Why Cardio Doesn’t Work for Fat Loss

Spring is here! With the change in seasons, I notice the beginning of a trend I see year after year: the weather gets warmer, and out come the joggers. Now there is nothing wrong with jogging or running outside. It’s good for you. You stay active and you improve your cardio. But, if you are doing it for the sake of burning off fat, STOP IT NOW! Traditional steady-state cardio is not the best way to burn fat. It is literally a waste of time if you’re trying to get rid of that belly. All you have to do is some research on the internet, and you will always find studies proving that the best way to burn fat is through resistance and interval training.

Here is a fantastic article by the world-renowned fat loss guru Craig Ballantyne:

Cardio exercise is such a strange thing. In theory, it should work so perfectly well for all men and women, but as anyone who has tried it knows, the practicality of it just doesn’t add up.

After all, some men and women do cardio 6 hours, 9 hours, or more per week, and still have belly fat to burn. On the other hand, it works just fine for others.

British researchers wanted to get more insight into this paradox, and studied 35 overweight men and women, who weren’t previously exercising.

(Reference: International Journal of Obesity 32: 177-184, 2008).

Subjects exercised 5 times per week for 12 weeks. That’s a lot of exercise, but it helped the subjects lose an average of 8.2 pounds, which is great - I was positively surprised by the results.

So cardio will work for some people, however, in my experience, it works best in young men, who need the help the least!

Back to the study, the variance in fat loss between individuals was huge. Check this out…

The best subject lost a staggering 32.3 pounds in 12 weeks, while the worst subject actually GAINED 3.74 pounds.

The scientists think they know where things went sour. They classified the subjects into 2 groups, called the “Compensators” and the “Non-compensators”.

The Compensators were hungrier, and as a result consumed an extra 268 calories per day, all but wiping out their cardio efforts.

Therefore, the Compensators lost the least amount of weight, and scientists believe that was due to the huge “compensatory” increase in appetite experienced by this group.

Does your appetite increase when you do slow cardio? If it does, research shows it will ruin your cardio efforts.

So if your cardio program is not working for you, check your appetite and calorie intake to see if you are “compensating” for your efforts. If you are, you might be better off using a program of high-intensity resistance and interval training (i.e. Turbulence Training) for your weight loss efforts.

As Australian Professor Steve Boucher has shown in research, interval training increases hormones called catecholamines. And increased catecholamines can reduce appetite, among other fat-burning benefits.

In the real world, few people lose 33 pounds after 12 weeks of cardio. Heck, few even achieve an average weight loss of 8 pounds with aerobic exercise.

So again, check your appetite, and consider giving high-intensity exercise a go for your next workout program.

Craig Ballantyne is the Author of Turbulence Training, which is his #1 selling fat loss program. See his website at: http://www.turbulencetraining.com

Fiber For Fat Loss

Here’s a great article by the International Sports Science Association, that shows you how to keep to keep your caloric intake low, by consuming more dietary fiber:

Fiber for fat loss, are you crazy? That's right folks, fiber can actually help you lose fat. We all know that fiber will help fight against heart disease, cholesterol, diabetes and colon cancer, but it also plays a role in fighting obesity. Fiber is a compound that only plants contain. The fiber we consume from plant foods is called dietary fiber. Dietary fiber only comes from plant foods (i.e. grains, oats, fruits, etc.); it is never in animal foods (i.e. meats). Dietary fiber can be broken down into two forms, soluble and insoluble fiber. Though there is no daily recommended amount of fiber, health experts recommend consuming 20-35 grams of fiber per day. On average, most Americans consume only 12 grams of fiber a day.

Soluble Fiber

Soluble fiber, as the name implies, dissolves in water. These fibers bind to bile acids and excrete them from the small intestine. Surplus cholesterol is disposed of in the liver as bile acids. Bile acids are then transported to the small intestine where they aid in lipid digestion. Bile acids are also essential for the absorption of these digested products. This binding of bile acids would help to decrease the cholesterol levels in the blood. It has also been said that soluble fibers help to regulate blood sugar levels.

