Student Fitness

By: Ryan Imbach

It’s time for you to eat, and you need a good, high protein meal to satisfy your hunger. Unfortunately, your cafeteria is closed, and pizza is not an option. It’s time to whip up some good grub. It is possible to eat a home-cooked meal in your dorm room. Though it may not be like Mom’s, you have the satisfaction that you made a healthy meal to fill your nutrition needs. Here’s just a few of the thousands of meals you could eat:

Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

This one is great to have in the morning or post workout. It really does taste like pumpkin pie, though it is more “oatmeal-ish.” Here’s what you need:

-1 cup of old-fashioned oats

-1 scoop of vanilla whey or casein protein (casein makes it nice and thick!)

-A few tablespoons of pure canned pumpkin (just pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling)

-Glass bowl

-Enough water to cook the oatmeal

Just heat the water and oats in the microwave until they are cooked through. I like to add the pumpkin after it’s cooked, because it’ll thin out the oatmeal. Then add the protein, stir, and chow down! Some great additions are cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, and walnuts.

Scrambled Eggs

Eggs are full of nutrients, fat, and protein. Basically, they’re awesome. You can’t really hardboil them, but you can scramble them. The items you’ll need are very few:

-A few eggs

-Glass bowl

-Preferred spices

-Non-stick cooking spray (optional)

I find that spraying the inside of the glass bowl helps keep the eggs from sticking to the sides of the bowl when cooking them. All you do is put your eggs in the bowl, whisk or stir until the yolks are broken up, and cook them in the microwave. I usually do it on a medium to high setting. Make sure to stir every 45 seconds or so, or your eggs will explode. Once your eggs are cooked to your liking, you’re ready to eat.

Easy Bacon

This one’s pretty self-explanatory. Get some lean turkey bacon and make sure the package says it’s microwaveable. Follow directions. Eat.

Healthy Elvis Sandwich

Have you ever heard of the “Fat Elvis” sandwich or ice cream? Apparently, Elvis loved peanut butter and banana sandwiches deep fried in oil. Of course, we aren’t going to do that. What we can do is modify this great sandwich into a muscle-building meal. Here’s what you need:

-Low carb, high fiber tortilla

-Banana

-Natural peanut or almond butter

Take a tortilla and spread peanut butter on it. Peel the banana and put it on your peanut butter creation. Roll it up and eat it. A good variation is to microwave the whole wrap so that the peanut butter is nice and gooey.

Protein Ice Cream

If ice cream were healthy and full of muscle-building nutrients, it would be the only food I would eat. Unfortunately, the high sugar, high fat, and low protein don’t mix too well. So what’s a guy (or gal) to do? I’ve come up with a healthy “meal” that won’t ruin your physique. Well, I won’t say I discovered it, but now it’s here for everyone to see! What you’ll need:

-Cottage cheese, low sodium preferred (any percentage)

-Whey or casein protein, you choose your favorite flavor

-Any natural nut butter, such as peanut butter (optional)

-Any spices, such as cinnamon, that might complement your creation (optional)

Get one or two cups of your cottage cheese. I like low sodium, because there’s less salt taste. Add one or two scoops of your protein. Then add any extras you have in mind. If it’s way too thick, add a very small amount of water and keep mixing. Now you can eat it right there, or you can refrigerate or freeze it so that it gets cold and thick. This really is good. Now if you don’t like cottage cheese because of its texture, then I suggest doing this same recipe with only casein protein and extra water. It will still be good, though you need a lot of scoops to end up with roughly the same volume of ice cream.

So there you have it; a few easy recipes to help you in your nutrition program. Always keep in mind that with these recipes, as with any meal, you should seek to eat an additional 1 to 2 servings of vegetables or fruit. Remember, eating healthy doesn’t have to be bland. You just have to have some creativity when it comes to dorm room meals.

By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
www.BurnTheFat.com

At least 7 scientific studies have provided strong evidence that energy containing beverages (i.e., “liquid calories”) do not properly activate the satiety mechanisms in the body and brain and do not satisfy the appetite as well as food in solid form.

Epidemiological research also supports a positive association between calorie-containing beverage consumption and increased body weight or body mass index. New research now suggests that soda may not be the only culprit…

The primary source of liquid calories in the United States Diet is carbohydrate, namely soda. Now running a close second are specialty and dessert coffees. Did you know that a 16 ounce Frappucino can contain 500 calories or even more! That’s one-third of a typical female’s daily calorie intake while on a fat loss program.

A recent study at Purdue University published in the International Journal of Obesity set out to learn even more about this bodyfat - liquid calories relationship.

