Turkey Day Bootcamp

Here are a series of videos that are are guranteed to create some serious damage control before the big feast! This is a hardcore bootcamp workout built specifically for this special occasion using bodyweight exercises ONLY. It’s meant to maximally torch calories, boost metabolism, and deplete muscle glycogen stores that will go a long way to allowing room for some holiday treats!

Workout: 45 Minutes

A) Strength Training: 20 Minutes - 30-30’s Mayhem

1. 1-Arm Burpee Variation
2. Side-to-Side Push-up Variation
3. Y Split Squats Variation
4. Push-up Row Variation
5. Skater Jumps Variation

B) Metabolic Training: 20 Minutes - 50-10’s Dynamite

1. Single-Leg Burpee Variation
2. Tempo T-Push-ups (3-1-X)
3. Tempo Single-Leg Hip Extension Variation (2-2-2)
4. TRX T + Row Combo (Bent-Over T’s if no TRX)
5. Tempo Squat Jump Combo Variation (3-1-X)

C) Finishers: 5 Minutes - 20-10’s Ultimate Tabatas

1. Front Pillar to Push-up Transfer Variation
2. Side Pillar to Push-up Transfer Variation (L)
3. Side Pillar to Push-up Transfer Variation (R)
4. Single-Leg Back Pillar Variation (switch legs halfway)

BRING IT! Happy Thanksgiving!

-AR

How to Deadlift the Proper Way

Guest blog from Jim "Smitty" Smith from the Diesel Crew.
--(http://www.dieselcrew.com/)

The deadlift is notorious as a back breaker in most peoples minds. When in fact, it is the poor execution of a deadlift, combined with poor mobility / flexibility, improper warm-up, poor core strength and many other factors that led to the acute or cumulative trauma.

I wanted to give everyone a quick, easy-to-understand, easy-to-apply setup for the conventional deadlift. It will give you the perfect setup everytime.

How to Deadlift Video

Here is what you’ll see in the video:

• conventional deadlift stance
• distance from bar
• hip placement / posture
• breathing
• tension, irradiation
• grip considerations
• concentric phase
• eccentric phase
• bracing, intra-abdominal pressure
• upper back engagement
• head posture

Here is a step-by-step setup guide for conventional deadlifts:

1. Setup with your feet shoulder width or slightly wider than shoulder width apart
2. Toes can be straight ahead or turned outward
3. Shins should be approximately 4-6″ AWAY from the bar
4. Grab the bar with a double overhand grip (until the weight gets too heavy)
5. Legs will be straight
6. Take a big breath and force your abdominals outward and hold
7. Drop your hips as your knees shift forward toward the bar
8. Create tension in your upper back and lats by squeezing your armpits and pulling your arms downward
9. Drive the floor away, keeping the bar against your body all the way to lockout
10. Once bar gets to your knees finish the lockout with a powerful glute contraction, finish in a straight line
11. Move hips backward, keeping the glutes and hamstrings on tension
12. The bar will move downward and once the bar reaches the knees, drop straight downward back to the floor
13. REPEAT

How to Modify a Deadlift

Beyond the Range – pulling through a greater range of motion (ROM) which helps accelerate through sticking points and is done by standing on an elevated surface. It can be either 100lb plates or a 4″ box.

Pulling Against Bands or Chains – forces the lifter to accelerate to lockout which develops greater end range strength and rate of force development (RFD)

Band Assisted Pulling – assists the lifter off the floor and should be setup to deload before lockout, allows supramaximal weights (great than the lifter’s 1RM) to be used

Change the Implement – varying a barbell, a trap bar, dumbbells, odd objects or an axle will modify the tension and leverage of the lift

-AR

The Starvation Diet - Does It Work?

Starvation Diets are based on the principle of burning far more calories than you consume. These kinds of diets generally aim to lose 1000 to 1500 calories in quick time. Although, you may achieve weight loss initially with such diets, you generally are always hungry.

