3. DON'T GET CAUGHT UP IN MINUTIA - FOCUS ON FUNDAMENTALS
Read any book about success and it will tell you "pay
attention to detail." Sounds like good advice - unless
you haven't mastered the fundamentals yet. In that case,
it's the worst advice you could follow.
Every day people send me questions like these:
"Should I use a fast acting protein powder like whey
or would casein be better? What if I mix both and also add
a little bit of Soy? If I use all of them, what ratio of
the three would be ideal and when should I take them?"
"I want to do the ephedrine-caffeine stack and it
says to take 20 mg of ephedrine with 200 milligrams of caffeine.
The ephedrine comes in 25 milligram tablets, so should I
chip a little bit off the tablet to get the right ratio?"
Do you see the problem here?
These are legitimate questions, but they're completely
moot if you're eating doughnuts and sitting on the couch
all day long. Fix your diet and get your butt moving first,
then worry about the little things.
Emerson said, "The height of the pinnacle is determined
by the breadth of the base." The heights you reach
will depend entirely on how broad a foundation you build.
Great coaches such as Vince Lombardi and John Wooden credited
most of their success to drilling their players on fundamentals.
Forget about ALL the minutia until you have the fundamentals
down cold!
Forget about supplement dosages
Forget about macronutrient cycling
Forget about tempo manipulation
Forget about glycemic indexes
Forget about the latest Bulgarian or Russian periodization
program
Master the fundamentals first!
The fundamentals of fat loss include: (1) Do your cardio,
(2) Lift weights, (3) Burn more calories than you consume
(4) Eat 5-6 small, frequent meals and never skip meals,
(5) Keep your fat intake low, but include small amounts
of good fats, (6) Eat natural foods; avoid processed &
refined foods, (7) eat more complex carbs, fruits &
vegetables, (8) eat lean proteins with each meal, (9) Think
positive: visualize yourself as you would like to be.
If you're not doing all these things, and you're looking
for the perfect supplement stack or the optimum periodization
plan, I'm afraid you're barking up the wrong tree.
I don't want you to think that details don't matter - they
do. The "Law of Accumulation" states that every
success is a matter of hundreds or even thousands of tiny
efforts that often go unnoticed or unappreciated. Everything
counts. Everything either helps or hurts. Nothing is neutral.
The problem is when you get bogged down in minutia before
you've even learned the basics. Minor details produce minor
results. Major fundamentals produce major results.
Don't major in minor things. Lay your foundation first,
then move on to the finer points. And remember, as Jim Rohn
says, always be suspicious of someone who says they've found
a new fundamental.
4. KNOW YOUR CALORIES
The most important dietary factor in fat loss is not how
many grams of carbohydrate, protein or fat you eat, the
most important factor for fat loss is calories. Eat more
than you burn each day and you will store fat. Eat less
than you burn each day and you will lose fat.It's just that
simple.
Where the calories come from is important too, but unless
you understand the calorie concept, nothing else matters.I'm
appalled at how many people claim to sincerely want to lose
body fat who admit they haven't a clue how many calories
they eat.Get serious! If you don't have the faintest idea
how much you're eating, how can you expect to make any progress?
Did it ever occur to you that your ONLY problem might be
overeating! Do you realize that too much of anything gets
stored as fat? That's right - even if you're eating nothing
but "natural and healthy" foods, if you eat too
many of them, you're still going to get fat.
Portion control, my friend, portion control!
On the other hand, maybe you're under-eating and slowing
down your metabolism. There's a fine line. For all the details
on your daily calorie needs, refer to my article Calorie
Calculators
5. NEVER, EVER QUIT! MAKE FITNESS A LIFESTYLE!
Do you know what is the biggest mistake made by beginners?
They quit!
Remember in the January issue, where I mentioned how attendance
in our gym shoots up for about 6-8 weeks around New Year's?
Well, it's back to normal now because all the quitters dropped
out already.
What's especially sad is that most people quit right when
they're on the verge of making substantial progress.
Remember: You're never a failure as long as you're working
on the progressive realization of a worthy goal. But the
second you quit, then it's official - you're a failure.
Quitting should not even be an option because...
FITNESS IS A LIFESTYLE!
Don't let these four words slip by you just because it's
an oft-repeated cliché. This is an important mindset!
You have to stop thinking of getting in shape for a New
Year's resolution, vacation or wedding (or a contest, you
bodybuilders). You must start thinking about getting healthy
and in shape FOR LIFE.
When you're just starting out, firmly resolve that quitting
is not even an option. Don't approach this endeavor with
an "I'll try" attitude. If you accept quitting
as a possibility, you might as well not even start; just
grab that remote control, a bag of chips and get back on
the couch where you were before.
