How Often Should I Train?

By Cameron Abel – BestFitnessChoices.com

Boy oh boy! How many different answers can you get out there for this question?!

Kazillions! Some right, some wrong but I guess ultimately the answer lies in what results you want to achieve and also in what time frame.

If you are desiring a massive and cut body and you want it in 6 months, then you can be pretty sure you will need to be training extremely hard at least 5 times a week if not every day.

The opposite also applies whereas you may want to just tone up a bit and lose 10 pounds. Eating right and “proper training” once a week as well as some active play will certainly do the trick.

Here at BestFitnessChoices.com, my whole site is geared mainly towards the average joe or jill who is very busy with work, children, families and other commitments etc. People that are willing to work hard but don’t have the time to go to the gym or train 5 or 6 days a week and who want to see results for their hard work.

For this reason, scheduled workouts must check the following boxes:

  • Be able to actually fit into an already busy schedule
  • Allow enough time for rest between workouts
  • Are programmed on days that you will actually be more likely to do them
  • Keep y0u looking forward to your sessions
  • Take advantage of “Weekend Confessional” or “New Leaf” days! – eg Mondays!

I feel the best amount of training days for us normal, busy lives people is simply 3 days a week of scheduled, specifically designed and planned workout or exercise sessions.  I also believe that the best days for this training are Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Here’s why!

One of the biggest challenges many people face on exercise programs is of course, motivation. 3 days a week keeps it fun and not a daily chore and there are also plenty of days off for you to recover or do other active exercise that is more “fun” such as playing sport, hiking or even just relaxing.

You also want to be looking forward to your workouts which will mean that you will enjoy them more and won’t dread your workouts. Win, win, and win!

Training on these days  also keeps your weekend free because so many of us either don’t quite get to our weekend session due to work commitments, you just don’t feel like it or the fact that there is often other things on. Small tip though, if you can, a quick cardio session early on a Saturday morning can not only burn off a few calories but also provide you with motivation to be good for the rest of the day!

One of the keys to training especially when just starting out is not to overdo it with crazy enthusiasm and sometimes this is very hard to do. Who is the person who will ultimately see the best long term results? The one who goes nuts and trains hard, 5 to 6 times a week and then gets burnt out or dreads their workouts after just a month or two and then quits altogether or the person who trains hard 3 times a week, does “fun exercise” on other days of the week (if they even want to!), looks forward to their workouts and follows this routine for a year? I think we both know the answer to that one.

So to conclude, of course more exercise is certainly better in the short term (in most cases) if you can keep it up and not lose motivation. However, I know you will get the best results by keeping yourself fresh, adequately recovered and interested, enabling you to follow your programs and routines much more long term.

This one factor alone will result in getting you in much better shape over the long run which is of course what we all want. How many times have we seen people eat and exercise really hard for 3 to 6 months, lose heaps of weight and get in fine shape, only to see them go back to their old patterns and ultimately, back to their old bodies!

Basically, keeping yourself in shape should be a lifelong goal and the more you make exercise a regular and normal part of your day, the better your life will be!

To learn more about effective exercise programs and fat burning workouts that are specifically designed and targeted for just 3 sessions a week, click here  and check out a trial membership at Turbulence Training which gives you FULL ACCESS to all they have to offer, for 21 whole days for less than $5!

Exercise hard but safe and have fun!

Cameron Abel


Expert Review: Ab Exercise Infomercial Gadgets

If you’ve ever watched an abdominal exercise gadget infomercial and wondered if those products worked, fitness expert Craig Ballantyne, author of Turbulence Training, recently reviewed a research study on ab exercise gadgets to help you get the truth about abs.

According to Craig, one of his favorite ab exercises includes one of those cheap infomercial gadgets, “the ab wheel”. You can pick one up at Walmart for under 20 bucks, and it works your abs hard without crunches.

But do other ab gadgets hold up?

Researchers (from the Mayo Clinic, of all places) tested the “Ab-Slide” device and compared it to the ab crunch, the supine double leg thrust (seated knee tuck-in), and side plank.

Reference:

J Strength Cond Res. 2008 Nov;22(6):1939-46.

Ten young men and twelve young women did all the exercises.

Tests showed that the Ab-Slide, a contraption fairly similar to the Ab Wheel, worked the abs the hardest.

On the other hand, the seated knee tuck-in required a lot of hip flexion, and the doctors believed it could cause BACK PROBLEMS in people prone to low back injury.

Craig recommends sticking with the Ab Wheel, and of course, keeping crunches out of your program. He also suggests adding the Seated Knee Tuck-in to your list of ab exercises to avoid.

For best results, stick to the exercises in the Turbulence Training workout program.

Click here for more ab exercises and workouts:

=> Turbulence Training for Abs!

Train hard and safe,

Cameron Abel

PS – Just say NO to crunches.

Not only are crunches hard on your low back, they are also useless for helping you get a flat stomach.

Instead, stick to interval training, the ab exercises in Turbulence Training, and the TT nutrition guidelines if you want to transform your body.

Click here to burn belly fat fast:

=> Turbulence Training For Abs Trial Offer!