Perhaps it's illogical to think that not eating will actually force your body to store more fat. The fact is, starving yourself is going to trigger your body to go into SURVIVAL MODE. Instead of doing what you want it to do, which is to lose fat, it'll do the opposite to keep you alive. That's more important than looking like a model, right?

If you've ever tried any sort of starvation diet you should know that it doesn't work and probably made things worse. Personally, I like food and I need it especially for as active as I am so I can't imagine starving myself. It'll just be horribly painful. I'll assume that most people enjoy eating food as well. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are all common get-together events with friends and family. Not only is a starvation diet highly inconvenient but it's also going to place a damper on the joys of life. What good is being thin if you have to sacrifice such a fundamental part of life?

When your body senses (or believes) it's getting less food than it usually does, it's "self-preservation" switch is triggered. Because your body believes it's about to starve, the first thing it does is shut down its fat-burners to preserve fuel (fat). That's why your body burns so few calories slowly on starvation type diets. If a starvation diet is followed for an extended period of time other bodily processes may shut down. Death is even possible if taken to extremes.

Ironically, starvation diets don't make you thin. It leads to muscle deterioration which leaves you looking "skinny fat". That means that you've lost muscle and weigh less but you don't as lean as you should. Why? As I said earlier, your body is in survival mode and it's feeding off it’s most metabolic tissue - muscle - while keeping on the body fat! One thing to remember is that it's muscle that helps you tear through extra fat. If you start dropping weight by not eating, it'll mostly be a loss of muscle. Muscles require energy in the form of calories to exist. Just by having more muscle, you have the capacity to burn more calories at rest. It's estimated that for every 1 lb. of muscle that you have, you can burn up to 35-40 calories more per hour just by laying around. Because of that, muscle will be the first to go if nutrient dense calories are depleted.

Looking back at history when man had to hunt for his food, food was a lot more scarce. The rabbit might get away one night and there would be no dinner. You never knew for how long you would go without getting enough to eat. Fat is a store of energy that doesn't require much energy to keep around so the human body does the only intelligent thing: it keeps the fat. The longer you can survive, the better your chance of finding the next meal. We didn't climb up the food chain by being evolutionary rejects. The human body knows how to survive as it has done it for millions of years. Today, there is more food than we need and we don't even have to bring our own spears.

Knowing that starvation leads to more fat storage, NOT LESS, we can design diets that facilitate the use of fat as energy. Diet gurus & experts have been promoting this idea for many years now. You want to eat more than just three square meals a day. Several small meals spaced throughout the day will raise your metabolism which tells your body that food is in abundance so it won't keep any fat!

The idea is not to eat five or six versions of a meal from a three meals a day plan. If you usually consume 1000 calories a meal, eating five of those will give you 5000 calories a day. Unless you are an athlete, you don't need that much food. What you want is to eat five 500 calorie meals. So where you would've consumed 3000 calories eating three 1000 calorie meals, five 500 calorie meals (which comes to 2500 calories) will be 500 less calories. Those kinds of savings will help you lose a pound a week by merely tweaking the size and amount of meals you eat. It also doesn't have to be five 500 calorie meals. You can mix up the numbers as long as it still falls into a total calorie amount that is less than what you eating now.

Keep in mind that if weight loss is your goal, from a physiological perspective you must burn more calories through exercise and/or movement than what you take in through the foods you eat. Also remember, the worse thing you can do if you want to lose weight is to starve yourself. It might work for a few pounds, but the long term result is quicker weight gain in the future. It's a losing strategy. There are better ways to reduce your daily caloric consumption. A diet shouldn't be unpleasant nor should it signify deprivation of food or starvation. The term "diet" should reflect your daily eating patterns, which requires you to eat! We didn't struggle for millions of years hunting giant mammoths with stone spears to purposely starve ourselves today.

If it doesn't feel good, it probably isn't good for you!

-AR

Workout of the Day

Here's a workout that I did today that's guaranteed to burn fat, give you a metabolic afterburn and keeps your muscles guessing.