Researchers compared solid and beverage forms of foods composed primarily of carbohydrate, fat or protein in order to document the independent effect of food form in foods with different dominant macronutrient sources.

Based on previous research, some experts have recommended targeting specific beverages as being “worse” than others. High fructose corn syrup and soda has been singled out the most and you’ve probably seen that yourself in the news.

There’s no question that soda has been on top of the “hit list” for some time now, by virtue of the amounts and frequency of consumption alone.

However, this recent study says that from a pure energy balance perspective, we should be cautious about ALL liquid calories, not just soda and not just carbohydrates!

Fruit juice for example, appears to be an obvious improvement over soda, so many people have swapped out their soda for fruit juice. However, when fruit juice is compared to an equal amount of calories from whole fruit, the whole fruit satisfies appetite better (largely due to the bulk and fiber content), and so you tend to eat fewer calories for the day.
[On an interesting side note, soup does not seem to apply; soup has higher satiety value than calorie containing beverages, possibly for mere cognitive reasons.]

If you were to meticulously track your calories from beverages and you made sure that your calories remained the same for the day, whether liquid or solid, there would probably be little or no difference in your body composition.

But that’s not what usually happens in free-living humans. Most people do not accurately track or report their caloric intake. Our mistake is that we tend to drink calories IN ADDITION TO our usual food intake, not instead of it.

Men are especially guilty of this when they drink alcohol - Men tend to drink AND eat, while women tend to drink INSTEAD OF eating.

This new research found that with all three macronutrients - protein, carbs or fat - daily calorie intake was significantly greater when the beverage form was consumed as compared to the solid.

Yes, it’s true! Even protein drinks did not satisfy the appetite the way that protein foods did!

While you would think that protein drinks are purely a good thing, because protein foods have been proven to reduce appetite and increase satiety, if you turn a solid protein food into a protein drink, it loses it’s appetite suppressive properties in the same way that happens when you turn fruit into fruit juice.
[NOTE: After weight training workouts, liquid nutrition may have benefits that outweigh any downside, especially on muscle-gaining programs]

Why do liquid calories fail to elicit the same response as whole foods? reasons include:
high calorie density
lower satiety value
more calories ingested in short period of time
lower demand for oral processing
shorter gastrointestinal transit times
energy in beverages has greater bioaccessibility and bioavailability
mechanisms may include cognitive, orosensory, digestive, metabolic, endocrine and neural influences (human appetite is a complex thing!!!)
last but not least, nowhere in our history have our ancestors had access to large amounts of liquid calories. Alcohol may have been around as far back as several thousand years BC, but even that is a blip on the evolutionary calendar of humanity.

As a result, our genetic code has never developed the physiological mechanisms to properly register the caloric content in liquids the way it does when you eat, chew and swallow whole foods.

Bottom line: This study suggests that we shouldn’t just target one type of liquid calories such as soda. If you’re trying to beat body fat, it’s wise to limit all types of liquid calories and eat whole foods as much as possible.

Start by ditching the soda. Then ditch the high calorie dessert coffees. Then cut back on the alcohol. From there, be cautious even about milk, juice and protein drinks.

Drink water or tea instead, or limited amounts of black coffee - without all the high calorie extras.

If you do consume any beverages that contain calories, such as protein shakes, be sure to account for those calories meticulously and be sure you don’t drink them in addition to your usual food intake, but in place of an equal amount of food calories.

Remember, those protein shakes you might be drinking are called “meal replacements” not “free calories!”

For many years I have suggested focusing primarily on whole foods rather than liquids, even protein shakes. Unlike so many other fat reduction programs, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle does not require any kind of liquid meal replacement or protein drinks and our company does not exist to sell supplements; we are here to educate you and millions of others about the realities of body fat loss.

We now have even more scientific data that confirms what Burn The Fat has been teaching all along.

I hope you found this helpful. You can learn more about “Burn The Fat” at www.BurnTheFat.com

Train hard and expect success,

Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
Fat Loss Coach
www.BurnTheFat.com

Reference: Effects of food form on appetite and energy intake in lean and obese young adults. International Journal of Obesity. 2007 Nov (11):1688-95. Mourao DM, Bressan J, Campbell WW, Mattes RD. Department of Foods and Nutrition, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2059, USA.

