What are the Most Effective Repetition Brackets To Use?

This article is in response to a question that an old friend asked me recently as he intended to start training and didn’t know where to start. After giving him advice I thought it made sense this as I am sure if he is asking it, a lot of you are thinking it.

It is a complex subject and upon understanding it you will improve your rate of success in your exercise programmes improves dramatically. This is especially the case if you have been following one of the generic programmes written in a magazine or copying a friends which has been written for them by their trainer. To be honest with you, this will probably create more questions as it impossible to say what is best for someone without assessing them first.

To keep such a vast subject concise I will try and keep each point short and exact.

How many repetitions you use controls the training effect (including how fast you see that effect and what result you will achieve from your programme)

You may use a different rep bracket when training for strength than training for hypertrophy or fat loss as you will want to target different hormone production.

Rep brackets vary from person to person. Your muscle fibre makeup means that training in certain repetition zones will improve how fast you build muscle and lose fat in comparison to training in other zones. An example of this would be a very fast twitch muscle, if you consistently train with high reps on this muscle you aren’t going to activate the muscle fibres (high-threshold motor units) that only contract with very high loads and are therefore not going to fulfil their potential.

Muscle fibre makeup is therefore also muscle group specific. A lot of people lack hamstring development because they are training it in an incorrect repetition bracket. The part of the hamstring that bends the knee (short-head of biceps femoris) is much more fast twitch than all of the long muscles of the hamstring which extend the hip exercises such as a deadlift and therefore short be trained with lower reps. If your routine includes leg curls above the 8 repetition mark it is probably time to revaluate how you are training or who you are training with.

To summarise, this is one of the hardest topics to give an exact answer and you should be vary cautious when someone advises you of a ‘perfect’ universal repetition bracket (look in popular programmes where everything is 8-10 or 12-15 reps). This demonstrates lack of extensive knowledge on the subject which in turn will short-change your results if you follow it.

To appropriately select reps for a programme your trainer should have an idea on the fibre makeup of your body, know the goal of your training programme and know your exercise history. Other factors will impact upon how they should select it but these are crucial facts to find out via fibre type assessments and appropriate screening prior to exercise.

www.bcpersonaltraining.co.uk

Are Supplements Necessary to Make Gains?

One question that I get asked a lot is if nutritional supplements are necessary to make progress in the gym. While this is often a hotly debated topic by fitness professionals it is worth pointing out that there is absolutely no black and white answer on the subject. For this reason I am going to give you two sides of the coin and let you make up your own mind.

Technically speaking, supplements aren’t necessary to make progress with your training programme. I have seen people adapt to exercise with a very poor diet and no supplement intervention. They can put on muscle, lose fat and build strength comfortably. Some people think that supplements are too expensive to use and are over-hyped. In a lot of cases this is true, if you look at companies with the big marketing budgets there is a consistent abundance of advertising aimed at improving their sales figures. I have heard how much it costs one of the big UK companies to produce their whey protein and how much they sell it for- it doesn’t surprise me some people think it is too much money.

On the other hand supplements can play an important role in maximising your progress. You can improve your hormonal levels which creates a more favourable environment for making gains. Examples of this can be improving your blood sugar levels, testosterone and cortisol ratios as well as your estrogen score. Other examples can be improving organ function to lead to better health and consequently faster gains. Supplements are definitely not a sure-fire way of improving your results. If you are bodybuilding and eating very little protein you are not going to out supplement that void. It is also important to note that the longer you have been training the slower your progress is going to be (not taking into consideration any improvements you make in your training regime through experience) and the need for supplements may therefore increase with training age as your body slows down it’s response to exercise.

In my training I encourage the use of a supplement programme. When I train clients it is important that their results are fast and therefore I like to be as precise as I can. Yes-you could eat a meal straight after training to lower your stress response and improve your results but it doesn’t have the same effect as having a well designed post-workout shake. If people are on a limited budget or have a personal preference against them then there are things you can do to make the best out of that situation. In my opinion and in my practice I use them for clients aiming for any training goal.

I always encourage my clients to ask for my professional opinion before buying any supplements. It can save them a lot of time and money by resisting the impulse purchases and instead buying supplements which I know would be more effective for their goals.

http://www.bcpersonaltraining.co.uk/

 Why ‘Diets’ Do Not Work

For this article I will start by asking a question. How many of you have tried a diet and were less than impressed with the results? Have you or anyone you know lost weight on a diet only to put it back on when you stopped? This is an extremely common scenario and when it comes to achieving your physique goals it is completely backwards.

