Top Five Reasons You Aren't Losing Weight and How To Fix It

Top Five Reasons You Aren't Losing Weight, How To Fix It

I'll Give You A Hint!

Losing weight, or more importantly, losing body fat is an obsession in North America. Doesn't matter where you turn, weight loss and fat loss ads are everywhere. Today, almost everyone is more educated about nutrition and health than ever before, yet our population continues to punch yet another hole in their belt to encompass their growing bellies. Kind of ironic... like the more we try to learn about it, the worse the problem becomes... strange... or is it?

Selling You The Solution

So yes, there's a problem that in my opinion was partly created by the food industry, but now, as if selling you 2L Super Big Gulps with over a thousand calories of pure sugar wasn't bad enough, the same people who got you fat (the food industry) are trying to sell you the solution.

HUGE RED FLAG!

It's crazy! I was renting a movie not too long ago and when I got to the cash, you know how they have chocolate bars and chips and all that set up as impulse buys, well there was this chocolate bar and when I saw it I almost lost it!

Here's this damn thing, with huge letters all across it advertising the fact that it only has 80 calories per bar. But the killer is that its price... wait for it... $3.99

Four fricken dollars for 80 calories? I can head down to McDonalds and get at least 500 calories for a measly 4 bux!

What a rip off!

Yet people buy this crap all the time. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting 500 cal at McFatties is any better... but I'm just trying to say that big industry is ripping you off and making you fatter in the process.

They can give you 1/5th of the calories and charge triple the amount. Huh? Who the hell ever agreed to that?

Well you do every time you buy this garbage.

If you're eating properly, you can eat a REGULAR old chocolate bar from time to time (remember the 90/10 rule) and it won't end up as stored fat at all.

The problem is that when you're wired to eat more calories, spending $4 on an 80 calorie chocolate bar does NOTHING to solve the problem. Want to solve the problem? Stop buying crap,eat good, natural foods, and exercise more!

Now that I've vented a little, I feel better. Here's the Top Five Reasons You Aren't Losing Weight and How to Fix it!

Starting with number 5.

5. Nutritional Knowledge - Paralysis by Analysis!

You do NOT have to know much about nutrition to lose weight. Our grandparents knew virtually nothing about nutrition and when it was necessary, they could lose weight. How? They moved more and ate less!

One of the main reasons for our society's growing obesity issue is that people who need to lose weight hide behind searching for the HOLY GRAIL diet that will guarantee them the most healthy and effective way to lose weight.

So instead of grabbing an apple and heading out for a bike ride, they get on the internet and spend hours trying to "learn" as much as they can about how to lose weight and get in shape.

Then, hours later, they're famished, and they raid their fridge and plow back a "low fat" bagel with "zero sugar added" jam... because that's what they happened to read on the latest diet-guru website. Of course they also vow to get back to the gym on Monday.

Folks.. acquiring information does NOT produce RESULTS! Only ACTION produces RESULTS!

Of course I'm not telling you to stop reading my newsletters as a trusted source of information is important to have when you really need it! ;)

4. Cooking Ability

Before I met my wife, I basically ate everything just boiled or baked with not much else than salt and pepper for flavour. I ate what I was supposed to, because I WANTED the results you get from eating the right stuff.

Of course, now, food tastes much better and I don't think I could ever go back to eating tuna straight out of the can... or worse.. mixed with my oats as I would often do.

But if you're spoiled and food has to taste good or you won't eat it, then learn how to cook nutritious meals. Prepping and cooking your foods, and then preparing meals doesn't have to take as long as you might think.

I've set up a Kitchen Bootcamp at the Urban Element, and if you haven't booked your spot yet, please email me ASAP to reserve your spot! We'll be covering meal planning, groceries, preparing, storing, and finally meal preparing along with many different spice combinations for different types of dishes.

While cooking ability isn't a MUST for losing weight, it definitely has to be in my Top 5!

3. Not Being Honest With Yourself!

As a coach, I hear excuses all the time. And the only thing worse than hearing other people's excuses is having to hear your own.

"I only drink zero-sugar juice"

"I'm starting to workout again next week so eating (whatever junk) this won't matter"

"I'm big boned"

"My metabolism is slow"

These are just a few examples of excuses people make all the time.

You can justify them all you want, but that doesn't change the fact that it's an excuse. In this life you can either have excuses or you can have results, but understand, they're on opposite sides of a balance.

So if there's even just a tiny part of you deep inside that actually wants results... you have to STOP MAKING EXCUSES!

