5 HIDDEN CULPRITS OF WEIGHT GAIN!

You are doing everything right, or so it seems. You watch what you eat, you exercise as much as you can and yet, you are just not losing any weight, you look in the mirror and all you see is your flabby self,   glaring right back at you!

If this scenario sounds familiar, don’t despair, you are not alone. I have been there and done that too. Trying to get in shape, lose weight and build muscle and getting little or no results can be very frustrating and it even leads many people to give up altogether. If you are on that cusp, please don’t give up, if you are really, honestly doing all that you can and not getting results then its time to look under the rock for the hidden culprits.

BUILDING YOUR ABS; TRUTHS AND FALSEHOODS!

On social media there is nothing that goes viral faster than the image of an athlete or celebrity with a flat and chiseled mid-section, male or female! Let’s admit it, we are totally obsessed with chiseled abs and we all want that 6 pack, and who wouldn’t?  Abs are a sign of health, fitness, virility etc. you name it and the 6 pack represents it. They are also very rare and elusive, just like Bigfoot!

Like all things elusive, a lot of myths are misconceptions get woven into the development of your average 6 pack, today at corefitness we are going to look at building your abs, we will be analyzing the most common assumptions we have about how to develop your abs and whether they are true or false. At the end of this post we will know whether your current activities are helping or hindering your efforts at abdominal development. It doesn’t matter if you are a guy or a lady, young or old, seasoned workout pro or a beginner with “No Pack” this article is for you!

SERIOUS SIDE EFFECTS OF TAKING WEIGHT LOSS SUPPLEMENTS!

Let’s face it, who doesn’t want to lose weight?  Most of us over 30 are carrying more fat around our middles than we ought to and that’s a fact. Apart from the health implications of being overweight, we are constantly bombarded with media images of fit celebrities on Facebook, twitter, instagram…. It’s pretty endless. All this adds to the pressure to lose weight and look good, and where there’s pressure the urge to take short cuts looms strong.

Right off the bat I have to let you know that I have taken weight loss supplements in the past, out of impatience and ignorance. At my heaviest I weighed about 125kg and was so desperate to lose weight that I took anything I could lay my hand on as long as it promised to burn off my fat! Guess what? Some were total crap and a waste of money, while some worked wonders and I lost my appetite for food completely! However, there is a price to pay. Some weight loss supplements work, but at what cost? I suffered from loss of sleep, heart palpitations, constant sweat and anxiety; I could go on and on.

YOUR GUIDE TO THE BEST PRE AND POST WORKOUT SUPPLEMENTS!

You work out diligently, your nutrition is near perfect, yet you are not getting the fat burning and muscle building results you want. The only question left to ask is “what about your supplementation routine?”

Getting fit and staying fit requires a lot of hard work and dedication as well as knowledge, knowledge about supplementation is important and can never be over emphasized. Right off I need to let you know that if you eat rubbish or are not dedicated and focused in your exercise, you can pop all the pills you like and swallow as many shakes as possible, it won’t make much difference! Supplements are just that, to supplement hard work and dedication, it’s not a replacement.

8 MORE BODYWEIGHT EXERCISES YOU CAN DO ANYWHERE!

Hello everyone hope you are having a wonderful week? If not, don’t worry, I’ve got something for you to look forward to this weekend.  As promised and in continuation of our series on bodyweight exercises you can do at home, today I present 8 more bodyweight exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment and saves you a lot of time and money.

NO GYM, NO EQUIPMENT, NO EXCUSES! 8 BODYWEIGHT EXERCISES YOU CAN DO ANYWHERE!

I know the feeling; no time to join a gym and make all those early morning workouts, family and work commitments and a lot more excuses than I have fingers and toes!  How do I know this? Well because I have been there and done it!

Don’t get me wrong, I am not being preachy or condescending, I know firsthand how difficult it can be to squeeze in a fitness routine to your busy schedule, but you know what? It’s worth it.

Today’s article is inspired by my struggles to get into some form of fitness when I had very little time to spare and more importantly, when I had no money for gym membership! So as the first installment in a two part series, I am giving you 8 bodyweight exercises that are very simple to master and can be done anywhere and anytime. As the title implies, bodyweight exercises do not need machines weights and almost no equipment to carry out, all you need is some knowledge, your own body and gravity to create the torture effect!