Most diets will involve you creating a deficit in the energy you consume through food. While this will make perfect sense to a lot of you when it comes to fat loss, it just doesn’t pan out in the long run. When you cut calories below maintenance levels your body goes into a ‘survival mode’ as it recognises starvation. This will create a decrease in thyroid function and leptin (a hormone that has a central role in fat metabolism). What does this mean for your diet? It means that after an initial period of potentially sudden fat loss your weight levels out and you struggle to lose more. This often results in further deprivation which acts as a catalyst for your diet to appear successful again only to find that after a period of time your fat loss stalls. As your metabolism drops due to the sudden lack of energy you are consuming in comparison you will be very sensitive to any increase in this. Now when you eat more than you were on your diet it is very probable that you will put all of the weight back on. (This is what happens in the term ‘yo‐yo dieting’).

To combat this it is important that when you are looking to achieve your goal of a lean physique you must take into consideration how long it will take for you to get there and if you want to stay there. If you are dieting down for a particular event like a holiday or bodybuilding contest you may accept that the fat will come back on and not worry about it. However in most cases where you are unhappy with your body and want to create lasting changes then healthy modifications to your diet without depriving yourself of vital nutrients will always be more sustainable.

 The Calorie Truth

It seems to me that the importance of the calorie is being emphasised more and more when it comes to the subject of fat loss. This encourages people to monitor their diet and therefore take their health more seriously which is certainly good news. The simple fact is that the common view of “calories in versus calories out” dictating whether you are going to lose or gain fat is overly simplistic and not completely accurate. I appreciate this may challenge deeply engrained beliefs that a lot of people (including nutritionists) have, so I fully intend to explain why.

Different macronutrients (proteins, carbohydrates and fats) have different effects on the body ‐ obviously. The ‘thermic effect of food’ (TEF) is the increase in your metabolic rate when digesting and utilising food. The thermic effect of protein is a lot higher than it is for both carbohydrates and fats. This means that eating foods rich in proteins is going to raise your metabolism to a higher degree than it would if you ate either of the other two macronutrients. So it is evident that 3000k/cal from protein consumption is going to raise your metabolism more than 3000k/cal from carbohydrates (or fats) and the consequential increase means you will expend more calories digesting the protein.

Another massively overlooked factor when it comes to calories is the specific hormonal response that happens with certain foods. For example, numerous studies have proven that insulin (a hormone secreted by the pancreas) inhibits fat loss. Failure to monitor your blood sugar levels can results in fat storage around the suprailiac (the hips or so‐called ‘love‐handles’) and insulin is a hormone primarily dictated by carbohydrate consumption (amongst a lot of other factors such as irregular eating patterns).

If a calorie is simply a calorie and that is all there is to it then 2500k/cal in the consumption of chips would result in the same rate of fat loss/storage as 2500k/cal in the form of chicken.

There are several ways of monitoring your blood sugar levels including inexpensive blood glucometers. All people react to foods differently and therefore you will need different food intakes to the person next to you. When it comes to dietary starting points I like to use the concept of metabolic typing. It’s main focus is choosing foods which will react well with your body and regulate your insulin levels which will result in a faster rate of fat loss and a healthier you in general.

Simple Tips for Cover Model Abs.

Abdominals are easily one of the most sought-after body parts to be in fantastic shape. After all, abdominal definition makes any physique more impressive. Take a look at bodybuilders in their off-season and they just don’t look any good, even though they are the most muscle bound group of individuals. On the other hand, even a slim person can look fantastic just by having a good set of abs.

Chances are you want to improve your abdominal definition, who doesn’t? They are one of the rarest muscle groups to develop properly for a multitude of reasons so if you feel like you are struggling to do yourself justice, don’t worry- help is on it’s way.

I have had to troubleshoot client’s abdominal programmes since I started as a trainer and the problems can lie in many different areas, this is why getting fantastic abs can be such hard work even though you train them using advanced techniques. Here are some tips which range from the glaringly obvious to the much less acknowledged.

-          You body fat level is too high. This is common sense, as with any muscle- if it is covered by fat the level of definition is lower. If you want to reveal your abdominals you need to strip that layer of fat off. (In my experience a skinfold reading of below 10 should leave you with well defined abs).

-          You spend too long training your abdominals. Research has shown that abdominal training for strength is only effective to a point and after a well-planned 6 week cycle you will have already come to the end of that. Squats and deadlifts done properly are proven to be two of the best exercises for abdominal stimulation.

-          When training them directly, you need to do them in the right order. Upper abdominals are usually more of a strong point than lower abs therefore work your lower abdominals first, obliques second and upper abdominals last. (Upper and lower abdominals refer to portions of the rectus abdominis/six pack muscle which although is one muscle, is segmentally innervated and therefore different fibres can be focused on to a degree). This means leg lowering, leg raising or reverse crunch movements come before rotation and side bending which then comes before normal crunching.