Also, understand that results may come slowly in the beginning
if you're not the genetically-gifted type. This process
requires great patience and persistence for most people.
Most beginners never allow themselves the time it takes
to get any momentum going. They expect too much too soon,
get discouraged and quit.
It takes a big push to get started. It's like getting a
rocket off the ground - it uses most of its fuel just launching
off the pad, but once it's in the air and the inertia has
been overcome, it can keep going with very little energy
expenditure. Don't quit just because it's difficult to "launch!"
6. GET A PERSONAL TRAINER, COACH, OR MENTOR
Life is too just too short to learn everything there is
to know on your own. Don't waste time climbing the ladder
only to find it's leaning against the wrong wall! Learn
from the experts. Get a trainer, personal coach, or mentor
to help you start right - right from the start.
7. JOIN A GYM IF YOU CAN, BUT A SET OF DUMBBELLS
ARE MORE THAN ENOUGH TO GET YOU STARTED
I admit I'm showing my bias by saying everyone should join
a gym (I'm in the health club business), but I sincerely
believe nothing beats working out in a high quality health
club. In a well-equipped gym, the possibilities are endless,
the atmosphere is motivational and people are there to help
you.
More often than not, however, beginners start at home.
That being the case, I admit that you don't need a gym to
get started. You also don't need any of that garbage advertised
on late night TV. The only piece of equipment you need has
existed for over 100 years - that's right, the humble DUMBBELL!
Remember - don't overcomplicate this - think basics, basics,
basics (and dumbbells are as basic as it gets.)
Dumbbells are the single most versatile piece of equipment
in existence. You can perform hundreds, even thousands of
exercises with dumbbells.
Ladies, a set of 3 to 20 pounds will be more than sufficient.
Guys, a set from 10 to 40 pounds should do the trick (for
now). I've also heard wonderful things about Powerblock
dumbbells for space-saving, although I don't have first
hand experience to cite.
If you also get yourself a bench and clear out a little
corner in your favorite room, then you're ready to roll!
Here it is - The beginner's all-dumbbell routine:
1. Dumbbell bench press (chest)
2. Dumbbell side lateral raise (shoulders)
3. One arm dumbbell row (upper back)
4. Dumbbell extension behind head (triceps)
5. Dumbbell Bicep curl (biceps)
6. Dumbbell Lunges (thighs)
7. Dumbbell One leg calf raise (calves)
8. Dumbbell leg curl (hamstrings)
9. Crunches (abs)
There you have it. Simple and effective. At home or in
a gym.
If you're just starting, do this routine for 2-3 sets of
8-12 reps per exercise, except calves and abs which you
can go up to 20 reps. Rest 1 minute between sets. You'll
train your whole body in each workout, 2 -3 three days per
week, non-consecutive days.
After 3 - 6 months, you'll probably need to add exercises
and move up to a split routine. (So I guess I have to do
another article, called 8 tips for intermediates: How to
keep going).
8. WEIGHT TRAINING IS NOT OPTIONAL - IT'S MANDATORY!
It's is a common misconception that you should start with
aerobic workouts and lose the fat first before adding weight
training.
Unfortunately, the best you can hope for from diet and
aerobics alone is to become a "skinny fat person."
You may lose weight, but you'll have a poor muscle to fat
ratio and a "soft" appearance.
Obviously, weight training is the key to developing strength
and muscle. What few people realize is that weight training
also increases fat loss, although it occurs indirectly.
Weight training is anaerobic and burns carbohydrates (sugar).Cardio
is aerobic and therefore burns fat. So it seems logical
to focus on aerobic training for fat loss.
However, something interesting happens "beneath the
surface" when you lift weights. Weight training increases
your lean body mass - aerobic training does not.
Low calorie dieting and aerobic training without weight
lifting can make you lose lean body mass. If you lose lean
body mass, your metabolism slows down, and this makes it
harder to lose fat.
If you increase your lean body mass, you increase your
metabolic rate and this makes it easier to lose fat. With
a faster metabolism, you'll burn more fat all day long -
even while you're sleeping!
If you have limited time, and your main priority is fat
loss, then do a very brief weight training program and spend
the majority of your time concentrating on cardio. But never
neglect the weights completely - always do both, and if
possible, devote equal attention to each.
>>
Click here for Tom's Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle program
About the Author
Tom Venuto is an NSCA-certified personal trainer, certified
strength and conditioning specialist, lifetime natural bodybuilder,
and author of the #1 best-selling e-book "Burn the
Fat, Feed The Muscle" (BFFM). Tom has written over
170 articles and has been featured in IRONMAN Magazine,
Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Muscle-Zine,
Olympian’s News (in Italian), Exercise for Men and
Men’s Exercise. For information on Tom's "Burn
The Fa Feed the Musclet" e-book, click
here
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