Fitness guru Jack LaLanne dies aged 96

Jack LaLanne, the veteran television fitness guru who did much to promote exercise and healthy eating in America, has died aged 96.

Even well into his 90s the fitness fanatic exercised for two hours a day.

Mr LaLanne, who was only 5ft 6ins tall, was born to French immigrant parents in San Francisco and was a “sugar-holic” as a child.

His day-time television show, instructing housewives how to work out and eat healthily, ran for 34 years from 1959.

Among numerous high profile fitness stunts he completed 1,000 push-ups and 1,000 chin-ups at the age of 45.

More detail here.

He was surrounded by his family and passed very peacefully and in no distress.

May he rest in peace.

Ab toners and Ab belts - do they work?

So you want to get a set of rock hard six pack abs or trim your waistline? You’ve probably seen one of those late night TV shopping commercials touting some fancy ab toner contraption or muscle stimulator belt.

All you need to do is rock backwards and forwards once a day and lo and behold, by the end of the month you will have that well sculpted mid section that you’ve always wanted. Better still, just sit there on the couch or behind your desk at work with one of those Electronic Muscle Stimulators (EMS) belts - don't exercise and still get the results you've been after? Physical trainers have it all wrong. After all, the fitness model pitching it has the well toned body and six pack abs. There are even testimonials from regular folks who swear by it. Surely, there has got to be something in it?

So out comes the credit card, you're a little reluctant but they are so convincing aren't they? What the hell, you have got nothing to lose eh, except the fat round your waistline?

Three months later you still don’t have the six pack abs, nor any reduction in your waistline despite using the ab toner with total dedication.

Unfortunately this is the plight of everyone who buys an ab toner or EMS belt. The reality is you will not get abs or a trimmer waistline by using some fancy piece of equipment to “spot reduce” fat from the areas of your body where you don’t want it. As for the EMS belts, unknown to you when you purchased it, in 2002 The Federal Trade Commission in the US filed lawsuits against three electronic abdominal exercise belts: AB Energizer, Ab Tronic and Fast Abs. The lawsuit claims that the ads for these products falsely claim the belts will help tone stomach muscles.

"Spot reduction" is one of those myths that are perpetuated by greedy marketers because they are so appealing to a lazy public that wants something for nothing. For years, marketers of diet and exercise products have been preying on overweight, out-of-shape consumers by hawking false hope in a pill, false hope in a bottle, and now, in a belt.

This is a public that wants to eat donuts, chips, crisps and chocolate biscuits, sit on a couch and watch daytime TV day in day out, then just rock back and forth in a little contraption and voila, six pack abs! Have you heard of the phrase "If it sounds to good to be true........." ?

The “spot reduction” myth is one that needs be sentenced to death once and for all. The only way to show your six pack abs (because we all have them) is through a total commitment of diet and whole-body high intensity exercise.

Repeat after me:- "I WILL NOT WASTE MY MONEY AND TIME ON USELESS AB TONERS AND ELECTRONIC STIMULATOR BELTS, THEY DO NOT WORK!"

Train with purpose!

Hard work cannot be avoided

"Training should be a way of life. It should not be seen as a chore. While training, live for that moment, nothing else matters. The hard work, the fatigue and the pain of exhaustion never lasts forever, trust me , it will end. But do not focus on the end. Focus on the what you are doing, live that moment, experience it, embellish it, do not escape it. The masses WILL try to escape it - you are not the masses doing whatever the masses are doing, that is why you are here. You want to be different and you will see the difference. S0 get busy and enjoy the hard work"

My daily workout suggestions are posted here

Top 12 Reasons Why You're obese and how I can help

Depending on who you talk to, you'll hear various reasons as to why people are obese/fat/overweight. Listed below are a few you've probably heard before:

1. "You eat too much sugar."

2. "You eat too much meat and fat."

3. "You eat too many carbs."

4. "You drink too much alcohol."

5. "You don't exercise enough."

6. "You don't exercise at all."

7. "It's genetic problem, Everyone in your family is fat."

8. "You're on drugs for depression."

9. "You're doing the wrong type of exercise."

And my all time favourite nonsense reason:-

10. "You're getting old, so your metabolism has slowed."

Some of these reasons are valid and untrue for others. What is clear is that no matter what your age or size; being overweight and unfit can be turned around in 100% of cases and quickly, by following a health program that transforms your body and mind from fat to fit. You've got to work hard for it though, but it won't take up your time - there will be no long distance cardio in the "fat burning zone". So the exercises will be far more effective and take up less of your time. It's a no brainer. Sign up to my FREE Body Transformation newsletter HERE

PS: As regards to point 10, your metabolism slows because people tend to exercise less when they get older (for some reason). Age has nothing to do with it!

How to Plan to Avoid Junk Food

Kicking the junk-food habit can be tough. Junk food is convenient, aggressively marketed, cheap to buy and hard to resist. Most people are programmed to consume far too much and to choose foods that are saturated with fat and salt.

Tips:-

1. Eliminate temptation at home. Clear out all the junk from your cupboards, and get the whole family on board for the effort.

2. Lay a healthful foundation by stocking up on ingredients for nutritious meals, desserts and snacks. If you eat healthy food at home, you won't feel so bad when you splurge on an infrequent fast-food meal or candy bar.

3. Set realistic expectations for yourself by remembering to practice progression towards more healthy options. Total deprivation will only make your cravings more intense, so allow yourself a weekly treat for cutting back.