2. Fear of Hard Work!

This one has to trump them all... well, all except for the number one reason that is. If you head over to the recumbent bicycle at the gym, and "very carefully" set yourself at 60% of your maximum heart rate to ensure that you don't "accidentally" get out of the fat burning zone, then I'm sorry, but you'll probably always be battling your weight.

Yes, it will work for some people, and hey, good for you if you can get what you want with the bare minimum effort, and if you are able to lose weight like this, the only thing you'll lack is any real fitness and conditioning levels. But I don't imagine you'd care anyway.

If you are serious about developing a powerful, well conditioned, and LEAN MEAN FAT-LESS MACHINE, then stop worrying about whether you leave the fat burning zone, and see how hard you can work for a change.

If you look like this after you finish training, you can bet your sweet tooth that you'll get the body you want!

Nothing, and I repeat, Nothing Beats Hard Work!

1. You CANNOT Out-Train A Bad Diet!

The 90/10 rule is a beautiful thing. It allows us to eat anything we want in reasonable quantities and still lose weight. Gone are the days when you must be ultra strict to ever lose any weight.

The truth is, there never was a time when you actually had to be ultra strict to lose any weight. We know now more than anything the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT part of losing weight is consistency of your actions.

That said, if you are consistently eating badly, or you're actually following the 70/30 rule, or worse yet the 60/40 or any other combination... YOU WONT GET WHAT YOU WANT!

It is IMPOSSIBLE to train enough to make up for a bad diet. So if you've been having dessert every night, or eating crap cafeteria food every day at lunch, or eating well Monday-Thursday, then binging from Friday-Sunday... you just won't get the results you're after!

Time to be brutally honest with yourself. Use a food journal and keep track of what you eat for a while and it will stare you back in the face, as plain as day. Once you can admit that you're eating the wrong stuff too much, the 90/10 rule is just NOT that hard to switch to. You still get some goods on a regular basis, and you'll get the body you want!

Is that too much to ask?

BONUS REASON

Of course no top 5 list of why you aren't losing weight would be complete without mention of exercise. The type of exercise you do can make a huge difference in whether you lose weight or not.

If you're using the latest fitness equipment gimmick, you'll likely fall off as fast as you hopped on. And while treadmills, lifecycles, and elliptical machines can help you burn off stored body fat, you'll spend more than twice as much time on them to burn just half the body fat you would if you performed high-intensity intervals with full body exercises.

If you've been hearing about this high-intensity interval training stuff for a while now but aren't really sure what the fuss is all about, I run a bootcamp that is easily the toughest thing you'll ever do, but NOTHING and I mean NOTHING will strip the fat off you as quickly!

Don't believe me? I'll give you three completely free sessions to try it and see for yourself. Even after that, once you join, I'll give you a full 30 days in case you change your mind.

If you want to try it, head over to www.YourBeachBodyBootCamp.com and sign-up for your free trial. If you've already entered your name and email at the bootcamp website but have not activated your trial, go to www.shanmillerfitness.com/bootcamp/trial.php and get started today!

Massive Arms Crazy Biceps Part 1

Massive Arms, Crazy Biceps Part 1

BUILD HUGE ARMS BY TRAINING SMARTER

Developing a crazy set of arms requires intelligent development of both the biceps and the triceps. This article is devoted to the biceps, and we'll discuss building the triceps in part 2 next week.

In general the lack of well developed biceps is usually not for lack of effort, but rather for lack of intelligent training principles.

Here's the typical gym rat's biceps routine:

Barbell biceps curls 3x8

Seated dumbbell curls 3x10

Concentration curls 3x12

This routine isn't without merit as it does train through three different repetition ranges from lower to higher. This increases glycogen depletion and overall muscle fatigue--both of which are indicators for increased muscle growth, but the angles of arm flexion and therefore range of motion of the first two exercises are the same. Only the third exercise gives us some additional benefit by training into a position of peak contraction. But this routine misses a huge part of overall biceps development... the brachialis.

To understand how to make biceps training more effective, a little anatomy lesson is required.

As you can see the Brachialis is a thick muscle that lies in behind the Biceps Brachii. When most people train their biceps, they focus on the biceps brachii and completely neglect the Brachialis.

As you can see in the above diagram, the Brachialis is quite thick, and its development often makes all the difference between a good arm and a great arm.

Because of it's position in behind the Biceps Brachii, developing it not only physically adds bulk to the arm, but if you organize the training properly, you can elicit even greater growth of the Biceps Brachii by first training the Brachialis.

If you'll recall, the MOST important thing you can ever do to create muscle growth is to apply tension to a muscle while it is in a stretched position. Nothing else creates the same level of stimulus for growth.