Dynamic Warm-Up - Complete a set of each exercise in the same numbered pair (for example, 1A & 1B, 2A & 2B, etc.) back-to-back w/ no rest between sets. Once finished, rest for 1-min. and move on to the next exercise pair.

• 1A) Jump Rope - 30 sec.
• 2A) Lateral Skiers - 20 reps
  
• 1B) T-Push-Ups - 20 reps
• 2B) Dynamic Lunges - 20 reps
  
• 1C) Jacks - 20 reps
• 2C) Gate Swings - 20 reps

Strength - 60 sec. rest between sets; Alternate exercises

• 1) Squats - 2-3 sets x 4-6 reps
• 2) Bent-Over Barbell Rows - 2-3 sets x 4-6 reps

Transition Zone - 60 sec. rest between sets; Alternate exercises

• 3) Jump Squats - 3 sets x 10-12 reps
• 4) DB Rows - 2-3 sets x 4-6 reps

Burn Zone - No rest between A & B exercise pairs; 60 sec. rest between #5 pair & #6 pair supersets

• 5A) - Bench Step-Ups - 2-3 sets x 12-15 reps (each leg)
• 5B) - Lat Pulldown - 2-3 sets x 12-15 reps

• 6A) DB Squats - 2-3 sets x 12-15 reps
• 6B) Push Press - 2-3 sets x 12-15 reps

Metabolic Zone

• Seal Jacks - 30 sec.
• Jump Rope - 90 sec. of active recovery
• Single Leg Lateral Hops - 30 sec. (each leg)
• Jump Rope - 90 sec. of active recovery
• Mountain Climbers - 30 sec.
• Jump Rope - 90 sec. of active recovery
• DB Swings - 30 sec. (each arm)
• Jump Rope - 90 sec. of active recovery
• Jumping Jacks - 30 sec.
• Jump Rope - 90 sec. of active recovery
• Burpees - 30 sec.

Mission accomplished in 50 minutes!

Again, notice that I didn't do any slow, boring cardio. I worked using a combo of various training zones, supersets and high-intensity intervals (HIIT) in the Metabolic Zone which results in a higher output of fat calories and post-workout metabolic acceleration.

Train hard & have fun!

-AR

Pull Your Own Weight

As most of us know, our country is suffering from an obesity epidemic that is taking it's toll not just only on adults but kids as well. What needs to take place is an initiative that promotes healthy eating habits, introduces more physical activity, and educates our kids about the rewards of living a healthy lifestyle for years to come. With that being said here is what I consider a "radically simple solution to Childhood Obesity".

At the Risk of Pointing Out the Obvious...

1. Show me 10 boys who can do pull ups and I'll show you 10 boys who are not obese.*

2. Show me 10 girls who can do pull ups and I'll show you 10 girls who are not obese.

3. Show me 10 families full of members who can do pull ups and I'll show you ten families who don't worry about obesity and all the related problems.

4. Show me an elementary or a high school full of students who can do pull ups and I'll show you an elementary and a high school who've won the war on obesity.

5. Show me a school teacher, administrator, or a school board member who can do pull ups and I'll show you a school teacher, an administrator, and a school board member who are all setting great examples for the kids in their schools to follow.

6. Show me a company (say McDonald's) full of employees who can do pull ups and I'll show you a company that's healthy, energetic, productive, and inexpensive to insure.

7. Show me a police department whose members can do pull ups and I'll show you a police department who doesn't worry about the relationship between cops and donuts.

8. Show me a group of childhood obesity prevention experts who can do pull ups and I'll show you a group of childhood obesity prevention experts who walk the walk.

9. Show me a town, a city, a county, a state, or a nation full of citizens who can pull their own weight (physically and otherwise) and I’ll show you a town, a city, a county, a state, and a nation who’s not only won the war against obesity, but who’s capable of resolving complicated, 21st century problems on all other fronts as well.

