Brad Schoenfeld's blog

It's mid-July which means the Diet-to-Go free monthly newsletter has been sent. If you aren't getting this info-packed newsletter, go here now and sign up. Did I mention it's FREE? :o)

Meanwhile, here is a taste of the monthly fitness features provided by best-selling author and renowned fitness expert Brad Schoenfeld.

5 Exercises You SHOULDN'T Do (& 5 you should!)

Poor exercise choices will not only fall short of getting you desired results, but they can ultimately lead to a debilitating injury. It's a double whammy you want to avoid.

Here are five of the all-time worst exercises – and five super substitutes. Out with the bad, in with the good!

Standing Dumbbell Pec Flys

These exercises are performed in many body-sculpting classes and I’ve even seen personal trainers use them with their clients. They are supposed to work the chest muscles which are also known as your pectorals. The problem: they don’t work the pecs at all!

In order for a move to be effective, it must oppose gravity. In this exercise, the motion is horizontal to the ground while gravity is, of course, vertical. All you end up with is a very inefficient way of isometrically work the front delts...

For the rest of the story, go here. 

ABOUT BRAD: Brad Schoenfeld is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. He’s also been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. Check out his website at www.lookgreatnaked.com

With a tip of the ski cap to the Winter Olympic Games, I'm awarding gold medals to a trio of exercises that can help you tighten and tone your butt.

Before going into workout details, however, I need to dispel a few myths and misconceptions surrounding the topic.

First, it's important to understand that you can't spot reduce body fat. There is no way to dictate what are of your body you lose fat from. Fat is burned globally from all areas of the body, and how this plays out is largely dictated by genetics.

The bottom line: You can do butt exercises until the Summer Games come round in 2012 but it won't help to zap the fat that's stretching and dimpling your derriere.
 
Here's another myth: All too often, women rely solely on aerobics in an attempt to get their rear in gear. Big mistake.

Sure, performing regimented cardio will help to expedite fat loss. But it won't do much to help lift, shape, and firm the glute muscles. The reason? Aerobic exercise doesn't overload the muscle.

In order for a muscle to develop, you need to challenge it beyond its present capacity. Since cardio is an endurance-based activity that can be performed for extended periods, the body has no impetus to adapt by getting stronger. The only way to foster this kind of adaptation is with strength training.

Okay, let's talk specifics...

In order to optimize results, you need to assess your goals.

If your butt is flat and you're looking to build it up, perform fewer reps (8 to 10) and use heavier weights. If you're happy with the size of your glutes and are simply looking to tone up the region, go with higher reps (15 to 20) and correspondingly lighter weights.

Regardless of what rep range you employ, however, make sure that the weight is sufficient to cause you to struggle on the last few reps. Remember, if you don't challenge your muscles, you won't see results!
 
When it comes to what exercises to perform, variety is key.

The butt is actually comprised of three distinct muscles (the gluteus maximus, the medius and the minimus); each group plays a different role in human movement. To effectively develop all of these muscles you need to work the area from various angles.

The combination of exercises I prescribe accomplishes this task (you can see animated demonstrations of these moves at http://www.lookgreatnaked.com/resources/descriptions/descriptions.htm). I'd recommend performing them as a giant set, where you perform the target amount of reps the first exercise, then move on to the second and third exercises without resting. After completing all three exercises, rest for about 30 seconds and repeat the entire set.

Training in this fashion will create a distinct metabolic environment, simultaneously toning your muscles while burning fat.
 
Finally, always allow at least two days rest between workouts. Realize that intense training breaks down your muscles. It's during the recovery period where the muscles repair and ultimately develop. This process takes approximately 48 hours.

Shortchange recovery and you'll shortchange results.

The 3 Gold-Medal Moves for a Better Butt

Stiff-Legged Deadlift

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Grasp two dumbbells and let them hang in front of your body. Keeping your knees straight, slowly bend forward at the waist and lower and lower the dumbbells down until they touch your toes. Slowly rise upward until you reach the starting position.

Lying Abduction

Begin by lying on your left side. Bend your left leg at a 90-degree angle and bring your left foot to rest underneath your right knee. Keeping your right leg straight, slowly raise it as high as possible. Contract your glutes and then slowly return along the same path back to the start position. After finishing the desired number of repetitions, repeat the process on your left. For added intensity, attach leg weights to your ankles.

