Fat Loss – Body Transformation – Advanced Nutrition

It is definitely competition season. Not just figure, bikini and bodybuilding either – I have athletes getting ready for marathons, football, basketball, triathalons, and more. I do not only train athletes, but this is the busiest time of year for competition based clients.

But those individuals aren’t the target of this post.

It seems that no matter what an individual is preparing for, they have naysayers somewhere: critiquing them, judging them, asking them “why” and maybe even degrading them for making the decision to “put themselves out there”. Hell, my client Nick Novak trained two times per day for a couple of years trying to get back into the NFL, long after most people would’ve given up. Most people thought he was crazy. Then, he started getting calls – long story short, he is going into his third year as the kicker for the San Diego Chargers, all because HE didn’t give up, no matter how many people told him it was time to “move on”.

I get it: if individuals don’t have that passion about something, whether it be a figure competition, marathon or whatever, they just can’t understand how you CAN feel a certain way about seeing a goal through.

They’ll be the first to doubt you – because they doubt themselves.

They’ll let you know they have too much going on: like you don’t have a family, job, school, etc.

All of these things, while sometimes feel like a fist to the face, aren’t really about you at all – while they hurt, that probably isn’t why they are spoken.

In fact, it isn’t because they doubt you: it is because they doubt themselves.

Misery loves company – and negative people would prefer bring you down to build themselves up. The biggest mistake of all? Letting those things influence you or determine whether you’re going to keep the fight alive.

Don’t let it slow you down, let it FUEL you.

For everyone that I train that is getting ready for that first show, next show, first/next race, first/next fight, next tryout, next meet, next game, or just next trip to the ocean or lake – you’ve learned a lot about yourself. While it’s pretty damn cool to look back at the journey and realize all you have learned about yourself and what you have accomplished, it’s even more cool to realize that sometimes you need to just savor the journey and the end result is just the culmination of the hard work and overcoming obstacles: those we cannot control, those that we have imposed upon ourselves by fear and insecurities, and those that others impose on themselves and subconsciously, on us.

I’ve lived in this world for a long time. I have people critiquing me on Youtube, Facebook and Twitter – whether I’m lifting world class weight in powerlifting and having some 16 year old judging form, or comparing me to another lifter, to having people that have never as much been to a bodybuilding show telling me that I should work more on my arms or whatever.

Funny, because if you take all of the people who have simply judged others while never competing in anything themselves? They have ZERO wins. No trophies.

Remember: they are judging you by your actions and results, while judging themselves on their intentions and skewed self-perceptions.

Keep it up: I promise you that you are inspiring many – and in a lot of cases, you may never know who those people are. But they will be eternally grateful.

I’ve received numerous questions about my personal favorite lift, the dead lift, and wanted to write a little about it this morning.

Should I be dead lifting if my goal is ____________?

Probably the most often asked question, with the blank being anything from strength, aesthetics, losing fat, gaining muscle, functionality, sports performance, etc. In short, my answer is usually a great big “YES”.

First and foremost, the dead lift simulates the most basic of movements: picking an object up from the ground, so it is the absolute base for all functional movements. While performing the dead lift, up to 70% of the muscles in the body are activated, including all of the largest muscle groups in the body. Large muscles worked equals more energy expended, a greater hormonal response, and more muscle fibers recruited forcing increases in strength and muscle size. More lean body mass means a higher metabolism (all things that I regularly discuss here on the blog).

Also, the dead lift is my favorite “core” exercise – the glutes, lower back, hips, psoas, and abs are all significantly recruited by the dead lift.

How much weight should I be able to lift?

Before worrying about how much you can lift, I’d worry about how much you can lift properly. Remember, each rep is a “set”, so you must focus on resetting everything each rep.

The setup:

-Don’t move the bar to get into proper position. Walk over to it and position your feet correctly.

-Your foot stance should be shoulder-width stance with toes slightly pointing out.

-The bar position should be about 2-4″ from your shins when standing, with your laces under the bar.