Insoluble Fiber

Insoluble fiber, again as the name implies, does not dissolve in water. This type of fiber is known as roughage. Though it is not dissolvable in water, it does absorb it, causing an increase in fiber bulk. Bulking agents help to clear the gastrointestinal track of all its waste. By regular consumption of these fibers, the amount of time digested food sits in the intestine is decreased. This helps keep the body from absorbing starch and sugars in the intestine.

Insoluble fiber is responsible for the full feeling you get after eating them. This helps dieters by allowing them to eat fewer calories without feeling hungry afterwards. Insoluble fibers are hard to digest, so when they finally get to a point where they can be released into the intestine, they are still slightly intact. It is this reason that they make up the bulk of your stool. Since the insoluble fibers are only partially digested, it is hard for the undigested calories to be taken up by the intestine. By reducing calories and decreasing the amount of cholesterol in the blood, one could potentially lose weight/fat.

The Best Sources Of Fiber

The best source of fiber is from dietary foods. This is because they also provide other minerals and nutrients your body needs. If you are consuming enough fiber rich foods, there is no point in taking a fiber supplement.

Fiber supplements do not offer the same benefits that dietary fibers do. In 1991, the FDA banned many over-the-counter diet aids, with fiber-containing substances, because they did not show any evidence of being safe and effective weight loss agents. Before taking any kind of fiber supplement it is best to check with you physician.

Fiber is a good natural way of helping to reduce body fat. It does not metabolize fat quicker or more efficiently, but it will help you by decreasing the intake of calories. It will also reduce the amount of free cholesterol in the blood. Fiber is also a natural and easy way of preventing colon cancer, heat disease and diabetes. Fiber is something that everyone should be consuming more of; there are too many reasons for you not to.

A Word Of Caution

When increasing the fiber content of your diet, it is best to take it slow. Add just a few grams at a time to allow the intestinal tract to adjust; otherwise, abdominal cramps, gas, bloating, and diarrhea or constipation may result. Another way to help minimize these effects is by drinking at least 2 liters (8 cups) of fluid daily.

References

Hatfield, Frederick. Fitness: The Complete Guide. 7th Edition. 2001.
www.healthdiscovery.com
www.fda.gov

Fish Oils And Fat Loss

I always stress to my clients the importance of regularly consuming EFA’s (Essential Fatty Acids) as part of their daily nutrition regimen. Not only are there cardiovascular benefits, but they also aid fat loss. Yes you read that right: consuming fat can aid fat loss! Well, consuming healthy fats is the key. Here is a great article by Mike Roussell from t-nation.com regarding fish oils and fat loss:

You take fish oil everyday, right?

No?

Hellooo McFly!

What's your reason? You want to die from a heart attack? You enjoy joint pain? Maybe you've embraced your love handles and don't want to get rid of them?

That's right, fish oil can help with all those things (and a lot more). I promise you by the end of this article you'll want to start using fish oil on a daily basis. If not, there's no hope for you.

First, let me open your eyes to the myriad of health benefits. If that doesn't impress you, we'll move on to the latest research (some exclusive and unpublished) regarding fish oil and fat loss.

Fish Oil and Heart Health

Some of the most unreal data regarding fish oil consumption is in the area of heart disease. Around the turn of the latest century, one of the most incredible studies using fish oil was underway.

The researchers of the GISSI-Prevenzone study enrolled 11,323 people who had previously suffered from a heart attack. After 3.5 years, the ones who took 1 gram of fish oil each day had almost a 50% reduction in sudden death from heart attack. (1) That's amazing.

In other words, let's say there's a 100% chance that you're going to have a heart attack and die, instantly. If you take fish oil you have a 50% chance of living! Throw me a filet of salmon!

Another recent study in Japan found that adding fish oil supplementation to a statin regimen improved survival from heart attack by an additional 16%. (2)

Why all this heart talk? I mentioned all these because 1) they're amazing examples of the health benefits of consuming fish oil on a daily basis and 2) they've given us an insight into why fish oil can help with weight loss (more on that in a little bit).