10. Show me a group of people who understand what you've just read here and I'll show you a group of people who are unconfused and ready to rally around "A simple, easily implemented, easily documented, and affordable solution to childhood obesity."

And Then, With a Straight Face...

1. Tell me why obesity prevention is so complicated and confusing that we're unable stop it from growing like a California forest fire raging out of control?

2. Tell me why every gym teacher in America agrees with the claim that kids who can do pull ups are never obese, yet so few take the time to teach their kids to do pull ups and to become obesity beating heroes in their own local communities at the same time?

3. Tell me why America's Surgeon General has named childhood obesity prevention his TOP PRIORITY yet to date has provided no actionable answers to the problem?

4. Tell me why the future and life quality of millions of boys and girls will be undermined and sacrificed by low self esteems due to ongoing battles with obesity?

5. Tell me why a charitable organization like the Robert Woods Johnson foundation has dedicated $500 million dollars over the next five years to defeating childhood obesity, yet after year (one hundred million spent) they have so little to show for it?

6. Tell me why we're spending countless billions as a nation on obesity related illnesses?

7. Tell me why people in high positions simply fail to act, even when the obvious is pointed out to them?

8. Tell me why common sense is so uncommon, and why the obvious is so hard to see?

9. Tell me why we continue to think that the emperors are wearing beautiful and stylish new clothes when they're obviously standing stark naked in front of everyone, for anyone - with open eyes - to see?

10. And if this is true of an issue like childhood obesity prevention, doesn't it make you wonder how many other blatantly obvious solutions to crucial problems are being completely and totally overlooked and ignored by our so called authorities, our so called experts, our so called leaders?

*Substitute any sufficiently challenging functional test (i.e. dips, rope climbing, rock climbing, hand stand pushups, superman pushups) in place of pull ups and the results will inevitably be the same.

-AR

*Source: pullyourownweight.com

Lean Hybrid Muscle Training

Regardless of your body type or the type of training that your body responds to best, hybrid muscle training is all around the most effective way to build muscle and get lean. Often times, I'm asked how hybrid training carries over into sports. Regardless of the sport, hybrid muscle training can help you be at the top of your game. But did you know that there are also sports that by their very nature help you develop hybrid muscle? Any sport that simultaneously incorporates resistance and cardio can be considered a hybrid activity. There are a number of sports that do this. Here are a few that I can point out:

Football: This is a phenomenal sport that incorporates hybrid muscle training. The heavy pads provide resistance and with the all the cardio that is involved in the sport, it helps build type III or hybrid muscle. Other aspects of football that involve hybrid training include blocking and training with sleds during practice. All of these are activities that require endurance (the cardio part) and the muscles to deliver sustained strength (the resistance part).

If you have any doubt that football is an awesome hybrid training technique that can build a powerful, muscular physique just look at guys like Adrian Peterson, Terrell Owens or retired stars like Herschel Walker. All three have amazing physiques-and it all is the result of hybrid muscle training.

Strongman: This is really is all about hybrid muscle training. Unlike say powerlifting where the goal is to achieve your one-rep max, strongman training simultaneously requires both strength and endurance. And as you know, the best way to develop these qualities is through hybrid training. Examples of hybrid training activities that you see in strongman competitions include the tire flip, log carrying, truck pulling and the keg toss, among others.

And if you have any doubt that strongman training won't build a powerful, muscular physique, just take one look at Mariusz Pudzianowski and believe me, you'll eat your words.

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA): This one also incorporates hybrid muscle training-in fact, it's essential. Look at the guys fighting in the UFC. Do you think jogging ten miles a day carries over into the octagon and is going to help a guy get in shape for fight? No-two minutes into the match and he'll be winded.

Why? Because the successful fighters have developed hybrid type III muscle that has strength, power and endurance. They need to develop long, sustainable strength. You don't get that from ordinary training. When these guys train they have to mimic the moves they'll be doing in the octagon-grappling, pulling and other things that go on in a real fight. Guys like Ken Shamrock, Matt Hughes and Randy Couture all have developed hybrid, type III muscle.