The Importance of Keeping a Food Diary

By Cameron Abel – BestFitnessChoices.com

In this article I would like to talk about the importance of keeping a food diary, especially if you are just starting out or have had a long history of battling weight loss.

There are some medical and body exemptions of course however the theory of weight loss really is quite simple. You would almost certainly have heard the two quotes “Eat less and move more” and the most popular “Calories in vs calories out.”

Both quotes are extremely simple and right to the point and I have to agree that apart from the medical exceptions mentioned above, the theory of weight loss really is that easy – in theory of course.

Our body is always burning calories. All throughout the day, every single second while we are at work, play, driving the car, watching TV on the couch and even while we are asleep! What differs of course is the rate at which our boy burns these calories and this is solely dependent on our activity levels at the time.

To lose weight you must consistently burn off more calories than you are taking in. Now this is not the time and place to go all in about total daily calorie expenditures and how many calories are burned off by a sedentary office worker vs a tradesman etc but a big area where we misjudge our calories is simply in the food and drink we consume in a day. This is where a food diary can pay big dividends.

By keeping a food diary you can establish and work out exactly how many calories you are actually eating at each meal, how much you are eating overall and clearly identify problem areas and also foods or times of the day that are sabotaging you! It may surprise you to learn that 99% of people significantly under estimate their calorie intake, some by as much as 50%!

Also if you are true to yourself and recording every little morsel that goes into your mouth, you will more than likely notice a trend appearing where you are negatively contributing to a higher than needed calorie intake.

Believe it or not, most of us do not even realise how many additional calories we ingest each and every day just in a biscuit here, a lolly there or an afternoon can of soda. These calories sure do add up and if you are fond of an alcoholic beverage or two after your meal or at the end of the day’s work, just watch the calories start to stack up!

The best way to do it is be really strict on yourself and keep a record of absolutely everything that goes in your mouth for two full weeks. You can use whatever recording method you like such as a notepad, book or enter it all into a document on your pc or laptop.

The key is just ensuring you take note of ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING. Quite often it is the little things like one biscuit or one muffin, a glass of cola or slice of cake that we don’t include yet these are calorie rich foods!

You can then analyse this data and make the necessary adjustments to your lifestyle and nutrition. There are also some great free services out there on the World Wide Web where you can enter in your food and everything from the calories to salt, fat and mineral ratios can all be neatly graphed for you!

One of my favourite sites for recording this info is http://www.calorieking.com/

Lastly, another great method (and my favourite way of keeping a food diary) to take advantage of especially in this mobile world is simply to use the camera in your mobile phone and take a snapshot of every drink, meal or morsel you consume in a day. Before you go to bed, scroll through your pics and ask yourself if it was a good day or a bad day and what can you learn from it.

The key message here is to keep a food diary and be strict about it for a full two weeks. Don’t short change yourself by leaving bits and pieces out and also try to eat as normally as possible so you get a real feel of your ‘normal’ food intake and not just a 2 week sample where you are actually being good!

After the 2 weeks is up, review and make the necessary adjustments as they are revealed to you and you will start to see some great results in your weight loss efforts!

Best of luck to you!

Cameron Abel


The Truth About Counting Calories And Weight Loss

The Truth About Counting Calories And Weight Loss
By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
Burn The Fat.com

Do calories matter or do you simply need to eat certain foods and that will guarantee you’ll lose weight? Should you count calories or can you just count “portions?” Is it necessary to keep a food diary? Is it unrealistic to count calories for the rest of your life or is that just part of the price you pay for a better body? You’re about to learn the answers to these questions and discover a simple solution for keeping track of your food intake without having to crunch numbers every day or become a fanatic about it.

In many popular diet books, “Calories don’t count” is a frequently repeated theme. Other popular programs, such as Bill Phillip’s “Body For Life,” stress the importance of energy intake versus energy output, but recommend that you count “portions” rather than calories…

Phillips wrote,

“There aren’t many people who can keep track of their calorie intake for an extended period of time. As an alternative, I recommend counting ‘portions.’ A portion of food is roughly equal to the size of your clenched fist or the palm of your hand. Each portion of protein or carbohydrate typically contains between 100 and 150 calories. For example, one chicken breast is approximately one portion of protein, and one medium-sized baked potato is approximately one portion of carbohydrate.”

Phillips makes a good point that trying to count every single calorie – in the literal sense – can drive you crazy and is probably not realistic as a lifestyle for the long term. It’s one thing to count portions instead of calories – that is at least acknowledging the importance of portion control. However, it’s another altogether to deny that calories matter.

Calories do count! Any diet program that tells you, “calories don’t count” or you can “eat all you want and still lose weight” is a diet you should avoid because you are being lied to. The truth is, that line is a bunch of baloney designed to make a diet sound easier to follow.

Anything that sounds like work – such as counting calories, eating less or exercising, tends to scare away potential customers! The law of calorie balance is an unbreakable law of physics: Energy in versus energy out dictates whether you will gain, lose or maintain your weight. Period.

I believe that it’s very important to develop an understanding of and a respect for portion control and the law of calorie balance. I also believe it’s an important part of nutrition education to learn how many calories are in the foods you eat on a regular basis – including (and perhaps, especially) how many calories are in the foods you eat when you dine at restaurants.

