Nowadays, it has become cool to talk about weight loss, hitting the gym, or building muscle. Many people feel left behind because they haven’t gotten around to sparing some time and money to go to the gym, hire a personal trainer, or follow a strict fat loss regimen. For many of us, due to current situations in the world like the global pandemic that has lasted for a while now, we may find it impossible to visit gyms or go to places with a number of people to work out.

Fortunately for these people, all hope is not lost. You don’t have to go to the gym or spend hundreds of dollars hiring a personal trainer for you to keep fit, stay healthy, or build some abs and muscle. You also don’t have to slip back into old habits of not exercising and accumulating lots of weight because gyms are closed now. In this article, we will go through some stay-at-home tips for people who are interested in hitting the gym but don’t have the time or resources to do so.

1. Create a routine for yourself

One of the benefits of going to a gym is that it helps you stay focused on a set goal by creating a structured routine around your workout. For example, if you have to be in the gym by 7 for weight loss exercise on Monday and at the same time on Tuesday for aerobics, you are more likely to be consistent with that commitment. However, in your house, you can get distracted easily, decide to do start with something else in the morning, and never really get around to working out the whole day.

If you wish to make home workout work, you must block out a certain time of the day for your workout and stay disciplined. You will achieve consistency that way.

2. Find accountability partners

The fact that you can’t go to the gym with other people doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to work with them to achieve your fat loss, muscle growth, or fitness goals. Find one or two people who are willing to undergo the same process as you and work with them to achieve your goals. You all can have the same routine and call each other to keep yourselves accountable every day. You can also decide to facetime and workout in real-time so that you are sure that everybody is involved in the process.

Doing this will help you build a sense of community with these people so that you don’t feel alone in your endeavor.

3. Watch tutorial videos online

If you are not sure of what to do, watching some videos online can help you with the process. There are home workout tutorials on muscle building, weight loss, aerobics, HIIT, and whatever you want to focus on. Most of these content creators online are personal trainers and gym coaches, so they are quite experienced in the kinds of exercise that works and how to follow a strict routine to help you achieve your fitness goals.

Watch these tutorials, or buy tapes if you are more comfortable watching on TV and training along with DVDs. If you don’t know how to build a routine for yourself, you can also search online for help and resources to guide you through the process.

4. Take it easy

Many people make the mistake of trying to do it all at once. They want to work on their arms, chest, and legs at the same time. It may feel like the right thing to do on the first day, but it gets exhausting pretty fast. Decide what goals you wish to achieve at the end of the process and create a routine that can slowly help you get to that goal. Workout slowly and increase the intensity of the workout as you get more comfortable with the routine.

If your focus is fat loss, don’t try to do all the fat loss exercises at once. Save some for other days of the week and slowly increase as you get more comfortable.

5. Do some outdoor exercise too

Don’t focus on just stretching, pushups, and other exercises you can do at home alone. Try out other exercises like walking, jogging, running, cycling, etc. These exercises help keep you in shape and can also be good for your emotional and mental health. However, remember to stay safe, follow safety procedures for the COVID-19 pandemic, and workout when the traffic flow is less.

6. Keep track of your records and success

Keeping track of your progress is a good way to motivate you to do more. Tick your calendar every day you work out. If you couldn’t work out for a day, record it down and why you couldn’t so that you can avoid the cause next time. Also, write your goals down and how far you’ve come so far. If your goal is weight loss, write down how many pounds you plan to lose and record your new weight every week when you check it on the scale.

Journaling the entire process can be fun in itself, and it will keep you focused on the target so that you don’t slack and fall too far behind.

7. Be cautious of your eating and sleeping habits

The easiest way to destroy your good work in a workout is to eat junk and sleep little. Ensure you eat healthy foods, reduce fats, sugar, and alcohol, and go for whole grains, fruits, and veggies. Also, aim to get at least 6 hours of sleep every day (more, if you can).

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Remember that fitness is not a one-time thing. You must be consistent with exercising if you want to see any reasonable result. Setting goals, keeping yourself accountable, and keeping track of your success will help you stay consistent working at home until you can afford to go to a gym.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

Nowadays, everyone and their brother is trying to give you weight loss advice, as well as advice on eating healthy and achieving your fitness goals. But only a fraction of that advice is really true, let alone *good* advice for the situation you’re in right now.

Research in the fitness and nutrition community is constantly developing and improving, always discovering new things.

Yet still, all people seem to care about are sensationalistic headlines that plague the social media world (which haven’t really stayed up to date with the latest research.)

And while a lot of people will give you that same advice and allow you to make bad, misinformed decisions about what to do… I won’t do this to you. Today, I want to zero in on 5 food and healthy eating myths you *have* to stop believing.

Let’s get right into it.

WEIGHT LOSS MYTH #1 – SALAD IS ALWAYS GOOD.

Salad is always healthy for weight loss, right? Wrong. Before you start patting yourself on the back for choosing a salad from that fast-food menu over the burger you wanted, consider this:

The Apple Pecan Chicken Salad from Wendy’s clocks in at about 600 calories, 27 grams of fat and 1600 grams of sodium… while the Jr. Hamburger and fries combo contains about 550 calories with ½ the amount of sodium.

Does this mean the burger is healthier? No. But it does mean that salads have become another mainstream food packed with sugar and sodium. Always make healthier choices whenever possible – opt for the grilled chicken over breaded, skip the high-fat dressings that are creamy and salty, and mix toppings in efforts to save calories.

Stay away from toppings such as bacon, cheese, croutons, and dried fruits. Watch out for avocados (which are fantastic in small portions, but usually get served in massive portions.)

If you want safe, healthy salad ingredients, choose dark, leafy greens, healthy fats, and lean protein. Everything else just creates a calorie bomb salad.

WEIGHT LOSS MYTH #2 – COFFEE DEHYDRATES YOU.

Coffee is a diuretic – everyone knows this. But not everyone knows it’s such a mild one. Pretty much unnoticeable. Plus, it has a ton of water in it. It actually counts toward your daily fluid intake!

You would need to intake a bazillion gallons of coffee if you want to dehydrate yourself from it. But that being said, coffee dehydration is one of the most common nutrition myths you can come across. Let’s put it to rest.

WEIGHT LOSS MYTH #3 – PASTA RUINS YOUR DIET.

Ever heard the myth that you can’t be eating pasta when you’re on a weight loss diet?

Look, if you’re trying to slim down, don’t be so quick to outlaw every carbohydrate in your kitchen (especially pasta.) Pasta is a low G.I. carbohydrate (low glycemic index,) so it breaks down slowly in your body and does not spike your blood sugar levels rapidly and significantly. Not to mention, it’s also a great source of folic acid, a vitamin from the B category.

The key to healthy pasta is in its sauce. Try out tomato-based marinara rather than the creamy alfredo so you can easily cut fat. And remember to pay attention to all your portions. It’s okay to eat 2-4 servings for a whole meal, but don’t exceed the recommended 6-7 servings a day of grain products.

WEIGHT LOSS MYTH #4 – EGGS ARE BAD FOR YOU.

Dietary cholesterol has a pretty bad rap in the mainstream weight loss and fat loss community since it is often accused of boosting our cholesterol levels. Through time, it has become clearer and clearer that saturated fats and trans fats are more influential when it comes to raising blood cholesterol levels. And while eggs are usually high in cholesterol, they’re very low in saturated fats.

For years, nutrition experts have cautioned people that eggs are unhealthy. Mostly because they’re one of the richest sources of cholesterol you can get your hands on. And since cholesterol plugs up the arteries, eggs must naturally raise the risk of heart attacks, right? No!

Only 25 percent of the cholesterol in your blood actually comes from food. The other 75 percent is manufactured by the liver, which products lots of cholesterol when you eat sources of saturated fat… something eggs are very low in.

The bottom line? Eggs are actually healthy and don’t impact cholesterol levels in any significant matter.

WEIGHT LOSS MYTH #5 – FRESH FRUIT IS HEALTHIER THAN FROZEN FRUIT.

You might believe that choosing fresh veggies and fruits from your local market is the only way to go if you want healthy weight loss options. That being said, the foods you find in the produce section will often have had a long journey from the moment they were packed into crates to the point when they reach the farmer’s market. From the time it’s picked to the time it finally lands on your kitchen counter and in your meal, your produce will have lost a massive amount of its nutrient value.

By contrast, food processors flash-freeze their produce, which actually helps preserve a lot of its vitamin and mineral content. A University of Illinois study found, for instance, that frozen beans retained twice as much vitamin C as fresh beans purchased in a grocery store.

THE BOTTOM LINE…

When we’re talking about losing weight and staying healthy, food myths will always be there to haunt us and halt our progress.

And if we don’t put them to rest, they will continue to sabotage our efforts to lose weight and stay healthy. That’s why we have to make an effort to stay up-to-date with the latest information inside the fitness and nutrition community… if not, we are doing a disservice to our health and our bodies. By staying informed and not trusting sensationalistic headlines, we’re getting the right type of education that will push us forward toward the bodies we want… and that’s what I’ve been aiming to do for you all along.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

When it comes to weight loss, the concept of the British Nutrition Foundation Quality Calorie (QC) has gained prevalence as a very important one in the fitness world.

It’s a concept that basically encourages us to not just look at the number of calories we’re consuming but also the quality of those calories (and of our diet as a whole) to help us on the road to getting enough of all the nutrients we need.

Not just protein, carbs, and fat, but vitamins, minerals, a fiber, as well.

It’s a concept that encourages us to limit our intake of concerning nutrients such as free sugars, salt, and saturated fat… all while increasing our intake of low-energy-density foods, quality nutrients, and wholesome vitamins and minerals.

It’s a concept that aims to help us think about the big picture of our diet, and create simple swaps that turn our diet into a much more healthy and effective one, all while remaining on the same calorie count.

Today, we’re going to explore that concept in a little bit more depth, so you can learn to leverage it in your day-to-day fitness and dieting efforts.

WEIGHT LOSS IS ABOUT CALORIES. BUT NOT ALL CALORIES ARE CREATED EQUAL.

When it comes to nutrition and weight loss, there are a couple of blatantly obvious factors that everyone watches out for. You know – the number of calories you consume, how much you exercise, how many meals you munch on every day, all of that.

But I hope we can all agree when we say – all calories are not created equal. There are factors *way* more crucial beyond just a plan calorie count and the number of macros you consume on a daily basis.

To quickly identify whether or not a source of calories is indeed high-quality, ask yourself:

• Where does this food come from?
• How was this food processed?
• What’s added to it?
• What’s the density of energy (calories) inside a gram of this food?

4 CATEGORIES OF CALORIE QUALITY FOR WEIGHT LOSS

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) did a study a couple of years ago in which they dove deep into exactly the questions I mentioned above and tried to find out what’s the healthiest food option category out there for people looking to lose weight.

Here’s what they found out:

For starters, they decided to classify foods into 4 major groups, based on the extent to which they’re processed.

Here are those 4 groups:

• Minimally processed/unprocessed foods – vegetables, beans, meats, eggs, whole grains.
• Processed ingredients – salt, butter, oil.
• Processed foods – canned foods, bread, cured meat.
• Highly-processed foods – sweet snacks, packaged foods, poultry, chips, cake, etc.

All of the study participants spent two weeks on a diet consisting of highly-processed foods, then spent the following two weeks on a diet of foods from the first category (that are minimally processed.)

They found out that the people who ate highly-processed meals ate an extra 500 calories every day, even though both of those diets *initially* contained the exact same amount of proteins, carbs, fats, and fiber.

They concluded that the reason this happens is that eating processed foods results in feeling less full, and therefore ultimately leads to eating more total calories throughout the day compared to a diet of unprocessed foods.

WHAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE WHEN IT COMES TO WEIGHT LOSS?

The study concluded that this happened because of two very important factors – protein and fiber. Protein and fiber tend to be very common in unprocessed foods, with the addition of helping you feel fuller for longer.

Highly processed foods tend to be high in sugar and salt, both of which are not only useless calories, but also tend to stimulate cravings and make you want to eat more of that specific food.

But unprocessed foods are chock-full of protein and fiber, both of which add to satiety, make you feel fuller, and are both low in calorie-density.

Researchers concluded that this is the reason why even when other factors are matched, study participants still had a higher calorie intake when their diet consisted of largely processed foods.

SO IF YOU WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT…

Just remember it’s not just about calorie counts. Even though it’s difficult, you can technically achieve a calorie deficit on a diet consisting of processed foods.

But it will be much harder, you’ll be having salt and sugar cravings throughout the day, and you’re much more likely to end up in a calorie surplus (not to mention throw your blood sugar levels off balance.)

Instead, if you want to not only lose weight but stay as healthy as possible, focus on quality calories.

If you want to base all your dieting efforts on one concept, let it be this one. (It’s on par with 80/20.)

When you start choosing unprocessed food options, you’ll find yourself feeling much fuller, you’ll feel much better, and you’ll lose weight sustainably and effectively.

Working from home is a more prominent culture among professionals in the past year, no thanks to COVID-19. And one of the implications of working from home is adding more weight, hence the need to engage in weight loss regimes. Moreover, the social interaction barrier resulting from the virus forced many companies to improvise with new strategies to achieve their goals.

Simultaneously, social distancing adds to the regular day-to-day vocabulary while it creates an unfamiliar territory. Moreover, it is easy for workers from home to develop some unwanted habits and become less productive.

However, it is not impossible to prevent bad habits and still maintain an excellent work-life balance. In other words, while working at home, workers can always keep a healthy living with high productivity.

How then can it be possible to stay healthy even while working from home? What are the things to learn, and what are the new habits to form? How can you prevent unhealthy work habits from home? What are the best weight-loss strategies to employ for a healthy life? This article illustrates some of these helpful strategies through the discussion below.

Healthy Habits while Working from Home

Working from home may not actually be new to some, while it may be entirely new. In any case, if you stick to the right things, you can remain productive even amid all sorts of distractions.