-Now make a big chest & lift it up, pulling the shoulders back. By keeping this position at all times, your back will never be able to round.

-Look forward during the entire lift, NOT down, to avoid rounding your back.

-Your grip width should be neither too small, as then your hands will touch your legs on the way up, nor too wide, or you have to pull the bar higher. Use roughly a 20″ grip width.

-When you grip the bar, put it close to your fingers, not in the palm of your hand to minimize callouses and torn skin.

-Pulling the bar with bent arms can tear your biceps muscles, so keep them straight and tighten your triceps.

Now, begin the lift:

-Pull the bar by pushing from the heels and bringing your hips forward. Never pull back with your lower back or raise your hips too high. If you deadlift correctly, you’ll feel the most stress in your upper-back, glutes & hams.

-Shoulders should be directly over the bar, with hips low.

-Make sure the bar is against the shins and pull up in a straight line.

-The closer the barbell to your shins, the better.

-As you push, dig in from the heels and keep the bar in contact with your body during the entire lift, rolling it over your shins and thighs. The closeness of the bar to the body minimizes stress on the lower back and allows more weight to be moved.

-Bring your hips forward and squeeze the glutes hard, continuing to the end of the lift.

-When you bring the weight down, do it controlled but not slow. The rule: hips unlock first, then knees. Keep the chest up and continue looking forward as the bar travels down wards, keeping it in close contact with the thigs until it reaches knee level. Now flex at the hips first to return the bar below knee level, and then bend at the knees until the bar is on the floor.

Now, how much should I be able to lift?

If you are a novice dead lifter, mastering the mechanics are paramount. Any exercise can lead to injury, so the more technical the exercise, the more opportunity for injury. Again, LEARN THE MECHANICS. Fortunately, exercises that recruit the most amount of muscle fibers improve rapidly. At first, 1/2 of your bodyweight may seem challenging, but you’ll realize that you’ll get to your bodyweight, to 1.5 to 2 times the amount of your bodyweight in a relatively short amount of time. Elite lifters will often get into the 2.5 to 3 times their bodyweight with proper training and progression (I can actually dead lift more than three times my bodyweight for one rep).

No matter your exercise goals, there is a place for the dead lift in your regimen. Any exericse that strengthens the entire back, glutes, legs, forearms and biceps is a must for any exercise goal, and I feel that the dead lift transfers well to most other lifts, meaning adding it to your regimen should improve other staple lifts that you may already perform.

Hey everyone,

I was reading a college football article yesterday and it dealth with “one word truths”. Of course, that inspired me to write this one. I’ve explained much of this in the past, so I’ll not elaborate unless someone asks me to in the comments :). These are the things I am most often asked about.

Cardio: SUCKS FOR FAT LOSS

HCG: Is a fat loss SHAM

Most important factor to monitor on a diet: Macronutrient numbers

Biggest mistake people make in the gym: Undertrain (not enough intensity, don’t push themselves).

Most Personal Trainers are: underqualified.

Never trust a personal trainer who is: fat. (had to laugh at this one). If they know what in the hell they are talking about it, they’ll look like it.

5 most important exercises: variations of squat, dead lift, bench press, rows and pull ups

“I don’t want to grow huge muscles”: don’t worry, you won’t.

Weight loss/gain: over-emphasized in fitness. Body composition changes are much more indicative of progress.

Gym pet peeves: People who don’t re-rack weights, people who sing while they workout, people who don’t wipe equipment down when they’re done

A lot of people think that they’re doing the “wrong” program or diet, when the truth is that 99% of shortcomings are due to discipline and how close they actually follow their routine and nutritional program.

Changes don’t happen overnight: hard work and dedication DO pay off!

Diets suck. Consistency and the proper nutritional approach will yield much better, sustainable progress than any “diet”.

This weekend, someone asked me what was the biggest mistake people make when it comes to losing weight. After a little bit of thought, it’s pretty simple. Most people make one of two mistakes: 1) They over-estimate how many calories they burn day to day or 2) They underestimate how many calories they actually consume.