The law of calorie balance says:

To maintain your weight, you must consume the same number of calories you burn. To gain weight, you must consume more calories than you burn. To lose weight, you must consume fewer calories than you burn.

If you only count portions or if you haven’t the slightest idea how many calories you’re eating, it’s a lot more likely that you’ll eat more than you realize. (Or you might take in fewer calories than you should, which triggers your body’s “starvation mode” and causes your metabolism to shut down).

So how do you balance practicality and realistic expectations with a nutrition program that gets results? Here’s a solution that’s a happy medium between strict calorie counting and just guessing:

Create a menu using an EXCEL spreadsheet or your favorite nutrition software. Crunch all the numbers including calories, protein, carbs and fats. Once you have your daily menu, print it, stick it on your refrigerator (and/or in your daily planner) and you now have an eating “goal” for the day, including a caloric target.

Rather than writing down every calorie one by one from every morsel of food you eat for the rest of your life, create a menu plan you can use as a daily goal and guideline. If you’re really ambitious, keeping a nutrition journal at least one time in your life for at least 4-12 weeks is a great idea and an incredible learning experience, but all you really need to get started on the road to a better body is one good menu on paper. If you get bored eating the same thing every day, you can create multiple menus, or just exchange foods using your primary menu as a template.

Using this meal planning method, you really only need to “count calories” once when you create your menus, not every day, ad infinitum. After you’ve got a knack for calories from this initial discipline of menu planning, then you can estimate portions in the future and get a pretty good (and more educated) ballpark figure.

So what’s the bottom line? Is it really necessary to count every calorie to lose weight? No. But it IS necessary to eat fewer calories then you burn. Whether you count calories and eat less than you burn, or you don’t count calories and eat less than you burn, the end result is the same – you lose weight. Which would you rather do: Take a wild guess, or increase your chance for success with some simple menu planning? I think the right choice is obvious.

For more information on calories (including how calculate precisely how many you should eat based on your age, activity and personal goals, and for even more practical, proven fat loss techniques to help you lose body fat safely, healthfully and permanently, check out my e-book, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle.

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, an NSCA-certified personal trainer (CPT), certified strength & conditioning specialist (CSCS), and author of the #1 best-selling e-book, “Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle.” Tom has written more than 200 articles and has been featured in print magazines such as IRONMAN, Australian IRONMAN, Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Exercise for Men and Men’s Exercise, as well as on hundreds of websites worldwide. Click here for information on Tom’s Fat Loss program.


5 Ways to Cut Your Workout Time

5 Ways to Cut Your Workout Time

By: Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
www.TurbulenceTraining.com

Do you know the 2 biggest reasons men and women stop exercising?

1) Lack of time
2) Lack of motivation

Let’s tackle “Lack of Time” today with 5 ways you can get your
workouts done faster. After all, no one should spend more than 50 minutes in the gym.

Here are 5 ways to cut time from your workouts.

a) Supersets

I use “non-competing” superset. This means, choose two exercises for different muscle groups – and preferably completely opposite movements. For example, choose a push and a pull. That way, one muscle group rests while the other works…and you cut the rest time you need between sets.

b) Choose a better warmup strategy

Don’t waste 10 minutes walking on the treadmill. Instead, use a
total body circuit of bodyweight exercises as a general warmup, and then move directly into specific warm-up sets for your first two exercises.

c) Pair dumbbell and bodyweight exercises together in your
supersets

This saves you time at home (you don’t need to change the dumbbell weight between exercises) and in the gym (you don’t need to fight for 2 sets of dumbbells).

d) Choose Intervals over slow cardio

The latest research shows more weight loss when people use intervals, and intervals take half as long to do.

e) Limit the use of isolation exercises

Pick multi-muscle exercises, such as squats, pulls, pushes, and
rows. If you have time, you can squeeze in some dropsets for arms and shoulders if you want. However, if you only have 3 sessions of 45 minutes per week, isolation exercises must be the first to go.

In addition, don’t spend more than 10 minutes per week on direct ab training. It’s not efficient and won’t give you rock hard abs alone.

Workout less, live life more,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Creator of Turbulence Training

PS – Don’t know where to start?

If you are a beginner, start by reading Dr. Mohr’s nutrition
guidelines…eating properly will be the biggest factor in your
early success.

Beginners should also start with the Introductory TT workouts to prepare their muscles for the upcoming intense training.

For others, it’s best to start with the Intermediate Level TT
workouts. If those aren’t enough of a challenge, you can move onto the Original TT workout and follow the 16-week advanced program right through.

If at any time you need a break, try the TT Bodyweight 4-week plan.

And then finish off with the TT Fusion Fat Loss program followed by the 30-day Maximum Fat Loss program to cap off a full 24 weeks of Advanced TT fat loss workouts.

After that, choose between the TT for Women or TT for Muscle
programs to help put the finishing touches on your physique. All of these are included as bonuses with Turbulence Training.

About the Author

Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training fat loss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men’s Fitness and Maximum Fitness magazines, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat, gain muscle, and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week. For more information on the Turbulence Training workouts that will help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment, visit www.TurbulenceTraining.com


Nutrition Or Training – Which Is More Important?