Some of the common distractions you may want to avoid include family members, pets, TV, and a comfortable sofa. In addition to the work from home innovation, workers can still control their time and other resources. The following cultures can help you form productive habits:

1. Create a workspace at home

The first step in preparing for a work-from-home session is to prepare a dedicated space with the least distraction and interruption. If you don’t already have a standard study room, then you can develop a small corner.

After the designation, you may want to inform every member of the family of the new development. As a result, they will make all necessary adjustments to allow some privacy. In light of that development, staying there will later bring a need to lose the gained weight.

Mind you, the privacy will allow you to own your own space that can enhance your creativity. You may also add some items such as a study table and a comfortable chair, and a few office utensils.

Remember that this space is now your office, so feel free to add whatever gives more ‘office feeling’ while minimizing distractions. We will discuss other essential things you need to put in place to achieve much more wellbeing while working from home.

2. Seek comfort by avoiding pain

Personally, I discovered that working from home largely depends on how comfortable you are with work. Starting from your sitting position to computer view angle and other postures.

Remember, you may have to be in this position for an extended period. Hence, avoid every place that unnecessarily stretches your neck, shoulder, or other static body parts.

When you feel any pain in your body due to strain or stress at work, take time to stretch that body part. It may be your leg, neck, fingers, wrist, or other supposedly mobile parts. All in all, you will need to work off any accrued weight in these simple weight loss exercises.

Medically, sitting sedentary for an extended period is directly related to diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Whether your work requires standing or sitting, enhance your health changes in a better way by increasing your mobility.

For instance, if you have to be attending to calls, you can also do that while walking around the space. Furthermore, you may have to stand against the wall to straighten your back or do some back exercise for better positioning.

3. Organize your schedule for a routine

Having a routine is another way to establish your chances of getting much more from your home office. One of the things that office work does for you is regressing all your timing to get the best.

Therefore, learn to always start work at the same time every day and maintain healthy boundaries as well. Part of that is also having a daily schedule and appointing each item on your list. As you achieve each listed item, you draw closer to your weight loss goal.

Also, organizing your day helps your mind to also focus on the necessary things while suspending others. Finally, have a specific time that all office work ends when you shut down the system.

4. Stay connected to the world

it is quite imperative to stay in touch with the world while working from home. This fact helps you to service your social needs despite the limitation of physical interactions.

There are many essential office tools that companies now employ to engage one another. Some of these tools include Zoom, Skype, Slack, Telegram, WhatsApp, and WeChat.

If you lead a team at work or you are responsible for scheduling regular meetings, Zoom can be a convenient tool. Ensure you factor these meetings into your daily schedule while maintaining discipline in other areas.

Staying in touch with the world removes the feeling of isolation that could otherwise capture the soul. However, keep your focus on the goal, which includes staying fit or losing weight.

5. Take a break

You know how the saying goes, that “all work and no play makes…”, hence the need to designate time for rest. While working from home and organizing your schedule, input the break times, whether for a walk or lunch.

The psychological essence of taking breaks during work is to take your mind off work for a while to rest the brain. Besides, you may take the time to take some nourishing foods the same way you will eat at regular work.

However, it is a bad habit to eat at your office desk except if you just need to keep a bottle containing water close. By the way, drinking a lot of water while working enhances your health by hydration.

Conclusion

On a final note, whenever you feel anxious or tired, take a few moments to relax to regain focus. Don’t force yourself on the work at hand. Instead, bear in mind that the work at home adjustments may not be quick. But at last, you will reach your desired goal, both personal (such as weight loss) and corporate.

Therefore give room for the little but constant adjustments until you get into the desired shape. Besides, stay in touch with the necessary quarters on the schedule to not lose touch with the overall goal.

Wishing you the very best!

Trust me, you are not the only one looking to break the bad habit of excess soda in your diet. And if you assume that it is easy to just quit the practice, you need to rethink it. Medically, high soda consumption can significantly add to the body weight and is not recommended if you target weight loss.

If it were that easy, perhaps it won’t even be a topic of discussion today. In other words, it takes strategic and diligent efforts to make you altogether quit drinking soda. Some people who have tried so hard to quit still find these drinks almost everywhere around.

For instance, vending machines, fast food joints, supermarkets, and other stores sell all soda. The options range from Coke to Pepsi as well as other standard soda drinks that definitely excites sugar-lovers.

This fact brings me to some reasons why you should quit taking soda immediately, mostly if you have never felt so. But before then, you may disagree that you have a soda habit until you find out that you usually take a can or bottle per day.

As a weight loss expert, Ally’s angels is a dependable partner to achieve great fitness. However, the fitness journey depends on breaking certain habits, which may include soda intake.

In making matters worse, some can practically go out late at night because they could not find any more soda in the refrigerator. Or you can flare up just because you could not take your daily dosage of coke or Pepsi.

Why do you have to stop taking soda?

Let us get back to the starting point, why do you have to kick out the strange habit of depending on soda. Truth is, soft or diet drinks are of themselves, not a wrong choice. However, when we consume much more than average, we are harming our health.

Tracey Halliday, the spokesperson for the American Beverage Association, supports this stance in a statement. She agrees that consuming diet soft drinks at a moderate level is part of a balanced lifestyle.

However, not all consumers stop below the average level; many Americans, for instance, shoot beyond this limit. For example, medical research in 2004 found that Americans above age 2 get up to 21% of their total calories intake from beverages (https://www.webmd.com/diet/guide/calories-chart ).

Furthermore, the article discovered that Americans triple their calories from sweetened drinks between 1977 and 2001. Imagine what you stand to gain in weight loss while breaking challenging habits such as soda intake.

The very harm of soda drinks is through the high-fructose corn syrup found in them alongside ordinary sugar. Also, excess calories from the intake of soda contribute mainly to the possibility of obesity, according to Barry Popkin in an interview. Barry is the director of the University of North Carolina Interdisciplinary Obesity program.

How then do you really stop taking in soda once and for all?

While many experts have lashed at the need to stop the bad habit, the work’s nitty-gritty lies in the process. How can you kick this habit out of your life and replace it with healthy ones? Experts came up with four significant ideas of how to quit drinking soda and break the addiction:

1. Make a decision

Every habit started with a decision and, funnily enough, will end with a decision as well. Many factors may have contributed to the growth of the tradition. But with gentle and diligent steps, you can also untie this gridlock.

However, this decision may not also be as easy as it sounds. But just like other serious decisions that affect your life and career, such a decision directly impacts your health, and indeed your life requires some seriousness.

So, if your usual style is to present yourself with the pros and cons before making a sound judgment, by all means, do. Conversely, if you need a friend to help you stick to your decision, that is only fine. What is essential is to make the decision and stick to it.

If your goal is to lose weight, you need to start by breaking those habits that add to your weight. No doubt, one of such practices is soda, containing fructose syrup and sugar.

2. Go for diet sodas as alternatives

Instead of outrightly putting soda and soda-related drinks out of your refrigerator, you may consider some diet sodas instead. Paul Rozin, a University of Pennsylvania professor, suggested that a gradual switch to diet sodas can help overcome real soda intake.

In other words, if you take more than one bottle of soda per day, switch gradually from one bottle while the rest is diet soda. The next step is to reduce further from one can/bottle to less. Then as time goes on, you will still eventually reduce the diet soda intake as well.

3. Target quitting all caffeine food content

While kicking out soda from your diet and your body system, you must also consider dealing with caffeine-containing foods altogether. By reducing caffeinated foods, you are invariably dealing with the need to take in more soda.

The mild addiction to soda intake is basically because of the caffeine content, making it relatively harder to break. However, when you focus on the bigger enemy, you are doing a lot of good. Little by little, you draw closer to achieving the bigger goal, which may be weight loss.

Experts agree that the work of reducing caffeine and soda is a gradual one and requires you to work at it each day. Depending on your consumption times and days, you may have to adjust some stuff about your day. For instance, carefully select what you have for breakfast and lunch.

4. Stock up alternatives to soda instead

Instead of worrying about soda in your refrigerator, why don’t you deliberately replace these drinks with their alternatives? For instance, you can stock up your store with plenty of non-soda drinks, including water.

Some of the alternatives you should consider are soy milk, skim milk, green tea, and black tea or water. By the way, coffee cannot be an alternative to soda because of caffeine. Besides, there are other unique ways to take in these alternatives to nourish your body perfectly.

Conclusion

On a final note, focus on the goal to altogether remove soda intake from your diet while building a healthy life. Apart from a healthy lifestyle, you can also reduce your body weight, especially if you are tending towards obesity. Many experts agree that the most-effective way to quit a tough habit is to replace it with a good one.

Therefore, as you focus on the advantages that non-soda drinks give you, you get more encouragement for better health. On the other hand, achieving your dream also boosts your self-confidence in health and in different walks of life.

There are two common reasons people engage in body exercise and dieting: weight loss or staying fit and healthy. However, the strategies to achieve these goals can become confusing over time. Hence the need to simplify the recommended methods that can complete them with evidence.

Besides, these wellness tips are according to experts’ views that are based on years of research. Find the expounded details below:

1. Stay away from sugar calories

This rule is particularly golden to everyone who plans to achieve a healthy life without worrying about weight loss. One significant effect of sugar is fats’ addition to your body, which will require you to seek weight loss regimes.

Due to the way the brain works, it measures calories from liquid sugar differently from other sugar sources. Therefore, when you take soda and other sugary drinks, you ingest more calories than usual.

Research has also shown that these sugar-containing drinks relate to obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and other health problems. Besides, don’t let anyone deceive you that these drinks contain antioxidants because the latter isn’t enough to overcome all the sugar effects.

2. Coffee isn’t that bad

I know that you have heard so many things about coffee and how you need to avoid it. I agree that coffee is not meant for everyone; however, not everything about coffee is terrible.

Coffee is one of the most vital antioxidants anybody can have – and this is a research-proven fact. So, contrary to sugar-containing foods, coffee can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease, as well as other illnesses.

3. Set a 5-meal-daily routine

What you eat determines your energy level as well as the rate of metabolism in your system. As a result, if you set a goal such as a 5-meal course, it will drive you to manage your health with only the essential nutrients.

Depending on your dietary goal of losing weight or remaining fit, you can trust the plan to get you there. It also has a way to help you manage your weight while maintaining focus.

4. Eat lots of nuts, vegetables, and fruits

The most significant benefit of taking in nuts is that it can help both obese and average-weight people. Therefore, nuts remain incredibly benefiting to your health due to vitamin E, magnesium, and another essential nutrient it contains.

Medical and nutrition experts proved by research that nuts help with weight loss, type 2 diabetes, and heart-related diseases. Other pieces of evidence proved that nuts can even boost your metabolism. Almonds could even help increase weight loss by up to 62%.

5. Take vegetables and fruits too

Fruits and vegetables contain prebiotic fiber, vitamins, minerals, and several antioxidants, potent biological effects. Research also shows that they help combat type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and other related illnesses. Moreover, people who eat lots of vegetables and fruits can live longer.

6. Stay away from processed junk foods

Research kept showing over time that processed junk foods are a capital ‘NO’ in dietary choices. The engineering that produces such foods essentially toys with the brain’s pleasure part while adversely affecting your essential health needs.

It may get as bad as getting addicted to certain processed food types such as can foods for some people. As an alternative, cook and eat real food instead of these junk.

7. Don’t overcook your meat

Overcooked or burned meat is not as healthy as a dietary choice because it destroys the protein structure. It also tampers with the other essential nutrients in the flesh. As a result of these chemical changes, it forms somewhat harmful chemical compounds and increases cancer risk.

8. Drink lots of water

There is never anything terrible with taking lots of water every time you have the chance. In the least sense of it, water enhances metabolism, including the burning of calories. When trying to lose weight, ensure you take a lot of water, increasing your chances by up to 44%.

Studies showed that in less than 2 hours, you can achieve up to 24 to 30% metabolism rate. And if you drink up to 2 liters of water daily, you can burn up to 96 calories of fat. What a quick way to weight loss!

9. Sleep well

By sleeping, you engage your body to recuperate naturally and remove all stress or anxiety. Besides, sleeping has its own techniques which you cannot afford to ignore. For instance, before bedtime, try to stay away from bright lights for some hours.

On the other hand, lousy sleep can reduce physical and mental performance and disrupt your appetite hormones or increase insulin resistance. Research also showed that poor sleep is one of the strongest contributors to obesity and weight gain as a single factor.

10. Eat fat-containing fish

The fats in these fishes are not harmful at all. In fact, they are healthy fats, coupled with high-quality proteins for good health. Examples of such fishes include the salmon, which contains Omega-3 fatty acids alongside other nutrients.

People who consume these types of fishes have a lesser risk of heart conditions, depression, and dementia.

11. Take in a lot of fiber and probiotics for your gut health

In case you don’t get enough of these nutrients and minerals from the regular foods, feel free to take food supplements. Bacteria that live in the gut help your overall health conditions.

Research has shown that any disruption to the gut bacteria balance can lead to chronic diseases, including obesity. The solution is an intake of food items that contain probiotic foods such as sauerkraut and yogurt. Alternatively, you can use food supplements with a lot of fiber to enhance the gut bacteria balance.

12. Practice aerobic exercise

Finally, a healthy lifestyle is not without the right aerobic exercise that helps you to stay fit. Aerobic exercise, otherwise known as cardio, is one of the best practices for physical and mental health living.

These aerobic exercises not only helps your breathing but also reduce belly fat that may otherwise build around your organs. Besides, a reduction in belly fat may lead to a significant increase in metabolic health.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the above are simple strategic, but highly effective ways to establish a healthy lifestyle through dieting. Some of these methods can also be very effective in weight loss goals while maintaining sound health. Hope you can find them highly helpful. And if you need more further help or information, feel free to contact Ally’s Angels.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

The New Year is here, and with it, countless new resolutions and goals have been set by gym-goers around the world – probably by you, too!