Fish and Your Joints

Have the years of heavy squats, deadlifts, and bench pressing taken a toll on your joints? Are you 30 but have the knees of a 60 year old? You're not alone. Achy joints are the silent price many dedicated trainers have to pay for years of lifting up ungodly weight rep after rep.

Fortunately, you can find another way to wear your badge of honor. Countless people have had their joint pain vanish seemingly overnight through daily fish oil supplementation. While 1 to 1.5 grams of EPA/DHA are all you need to prevent death from heart attacks, relief from joint pain requires upping the volume.

A friend of mine takes three servings of Biotest's Flameout each day to take his joints from feeling like they're 70 years old to feeling 30 years old. That's a lot of functional fatty acids, but it's well worth it since he can now live and lift pain free.

Fish Oil and Fat Loss

Okay, let's get down to what you've been waiting for — fat loss. If you've been around the fitness game for a while, then I'm sure you can appreciate the irony here. The compounds that have shown the best results in scientific studies regarding fat loss are CLA and now EPA/DHA, all three being fats!

Fats that make you fit are a far cry from the low fat/anti-fat movement that infected bodybuilders' nutritional plans in the 80's and 90's. The research regarding fish oil and weight loss is new and starting to gain ground. Clinical trials have shown that it works, and the more hardcore cell and molecular biology studies have shown potential mechanisms that explain why it works.

Fish Oil, No Exercise, and Weight Loss

Let's look at some of the studies that have recently displayed the effectiveness of fish oil in helping shed those nasty pounds. The first one comes from the International Journal of Obesity where they took 324 overweight and obese men and women and put them on a reduced calorie diet. (3) These people then received either nothing, fatty fish, lean fish, or fish oil capsules.

I should mention that the diets they were put on weren't very conducive to weight loss. Participants were consuming 50% of their calories from carbohydrates and only 20% of their calories from protein. They also weren't exercising — it was like the researchers were setting them up to fail!

Despite the odds, the men lost an average of 14 pounds, and the men that ate fish or took fish oil lost an extra 2 pounds. There was an added weight loss advantage even in the group of men that ate cod (non-fatty fish). However, the driving force behind this stumped the researchers.

One of the first studies to show the fat loss effects of fish oil was published back in 1997. The participants were put on a diet containing 50% calories from carbohydrates. Instead of supplementing with fish oil the whole time, 12 weeks into the study some of the participants were asked to replaced 6 grams of fat in their diet with 6 grams of fish oil for the remaining three weeks. (4)

The people who replaced fats in their diet with fish oil lost 2 pounds over three weeks while the non-fish oil group lost 0.7 pounds. That may not seem like a lot at first but you need to consider that these people didn't do anything different except for replacing fat in their diet with fish oil — they didn't exercise and they were on a high carbohydrate diet.

What's the take-home message here? These two studies suggest that even when people are put on high carbohydrate diets, fish oil supplementation can increase fat loss and fat oxidation (especially in men).

Fish Oil, Exercise, and Abs

The most popular fish oil and weight loss study as of late was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. (5) Unlike the previous two studies we've looked at, this study used a fish oil supplement that contained high levels of DHA (much like Flameout).

In this all-male study, the participants were given either sunflower oil or DHA-rich fish oil. Some were instructed to exercise while others were not. The exercise component was walking at 75% of their maximum heart rate for 45 minutes, three times a week.

Regardless of the less-than-optimal program design, the fish oil and exercise people experienced decreases in body mass greater than any of the other groups combined. The authors noted, "Both FO supplementation and regular aerobic exercise reduced fat mass."

And here's some unpublished/unreleased info regarding this study, a T-Nation exclusive. One variable that the researchers measured but haven't yet reported on was heart rate. The fish oil group experienced a significant reduction in resting heart rate compared to the others not receiving fish oil.