So how might we optimize biceps training to achieve this?

Here's how:

Exercise 1: Barbell Curls 3x6

This exercise is heavy, to produce overload to all the structures.

Exercise 2: Prone Incline DB Hammer Curls 3x12

Because of the line of pull, this exercise really hammers the Brachialis without significantly fatiguing the Biceps Brachii. This exercise will also help with development of the Brachioradialis of the forearm. We keep the reps higher on this one to ensure the Brachialis is heavily pumped by the end of all your sets.

Exercise 3: Incline Dumbbell Curls 3x10

Due to the attachment of the long head of the Biceps Brachii at the back of the shoulder, the incline bench position puts the Biceps Brachii is in a very stretched position as the elbow reaches full extension.

Inclined Dumbbell Curls

Arnold Knew The Secrets

Compound the already stretched muscle with a heavily pumped Brachialis, which if you'll recall lies directly beneath the Biceps Brachii, and you've got an unmatched situation for loading the Biceps Brachii in a stretched position.

WARNING:

Due to the incredible stretch at the bottom of the incline dumbbell curl (especially after hammering the Brachialis), the biceps tendon attachments are more susceptible to injury from abuse.

For this reason, be sure to start with a weight that is light enough that you could do 20 reps with it normally, and just do your 10. Trust me your arms will be destroyed after this. And if not, go a little heavier on the next set. The point is, it's always better to be on the safe side than injure yourself.

And as always, please leave any egos at the door.

Give this routine a try and let me know what you think!

:)

Build Freakish Leg Size And Strength

How to Build Freakish Leg Size And Strength, Exercise Selection

Building freakish leg size and strength more than anything else requires a lot of suffering. Even the most genetically elite (and assisted) strength athletes and bodybuilders like Tom Platz (shown below alongside Lou Ferrigno aka The Incredible Hulk), put themselves through absolute torture to build their insane legs.

Tom Platz & Lou Ferrigno aka The Incredible Hulk

But take note of the difference in the leg size between Tom Platz a popular bodybuilder back in the 1980's and Lou Ferrigno who is best known for his non-speaking role in The 1980's TV series The Incredible Hulk.

What makes legs grow so differently? Genetics definitely play a role, but the willingness to suffer is the number one requirement for big freaky legs. (Apparently the Incredible Hulk wasn't very masochistic). After that, exercise selection is the next most important thing for developing freakish leg size and strength.

Deconstruction of The Squat

It has been proven repeatedly that muscles undergo the most growth and increases in strength when the load is applied to a muscle in a stretched position.

And while the Back Squat is hailed as the king of all leg exercises, squats are not the best

exercise for placing a stretch on the quads and glutes. However, in defense of squats, as this article isn't here to bash them, rarely do you see a set of incredibly strong and huge legs where full, deep squats were not part of the equation.

But ultimately when you squat, your legs generally aren't the weak link. The lower back usually gives out before the legs do, which is usually why most people move on to do another leg exercise after squats.

Exercise Selection

Most people follow up their squats with leg extensions, and while they may be the icing on the cake for the elite level bodybuilder, 99% of you need far more hamstring and glute development before you worry about whatever little extra leg extensions might give you.

The Split-Leg Squat is in my opinion the best leg exercise ever.

Types of Split-Leg Squats

Usually we refer to split-leg squats just as split squats.

1. Barbell or dumbbell split squats

2. Barbell held in racked (front squat) position

3. Front foot elevated split squats

4. Rear foot elevated split squats aka Bulgarian split squats (shown in video below)

5. Front and rear foot elevated split squats

6. Lateral split squats

7. Jumping split squats

8. Feet switching jumping split squats

Good Exercise Selection Here

He's doing it right!

Ways to increase overload

1. Increase the load

2. Increase the time-under-tension (TUT)

3. Increase the range of motion (with foot-elevated variations)

4. Increase the speed of the concentric action

5. Decrease the speed of the eccentric action

6. Include isometric segments

7. Include ballistic or plyometric components (jumping)

8. Use of chains with barbell

9. Use of asymmetric loads (with dumbbells)

Darwin's Theory of Evolution Hard at Work!

NOPE!

If your coach or trainer has you doing this... fire them fast!

Benefits of Bulgarian Split Squats

1. Extra stretch in rectus femoris of trailing leg

2. Greater range of motion for front-leg glute

3. Increased recruitment of hip stabilizers

4. Increased recruitment of core musculature

5. Builds muscles faster because of stretch

6. Can train muscles more deeply into fatigue

7. Producing higher growth hormone elevation

8. Which reduces body fat

One of the beautiful things about Bulgarian split squats is that muscle growth occurs more quickly than with any other leg exercise.