And whether your fitness goal right now is to drop a few extra pounds of fat, gain a few extra pounds of muscle, or just be fitter and healthier overall, you know the best, most sustainable way to achieve any of those goals is to create lasting habits that lead you to the right type of lifestyle. 

But as we all know, this can be particularly challenging during times of stress, especially when our usual routines go haywire and we’re forced to wreck our sleep schedule, diet, work hours, gym routine, and more. 

That’s why we’re here today to learn 7 tips that you can implement in your life right now to set yourself up for fitness success during the new year – regardless of how stressed or busy you are. 

Let’s get right into the 7 habit-building tips that will skyrocket your progress and help you crush your new year’s goals and resolutions…

We can’t *not* mention this – it’s the first and most vital step to achieving anything you set your mind to. Weight loss, strength gains, or better health, are the most achievable when you have a meaningful reason behind setting that goal (beyond the simple aesthetic goals of having a six-pack, for example.)

Start by asking yourself – why *do* you want to lose weight? Why do you want to get stronger, leaner, faster, healthier? Is it so you can have more energy and run around with your kids? Is it to manage a chronic condition? Or is it so you can get the thrill of entering a physique competition? 

Writing down your big goals and putting your biggest why next to them will not only help you keep track of the big picture and boost motivation, but also keep yourself dedicated to developing the healthy habits you’re looking to start in the new year. 

I know, I know. Perfectionism is in the blood of so many of us, but the perfection mindset is often solely responsible for massive amounts of action paralysis. 

While consistency with your new healthy habits is the most vital part of achieving lasting changes, the pressure you put on yourself to be perfect can only make you entirely give up when you eventually slip up – because you will, it’s just natural!

To avoid this, you have to remember that it’s what you do *most* of the time that matters, not some of the time. Focus on the 80/20 principle instead of going 100/0. Focus on viewing every day as an opportunity to make healthier decisions, and just know that the lapses you have are not a sign of failure but just a part of a healthy growth process. Consistency beats perfection every time.  

Anytime you see a great resource or some information you think will be helpful for you (like this e-mail, for example), save it and bookmark it. Listen to podcasts, pick up a new fitness-related book, read blogs (by proven authorities,) and always make sure you’re learning new ways to optimize your efforts. 

Staying up to date with the latest health and nutrition info isn’t just an extra time investment that pushes you toward a better lifestyle subconsciously, but it’s also a great way to weed out myths and make sure you’re really doing what you should be doing to achieve the goal you set for yourself. 

Why dwell on what foods you shouldn’t be eating? Instead, focus on trying new healthier foods in your day-to-day life. Maybe you can try some new (new to you) veggies from the farmer’s market, try adding a new exercise into your routine, try a new hobby like swimming or cycling, joining a new class, you get the idea. 

Don’t focus on all the bad things you have to give up… turn your attention to new and healthy alternatives. 

If you haven’t already. Whether you’re taking a walk alone in the park or you’re doing high-intensity intervals on the track, finding movements and exercises you enjoy and look forward to is one of the best things you can do for your health and body. 

Don’t shy away from new activities or from getting creative with things you already love doing. For example, if you’re someone who loves doing bodyweight exercises at home, why not spend a few days incorporating resistance bands? Exercise will bring you feel-good hormones like endorphins that all contribute to your journey… but you have to make sure it’s something you can stick with and enjoy. 

The connection between weight gain and stress is real, and it’s massive. When you’re stressed, the stress hormone cortisol builds up in your body, instantly leading to more inflammation, more sugar cravings, more weight gain, more processed foods, all things you don’t want in your life. 

Try to cut yourself some slack… find ways to reduce stress – meditate, do yoga, take walks in nature, call a friend when you’re feeling down, whatever you can to just let the stress off and keep your mind in check. 

The number you see when you step on the scale does NOT provide an accurate picture of your health and fitness. For this reason, you cannot let it become something you’re fixated on. 

Instead, find new ways and metrics that matter to you and track them. 

And I’m not even talking about lifting PRs, treadmill time, or other fitness metrics. How do your clothes fit? How much energy do you have throughout the day? Do you feel more or less stressed every day? Ask yourself these questions instead of attaching your happiness to a number that is *guaranteed* to go up and down.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

With Christmas and New Year’s right around the corner, it’s time we take a step back, reflect on the year that just passed in front of our eyes, and enjoy the holidays.

But while we’re spending time with our family and friends, cooking and enjoying delicious meals, or just relaxing all throughout the holidays…

It’s important that we remember that the New Year is right around the corner, and with it come an entire new year of setting and achieving fitness goals.

That’s why today, we’re going to talk about the 4 most vital steps to getting back on track to our fitness goals after the holidays, and learn how to walk out of the holidays motivated, inspired, and ready to crush your goals in 2021.

EMBRACE WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED THIS YEAR

While you have some free time during the holidays, I suggest you sit down, grab a pen and paper (or your phone), and start venting.

• What did you learn this year about your health and the goals you have for your health?
• Did you find new, more effective, and more sustainable ways to train, diet, and live?
• What are the 3 biggest lessons you learned this year?

And don’t just write about your successes – write about your failures. Embrace failure as an important part of your journey, and write down the mistakes you honestly feel you make (or the things you think you could have done better.)

The answers to these questions, as well as the lessons you’ve learned throughout the year, will serve as the catapult that will skyrocket your progress in the future.

SET THE RIGHT GOALS FOR 2021

Whether you’re someone who likes to set New Year’s resolution or you’re a downright goal-setter and goal-chaser, you still have to make sure you’re setting SMART goals.

SMART goals stand for:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-sensitive

This time of year is a great opportunity to revisit your goals and make sure they’re still following the SMART model. Many people tend to set goals that, with time, get more vague, unrealistic, unattainable, and downright irrelevant.

But you’re a smart, savvy goal-chaser. You’re going to set a list of practical, smart goals for 2021, and you’re going to follow this blueprint until you achieve the physique you want.

The goals you set are going to give you the initial motivation and willpower you need to jump back into your routine. From then, you can optimize your goals based on how fast you can get back to pre-holiday shape (and what results you achieve.)

EASE BACK INTO YOUR ROUTINE, DON’T RUSH IN

The more rest and time off you take during the holidays, the more careful you have to be when you’re trying to restart your routine.

Remember to ease into it. If you’re all about strength training, act as if your first week back in the gym is a de-load. If you’re all about cardio, don’t rush into high intensity training or long marathons as soon as you come back.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you need to go all in as soon as you step inside the gym.

You’ve given your body time to rest, and with good reason. And while picking up where you left off might sound empowering and exciting, it’s only going to cause you trouble, pain, overtraining, and even possible injury.

Instead, when you ease into your routine, you’re going to build the momentum you need to bring back your pre-holiday shape, and you’re going to be back to peak performance in only a few weeks.

KEEP YOURSELF ACCOUNTABLE

Getting back on track to your fitness goals, or taking the first step on a fitness journey, always requires accountability. Not only because motivation is not enough, but because keeping yourself accountable is a beneficial process that shines light onto other parts of your life.

Here are two of the most powerful ways to generate endless accountability in your life.

Write down your progress in a journal.

If you’re someone constantly juggling career, school, family, and countless other things, you might find yourself constantly lost in thoughts. But journaling, and writing things down, helps us organize and structure our thoughts.

Studies have shown that writing your goals down not only increases your chances of achieving those goals, but brings you more motivation every single day by keeping you accountable.

(Especially when it comes to new goals. If you finish off the year and you’ve achieved everything you wanted to achieve in the gym this year, you’ll likely develop a new set of goals for the New Year. Writing down these new goals helps you visualize and organize your thoughts, track your progress, create checklists that keep you productive, and so much more.

Get back into the gym with a friend.

Getting back to your pre-holiday form is easier said than done, but having a friend along who has the same goal as you helps a ton.

When you have a friend to keep you accountable for your progress, your exercise form, and your dedication inside the gym, you’ll both have a much easier time reaching the performance you had before the holidays.

Friends will be there to keep you in check so you’re not doing too much too soon (or so you’re not doing too little.) Plus, it’s a ton of fun!

Hey Angels and Alphas,

If you’re someone who is on a journey to losing fat or just getting leaner and slimmer overall, you’ve likely people telling you things like:

“If your goal is to lose fat, prioritize forms of exercise that burn the most fat.”
“If you want to lose fat, focus on workouts that get you into your fat-burning zone.”

Sound familiar?

These statements basically summarize the entire argument behind exercising in your “fat-burning zone.”

But what we call the “fat-burning zone” is nothing more than a sustained period in which your heart rate is moderately elevated.

It’s not this magical number of heartbeats per minute you’re supposed to reach in order to burn fat.

At your supposed “fat-burning zone”, you should still be able to effortlessly carry on a conversation with a friend sitting right next to you.

Let’s get one thing out of the way – your body has 3 primary sources of fuel that it turns to during exercise: protein, carbs, and fat. When you’re exercising at your low-
intensity, conversational pace (which will be approximately 60 percent of your maximum heart rate), about 55-65 percent of the calories you burn will come from fat.

Once you start increasing your intensity, or turning your easy jog into a high-intensity run, your body makes an instant shift into burning carbs in the form of sugar and
glucose, which are the body’s primary fuel for more energy-taxing movements (because sugar turns into energy QUICK.)

Fat takes a much longer time to break down and requires more oxygen to do so. This means that low-impact increases in activity are likely going to cause using fat
instead of your body’s carbohydrate stores.

To determine whether you’re training in that special fat-burning zone, the first thing you should do is determine your maximum heart rate (which can be easily done by
subtracting your age from 220.)

Then, multiply that number by 0.6, and voila, you have your fat-burning zone. If you’re, for example, 25 years old, you’re going to have a maximum heart rate of 195. So if you want to be training to burn fat, you should keep your heart rate at about 115-120 beats per minute while training.

Does this mean the “fat-burning zone” is the best way to burn fat?

(Short answer: No.)

While it is true that you’re going to burn a greater proportion of calories from fat if you keep your exercise in the fat-burning zone. That being said, you are going to likely burn more total calories if you exercise at a higher intensity. (Depending on the duration of your workout.)

If you, let’s say, burn 100 calories during a 15-minute session in your “fat-burning zone”, this means that 60 of those calories, or approximately 60 percent, came from
burning fat. Hurray!

But by contrast, if you’re performing a 15-minute high-intensity interval training (HIIT) session, you could essentially burn up to 200 calories, with 30-40 percent of them coming from fat. (So you’re burning 70 calories from fat.)

Do the math, and you’ll see how high-intensity training beats training in your “fat- burning zone” even though that’s effective, as well.

And while our numbers are totally ballpark, they’re here to give you a real example of how the slow, steady approach to fat-burning is less effective than the high-intensity, short-length training.

Think about this:

Sprinters are known for their explosive training. They do nothing but spring training cardio for an hour a day and have limited access to fat.
On the other hand, marathon runners do nothing but long-duration, slow and steady cardio for 1-2 hours a day and also have a little fat.

But which of the two has the overall more athletic physique?

Bringing it all together…

The “fat-burning zone” does exist. And while steady-state, low-intensity cardio may not be the most effective or productive way of burning calories from fat, there are still a ton of good reasons why you might want to exercise at a lower intensity.

If you’re someone just starting out, you should be keeping your regimen slow anyway. But just know that if you like this low-intensity approach to training, you
don’t have to feel like you have to push yourself into HIIT.

Don’t force yourself into embracing something that’s not sustainable. The best form of training for weight loss, ultimately, is the one that you will enjoy and do
consistently. If you hate HIIT, you’re not going to want to do it. That’s why you might as well focus on exercises you actually enjoy. It’s the desire to move and go train
that gets you out of sedentary habits and lifestyles.

But if you’re experienced, driven to achieve the highest result in the lowest amount of time, or just love HIIT, go for it.

Even if you love it, though, you can’t do it every day. You risk overtraining and burning yourself out, not to mention stalling your weight loss or injuring yourself.

Make room for low-intensity cardio sessions in your regimen, and you’ll see how quickly you can start busting through plateaus and burning more calories in-between
your usual HIIT sessions.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

You know just as well as I do that following a healthy, well-balanced diet requires sustainability and flexibility when it comes to the long-term. And when you’re trying to achieve a specific health or fitness goal, tracking macros seems to be one of the best ways to make sure that your diet is indeed balanced and healthy.

The process of setting a fitness goal begins with calculating a calorie intake target based on your current height, weight, physical activity, age, past training history, and so on.

Once determined, this calorie intake is further broken down into proportions of the three main macronutrients – protein, carbs, and fat.

And that’s why today, we’re taking a look at what proportions of macros you should be striving for based on your fitness goal!

To start, we need to understand the three big macronutrients – and the purpose they serve in our diet.

What are the three main macronutrients?

Protein

Protein allows your body to build, repair, and grow tissues, as well as protect your lean body mass. Protein is composed of amino acids, which come in 2 types: non-essential and essential. Essential amino acids are acquired through your diet. Non-essential amino acids are not required to be consumed through your diet since your body can produce them on its own. By eating a rich variety of veggies, fruits, nuts, grains, beans, lentils, and other foods abundant in protein, you’re getting the amino acids your body needs to build and repair itself.

Carbs

All carbohydrates are eventually broken down by the body into glucose, the body’s main energy source. In fact, organs such as your brain need glucose so they can function properly. Your body can create glucose out of a necessity by using proteins through a process called gluconeogenesis. Not only are they your primary energy source, but they also help synthesize specific amino acids. They provide you with energy and help your body get rid of waste by keeping your intestinal tract healthy. Carbohydrates can be simple or complex, depending on the difficulty your body has with breaking them down into glucose.

Fat

Fat basically allows your body to store energy, create specific hormones, absorb fat-soluble vitamins, cushion organs, and helps with the integrity of your cell membranes.

Fat comes in three main forms: trans fats, saturated fats, and unsaturated fats. Trans fats are the only type of fat that should be totally eliminated from your diet.