Macronutrient ratio aside, calories are energy, and humans get energy from one source: food. I’ve heard people say that they gain weight on 1000 calories per day (and these people weigh enough to where, if they had the worst metabolism ever, they’d burn 2000 calories on a given day). I hate to tell them this, but it’s physically impossible, or they’re from outer space – your body is incapable of creating energy from nothing.

Of course, everyone believes that they are special and 10,000,000 years of evolution has nothing to do with them.

I specialize in not only helping individuals lose weight, but lose the weight they want. While I have different methods to help individuals achieve these goals, it simply comes down to manipulating the amounts and the ratios of fuel people put in the mouths. Ultimately, it’s what every diet in the world is about – no matter what it calls itself.

Typically, most one size fits all programs are about restriction – the subject loses a lot of weight quick, their bodies readjust to their new metabolic base point, and the fat loss stops. Instead of readjusting their caloric intake, they think “It worked once, it’ll work again”. It’s not rocket science, it’s the way the body works: it isn’t going to start magically giving you results because it worked before.

I love the science of fat loss and manipulating one’s body composition, but too many people are looking for intense, scientific reasons behind why their fat loss endeavors aren’t working – ultimately, it comes down to what they’re cramming in their mouths and laying on their asses. I hate to break it to you, but letting those little snacks and treats creep in on a regular basis does have a drastic effect on the way you look!

Hey San Antonio,

I finally found something that caught my ire. This HCG Diet nonsense is getting ridiculous. Any diet that asks you to sustain 500 calories a day is asinine and I’m going to blow that up in the next day or so.

Don’t get me wrong: I have no problems at all with the term “Medical Weight Loss” as long as what they are doing is actually legit. Hormone Replacement Therapy is necessary in many cases – however, HCG does not fall under the category “Hormone Replacement Therapy”. I’ll elaborate later, but wanted to mention this now.

Hope everyone has an amazing week – Happy Birthday America!

Hey San Antonio,

People who are serious about their bodies understand the importance of free weight exercises and using machines minimally. Stabilization is important and isolation exercises and machine work doesn’t recruit the muscles required to stabilize. I see personal trainers everywhere having clients do leg extensions, tricep kickbacks, endless ab work, leg curls, and other isolation lifts. Sure, they burn, but they don’t recruit enough muscle fibers to force the body to change.

And don’t think for one second that isolating “sculpts” or “tones” a muscle – it doesn’t work that way. There’s no such thing as sculpting and toning. Fibers either grow or don’t. Use isolation work to fix weaknesses, not to sculpt. Isolation lifts should be less than 25% of your overall lifting routine.

Women, don’t discount this article as a man’s article – it’s directed at you as well. Whether you’re looking to become “sculpted”, lose fat or gain muscle, these are the exercises you must be doing.

Concentrate on form. Exercises like this require focus and not just doing movements. You should feel these in the assigned groups. If not, consult a pro on how to do them correctly – someone that really knows what they’re doing. Just because the kid has a “STAFF” of “FITNESS EXPERT” shirt on at Gold’s or Lifetime doesn’t mean they’re qualified. Sad, but true. These exercises don’t give you room for bad form – they must be mastered and taught/learned correctly.

Selection of exercise is just a piece of the puzzle. For a complete training program, read my “Pathways of Energy: How Many Reps?”. Varying rep range, rest period between sets, total number of sets, rep tempo and progressively increasing the resistance are the basics of creating a solid program that will force your body into rapid change. One or more of these things are typically forgotten/ignored when one is training against time or focusing greatly on bodyweight exercises.

1. Free weight squats. If you want nice legs, squat. These force stability in the hips and recruit the glutes (the butt), hamstrings and quads. The lower back must also be strong to do the exercise properly. Oh, and a squat goes ALL the way down, not that 90 degree nonsense. THAT is bad on the knees. Variations: front squats, hack squats, and Zercher squats.