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder, certified personal trainer and freelance fitness writer. Tom is the author of “Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle,” which teaches you how to get lean without drugs or supplements using secrets of the world’s best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and increase your metabolism by visiting: www.BurnTheFat.com

By: Veljko Petranovic

If you happen to live the fitness lifestyle, you know that progress is not optional, but required. Everyone strives to bench more then they did last week. If you run regularly, it’s a given that you try to increase your speed or endurance by running faster and longer. The boys seek more muscle, the gals want to shed even more fat. The trouble is, a large number of health enthusiasts tend to fall short of their respective goals, then settle for maintenance, then quit exercising altogether. It’s the plateau that breaks or makes the trainer. I am going to tell you, How To Break A Weight Plateau.

I don’t know about you, but I love a good plateau from time to time. That’s because it brings change. So, I start with searching for a good training program on the Web. I assess my short term goals and pick a plan that complements them. Do you want to gain or to lose weight? Maybe you need to bring up those arms? Preparing for a marathon race, perhaps? Or are you looking for overall strength in your lifts?  

One thing is certain – the new program should be totally different then the last one, thats the secret to Breaking A Weight Plateau. Swap exercises, rep ranges, set numbers. If you’re used to cycling five times a week for an hour, try doing it twice a day at shorter intervals and with more intensity.  Our bodies are built for survival, which means they are quick to adapt to various influences. If you’ve been doing 3 sets of ten reps in the squat since the Clinton administration, it’s about time for you to change things. Why not try ten sets of 3 reps with a higher weight? Or try switching to the front squat, in which the bar rests on your clavicles, supported by your arms. Bodybuilding great Tom Platz, known for his outstanding thigh development, used to work his legs with reps varying from one to one hundred.  

There is no “right” way to approach your training. The only important thing is to remember to include all muscle groups into the equation. Other than that, anything goes!   All this is truly simple. What amazes me is the existence of legions of people who keep doing the same thing, day in and day out, over and over, somehow hoping for better results. Adding more weight only seems to work for a while, and that’s because the movement remains the same. 

Eventually, you will slow down on your gains and then your body 
get’s use to the exercises.
Thats why constantly adding more weight dosen’t break a weight plateau. There is a good reason why the stagnant approach is so overwhelmingly popular, and it seems to be avoidant behavior. No one wants to sweat anymore. No one likes the pain that comes from hard work. No one likes feeling nauseated at the end of a training session.   Imagine your comfort zone as if it were a circle. Inside it, you feel fine, but your results will always be “meh”. Only outside of those boundaries, you will work towards being faster, stronger and fitter.

• Compound Exercises - Deadlift with 50 percent of your 1 rep max, 20 repsSuper set withPull ups, 10 reps (or as much as you can manage)  
• Chest - Bench press with 70 percent of your 1 rep max, 10 repsDrop set toBench press, 10 reps, with 15 pounds lessDrop set toBench press, 10 reps, with 15 pounds less then before  
• Arms - One-armed barbell curls (you grip the bar at the middle and maintain balance during the lift)Super set withTricep dips, body kept straight,
• Abs - 12 reps  Hanging leg raises, 20 repsSuper set withCrunches, knees bent, 20 repsSuper set with30 second static hold, lying on the floor, legs straight, feet at two inches above ground  The 20 rep breathing squatTake a weight that’s just enough for 10 repetitions. Do a rep, and then breathe in and out three times while your knees are locked in the upright part of the lift. Then, do another rep. Et cetera. Do not quit until the set is complete.

It’s tough, but ultimately worth it. Try some of these unorthodox methods for a month, and see if the plateau will stick (it won’t, though).  

I recently came across my new #1 favorite set of ebooks, it’s called… Turbulence Training.

Turbulence Training promises fast fat loss results for men and women who don’t have a lot of time for exercise. This is a bold promise, and the workouts promise maximum results in only three workouts per week.

Let’s take a look at this claim, and see if it really measures up!

Before we get to the program, let’s take a look at the expert behind the workouts. I’ve come across Craig Ballantyne’s name many times in popular fitness magazines such as Men’s Health and Men’s Fitness, and even in Oxygen and Shape magazines. So the program is clearly put together by a trusted fitness expert.

I’ve also talked to Craig about his training and education background, and I’ll be honest, it was impressive, unlike the trainers with weekend certifications that pop up at large commercial gyms. Craig’s experience goes back to the mid-nineties, in both the gym and in the research lab. He’s actually led research trials on sport supplements, strength training, and cardiovascular training.

Plus, Craig has been a strength coach and has worked with hundreds of clients in thousands of training sessions. This is a unique, and thorough background, so its not surprising he’s come up with a new training system for fat loss.