Saturated and unsaturated fats are essential to a healthy diet and a healthy body.

That being said, now that we know what the main three macronutrients are and what their purpose is, what proportion should they follow in our diet?

Here’s how to calculate them. Every example is given with a person with a 2,000-calorie target intake as a baseline.

If your goal is to maintain weight…

If you want to stay in maintenance mode and keep your weight steady, a good standard to follow is 50 carbs / 30 carbs / 20 protein.

Then just multiply your target calories by ratio by calories per gram. Keep in mind that carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram, fat contains 9 calories, and protein contains 4 calories per gram.

Which means…

2,000 calories X 0.5 = 1,000 calories / 4 calories per gram = 250g carbohydrates

2,000 calories X 0.2 = 400 calories / 4 calories per gram = 100g protein

2,000 calories X 0.3 = 600 calories / 9 calories per gram = 67g fat

If your goal is to build muscle…

If you’re trying to build muscle as hard as possible, and enhance your performance in and outside the gym, you will want to prioritize protein.

Use the example above, but keep the proportions 45 carbs / 35 protein / 20 fat.

If your goal is to lose weight…

In this case, you will need to put yourself at a calorie deficit. This means reducing your overall target calorie range by 10-15%, basically depending on the amount of weight you wish to lose.

In the example we shared above, the person with a baseline 2,000 calories will shift down to 1,800 calories. Then, based on the result they see in the next couple of weeks, they’ll either bump up their calorie intake or decrease it even more.

For this goal, proportions should look something like 45 carbs / 30 protein / 25 fat.

If you want to reach ketosis…

Many people are trying the keto diet right now, so it’s important that we address this. For people looking to lose weight and emphasize the calories from fat, proportions should look like 10 carbs / 20 protein / 70 fat.

That being said, there are many things you should know before trying out keto, so make sure you’re going in with an educated approach.

If heart health is your goal…

If you want to improve your heart health, you’ll likely want to put a special focus on limiting refined carbs and reducing saturated fat. If you exercise about half an hour a day, try a macronutrient breakdown of about 40 carbs / 30 protein / 30 fat.

The more active you are, the more you’re going to want to emphasize complex carbs instead of fat.

To conclude…

Regardless of the proportion of carbs, fat, and protein in your diet, what’s more important is maintaining a balanced diet with high-quality, energy-dense foods. A good rule of thumb is that you should always prioritize whole foods over processed foods, whenever you can.

When it comes to carbs, go with nutrient-dense starchy veggies and whole grains over the more processed, refined carbs and sugar out there on store shelves.

When it comes to fat, choose the most heart-healthy options you can find such as nuts, fatty fish, olive oil, and avocado.

Once you find your macro mix, stay consistent with it, and you will see the results you’re looking for. You’ll see your body change and adapt to your goals as you progress with developing your macro mix and finding the most optimal and sustainable proportion for you.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

If you’ve made a habit of getting on the scale every morning, or you just weight yourself every day, you’ll probably see the number on the scale change every time you step on it – from day to day. 

Maybe you gained weight, or lost it, or your weight increase is reflective of something that’s less impactful. The fluctuations you’ll see on the scale from one day to the next are all completely normal. 

If, for example, you always ate, drank, and exercised at the same time every day, then weighed yourself at the same time, then your weight would be relatively balanced over time (granted you drank the same amount of water and ate the same amount of food.) However, that’s just not realistic. 

That’s why we’re here today to talk about the many reasons standing behind the day-to-day fluctuations you see in your weight… so you can get a better idea of when you should be weighing yourself for the most effective tracking.

#1 – THE PHYSICAL WEIGHT OF FOOD AND DRINKS

Foods and drinks are essential for supplying the body with nutrients and calories that obviously influence weight gain. But they also have a mass completely unrelated to their calorie count which also influences your body weight – in the short term. 

Let’s say you drink two cups of water and immediately step on the scale – we’ll, you’ll be a pound heavier due to the mass of the liquid. But this has nothing to do with gaining a pound of fat or muscle. 

This is why most people choose to weigh themselves early in the morning, before they have consumed anything. But even if you ate a big meal at dinner, you haven’t given your body enough time to digest it, so in the morning the number on the scale will likely be bigger than usual. 

#2 – SWEAT

Water loss is a massive factor when it comes to snap weight fluctuations. This is one of the reasons why many athletes succumb to dehydration during intense, long workouts. Dehydration of only 2 percent of body weight, that then isn’t replenished before weighing in, results in a 3-pound “loss” for the average 160-pound adult. 

Pro tip: weight yourself before and after workouts so you can get an idea of how much water you sweat out and how much fluid you should replenish.

#3 – CARBS… AND SODIUM

A lot of quick jumps in weight are just changes in fluid balance. Sweat and dehydration can create losses of fluids, but water retention from sodium and carbs can cause the opposite.  

When an athlete is carb-loading, for example, they’re consuming a lot of carbohydrates to load the muscles (and the liver) with glycogen for energy to burn during training. And while this is great for energy availability, each gram of carbohydrates stored basically needs 2-3 grams of water to go along with it. As the carbohydrates are burned off, this water will be lost, but the weight gain is there – although temporary.

Moreover, sodium is another mineral responsible for fluid balance. Taking on a very salty meal can cause a slight imbalance in fluid levels between your vasculature and your gut, leaving you feeling bloated and puffy (as your body is trying to regulate fluids.) Managing sodium remains a tricky task for most athletes, and variables often vary from person to person. 

#4 – HORMONES…

Even stress can cause short-term weight gain. Cortisol, the stress hormone, is usually elevated after workouts or other periods of intense physical or mental stress. This hormone increases inflammation around the body, leading to fluid retention, hunger, and changes in digestion and metabolism.

While there isn’t much we can do about our hormones and the way they impact our weight loss efforts, the best thing you can do is to work to reduce the stress you experience on the daily. With less stress and less general inflammation, more relaxation techniques, and a high antioxidant diet, we can alleviate the negative effects of hormonal changes on our weight.

#5 – THE DAY OF THE WEEK

People are not stationary, and neither are their eating habits. Our eating habits tend to change throughout the week. Many people find that, for them, the week starts off healthy and with motivation and then declines as the week goes on, where the happy hour and cheat meals take over. Studies have shown that this exact eating cycle is reflected on the scale – people weighed more between Saturday and Tuesday before their weight decreased again as the body processed everything and adjusted to the intake of the new week.

This is, again, completely normal, and is not attributed to long-term weight gain. If you want to just reduce this weekly fluctuation, aim to stay consistent with your eating habits. Just know this likely won’t make or break your efforts.

Bringing it all together…

Weighing yourself every morning will open your eyes to the fluctuations our bodies experience on a daily basis. Then, you can easily connect the fluctuations on the scale to your workouts, stress, eating habits, and so on… by doing this, you’re getting a much better understanding of how your body reacts in a more holistic, full-spectrum sense. 

Even though seeing this constantly changing number can be really stressful by itself, and even demotivating, research has documented that obsessing over this can lead to a negative mindset. Whether you are looking to gain weight or lose weight, just remember the day-to-day matters much less than the long-term trend.

Weigh yourself each morning, write it down, and do that for 7 days. Then combine the numbers you got and divide by 7. Keep that as your average weight for the week, and do that for 8 weeks. You’ll see a clear trend toward gaining weight or losing weight, instead of focusing on the day-to-day, full of its fluctuations and ups and downs that do not translate to real weight changes.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

Whether we like it or not, many of us will sooner or later have to pause our workout routines. We might be stressed at work, on a vacation, or just needing a break – there are plenty of reasons why sometimes, we’re going to take time off the gym, and that’s completely okay.

However, no matter how badly we need a break, you’re always going to worry about losing all your hard-earned muscle gains before you’re ready to start training again.

That’s why today, we’re here to break down the science of how long it takes to start losing muscle mass, and what you can do to make sure that doesn’t happen even while you’re on a break.

Let’s get right into it.

In the first 72 hours after your last workout…

If you’re someone who doesn’t particularly train or follow a regime, you’re going to see quick losses in muscle mass in the first 72 hours after your last training. Even your heart, which is a muscle as well, will show signs of decreased performance by lowering the amount of blood it can pump per beat after 72 hours off from exercise.

You’ll instantly notice the effects of stopping exercise on your heart health – much sooner than you will in your biceps or quads. If you work out on a Monday and then proceed to miss three training days (therefore training again on Friday,) you will feel a lot more breathless than usual. This is because less oxygenated blood is being sent out from the heart on every beat. Even though it’s not going to break your training, it’s actually pretty noticeable of a difference.

Although you actually start losing muscle mass after 3 days, you probably won’t notice any of the losses until you’ve gone at least 3 weeks without training. One recent study found that men who train regularly can take up to three weeks off from exercise without any noticeable loss in muscle mass.

What factors come into play when determining how fast we lose muscle mass?

How long you’ve been training (and how consistently.)

The more time you’ve spent in the gym and the more time you’ve spent on developing your muscle mass, the better off you’ll be and the longer the break you can take without experiencing any major losses. If you’re already fit, and your muscles are developed, you will have a baseline of muscle that other, less experienced lifters, will not have.

Your dietary choices and habits.

For example, adequate protein is a necessity when building and maintaining muscle mass. If you’re skipping on your protein or not getting enough, your body will simply not have the necessary amino acids (which are the building blocks of your body’s proteins) to keep up with the continuous breakdown and reshaping of cells. Eventually, your body starts pulling protein from your muscle stores in order to get the necessary amino acids it needs. The result? You guessed it, losing muscle.

One study examined sedentary and moderately active elderly women who followed a low-protein diet (which was about 1.5 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight every day) lost approximately 14% of their muscle mass in just 9 weeks! What’s surprising is that 1.5 grams of protein a day falls within the healthy recommended range of protein per kilogram for most older adults.

That’s why even if you’re not training, you have to make sure you’re getting enough protein to maintain healthy muscle mass.

And sure, protein needs may vary from one person to another, but as a general guideline, the INSS (International Society of Sports Nutrition) suggests that active people should aim for a protein intake between 1.5-2 grams per kilogram of body weight (and older adults should aim for the higher end of the spectrum.) To put that in perspective, that’s about 100-130 grams of protein every day for active adults.

Your age and current fitness.

There are many age-related changes that will ultimately make it harder for you to build and maintain muscle. One of them is a change related to the nervous system. 

As we’re aging, we being to lose motor neurons. Some studies suggest that there’s a drastic decrease in these motor neurons between the ages of 60 and 70. Motor neurons transmit basic impulses from the spinal cord that tell our muscles when they should contract. 

When you lose these motor neurons, it becomes very difficult to recruit more muscle fibers. And when you can’t recruit muscle fibers, this means fibers won’t break down and rebuild back stronger. 

Strength training will, however, reverse these changes to the nervous system – as well as various other age-related body changes – but that being said, once you stop training, the benefits gradually dissipate. 

Your gender.

When it comes to muscle, men tend to have a slight advantage. Men have more natural testosterone, which is anabolic to the muscle tissues and helps with their development and maintenance. (Anabolic meaning the process of building larger molecules out of smaller molecules, just like building protein out of amino acids.)

The bottom line is…

That how quickly you’ll lose your muscle mass after you stop training depends on a variety of factors, but as a general rule of thumb, you can expect noticeable losses in muscle mass in 2-4 weeks after you stop training.

If you have to stop exercising for whatever reason, and you wish to maintain and keep your hard-earned muscle mass, you could achieve a lot of luck just by doing two strength training workouts per week, as experts suggest. Target every major muscle group, do that 1-2 sets of 8-12 reps, and maintain a high intake of protein, and you’ll slow down the process of gradual size and strength loss. 

But even if you can’t, or you just don’t want to train for a few weeks, you don’t have to go back to square one when you restart your routine. As long as you’ve been training consistently up until your break, you will be able to rebuild your size and strength rather quickly.

In this article, you’re going to learn about the different organizations and competitions in the bodybuilding/modeling world.
You’re going to learn about…

• The WBFF
• The NPC
• The ICN
• The NABBA
• The IFBB
• The ANB

Whether you’re a gym-goer looking to learn more about the different bodybuilding organizations, or an athlete interested in learning more about how competitive bodybuilding works in the real world, this article is for you.

You’re going to learn everything there is to know about how these organizations were created, what their goals are, the differences in their rules and regulations, and the various categories of athletes that they’re looking to promote and work with.

Let’s get started.

WBFF

WBFF stands for world beauty fitness and fashion. The professional athlete, Paul Dillett, found the organization. It’s one of the few bodybuilding organizations created by a professional athlete. They aim to become an industry leader by providing competitors with marketing opportunities to grow as athletes. The goal of WBFF is to merge music, fashion, beauty, and fitness.

Not only that, but they want to support their partners to promote health, fashion, and entertainment. The WBFF seeks to raise the standards in the industry by being professional and honest. They are not just a fitness organization – they view themselves as a brand that wants to support their athletes to reach the next level in the sport of bodybuilding.

The WBFF uses its connections with different partners to provide each of its athletes with sponsorship and other marketing opportunities. Their events are of the most well-produced shows in the fitness industry.

Male Categories

Male Fitness Model

The Men’s fitness model category is for men who display an athletic and defined physique without having as much muscle as a muscle model. Every competitor has to wear square-cut shorts that can be plain or patterned.

Muscle Model

This category is for athletes who appear too muscular to be a fitness model, but don’t generally participate in bodybuilding. The judges are looking for overall physique, symmetry as well as muscle definition, and conditioning. Competitors can crossover to the Male Fitness category if they want.

Transformation Division

This division is for people who are making their way to a healthier lifestyle. They may not be ready for more advanced division, but they can show the world how much they have improved. To participate, you’ll need three before and after photos, as well as a short bio explaining your personal journey.

Female Categories

Diva Figure Model

The Diva Figure Model competition is for those women who have more muscle and definition than diva bikini or fitness competitors. Judges are looking for marketability, incredible physique, and excellent stage presence.