2. Dead lifts. This is the simplest exercise in theory – the weight is on the ground, you pick it up. WHEN I see personal trainers allowing their clients to do this, they’re doing it wrong. Each rep is like it’s own set – the weight comes to a rest, and then it is lifted. Chest forward, back straight, but down, head up, weight as close to the legs as possible, LIFT. It’s that easy. Dead lifts recruit more than 70% of the muscle fibers in the body. Too important NOT to do, as they hit EVERYTHING.

3. Bench press. I like all variations of the bench press – dumbbells, inclines, declines, etc. Use them all, but really focus on the flat barbell bench press, as it is the king of upper body exercise and development. Range of motion is important – the weight MUST touch the chest.

4. Stiff-leg dead lifts. I see a lot of people doing this, but they’re doing it wrong. When you’re in the downward position, your back must be flat as a board. These lifts require concentration and not just simple movement. NOTHING will develop the hamstrings and glutes like SLDL.

5. Row, Row, Row. Pulldowns are easy and cables make us feel strong, but free weight rowing is where it is at for upper back development. Guys, nothing will make you look bigger than a broad back. Ladies, a woman with a developed back looks incredible in a back-revealing dress or a shirt, a tank top or a bikini. Again, like MOST exercises – keep the chest forward and shoulders back.

6. Glute-Ham Raises. This exercise is a beast, period. It takes a level of conditioning to do, but once it’s doable, then, well, DO IT. Another amazing posterior core exercise.

7. Dips. Another one that not every one can do, but something to work toward. Go ALL the way down, full ROM. When you can add weight to a weighted belt, add it.

8. Pull-ups. Few people do these right – body stabilized, chest forward, shoulders back. No swinging. An excellent overall developer of the upper back and biceps.

9. Overhead push press. All pressing movements have their place, and this one is no exception. Again, simple in concept, but if you have a weakness anywhere in your body, you will feel it.

10. Olympic lifts. These lifts (clean, jerk, snatch, etc) require more skill and experience than any of the other lifts, hence why they’re at number 10. If you’re looking for a change of pace, to bust through a plateau, a proven way to develop power and exercise that hit absolutely everything in the body, learn these lifts. Most personal trainers are simply not qualified, as these lifts are so technical that formal education is almost required to teach them.

There are other great exercises, as these aren’t the only 10 exercises that I would recommend (although if these were the only 10 you did, you’d be doing way better than 90% of people that are training today). Don’t forget exercises like pull-downs, lunges, leg press and there’s plenty of room for basics like sprinting and push-ups.

These are the ten exercises that your workout routine MUST be centered around regardless of your goal. If they aren’t the centerpiece of your workout, it may be time to reconsider why you aren’t making the progress you want to make.

I’ve argued this for years and for some reason, people still believe that steady state cardio is still “the answer”. No matter what evidence you put in front of them (something simple such as which group is leaner: sprinters vs distant athletes such as marathoners, other endurance based sports), everyone seems to think they are different and that for some odd reason slow cardio will work better for them. Unfortunately, personal trainers are the worst offenders, often prescribing hours of long duration cardio to their clients.

Here is a start: 4-6 30 second sprints produce greater fat oxidation than an hour of steady state cardio

This is one of literally hundreds of studies that show the same thing: High intensity style cardio is superior to slower, steady state cardio.

Want to read more related scientific studies that will get most of these “GURU” personal trainers all wound up? Here you go:

HIIT For Fat Loss in Overweight Women – Really? That’s the main group these so-called “gurus” are putting on treadmills for hours each week…

HIIT is Superior For Improving Body Composition in Males

HIIT’s Effects on V02, Muscular Force, and Endurance

HIIT and Hypertension – Yep, another myth debunker…

So when your trainer has you doing hours of constant state, long session cardio, feel free to send them to me so I can educate them. But I don’t want them to get all confused by the science – it happens to work in the real world. See Renae. Chelsey. Sarah… All products of HIIT/Sprinting in prep and none of that two a day cardio nonsense, nor hour long cardio sessions.

My clients do lower volume, higher intensity cardio and LOSE MORE FAT, period… If you’re a competitor and you find yourself doing excess low to modern intensity, long duration cardio, You are setting yourself WAY BACK and getting fooled by all of these guru coaches and personal trainers.