Highland games: Seriously, this is about as hybrid as it gets. Have you ever seen these events? Some of the hybrid training activities you'll encounter in Highland games include the 56-pound shot put, the hammer throw with a 22-pound round metal ball attached to a handle, or the caber toss. This would have to be the signature event for the Highland games. The caber is a tapered log or pole that varies in height (roughly 19′-22′) and weight (100-130 pounds). They lift it, run with it and then heave it.

Lumberjack games: You've probably seen these on TV before. These games require participants to carry out feats of strength and endurance using extremely large and heavy logs. This one is 100% hybrid.

Arm wrestling: Your probably wouldn't have thought of this one but yes, arm wrestling is most definitely a sport that incorporates hybrid activities. After all, it does require long-or sustained strength-and the only way to get that is through hybrid training.

Track & field: Besides the running, you've also got activities like the shot put and the javelin throw. Both of these are activities that require both strength and endurance.

Kettlebell competitions: Kettlebells have been around a long time. Their shape and handles make them ideal for hybrid training. Some of the activities you'll see here that require long strength include the clean and snatch or the one- or two-armed kettlebell swing, among others.

CrossFit Competitions: These are the kinds of routines that are often touted as the "military" workouts so you'll often see military and law enforcement guys participating in these events. Nearly all of the activities require strength and endurance.

Not only does hybrid training and the development of type III muscle fibers enhance your athletic performance in many sports, but some sports are even hybrid in their nature.

Check out the video below - Lean Hybrid Muscle Transformation


-AR

Difference Between Good & Great Leading

Guest blog from my good friend, Ryan Cook -Executive Ministries Pastor at Grand Junction First Assembly in Grand Junction, CO. Be sure to check out his blog as he has lots of great info on there!
--(http:www.ryancook.net)

I shared this w/ one of our leadership teams at GJFA the other day, and thought I'd share it w/ you. Some of it was copied, some is mine. Use it if you like.

The Difference Between Good and Great Leading-

Great leaders are shaped and formed in the trenches while most good leaders are born good leaders.

The difference between the 2 is a very thin and fluxuating line.

Great leaders are shaped out of 4 experiences: call, style, skill set, and context in which you see yourself. – when a leader’s call, style and skill set fit the context, the stage is set for a great leader. Opposite, sometimes the stage is set for this, but we never make the transition from good to great. Nothing bad w/ being a good leader, but if you want to make the transition, whether in church ministry or in the work field- . Let’s discuss the diff-

Great leaders challenge the prevailing rules about how to conduct ministry, while good leaders work w/ the cards that are dealt. Great leaders are never content w/ the status quo, they always have a holy discontent w/ the way things are. They know that man-made rules are made to be broken because there is always a better way.

Attitude- Today’s attitude gives me possibilities-
· My attitude when I begin a task affects the outcome more than anything else.
· My attitude towards others often determines their attitude towards me.
· My attitude, not my achievements, give me happiness.- Money will not give you happiness and debt will make you unhappy.
· My attitude- good or bad- is contagious.

Great leaders intuitively read the signs of the times while good leaders struggle to make sense out of the moment. One of the reasons good leaders never achieve greatness is because they’re to busy, preoccupied, making stuff out of nothing, doing things that don’t mean much to the big picture. They don’t take time or sit still long enough to hear. So they fail to see what God is trying to accomplish.

Today’s priorities give me focus.
· Time is our most precious commodity.
· We cannot manage time, we only manage priorities.
· We cannot change time, only our priorities.
· Priorities help us to choose wisely.

Most great leaders are constantly recreating their leadership to fit the times, while most good leaders tend to rely on past performance. Well it worked back at so and so, it worked 10 years ago, 5 years ago isn’t even acceptable. It’s much harder for a person to remain a great leader in times like today w/ such exponential change in every aspect of life and leadership.