Because their exercise goals were heart rate oriented (75% max heart rate), the fish oil group had to work harder to achieve their exercise goal. This is potentially one of the reasons that the fish oil group lost more weight.

How fish oil effects resting heart rate is also not fully understood; however, we know from cardiovascular research that increased consumption of EPA/DHA can change the electro-chemistry of your heart. This is why fish oil can help prevent sudden death from heart attacks. This is also probably the reason why fish oil can modulate resting heart rate.

Another way that fish oil mediates fat loss is through substrate utilization, as fish oil has been previously shown to increase fat utilization during exercise. Because we also saw a fat loss effect of fish oil independent of exercise in the first two studies, it looks like there are several mechanisms at work to boost fat loss — some exercise related, some not.

Ways That Fish Oil Can Work

The exact mechanism in which fish oil potentates fat loss isn't completely understood. There seems to be both exercise and non-exercise pathways. Here are some potential ways that fish oil can help boost fat burning:

• DHA has been shown to prevent the conversion of pre-adipocytes to adipocytes and mediate pre-adipocyte death (kill 'em before they become immortal fat cells). (6)

• Fish oil has the ability to increase the clearance of chylomicrons and fats following a meal. This potentially can have a positive effect on substrate utilization. (7)

• Fish oil can "artificially" decrease heart rate thus increasing the level of exertion needed to reach desired intensity.

• Fish oil upregulates mitochondrial machinery and increases oxidation of fats within fat cells. (8, 9)

You may be wondering why improving insulin sensitivity isn't on the list? If you examine the broad range of studies that look at this, you'd see that there doesn't seem to be much of an effect (if any), especially in healthy people. Potentially there may be an insulin sensitizing effect in people with type II diabetes.

How to Apply This Stuff Today!

With all the health and emerging fat loss benefits of fish oil, you definitely want to start taking some today. Here's how you can get started:

1. Find a brand that's very pure and potent so you don't burp fish or have to take a lot of capsules. Flameout is a great choice, especially because the study that shows an exercise/fish oil interact was using a DHA-rich fish oil like Flameout.

2. Take 2-3 grams of EPA/DHA per day. This is the lowest dosage I'd use to elicit a fat loss benefit. You may need to crank it up to 5 grams of EPA/DHA as the response can vary between individuals.

3. You can take the 2-3 grams at one time, but if you're going to use a 5 gram dosage I'd split it up between morning and night.

4. Take your fish oil with food. If you take it in the morning, take it with food to reduce the chance that it'll get oxidized as energy.

5. If you find that you do burp fish, keep your fish oil in the freezer. That'll stop your fish burps!

Wrap-Up

Fish oil should be one of your staple supplements, regardless of your goals. And if your main goal is fat loss, consider ramping up your dosage a little. Improved health, a longer life, and abs? That's tough to beat!

About the Author

Mike Roussell is sports nutritionist and is currently a nutrition doctoral student at Pennsylvania State University. For more information about Mike and his breakout Naked Nutrition System visit http://www.NakedNutritionGuide.com.

The truth about carbs and fat loss

The following is a great article written by Stephen Smith regarding the truth about Carbohydrates. The truth is, when it comes to losing body fat % (not body weight), it comes down to diet and exercise. The problem is that there is so much different material out there, that it is difficult to know what works and what doesn’t. My suggestion to anyone that really wants to decrease their body fat, is to educate themselves on how the body’s metabolism works. Read this article (note: it is based on USDA regulations) to learn the basics of carbohydrate intake, and how it translates into fat loss:

When someone decides to lose body fat whether it is for summer, an event or simply to improve their health, one of the first changes they consider making is to their eating habits. Once the decision is made, the next step taken is to research their possible diet options. This may involve speaking with people, reading magazine articles or visiting their local book store in order to find the 'holy grail' of diets- the diet that is guaranteed to shed fat off their body quickly and with little effort.

Of course a diet-only approach to fat loss is futile in itself but to make matters worse, dieters often become hopelessly confused about what to eat for the best results. Should they reduce their fat intake? Cut out all their carbohydrates? Eat only soup for a few days? Eat based on their blood type? Follow a de-tox diet? Liver cleansing? The options are endless.