In fact, Craig’s articles are always pretty hard on traditional aerobic cardio workouts. So if you’re looking for new ways to spend 30 or 60-minutes doing cardio, then this program is not for you. But if you only have 45 minutes to workout, a couple of times per week, and you have access to only a bench, dumbells, and an exercise ball, then you’ll like what Craig has for you here.

Now one of the biggest questions about the program is simply, “What is Turbulence Training?” Well according to Craig, its the combination of resistance training and interval training used to boost your metabolism so that your body burns calories and fat between workouts. He says, “Cardio doesn’t boost your metabolism after exercise. Only strength training and interval training do that - while you work, sleep, and eat - your body will be shedding fat.”

Fortunately, Craig’s unique system of bodyweight exercises, dumbell exercises, and interval training can all be done at home, with minimal equipment (if you are really strong, it might help to have a chinup bar). So again, if you are one of those people who loves machines, or cardio equipment, or marathon workouts, then this program is not for you.

Frankly, I’ve used the program myself and recommended to many others. Why? Because no one has time for long workouts! That’s why. After an eight or ten hour workday fromming running from class to class, and spending time with my family, I just don’t have time to do another 90 minute workout every day of the week.

In fact, I either get up early and do the workout before class, or I do it just before bed. This workout is perfect for busy college men and women. But its not the type of routine that is going to turn anyone into a pro bodybuilder. If you want maximum muscle and want to bulk up, try another one of Craig’s programs. But the Turbulence Training system is best for burning fat without sacrificing muscle - so you end up lean, defined, chiseled and toned.

And its fun! So many workouts are boring (i.e. long cardio) or repetitive (i.e. doing the same bodybuilding workout over and over again). But Turbulence Training uses a lot of unique (but not fluffy) exercises, including some cool, killer bodyweight moves that will make you more athletic and increase your functional and core strength - again, all with minimal equipment needs.

But, I am even able to recommend this program to friends who are just starting out, because Craig has put together a 6-week introductory program, and a 4-week intermediate program in addition to the 16-week advanced training phase (PLUS, the Turbulence Training program comes with a massive amount of bonus workouts for muscle building, bodyweight only, advanced fat loss, and even a female specific bonus).

But each workout progresses into the next. He’s used all of these workouts with hundreds of clients - so they are safe and effective. Sure, you can get other programs that leave you smashed and puking after the first workout, but Turbulence Training is not like that. Soreness doesn’t matter, only results matter! And you are in expert hands with Turbulence Training, and Men’s Health expert, Craig Ballantyne.

Craig’s Turbulence Training also contains a contract — basically, your pledge to being committed to the program. It also includes an ebook on Nutrition Guidelines from expert, Dr. Chris Mohr, Ph.D., and an extensive Q&A section, a 21-Healthy Habit Building Plan, plus the complete Turbulence Training workouts for beginner, intermediate and advanced level individuals.

All users will benefit from the Turbulence Training MP3 audio where Craig goes over the program, plus you can find every single exercise explained in detail, complete with photos.

Okay, so bottom line. Turbulence Training is NOT….

• Long, slow cardio workouts
• A machine-based exercise circuit
• A bodybuilding program to gain bulk
• A workout with lots of time-wasting isolation exercises
• A restrictive eating plan

Turbulence Training provides NONE of the above. On the other hand, Turbulence Training is perfect for busy college student men and women who want to burn fat in the comfort of their own dorms without spending a lot of money on equipment or space on exercise machines. Oh, and you’ll actually have fun and you won’t “dread” these workouts - heck, they will be over before you know it!

If you’re in the slightest bit curious, I recommend you look closely at Craig’s program. I was very impressed with all of the Turbulence Training workouts, the bonuses, the guarantee, and Craig’s expertise. For the money, it’s the best deal in the fitness and fat loss industry - so much better than diet pills! And remember…

Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training is backed by a 8-week money back guarantee. And this is a real guarantee… if you are not completely satisfied, you will receive your money back, no “ifs,” “ands,” or “buts.” So you really have nothing to lose. Want to learn more? Go to Craig’s website and check out his Turbulence Training program.

By: Ryan Imbach

You just had a tough training session at the gym.  You strained yourself to the point of exhaustion.  You set a personal record at the barbell.  Then you get back to your dorm room and drink a ton of water, because you’re thirsty!  Now what did you do wrong?  You didn’t give your body, and your muscles, any fuel to rebuild themselves!  Unfortunately, I know many people who do just that every day in the gym.  They drink water during and after training, yet get very little results in terms of muscle building or fat loss.  In this article, I will tell you why you need fuel, what you need for that fuel, and approximately how much fuel you need.