Lunge

Begin by grasping two dumbbells and allow them to hang down by your sides. Take a long stride forward with your right leg and raise your left heel so that your left foot is on its toes. Keeping your shoulders back and chin up, slowly lower your body by flexing your knees and hip, continuing your descent until your left knee is almost in contact with floor. Make sure that your right knee does not go past your toes. Reverse direction by forcibly extending the right hip and knee until you return to the start position. After performing the desired number of reps, repeat the process on your left.

Brad Schoenfeld is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the best-selling author of Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and his newest book, Women's Home Workout Bible. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. He’s also been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. Check out his website at www.lookgreatnaked.com

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is an excerpt from Women’s Home Workout Bible (Human Kinetics, 2009) by Diet-to-Go fitness contributor Brad Schoenfeld. Read the feature then see how you can get a free copy of this economical and insightful new book!

Setting Up a Home Gym: The Essentials
by Brad Schoenfeld, DTG Fitness Pro
& author of Women's Home Workout Bible

First, the good news: You don’t need to spend a fortune on a home gym. No matter what your budget is, you can build a gym that suits your needs. Now for the caveat: The less money you have the more savvy you need to be in making your purchases.

The key to getting the best value for your money is to prioritize. If your financial resources are limited, focus on obtaining equipment for resistance training first.

The reason is simple: A good resistance-training workout is more dependent on equipment than a cardio workout. Although you can do resistance training using only your body weight, results will be compromised.

Once you’ve satisfied these requirements, if there’s anything left in your budget, you can shift your attention to buying a cardio unit.

To guide you in your efforts, I’ve designed four categories with exercises and equipment for different budgets. As the budgets increase in each successive category, so does the amount of equipment. Thus, the $500 budget includes exercises from the $100 budget, and the $1,000 budget includes exercises from both the $100 and $500 budgets.

To emphasize the importance of first acquiring the necessary tools for resistance training, I have not included cardio equipment in any of the budgets. If your finances allow, add the cardio equipment afterward. Otherwise, see chapter 6 for innovative ways to get a good cardio workout with little or no equipment.

Budget of up to $100

Don’t have a lot of disposable income? No problem. You can perform a myriad of exercises by using your body weight, a stability ball, a chinning bar, leg weights, and a set of resistance bands. Total cost: less than a hundred bucks. Further offset your expenditures by using ordinary household items to supplement your routine. See chapter 3 for a complete discussion.

Budget of up to $500

By increasing your budget to around $500, you can add a high-quality bench and some dumbbells to the mix. The additional expense comes out to less than a year of membership at most health clubs. If you can possibly commit the funds, it’s an investment worth making. Chapter 4 delves into this topic in detail.

Budget of up to $1,000

An expenditure of approximately one grand gets you a fairly well-stocked home gym. In addition to the equipment in the previous budget, the extra cash allows you to add barbells and an upgraded bench with a power rack. You’ll have a nice little setup with lots of possibilities for varying your routine. The second half of chapter 4 covers all the specifics.

Budget of $2,500 or more

When you invest $2,500 or more, you’re into the big time as far as home gyms are concerned. The major purchase here is a multifunction resistance unit with a cable apparatus. This piece, when combined with the other home equipment, comes closest to simulating the health-club experience. All that’s missing is the masseuse and the personal trainer. Chapter 5 provides a complete overview of what’s important when considering machines.

BE A WINNER: We're giving away 5 free copies of Women’s Home Workout Bible. To be entered into our random giveaway go to the DiettoGo.com community forum and tell us why you’d like a copy of this hot new book. Good luck!

About 80 percent of all people who start an exercise program stop working out within a few months. This usually follows a familiar pattern: After a short time the novelty of training starts to wear off. Enthusiasm wanes. You begin to skip workouts. Little by little, the number of missed workouts increases until your goal of getting into shape becomes a distant memory.

Don’t become a statistic. You can beat the odds and become a life-long fitness success story. All it takes is a commitment to goal setting. Goals are a function of your motivation—the reasons for wanting to exercise.

So how do you go about setting goals? Just think SMART… as in Sustainable, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely!

For goals to be effective, they need to meet each of these criteria. Losing 20 pounds over three months is a SMART goal; losing that amount of weight in a week is not.

