Q: will I lose 40lbs in 12 weeks, and will I get stuck in the mood with weight loss or will it come off week by week without delay?

(Note: I love these questions.. it’s like predicting the future)

A: The amount of fat you will lose will depend really on your body and how stubborn it is to get rid of it. Usually, when people have a lot of extra weight, they then to lose quickly at the beginning but then, it slows down. Actually, it’s harder for ’skinny fat people’ to lose weight that overweight people, why? because they are already at the stubborn fat.

I don’t want to give any illusions or any guarantees on how much you can lose weight because I can give you all the recommendations in the world, the key will be how compliant you will be. I vow to do everything I can so that you lose as much as possible. In my previous email, I told you what you can expect because this is what I’ve seen from my 11 yrs of experience helping people lose weight. But realize this, losing 18 lbs in 12 weeks is A LOT… some people lose 12 lbs in one year. Think about it.

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Q: My eating habbits are pretty good, I eat small meals but a lot of them. It is working for me with my weight.. I mean the only negative thing is. I cant GAIN weight.. [...] I am averaging about 175.. And my weight will flux with in a 3 lb area. 3 up or 3 down..  If you could give me some better habits to gain weight that would help. I have a high carb and high protien diet. I eat a lot of chicken and fish and also eat a lot of Pasta. I am not sure what is going on that I cant break that barrier. I want to be at around 185-190. but at my same body fat I am now. Around.. 5-6%. I work out all my muscles 1 muscle group per day except my back and shoulders is tied together. I work out on average of 6 times a week. I hope you have some suggestions.

A: In order for you to build lead muscle, we must definitely look at your workout program and nutrition. You definitely need to be in a surplus of calories, most men are between 3000 and 5000 calories a day. These calories must be high quality, clean calories. One strategy I recommend is to have 1/2 of your calories in liquid form and the rest as ‘real’ food. Does that make sense?

Q: I want a program that I can follow to burn more fats around my abs

A: This is probably not what you want to hear but there is no such thing.

Fat loss can not be specific to one part of your body. The body releases fat wherever it decides to release fat. That’s just how our body is. You can decide to build muscle or strength in certain area but the reverse doesn’t work.

What we can do is work on a nutrition plan and workout program that’ll make you lose fat and build muscle as well, giving you a stronger, leaner body. The abs will come eventually but personally, I wouldn’t set “having a six-pack” as the main objective. You’ll get discouraged quickly.

Q: You know, I have read so many articles about diets and carbs, and  by now, everyone knows the difference between complex and simple carbs ok?

So, I just have to wonder why so many new books and magazines come out each month with some so called new diet ok???

A: I totally agree with you and I’m glad to see someone from the ‘general public’ knowing this.

You’d be surprised how many people DON’T know the difference between simple and complex carbs. Some people even don’t realize that simple sugar is a big no-no when you want to lose fat.

Why so many ebooks and ‘fad diets’? Simple… people want easy, quick solutions when we both know that there is no such thing. The fitness industry generates millions of dollars per year on this stuff and try to trick people that you don’t need to check your calories, you don’t need to workout, etc. etc. etc.

Q: Is it possible for someone to gain muscle mass and burn body fat while working out in the AM on an empty stomach?  I’ve been told no, and most of the diets I’ve seen have you working out with weights in the evening. I appreciate your time in answering my question.

A: You could workout in the morning on an empty stomach but it’s not recommended. I found that on a full stomach, most of my clients are able to push harder and have a better workout in general then on an empty stomach.

My suggestion to you is: try one week on an empty stomach and one week on a full stomach and try to pay attention on your energy level and progress in the gym.

Alwyn Cosgrove in his blog post The Evolution of the Fitness Profession describes that the new trend in the fitness industry is youth fitness, or youth sports training.

He doesn’t surprise me when he says that more than one million kids hired personal trainers in the US alone. Actually, my reaction was FINALLY!

The problem of obesity has contaminated our youth, there is no denying it. OUR KIDS ARE BIG!

I am not a parent myself but I do remember my activities as a kid compared to what my younger cousins and nephews are doing… As soon as I was done my homework, I was sent out the door to play. Like any boy, we played mostly sports (baseball and street hockey) and fighting… (did the car arrive before or after I scored?) and I didn’t arrive home until it was dark out or my mom called me back home.

Nowadays, with the world of technology and games, Wii, Nintendo, and all these consoles are now the best friends of this new young generation. How sad is that? The nearest park near my home is EMPTY… where all the kids gone to?

So, do we need trainers to get back our kids lives? Maybe… I’m not knowledgeable enough to say what we, as a society mus do, but I do believe that a sincere slap in the butt and kicking out kids out to play and chucking out these computer consoles to the trash (after destroying it of course) can definitely help. I mean, these companies have enough money as it is, why handicap our kids?!?!?!!?

So, as parents and responsible adults, let’s do something to turn the tide… are you with me?

Q: I have been working out at the gym since the past 2 years. My weight has been more or less the same. Recently, my personal trainer has been making me do weight training and strength training. I have started losing in inches but my weight has increased by 2-3 kgs. I’m worried and can’t understand why my body is responding in this manner.

A: It’s normal to see an increase in weight when you start doing resistance training. It’s just the way the body responses to the exercises. Also, when you say that you are loosing inches but the weight goes up, that’s a clear indication that you are losing fat and gaining muscle… which is exactly what you want to do. Don’t concentrate so hard on how much you weigh, but rather on the body fat percentage.

My friend and I are looking to set-up an online fitness consulting program and we are taking advantage of this blog to figure out what you, the end-user and reader of this blog, is looking for when searching for information online?

What kind of service are you wiling to pay for and what would be your budget?

Shocking weight loss research out of Australia has recently shown that the old way of using cardio for fat burning just doesn’t work. Medical researchers put women through a 15 week period of cardio workouts, and yet these women did not lose any weight over the entire program.

Both researchers and subjects were stunned by the lack of results. But that wasn’t the only surprise. (Read more…)