First of all, let’s look at what happens during weight training. When you are lifting weights, you are breaking down your muscles, and they continue to be broken down hours after you lift weights.  This is called catabolism.  You don’t want this, and unfortunately, water doesn’t fix the problem here.

So what kind of fuel do you need after a hard training session?  Many people (especially athletes and former athletes) will just grab a sports drink such as Gatorade and down it.  While the carbohydrates in sports drinks replenish sodium, water, and glycogen, it does nothing for your muscles in terms of rebuilding them.  What we need is some protein for those muscles.  Protein is full of amino acids, the building blocks for our bodies.  Therefore, we need a fast-acting protein for our muscles, like that found in whey protein powders.  As you can see, we need carbohydrates to replenish muscle glycogen, and we need protein to stimulate muscle growth.  As I said before, a combination of sports drink and whey protein powder works well.  The carbohydrates will also spike your blood sugar, causing amino acids to be absorbed more quickly.  If you can’t stomach a fruity sports drink and chocolate protein powder (it’s not terrible!), just drink them separately mixed in water.

Finally, how do you know how much protein and carbohydrates to ingest?  Well, a good ratio is 2:1 carbs to protein.  For example, if you drink 15 grams of protein, you will drink roughly 30 grams of carbs.  Why is this a good ratio?  I’ve read a few studies and done my research, and this seems to be a good choice.  For the amount to ingest, I would suggest anywhere from 20 to 60 grams of protein and 40 to 120 grams of carbs.  These numbers have no scientific basis; however, if you are trying to build muscle, you are going to need a lot of nutrients, especially if you push yourself hard every training session.  So experiment with different amounts, and see how your body responds.

In conclusion, fast-acting carbohydrates and protein are your best bet when recovering from a training session.  It will replenish your muscle glycogen, and the burst of amino acids will fuel your muscles for growth.  If you need more information, just search for post-workout nutrition on the web.  A great, reputable source (very scientific and factual) is www.johnberardi.com.  Dr. John Berardi is a nutrition scientist and a former bodybuilder.  He knows what he’s talking about in terms of nutrition.  And while I think you should research information from a variety of sources and points of view, Dr. Berardi is very scientific in his conclusions.  So now that you have this information, go forth, train hard, and drink your postworkout nutrition!

By: Joe Norton 

Let me begin with one of my favorite quotes,
by the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland:

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” said Alice ”That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.” said the Cat. “I don’t much care where” — Said Alice. “Then it doesn’t matter which way you go”, said the Cat.

Too much to do and not enough time…
No idea what to do when you do have time?

It’s an issue everyone deals with. There are many things we can do, slight tricks and tips, that may shave off time in the short-term. However, for Long term time management to be successful we need something more than “top 10″ lists of one sentence tips. I see this problem especially in College students. Of course we go for the easy lists of simple changes because we want to put in minimal effort/cost while reaping maximum benefit/profit - college students are bound to the same economical rules as any organization.

From my perspective as a college student I see the underlying problems seems to be that the majority of students just have no idea how to schedule, have never had to prioritize time, and thus have no idea where their priorities lay. Students tend to just be dropped in the college environment with no clue as to how to arrange their Student Schedule or how to budget their time to include all their major responsibilies, while also including freetime for flexibility and personal time for relaxation. I will be writing several articles over the coming weeks on Student Schedules and Time Management Skills for Students - but to start, here is the first in the series on Goals & Priorities - the Source of your activities.

Write out your goals -> Find your Priorities

Example:
Daily/Weekly Goals (goals for daily or weekly use)
- go to all my classes, get all my HW done thats due tomorrow, get started on finding sources for essay due next week, go to Gym tonight.

Short Term Goals (few weeks to a month)
- Schedule interviews for summer internship for next month,
Get business cards for my websites to give out at interviews.

Medium Term Goals (semester/several months/even a year)
- Be active in my Student Professional organizations, get above 3.3 GPA this semester (NO C’s!)

Long Term Goal (more than a year - lifetime goals)
-  Graduate from school without having gone crazy,  have atleast one revenue generating company by graduating, buy my own island (lifetime goal)

What I’m talking about here corresponds with the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey, because my advice - like Dr. Covey’s, is intended to involve the reformation of your “Characer Ethic” which are deep core values and principles that you live by. As opposed to the simple “Personality ethic” solutions like what kinds of phones to buy or what kind of filing system or how to trick people into doing what you want, because they don’t change solve the internal problem of prioritizing.
They only intend to make external fixes. are all bogus short-term fixes that leave you with your roots in a system that perpetuates the “unrest” we’ve all experienced.