The area that probably has dieters baffled the most is the issue of carbohydrates. Currently there are two dominant schools of thought when it comes to carbohydrate consumption.

On the one hand, we have dietitians and nutritionists telling us for the last 20 years that carbohydrates don't make us fat. This view is clearly stated in their promotion of the USDA's Food Pyramid and in more recent times, The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating pie chart. Both of these food guides recommend the majority of food intake come from refined carbohydrate sources, like bread, pasta, rice, cereals and other grain-based food products. In fact, the USDA Food Pyramid recommends we eat 6-11 serves a day of these carbohydrate sources in order to have a healthy diet! The advocates of this style of eating are often heard to say things like, 'Carbohydrates don't make you fat, it is what you put on them that makes you fat.' Examples include, sour cream on potatoes or butter on bread.

On the other hand, there are the advocates of low-carb diets. Popularized by Dr Robert Atkins in the 70's (even though their use has been documented for at least 150 years), low-carb eating appears to be experiencing a re-surgence. This is due mainly to the fact that many Hollywood celebrities have confessed to using them to achieve their movie-star bodies. As a result, the market is being flooded with low-carb diet books and an amazing array of low-carb products, including meal replacement bars, cookies, muffin mixes, cereal products, pizza bases and many others. Often these diets allow an almost unlimited amount of food so long as carbohydrates are restricted.

These diametrically opposed views often leave people hopelessly confused about what to eat to achieve maximum fat loss. In this article I hope to clear up the confusion so you can enjoy your food whilst at the same time lose all the body fat you want.

Insulin and glucagon

In considering carbohydrate and its affect on our body fat stores, we must firstly understand the function of two hormones, insulin and glucagon. Both of these hormones are produced by the pancreas (an organ that sits behind the stomach) and work in concert to regulate our blood glucose level. For example, when our blood glucose level rises (after a meal), insulin is the hormone responsible for storing the glucose and normalizing the blood glucose level. When the blood glucose level falls, glucagon promotes the release of glucose from the liver, bringing the level back up again.

For fat loss to occur, insulin release must be minimized as much as possible because of the effects it has in the body, which include:

• Promotes the storage of nutrients in cells (positive effect- anabolic). Promotes the storage of fat in the adipocytes (fat cells).
• Promotes the uptakes of glucose into the adipocytes and their conversion into fat.
• Increases the activity of fat manufacturing and fat storing and enzymes (lipoprotein lipase - LPL and fatty acid synthase - FAS).
• Inhibits the release of fat from the adipocytes (which could be used as a fuel source).

Insulin is released as a result of mainly two factors and the amount of insulin released is in direct proportion to these two factors.

• The size of a meal.
• The amount of glucose in the bloodstream.

Accordingly, eating smaller, more frequent meals may help to reduce the insulin response (i.e. eat 5 small meals a day).

Also, regulating the amount of glucose entering the bloodstream will help. This may be achieved by:

• Reducing the portion of carbohydrate in each meal.
• Emphasising low Glycaemic Index (GI) carbohydrates.
• Emphasising low-density carbohydrates.
• Ensuring each meal contains a portion of protein, fat and fibre as well as the carbohydrate.

Reducing the portion of carbohydrates in each meal

Since insulin is released in response to an increase in blood glucose and fat loss will be maximized if insulin is low, people may be forgiven for thinking that a low-carb diet is the answer. Whilst it is true that these diets do promote fat loss, I do not recommend them for the following reasons:

• They are too hard to sustain long-term.
• They may lead to deficiency diseases due to their avoidance of fruits and vegetables.
• They may negatively affect bodily functions due to a reduced fibre intake and possible high intakes of saturated fat and cholesterol.

Despite the possible negative consequences of low-carb diets, the overall philosophy of reduced insulin response is sound. Therefore, people wanting to lose body fat should reduce (without eliminating) their portion sizes of carbohydrate in every meal.