Diva Wellness

Here, the competitors should have more developed lower body physique. The focus of this competition is on the muscle and tone of the body. The judges are looking for overall beauty as well as marketability.

Diva Bikini Model

The Diva Bikini Model is a beauty contest for women who appear slightly muscular and have an excellent tone definition. Judges are looking for a more developed body physique. The focus is on the shape and tone of the body as well as overall beauty and marketability.

Diva Fitness Model

This category is for female athletes who have more muscle tone and definition than those participating in the Diva Bikini Model. Judges are looking for athletic physiques, excellent marketability, and a confident stage presence.

Commercial Models

The competitors should be between the ages of 17 to 45 to participate. It’s a very specialized branch of modeling, but it’s incredibly lucrative. Here, the judges are looking for beauty and marketability, as the winners will pose for some of the world’s biggest magazines.

Rules:

1. All competitors have to use the official WBFF Beauty Service as well as the official WBFF tanning service if they want to participate.
2. The models should wear shoes that compliment them and that are in line with the WBFF brand. The WBFF no longer allows clear stilettos.
3. To compete in any WBFF category, you need to be at least 18 years of age.
4. For the Diva Bikini Model category, there is an over 35 years class.
5. Contestants shouldn’t invite guests backstage.
6. No alcohol is allowed at the shows.
7. If you’re competing for the first time, you should attend the WBFF amateur competition.
8. No previous experience is required to participate in a WBFF competition.
9. All props and costumes have to be approved by the WBFF before the competition.

NPC

NPC, or the National Physique Committee, is the most well-known physique organization in the world, created in 1982. In this competition, the athletes in bodybuilding, fitness, figure, bikini, and physique can participate as long as they are members of the organization.

It’s the primary amateur organization in the world, and many of its successful athletes attend professional IFBB events later on in their careers. NPC’s athletes frequently appear in different magazines like Muscle & Fitness, Muscular Development, and others.

Their most popular divisions are the Men’s physique and Women’s bikini fitness. The competitors in these categories can appear in various magazines and marketing campaigns. The NPC competitions are not hardcore bodybuilding contests but rather an amateur competition where they celebrate each of their athletes’ achievements. They organize thousands of live events, and they are frequent appearances of celebrity hosts like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Male Categories

Men’s Classic Physique

The competitors should have a nice muscular physique as well as symmetry. Judges are looking for marketability and excellent stage presence. Competitors shouldn’t be as bulky as other categories, but they still have to display strong muscle development.

Men’s Physique

Competitors should have proper shape and symmetry as well as excellent musculature and overall condition. However, this is not a bodybuilding competition. Judges are looking to see the confidence and personality of each competitor when posing. They have to display their bodies uniquely and creatively.

Here are the weight classes for male competitors:

• Bantamweight – up to 143 ¼ lbs.
• Lightweight – over 143 ¼ lbs up to 154 ¼ lbs.
• Middleweight – over 154 ¼ lbs up to 176 ¼ lbs.
• Light-Heavyweight – over 176 ¼ lbs up to 198 ¼ lbs.
• Heavyweight – over 198 ¼ lbs up to 225 ¼ lbs.
• Super Heavyweight – over 225 ¼ lbs.

Female Categories

Women’s Physique

Competitors have to show musculature as well as overall symmetry. They should have a balance between the upper and lower body. Judges are looking for marketability as well as stage presence and confidence. The athletes have to present themselves in a muscular and yet feminine way.

Bikini

Here, the judges look for musculature that displays the female body in a sexy and feminine way. They need to have full round glutes with a slight separation between the hamstrings and the glutes. Competitors should have overall symmetry and excellent body shape, as well as marketability and great stage presence.

Figure

Competitors should have an excellent V shape figure that has a small degree of muscle definition. They also have to display excellent condition. Judges are looking for overall symmetry and balance that shows the beauty of each contestant.

Wellness

This competition is for female athletes that want to show more body mass in their hips, glutes, and thighs. They should have a developed upper body but not as much as their lower body. This division is all about displaying the most beautiful parts of the female body without demonstrating any imbalances.

Here are the different weight classes for female competitors:

• Lightweight – up to 115 lbs.
• Middleweight – over 115 lbs up to 125 lbs.
• Light-Heavyweight – over 125 lbs up to 140 lbs.
• Heavyweight – over 140 lbs.

Rules:

1. Male competitors have to wear plain in color suits without fringe or wording.
2. Female competitors have to wear two-piece posing suits that may have printed design, including fringes, lace, sparkle, or fluorescents.
3. All posing suits must be V-shaped without any thongs.
4. Each competitor can bring their own music, but it shouldn’t contain any vulgar lyrics.
5. Only wedding bands and earrings are allowed. Competitors can’t wear any other jewelry as well as props or gum.
6. Competitors must have US citizenship if they want to compete in a US-based NPC contest.
7. If they don’t have US citizenship, they must at least have a green card.
8. If the competitor is Canadian, they should be a member of the CPA to participate in a competition.

ICN

ICN was created in the 90s with the idea of taking Australian bodybuilding on a world-class level. Nowadays, they run around 40 competitions a year. The ICN is focused not only on running events but on educating young people about the dangers of obesity and unhealthy eating. Not only that, but it focuses on the natural side of bodybuilding.

The organization’s goal is to support natural athletes who want to develop their physique without taking any performance-enhancing drugs. The creator of the organization is Wayne McDonald, who wanted to develop natural bodybuilding in Australia. He organized their first event, known as “The Australian Natural Titles” in 1991, which was a massive success.

The first event in Australia had an Olympic Gold Standard in drug testing, which showed that Wayne is serious about developing natural bodybuilding in Australia. In 1995, Wayne organized the first international bodybuilding event outside the US in Melbourne.

It was the World National Cup, which was another great success. More than three decades later, the ICN remains of the most critical Australian bodybuilding organizations, having eight independent state organizations.

Male Divisions

Fitness Model

Here, competitors have to present themselves professionally as a model. It’s more of a beauty contest than a bodybuilding competition. The judges are looking for symmetry, body competition, and stage presence as well as marketability.

Men’s Physique

Competitors have to show proper shape and symmetry as well as muscularity and excellent condition. However, this is still more of a beauty contest than a bodybuilding competition as the judges are focusing on symmetry and body composition.

Bodybuilding

In this category, competitors have the most bulk and muscle definition, compared to other divisions. Here, the judges are looking for musculature and a well-balanced physique as well as stage presence.

Female Categories

Bikini Model

Competitors shouldn’t have a six-pack. The judges are looking for a softer, beach body compared to a category like the fitness model class. The competitors have to wear just bikini and have a great overall body shape as well as marketability and stage confidence.

Ms. Runway

This category is all about looking fit and healthy in a classy dress. Competitors have to wear a long evening gown style of dress. While their bodies are important, the competitors have to display confidence, excellent posing as well as symmetrical body structure.

Sports Model

In this division, judges are looking for remarkable sportswear and shoes that complement each competitor’s body. It lies between Bikini and Fitness models. Here, the competitors have to show symmetry, body composition, as well as confidence, and stage presence.

Swimwear Model

This category is for competitors whose shape looks better in a one-piece outfit. They have to showcase their bodies in the best light possible. Judges are looking for symmetry, beauty, and excellent body composition, stage presence, and uniqueness.

Angels

The Angels division is open for all female competitors. They not only have to show an excellent body composition and symmetry but personality and confidence as well. Here, the judges are looking for a combination of beauty and presentation. The competitors have to express their personalities in a fun and creative way.

Fitness Model

In this category, judges are looking for competitors with six-packs. The judges are looking for a good balance between musculature and beauty. Not only that, but the competitors have to display themselves in a way that compliments their feminine personality.

Classic Figure

Judges look for overall symmetry, balance, and excellent stage presentation. This is more of a bodybuilding competition compared to the previous divisions. Here, the judges are looking for a more muscular look as well as confidence and creative presentation.

Figure

In this category, judges are looking for a bodybuilding build but with less bulk. The competitors have to show their feminine side as musculature. Competitors need to have an excellent symmetry, good body structure, and stage presentation.

Bodybuilding

Compared to the other categories, competitors should have the most bulk and muscle definition in this division. The judges are looking for an excellent tone, symmetry, and body structure that showcases their musculature.

Rules:

1. There are no restrictions on the color or design of the dress.
2. Competitors must be Australian citizens or have a residency visa.
3. Competitors with muscle implants or injections can’t participate.
4. Competitors have to enter the event a day before because same-day entries are not allowed.
5. The athletes have to be members of the organization to participate in the competition.
6. The minimum age of all competitions is 15 years old.
7. To compete, the athletes have to be in the top 5 in any ICN contest.
8. All competitors must be completely drug-free to participate in any contest.

NABBA

NABBA is the original competitive bodybuilding association, created in 1948. It ran the first Mr. Universe competition in 1950. The late Oscar Heidenstam became the secretary of the organization and ran it for more than 30 years. Some of the most high-profile performers in this competition were Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Pearl, and Reg Park.

The international branch of this organization was created in 1984, and since then, it has hosted European and Worldwide championships. This branch has the support of more than fifty countries around the world. They are ten elected area reps that cover England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland that are members of the NABBA council. Each of these areas holds a qualifying event that leads to the annual Mr. & Ms. Britain Finals.

That event then turns into a qualifier for the European and Universe Championships that become harder and harder every year. The last Universe competition had more than 130 athletes from more than 20 countries competing for the grand prize.

Male Categories

Men’s Bodybuilding

Judges are looking for the overall quality of muscular development. Competitors have to weight a maximum of 80kg to participate in this category. The judges are looking for equal development of their body parts as well as an overall symmetry of their body composition.

Men’s Sports Shorts

This is more of a beauty contest than a bodybuilding competition. The judges are looking for symmetry and well-toned body composition. Here, competitors should have defined abs but not as a bulky physique as the bodybuilding competition.

Female Competitions

Miss Bikini

Competitors should wear one or two-piece bikini. They should have a natural tan that compliments their physique. In this competition, the judges look for the complete package of musculature, beauty, and personality.

Miss Toned Figure

Judges are looking for a balanced and symmetrical athletic figure. The competitors have to be confident in their presentation to show their best. However, this is more of a beauty contest than a bodybuilding competition, so too much musculature won’t be appreciated.

Miss Athletic Figure

The competitors in this category have to show athletic and feminine development. One of the most important aspects of this competition is showing muscle definition and low body fat. However, the judges are not looking for the extremes. They want to see a healthy balance and musculature.

Miss Trained Figure

Here the competitors must have a feminine shape and proportion. They have to retain a “trained look” and low body fat levels without carrying development or definition to an extreme that could be classed as unfeminine. Here, the judges are looking for the complete package of musculature, beauty, and well-balanced body definition.

Rules:

1. All competitors have to be NABBA members.
2. Competitors can’t participate in more than one contest.
3. Junior competitors must be 20.
4. Senior athletes must be over 45.
5. Competitors can use tanning color.
6. Any competitor that acts in an unsportsmanlike manner will be disqualified.
7. A first-time competitor shouldn’t have competed before.

IFBB

IFBB stands for the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness. It’s the governing body of bodybuilding and fitness, founded in 1946 in Montreal. Two brothers, Ben and Joe Weider, found the organization with only one goal in mind – to establish world-renowned athletes that take the sport to the next level.

Now, the organization oversees International events like World and Continental championships. Now, IFBB has more than 170 national federations worldwide, having grown from 2 initial. The IFBB holds more than 2500 events globally, which vary from local events to global competitions. The most successful competitors go to the IFBB Hall of Fame.

To join the Hall of Fame, the competitor must have made major contributions to the sport of fitness and bodybuilding. Also, they must be retired for at least five years to be considered for the honor.

Male Categories

Bodybuilding

Judges are looking for athletes that don’t have any weak points. Competitors have to train their body parts and muscles to their maximum while maintaining symmetry and balance. The athletes that show more muscle details are going to be the winners of the competition. The other important thing is the balance of the physique.

Classic Bodybuilding and Games Classic Bodybuilding:

This contest is for competitors who want to develop a lighter “classic physique” than the bodybuilding category. The judges are looking for a well-balanced and tom physique that shows excellent muscle shape and definition.

It has five different height categories:

• 168 cm
• 171 cm
• 175 cm
• 180 cm
• over 180 cm

Games Classic Bodybuilding

This contest is for less muscular men compared to the Classic Bodybuilding category. It has two different height categories – up to 175 cm and over 175 cm.
The judges are looking for more of a balanced physique than a muscular definition and stage presence and marketability.

Men’s Physique

The judges are looking for competitors to show proper shape and symmetry, as well as musculature and excellent condition. This competition is for athletes who eat clean, train hard, and show their physique but have less muscular development.

Here are the different height divisions:

• 170 cm
• 173 cm
• 176 cm
• 179 cm
• 182 cm
• Over 182 cm

Men’s Fitness

The competitors must not only display strength and muscle definition but flexibility and confidence as well. The judges are looking for an overall balance and presentation that shows a strong and well-developed physique.

It has four height categories:

• 170cm
• 175cm
• 180cm
• Over 180cm

Female Categories

Women Fitness

Here, the judges are looking for a shapely, athletic-looking physique. The competitors should have less musculature and more of an overall athletic physique.

There are two height categories – up to 163 cm and over 163 cm.

The judges want to see an excellent strength and conditioning as well as confident stage presence and flexibility.

Women Body Fitness

The competitors need to have an overall athletic appearance, looking symmetrical with a small amount of body fat. The judges are looking for more of a balanced physique and stage presence than overall muscle development.

There are four body height categories:

• 158 cm
• 163 cm
• 168 cm
• Over 168 cm

Women’s Bikini-Fitness

Competitors don’t have to be as bulky as other categories, but they still have a nice body definition with a little musculature. Here, the competition is for women who keep their bodies in shape and eat healthily but are not as muscular as the bodybuilding categories.