Short Time Frames

Whatever your goals, break them down into short time frames of no more than a month or two. In this way, you are able to accomplish your goals in a reasonable period of time, which in turn promotes positive feedback and boosts self-confidence.

For example, reducing your cholesterol by 50 points might appear to be a daunting task. But cutting it by 10 points a month for five months seems much more attainable. After a mere 30 days, you can relish the fact that you achieved your goal and set your sights on the next objective.

Once you’ve formulated your goals, commit them to paper and post them where you’ll see them frequently. This provides a sense of accountability. You can’t forget them or sweep them under a rug. They’re there in black and white to remind you why you need to train.

Create Incentives

Whenever possible, create incentives to help you reach your goals. For example, if weight loss is desired, buy an expensive dress that’s several sizes too small. The thought of having a beautiful dress sitting unused in your closet should be enough of an impetus to get you in the gym.

Alternatively, have your significant other agree to take you away on a romantic vacation if you drop a certain number of pounds. Getting others involved in your fitness efforts will provide a support network that can spur you on to greater heights. 

Once you accomplish goals, you should immediately set new ones. This will keep you focused in your efforts and allow you to maintain a high degree of motivation.

Goals should be reviewed on a periodic basis to make sure that they are consistent with your current objectives. Goals will often change as you progress in your fitness endeavors and reevaluating your position will help to ensure lasting compliance.

Start setting goals now and you’ll fall into a fitness routine you can stick with.

Stay fit!

Brad

Brad Schoenfeld, CSCS is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of six books, including Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America; he’s been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. He owns and operates the Personal Training Center for Women in Scarsdale, NY. Check out his website at http://www.lookgreatnaked.com

It’s common knowledge that exercising is a great way to boost your metabolism. But while virtually any type of physical activity will provide a metabolic lift, some routines are better than others in terms of ratcheting up your body’s ability to burn fat.

If you’re interested in reducing body fat (and really, who isn’t?), I’m going to make things easy for you. The actual workouts won’t be easy, but the template for success certainly is.

I’ve compiled three high-energy fitness routines guaranteed to stoke your fat-burning furnace—all you need to do is put in the necessary sweat and effort to achieve terrific results.

HIIT Training

HIIT is an acronym for high-intensity interval training. The premise is simple: intersperse bouts of high-intensity aerobic with lower intensity bouts. Studies have consistently shown that this style of training helps to stimulate the sympathetic nervous system to burn more fat as compared to steady-state exercise. Better yet, you achieve these superior results in less time! How cool is that?

But wait, it gets even better from a fat-burning standpoint.
Not only does HIIT optimize fat burning during the exercise session, but it also keeps your metabolism elevated long after you’ve stopped working out!

This is due to a phenomenon called EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption)—sometimes called the afterburn. A high EPOC level is associated with elevated metabolism and increased secretion of growth hormone and noradrenaline. These hormones help break down stores of fat and increase their use as a fuel source.

In a nutshell, there is a significant caloric cost for the body to return to its resting state. This includes replenishing depleted energy reserves, repairing cellular damage, clearing metabolic byproducts and facilitating tissue growth. The net effect lasts as long as 36 hours after exercise, burning as many as 150 calories a day beyond resting levels.

The catch: you need to work out intensely to maximize EPOC. That makes HIIT a homerun when it comes to slimming down and shaping up.

Circuit Weight Training

The usual way that most people lift weights is to perform a set, rest for a minute or two, perform another set of the same exercise, rest another couple of minutes, and continue along in this fashion until the desired number of sets of a particular exercise is completed. Then it’s time to move on to the next exercise for a given number of sets.

Certainly there’s nothing wrong with training in this manner. In fact, it’s an excellent way to build strength and develop muscle. But if you want to rev up your fat-burning potential, circuit training can provide a better bang for your workout buck.

Circuit training is carried out by performing a set of an exercise then moving immediately to a different exercise and then another and then another… all with little or no rest between sets. The idea is to keep your heart rate elevated so that you continue burning a maximal number of calories as you lift. It’s a good way to tone your muscles as you strip away fat: a win/win proposition.

The best way to approach circuit training is by structuring the workout so you work an agonist muscle and then its antagonist.

Thus, you could set up the routine like so: perform a chest exercise, follow it with a back exercise, then a shoulder exercise, then a bicep exercise, then a triceps exercise, then a quadriceps exercise, then a hamstring exercise, then a calf exercise, then an abdominal exercise.