Nutrition Or Training – Which Is More Important?
By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
Burn The Fat

Legendary bodybuilding trainer Vince, “The Iron Guru” Gironda was famous for saying, “Bodybuilding is 80% nutrition!”

But is this really true or is it just another fitness and bodybuilding myth passed down like gospel without ever being questioned? Which is really more important, nutrition or training? This IS an interesting question and I believe there is a definite answer:

The first thing I would say is that you cannot separate nutrition and training. The two work together synergistically. Regardless of your goals – gaining muscle, losing fat, athletic conditioning, whatever -you will get less than-optimal or even non-existent results without paying attention paid to both.

In fact, I like to look at gaining muscle or losing fat in three parts – weight training, cardio training and nutrition – with each part like a leg of a three legged stool. pull ANY one of the legs off the stool, and guess what happens?

In reality, it’s impossible to put a specific percentage on which is more important – how could we possibly know such a number to the digit?

Nutrition and training are both important, but at certain stages of your training progress, I do believe placing more attention on one component over the other can create larger improvements. Let me explain:

If you’re a beginner and you don’t posses nutritional knowledge, then mastering nutrition is far more important than training and should become your number one priority. I say this because improving a poor diet can create rapid, quantum leaps in fat loss and muscle building progress.

For example, if you’ve been skipping meals and only eating 2 times per day, jumping your meal frequency up to 5 or 6 smaller meals a day will transform your physique very rapidly.

If you’re still eating lots of processed fats and refined sugars, cutting them out and replacing them with good fats like the omega threes found in fish and unrefined foods like fruits, vegetables and whole grains will make an enormous and noticeable difference in your physique very quickly.

If your diet is low in protein, simply adding a complete protein food like chicken breast, fish or egg whites at each meal will muscle you up fast.

No matter how hard you train or what type of training routine you’re on, it’s all in vain if you don’t provide yourself with the right nutritional support.

In beginners (or in advanced trainees who are still eating poorly), these changes in diet are more likely to result in great improvements than a change in training.

The muscular and nervous systems of a beginner are unaccustomed to exercise. Therefore, just about any training program can cause muscle growth and strength development to occur because it’s all a “shock” to the untrained body.

You can almost always find ways to tweak your nutrition to higher and higher levels, but once you’ve mastered all the nutritional basics, then further improvements in your diet don’t have as great of an impact as those initial important changes…

Eating more than six meals will have minimal effect. Eating more protein ad infinitum won’t help. Once you’re eating low fat, going to zero fat won’t help more – it will probably hurt. If you’re eating a wide variety of foods and taking a good multi vitamin/mineral, then more supplements probably wont help much either. If you’re already eating natural complex carbs and lean proteins every three hours, there’s not too much more you can do other than continue to be consistent day after day…

At this point, as an intermediate or advanced trainee who has the nutrition in place, changes in your training become much more important, relatively speaking. Your training must become downright scientific.

Except for the changes that need to be made between an “off season” muscle growth diet and a “precontest” cutting diet, the diet won’t and can’t change much – it will remain fairly constant.

But you can continue to pump up the intensity of your training and improve the efficiency of your workouts almost without limit. In fact, the more advanced you become, the more crucial training progression and variation becomes because the well-trained body adapts so quickly.

According to powerlifter Dave Tate, an advanced lifter may adapt to a routine within 1-2 weeks. That’s why elite lifters rotate exercises constantly and use as many as 300 different variations on exercises.

Strength coach Ian King says that unless you’re a beginner, you’ll adapt to any training routine within 3-4 weeks. Coach Charles Poliquin says that you’ll adapt within 5-6 workouts.

So, to answer the question, while nutrition is ALWAYS critically important, it’s more important to emphasize for the beginner (or the person whose diet is still a “mess”), while training is more important for the advanced person… (in my opinion).

It’s not that nutrition ever ceases to be important, the point is, further improvements in nutrition won’t have as much impact once you already have all the fundamentals in place.

Once you’ve mastered nutrition, then it’s all about keeping that nutrition consistent and progressively increasing the efficiency and intensity of your workouts, and mastering the art of planned workout variation, which is also known as “periodization.”

The bottom line: There’s a saying among strength coaches and personal trainers…

“You can’t out-train a lousy diet!”

If your nutrition program is your weakest area, either because you’re just starting out or you simply don’t have the nutritional knowledge you know you need to get results, then be sure to take a look at the Burn The Fat program.

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, an NSCA-certified personal trainer (CPT), certified strength & conditioning specialist (CSCS), and author of the #1 best-selling e-book, “Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle.” Tom has written hundreds of articles and been featured in IRONMAN, Australian IRONMAN, Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Exercise for Men and Men’s Exercise, as well as on dozens of websites worldwide. Click here for information on Tom’s Fat Loss program.


Fat Burning Exercise Tips for Busy Parents & Professionals

Fat Burning Exercise Tips for Busy Parents & Professionals

By: Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS

Turbulence Training for Fat Loss

The great thing about strength training and intervals for fat burning is “efficiency“. Because you are working harder, the signal to your body to change is stronger. You cut time when you increase intensity and you burn fat faster.