3 DIFFERENT TYPES OF INTERMITTENT FASTING METHODS TO HELP YOU BURN FAT

Last week we looked at fasting and the weight loss benefits that come from it. this week I would like to conclude by talking about the different types of fasting methods you can adopt, as we all lead different lifestyles, there is no one fasting method to fit everybody’s needs. Today I will be writing about 3 different types of fasting methods that you can adapt to your lifestyle, right off I need to say that they all work and fat burning while preserving muscle mass is guaranteed with every one of them. I will also be giving you my personal pick of the bunch and will give you the pros and cons of every fasting method so that you can make an informed choice today.

INTERMITTENT FASTING: 3 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD DO IT TODAY!

Fasting, we have all heard of it and most of us have engaged in it at one time or the other. When you thing about a fast, what usually comes to mind is a religious exercise to discipline the body through the mind and to seek spiritual guidance from God. A wonderful side effect of fasting is fat loss, fasting for whatever reason is a form of calorie restriction as you eat less than what you normally would on a non-fasting day. Today I would like to talk about intermittent fasting as a tool for weight loss and muscle maintenance, if you have been working out religiously and watch your diet and yet those last few stubborn pounds refuse to come off, then intermittent fasting might just be the key.

6 SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE ABDOMINAL EXERCISES YOU CAN DO AT HOME (NO GYM EQUIPMENT NEEDED!)

Today we are talking abdominal exercises, and specifically I want to write about some of the most effective abdominal workouts I have come across over the years. I am not saying that these are the best exercises of all time, but I am saying that they are easy to learn, easy to execute do not take much time and space and best of all they require virtually no gym equipment!

My post today is a no frills post with 6 simple abdominal exercises you can incorporate into your schedule, however I must give you a fair warning, they are simple alright but not painless! If you want to lose that gut without pain better go in for liposuction (and even that hurts!). Finally remember that you can’t work out a bad diet, watching what you eat and drink is the first step to getting that slimmer waistline and dropping those love handles.

So if you want some, come get some!

                           

And have a great weekend!

1.       THE RUSSIAN TWIST:

6 INTERESTING THINGS I HAVE LEARNT ABOUT FITNESS

Sometime in 2013 I decided to get more serious about health and fitness, I had been working out on and off since 2008 in a bid to recover some mobility I had lost in my right leg due to a car accident. However I really kicked it up a notch in 2013 and this blog post is testament to that, I decided from then to improve my workout technique and increase my knowledge on exercise, diet supplementation and health in general as much as I could.

This does not mean I am in anyway the finished article, I am still learning and have a lot to learn, I have fallen off the fitness wagon more times than I care to remember and my diet still has holes in it that I just don’t want to fill!

FAT BLASTING CARDIO WORKOUTS FOR 2018!

Happy new year! Wow, time really does fly, I remember January 1^st 2017 like it was yesterday. I remember writing about resolutions and why I don’t like them and much more. As much as I don’t like resolutions based on just a date, I do support resolutions based on the conviction that things are not going right or things could be better. So if you have really taken your time out to think about your health and fitness and have decided to shake things up based on this and not on some date on the calendar then I am your man!

Whatever your goals, lose weight, build muscle, get fitter, there’s something for everybody at corefitness, we promise to always look out for you with educative information, workouts and exercises to help you get to where you want to be, so if you are ready lets go there folks.

6 SUPPLEMENTS FOR A STRONGER HEART!

You know the joke, “Are you serious? And the reply, as serious as a heart attack!” it’s supposed to be funny, but I have always found it sobering. In life, few things are as serious as having a heart attack, if you are one of the lucky few who survive one in this part of the world; your life is just never the same again. Here’s another quote for you; “prevention, is cheaper and way better than cure!”

Today I would like to talk about how we can make our hearts healthier and stronger, a healthy heart like most other things related to health is based on three pillars: nutrition, lifestyle and supplementation. I want to concentrate on the third but no less important pillar of supplementation. In this post we will be looking at 6 valuable supplements that can help make your heart bulletproof as the case may be.

WORKOUT TO MUSIC! IT’S GREAT!

You are in the gym or on the road when you see them, you know who I’m talking about, those ridiculous looking people with their ear plugs and headphones; jogging past you and pretending as if they are not tired or worn out by all that weight lifting and running! When you see them you just want to scream at them “Stop posing exercise is serious business!”