After going through the circuit, you can perform the entire sequence again another time or two for a terrific metabolic kick-start.

Compound Training

You might not have heard this term but I’ll bet you’re familiar with the concept. Simply stated, compound training involves combining two different exercises into one movement. Technically any two exercises can be employed. But it’s generally best to pair a lower-body exercise with an upper-body move. A squat into a shoulder press, a lunge into a biceps curl… get creative and you can come up with an almost endless array of moves.

Compound training is a good way to burn fat because it increases the amount of muscle mass used in the exercises. The number of calories burned is directly related to how much muscle is stimulated during training. More muscle equates to a greater caloric expenditure.

Ideally you should strive to include as many multi-joint movements as possible. These are exercises that involve more than one joint, which necessarily will increase the amount of muscle stimulated.

For example, a dumbbell row is a multi-joint movement since the shoulder joint and elbow joints are needed to carry out performance. Ditto for the squat, which involves the hip, knee and ankle joints.

String together a few compound moves with short rest intervals and you’ll burn hundreds of extra calories while simultaneously cutting your workout time in half!

Brad Schoenfeld, CSCS is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of six books, including Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America; he’s been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. He owns and operates the Personal Training Center for Women in Scarsdale, NY. Check out his website at http://www.lookgreatnaked.com  

As a trainer, not a day goes by where I don’t speak to people frustrated with their exercise routines. They’ll invariably tell me they’ve been training for years without seeing noticeable improvement in their body. Or they’ll say they did okay at the beginning but suddenly hit a training plateau.

Sounds familiar, Homer? So what derails a person's ability to get into shape?

After nearly two decades as a trainer, I’ve isolated five workout mistakes as the primary culprits.

If you’re not happy with your results and perhaps are thinking of throwing in the towel, take a pause and see if any of the following mistakes apply to your situation. Remember, you can do a lot of things right, but it takes doing only one thing wrong to impair your progress.

Mistake #1: Performing cardio over weight training!

People tend to gravitate toward cardiovascular exercises like aerobics. They often avoid weight training because they think they shouldn’t add muscle until getting down to their ideal body weight or, in the case of many women, believe it will make them too bulky.

Reality check: Aerobics do almost nothing to improve muscle tone. Only by lifting weights will you actually firm up your muscles and get that hard body you desire.

What’s more, strength training is actually the best activity not only for losing weight, but also for maintaining your ideal body weight over time. Sure, cardio will burn more calories during the activity itself, but lifting weights does something cardio can’t: it improves your body’s ability to burn fat round the clock.

Understand that muscle is the most metabolically active tissue in the body. Add 5 pounds of lean muscle – which any person can do within several months – and you’ll burn as much as an extra 1,500 calories a week… even while channel-surfing for your favorite TV show!

Mistake #2: Using weights that are too light!

This mistake is largely addressed at women. While men tend to lift for ego and go ultra-heavy, all-too-often women go in the opposite direction. Walk into any gym and you’ll see a woman lifting a 2-pound weight while reading a magazine or talking on her cell phone. Sadly, she doesn’t realize this is just exercising in futility.

Fact is, in order to tone up you need to challenge your muscles beyond their present capacity. This is exercise 101, the general adaptation syndrome.

Take home message: Make sure the last few reps are difficult to complete. If you’re not struggling at the end of your set, the weight is too light! And trust me ladies, you won’t end up looking like a she-male by pushing your body a little. It’s simply not going to happen.

Mistake #3: Not having a game plan!

Training is all about strategy. Too many times, I see people walk into a gym not knowing what they want to do that day, so they end up doing a little of this and a little of that, but really not getting a whole lot out of their efforts.

It’s like trying to writing a novel without having a plot in mind — you end up with an aimless journey that ultimately goes nowhere.

The important thing is to decide what you want to do before you start your workout, and then follow through on that game plan each time you train. Map out the muscles you want to work and the exercises that you intend to perform.

Better yet, write down your routine in an exercise log and take it with you to the gym. Guaranteed it will keep you more focused throughout your session.

Mistake #4: Training too frequently!

Here’s something a lot of people don’t realize — when you lift weights, you’re not developing your muscles, you’re breaking them down. That’s right, each time you workout, tiny microtears form in your muscles as a result of the training process.