Emphasizing low Glycemic Index (GI) carbohydrates

The GI is a score given to carbohydrate-containing foods based on how rapidly they cause a rise in blood glucose after being consumed. A high GI means the food causes a rapid rise in blood glucose and a low GI means the food causes a more sustained release of glucose into the bloodstream.

Since a rise in blood glucose promotes insulin release we should emphasize low GI carbohydrates in our diet.

Emphasizing low-density carbohydrates

Carbohydrate density describes the amount of carbohydrate a food contains per serve. For example, pasta (high-density) contains 76.5 grams of carbohydrate per 100 grams whilst broccoli contains a minuscule 0.5 grams per 100 grams. Obviously the greater the carbohydrate density the greater the likelihood of the food causing a rapid rise in blood glucose, and in turn, insulin as well.

Ensuring each meal contains a portion of protein, fat and fibre

Not only does having protein, fat and fibre with the carbohydrates ensure a more 'nutritionally complete' meal but these nutrients also have the effect of slowing down the absorption rate of the carbohydrates, which allows a more sustained release of glucose into the bloodstream and therefore a reduced insulin response.

Quite often people will have a piece of fruit, a diet yogurt or a low-fat muffin for their mid-morning or mid-afternoon meal in their quest to lose body fat. Unfortunately, these foods alone don't provide an adequate amount of all the nutrients required by the body and may also cause a rapid rise in blood glucose, halting fat loss in its tracks!

As a result, these foods should only be consumed with other foods to ensure a complete meal. For example, have a piece of fruit with some nuts, mix a small amount of cottage cheese with the yoghurt (it doesn't taste that bad- honest!) or have a low-fat muffin with a protein shake. From this information it is safe to conclude that following a diet based on the Food Pyramid or Australian Guide to Healthy Eating perhaps isn't the best way to assist our fat-loss efforts. Furthermore, a big question to ask yourself is this:

Since the Food Pyramid was designed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), do their interest lie in looking after our health or in supporting the economy?'

[NOTE: The base of the Food Pyramid recommends 6-11 serves a day of high density, mostly high GI, refined, grain-based carbohydrates.]

In summary, your fat-loss efforts will be greatly improved by consuming carbohydrates in the following way:

• Eat smaller, more frequent meals.
• Reduce your portion size of carbohydrate without eliminating it.
• Ensure all meals contain portions of carbohydrate, protein, fat and fibre.
• Slow the passage of glucose into the bloodstream by emphasising low-density and low GI carbohydrates.

If you make an effort to ensure these recommendations are followed every day, you can literally watch the fat melt off your body! Go for it!

10 Reasons why you don’t need the gym

I’ve been a fitness trainer for a long time now. I started out just like any other trainer does, by working at a gym. I worked for the largest gym franchise in Canada for a long time. As much as I enjoyed the experience, and cannot help but look back and realize that I wasted A LOT of time and energy into both working at a gym, and working out at a gym.

From a business standpoint, ever since I made the decision to start my own personal training company, my clients were able to get results 3 times faster than the clients I had at a gym. This is with minimal equipment as well. In fact, my Bye Bye Babyfat Boot Camps can attest to quick results with very few equipment. All we use are a few kettlebells, dumbbells, med balls, stability balls and resistance bands. It’s all about how you train, not where you train.

I’m not saying that gyms are bad. I actually still have a gym membership. But that’s only because I don’t have space at my home to build a gym, and I don’t have my own studio space, NOT YET!! Believe me, the first chance I get, I will build my own gym and get rid of my membership.

I'm not even trying to advertise to any of you to train with me or join my boot camps (even though they're amazing!). All I’m saying is that you don’t NEED the gym. You can get amazing results with just some equipment, healthy eating habits, and the proper training systems. Here are my top 10 reasons why you don’t need a gym:

1) Waste of travel time

I’m lucky. I don’t work the typical 9-5. That allows me to get to the gym fast. I also get a great workout because there isn’t much people at the gym in the middle of the day. Most of us live at least 5-10 minutes away from the closest gym (some people live 20-30 plus minutes away). This means that a daily gym workout will cost at least 10-20 precious minutes in wasted travel time. Add that time up over the course of a week and you are looking at losing at least 1-2 hours going to and from the gym. And that’s not including any additional time changing clothes in the locker room or getting caught in conversation with people you know.