Hold on for just a second my friend, they may be onto something! I used to think like that until a few years ago, I hated to see people with earphones on, either in the gym or on the road, to me they were just posers who wanted everyone to notice how cool they were, I help onto my prejudice until I had an argument about the usefulness of music to training with my workout friend Chima, it’s safe to say he convinced me to start exercising to music and my workouts have never been the same again.

CHOLESTEROL Q AND A

We have all heard about cholesterol, so much so that there is a ton of misinformation out there about it. It’s so bad that I have heard someone tell me he could “feel” the increase in cholesterol in his body! For the record, you can’t!  So today, we are going to have a little quiz to find out just how much you know as opposed to what you think you know about cholesterol.  This will be my fourth post on cholesterol in the last year, please don’t get pissed or roll your eyes, it’s just that this topic is too important to overlook for long. High Cholesterol is a potential killer and precursor to heart disease. Conversely, high cholesterol is probably one of the most misunderstood and feared health issues of our generation, like I said earlier, there are so many myths and misconceptions surrounding it, including my favourite “I am not fat, I don’t have high cholesterol!”  The truth is that you will never know your cholesterol levels till you get tested.

TRAINING TIPS TO MATCH YOUR BODY TYPE

So you’ve been working out for a few months, trying to burn fat or build muscle right? How are the results coming along? Are you hitting your targets, or are you so disappointed with the results you are getting that you are just about ready to throw in the towel?

Don’t be so fast to throw away your trainers and skipping rope or abandon your gym membership! If you are currently working out or plan to work out, your results or lack or results in this case may be tied to your body type. We are all genetically programmed by God to have a particular body type and each different body type has its own quirks and peculiarities, how it responds to food, weight training and cardio, it’s all coded in your DNA.

Today I am looking at the different body types we have and the best exercise tips to making the most of your genetic make-up. So don’t give up and don’t despair, just read on to find out the best training tips to tap into your genetic potential.

Thanks and do have a great weekend!

We all have different body types, some are naturally skinny, some naturally heavy. Our bone thickness and structure also vary too as do traits like muscle length and metabolic rate. When it comes to improving your physic, the better you understand your genetic traits the better your chances of building the body you are after. Scientists in the 1940’s developed a system that divided humans into 3 basic body types and that system is still very relevant today. You might not fit neatly into a particular group, but most of us have a dominant trait that can be easily identified as one of the three groups. They are as follows:

HOW CAFFEINE CAN MAKE YOU FITTER, HEALTHIER AND SLIMMER!

A lot of us consume coffee, and why not it’s got that wonderful flavour and aroma and gives you that gentle buzz at the start of the day, in fact for some people it’s a way of life! However, for some caffeine is some toxic substance that raises blood pressure and steals your sleep; in fact it’s to be avoided at all costs!

The truth is that coffee can be a friend or foe, take too much and you will get very jittery, elevated blood pressure and beg for sleep. On the flip side if taken in moderation i.e. a few (2 or 3 cups maximum) a day and you can really begin to get the benefits. Today I will be looking at the benefits of coffee as pertains to your workouts, health and weight loss efforts, hopefully you will understand how and why caffeine is good for you and have a rethink about this naturally occurring but much misunderstood natural supplement.

GET RID OF THAT OFFICE AFTERNOON BACK PAIN WITH THESE STRETCHING EXERCISES!

Its 12.25am and I am suffering from a serious case of office back pain as I write this, since it’s actually a little past midnight, I know “afternoon back pain” is a bit of a misnomer, but I do most of my writing at night so please bear with me! The midafternoon office back is horrible and we have all felt it from time to time, it comes from hunching over your desk or computer for hours, trying to justify your salary while trying not to be jealous of that wonderful orthopedic chair in your boss’s office!

Back pain is one of the leading causes of disability for people under 45 according to a recent report, and here in Nigeria a lot of young people, especially men in their 30’s are afflicted by it. However, while a lot of guys will quickly attribute their chronic afternoon back pain to “sugar” (cue the Agbo Jedi, and fried meat!) the truth is quite another issue altogether.

THE TOP FOOD SUPPLEMENTS FOR EVERY PURPOSE!