This post is to everyone: male, female, young, old, skinny, obese, competitor, or weekend warrior: in summary, if you want to get really lean, ditch the steady state, long duration cardio and start doing HIIT/Sprints. If you want a healthier heart, no mo slow go cardio and yes to Sprints/HIIT. If you want to increase lean body mass, damn sure stay away from long duration cardio and hit that HIIT!

Let me let you in on a little secret…

No matter how amazing a personal trainer may be –

No matter how revolutionary a diet is –

No matter how hard a workout is –

No matter what scientific breakthrough is made in a supplement –

No matter how motivated you get –

None of that matters if you don’t apply yourself. If you aren’t completely consistent and dedicated and make changes to your lifestyle, work your ASS off and put forth the effort, nothing is going to work.

People often ask me what I eat or how I lift or how I train or what some of my figure competitors do during prep because they’d love to get into “that kind of shape” – that is, until I give them a little bit of insight.

The idea is nice, but most people are terrified of commitment and work.

Anyone who says it’s easy or doesn’t require these things is lying to you and is trying to steal your money and help you waste your time.

There are NO shortcuts…

Hey gang,

One of the most commonly spoken fitness myths is that you have to consume an insanely large carb intake post-workout. Well, here’s a study that shows that as little as 30g of carbohydrates post-workout provides as much an anabolic effect as 90g. Over the years, I’ve heard many so-called “gurus” preach how one needs as much as .5-1g of carbs per pound of bodyweight post-workout (complete overkill).

View the entire study here: Muscle protein breakdown has a minor role in the protein anabolic response to essential amino acid and carbohydrate intake following resistance exercise.

Abstract:
Muscle protein breakdown (MPB) is increased following resistance exercise, but ingestion of carbohydrate during postexercise recovery can decrease MPB with no effect on muscle protein synthesis (MPS). We sought to determine whether a combination of essential amino acids (EAA) with low carbohydrate or high carbohydrate could effectively reduce MPB following resistance exercise and improve muscle protein net balance (NB). We hypothesized that higher levels of carbohydrate and resulting increases in circulating insulin would inhibit MPB and associated signaling, resulting in augmented NB. Thirteen male subjects were assigned to one of two groups receiving equivalent amounts of EAA (approximately 20 g) but differing carbohydrate levels (low = 30, high = 90 g). Groups ingested nutrients 1 h after an acute bout of leg resistance exercise. Leg phenylalanine kinetics (e.g., MPB, MPS, NB), signaling proteins, and mRNA expression were assessed on successive muscle biopsies using stable isotopic techniques, immunoblotting, and real-time quantitative PCR, respectively. MPB tended to decrease (P < 0.1) and MPS increased (P < 0.05) similarly in both groups following nutrient ingestion. No group differences were observed, but muscle ring finger 1 (MuRF1) protein content and MuRF1 mRNA expression increased following resistance exercise and remained elevated following nutrient ingestion, while autophagy marker (light-chain 3B-II) decreased after nutrient ingestion (P < 0.05). Forkhead box-O3a phosphorylation, total muscle atrophy F-box (MAFbx) protein, and MAFbx and caspase-3 mRNA expression were unchanged. We conclude that the enhanced muscle protein anabolic response detected when EAA+carbohydrate are ingested postresistance exercise is primarily due to an increase in MPS with minor changes in MPB, regardless of carbohydrate dose or circulating insulin level.

The key to fitness/nutrition? Don’t always accept long standing ‘truths’ as the absolute Gospel. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to post many articles that debunk these so-called facts. Stay tuned!
Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer San Antonio, Figure Contest Prep Coach
Owner, San Antonio's Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

What works? Want the HONEST truth? You can make gains on absolutely any training program if you stick with it and are consistent. There is no single “correct” program – but there are ways to train optimally for specific goals. If you are reading this blog, I’d guess it is safe to assume that body transformation, fat loss and physique enhancement is what your goals are based upon.