Think about this for a minute. If you're currently squatting 300 lbs for 3 reps. And your legs measure 26 inches around, how much will you need to be squatting and how long will it take before your legs are 30 inches?

If you're squatting 300 lbs for 3 reps, and you aren't doing Bulgarian or other types of split squats, you may find you get brutally sore when you first start, so go easy until you're used to them.

But I'd guess you might be able to do 3-4 sets of 15 reps with 35-40 lb dumbbells within a few weeks of starting. But you'll quickly be able to move up in weight and volume and you'll notice a huge difference in the size of your legs.

If you only keep doing squats it might take you 2 more years to be doing 400 lbs for 3 reps, but in that two years if you make your way up to 4-5 sets of 15 reps with 65-85 lb dumbbells, your quads will have exploded much more than if you just focused on squats and leg extensions for example.

Watch this video to learn proper form:

Notes:

- erect torso (no forward lean)

- deep descent (knee to floor)

- front leg weight even across foot

- knee does not extend significantly past toe

So how would you include Bugarian split squats in a training program?

Just like this:

Sample Workout 1

Foam Rolling

T-Spine

Quads

Lats

Hams

Dynamic Stretching

Quads

Hip Flexors

Hamstrings

Glutes

Static Stretching

Pecs

Lats

Activation

Glute bridges

Clams

Mobility

Squat to stand

Cossack squats

Striders

Strength Work

Exercise / Purpose

Squats 5x3 / For overall strength

Bulgarian split squat* 3x12 / Glute and quad activation and hypertrophy

*(with front foot elevated)

Romanian deadlifts 5x8 / Hamstring hypertrophy

Side-lying hip abduction 3x20 / Hip strength

Side-lying shoulder external rotations / External rotation strength

Sample Workout 2

Foam Rolling

Quads

T-Spine

IT Bands

Pecs

Lacrosse Ball

Glutes

Rectus Femoris (top)

Piriformis

Calves

Dynamic Stretching

Quads

Hams

Hip Flexors

Pecs

Static Stretching

Lats

Activation

Glute bridges

Band X-walking

Band pull-aparts to chest

Scarecrows

Mobility

Squat to stand

Band dislocates

Strength Work

Exercise / Purpose

Front Squats 4x5 / For quad strength

Rack Pull Partial Deadlifts 5x6 / For hip extension strength

Suspended Pushups / Shoulder conditioning

Bulgarian Split Squats 5x15 / Quad, glute, and ham hypertrophy

Bent-over barbell rows 4x12 / Upper back strength and size

Farmer's walk 3x50 steps / Core strength / conditioning

There you have it!

Now get to the gym right away and do one of these workouts and let me know how you liked them Bulgarian split squats.

I'll bet they kill your legs more than everything else!

:)

Kitchen Boot Camp Fat-Loss Friendly Food Preparation and Cooking Class

If you've been reading my newsletters for any time you already know that nutrition is the number one thing you have to nail for fat loss to occur.

So what's the big deal and why isn't everyone losing weight?

Most people will say they are too busy to plan, purchase groceries, prepare foods in advance, and cook.

But in reality, nobody is too busy to do it, most people just don't know exactly what they need to do, and HOW to do it efficiently, so they end up grabbing whatever is fast and easy (= processed junk) and their health and body is ruined in the process.

So to help you guys really figure this stuff out once and for all, I've teamed up with Carley Schelck, owner of The Urban Element, to to provide a 3 hour hands on food preparation and cooking class.

We're going to call it Kitchen Boot Camp!

The Urban Element (on Parkdale)

Carley is going to provide us with her Master Chef who is also a registered dietician to teach us the most efficient ways to prepare our foods in bulk, and will show us how to prepare 5 and 15 minute meals based on the nutrition principles I teach in my 7 Day Fat Loss Guide.

The course will cover:

1. How to plan your meals for the week in advance

2. How to 'safely' navigate the grocery store

3. How to prepare your foods in advance

4. Food storage and safety.

5. How to combine your prepared foods to create quick 5 minute and 15 minute meals.

6. How to spice foods for fat-loss friendly flavour.

You will leave with printed copies of all the recipes we cook in the class as well as a few extras.

The reason that this class is going to be so effective at helping you with your fat-loss goals is that it is not just a course where you sit and watch. Yes, you will sit and watch at first, but then you will DO!

And true learning only occurs when you DO things!