The competition has eight height categories:

• 158 cm
• 160 cm
• 162 cm
• 164 cm
• 166 cm
• 169 cm
• 172 cm
• Over 172 cm

Women’s Physique

This division is for female athletes that want to show a heavier, bodybuilding-style body without going to the extreme. They have to display an aesthetically pleasing shape that still remains feminine.

There are two categories in this division – up to 163 cm and over 163 cm.

The judges are looking for overall athletic development as well as a well-balanced and symmetrical physique.

Women’s Wellness Fitness

The category is for women who want to display a more muscular physique that’s also bulkier compared to the other categories.

There are four Wellness Fitness categories:

• Up to 158 cm
• Up to 163 cm
• Up to 168 cm
• Over 168 cm

Mixed Pairs

This category is for women that are participating in either the female physique category or the female fitness to perform with a male who is performing in a male bodybuilder or the classic male bodybuilder competition.

Here, the judges are looking for an overall symmetry, muscle size, definition, and skin tone. The couples are going to be judges as a unit to see how well they complement each other’s physiques.

Children Fitness

Children Fitness is the only sports division that’s for children. It has no lower age limit, but the upper age limit is 16 years old. The judges are looking for athletic performance, stage confidence, as well as creative ways for the competitors to display their personality.

Here are the age categories for girls:

• Up to 7 years
• Up to 8 years
• Up to 9 years
• Up to 10 years
• Up to 11 years
• Up to 12
• Up to 13 years
• 14-15 years

Boy’s categories:

• Up to 7 years
• 8-9 years
• 10-11 years
• 12-13 years
• 14-15 years old

Rules:

1. To participate in an IFBB competition, an athlete must have an IFBB international card as well as the citizenship of the country they want to represent.
2. The competitor can’t represent two countries in the same year.
3. The athletes must have the approval of her national federation to participate in the competition.
4. Competitors can’t contact the organizer directly.
5. All competitors have to show up in the official athlete registration before the show.
6. At the time of registration, all athletes must have a valid IFBB international card, a passport, or a citizenship card, and a music CD.
7. The music shouldn’t contain any vulgar or offensive lyrics.

ANB

A young man, passionate about strength training, created the ANB (The Australian Natural Bodybuilding Federation) in 1983. His name is Robert Powell, and at the time, he owned a supplement store in Sydney.

Now, more than two decades later, ANB has hosted countless world and Australian championships. Their membership base is growing every year, attracting the best Australian athletes. Their focus is on helping athletes build their own legacy by giving them a platform to show their physique. ANB continues to sell out shows providing its athletes with maximum exposure.

The ANB organization’s goal is to raise the standard in bodybuilding, health, and fitness by being professionals. They want to support their athletes with unlimited sponsorship and marketing opportunities. ANB provides everyone with equal opportunity and support, whether their athletes, sponsors, or partners. They treat all of them as part of the big ANB family.

Male Categories

Fitness Model

This category is for competitors who have a little muscle definition but are not as bulky as classic bodybuilders.

The Fitness model category has five divisions:

• Novice
• Under 25
• Over 25
• Over 35
• Open

The judges are looking for an athletic physique that has a nice muscular development as well as tone.

Physique Model

Here, all competitors have to wear European trunks. They have to show more muscle than the fitness model category.

It has five different divisions:

• Novice
• Under 25
• Over 25
• Over 35
• Open

However, this category is more of a beauty contest than a bodybuilding competition as the judges are looking for a well-balanced physique.

Bodybuilding

Judges are looking for the most muscularity compared to the other categories. Competitors should have excellent muscle definition, condition, symmetry, shape, and presentation.

It has ten different divisions:

• Novice
• Teen
• Junior under 22
• Masters +40
• Under 65kg
• Under 70kg
• Under 80kg
• Under 90kg
•  Over 90kg
• Open

The judges are looking for six-packs and well-defined musculature that displays confidence.

Female Categories

Swimsuit International

Judges are looking for an excellent stage presentation, symmetry, and posing. Competitors have to wear a one-piece swimsuit. The category is open for all bikini and fitness models. The competitors have to show nice muscle definition, tone, and athleticism as well as display confidence when posing.

Bikini Model

Here, judges are looking for a softer, X-shaped physique compared to a category like the fitness model class. Competitors should demonstrate symmetry, stable conditions, and great shape.

It has five divisions:

• Novice
• Under 25
• Over 25
• Over 35
• Open

In this competition, the judges are looking for the complete package of beauty, musculature, and confident stage presence.

Fitness Model

Competitors should have a full six-pack as well as an X-shape physique that more athletic compared to the previous two categories:

It has five divisions:

• Novice
• Under 25
• Over 25
• Over 35
• Open

The judges are looking for a more athletic physique compared to the previous female categories.

Female Figure

Here, competitors should have more muscle definition than the Fitness model category but not as a professional bodybuilder.

It has six divisions:

• Novice
• Under 25
• Over 25
• Over 35
• Masters +40
• Open

The judges are looking for symmetry, musculature, condition, and excellent stage presence and body shape.

Theme Wear

This category is open for all female models. Judges are looking for a creative costume selection as well as props. It’s about showing your personality. The competitors still have to look athletic, but they have showcase themselves in a fun way that compliments their physique.

Female Physique

Here, competitors should have more muscularity compared to any other category. Judges are looking for symmetry, shape, condition, and presentation. This category is open for all female competitors and models looking to show how strong they have become.

Rules:

1. To compete in any of the above categories, you must be a winner in either an ANB national/Pro-AM event or a DFAC world event.
2. Then, you’re eligible to compete as a pro.
3. You receive a pro card that enables you to participate. It’s valid for 12 months.
4. You’re free to compete in other natural bodybuilding federations.
5. The cost for an athlete to participate in a show is $350.
6. For amateurs, it’s $250.
7. The renewal of the card is $175.
8. As an ANB Pro, the competitors may be invited to make a guest appearance in a particular show.
9. They have a strong anti-drug policy supporting natural athletes only.

Conclusion

To summarize, here are the major differences between the competitions:

• The WBFF is the world’s leading beauty and fitness competition. It’s not only for showing athleticism but personality as well.
• The NPC is the leading bodybuilding amateur organization in the world. It’s an excellent stepping stone for athletes that want to start competing professionally.
• The ICN is an Australian organization that wants to bring the Australian bodybuilding to a world-class level by creating different competitions and events.
• NABBA is one of the first bodybuilding organizations that has been created. It gave birth to world-renowned athletes like Arnold Schwarzenegger.
• The IFBB is the governing body in the bodybuilding industry. It’s one of the most well- known organizations in the business. It oversees the biggest competitions like the European and World Championships.
• The ANB is another Australian organization that creates events in the country. Their goal is to provide Australian athletes with a platform to grow and reach the world’s stage.

As you see, every organization has a different goal and a different way of achieving it. If you’re interested in participating in any of their competitions, you should check out their websites to learn more about their intake process.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

As you probably know, there are about a billion reasons to make stretching a regular part of your fitness routine. It’s not only relaxing, but it improves your flexibility and range of motion, preparing your muscles and joints for workouts. It also helps you prevent injury, improve recovery, alleviate soreness, and so much more.

But these benefits can only be achieved if stretching is done correctly.

Unfortunately, many people, both athletes and regular gym-goers, make several stretching mistakes that make their stretching sessions not only ineffective, but also potentially harmful and counterproductive.

Today, we’re taking a look at the 5 most common stretching mistakes – as well as how to fix them – so you can start doing productive, effective stretching routines.

STRETCHING MISTAKE #1 – DOING STATIC STRETCHES BEFORE YOUR WORKOUT.

Is it just me, or did it (at one time) seem like everyone was doing static stretches before their workouts? But right now, experts and researchers alike are all cautioning athletes and gym-goers that holding static stretches while your muscles are still cold (meaning before your workout) can increase your risk of muscle strain and significantly diminish your performance during your workout.

Not only that, but holding static stretches before your workout can decrease the strength of your lower-body by as much as 8 percent, according to this brilliant piece of research published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research.

Researchers also speculate that lengthening your muscles (through static stretching) while they’re not warmed up can limit their potential to effectively “fire up” during exercise. And if you’re the type of exerciser that lifts heavy or performs a lot of explosive moments (such as sprints, jumps, squats, etc.) then you need your muscles to always be firing efficiently.

How do you fix it? Forget about static stretches when it comes to your pre-workout routine. The king of all pre-workout stretching is called dynamic stretching.

Unlike static stretches, which are basically passive singular positions held for longer periods of time, the dynamic stretches are active and use a back-and-forth movement to bring about a stretch in the muscle. This not only helps the muscle warm-up and gets your joints ready to move through their full range of motion, but it also does much more for you in terms of flexibility. Save your static stretching routine for after your workout, when your muscles are warm, so you can relax them and alleviate post-workout muscle soreness.

STRETCHING MISTAKE #2 – STRETCHING WITHOUT STRENGTHENING.

If you’re stretching after every workout, but the tightness in your muscles never seems to get better, you have to focus your efforts on building strength in that tight muscle group. A lot of the time, tight muscles are just muscles that are weak and they’re trying to hold tone.

For example, hip flexors are a group of muscles that help you bend your knees toward your chest. They’re notorious for being some of the tightest and weakest muscles in the body. And while stretching your hip flexors might feel great, they’re not going to experience any improvement or increases in flexibility until you start properly training them for strength.

How do you fix it? If your stretching routine is not helping you gain any flexibility, then you should focus on strengthening the muscle group. After your stretching, perform some low-intensity strength exercises. If we’re taking the hip flexors as an example, some awesome strengthening options include standing marches in place (but slow and controlled, of course), as well as hip bridges and lunges.

STRETCHING MISTAKE #3 – FORCING THE STRETCH.

This is a big no-no. If you want an effective stretch, you must be able to “relax into it.” While many exercises try to force stretches, this is not only unpleasant, but it can lead to serious muscle strain.

Remember: a muscle is at its weakest when it’s in its end range. Take the bicep curl, for example. Your muscle is the strongest when your elbow is bent around the 90- degree mark, and it’s very weak when it is either extended or flexed. If you stretch at one of those end ranges (when the muscle is weak), you’re at a much higher risk of straining yourself.

To fix it, just learn to ease into stretches. If you notice that a stretch is making you change your breathing pattern, back off.

STRETCHING MISTAKE #4 – OVERSTRETCHING!

Yes, it exists.

Overstretching is more common is certain muscle groups more than others. It naturally leads to imbalances in flexibility, which can affect both your join stability and your posture.

If your hamstrings are overstretched, and then paired with tight hip flexors, you are guaranteed to end up with poor positioning in your pelvis over your hip joint. An example of this can be seen in gymnasts and dancers who often stand with an arched lower back (exactly from tight hip flexors and long hamstrings.) This type of posture irritates your hips and leads to poor core stabilization in the long-run.

The fix here is simple – learn to stretch opposing muscle groups. If stretching the front of your legs, always make sure to check the flexibility in the back of your leg. Similarly, if you’re stretching your shoulders or your upper back, make sure to stretch out your chest, as well.

STRETCHING MISTAKE #5 – RUSHING IN YOUR STRETCHES.

A stretch is only good when you can naturally ease into it and hold it for a period of time in order to lengthen the muscle. If you rush things out and don’t slowly and gradually build up into your stretch, you’re missing the point, and you’ll likely lose all the benefits stretching has to offer.

How to fix it? Ease into (and then hold) stretches for 90 seconds before releasing them. Repeat for another 90 seconds, for up to 5 sets total. This is the amount you need to see genuine changes in range of motion without exposing your muscles to unnecessary stimuli.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

Regardless of whether or not you realize it, you’re likely doing everyday tasks with the same side of your body. For example, you might go up your home’s set of steps with the same foot first, or you might be used to carrying your bag on the same shoulder every day while you’re shopping for groceries.

And that’s okay. We all do it.

Tooth brushing, writing on a notebook, kicking cupboard doors closed, scrolling on your smartphone – all of these seemingly unimportant actions have the tendency to stack up
over time, resulting in a “dominant” side of our bodies.

This, as you’re probably guessing, sooner or later, translates into imbalances and muscle compensations that result in less-than-perfect fitness performance and, ultimately, a higher risk of injury.

That same dominance-building on one side of the body is naturally happening every time you’re training in the gym, as well. Even if you don’t realize it, one side of your body is potentially doing more work than the opposite, creating massive amounts of muscle tension along the way.

That’s why today, we’re going to explore this topic in a little more detail, shining light on some of the more risky and negative aspects of muscle imbalances (and what we can
do to fix them.)

What are muscle imbalances, why do they happen, and how do they relate to poor posture?

When you have a difference on one side of your body that’s stemming from one side of the body being more dominant than the other, this can undoubtedly affect your posture. The more dominant the side is, the higher the impact on its antagonist.

When you’re working the muscles on one side of the body more than the opposite, this will slowly but surely lead to strains, sprains, chronic pains, and other complicated issues.

Moreover, the poor posture that results from this one-side dominance has been directly linked to back problems, joint pain, frequent headaches, respiratory problems, fatigue, digestive issues, and so much more. That’s why it’s definitely something you want to take seriously if you’re a gym-goer who doesn’t plan on stopping their journey anytime
soon.

You could even have muscle weakness on your dominant side due to overuse, and this can further set you up for a whole heap of bad-posture results (since your non-dominant side may not be developed enough to take all the pressure away.)

What happens here is, your body will try to compensate when there’s a significant imbalance. This compensation results in overcorrection, leading to more strain, especially around muscle groups that aren’t used to high levels of activity.

To wrap this up, this means that a muscle imbalance is essentially when the strength or size of a muscle on one part of your body is not symmetrical to the size/strength of the muscles on the other side of your body.

There are a bajillion reasons why muscle imbalances happen, and everyone is bound to face or develop one sooner or later.