2) The Sheep Mentality

This always bothered me at the gym, as a member and as an employee. I truly believe the example that most people set will make you worse. Everybody is doing the same thing. Most men and women are just sheep- slaves to all of the misinformation provided in the form of sensational fitness magazines and infomercials. People just go to the gym and do whatever everybody else is doing.

Most women are cardio queens spending hours at a time on ellipticals, bikes, and treadmills- sadly getting nowhere fast. Ladies you need to start doing some resistance training and cut those cardio sessions down to 20 minutes of intense interval training to burn that stubborn hip, thigh, and belly fat that is holding your sexy back.

And then there are also those meathead guys who only work their mirror muscles (abs, chest, biceps) while taking extraordinary long rest periods between sets of upper body isolation exercises. These oversized morons often bench in excess of 300 lbs but probably couldn’t perform 10 perfect, full range of motion push-ups with their body weight if their life depended on it.

When in doubt, DON’T do what everybody else in the gym is doing because it’s not working! It’s funny because when I work out at the gym, I’m rarely on any machines, and taking advantage of an empty studio doing various body weight exercises and interval training workouts.

3) Needless Waiting Time for Equipment or Space

This one was huge for me. As a trainer, I could not believe how much time I wasted waiting for a machine, or just going from one useless piece of equipment to the other. My clients got great results, but, I probably could have got them faster results by maximizing every minute of our workouts.

I remember sometimes having to wait about an average of at least 15-20 minutes per workout waiting on a piece of equipment or a certain space of the gym to complete my daily routine. Not only does this waste a bunch of valuable time and create a detrimental roller coaster of warming-up and cooling-down, but this long stop and go format is completely counter productive to the appropriate alternating set format and work to rest ratio to burn fat and lose weight fast - the main goal of over 90% of fitness enthusiasts.

I have found the most effective strength training protocol for fat loss to be a 20-10 (20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest and transition) repeated 12 times per paired muscle groups. Frankly, there is no way you can workout in this format at the typical overcrowded commercial gym when people are constantly getting in your way and hording your training space and equipment.

Build your own gym at home so you and you only control your workout environment.

4) Sickness and Disease

Let’s just be honest about this, gyms are cesspools for sickness and disease. Most overworked, burnt out trainers working at the typical failing health club are forced to double dip and clean up the gym at the end of 8+ hour workdays. How much energy do you really think they have left to thoroughly clean and disinfect equipment that hundreds of people have sweat and dripped on all day long?

Beyond catching the common cold, there are some other real serious things that have been spreading at gyms like wildfire like merca staph infections!

5) People (Sometimes annoying people)

This is probably my biggest pet peeve at the gym. I love my job, and I absolutely love talking to people. But my workouts are MY time, no one elses. I’m doing it for myself. I don’t want to talk to anyone and I don’t like being interrupted when I’m trying to get a great workout in.

For most people going to the gym isn’t about getting results, it’s about socializing. Plus, I have always felt like a caged animal at a zoo during my workouts with people rudely gawking at me while I’m getting after it. Sure, my workouts utilize a host of unique and advanced exercises and they are often disturbingly intense, but it’s just a pain in the arse to have people looking at you like you are crazy. To me it’s crazy that I get better results in brief 20-minute sessions than the typical gym rat who wastes 2 hours a day getting nothing accomplished.

But that’s not the worst part - the worst part is when people interrupt you mid-workout to ask you questions about your training routine. Sorry, go pay for a trainer to give you advice. I’m there on a mission, not to reeducate. That’s reserved exclusively for my boot campers and my private clients.