Once you finish lifting, your body needs rest to recuperate. This is when development takes place. Your body anticipates you’re going to shock it at some point by lifting those obscene weights and reacts by getting stronger and harder.

It should therefore be apparent that training places a major stress on the body. Not only does it tax the muscles themselves but it also taxes your entire neuromuscular system while you’re training. If you train too much, you’ll short-circuit the recuperation process and can actually become overtrained where results come to a complete halt.

To avoid this malady, allow 48 hours rest in between weight-training sessions. This is the approximate time course of protein synthesis — the mechanism by which your muscles are repaired. Also limit intense cardiovascular activity (such as running or interval training) to no more than five days a week with two full days off.

Mistake #5: Expecting to see immediate results!

Unfortunately, exercise isn’t an instant gratification process. Results happen over time. If you expect to see change in a few days or a week or two, you’re setting yourself up for frustration and destined to end up demotivated.

What can you reasonably expect? If you exercise properly, you’ll begin to see changes in the body in about four weeks. After about 8 to 12 weeks you’ll see fairly significant changes. Keep it up for four to six months and you’ll really start turning heads.

The key is to maintain perspective and follow through over time. You will see results if you have the right routine and remain dedicated.

Brad Schoenfeld, CSCS is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of six books, including Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America; he’s been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. He owns and operates the Personal Training Center for Women in Scarsdale, NY. Check out his website at http://www.lookgreatnaked.com  

Summer's knocking on the door and with it comes the type of weather that begs for performing outdoor activities. After all, who wants to stay indoors when the sun is shining and the temperature is hovering around 80 degrees?

With this in mind, here are a few of the hottest fitness trends for shaping up this summer. Give them a try and you’ll soon see that you don’t need a gym to stay fit!

Boot Camp Workouts: Boot camp workouts can be a great way to increase your strength and endurance while burning a boatload of calories in the process. In theory (and as the name implies), these types of routines are designed to mimic the training of military soldiers. In practice, however, they can encompass a wide range of aerobic and anaerobic activities.

Mostly, they involve callisthenic activities using only your body weight. Strength moves such as pushups, squats, and chin ups are interspersed with running in place, jumping jacks, and other aerobic-oriented activities for a terrific total body workout. Boot camp exercise programs are often held in local parks or schools. Provided you find the right class for your abilities, they can be a great way to shape up while enjoying the great outdoors.

Beach Fitness: The sand provides a unique environment for getting into shape. Studies show that the energy cost of jogging or running on sand is about 1.6 times greater than running on hard surfaces. Translation: You burn 60% more calories for the same amount of time spent exercising! Moreover, the softer surface isn't as harsh on your joints, reducing the prospect of repetitive motion injury. Better yet, you get to work on your tan and enjoy the sounds of the surf. Pretty cool, huh?

Don't like to run? Consider playing a game or two of beach volleyball. Not only will you have fun, but you'll burn a substantial amount of calories in the process. Just make sure you limit the number of people in the game. Any more than two or three members per side will significantly reduce the energy cost of the activity.

Outdoor Biking: It’s widely known that spin classes can be a great activity for shedding body fat. But what often goes unreported is that you can achieve similar metabolic benefits from biking outdoors. Just make sure you mix things up.

Choose a path that has a lot of hills. Spend some time pedaling while standing up from the seat. To really simulate the Spin Class experience, plug in your iPod headphones and listen to some motivating music. And best of all, take pleasure in the fact that you’re getting all these benefits while enjoying fresh air and sunshine.

Stay fit!
Brad Schoenfeld, CSCS

How do you plan to shape up this summer? Let us know at the new Diettogo.com Community Forum.

Brad Schoenfeld is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. He’s also been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. Check out his website www.lookgreatnaked.com

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Who's got time to work out? If you're like most people, you're too busy running around, dealing with life's challenges. With so much going on, where are you going to find a couple of hours to spend in the gym?

Fortunately, you don't need to devote a lot of time in order to stay fit. In fact, a half-hour a week is all that's required for a great body sculpting workout.

The following program is a streamlined routine that will optimally target all of the major muscles in three, 10-minute weekly sessions. By utilizing a technique called supersets, where one exercise is followed directly by another, you can efficiently sculpt your body to its ultimate potential. Best of all, since only a set of dumbbells is required, you can perform the workout without leaving the comfort of your own home!