For example, golf players and baseball players, although athletes, can easily produce muscle imbalances because they’re utilizing the dominant side of their body to perform swings or throws. Both gym newbies and gym veterans can develop muscle imbalances simply by relying on their dominant side to push through a heavy lift or intense exercise. Muscle imbalances shouldn’t be taken with a grain of salt – they can and will ultimately lead to bigger problems, from spinal positioning to posture, which will develop into more issues when you’re sitting, lying down, or walking.

Whatever imbalance you’re currently facing, your first step toward correcting it is to find the root cause of that muscle imbalance. When you know the root cause, you can make a precise effort to fix it.

Here are some tips on how to correct muscle imbalances.

In addition to resolving posture problems (and helping prevent them altogether), addressing your muscle imbalances will also help you improve your strength, flexibility, balance, all while lowering the total risk of injury you’re facing. Sounds like a great deal!

When it comes to actual strategies for building strength equal in both sides of the body (so you can address these imbalances), here’s what the experts recommend:

1. START USING YOUR NON-DOMINANT SIDE MORE.

If you’re always starting workouts with your dominant side, this will result in having less energy to push through on the other side. A great rule of thumb is to let your “weaker side” determine what volume you’re chasing, so you can do the same volume on each side of your body. Even if this doesn’t feel enough for your dominant side, what you’re doing here is trying to balance them out, and this will give your weaker side the opportunity to catch up in strength.

2. EMBRACE UNILATERAL EXERCISES

Unilateral exercises are movements performed with one arm or one leg that usually tend to highlight muscle imbalances. Let’s say you’re used to doing chest presses with a barbell. The unilateral alternative here would be to “seesaw” press with two separate dumbbells, so you’re essentially focusing on one side at a time. Other great alternatives for common exercises include the single-leg squats, single-arm rows, bicep curls, lunges, and more.

3. FOCUSING ON YOUR MOBILITY

Some of the time, imbalances are the result of one side of the body not being as flexible as its opposite. In these cases, mobility exercises can deliver amazing (and quick) results when dealing with these muscle imbalances. Full-body mobility exercises will bring an unmatched amount of elasticity to tissues in your body, easing muscle imbalances all throughout your body and letting you build a steady foundation of mobility that makes imbalances harder to develop.

4. BE MINDFUL IN EVERYDAY TASKS.

Perhaps the most difficult piece of advice you can receive (but maybe the most effective) is the tactic of doing everyday tasks with your non-dominant side. To do this, you have to be mindful, because let’s be honest, nobody really makes a conscious choice to hold their bag with their right hand, it’s just habitually built in us.

While it might feel very awkward to brush your teeth with the opposite hand or step up with your left foot first, this will result in more balance that helps speed up the progress when dealing with any muscle imbalance.

The bottom line…

Muscle imbalances are important, and they should never be neglected. You have to work toward improving the weaker side of a muscle or your body as a whole, so you can stay healthy and prevent further complications (because they will happen.)

To do this, you can…

• Perform unilateral exercises.
• Letting your weaker side control your workout volume.
• Focusing on mobility and flexibility.
• Concentrating on form and being mindful of which side of the body you’re using for everyday tasks.

Bring these together, and you have pretty much everything you need to rehab a muscle imbalance and get back on track to making balanced gains in strength and size.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

As unfair as it sounds, we know our bodies tend to store fat in certain places more than it would in other places. Some of us store it around the waistline, some of us around the legs, but how and where we store fat depends on a variety of different factors such as height, weight, gender, genetics, as well as how many adipocytes (or fat cells) we have in certain areas of the body.

That’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today – the different factors that affect weight gain, and why weight gain seems to be targeted while weight loss is either all or nothing.

For starters, we should know that women and men store fat in different ways. And that’s precisely why we gain (and lose) pounds differently, too. Things such as hormone balance, genetics, lifestyle, age, stress, all of these play a role in how and where we’re going to gain weight.

Let’s discover why some of us have a tendency to gain weight around our bellies, while other more lucky people tend to store fat in their thighs and legs.

The most important factors are activity levels and gender.

The reason why men and women have body shapes that are so different is that our sex hormones – testosterone and estrogen – play such a big role in fat storage.
Women usually have a higher percentage of total body fat, close to about 7-10 percent more than men. Women also have the tendency to store more fat in their hips and thighs, also known as the gluteal-femoral region. Men, on the other hand, store more fat in their abdomen, also known as visceral fat or belly fat.

Testosterone has perhaps the largest influence on your body fat composition and muscle mass. With aging, testosterone levels begin to drop, and at the same time that testosterone begins to drop, more belly fat begins being stored and the metabolism slows down.

This is also true for the hormone estrogen in women. Estrogen plays a major role in regulating metabolism and body weight, and as women age, estrogen levels decrease.

This slows down the metabolism, which is why you see it’s harder to maintain weight and you usually gain a bit around your waistline as you grow older.

Not only that, but it becomes harder for both men and women to sustain high-intensity workouts over time, and they become less active as they get older. Not getting enough exercise and movement, and losing muscle mass, ultimately translates to more weight gain.

Another very important factor is insulin.

Insulin is one of your body’s fat-regulating hormones. It’s released into your bloodstream after you eat a meal with the purpose of helping you lower blood sugar
levels.

Insulin works by transporting glucose away from the blood and inside the body’s muscle tissues, fat and liver cells so it can be stored as glycogen (and then later used for energy.) That being said, your body has a natural capacity when it comes to storing glycogen, and once your body reaches that natural capacity, it naturally shifts into fat storage.

In short, insulin is a hormone that decides whether or not the extra glucose you consume will be stored as fat. This means that if we just lower the amount of refined
carbohydrates (and sugar) in our diet, we ultimately decrease the chances of maxing out our glycogen stores (and the need to stockpile fat stores.) This leads to less fat storage overall.

Let’s talk about the different types of fat.

There are essentially two types of fat.

The (1) first is subcutaneous fat, located directly under the skin, and the (2) second is visceral fat, located predominantly in the abdomen that surrounds and pads the empty space between your vital organs.

Even though you can grab subcutaneous fat with your fingers since it’s obvious to the eye and located between your thighs, under the arm, and etc, visceral fat is much more difficult to detect with the naked eye. And it’s more dangerous! It’s linked to a variety of health complications such as heart disease, diabetes, and more.

Have you ever met someone with a “pear-shaped” body? These types of people tend to store more subcutaneous fat in the much lower extremities of their body, such as the hips, buttocks, and etc. On the other hand, people with “apple-shaped” bodies tend to store visceral fat in the upper region of their body, namely their abdomen and chest.Even if you’re thin, you can still see and have visceral fat around your belly.

Here’s why you can’t reduce fat in certain spots.

Until now, you’ve likely realized that you can’t just pick and choose where you lose fat, as awesome as it would be. This is because the factors we mentioned above, along with your genetics, determine the locations where fat mostly accumulates.

And sure, you can try to “target” your subcutaneous fat by doing more pushups and core exercises, you cannot directly target visceral fat, which is actually the type of fat you should be trying to lose.

The good news? Visceral fat is most commonly the easiest to lose, and there are many strategies you can employ to lose weight and improve your overall health (as well as get rid of this pesky inch around your waist and get your abdominals to shine through.)

Losing weight… and keeping it off…

Rather than following not-so-conventional wisdom and trying to lose weight in one specific place in your body, create healthy habits for yourself that will allow your body to reach the weight and shape that you desire (and that is healthy and sustainable for you as an individual.)

• Emphasize whole foods, fresh fruits, veggies, lean proteins, healthy fats, and complex carbs.
• Stay active, workout for at least 150 minutes every week to achieve weight loss.
• Keep your stress levels low (stress is a big predictor of long-term weight gain.)
• Get high-quality sleep (bad quality sleep or not enough sleep harms blood sugar levels and create cravings for sugary snacks.)
• Eat a varied diet and supplement if you need to.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

We’ve said it time and time again – losing weight is a matter of expending more calories than you’re taking in. That being said, even though this sounds simple, weight loss is a process that becomes much more complex when brought down to the level of the individual.

We all have different lifestyles and habits, some of which help our weight loss efforts, and some of which actually work against it. That’s why today, we’re here to explore some of the lifestyle decisions and habits that negatively impact your weight loss efforts so you can make the necessary changes to your lifestyle and achieve your weight loss goals much more quickly. Let’s get started.

#1 – SKIPPING BREAKFAST.

There’s a growing body of research on whether or not breakfast is a must. That being said, many dietitians point to the fact that a lot of people who are stalled in their weight loss efforts happen to be people who skip breakfast.

If you don’t eat enough protein at breakfast, this likely means you’re missing out on a key opportunity to replace the protein you just broke down while you were sleeping. Skipping protein at breakfast will ultimately lead you to a sluggish metabolism.

What’s more, if you’re eating too light of a breakfast, for example some fruit or a pack of muffins, you likely won’t stay satiated until lunch. This will have a ripple effect on your day. On the other hand, if you eat a satisfactory breakfast, you’ll be less distracted by hunger, more focused, and way more energetic.

#2 – LACKING MAGNESIUM.

We’ve talked about the impact on sleep on your weight loss efforts countless times. Skipping on sleep one day makes you irritable and creates hunger cravings, so imagine what it does in the long-term. Your hormones get skewed, and you start reaching for sugary snacks more often throughout the day.

What you probably haven’t considered, though, is how much of an impact your magnesium levels play in your sleep. Most people don’t consume enough magnesium,
which interrupts their proper sleep quality. That’s why adding more magnesium-rich foods in your diet will, in multiple ways, ranging from optimal body functioning to quality sleep, aid your weight loss efforts.

#3 – NOT EATING ENOUGH.

Sure, the usual calories-in versus calories-out formula sounds simple, but you should know that your body has evolutionarily been designed to withstand long periods of lacking food. To compensate for this lack of food, your body will drive up hunger levels and put your body into conservation mode, preventing you from losing weight.

If you find yourself feeling tired all the time while you’re facing a weight loss plateau, this is likely because you’re not consuming enough calories to meet your needs. There’s a difference between consuming less calories than you need and undereating, and undereating will prevent you from losing weight in the long-term. Make sure you’re consuming enough calories to keep your body happy, but not enough so you’re going over your limits and giving it too much to handle.

#4 – FALLING FOR FAD DIETS.

There are always new “experts” and new fads coming out telling you what you should “really” be doing to lose weight. That being said, most of them come with long lists of restrictions and “don’t eat this”-foods.

Fad diets fail for countless reasons, but one of the biggest might be that they’re not sustainable. They don’t help you build a positive relationship with food. Fad diets are usually targeted toward everyone, claiming they can help anyone lose weight. They claim they’re quick fixes for weight loss, and present you with a list of good and bad foods.

Don’t fall for this. Focus on building a sustainable relationship with food that doesn’t limit your favorite foods yet helps you achieve the result you want. Coincidentally, this won’t happen quickly. It takes time to achieve true health and long-term results.

#5 – CUTTING OUT ENTIRE FOOD GROUPS.

Building upon our last point, we can’t not mention the fact that a lot of diets and food labels include the words “carb-free” or “low-fat.” Even though there’s a place for those in your life, they often fall under restriction.

Your body thrives on balance and requires that balance in order to function properly. When you’re taking an entire food group away, such as carbs or fats, you’re coming from a place of scarcity and deprivation, which never results in a positive outcome.

Deprivation not only negatively impacts your metabolism, but also results in binge- eating and food cravings in the long-term. Research published in the Journal of Obesity discovered that people who consistently binged lost only half the weight that non-binge dieters did. Instead of cutting out your food groups, make sure you’re focusing on the 80/20 method.

#6 – LETTING YOUR DIET MAKE YOU MISERABLE.

Even though we tend to boil down weight loss to a simple math problem, we can’t deny that your emotional well-being is another important factor in your overall health. If you’re depriving yourself of your favorite foods, you’re hungry all the time, and you’re reaching for snacks because of constant cravings, you’ll find it impossible to lose weight.

True health happens when you encourage your mental health and find a sustainable plan for weight loss. But how do you do this? One way is to surround yourself with positive connections. Relationships that are supportive (and that feel right) are the key to your success both in and outside the gym. Improving your emotional well-being is key when it comes to losing weight and getting healthy.

#7 – HAVING UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS.

Just because you choose a certain number for your weight loss, doesn’t mean achieving it will be that simple. Many factors come into play in this equation, such as
metabolism, age, stress, hormones, genetics, and more. All of these can play a role in getting you past that number on the scale.

But while this does sound a bit daunting, it’s actually a very freeing feeling. A realistic goal is achievable and makes you feel good and motivated, while unrealistic goals can only put you in a downward spiral of feeling bad about yourself.

#8 – NOT TRACKING NUMBERS.

Making sure you’re reaching a slight caloric deficit is undoubtedly vital to losing weight. But this means that you’ll likely need to be tracking these numbers in order to achieve the metrics you want. To find what your perfect calorie number is, you should track your
food, at least in the beginning.

It can be easy to forget what you ate and when you ate it, and this makes it harder to discover what’s stopping you from reaching your goal. That’s why you should grab a journal, grab a pen, and write down everything you eat along with its caloric contents.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

You know it, I know it, everyone knows it – there are few things that feel more rewarding than finishing a hard workout. You feel accomplished, you’ve pushed yourself to the limit, and you’re ready to indulge in a process of recovery.

But the fact is – just because you’ve stopped running, doing sprints, or lifting weights, doesn’t mean your body is done doing its work. In fact, from the moment you get in the shower to the moment you step outside the gym, your body has already started the process of repairing your muscles you just worked so hard to break down – so it can help them come back stronger and better at your next workout.

The majority of your results happen in between your workouts.

And while paying the utmost attention to your workout routine and how it plays out, you should know that learning the ins and outs of muscle recovery will help you go a long way toward achieving the results you’re really looking for.

Today, we’re here to break down everything that happens to your body after your workout, as well as the intricate mechanisms of muscle recovery that make it one of the most important parts of achieving your dream physique.