The purpose of ANY exercise program is simply to coax your body into adapting to a new stress. The stress must be severe enough to stimulate adaption, but not so severe that you get injured or end up over-trained. You improve fitness by making a series of small adaptions (more weight, high volume, more intensity, etc).

Planning an effective exercise training program is as much art as science. Before you go any further, simply LEARN THE TRUTH. Don’t buy into old nonsense such as “tone with higher reps and grow with lower reps”, “lose fat by doing more cardio and eating less” and other similar bullshit.

When designing your program, apply these principles:

-Train Specfically. For fat loss, this applies to nutrition and the appropriate training. It isn’t simply doing more calisthenics and cardio. Don’t fall into that trap.

-Establish Realistic Goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, goals. If they aren’t all of the above, they aren’t going to be reached.

-Have a PLAN. Gyms are often packed, yet, few people are actually in shape or make drastic changes over time. If you have a plan and goals, then you will regularly make progress.

-Condtion Your Body Gradually. While most people do too much too fast, there are people that start out reading a magazine on a bike, and if they went any slower, they’d be doing backwards. Find that happy medium, but increase the stimulus regularly (and quickly).

-Train consistently. 2 times per week isn’t consistent enough. If you miss 2-3 workouts per month, you’re missing 24-36 workouts each year. I guarantee you’d look better if you did not miss those workouts!

-Train first for volume and then for intensity. Get the body ready and then train to kick ass!

-Do not over-train. MORE is not better. I know people that brag about going to the gym 15-20 times per week. IF you can go that many times, you aren’t training hard enough. More is less.

-Do not UNDER-train. Yep, this is as much as a problem. It IS called WORK-out. IT has to be WORK.

-Listen to your body. If it is your mind telling you to be lazy, ignore it. But pain and fatigue are very real. Pay attention to what your body is saying and rest when needed.

-Cycle the volume and intensity of your workouts. No two workouts should ever be the same. The body responds to variety!

-Work on your weaknesses. This is how you become great at ANYTHING. Don’t only do the things that you are good at or that come easy.

-Nutrition is home plate and everything else revolves around it. You cannot out-train a bad diet.

-Train your mind. Learn what you are doing and why you are doing it and apply your knowledge to your gym time!

-Have fun!

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

I know, I know – this is YOUR training time and you’re going to do what you came to do and you could give a little less than a damn with whomever you are annoying. But trust me, if you are doing these things, the rest of the gym congregation thinks you are a douchebag.

1. Curling in the squat rack. Maybe I’m the dumbass for squatting in the “curl rack” but there are literally 50 stations in any gym where you can perform bicep curls. The squat rack is for squatting. Not stretching, not curling. Take that stuff somewhere else and let people who are serious about fitness use the squat rack for the purpose of which it was intended.

2. Occupying every piece of equipment at once for your “circuit”. Sorry, but if you are in the cables, on the pulldown, using 3 benches, the leg press and the squat rack, you need to put a little more effort into fewer exercises, or not be upset when someone else uses one of your 16 stations. Be considerate…

3. Taking pics of your abs or biceps in the mirror makes you a tool.

4. Telling everyone on Facebook and Twitter about how hard your working out? You aren’t working out hard enough.

5. Towels are essential even in the locker room. Nobody wants to see you naked, especially shaving in the mirror or “hanging” around in the sauna.

6. You’re working hard and sweating. We don’t want to share that, so clean up after yourself.

7. There’s a such thing as too much cologne/perfume. We’re trying to breathe here…

8. Having a full conversation DURING a set? You’re not training hard enough, and you’re talking too much.

9. No, she does not need your help, want your advice or need a spot.

10. Allowing cables to “clang” hard doesn’t mean you’re working out harder, it just means you are being unnecessarily noisy and damaging the equipment.

11. Having a workout partner is a great motivator. Having a workout entourage is annoying to everyone else in the gym trying to move around you.