Today’s health gives tomorrow’s strength-
· Lasting leaders recognize their body is a vehicle that carries them to their mission.
· Proper diet and exercise provide the energy to lead well over the long haul.
· Your physical health will impact your spiritual stamina and perspective.

Great leaders see no limits of what God can do thru them. They rely on God for the impossible, while most good leaders try to calculate what is possible. Great leaders know that the only way to know the limit of possibility is by pushing it to the impossible. Great leaders know that we don’t need God for the possible, we find God in what is thought impossible. If it’s possible, possibly we are doing it on our own.

Great leaders are willing to ‘ready, fire, aim’ while good leaders always want to have everything in place before they fire. Great leaders are always laying it on the line, stepping out where most people fear to go.

Your commitment will be tested everyday, that’s just how it is, BUT, Staying committed helps you overcome many of life’s obstacles.

Great leaders are passionately focused on a few things and flexible on everything else, while good leaders try to wrap their hearts and minds around too many things.

Great leaders empower others; good leaders delegate ministry to others. Good leaders are always trying to accomplish more.

Delegate: a person acting on behalf of another

Empower: to give official power to or legal authority.

Today’s family gives me stability

Families are often lost- spent as the price for successful ministries & businesses- make time for your spouse and kids-

If the part of your home that you lead is not ‘in order’ you cannot expect to lead others.

Success is having those closet to me, love and respect me the most.- You can not come in here, lead others and then go home and act an entire different way.

Pray w/ your spouses. Just heard today 65% men & 55% women upto age 40 commit adultery. They didn’t plan on it, sin crept in…. I challenge you, what’s on your TV? Desperate housewives, sex in the city, shows that glamorize adultery and immorality?

Leadership isn’t about getting people to do what you want them to do; great leadership is about helping people achieve what God created them to be.

The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is how they think. What do you think about? God is the source of great ideas!!

If you are in are part of this ministry and it is a huge burden, maybe this is not what God called you to be involved in. Find a spot where you are happy and like doing what you do and where you get the most fulfillment; that’s where you are supposed to be.

Great leaders are like scouts and coaches than player. They’re constantly looking for talented, passionate leaders who have the potential to be great, while most good leaders are focused on the fullfilment of a particular ministry.

If you want to be great, empower people to reach their potential.

Great leaders surround themselves w/ good leaders, while good leaders surround themselves w/ people of lesser skills.

This shows extreme insecurities. Afraid someone is going to take your job or think you cant do it. This is where we need to show and exude confidence, not to be mixed w/ arrogant or cockiness.
Some leaders spend to much time focused on problem people or needy people and overlook the other 99% . Sure, these people need help, but the leader doesn’t have to run around and help and clean all the messes, empower others to help others.

Today relationships give me fulfillment.
· You’ll enjoy life more if you enjoy people.
· You’ll get further in life if people enjoy you.
· Most people can trace their success and failures to relationships in their life.

Great leaders are made by how they create or respond to the context in which they find themselves. Buckle up and get yourself in a context where you can become all that God has made you to be. If you’re not in the right context, find the one that fits you. Don’t settle for ‘whatever’.

Time is short, most the time we only have one shot at this.

-AR

DANGER: Fast Food Kills

Fast food is very tempting to consumers because of its convenience. It’s so easy to swing through the drive thru on your way home from work, starving, and order a super size extra value meal for yourself, spouse, and kids. The food is fairly cheap and you usually won’t spend more than five minutes in line. If the food that fast food companies are serving were actually good for you this would be an ideal situation. However this is not the case. Instead, fast food companies are profiting off of clogging your arteries resulting in heart disease.

The problem with fast food is that over the decades they have been increasing their serving sizes. Today when you order a small fries, you actually get what would have been a medium size just five years ago. The larger serving size you are served, the harder it is for you to know when to stop. From the time we are children our parents teach us to clean our plates because there are those less fortunate who have no food. So if we are given an extra large fry, we should be thankful and eat the whole thing.