The routine should be performed three days per week, training your muscles in the following order:

Day One: Shoulders/Triceps/Biceps

Day Two: Back/Chest/Abdominals

Day Three: Thigh/Hamstrings/Calves

For best results, the following protocols should be observed:

• The supersets for each muscle group should be performed in succession (i.e. shoulders immediately followed by biceps immediately followed by triceps, etc.), in essence creating one giant set.

• Perform each giant set three times.

• Rest approximately 30 seconds between each giant set.

• Repetitions should be kept between 10 to 15 per set.

• Weights should be heavy enough where it is difficult to complete the last few reps of each set.

• The routine should be performed on non-consecutive days (i.e. Monday, Wednesday, Friday, etc.).

Using these protocols, here's the routine:

SHOULDER SUPERSET

Arnold Press: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Grasp two dumbbells and bring the weights to shoulder level with your palms facing toward your body. Press the dumbbells directly upward, simultaneously rotating your hands so that your palms face forward during the last portion of the movement. Touch the weights together over your head and then slowly return them along the same arc, rotating your hands back to the starting position.

Lateral Raise: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Grasp two dumbbells and allow the weights to hang by your hips. With a slight bend to your elbows, raise the dumbbells up and out to the sides until they reach shoulder level. At the top of the movement, the rear of the dumbbells should be slightly higher than the front. Slowly return the weights back to the starting position.

BICEPS SUPERSET

Hammer Curl: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your core held tightly. Grasp a pair of dumbbells and allow your arms to hang at your sides with your palms facing each other. Keeping your elbows pressed into your sides, curl the dumbbells up toward your shoulders and contract your biceps at the top of the move. Then, slowly reverse the direction and return to the starting position.

Concentration Curl:  Sit at the edge of a chair or flat bench with your legs spread wide apart and your feet planted firmly on the floor. Grasp a dumbbell in your right hand and brace your right elbow against the inside of your right thigh. Straighten your arm so that it hangs down near the floor. Your elbow should be straight but not locked. Curl the weight up toward your right shoulder, contracting your biceps at the top of the move. Reverse the direction and slowly return to the starting position. After completing the desired number of reps, repeat the process on your left side.

TRICEPS SUPERSET

Triceps Kickback: Stand with your body bent forward. Grasp two dumbbells and press your arms against your sides with your elbows bent at 90-degree angles. With your palms facing your body, raise the weight by straightening your arms until they are parallel with the floor. Slowly return the weights back to the starting position.

Dumbbell Skullcrushers: Lie back on the floor or a flat bench. Grasp two dumbbells and hold them overhead with your palms facing each other. Keeping your elbows in, slowly lower the dumbbells until the weights are just above the level of your head. Press the dumbbells back up until they reach the starting position.

FRONTAL THIGH SUPERSET

Side Lunge: Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder width. Grasp two dumbbells and hold one in front and one in back of your body. Keeping your left leg straight, bend your right knee out to the side until your right thigh is parallel with the floor. Slowly rise back up and then repeat this process immediately on the left side.

Dumbbell Squat: Grasp two dumbbells and allow your arms to hang down by your sides, with your palms facing your hips. Assume a shoulder-width stance with your toes pointed slightly outward. Keeping your core tight, slowly lower your body until your thighs are approximately parallel with the ground. When you reach a seated position, reverse the direction by straightening your legs and return to the starting position, contracting your triceps at the top of the move.

HAMSTRINGS/GLUTES SUPERSET

Stiff Legged Deadlift: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Grasp two dumbbells and let them hang in front of your body. Keeping your knees straight, slowly bend forward at the waist and lower and lower the dumbbells down until they touch your toes. Slowly rise upward until you reach the starting position.

Hamstring Curl: Lie face down on the floor or a flat bench. Place a dumbbell between your ankles and bring your legs into a parallel position with the floor. Curl your legs upward until the dumbbell approaches your butt. Slowly lower the weight back down until you reach the starting position.

CALVES SUPERSET

Standing Calf Raise: From a standing position, grasp a pair of dumbbells and let them hang by your hips. Rise up as high as possible onto your toes until your calves are fully flexed. Slowly reverse direction until your heels touch the floor.

Seated Calf Raise: Sit at the edge of a chair or bench and position a dumbbell across your thighs near your knees. Place your toes on a small block of wood and allow your heels to drop as far below your toes as possible. Rise up as far as you can onto your toes until your calves are fully flexed. Slowly reverse direction until you reach the starting position.