Find your Roles -> they should coordinate with your Goals

Example of my Roles:

“Entrepreneur”, ”Student”, ”Leader”,
“Health & Fitness Enthusiast”,
and last but not least “Family Member & Friend”

I try to phrase them as this kind of statement:
To be the best _ I can be.
Because this phrasing maximizes your commitment to the objective and because it also takes into account that maybe you can’t be the world’s best X, but you ALWAYS have control over being best you are capable of being.

How this helps me allocate my Student Schedule is -I look at my roles, and then compare them to my goals and make sure they are in alignment with one another.
For instance: Every single one of my goals are intended to make me stronger in one of those given roles. At the end of the day I should be able to look at those roles most important to me and say: The reason I did X today, is because it improves my situation in the Entrepreneur Role, or the reason I woke up so early this morning was so that I would have time to fulfill my duty to myself to be a “Health & Fitness Enthusiast” and thus dragged myself to the gym hours before I had to be up for class.

The key to this system of Priority-Time Management works on the basis that you don’t “Find” time for your goals - YOU MAKE IT. Your scheduling in these areas of importance to you should supercede any planning for non-essential roles in your life.

I highly suggest those interested take a look at a prior post of mine where I posted several of my favorite (FREE) videos of Time Management Skills for Students.

My name is Ryan, and I am currently a student at the Milwaukee School of Engineering in Wisconsin. I study architectural engineering, and I have no health or fitness related background. However, training and nutrition are two of the passions or hobbies that I have. I love to read and learn more about both topics.

I got interested in fitness during high school. I had an excellent Phy. Ed. teacher, who was also my basketball coach. He taught me so much about what was good and bad for my body, and how to make my body faster and stronger. He constantly pushed me in the weight room so that I could be a better basketball player. I realized that I absolutely loved training, and the nutrition aspect came in college, when I realized that I couldn’t eat pizza and Chinese every weekend.

Training and eating to better oneself is a great thing. I realized that not only can you make your body look, feel, and function better, you can improve in other areas of your life.

By: Veljko Petranovic

1.Don’s start a bulking phase if your body fat level is above 10 percent. Fat begets fat, remember, and the more you have, the more additional adipose tissue you’ll gain along with the muscle. Ideally, you should start bulking up after you’ve dieted down for the summer/competition/photo shoot/girlfriend. That way, your muscle/fat gain ratio should be about 1:1. When you’re chubby to begin with, the ratio is more like 1:4 in favor of fat.

2. Eat a lot, but no junk food. You’re looking for quality sources of protein and complex carbohydrates. Despite the fact that ice cream is made of milk and therefore must contain protein, all that extra sugar will not do anything good for your appearance. Some fat is acceptable, heck, it’s unavoidable, but don’t let this be an excuse for regular gorge-fests. Eat up to six times a day.

3. Bump your calorie intake by a set number of calories per day. Space the extra calories over all your meals, don’t just eat double your normal breakfast. Do not exceed 1.000 calories over your normal diet per day, it’s overkill. Instead, gradually increase your food intake. If you need, say, 3.000 calories to maintain a 200 lbs of bodyweight, calculate the needed increase for 210 lbs and eat accordingly. Don’t eat like you should be weighing 250 lbs right off the bat, or the fat gain will be much larger.

4. You should never be hungry. Overfeeding takes a lot of effort, endless mastication and loads of food on the go. Don’t kid yourself by starving for the majority of the day, then pigging out for dinner. That approach is a sure way to fail.

5. Don’t forget the fiber. When it comes to eating a lot of food, all the excess must go somewhere, and a good digestion goes a long way. Well known side effects of bulking include, but are not limited to, gas, stomach cramps, hard stool and even more gas. Also, it would be a good idea to include fish oil capsules in your diet.

6. Train no more than three times a week. For the rest of your time, you should be eating and resting. Bulking phases are ideal when you’ve got a lot of study material to go over. Preparing for a big exam, or three, includes a lot of sitting on your ass, which goes hand in hand with gaining mass. Seize the opportunity.

7. Compound exercises should dominate your training program. Don’t miss out by not squatting, deadlifting, benching, stand-pressing and barbell rowing. Also, this is a great time to focus on a lagging muscle group. Specialize on your weakness and bring it up to par, lest it becomes even more apparent. Work that muscle group first in your training, and give it more volume.

8. Forget both cardio and a ripped six pack. For normal people, like you and me, it’s not natural to add pounds upon pounds of lean muscle. What’s required is singleness of purpose. It is during this time when you should care less about aesthetics. Think of it as an investment in your future self. Gaining muscle without some fat is nigh-impossible, unless you’re chemically assisted (which I don’t recommend) or genetically blessed.