6) Expensive Memberships

Man, are gym memberships getting more and more ridiculous or what?! There are processing fees, card fees, towel fees, and the list goes on! Isn’t your current rent or mortgage enough of a monthly overhead! Plus, these scammers lock you in for long-term agreements that mean that you’ll probably still be training at the gym when your hair goes gray. Total BS. If you’re going to pay for something, pay for someone that can get you results. Don’t pay for access to a place for you to ‘try’ and get results, pay for results….bottomline! This means hiring a qualified fitness expert to ensure your results. It’s a better investment in the long run.

7) Useless Equipment

Most, machines suck. They don’t allow your body to train that way it was designed to move and function and they cause many overuse injuries.

If you want to be lean, tight, and muscular, all you need is your body weight, some bands, and a few free weight options like dumbbells or kettlebells to get the job done at home or on the road.

8) Lack of Open Training Space

This one’s pretty simple. Idiot club owners focus on all the frills with substance by filling the training floor up with overpriced, oversized machines that take up all of the prime real estate. Ever try doing a walking lunge in the typical health club? The last time I did I winded up tripping on a loose muscle clamp and landing on my bum L

All you need is space - space to move freely and explore your own body’s capabilities.

9) Crippling Dependence

I mentioned this earlier - gyms force you to create a dependence on them. If you are used to using machines, you feel lost when you travel and can’t access the same equipment. In most cases, people figure “what the hell, I’ll just take some time off until I get back home since I don’t have any gym access out here.” I'm fortunate to have enough education behind me to get a great workout without depending on machines. I know what to do, most people don't.

I can personally guarantee you that I can break you with your body weight far before I can break you with any machine - and your body weight can go through customs too! So, show yourself that you can get results without the gym. I promise you that the best workouts of your life are waiting for you at home or in new places like a park, beach, hotel room, etc. Step outside the box!

10) Bad Trainers

This is probably the biggest reason why I quit working at a gym. Sorry, but, most trainers SUCK - they get certified by these money-hungry certification agencies that no provide no support with program design that’s more ancient than Larry King. If the public only knew how easy it is to get certified as a personal trainer. The course and exam is a joke. I didn’t even study for it and I passed with a 95%. I am a big believer of education. I personally went to University for 4 years and graduated with a degree in Kinesiology and Health Sciences. I continually take course to keep my knowledge base up-to-date. My education provides me with the tools to get my boot campers and clients results. Nowadays, trainers at gyms get paid squat with no true incentive to get clients results. They are more quota-driven, as opposed to client-drive.

When you go to the typical gym for personal training, you enter a factory. They are trying to get you in and out. They don’t care if your reach your goals nor do they have the desire to build lasting relationships with you. They just need to hit their quota - you are just another number for them. I know, because they forced that mentality on me while I worked at a gym. I hated it. But I tolerated it because I thought I was still helping people. I was, but I was limited by a corporate mentality. I’m older now, and I definitely know better.

To be honest, a big part of me having a gym membership is to see what they’re doing right and what they are doing wrong. A believe me, there are more wrongs than rights, in terms of what they actually do for their members and clients. I can’t tell you how many times I have been sick to my stomach seeing some jackass personal trainer getting paid $60-80/hour to talk to some overweight client while he or she walks gingerly on his or her cardio machine of choice. I’ve even witnessed trainers that eat while training their clients. Imagine you trying to workout and lose fat with your own trainer, eating a sandwich in your face! URGH!

I’m a huge advocate of boot camps now. Which is why I started my own. Join a fitness boot camp in your area that creates a fit community - a culture of success. You can get better results for less than a third the cost of typical personal training rates. I guarantee it.

Man, when you really think about it, why would anybody want to go the gym if they could easily set-up their own dream gym at home (think basement, den, garage or living room)? I’m planning to do it in the very near future.

I mean if you are the type of person who is motivated, empowered, and dedicated enough to consistently workout on your own, it appears that going to the gym may very well be the dumbest thing you can do. Well, only if you’re not maximizing your time at the gym. If you are, then power to you. Again, my point is that you don’t NEED a gym to get a great workout.