BACK SUPERSET

Bent Row: Stand with a shoulder-width stance and your body bent forward at the hips. Grasp a pair of dumbbells and allow the weights to hang straight down from your shoulders with your palms facing each other. Keeping your elbows back and close to your body, pull the dumbbells upward as high as possible. Slowly return the dumbbells back to the starting position.

Pullover: Lie back on a flat bench or the floor. Grasp a dumbbell with both hands and raise it directly over your face. Keeping your arms slightly bent, slowly lower the dumbbell behind your head as far as comfortably possible. Reverse direction and return the dumbbell back to the starting position.

CHEST SUPERSET

Flat Press: Lie back on a flat bench or the floor. Grasp a pair of dumbbells and let them rest at your armpits with your palms facing forward. Keeping your elbows back, lift the weights straight up over your chest and touch them together at the top. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.

Dumbbell Flye: Lie back on a flat bench or the floor. Grasp a pair of dumbbells and lower them out and down to either side of your body in a wide arc. Keeping your arms slightly bent, raise the weights over your head in a semi-circular, hugging motion. Slowly return the dumbbells back to the starting position.

ABDOMINALS SUPERSET

Twisting Crunch: Lie on the floor on your back with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Press your lower back into the floor and fold your hands across your chest. Your upper back should be held slightly off the ground to maintain constant tension on the target muscles. Move your shoulders up and forward toward your chest, twisting your body to the right. Feel a contraction in your abdominal muscles and then slowly reverse the direction, returning to the starting position. After performing the desired number of repetitions, repeat the process, twisting your body to the left.

Reverse Curl: Lie face-up on the floor with your hands at your sides. Curl your knees up toward your belly until your butt is lifted slightly off the ground. Keeping your upper back pressed into the floor, raise your butt as high as possible so that your pelvis tilts toward your chest. Contract your abs and then reverse the direction, returning your butt to the starting position.

Brad Schoenfeld is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. He’s also been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. Check out his website www.lookgreatnaked.com  

I'd like to touch on a few tips for kick-starting stalled weight loss. If you fall into this category, you're not alone. It's usually pretty easy to lose weight at the beginning of a diet. Those initial pounds just seem to melt away and then, as you get closer to your goal weight... the dreaded plateau!

Sound familiar? Don't fret. Follow these tried-and-true strategies and you'll soon be back on the road to slimming down and, more importantly, staying that way for the long haul.

Tip #1: Lift weights!
Most people think of performing cardio rather than strength training to aid in weight loss. Some even deliberately avoid lifting weights while on a diet in fear that they'll look bulky. Bad move!

Fact is weight training actually accelerates fat loss. The reasons are twofold. First, muscle mass increases your metabolic rate, which directly aids in the burning of fat as fuel. Studies have shown that for each pound of muscle added to your body you burn an additional 30 to 50 calories a day while at rest. If you avoid weight training, your body ends up cannibalizing its own muscle, which suppresses metabolism and ultimately leads to a rebound effect – you gain back all the weight you've lost and more.

What's more, weight training increases excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC), the after-burn associated with exercise. The EPOC from weight training is more significant than any cardio activity and can last for up to 48 hours post-exercise!

Tip #2: Add a cheat day!
Dieting 24/7 is actually counterproductive to enduring weight loss. It causes feelings of deprivation that often leads to binge eating. It also elicits a starvation response initiated by leptin – the master hormone responsible for fat gain and loss. Hunger goes up, metabolism goes down, and weight loss comes to a screeching halt.

The solution: Have a regimented “cheat day” and eat your favorite foods once a week. Go ahead and order that pizza and or nibble on those Goobers and Raisinets. Whatever your heart desires, indulge yourself. This not only helps to satisfy cravings, but it actually can reset your leptin levels, tricking your body out of going into starvation mode. The net effect is quicker and longer-lasting weight loss… and that’s a win/win situation!

Tip #3: Interval Train!
Most people choose to lose weight by performing continual, moderately intense aerobic exercise in the so-called “fat burning zone” that equates to 60 to 80 percent of your maximum heart rate. This concept of a fat-burning zone might sound good in theory, but it's based on faulty interpretation of research that seemed to show activities performed at a moderate intensity burn a greater percentage of fat calories than higher intensity activities.