-          Train your abdominals last. You do not want to fatigue them before performing movements which rely heavily on the abs. Doing crunches before squats would leave you with lesser results both areas.

-          As you can focus on different sections of the abs it makes sense to train them separately. An easy way to build your abdominals is to perform a few exercises in a circuit fashion. Choose one exercise for the lower abs, one for the obliques and one for the upper abdominals and perform them back-to back with little rest. 10-15 minutes of this should be more than enough for most people- try it and get back to me!!

-          Vary the reps. All muscles require stimulation to grow. You don’t go to the gym and perform sets of 50 squats or deadlifts so why would you do it for your abs? If you have trained with the same reps for a while, change them significantly and you should make further gains.

-          Inflammation in your stomach can lead to bloating which can then make it harder to stimulate your abs (referred to as lazy abs). If you are one in the majority that do not have a healthy digestive system it will compromise your physique. Inflammation in the gut can be caused by parasites, bacterial infections, food intolerances, leaky gut syndrome, constipation etc. Improving gut health often improves your physique. The stronger your immune system is the faster you will lose fat and build muscle. Solutions can sometimes be as simple as supplementing with fibre or probiotics. I have seen people who cannot lose fat on their stomach due to the lack of integrity in their gut so do not overlook this point.

Truth be told, a lot of people will go through life never having a visible set of abdominals, don’t allow yourself to be one of them. Each of these points is a solution within itself so recognise which ones you have been neglecting and work on them until you have a set of abs worthy of the cover of your favourite fitness magazine!

An Alternative
Approach to Fat Loss

One of the most common goals in the fitness world is fat loss. Whether it comes in the form of ‘toning up’ or shedding unwanted bulges it equates to the same thing. Typically the approach that most people take is to hit the treadmill or start doing CV training of some sort. If you have been sedentary for a long period the introduction of any physical exertion is going to impact your body and usually result in an initial fat loss period.

Unfortunately with steady state training any longer than six weeks of this and you are going to be wasting your time as there are much more effective ways. The problem with steady state training (if you can sustain that pace for longer than 10 minutes it is going to be on the lower end of the intensity scale and therefore considered steady state) is that it is not optimal for fat oxidation.

Numerous studies have concluded that working at higher intensities burns more fat in the long run through a process called EPOC (Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption). Training in the form of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) in one study resulted in fat loss at a rate of nine times faster than the low intensity group. The average sprinter has a much lower body fat percentage than
the average endurance runner.

Another approach which is usually unfairly overlooked is the role of weight training for fat loss. Including resistance training in some form can work wonders for a plethora of reasons.

-       
It can build lean tissue. The more muscle mass you have the faster your resting metabolic rate will be. In short this means that muscle tissue will keep you leaner.

-       
It can stimulate the same fat loss hormones that good quality CV training will and can be in greater quantities.

-       
It is much less of a contributor to adrenal fatigue. Adrenal fatigue happens when your body suffers constant stress resulting in suboptimal production of cortisol levels. This occurrence can leave you feeling lethargic as well as hosting a multitude of other symptoms.

-       
It can promote joint integrity. Taking joints through their appropriate range of motion (ROM) helps maintain properly functioning joints whereas repeating movements in the long run is associated with joint health deterioration.

-       
It can improve posture and correct muscular imbalances whereas repetitive CV training causes muscular imbalances (runners knee anyone?)

-       
It improves bone density offsetting the chances of osteoporosis.

-       
It allows you to stimulate the muscles you want to stimulate. If you are happy with the muscle size of your legs but want to tone your upper body you can do this through weight training.
 
 
This should have helped clear up any confusion you had on the subject and hopefully will enable you to achieve superior results in your training than you were obtaining prior to reading this.

As always, if you want to discuss any part of this article
or ask for advice please feel free to contact me.

Sex …does it have to be a dirty word?

For our first men’s health article, Aptus suits is lucky enough to have teamed up with Dr Edwards, a world leading health expert in both mens and womens sexual dysfunction.

Sex continues to be a dirty word in UK in spite of the ‘sexual revolution’ of the sixties and seventies where individuals were ‘hanging out’ with flowers, Laura Ashley flowing flowery dresses and psychedelic ties that some of us may still have hidden at the back of the tie rack. This taboo remains even in the last ten years since the launch of Viagra, where barely a day goes past without the press managing to find something to print about this amazing little blue diamond shaped pill. Not since the contraceptive pill has so much interest been shown in a medication. It is one of the most researched drugs and practically everyone on the planet has heard about it. More worryingly it’s global value has been recognised by the modern day smuggler who churns out potentially life threatening counterfeit copies by the million. At least two thirds of the so called Viagra sold on the internet are illegal and car boot and pub sales are reckoned to be even worse. These fake pills have been found to contain substances as diverse as road paint to medications used to treat diabetes.

