat. Unlike conventional strap these have loops either end which your hands go through once wrapped around the bar, so it's impossible to then lose your grip. Like anything new they take a bit of getting use to, however once you do you'll notice the difference and never go back. Their new clothing range is also a must buy. The lycra bottoms I brought and unlike any other they don't shrink when you wash them, never seem to lose their elasticity and are just so robust. Even after a Tough Mudder they still seem brand new.

So there you have it, the must have accessories!! Hope they'll help.

Jack

New Push, Pull, Legs routine!!!

This week I have decided to split my workouts in a different manner. As oppose to doing the normal split of chest, back, legs and shoulders with a few additional areas covered, I have decided to op for the push, pull, legs followed by a further push, pull day, after watching a Michael Kory routine. Wow does it make a difference!!

The first push day was very similar to a chest workout however I included a few lateral raises which is a weak area of mine, with incline DB press at 45degrees bring more shoulders into the movement. I finished with a favourite of mine which is standing DB press which I find recruits the core so much and makes the movement much more of a rounded exercise. I felt like I hit this area as a whole a lot more effectively then just solely focusing on chest. The pull day saw me focus on both bring depth and width to my back, but as oppose to super setting a lot of my exercises I concentrated on going heavy, with fewer reps and sets. This worked a treat as my posterior chain rarely gets worked like this, with me waking up the following day with huge DOMS. This had quite an effect on my leg day for some reason. I just didn't feel as strong front squatting, so opted for a high rep day which wasn't pretty with my quads now crying out in pain 48 hours later. 

Now with the second push and pull days I broke my shoulder routine in half. My push routine I started off with push press getting up to 90kg for 5 which I was really pleased with and from then on hit the anterior and lateral head of the shoulder. A point to note with lateral raises don't go to heavy!!! If you're swinging them up than they are to heavy. I avoided this by doing them on a seated bench, super setting them with a incline press, this got a almighty pump going. I also used the cables for lateral raises which keeps a constant tension on the muscle fatiguing that head of the shoulder. Cables also featured with a Steve Cook inspired frontal raises with a rope through the legs, making sure you pull the rope apart at the top of the movement. Along with pronated incline flies which stretched the whole area out, my chest and shoulders were in bits, I couldn't even lift my water bottle up!!!! 

Second pull day I really wanted to focus on width with my back and include rear portion of the shoulder along with traps. These all blend well as along as you're contracting your back correctly when trying to build width your rear delts and traps are getting a good workout as well. This is exactly what I done with lat pulldowns to begin with, pausing slightly at the bottom of the movement for a full contraction. I targeted the rear delts much like the push workout the day before through DB reverse flies super setting with DB rows off of a incline bench. Performed correctly the upper back around the rhomboids will really be working hard. My favourite super set was using cable bent over rear flies along with cable face pulls. A full stretch of the muscle, along with a pause when fully contracted and this with build a V-shaped back that everyone wants. I finished this off with high single arm pull downs and boy did they finish me off!!

So there you go a new routine that I'm bringing in to my workouts. Always great to mix it up and if you train with a lot of volume, 5-6 times a week it's great as it allows muscle groups that all important 48 hours off. Give it a try and let me know how you get on.

Be sure to check out Michael Kory as this is who I thought of using the idea off of. Plus be sure to follow me on Instagram at jacksfitnessforyou for lots of motivation and recipe advice. 

The Ideal Breakfast

It's no myth that breakfast is THE most important meal of the day and making sure you are fuelling your body with the right produce is vital for making sure your body is running on full capacity throughout your day even when you're looking to burn body fat. This, therefore, means that your macro nutrients need to be top of the agenda!

Introducing you to the legendary Banana Omelette! This is legendary because everyone I introduce it to  just falls in love with it. So, I suppose you want to know how to make this bad boy?...

Well, it's super easy. 

Ingredients:

1 Large Banana (mashed)

4 egg whites & 2 yolks 

1 scoop of oats

1 Scoop of Vanilla (or a flavour of your choice) Pro10 Whey Protein Powder

A dash of Soya Milk

Fry Light 1 Cal Spray

Honey (if desired)

Method:

Pre-heat saucepan on high heat.

Once banana is mashed in jug, add eggs and whisk until fluffy. Then, add a scoop of oats and Protein Powder along with the dash of milk, whisk until all powder has disappeared. 

Spray saucepan with Fry Light and add mixture, levelling it out to create an even omelette.

Allow this to cook for until colour changes around the edges. Slowly loosen edges before flipping the omelette in half, cooking until liquid has disappeared. 

Time to serve and add honey if you've got a cheeky sweet tooth. 

Enjoy!!! - I know you will. 

Remember 70% diet, 30% gym.

Jack

Creatine Monohydrate by Pro 10 supplements

Are you taking creatine? Have you ever thought about taking creatine? Well this is the one you must buy.

Creatine is found in red meat and tuna but through the process of cooking this is often lost. Your body also produces creatine, however not enough to see substantial gains as your metabolism often burns this, therefore this must be supplemented.

If your goals are to put on size and strength then creatine is a way to aid you for this. Firstly it helps when producing ATP (adenosine triphosphate) which, in turn with type 2b muscle fibres, will help with your explosive power which is why many weightlifters use this supplement. So if you want to get a new pb deadlift, squat or bench press then this supplement will definitely help!!!

Creatine infuses in the muscle, causing water retention to occur, thus helping protein synthesis; and lets not forget a muscle is made up 80% of water. Anyway no more boring stuff, but this will help you put mass on with a good, strength based routine. 

Now the creatine supplement you need to be taking is pro 10 creatine monohydrate. (See link below). I've taken many in the past which have upset my stomach or not dissolved well with water, but this doesn't do any of that. I have seen real gains in my strength as well, taking this supplement twice a day pre and post workout with pro 10 whey concentrate. It goes down a treat. Just follow the cycle of 7 weeks on and a week off, 5 grams a serving and you'll see results. My only one bit of advice would be drink plenty of water as this will aid the creatine to work its magic.

Don't forget 70% diet, 30% gym

Jack

http://www.pro-10.com/en/creatine-monohydrate.html#

Fasted HIIT Training

There is a lot of controversy over fasted cardio in the morning, but I am personally a supporter of it.

Why people dislike this form of cardio is they are worried about losing muscle gains (anabolic state). Glycogen levels are very low in the morning, causing you therefore to have very little energy, therefore your body starts using muscle as energy. To help with this I use Pro10 's BCAA mix along with some maltodextrin, protecting against falling into a anabolic state and low energy levels.

Furthermore as a fasted programme you can use HIIT (high intensity interval training). This can be completed using lots of different ways of cardio, I prefer sprints. HIIT training is short bursts of effort with an elongated period of rest. The benefits to this from sitting on a bike for hours upon end is that it only has to be 20 minute session, great for those who hate doing cardio or those who find it hard to get to a gym. Furthermore like a sprinter, this recruits type 2 muscle fibres. These are the quick, explosive fibres  used which in turn can also help with your strength gains in the gym. Last of all is that it is proven to boast your metabolism, which is the one thing which is needed to burn unwanted body fat. You can therefore see why it's so good and why I do it 

HIIT Workout

10x60m hill efforts, 1 minute rest.

You can cater the workout for yourself, making the effort shorter or the rest longer. Also put things such as burpees in after each effort will really get the heart rate and fat burning up. So why not try this instead of long, low intensity fat burning cardio.

Remember 70% diet, 30% gym

Jack