4. Identify those times of the day when you're most vulnerable to a junk-food attack. Is it that relentless 3 p.m. cookie craving?

5. Prepare ahead of time by having healthy, flavourful alternatives on hand

6. Focus on eating healthy foods. Be sure the snack foods you keep in plain sight and hidden away are all good choices. Keep a fruit basket on your kitchen counter, table or desk. If you stock the refrigerator with exclusively healthy foods, you'll eventually overcome the urge for fat and sugar-laden treats.

7. Avoid situations that may encourage a junk attack, like sitting in front of the television all evening. Resist those evil vending machines at work by bringing your own healthful snacks and leaving your pocket change at home.

8. Cook large quantities and put extra meals in the freezer. That way you won't be tempted to make a junk-food run on your way home from work.

9. Listen to your appetite - eat when you are hungry, stop when you are full.

10. Give alternative, healthy food a try. Try a new fruit or veg – there’s a whole world of taste out there – and plant foods have the largest variety.

11.Get in the habit of reading food labels: If the first two ingredients are fat and sugar, it's junk food.

12. Don't take labels at face value. This is just marketing hype and is done to sell products . Many "low-carb," "low-fat" or "no-fat" products are poor in nutrition and loaded with additives and sugar.

Drinking Milk - we are programmed into someone elses agenda

Here are the facts about Milk:-

1. We are the only species on the planet who drink milk after we are weaned off breast milk. The majority of adults would be horrified if fully grown adults drank human breast milk, yet it's quite acceptable to drink it from the breast of another animal?
2. Cow’s milk is not a natural food for humans to consume
3. Most people in the world are lactose intolerant - lactose is the sugar in milk
4. Children consume a wheel barrow of sugar before they start school - just from milk!
   
5. Many children are affected by cow’s milk allergies
6. Plant-based sources of calcium are many and varied and offer many other health benefits as well as providing a natural and safe source of calcium
7. Milk producers make mothers feel guilty about not providing enough calcium for their children... and then emotionally blackmail them by promoting a product that's high in sugar, fat and chemical additives

There are plenty of better products that replace traditional milk and are much, much better for you. Try rice milk or coconut milk.

The Myth of Eating vast amounts of Protein for Muscle Growth and Strength

There are all kinds of diet recommendations all over the fitness magazines and websites that advise you to divide your eating into different "ratios" and "percentages" for building muscle mass and gaining weight.
Some recommend high fat, low carb, others say moderate carbs, moderate fat, high carbs, low fat, etc. But the one thing that each and every one of these "weight gain" / "muscle building" diets say is it must be HIGH in protein. On almost every page there are adverts on whey protein supplements promoting the stuff with incredible claims.
The truth is it is not necessary at all to eat a diet high in protein to gain muscle weight.
Some even suggest you have to not only eat high, but massive amounts of protein to build muscle. Then you look at the nature and the most powerful land animals such as horses, elephants, bulls, rhinos and Gorillas actually have very little protein. Also, a growing baby's diet has less than 6% protein, yet I've seen claims that you need to consume 35% protein to gain muscle. Of course this is all propaganda.

This Myth is due to 3 reasons:

1) Most people think that muscle tissue is made up mostly of protein
2) Most people think that either high amounts of fat or high amounts of carbohydrates will cause you to get fat
3) Most people think that protein has a "thermogenic" (inner-body temperature raising) effect, which helps burn fat

All three of these beliefs are completely wrong!
Muscle tissue is NOT made up of mostly of protein. Muscle tissue is 70% water.
The other 30% is made of glucose, and Amino acids. Your muscles need just as much glucose (which is what carbohydrates are converted into), if not more than protein to gain muscle size.
Those that have medically studied the physiology of the human body know that amino acids are what make up protein.
However, the body uses whatever amount of amino acids it needs at that particular moment. The rest it stores for later use.
It is not true that you need to be eating a steady stream of protein to gain muscle weight, your body keeps a little pool of stored amino acids.
Protein is by far the most difficult macro nutrient to break down and digest and the higher the amount of protein you eat the more stress you are placing on your digestive system. High protein diets can lead to kidney stones and will make your blood more acidic leading to increased joint pain.
Have you ever noticed how you feel when you eat a huge burger or steak?
Even after several hours have passed, it still feels like you've got that entire piece of meat just sitting and rotting in your stomach.
How much benefit in gaining muscle weight do you think that's going to give you?
Have you ever drank those disgusting protein shakes or eaten those chalk-tasting protein bars? You get gas, you feel bloated, and you might even get diarrhea.
There are several real-life examples of athletes that don't consume massive amounts of protein to gain muscle weight, yet have tremendous physiques, are in excellent health, are powerful, fast, and agile.
Here's just a few:-

• Mike Mahler - Kettlebell expert

• Jon Hinds - Pan American Ju-jitsu Gold medalist, owner of Lifeline fitness and founder of the Monkey Bar Gymnasium
  

• Bill Manetti - Powerlifting champion

• Stan Price - World weight lifting record holder; bench press
  

• Chris Campbell - Olympic wrestling champion
  

• Luke Cummo - UFC Ultimate Fighter

• Carl Lewis - Multi-Olympic Champion

You can eat all the protein in the world and not gain one pound of muscle weight if you aren't eating enough calories.
Remember, it doesn't matter what we've been fed by the magazines and companies trying to sell us their latest protein concoction; training hard using full body exercises and eating high quality nutrients is the key to success.