Supplementation! Some swear by it, others swear at it! It’s a multibillion dollar industry that has everything; in fact you could write a soap opera with all the drama and hype surrounding supplements. I am a bit of a junkie when it comes to food and body building supplements and I can tell you that I have seen everything, from the totally overhyped and ineffective crap to the downright dangerous crap! I have also seen the mildly effective and the dynamite that delivers exactly what it promises and then some extra!

Honestly I am promoting supplements today, I honestly believe that they do help you get from where you are to where you want to be, whatever your goal from muscle building to weight loss or even maintaining your male virility, there is something for you. Today I am going to pick on the seven most common reasons people take supplements and best supplements to help get you there.

Right off I should say that supplements are no magic bullet, you can pop all the pills and powders you want, but if you don’t train and watch your nutrition, you will not get the best result. Also if you have never ever worked out or watched your food intake, then address these issues first before thinking about supplements.

Last but not least, all the supplements pictured in this post are just there for illustrative purposes, I am not endorsing any particular brand of supp (have to get paid for that!)

So if you are ready, let’s delve into the murky world of nutritional supplements!

Do have a great weekend!

1.      WEIGHT LOSS/FAT BURNING: CLA

CLA stands for Conjugated Linoleic Acid, it is a fatty acid that helps you burn fat, it is present naturally in red meat and dairy products and if you eat a lot of beef and dairy products you might not need to supplement. The reality however is that most of us do not eat enough red meat, milk and cheese as they are prohibitively expensive in Nigeria, and CLA is only present in little quantities anyway, so to bridge the gap, I would suggest investing in some CLA, I have personally tried it and I know it works. How? A number of studies have shown that CLA reduces fat mass in the body and promotes lean body mass at the same time. Please not that some supplement marketers out there can be crooked and mix their CLA with plenty of empty fillers, so make sure you review the product thoroughly online before buying.

NUTRITIONAL LIES YOU NEED TO STOP BELIEVING!

We have all heard them at one time or the other; eating egg yolk will lead to high cholesterol, too much protein will kill your kidneys etc. they are all nutritional myths grounded at best in old or faulty science and at worst no science or locker room talk! These nutritional myths have been passed down from generation to generation till we have all accepted them as gospel truth, not anymore!

Today, we are separating nutritional fact from fiction so that you can make well informed choices based on the latest scientific research and not what some guy dreamed up in 1972! So if you are ready, let’s sift the wheat from the chaff so that you don’t have to live in ignorance ever again. 

Thanks, and do have a wonderful weekend!

1.      EATING FAT WILL MAKE YOU FAT!

Let’s start at the very beginning people; at first glance this nutritional lie might seem logical; the more fat you eat the more fat your body stores, right? Wrong! The truth is that excess weight gain or body fat is not due to excess fat consumption but excess calories consumed. This excess could be from protein, carbs or fat, so do not single fat out as the enemy. True, eating a lot of fried food like chips, burgers etc  can lead to unwanted weight gain, but so also can eating excess rice, eba, beans etc all with very little fat content. The honest truth is that if you want to lose weight, then fat is your friend, yes you heard right. Fat is one of the most potent weapons when it comes to losing weight, the question is what kind of fat? Eating the right kinds of fat will help you feel full for longer and curb the food cravings that make you eat all those foods loaded with sugar and empty calories. The right fat is mono and poly unsaturated fats like: olive oil, avocado, nuts and oily fish. Combining these with a high protein diet has been proven to help curb hunger and improve weight loss when working out. If you need an extra boost of fat and don’t get enough from your meals, then I would advice supplementing with omega 3 , and CLA (want to know more? Call me!) Taking omega 3 and CLA have been proven to aid fat loss when working out or dieting. As with all things in life moderation is key, the bottom line of my long talk  is :eat more not less good fat to lose weight.

SOMETHING FOR THE LADIES: THE MYTH OF TONING!

Let’s get this straight; I am not talking about skin bleaching! For the purposes of this post toning refers to muscular definition. From my experience in the gym, a lot of women want to tone their bodies; special areas of interest are the arms and love handles. However a lot of ladies are scared of developing muscular, macho looking bodies and because of this they go about the whole process of “toning” all wrong and end up with unsatisfactory results. Today’s post is inspired by all the women who want to have a lean body, neither flabby nor muscular but don’t know how to go about it, this is for you! Before we get into the meat and bones of it, you should note that I love weights, weights are part of the solution, and you have to stop being scared of weights! If you are a woman you cannot turn into the incredible hulk overnight, it’s freaking impossible!