There is a lot more to sex than procreation and also more skill necessary than expected in order to achieve a satisfying sexual experience for the couple. About 65% of men get erectile dysfunction when they have sex for the first time with a new partner. Whereas most animals use sex to ensure continuation of their species man is unusual in participating in sex for many different reasons.

Why do we continue to have sex?

·         For enjoyment, satisfaction and pleasure.

·         To reinforce and maintain the relationship.

·         For relaxation and release of tension

·         To help get to sleep

·         To act as a painkiller (an orgasm can produce the equivalent in pain relief as 10mg of morphine)

·         To exert control or power over the partner. This can be used in an abusive way and can be destructive in a relationship, used properly it can be part of a loving relationship.

·         As a form of exercise (sexual intercourse with a usual partner uses up as many calories as ironing or if vigorous climbing two flights of stairs).

·         For affirmation of the male or female role …….and finally

·         For reproduction

Sexual problems are extremely common and can break up relationships. I would be happy to discuss in an anonymous confidential manner your questions or worries that you might like to contact me with. I will choose a few topics to write on in future articles but needless to say will generalised and not specific to one person or couple.

What Are The Best
Foods To Eat To Lose Fat?

First and foremost, this is probably the topic which has the
widest range of conflicting views. One person’s approach is another person’s
hatred.

My personal nutritional plan varies a lot from person to
person yet there are always underlying similarities. For example, I am someone
who has always digested food quickly. If I eat something that releases an
appreciable amount of insulin (even things such as high GI fruits or low
glycemic grains) my energy levels do not stay stable, I find myself getting
hungrier, quicker and my concentration is not as good. For this reason I like
to eat higher portions of proteins with higher portions of fats, my
carbohydrates are kept relatively low sticking with vegetables as my main
source. On the other hand there are people who can eat processed white grains
and still feel good an hour later. Although there can be many reasons for these
differences the obvious take home message is that one diet may work amazingly
for one person and horrendously for another.

When looking for fat loss it is even more important to keep
your insulin levels low. A blood sugar rollercoaster is one of the worst things
that can happen to someone trying to lose fat. Stages in this rollercoaster
will have you storing fat and others will have you catabolising muscle which
indirectly stores fat as well. This is why it is so important to make sure you
are eating what works well for you. Don’t follow the exact diet of the person
next to you just because you read it in the latest fad diet book.

Nutrition will be different depending on a lot of factors;

-       
How you respond to food (this is where Metabolic Typing
comes in)

-       
What your goal is

-       
What hormonal profile you have (this is where
Biosignature comes in)

-       
Any food allergies/intolerances/sensitivities you have

-       
What your bodyweight is

-       
What your percentage body fat is

-       
How much training you are doing

-       
What type of training you are doing.

The list goes on.

While there are obviously a lot of differences in how you
can tailor your nutritional plan to work more efficiently for you I have one
rule which I adhere to strictly when coming up with a long term strategy. My
rule is that your foods must come from natural sources. I strongly believe that
foods that we have been eating since we were cavemen are foods that we work
optimally on. The human gene does
not evolve at such a rate that our body knows exactly what to do with the
chicken nuggets, chips and a coke you eat when you are in a rush.

My typical idea of a healthy food shopping list contains foods
solely from the following categories;

-       
Meat

-       
Fish

-       
Nuts

-       
Seeds

-       
Eggs

-       
Vegetables

-       
Fruits

-       
Water

There are a few exceptions to the rule, for example you
don’t have to phone me if you want to buy green tea and aren’t sure because it
isn’t on the list- it’s fine! The point of this is that anyone who follows this
rule will usually see a sharp increase in their health. Some people are
actually so unhealthy and so toxic that eating clean foods makes them feel ill
while your body starts detoxifying- a good quality multivitamin should help
this in most cases. There are also going to be better choices within this list
but the idea is that you exclude foods which are damaging to your body and only
eat foods which have healing properties. Other stipulations are to avoid
anything breaded and anything microwaveable even if it is just chicken with
vegetables- it is simply not good for your food and in turn not good for your
body.

Dear all,

Please find our first article from our resident PT expert Ben Carpenter (BC Personal Training). At Aptus we often have clients ask ‘whether we can tailor suits to enhance certain body features or to help draw attention away from others’ the answer is of course yes, but if you feel a more pro active step is required why not check out Ben’s advice for losing body fat this summer. 