Unfortunately, burning a greater percentage of fat doesn’t equate to burning more total fat calories. A better strategy is to perform interval training, where you alternate between high and low periods of intensity. Studies have shown this to be up to nine times more effective in reducing body fat! You can use almost any type of cardio that you like, but the most popular is walking and running.

If you're new to the interval concept start out with a 4:1 ratio (4 minutes at low intensity and 1 minute at high intensity). You can decrease the ratio as you become more fit until you eventually reach a ratio of 1:1.

Stay fit!
Brad

Brad Schoenfeld is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. He is a columnist for FitnessRX for Women magazine, and has been featured in nearly every major fitness and women’s magazine. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. He’s also been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. Check out his website http://www.lookgreatnaked.com

If you want to get your body beach-season ready, you need to start training now. Wait until summer and you've waited too long.

To help you get swimsuit fit, I'm going to detail a targeted, high-energy abdominal training routine that's guaranteed to help you sculpt a terrific midsection—an essential component of a head-turning beach body.

You'll have abs to die for in no time at all… if you stick to the program and use proper form.

It's important to realize that achieving fab abs first requires shedding the layer of fat covering your midsection muscles. Despite what you may have read elsewhere, this can’t be done through spot reduction. There’s simply no way to dictate what specific area of your body sheds fat through exercise. You can do crunches until the cows come home, but it won't have any effect in flattening your stomach.

The best one-two punch for a flat belly is good nutrition – like you get with your properly portioned Diet-to-Go meals – and regular physical activity.

If you don’t eat right, you aren’t going to see the hard-earned fruits of your labor. For an extra fat-burning jolt, perform an aerobic activity. Interval training is your best bet. What that means is interspersing high-intensity cardio (such as running) with lower intensity exercise (such as walking or jogging). The combination of a healthy diet and cardio exercise will speed up your progress and help lose those love handles so you can show off a shapelier swimsuit body.

Here’s the targeted ab plan. You’ll perform the three exercises described below. Each move works the abs from a variety of different angles. Perform them as one giant set in the following fashion: Do 15 to 20 reps of the toe touch. Without resting, do 15 to 20 reps of the reverse curl. Then do 15 to 20 reps of the twisting curl. Rest 30 seconds and repeat the giant set two more times.

The entire routine should take 10 minutes tops. But don’t be fooled by its brevity. Perform as directed and your abs should burn like never before. If not, you need to increase resistance. This can be done by holding a dumbbell to your chest and/or ankle weights.

Remember, when it comes to exercise, less can be more… provided you train with sufficient intensity.

The routine can be performed up to three times a week. Just make sure you allow at least 48 hours rest between training sessions. This provides adequate recuperation so that your abs have enough time to develop. Shortchanging recuperation only serves to shortchange results. Your abs develop quickly so get with the program today.

Toe Touch: Lie face up on the floor with your arms and legs straight in the air, perpendicular to your body. Keeping your lower back pressed to the floor, slowly curl your torso up and forward, raising your hands as close to your toes as possible. Contract your abs and then reverse direction, returning to the start position.

Reverse Curl: Lie on your back on the floor with your hands at your sides. Curl your knees into your stomach and lift your butt so that it is slightly off the ground. Keeping your upper back pressed into the floor, raise your butt as high as possible so that your pelvis tilts toward your chest. Contract your abs and then reverse direction, returning to the start position.

Bicycle Crunch: Lie face up on the floor with your legs bent at a 90-degree angle. Ball your hands into fists and place them at your ears. Slowly bring your right knee up toward your left elbow and try to touch them to one another. As you return your right leg and left elbow to the start position, bring your left leg toward your right elbow in the same manner. Continue while alternating between right and left sides as if pedaling a bike.

Stay fit!
Brad

Brad Schoenfeld is one of America’s leading fitness experts. He’s the author of Sculpting Her Body Perfect, 28-Day Body Shapeover and the bestseller Look Great Naked. He is a columnist for FitnessRX for Women magazine, and has been featured in nearly every major fitness and women’s magazine. Schoenfeld is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and as a personal trainer by both the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. He’s also been named “master trainer” by the International Association of Fitness Professionals. Check out his website LookGreatNaked.com

Got a swimsuit already picked out? Tell us about it at the new Diet-to-Go community forum.