Now don’t worry, I won’t be asking you to do hill sprints tomorrow if you aren’t exercising today. For a beginner, we just do some slightly faster than normal walking intervals.

For intermediate fitness levels, we’ll pick up the pace about 20% compared to their normal cardio levels, but again, the work periods are much shorter. The key is, you must shift to a slightly higher intensity in order to cut time from your workout. But the workout also goes faster, and much more importantly, you will get more results and better fitness from these methods.

It’s easy to do these workouts first thing in the AM, at lunch, or after the kids go to bed. Plus, you can get a great workout at home with only a bench, dumbells, and an exercise ball.

You don’t need fancy machines or an expensive gym membership. And another bonus, you only need three hard fat burning workouts per week. You don’t have to be in the gym six days per week. On your off days, it’s important to stay active for at least 30 minutes, but these days should be unstructured and revolve around being active with your family or hobbies. Don’t think of them as workout days, think of them as fat burning, stress reducing activity days.

 About the Author Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines.

His trademarked Turbulence Training fat loss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men’s Fitness and Maximum Fitness magazines, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat, gain muscle, and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week.

For more information on the Turbulence Training workouts that will help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment, visit Turbulence Training for Fat Loss


Goal Setting For Fitness Success!

By Cameron Abel – BestFitnessChoices.com

The Hardly Ever Used but Absolutely Vital First step On Any Fitness Program…

Ok so I know what you probably believe the first step on any exercise or fitness program is… and that is to get a full health check and doctors approval before starting. Yes this is correct and should be high on the list however, taking that as a given, the single most important thing is setting your fitness and weight loss goals!

Now, you may already feel you know what you want to achieve and some of you may also feel that setting goals is namby-pamby and not much good however I want to explain why setting a few simple goals for yourself will ultimately decide overall on the level of success you will achieve.

When you want to drive somewhere specific, you never just get in the car and go without a plan or knowing what direction you want to take. Same goes for fitness and weight loss. You MUST write down exactly what you want to achieve and what sort of time frames you want to set for these results.

The benefits in doing this are many but here are a few of the basics:

  • You make a commitment to yourself which when written down, strengthens the bond and degree of your commitment
  • You know exactly where it is you want to go and what you need to do to get there
  • You can break your end goal down into mini goals which give you massive inspiration and motivation as you achieve each mini goal. For instance, you may want to lose 100 pounds. By itself that is a big number and a big challenge! However, losing 100 pounds by way of ten mini 10 pound goals, that is possible and doable!
  • If you get off track, it is simply a matter of reviewing your goals, reassessing where you are at and getting back on the job!
  • When you need motivation or refocus, reviewing your progress made towards your goals is a great motivator and can have you reaching for an apple instead of that pack of crisps!

So after you have written your goals, this is the next most important part! Again with the car scenario, you don’t fill it up with gas or petrol and then leave the car sitting forever in the garage do you?!

Your goal petrol or gas is leverage and human emotion. You MUST take some extra time and assign some form of emotional attachment to your goals because this is the kicker which will ensure you stick to your guns and achieve your goals especially in times of nutritional weakness or exercise motivation.

Tell me, what goal inspires you most out of the two below?

1)      I want to lose 100 pounds and get fitter.

2)      Because I love my kids and I want to be around for them, play with them and be able to run around and keep up with them in the back yard, I promise to them, that I will lose 100 pounds, get healthy and become fitter.

Can you see the difference? Of course you can and for whatever reason you have chosen to set off on a journey of fitness or weight loss you must break it down and really give yourself some emotional leverage.

So to break down the process of goal setting, you need to sit yourself down in a quiet and relaxing place where you can really think clearly about what it is you want to achieve. You can then use the SMART process.

S: Your goals must be SPECIFIC, not vague and should also have some significant emotional attachment

M: Your goals must be MEASUREABLE.

A: Your goals must be ATTAINABLE.

R: Your goals must be REALISTIC. You will not running the Iron Man in Hawaii in 6 months if you have never regularly laced up your runners, swum 20 laps of the pool or rode a bike!

T: Your goals must be TIMELY. Setting a goal of 1 year to drop 5 pounds is not going to motivate you very much is it?Setting a goal deadline of someones wedding or the summer swimsuit season is much more motivational.

When goal setting is done correctly, you will be easily and regularly reminded about what is truly important to you and why you are doing this which will really help you through the tough times of your program and give you the drive and motivation to reach for the next level!


Keys To Health & Fitness Success!

By Cameron Abel – BestFitnessChoices.com

The decision to start looking after yourself, losing weight or improving your fitness is a good one and in all honesty, an easy one!

Unfortunately actually getting started and achieving great results can be quite another thing entirely!

The best way to get around all the obstacles and challenges you will face along the way is to have a detailed plan of exactly what you want to achieve and how you are going to go about it.

If you were going an an interstate road trip or even across town to go shopping, you would plan out your journey. Give your fitness and weight loss journey the same treatment as it is a far more important one as your destination is a long and healthy life!

So with this in mind, and to get the absolute most out of your fitness and weight loss program, follow these keys!