12. I’ve never been in a gym bright enough to wear sunglasses (nor a bar).

13. You probably aren’t a pro MMA fighter, so don’t shadowbox and such in the mirror.

14. You aren’t a pro rapper either, so stop dancing and singing between sets.

15. 1970 running shorts aren’t cool. Put that thing away.

16. Spinning class doesn’t require aerodynamics – your cool cycling gear isn’t cool.

17. There is no way that every day is biceps day.

18. Personal Trainers: people are looking at you. QUIT if you are fat (unless you are prego) and your clients should be the ones doing things properly… Usually, not the case in most gyms.

19. Deodorant is your friend. Always.

20. Guys, be a little more non-chalant about gawking into the aerobics room.

21. If you cannot use a full range of motion, you are using too much weight.

22. That shirt will not disintegrate if you wash it every once in a while.

23. You are at the gym, driving around the parking lot looking for a spot for 45 minutes makes no sense.

24. Grunting while curling 10lbs does not make your muscles grow.

25. If you don’t look like you’ve ever worked out, there’s a good chance nobody wants your unsolicited advice.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Hey everyone,

No matter what gym you may venture into anywhere in the world, you could easily mistake any given day as National Arm Day, World Bench Press Day, International Ab Day, or something similar. No matter how often you frequent the gym, no matter how much you run or whatever else you do: if you do not squat, then you do not workout…

Many of you may be thinking you don’t want bigger legs or you are just trying to lose weight – this article is for you too – squatting is essential for fat loss!

I know: doing legs sucks, and squatting sucks more than anything else. But put temporary anguish aside and consider these things:

-The largest muscles in the body are below the waist. When you do a proper leg workout, those large muscles do the work – when large muscles work, more calories are burned.

-Large muscle groups grow the fastest. More lean body mass = a higher resting metabolic rate

-Training large muscle groups forces the body into a desirable hormonal state – In Layman’s terms, training legs causes an increase in overall muscle building and fat burning hormones.

Your legs move the weight, your lower back stabilizes the body, your arms squeeze the bar: squatting is not JUST a leg exercise – it’s a full body exercise (as is the dead lift).

Proper squatting provides even more benefits:
-Gaining strength will lead to increased lean body mass
-Squatting increases flexibility
-Regardless of what the misinformed think, proper squatting actually strengthens the knees

Now, I would guess that less than 1/4 of the people in a typical gym perform squats. Of that number, I would then say that less than 5% actually do them properly, which leads me to: “How do you squat perfectly?”

I know what a lot of personal trainers and doctors believe (I’ve heard it at least 100 times): squatting less than full range of motion is ok and will lessen the likelihood of injury. This information is completely false. While these partial squats may very well stimulate the quads, the lack of full ROM doesn’t properly activate the glutes and hamstrings, leading to muscular imbalances that greatly increase the chances of a knee injury.

First, let’s discuss unracking the bar.
-I personally like to set the bar in the power rack at about upper chest level, so that I am slightly squatting to get under the bar. I do not want to lift the bar off by going to my tip-toes or bending at my lower back.

-Position your feet directly under the bar.

-Place the bar on your upper back/mid-trapezius. Do not try to put it on the top of the shoulders or on your neck. Sounds crazy, but a lot of people hold the bar entirely too high.

-Tighten everything and lift the bar from the rack

-One step back with each leg and then you’re in position to begin.

Before you begin:
-Chest up.

-Eyes forward – do NOT look at your feet.

-Again, bar on the muscles, NOT the spine.

-Straight wrists – your back should be supporting the weight, NOT your wrists.

-Elbows back.

-Feet at proper stance (depending on the style, I prefer at least shoulder width).

-Toes OUT.

Descension:
-Knees out. If your hip flexors/groins are weak, you may have a tendency to buckle the knees. Don’t let this happen – keep them out.

-Focus on sitting. Do not let your knees go past your toes.

-Get DEEP. Your hips should drop below your knee. I know it may FEEL like it is, but have someone judge it, or better yet, video yourself. Stopping before this is basically using the knee as your “brakes” – use the muscles and the natural range of motion.