With summer just around the corner (and it has been rumoured to be an uncharacteristically hot one this year in England!) it is inevitable that there are plenty of you who have decided to take an extra step to make sure you look your best for beach season. I congratulate those of you who are already doing this as I am not a fan of waiting until the last minute, but if you haven’t started yet, not to worry- I am going to help you get there.

Firstly you need to assess where you are and what you want to achieve. This is going to be strictly about fat loss which will leave you looking more defined, toned, lean, cut or whatever adjective you want to insert. If you do not want to get leaner this article won’t be for you or at least not at the moment.

Before you read on, put yourself in one of the following categories.

1)      You are very overweight and want to lose a lot of fat

2)      You carry a bit of extra fat and want to lose a little

3)      You are lean and want to move to ripped

4)      You want to lose fat but savour your strength.

If you are a powerlifter or you are heavily into your strength and care about your lifts in the gym, it is important to take a more modest approach as if you lose a lot of fat in a short space of time it is very possible that you will lose some strength in the process. Now, if your only goal is to look good naked- you can take as hardcore an approach as is appropriate for your current level of fat.

Here are a few extremely effective tips to get you going, regardless of which category you put yourself in.

1)      Your training must reflect your goal. Your routine needs to have a high metabolic cost. This means your adaptations need to be muscular and not neural. Neural training is geared at strength gains and will involve long periods of rest between sets to help you lift the heaviest weight possible. Reps are kept lower (usually less than 6) and you are going to sweat less during this kind of programme. If you aim at muscular adaptations you will want to shorten your rest periods (less than a minute and a half in most cases). This type of training should increase your level of sweating, increase your heart rate and if you really push it will make you feel nauseous. This lactate training increases your output of GH (growth hormone) which will in turn help you lose appreciable amounts of fat.

2)      Clean up your diet. You may not always be 100% strict and are happy in doing so. If you aren’t getting the results you want then you should take things at least one step further. Set yourself a target of being strict for a period of time and you will be much more likely to stick with it.

Step1; Eliminate all refined foods. This can be all anything from muffins and pizzas to those considered healthier such as breads, pasta and cereals. These foods are inevitably higher on the glycemic load scale (more significant than the glycemic index scale) and have a higher insulin index. Insulin is a storage hormone secreted by the pancreas which lowers blood sugar levels by shuttling nutrients out of your blood and into your cells. Insulin inhibits fat loss and is associated with fat storage on your suprailiac (just above your hip bone i.e. love handles).

.

Step 2; Increase your protein intake. It is probably one of the most common pieces of advice in the gym and on fitness forums yet is still rarely obeyed to its full potential. I cannot think of a single fat loss expert who recommends less than 1g per pound of bodyweight and I have heard recommendations up to 4g per pound of bodyweight. The best protein sources to consume in these quantities are from meat, fish and eggs. This will help lower insulin levels and help build muscle, both of these will lower your fat percentage.

Step 3; Increase your intake of vegetables. Vegetables are much better sources of carbohydrates for those who want to get lean. They have a much lower insulin index and glycemic load. They are also loaded with nutrients, which is important when trying to lose fat and stay healthy. Adipose tissue is where your toxins are stored and it is therefore important that you consume enough nutrients to help detoxify these effectively to aid your fat loss process. Increasing your vegetable intake will help you lose fat even if you adopt nothing else, this does, however exclude potatoes and corn.

These things should get you to your goals and are all approaches that can be adopted as a lifestyle as well as just a temporary fix. It is debatable whether you need any form of cardio training to lose fat. I personally don’t use it myself nor use it with the majority of my clients. Nevertheless, if you want to lose a lot of fat quickly you will probably find it very effective. Do NOT use this approach if you put yourself in category 4, instead you can use energy systems work strongman style such as sled drags, car pushes and tyre flips- all can produce lactate and create fat loss yet will build strength rather than sacrificing it.

3)      HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). This is a method that involves short bouts of intense work like sprinting followed by longer periods of work at a lower intensity like jogging or walking. One study showed this approach caused fat loss nine times faster than steady state cardio. It doesn’t raise your cortisol to nearly as great an extent and can actually build lean tissue. Running and cycling are ideal options. If you have never done this before you can start slowly as it should be very intense and is not designed to be leisurely. You will feel sick if you use this to anywhere near it’s maximum potential.

These steps will help you shed your unwanted fat and get you ready for the upcoming summer. They are important basics and should not be overlooked. If done properly they could be the only fat loss tips you ever need. Address them with dedication and be strict, you will not be disappointed.