Fries, burgers, nuggets, shakes, sodas, and other items you can find at fast food establishments are usually three times larger than the amount you should be consuming. This means that you could easily be consuming 1,000+ calories per meal when you super size it. If you are trying to stick to a healthy 2,000 per day calorie diet, you will have consumed over ½ of your entire daily food allowance.

Another problem with the foods you are served at fast food restaurants is that these foods lack nutritional value. The foods are high in fat and sugar. By regularly consuming these high calorie meals that do not have any nutritious value is basically poisoning your body.

There are even some studies that have shown fast food may be addictive. The high levels of salt and sugar content found in most fast food items cause the brain to seek them out. This stems back thousands of years when salt and sugar were hard to come by so people would stock up on their supply when they could.

People will continue to frequent fast food restaurants as long as they continue to see ads on television for Big Macs and super size fries. One solution to this problem would be to limit the number of ads fast food companies can have at any one time.

While we cannot blame fast food companies entirely for our increasingly expanding waist lines, it is their food that is making us this way. If they increased the cost of a burger and lowered the cost of a salad there may be more incentive for consumers to choose the salad over the burger.

As long as fast food companies are making money off of their 1,000 calorie burgers, they will continue to sell them. The best way to prevent weight gain associated with a fast food diet is to completely cut fast food out of your diet. Drive right by those golden arches and hurry home where you can make a healthy meal. Completely removing fast food from your diet is similar to detox; it removes the addictive properties found in fast food.

Also, exercise is a vital aspect that is missing in most people’s daily lives. This is an essential piece of the puzzle to reverse the effects of high calorie fast food diets. Incorporating some type of a daily exercise routine will decrease your risk of heart disease ten fold.

Be sure to check out this video by Josh Trent (fitnessSD), NASM-CES, simply titled "Fast Food Fitness". It's a great video that depicts the problem with fast food and how it affects your health based on the decisions you make for what you eat.

Remember.....less hot dog and more downward dog!

-AR

Fast Food Fitness

Check out this video by Josh Trent, NASM-CES, of fitnessSD as he "drops some knowledge" while visiting a local fast food burger chain in my old stompin' grounds of San Diego, CA. Enjoy!

-AR

Soccer for Fat Loss?

Guest blog by Craig Ballantyne, CSCS
-- (http://www.turbulencetraining.com/)

Recreational soccer is an effective health-promoting activity for untrained men
Krustrup et al.
British Journal of Sports Medicine 2009;43:825-831

36 healthy untrained men were randomised into a soccer group, a running group and a control group.

Training was performed for 1 hour two or three times per week for 12 weeks; at an average heart rate of 82% of HRmax for both training groups.

During the 12-week program, the soccer group improved maximal oxygen uptake (a measure of aerobic fitness) 62% more than the running group. The soccer group also lost an average of 50% more fat than the running group (6lbs vs 4lbs).

The soccer group had an increase in lean body mass of 3.75lbs, an increase in lower
extremity bone mass, a greater decrease in LDL-cholesterol and an increase in fat oxidation
during running at 9.5 km/h. The running group saw none of these changes.

The number of capillaries per muscle fibre was also almost 50% higher in the soccer training group than in running. Both groups reduced blood pressure equally.

The researchers concluded that participation in recreational soccer training, has significant beneficial effects on health profile and physical capacity and in some aspects it is superior
to frequent moderate-intensity running.

What does this tell us? Well, think about soccer. The difference is more than adding a ball while running. Soccer (I mean FOOTBALL) is essentially a form of interval training (although the work and recovery periods are randomized - CHAOS training as my friend Robert Dos Remedios calls it). It's also multi-directional, multi-movement (jumping, heading, running, sprinting, kicking, tackling, with contact) and multi-planar.

Basically this study shows that open interval training, using multiple movements and directions is superior for conditioning, muscle building and fat loss when compared to the same intensity of running.

I just wish they'd discovered that watching soccer was just as good.....

By the way, why do they call it "soccer" when it's really FOOT-ball? Played with your feet.....


-AR