Can You Really Build Muscle and Burn Fat At The Same Time?

Can you really build muscle and burn fat at the same time? Or is that
just reserved for the drug boys and girls? I know, I know, all those
amazing before and after pics in the ads, right? But how real are they?

In a study reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 

(58:561-565), "Muscle Hypertrophy With Large Scale Weight Loss and Resistance Training," subjects took off fat while gaining muscle.

Fourteen women followed an 800 calorie, high protein diet (80 grams of
protein, 97 grams of carbs and 10 grams of fat) - with seven of the women
lifting weights for 30 to 40 minutes three days a week and the other
seven women simply following the diet without exercise.

The study lasted for 90 days and the workout consisted of bench presses,
pulldowns, military presses, pullovers, curls, tricep extensions, knee
extensions, and knee flexion.

The two groups lost the same amount of weight - approximately 33 pounds.
The lifting group, however, actually increased muscle mass by 21 to 27
percent, while the non-lifting group lost muscle, along with fat.

"These results indicate that weight training can elicit muscle fiber
hypertrophy during periods of severe energy restriction," said the researchers.
"Strength declined in the sedentary group during the weight reduction but
increased in the weight-trained group."

The key to successful weight loss is weigh training - not walking, or any
other low intensity cardio program - and a high protein diet. In the study,
40 percent of calories came from protein, as opposed to most fat loss
diets that call for only 15 to 20 percent protein.

Now, let's get a few things straight. This is not an endorsement of severe
calorie restriction. Even if you get results initially, eventually your body
will rebel with a lower metabolism, muscle loss and fat gain.

However, it does show you that when you properly apply the fundamentals of
proper weight training and nutrition, you can build muscle while you burn fat,
and completely reshape your body.

If you really want to ramp up your results so you can dramtically transform
your body and do it fast, consider adding high intensity interval training,
or what I call power cardio, to your weight training program.

This type of training, along with intense weight training, is one of the best
things you can do to build power, muscle mass, speed, strength, endurance, and
lose fat! Proper power cardio can give you the best of all worlds.

A brief explanation of this training is that you do just that - train in
intervals, by alternating a brief period of exercise with a brief period of
rest.

And the overall length of your workout are much briefer in duration than your
typical aerobic sessions.

Power Cardio will -

1 - Burn more calories by elevating your metabolism so you lose fat faster

2 - Increase your power

3 - Increase your speed

4 - Increase your endurance

No matter what your fitness goals, power cardio is one of the best ways of
helping you achieve them. And the variations are endless. You can vary the
training parameters (exercise to rest ratio, number of intervals) to make the
workouts harder or easier, depending on what you are trying to accomplish.

You can also use any number of exrecises for your training, such as cycling,
sprinting, treadmill, elliptical trainers, jump rope, rope climbing, hill
sprints, and more.

Don't continue doing endless hours of aerobics that aren't helping you reach
your goals anyway. Get more out of your cardio workouts by performing interval
training.

If you want to build muscle, lose fat and get fit fast, you need to add power
cardio to a program of intense weight training. These two forms of exercise,
combined with a proper nutrition program, will quickly and radically change
your body from a before into an after. By training intensely in short workout
sessions, you can spend less time training, allow your body to recover from
your workouts, and more quickly see muscle building, fat burning results!

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Burn Fat Fast With Simple Plyometric Exercises

Unbelievable. That was the word Olympic medal winner Fred Wilt first used to describe the training that Soviet athletes used to prepare for track-and-field competition. Unbelievable. Why did he use this word? The Russian athletes were able to dominate the Olympics in the 1960's and 1970's using just one simple training technique with unbelievable results. Wilt soon realized that this training method could not only improve athletic performance in his own country but could help people around the world develop physical fitness in a short amount of time.

What was the Soviet's secret training technique? Wilt coined the phrase "plyometrics" to describe it. Plyometrics, or "plyos" for short, are exercises that use explosive, fast-acting movements to develop muscular power and to improve overall speed. These exercises are used by athletes to improve their speed, quickness, and power. Plyometrics allow muscles to exert their maximum force in the shortest amount of time possible.

The original term plyometrics referred to a "shock method" training style pioneered by Yuri Verkhoshansky of the former Soviet Union. For this training, athletes would drop from a height to experience a "shock" upon impact with the ground, which was followed immediately with a jump. The landing and takeoff were completed in a very short period of time, usually in 0.1 to 0.2 seconds. The forced, involuntary eccentric contraction of the landing and the following concentric contraction of the jump in short sequence helped to build fast-twitch muscle fibers. The muscle stimulation helped well-conditioned athletes boost their speed and quickness even further.

The modern version of plyometrics, predominantly used in the United States, involves performing a variety of jumps with little regard to execution timing. These jumps differ from the original use of plyometrics since the intensity is much less and the transition time between eccentric and concentric contraction is much greater than 0.2 seconds. While the original version continues to help Olympic sprinters improve their acceleration, this modern routine is beneficial for most people who just want to lose weight.

The basic lower body plyometric exercise is the drop jump. For this exercise, the individual drops (not jumps) to the ground from a raised height, generally 2 - 3 feet, and then immediately jumps straight up into the air. For best results, the athlete should keep the feet in contact with the ground for as short a time as possible. Variation can be implemented by adding a sequence of jumps following the initial landing. Aim for 3 - 5 total jumps in a set, making sure to have the minimum contact time with the ground between jumps. After mastering this jump, add complexity by bounding forward with each jump (and make sure to minimize the time your feet contact the ground as much as possible).

Plyometrics can also be applied to upper body exercises with variations to push-ups and medicine ball tosses. For weight loss purposes, it is best to stick with lower body plyometric exercises since these movements require larger muscles and burn more energy. Before any kind of plyometric training, make sure to do a thorough warm-up by jogging, stretching, or another low-intensity exercise. Incorporating the speed and power of plyometric movements will help anybody burn through fat faster on their diet.

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