1) Spend a decent amount of time doing some goal setting. That is, writing down the exact reasons why you MUST lose weight and get fitter. DO NOT skip this step because it is vitally important to your end result and a technique not nearly used often enough. Setting goals lets you know where you want to go, creates a commitment to yourself and will help keep you on track. Successfully achieving your mini goals on the way will also give you a great sense of satisfaction and motivation which will power you on to your next goal. There is more info on goal setting including how to do it properly in my Goal Setting article under the Additional Articles tab on this website.

2) Enlist the help of a support network. Be it just one person or several, choose people close to you who have your best interests at heart and tell them about your fitness and weight loss goals. The idea is that they will help you when you are down, congratulate you when you are up and achieving results and also give you some TOUGH LOVE when they feel you need to hear it.

3) Eat better food! Cut out the junk food and limit your alcohol intake. Drink plenty of water and try to eat as much food as you can that is in its natural state or has not been overly processed. Using a food diary is incredibly helpful to assist you in controlling the actual amount of food you consume as well as identifying problem meals or problem times of day.

4) Follow whatever program you are doing as strictly as possible. For this reason it is important to choose a program that is non repetetive and suits your available time, resources and fitness level. Some excellent programs I have used personally are Turbulence Training and Burn The fat, Feed The Muscle and you can find plenty of info about them all over BestFitnessChoices.com!

5) Allow yourself a small indulgence here or there if it helps you fight the cravings. A little treat now and again preferably after you have trained will not do that much damage as long as it is only small, is not regular and you are already eating well. This is far better than totally denying yourself for a week or 2 and then binging out during a moment of weakness!

6) Weigh yourself only once a week at the same time each week. It is a good idea to get professionally measured including body fat percentages every one to three months for really accurate results.

7) Above all, train hard but enjoy it. Training does not always have to be about running, weights of the stationary bike! You will most certainly have your traditional training sessions at least 3 times a week but getting outside and kicking a ball around, playing golf (NO BUGGY!), hiking, swimming, playing tennis or basketball are only a few of the many, many ways you can get active and burn off those calories.

There are of course, other keys to success however these are the main ones in my book. In summary, eat right, move more and keep challenging yourself to stick to your guns and you will achieve all the goals you set out for yourself way back in the beginning!


The Global Health & Fitness Support Network

By Cameron Abel

Are you looking for personalized health & fitness attention? We all know that enlisting the help of a professional personal trainer and a dietician is one of the best ways to get the information and motivation you need to succeed and achieve your goals.

The main obstacles to this are of course:

  • Finding the correct trainer / dietician for you
  • Making the time for structured and regular sessions or appointments that suit you and your trainer / dietician 
  • Expensive hourly rates

Now thanks to Global Health & Fitness, consider these obstacles smashed!

Global Health & Fitness have made having a personal trainer, dietician, motivator and 24 hour accessible resource affordable and better than ever before!

In the words of fitness guru Dr Jack Ford, for over ten years now, GH&F has been offering “The most personal, effective, and affordable fitness program in the world!”But How?
The problem with many on line fitness sites and also gym programs in general is that they are just way too generic. Look around you, everyone is different with different needs, wants, commitments, time, equipment, nutrition, body type and the list goes on and on…

 

Global Health & Fitness is a members only website that offers customized exercise and nutrition plans that helps web users achieve their fitness goals.
Through Global Health & Fitness you will have:

  • Unlimited consulting to all 38 of GH&F’s world renowned specialists in their field. All your emails are guaranteed a reply within 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year! From Chad Tackett (Fitness expert), Brad Walker (Stretching expert), Bonny Berk (maternity fitness expert) to Sally Edwards (heart zone training expert) click here to get to know them better!
  • Customized workout and nutrition plans
  • On line books (on every fitness topic you could wish for)
  • Instructional Videos (great for getting your technique right!)
  • Fitness Tracking software
  • Access to 20 on line exercise classes from cardio boxing to Pilate’s right here on your computer!
  • Hundreds of articles, recipes and so much more!

From the moment you become a GH&F member, you will receive a questionnaire so they can learn as much as they can about you.

This helps you avoid common mistakes that waste your time and stops you from achieving the results you want.
By learning more about you, a program can be tailored directly to you and your needs. What are your goals? Available equipment? Any health challenges or restrictions? What are your favorite exercises and or types of training? Any foods you hate? Let us know and we will remove them from the nutrition plan we make for you. Also what about injuries, pain or special limitations? Our specialists will take all this into account and design you a safe, pain free yet effective workout.  

At the end of the day, if a program isn’t suited to you and able to be enjoyed by you, quite simply you will not succeed. The more they know about you, the better you will go!

At GH&F you will see how easily theycan personally guide you, step by step, to achieving your fitness goals.

So then, reading is great but won’t burn many calories! Lets get you started with a free fitness analysis!
Just by completing the quick survey you will get a quick analysis of your fitness and also receive the e-book “Big Fat Lies” completely free!

click here for your FREE FITNESS ANALYSIS SURVEY AND FREE EBOOK “BIG FAT LIES!”