9. Sleep for no less then 8 hours every single night. Ten hours would be even better, if you can manage. Your sleeping patterns should be just as important as your training, though a bit less so than your diet. If nutrition comprises 70 percent of your fitness goals, the rest is divided between lifting and sleeping.

10. Live a little. Once your fitness goals, regardless of what they are, become routine, you’ll view them as a chore and a burden. You don’t have to be miserable in order to get big. Socialize with your friends and family, and let them in on your current efforts. They are the best support group one could ever want. Go shopping for your new, bigger clothes. Go out and have some fun. Fitness is a great way to live, but it shouldn’t be life itself.

By: Veljko Petranovic  

Give this plan a shot and you’ll likely be satisfied with the results. In the end, it will come down to your own discipline and willingness to endure hardship. If you decide on using a fat burner, your results will improve based on the efficacy on said supplement. Keep in mind that most of them offer false promises and a placebo effect. Caveat emptor!   The summer approaches.

I remember being 18. Two friends and myself were planning on taking a trip to the Adriatic sea and spending our summer holiday there. Fresh out of High School, I had managed to put on some fairly significant muscle weight, but disappointingly, a bit of fat was shrouding my new body. It wasn’t the look I was after.

What will the beach bunnies say? Thus began my extensive search for the perfect fat loss diet.  Surprise, surprise, there was no such thing to be found. A lot of web sites were recommending a lot of different things, pushing a lot of miracle drugs, promising Godzilla-like muscle gains and penile enlargement along with a ripped six-pack. There had to be a simpler way of shedding some fat. Then, I discovered the Atkins diet. It was pretty cool on paper, and the logic behind it seemed sound enough. I tweaked it a bit to suit my individual needs, and lo and behold, in a quick month, I managed to get rid of 10 pounds of excess weight.   

The Atkins diet preaches a no-carb approach, to put it simply. Not knowing which foods contained that evil macronutrient, I whipped out a 1989 manual for the ladies, something along the lines of “Lose the belly inches after pregnancy”. On the last few pages was the food value chart, which I heartily recommend you get your hands on.  Take out a piece of paper and a pen. Write down your typical daily menu, and include everything that contains calories, the drinks as well. Now, calculate how much calories you are consuming and subtract 500 from that number. Now, note that a gram of fat contains 9 calories, whereas a gram of protein or a gram of carbohydrate is only 4 calories. A logical observation would be that the easiest way to restrict calories is to completely remove fat from your diet. Do not do this.

Your body needs fat to function normally. Low fat diets are very effective, though, but this particular type of nutritional strategy is more about calorie manipulation then it is about reduction.  So, if a kilogram of fat contains 9,000 calories, and we have reduced our calorie intake by 500 per day, logic dictates that we will lose a kilo of fat per 18 days. This is where the manipulation comes in. If you’re like most people, your body is dependent on the carbs for energy. When you take carbs out of the equation, something almost magical happens – your body switches to breaking down bodyfat into ketones, and uses them for energy. Nifty! This is a state called ketosis, and is the fundamental of the Atkins diet. It can only occur when your blood sugar levels drop radically. As long as you are ingesting enough protein and supplementing your food with vitamins and minerals, you are not going to lose much muscle mass from the calorie restriction.   

Ketosis ain’t nice. I remember breaking up with my then-girlfriend two weeks into the diet over something trivial. We got back together, eventually. You see, the brain is very much dependent on carbs, and when those aren’t provided, your judgment becomes clouded and your concentration is very low. Not a good thing if you’re preparing for a big exam! The good thing is, after about two weeks, your body gets used to this and resumes normal operation. But the cravings still remain. I remember dreaming of eating chocolate. I remember smelling pizza from, it seemed, a mile away. I remember that, at the time, peas sounded like a heavenly treat.   But don’t give in.

You are going to eat egg whites, various meats and fish and drink water, coffee and tea. This is it. Spread out these foods over 4-5 meals evenly throughout the day for 6 days a week. Remember to subtract the 500 calories from your normal menu. On day 7, you can eat, wait for it, anything you want. Pig out for 24 hours straight. Go on. Indulge yourself. The purpose of this cheat day is twofold. First, you’d likely go nuts and stop the diet without it. Second, the sudden high carb intake will fill out your muscles with glycogen and the rest will be burned for energy, again switching your body to using carbs. But when you resume the diet on day one again, the process is reversed and the body confused. What the…? This “switch” also helps burn a ton of fat.