You will actually clean, cut, and prepare all your veggies and meats, put them into storage containers as though you were going to stock your own fridge. Then you'll actually choose from your containers and put together quick and easy yet nutritious meals. You'll make some meals that take only 5 minutes for when you're really under the gun, and you'll also make some others that take 15 minutes for when you still need quick, but not mad quick! ;)

The class will be 3 hours long, and will be on either a Thursday or Sunday evening from 6pm-9pm.

Included will also be two glasses of wine expertly paired to the meals we cook and eat.

If you aren't familiar with the Urban Element, it is that gorgeous new place in the old fire station on Parkdale Avenue.

Please visit their website to check it out: www.theurbanelement.ca

Spaces are limited to between 20-30 and will fill up very fast. Availability is on a first come first serve basis.

The cost for the entire event is $100 plus tax. Spots can be reserved with a deposit of $50.

I don't try to sell you guys on very much, because I don't buy into most of the B.S. that is out there, but this is different. This is huge value! The skills you will learn in this class are essential to keeping fat-loss friendly eating habits for the rest of your life.

So now I AM trying to sell you on this! And I'm not making a penny on it! I just really believe in this and I want you to do it!

For more information or to reserve your spot, please contact:

Carley or Oliver at 613.722.0885 x101/102

carley@theurbanelement.ca or oliver@theurbanelement.ca

Supercompensation and the Progressive Overload Dilemma

So what exactly is Supercompensation and the Progressive Overload Dilemma? Well if you've been training consistently for more than a few years you've already faced it, although you may not have been familiar with its name.

As a beginner, almost any training program will produce results. A body that hasn't adapted yet to training will adapt quickly. It may seem as though you're able to add weight to the bar almost every workout.

Each workout stimulates an adaptation to allow the body to handle more the next time. The period of time in which the body is sufficiently prepared to handle a greater load than before is called the Supercompensation phase.

But eventually progress slows and further increases in strength and muscular size are only possible when the program is altered to produce more overload. At this point, weight can no longer generally be added at every workout, but often weight can be added weekly.

At this point progressive overload requires manipulation of sets, reps, load, rest intervals and time-under-tension (TUT).

But what happens when you’ve manipulated all of the variables as much as possible and you still can’t make progress?

This is called the Progressive Overload Dilemma.

The solution or at least the attempt to provide progressive overload is through the manipulation of volume and intensity over longer periods of time.

With a couple years of training behind you, the loads you can lift are far more taxing to both your structures as well as your recovery ability. For this reason, cycling of loads and volumes must be carefully planned or progress is halted.

The longer you train, the more complex the planning of your training must be to elicit further progress.

Here’s a breakdown of how volumes and loads are cycled to give progressive overload at the different stages of your training career.

Beginner

Week/Workout Volume/Load

1/1 Moderate/High (PR)

1/2 Moderate/High (PR)

1/3 Moderate/High (PR)

2/1 Moderate/High (PR)

2/2 Moderate/High (PR)

2/3 High/High (PR)

3/1 Moderate/High (PR)

3/2 Moderate/High (PR)

3/3 Moderate/High (PR)

This can often continue for 3-6 months. Moderate volume is generally 2-3 working sets and High load means that you’re lifting more than before.

Intermediate

Week/Workout Volume/Load

1/1 High/Moderate

1/2 Moderate/Low

1/3 Low/High (PR)

2/1 High/Moderate

2/2 Moderate/Low

2/3 Low/High (PR)

3/1 High/Moderate

3/2 Moderate/Low

3/3 Low/High (PR)

This type of progress will eventually stop as the PR numbers get higher and higher. When they stop, periodization must be introduced as follows to allow for further progress.

Advanced

Week/Workout Volume/Load

1/1 Mod-High/High

1/2 Mod/Low

1/3 High/High

2/1 Mod-High/Mod

2/2 Mod/Low

2/3 Mod-High/Mod

3/1 Mod-High/High

3/2 Mod/Mod

3/3 Low/High (PR)

4/1 Low/Low

4/2 Low/Low

4/3 Low/Low

As before, when hitting a new PR is not possible after successive 3-5 week blocks, and with all other lifestyle factors in check, programming must be planned for PR attempts to be at 5-6 month intervals.

Elite

Week Volume/Load

1-4: Mod/High

5-8: Mod/Mod

9-13: High/High

14-17: Mod/Mod

18-21: High/High

22-25: Mod/Mod

26-29: Low/Very High (PR)

In the end, continued progress is the result of carefully planning the alternating sequences of volume and load manipulations to provide progressive overload over time which results in supercompensation which allows for the new PR.

If you have any questions about how you can incorporate this into your training, please leave your comments in the comments box below.