My Story With Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle

By Cameron Abel

When I first starting looking on-line for help with my own fitness and weight loss journey, I was 171cm (5 foot 6) tall and weighed 109kg (247 pounds). Sadly but true, none of this weight was muscle! I was not massively overweight but certainly alarm bells were ringing and I needed urgent attention if I was to fight off heart disease, high cholesterol, other over weight caused ailments and just simply, increase the length and quality of my life!

When I found Tom Venuto’s Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle boy did I really need it!

Not just for the physical changes I saw it could bring in me but a clarification of knowledge.

Like most people researching on the internet, especially on the topic of health & fitness, there was SO MUCH INFORMATION! Who is right, who is wrong, what sort of diet, training and equipment was needed for my situation. And why would I trust this site and not that site? What are his/her credentials and finally, and most importantly WHO WOULD I PUT MY TRUST IN?

For me, Tom Venuto’s Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle e-book really ticked all the boxes.

Firstly I could visually see his results. To be honest with you, I am not a big fan of the images and photos showing ultra muscle ripped, bulging biceps, body builders. To me, some muscles just aren’t meant to bulge! However I quickly realized that some of Tom’s images especially at one stage when he was under 4% body fat were his extreme, competition-ready pics. When I saw some additional photos of Tom at his “maintenance” physique, it really impressed me and demonstrated a look I was much more interested in working to achieve.

What also impressed me was Tom’s extremely strong stance against any performance enhancing drugs, sports and nutrition supplements/replacements and quick fix programs or products.

Secondly, it is heavily based on the fundamentals of good nutrition and correct eating – not just one size fits all either, but for individual body types and individual circumstances. Tom also explains  in general enough terms for most normal people to understand, a “brief but all you need” demonstration of some basic scientific principles and processes that better allow you to understand the chemical processes that go on in our bodies and how they relate to fat loss.

Thirdly, I am very excited with all things relating to personal development and the focus in the book on this style of learnings is what really sold me.

Throughout the e-book there are plenty of quotes and mantras from many respected and accomplished leaders and speakers.

In Chapter 1, the very first thing you do is take stock of where you are and why and how you will formulate a plan to get to where you want to go or in other words – goal setting!

This program is hard and when you are fighting your inner demons, you need to be able to go back to this section as often as you need and reaffirm why you are doing this to yourself! Realization of progress and remembering the reasons why you are trying to improve such as to be a better Mum or Dad to your kids, make that team or just generally live a longer and healthier life is paramount to your success.

Fourthly, Tom says many times at the start and then throughout the book “This is not easy. This is not a quick fix or miracle cure for obesity and you will have to work your butt off!” I am sure I am just like you and realize that honestly, there is no latest pill, gadget, shake, bar or exercise equipment that strips years of body fat build up in the next 7 days! If they all worked, why is there a new version or invention every other day?!

I was not afraid of hard work and wanted a no nonsense coach who would give me the facts and not play softly. I really loved Tom’s basic but effective quote “BTF,FTM is simple – but it is not easy!”

Fifth and finally, I was a big man and liked to eat! The thoughts of starvation diets did not and will not ever appeal to me. Imagine my delight when Tom said that I could actually eat more while on his program and never feel hungry! When I read that, I could not sign up quickly enough!

So then, if you are tired of poor results due to a lack of knowledge or lack of commitment or want to put an end to your continued pattern of looking for the next big thing in fitness (which usually only disappoints) then please, do what I did and have a good look at Tom Venuto’s Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle e-book.

With over 300 pages of “no filler” education, strategies and techniques, it will give you a great understanding of the best ways to burn fat (not muscle or simply weight) and while you are doing it, actually eating more!

So to finish my personal story, am I a fitness model? Short answer – No (not yet). Am I fitter? Am I stronger? Am I leaner and better educated on how to achieve my fitness goals? YES, YES, YES and YES!

I now weigh 90 kg and have definite muscle tone (which of course weighs more).

I am stronger and can bench, squat and dead lift well over my bodyweight whereas starting out I could barely raise 30kg!

So for me, still a ways to go but as Tom says, this is an effective program for long lasting body definition and fat loss.

I look forward to further updating you on my results as I continue on my journey!

Best wishes in health,

Cameron Abel


My Turbulence Training Review

By Cameron Abel

The Program that Promises Maximum Fat Loss in Minimum Workout Time

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

Before we get to his program, let’s take a look at the expert behind the workouts. Craig Ballantyne’s name has appeared many times in popular fitness magazines such as Men’s Health and Men’s Fitness, and even in Oxygen and Shape magazines so Turbulence Training is clearly put together by a trusted fitness expert.

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

Luckily for all of us, Craig’s unique system of bodyweight exercises, dumbbell exercises, and interval training workouts can all be done at home, with minimal equipment. So again, if you are one of those people who loves machines, or cardio equipment, or marathon workouts, then this program is not for you.

I’ve personally used the program myself and recommended it to many others. Why? Because no one in the busy, real world we live in, has time for long workouts! That’s why. After an eight, ten or twelve hour workday and spending quality time with my family, I just don’t have time to do another 90 minute workout every day of the week.