  If the ketones from the burned fat reach a high concentration in your blood, a toxic state known as ketoacidosis sets in. You notice this when you start smelling like acetone. It is thus fundamental to maintain a workout program during the diet. Combine weight training with cardio for best results. Drink ungodly amounts of water. Set up hard workouts after the cheat day, so you can benefit from the carb intake the most.   That’s it. Four weeks of Hell and, for me, 10 excess pounds lost. It may be different for you, in the sense that “mileage may vary”.

You know your body better than anyone else. If you’re an ectomorph (naturally skinny with a fast metabolism), you can get away with two cheat days per week, as in days 6 and 7. If you decide on using a fat burner, your results will improve based on the efficacy on said supplement. Keep in mind that most of them offer false promises and a placebo effect. Caveat emptor!   The summer approaches. Give this plan a shot and you’ll likely be satisfied with the results. In the end, it will come down to your own discipline and willingness to endure hardship. The prize may be only superficial, vain and shallow, but most of us are in the lifestyle because we bear those qualities, too ;).

By: Ryan Imbach

You’ve made it to college. Congratulations! The first year is exciting. You meet new friends, join campus groups, get involved in great activities, and party! And after all is said and done, freshman year is over, and you’re ten, fifteen, twenty pounds heavier; and it’s definitely not muscle. How did that happen? All that partying and studying and eating crappy foods from the local pizza place, that’s what! What can you do? How do the dorm-dwelling, penny-pinching students get by on a healthy nutrition plan so that this fat gain doesn’t occur? What I’m going to outline are some simple tips and guidelines for college students to get quality nutrition into their everyday lives. Then you can come out of freshman year looking even better than when you started.

First, one of the biggest obstacles facing students is the inability to cook food in the dorms. It’s all Hot Pockets all the time. That’s not going to happen, and here’s how:

· Protein: We need it to build muscle and lose fat. How do we get it? The classic protein source can always be canned tuna. It’s boring, but it works. You could also do precooked chicken and turkey breasts, in addition to sliced lunch-meats (try to get low-sodium, nitrate-free versions). A George Foreman grill is invaluable in college. If it’s allowed in your dorms, definitely pick one up, and you can cook any meat that you buy right in the dorm room. Cottage cheese is also a great protein to stock up on. When in the cafeteria, go for the eggs, chicken breasts, and fish (not slathered in oils or butter). Finally, you can always use a good quality protein powder to “top off” your protein requirements for the day.

· Carbohydrates: Okay, there are good, bad, and ugly. First, don’t even think about buying Twinkies, bagels, donuts, or cake. These are not conducive to looking good. You can have some quality whole grain bread on hand if you’d like. A brand without high fructose corn syrup, brown sugar, or artificial colorings are usually good bets. Another great carbohydrate is oatmeal. Either for breakfast or after a good training session, nothing beats a bowl of oatmeal for its mix of slow releasing carbs, fiber, and protein. Fruits and vegetables are of vast importance, especially in college. Buy fresh or frozen (if you have a freezer), and shoot for a high amount each day. They are low in calories, but deliver a large amount of nutrients and antioxidants in every serving. Raw fruit and veggies are also very portable, so eat up!

· Fats: Don’t be afraid of fat! It is not evil! They promote good brain function and keep natural hormone levels in check. These are probably the easiest, in my opinion, to fit into your dorm-room nutrition. Natural nut butters, whole nuts, olive oil, and fish oil are all healthy fats fats that will keep for a long time in your refrigerator or on your shelf. I will usually just take my fish oil capsules with meals and eat a few handfuls of nuts throughout the day, and my fat intake is covered.

That’s just a quick rundown on various foods for your dorm room. How are you going to drag all this food around? You have a crazy schedule. You now need to invest in a large lunchbox and plastic containers. Plastic containers will hold whatever food you need for the entire day if you wish. Then you can just carry them around in your lunchbox all day. You may feel stupid at first, but no one really cares how you look. You’ll have your healthy nutrition on hand whenever you need to eat.

In regards to a typical college lifestyle, your friends may want you to party and eat pizza late at night, every night. While you can do that every once in a while, don’t make a habit of it. Stick to your healthy nutrition plan. Always plan ahead. Plan to have food during classes and meetings. If you have a plan, you will succeed.

In conclusion, dorm-room nutrition can be tough to handle. With the influence from your friends, the all-you-can-eat cafeteria, and lack of funds, healthy eating might seems impossible. However, with good planning and shopping, even a college student can overcome the impossible.