Going UP!
-Torso angle should be like this: /

-Hips and chest go up together – this is a squat, not a good morning raise

-Keep your feet flat and “Grab” the floor with your feet to activate the glutes. Do NOT shift the weight to your toes!

-Keep those knees OUT! IF you are injured, you cannot train!

I always prefer the squat/power rack and free weight squatting. Locked machines and fixed routes are not optimal for developing the full and natural ROM, and will lead to the same imbalances and injury risks listed above.

Practice makes perfect. If you cannot keep perfect form and use a full ROM, swallow your pride and lower the weight. Performing lighter, proper sets will lead to better gains than heavy, improper squats and will keep your risk of injury lower.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

IF you are looking for a shortcut

IF you are looking for a magic pill

IF you are looking for a hardcore diet secret

IF you think there is an EASY way

IF you believe that you really don’t have time

IF you do not believe in yourself

IF you think that you really do have a valid EXCUSE

IF you aren’t willing to make sacrifice

IF you think you can make up for bad eating by simply skipping meals

IF you think the HCG diet is a good idea and you want to check out an HCG clinic

IF you think working late, not getting enough sleep last night, a birthday party, happy hour or anything close is a valid reason to miss your workout

THEN

Look elsewhere. Give up now. Look DEEPER inside yourself. Find someone who will coddle you and tell you it’s okay and you’re still going to reach your goals.

Excuses are crutches for the weak.

And, if it were easy, a) it wouldn’t be called workout and b) everyone would look amazing.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Hey everyone,

If you ask anyone what the three most important movements for any workout program are, more than likely, the squat will make nearly everyone’s list, as well it should: few exercises recruit so many muscle fibers and place emphasis on so many areas of the body (including the core).

Sadly, you can walk into most any gym across America and it seems that there are fewer and fewer people doing the squat. One reason is that most people are simply intimidated by it. Of course, much of that comes from not understanding proper form.

The key to perfecting the form is to perform the lift. And by squatting, I mean freeweight, barbell squats: NOT FIXED SMITH MACHINE SQUATS.

How do you perform a perfect squat?

-At the bottom, the back slightly arched (NOT ROUNDED) bend at the hips slightly forward (NEVER at the back)

-bend at the hips slightly forward (NEVER at the back).

-chest forward, (should not be concave) – keep the shoulders back

-head up, your spine will follow your eyes, so pick a spot and keep your eyes locked on it

-Foot/stance width varies (shoulder width or a bit wider).

-Hips, knees, and ankles stay aligned, and try to keep the knees from going pass the toes (obviously, leg length varies). Toes slightly turned outward, with the feet at approximately a 30 degree angle

-Keep your butt down, buried, but focusing on keeping the back straight.

There are few body structures that have great difficulty squatting. I would not recommend abandoning all forms of the squat altogether. Practice with different stances (much wider or narrower), and using different variations of the squat (hack squat, zercher squat, front squat and dumbbell squat).

There is a reason that the squat is called the king of all exercises, and is extremely important to overall body development.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

My friend Chris sent me this article on Twitter:

Is Sitting a Lethal Activity?

Really? Really… Really???

Okay, I think the good people at the Mayo Clinic are not seeing the forest for the trees.

The amount that someone squirms while sitting is keeping some people leaner than others?

I’d think that they’d look at a couple other factors at first, mainly: HORMONES and OTHER METABOLIC FACTORS.

Of course, it’s easier to break things down to how many calories you eat in a day versus how many you burn (but they really have NO clue how many you burn in a day). Ignoring where calories burned comes from in the body, what activities cause the body to need different nutrient ratios at different times.

Oh yeah, they mentioned “light aerobic activity” being enough to control weight… I’d like to direct them to my post from yesterday.

Sorry readers: it isn’t as easy as squirming in your seat more. The body is quite a bit more complex than that, and now the paradigm is shifting from weight loss to fat loss/body transformation.

If the good doctor would like for me to give him a rundown on how one body can burn more calories than another body, I’d be glad to go over it with him (I just can’t help but think that my tax dollars are somehow funding this bogus study).

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454