In fact, I normally do my Turbulence Training workout around 830pm after I put my two boys Kaleb & Seth to bed. This workout is perfect for busy men and women. But its not the type of routine that is going to turn anyone into a pro bodybuilder so if you want maximum muscle and want to massively bulk up, try another one of Craig’s programs.
The Turbulence Training system is best for burning fat without sacrificing muscle - so you end up lean, defined, chiselled and toned. (And who doesn’t want that?!) 

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

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

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

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

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

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

Long, slow cardio workouts
A machine-based exercise circuit
A bodybuilding program to gain bulk
A workout with lots of time-wasting isolation exercises
A restrictive eating plan
Turbulence Training provides NONE of the above. On the other hand, Turbulence Training is perfect for busy men and women who want to burn fat in the comfort of their own homes without spending a lot of money on equipment or space on exercise machines. Oh, and you’ll actually have fun and you won’t “dread” these workouts – in fact, they will be over before you know it!

All of Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training programs are backed by an 8-week money back guarantee. And this is a real guarantee… if you are not completely satisfied, you will receive your money back, no “ifs,” “ands,” or “buts.” So you really have nothing to lose – apart from those extra pounds of course!

Still not sure? Men and women are different – duhh! Click the blue “men” & “women” links below to learn a bit more about how Turbulence Training assists men and women differently to achieve their fitness goals.

So then fitness seeker! Are you ready to get started and start blow torching that fat in the comfort of your own home at the time that suits you, without starving yourself and also without the need to own thousands of dollars worth of equipment?

If three 45 minute workouts a week that are challenging yet fun, different and energizing sounds like the workout program you have been looking for, then let Turbulence Training help you get to where you want to be. Lose that fat, tone up and build those muscles and be the best you, you can be!

DONT FORGET that for 60 days you can try Turbulence Training and at the end of that time, if you are not happy with your results, please contact Turbulence Training for your FULL REFUND – NO IF’s BUT,s and MAYBE’s – NO QUESTIONS ASKED! You just can’t lose!

Still skeptical?!

Fair enough! Handing over your hard earned cash is still a risk no matter how good the program sounds so here is one more reason to ensure you feel comfortable, confident and motivated to try Turbulence Training.
For the next 21 days you can use the Turbulence Training system including ALL BONUSES for less than 5 bucks! Nothing is held back, you have full access to the workouts and the TT members area where you can ask questions about the program and your nutrition strategy.
This program normally sells for $39.95 but to show you how confident we are in Turbulence Training, for a measly $4.95 (less than the cost of a good cup of coffee) you can fully trial the TT experience.
If you like it, the remaining $34 will be charged to you at the end of the 21 days. If you don’t like it, then of course you can get a full refund.

NO RISK – NOTHING TO LOSE!
Click below to get your $4.95, 21 day trial including the 5 bonus e-books!

21 Day $4.95 FULL ACCESS TRIAL


Welcome to BestFitnessChoices.com!

By Cameron Abel

Welcome to Bestfitnesschoices.com!

My philosophy on fitness and weightloss is simple. It must be effective and adaptable for all walks of life especially those busy people (aren’t we all!) with kids, families, sport, long work hours etc.

It must also be varied enough to carry your motivation not just over a few weeks or months but actually years!

It must have good fundamentals that get you mentally ready for the challenges and pitfalls you will face along the way. And above all, it must be fun!

Here at BestFitnessChoices.com I have and will only ever recommend advice, programs and strategies that fit this criteria and I will always appreciate that training hard for 1-2 hours a day for 5 or more days a week just isn’t a viable option for most of us in the real world. We need highly effective training and nutrition strategies that give us the best result for our time!

With this in mind, BestFitnessChoices.com is the home of three of the most successful and longest lasting, health & fitness programs the internet has to offer.

Here amongst a great number of other health & fitness resources, you will find great info on:

Global Health & Fitness (Quite simply one of the best overall fitness and health sites I have ever seen! It offers you an absolute wealth of information, tips, strategies, programs and much more including a massive specialist support team who will create individual exercise & nutrition plans tailor made for you!)

Turbulence Training (An absolutely fantastic program that is strongly tuned to creating the best combination workouts possible for the greatest results in the shortest time all in the comfort of your own home and without the need for expensive equipment)

Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle (Ever seen fat on a competitive body builder? BTFFTM is a tremendous program designed by body building legend Tom Venuto that works for everybody!)

Don’t forget to visit my Free Fitness Tools page! There you will find a vast array of tools, calculators, articles and info all geared to help you know where you are at and how to get to where you want to be! And its all FREE!

Just as a thank-you for visiting BestFitnessChoices.com please feel free to click the banner below to access  two free e-books, one on gaining muscle and another on losing fat over the next 12 weeks!

 

So then! Don’t wait another minute! Everybody is different with different starting points, goals, time, ability etc, etc so please have a look at the info for these three programs and choose the one that feels like the best fit for you. Seriously commit to any of them and I know you will not be disappointed! 

I wish you all the best for your health & fitness goals – my story is similar to many out there in the quest of a healthier life and a more visually appealing body. All 3 of the programs listed above have helped me out and I am sure they will do the same for you!

Best Wishes in Health,

Cameron Abel

Any questions or require further info? Please email me at info@bestfitnesschoices.com