Your workout is the first trigger in a timeline of internal body events.

First of all, as you’re working out, assuming you’re working out for strength and hypertrophy, you’re basically working to create micro-tears in the muscles you’re
working. As soon as you drop the final rep on the final set, your body begins a complicated process of repairing these micro-tears.

Not every workout you do will produce the necessary “damage” to cause your muscles to become sore. And when a workout does that, you’ll probably feel it around 12 to 24 hours after your workout is finished. This soreness is known as DOMS, delayed onset muscle soreness, and it’s the often tight, achy, painful sensation that is basically a byproduct of your body’s recovery process.

Muscle recovery happens in two basic phases the initial phase and the resolution phase.

The first, also known as the phase of regeneration, also includes the part of your workout when you’re actually doing damage to your muscles since this is technically a part of the muscle repair process.

Although inflammation is something we’re all trying to keep away from our body, it’s actually an essential part of muscle repair. (That’s why if you take anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen or paracetamol to ease your muscle soreness, this might actually lead to stalling your progress and decreasing your gains.)

When your body is recovering from a workout, it released a group of cells called helper cells or satellite cells, directly to the damaged areas so they can rebuild the micro-tears in your muscles. This repair process continues for as long as it takes a “messenger molecule”, a.k.a an inflammatory mediator, is present to send signals to your body to restart at the end of each cycle of building. That’s precisely why NSAIDs such as paracetamol prevent your gains – because they prevent inflammatory mediators from forming, cutting back on your recovery potential.

In the resolution phase, also known as the remodeling phase, the regenerated muscle fibers basically finish developing, and your strength goes back to normal.

So how long does it take for muscles to actually recover?

How long it takes for your muscles to recover is basically how we measure recovery. But this depends on a variety of factors, including how intense your workout was, what activities you participated in, and your overall fatigue prior to your workout.

Generally, it takes anywhere between 24 and 36 hours for your muscles to adequately recover from endurance exercise, meaning running and cycling. Moreover, it takes up to 72 hours to recover from more high-intensity forms of exercises such as heavy resistance training, HIIT, or plyometrics.

Some exercises, especially those that emphasize eccentric, or lengthening contractions of muscles also cause increased levels of muscle damage, and naturally, more intense forms of DOMS. Concentric (shortening) and isometric (static) contractions produce less damage.

We can take a prime example of eccentric-heavy exercise – downhill running – whereas cycling tends to be concentric-heavy. Isometric exercises could be wall sits, planks, and a lot of yoga poses.

Does this mean I should be sore after every workout?

Not at all! If your muscles are sore, it means you did more, or in some cases, different, than what your body is used to. That’s why if you want to progress in any given
dimension (i.e. strength), it is important that you keep challenging the muscles to make progress.

However, this doesn’t mean that you should be chasing after DOMS every workout you do. This is a recipe for disaster, and it is not a productive way to progress. Sooner or later, you will reach a point where you overwhelm your body with the intensity you’re putting it through, naturally leading not to progress, but to a degradation of your ability to recover. And when you cannot recover productively, you’re basically eliminating your progress, and you’re exposing yourself to incredible risks of injury due to overtraining.

To conclude…

We know this for a fact – muscle soreness isn’t really fun, especially if it’s all the time. And while muscle soreness is hard to avoid, especially if you’re a beginner, knowing how recovery works can reduce some of the anxiety that comes with your first direct experience with DOMS.

The best thing you can do is to learn how recovery works and be prepared to ease into new workout programs and new ways of training so you can guarantee your progress. Making sure you’re warming up, and cooling down, after every workout will decrease the pain and stiffness coming with DOMS and will give you the ability to improve your recovery so you can progress how you should be progressing – slowly and surely.

What to take, and when?

Most people over-complicated vitamin supplementation, because they don’t know when they should take them. Luckily for you, you’ll have this post to fall back on.
 
Today, you’ll learn when is the best time to take essential nutrients such as:

• Multivitamins 
• Vitamin B 
• Vitamin D 
• Iron 
• Magnesium 
• Omega-3 Fatty Acid 

The Best Time to Take Your Multivitamins

People that benefit the most from taking multivitamins are:

a.    Adults – because vitamin B12, calcium and vitamin D absorption decreases with age.

b.    Vegans and vegetarians, because they are more prone to lack vitamin B12, iron, calcium, zinc, vitamin D and omega-3.

c.    Pregnant and breastfeeding women because they can lack some essential nutrients. However, they should only take a supplement after talking to their doctor because some vitamins can harm them. The same goes if you’re on medication.

Before you go out and buy the latest multivitamins, you should research which vitamins you actually need. That would largely affect when you should take it.

You should always take your multivitamins in the morning with a meal to absorb them better. However, if that causes you stomach pain, try taking them in the afternoon before you go to bed. Remember, the most important thing is to take them daily.

If you are lacking a specific nutrient, it would be best to supplement with that nutrient only. Multivitamins have a lot of vitamins in them, but you don’t necessarily need all of them. There are even some people that get a negative reaction from them, so they are certainly not for everybody.

Multivitamins are not a substitute for your diet. They are something you take if you find out that you can’t get certain nutrients from your diet.

The Best Time to Take Vitamin B

Vitamin B complex is essential to maintain your health and wellness. It impacts everything from your energy levels, your brain functions to how well your metabolism works. B vitamins also promote the growth of new red blood cells, good eyesight, hormones and cholesterol production as well as cardiovascular health.

Generally speaking, it’s safe to take several B vitamins all in once. 

We can conclude from this that the best time to take B vitamins is after you wake up due to their energy-boosting abilities. There’s also some data that suggests that taking vitamin B in the afternoon can affect your sleep.

If you want to avoid this effect, you should take your B vitamins in the morning. Preferably with a meal so you can maximise their absorption.

The Best Time to Take Vitamin D

Vitamin D deficiency causes children to develop soft and weak bones, and adults misshapen bones. Also, a lack of vitamin D is linked to several diseases, such as breast cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer and heart problems.

There’s no proof that vitamin D deficiency can cause certain conditions but people with high levels of vitamin D face lower risk of disease.

To properly absorb calcium and also promote bone growth, your body must have enough vitamin D. Supplementing should be an effective way to get the vitamins your body needs. To maximize the absorption of vitamin D, you should take it with some fat, because it’s fat-soluble.

There’s no definitive answer when you should take it. It doesn’t interfere with your sleep patterns, so you should take it whatever time you want. Just don’t forget to eat some fat calories along.

The Best Time to Take Iron

Iron affects your body tremendously. It reduces tiredness and fatigue in your body, supports your immune system and helps the production of haemoglobin, a protein that carries the oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body.
Taking an iron supplement can be tricky because several foods actually reduce its absorption. Some of them are:

• Whole grains
•  Milk
• Cheese
• Coffee 
• Tea

 When you take iron, you have about 3 options:

• You can take it in the morning with vitamin C to boost its absorption.
• Take it right after a meal.
• Take Active Iron whatever you want, because it revolutionises absorption and it won’t cause any irritations.

The Best Time to Take Your Magnesium

Magnesium is an essential nutrient and it affects many functions such as regulating your blood pressure, supporting your immune system and helping muscle function. It plays a vital role in more than 300 enzyme reactions in your body.

A magnesium deficiency can cause tons of health problems, so you should strive to take the required levels daily.
Great sources of magnesium are foods such as:

• Almonds
•  Spinach
•  Cashew nuts

To wrap it up…

Vitamin supplements won’t work unless you take them daily, so the most important thing you should do is to be consistent with them. You should also talk to your doctor and see if some supplements interfere with your medications. Depending on which vitamins you take, you should get them in the morning or the afternoon.

The best thing you can do is to develop the habit of taking them. Make them a part of your morning or bedtime routine. That way, you’ll ensure that you’re consistent with your supplementation.

Hey Angels and Alphas,

You all probably know that meal planning is essentially the best way to control your diet. Scheduling and pre-cooking your meals is an approach that both gym-goers and professional athletes use so they can set themselves up for fitness success.

But did you know that meal planning is also the easiest thing *you* can do to set *yourself* up for a healthy diet and lifestyle?

Whether you plan a few days ahead or a week ahead, you can’t deny meal planning’s biggest benefit – you make all your eating decisions in “bulk”, and you do it in a strategic and focused way. This “closes the door” to a lot of random cravings and gaps in your diet you could otherwise fill with unhealthy food.

Today, we’re going to talk about meal planning – the how, the why, the what, and how to best approach it based on your goal.

If you’re someone who:

1. Has trouble adapting a systematic approach to dieting, yet wants to eat healthy…
2. Doesn’t know how meal planning works, but has thought about it before…

Then this article is for you.

Let’s get started!

STEP 1 – What’s your goal?

Now, there’s no need to be very “deep” about this. The easiest way to acknowledge your goal is to ask yourself why you want to start meal planning.

Here are a couple of questions you can ask yourself to best identify what you’re looking for (and what you want to get out of your meal planning efforts:)

• Are you looking to lose weight/gain muscle?
• Are you looking for more dietary variety?
• Do you want to stop wasting food?
• Do you want to start saving money?
• Do you want to limit your sugar consumption?
• Are you looking to save time?

Or maybe, you just want to *not* have to bother with the process of cooking a delicious meal every day. Perhaps you work long days in the office and don’t have the time to maintain a healthy diet.

Whatever your reasons are, you need to find them and acknowledge them. Meal planning is, indeed, a great solution to all of these problems, so knowing they exist (and that meal planning fixes them) is a great way to get yourself through that initial push.

STEP 2 – Planning!

First of all, where do I find recipes?!

Finding and choosing your recipes is where the real fun begins. However, this is perhaps the hardest part of the entire meal planning process, precisely because it can be so difficult and time-consuming.

It sets the whole meal planning process in motion, so you have to be really careful – you can’t just choose a bunch of recipes and hope for the best. You’re going to go through a process of constant learning and adapting your recipes to your tastes, and best believe, it’s going to feel great.

Start writing down possible recipes at least three days before you start the meal planning process so you can make an effective. Don’t forget to Google, Yahoo, Bing, look at everything *before* you start meal planning.

Next, how many meals do you need?

Take a moment and think about what you would like to have in the upcoming week. Take into account your work schedule, your gym schedule, and make a quick inventory of your plans to get an idea of how many meals you’ll need.

Example: seven breakfasts per family member, seven family-sized dinners, five solo work lunches, seven family-sized lunches.

How much time do you have to cook?

This is where meal planning gets serious. Making the most out of your time is the very reason a lot of people do this, so you need to have a practical approach.

If you plan out everything, but you don’t have (or make) the time to cook, it’s all pointless. The next step of your process is to expand the previous list of meals you did and calculate how much time it’s going to take to cook and prepare all servings.

This is more an “information gathering” process than it is anything else, so you have to be both specific and realistic when you’re determining your “time per cooked meal” ratio.

Imagine you have a really busy week coming, or the babysitter calls and says she won’t make it. You have to be prepared for these situations so your focus should be on meals that are cooked slow but served quickly.

Connect recipes to your meal schedule.

You have a list, so it’s time to put it to action. It’s time to go back to your potential recipes list and find the meals that fit the bills (hey, that rhymes.)

Naturally, you’re going to be looking for family favorites, meals that you have experience cooking, and those that are just outright delicious. There’s also a very important aspect of food you have to remember – shelf life. You should make dishes within a day/two of shipping and leave those with shelf-stable and frozen ingredients for later.

When you take into account the nutritional profile of each dish, you can easily calculate how many servings a recipe you should make and how much nutrients you’re going to draw from each dish.

Pro tip: use overlapping ingredients! This way, you’ll minimize waste, and you’ll maximize your budget’s effectiveness.

Put it all on the calendar.

It doesn’t matter where you choose to put it – a calendar, notes, a template, or an app. Just know that you have to keep this schedule near yourself at all times. You know how some people hang their meal plans on the fridge? There’s a reason for that. By making the schedule easy to access, you reinforce its importance and hold yourself accountable. Plus, you won’t be thinking “what should I eat?” all the time. 

Create your master recipe list.

If you want to make the meal planning process easy and straightforward, create a list of go-to meals that you *know* you and your family love.

Every time you find a new ingredient or meal you love, put it on the list. Next to every meal, write down the ingredients you need to cook and prepare them.

This way, you’re going to find and remember all your favorite foods (and make re-visiting old meals a tradition.)

*This is not a grocery list, but it does lead to a very good one. Keeping an inventory of your favorite new meals and ingredients will help you identify the things you’re going to need for the week. The final step before making a grocery list is going through your kitchen and writing down what ingredients you already have.

When you do that… you’re finally ready!

Make the grocery list!

Next, go through your calendar and jot down the quantities for each meal and ingredient you’re going to need for your cooking-spree. Buying them in bulk more or less guarantees you’re going to save money, so you have this going for you right off the bat.

A great way to save (even more) time is to group your ingredients in a similar fashion:

• Fruits and Vegetables
• Breads, Grains
• Spices
• Oils
• Beverages
• Meat & Eggs
• Dairy (if that’s your thing)

Finally, cook and prep!

Chop, boil, and roast the veggies, make the sauces, grate the cheese, do your thing!

When you cook all the food, put it in neat portions – you can even fill food boxes for your convenience!

Put it all in a freezer, and take it out whenever it’s time for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, or when you’re just feeling hungry!

Putting it all together…

When you finally go through the process successfully, you’ll make a realization – meal planning is a continuous process of “you did it, now did it again.”

But once you start consistently implementing a meal plan strategy, you won’t want to go without it – it’s a simple, effective, and productive habit. It saves you time, it’s convenient, and it keeps you healthy. What more could you ask for?

It’s not difficult, but learning to stick to the process is not a walk in the park. It’s all the more stressful when you’re just starting out! But every time you go through the planning, shopping, and cooking process, you’ll get one step closer to turning meal planning into a habit for yourself. And that’s what your real goal should be.