6 Pack Abs Workout Program

Below is an interview by Geovanni Derice with Mike Geary - Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

I had the pleasure of being interviewed recently by a fitness professional from NYC, Certified Personal Trainer, Geovanni Derice. The interview is below and I think you're going to like it... I reveal some of the hardest hitting strategies for getting rid of that stubborn stomach fat to uncover those flat six pack abs that everyone wants.

GD: Welcome Mike to our 4-ever-Toned Fitness Journal. For those who do not know you, please tell us a few things about yourself and how you can help our readers with their fitness and health.

MG: Thanks for having me, Geo. Well, to go back a little, I have been heavily involved in fitness and sports for about 17 years now, ever since I was a teenager. Being involved in sports in high school got me interested in strength training and conditioning.

At that point, once I started feeling more energetic, getting stronger, and looking better, I was instantly hooked for life. I'm 33 now and still addicted to the way living a healthy and fit lifestyle makes me feel energetic, confident, strong, and youthful on a daily basis.

I decided earlier in my 20's that I wanted to make the commitment to help other people experience the excitement of being fit and getting in the best shape of their lives, especially since we've reached an epidemic of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, depression, etc. That's why I became a fitness professional. It just gives me so much satisfaction to help others, who have struggled for years to get in good shape, and show them that it can be done, and it can be fun in the process.

I've expanded over the years from just reaching local individuals with personal training, into being able to help people all over the globe achieve their fitness goals with the reach of the internet. I only hope that my passion for fitness inspires people to take action and improve how they look and feel for life.

GD: Now Mike, there's so many things out there as to what works and what does not work... if you had to pick 3 things that work time and time again to get flat lean abs, what would they be?

MG: The first and most important thing to get control of in order to lose your belly fat and get flat abs is cleaning up your diet. Exercise is important, but your diet is king when it comes to losing body fat so that you can see your abs.

There's so much confusion these days about what a healthy diet that promotes fat loss really is... after all, we are bombarded by conflicting messages in the media about what is healthy and what is not, and you have all of these gimmicky diet books about low carb, low fat, high protein, vegetarian, fasting, atkins, south beach, liquid diets, and hundreds more. There's so much conflicting info, that the average consumer doesn't even know where to start when it comes to eating for fat loss.

The second thing that works time and time again, is to focus on the intensity of your workouts and focus on working the body as a whole in order to get the best metabolic response to lose that stubborn stomach fat.

In order to really get lean, the workouts should have a high intensity, with short rest periods, working the largest muscle groups of the body, instead of trying to isolate specific small muscles like the biceps, triceps, or calves.

For the third thing, let's talk about actually training the abs specifically. When it comes to training the abs, if you want real results, I always recommend forgetting about the crunches and situps for the most part. They are ok for someone that is really deconditioned, but most people that already have some training under their belt need a much better stimulus for their abs than crunches. Crunches are one of the abs exercises that actually provide the least amount of resistance, and remember that resistance is what develops and tones the muscles.

I provide a ton of great abs exercises in my book, but one of THE highest resistance exercises for the abs, is hanging leg raises (but NOT the way you see most people at the gym doing them). The key to doing these and actually working the hell out of your abs is to curl your pelvis up as you raise your legs. Almost nobody ever does this right. To be honest, the majority of people cannot do this at first, but I provide some strategies in my book as to how to progress to doing these correctly.

GD: What are people doing wrong when it comes to developing the coveted "6 pack abs"?

MG: Well Geo, I know this sounds funny to most people, but the MAIN thing that people are doing wrong to get those flat 6-pack abs is... are you ready for this?

They spend entirely too much time focusing on training their abs! WAY too much time spent on abs exercises. Sounds crazy, but it's true.

Remember, having a flat and visible six pack of abs is all about getting down to a low body fat percentage. In order to do that, your workouts must focus on stimulating a fat burning hormonal environment in your body, and increasing your metabolic rate. That just does not happen when you focus too much time training a small muscle group like the abs.

Instead, you must use the majority of your time focusing on training the largest muscle groups of the body like the legs, back, and chest. That's what stimulates your metabolism and the fat burning hormones that will get you truly lean and sporting a flat sixxer!

GD: Which exercises are the top exercises that people need to do if they are to get maximum defintion with their midsection?

MG: When it comes to developing the abs themselves, I again refer to any kinds of hanging abs exercises, as well as some good floor abs exercises like lying leg thrusts (all described and illustrated in my book).

However, maximum definition in the abs and midsection comes from losing bodyfat, and the most effective exercises featured in my program for that goal are various forms of swings and snatches (unique dumbbell or kettlebell exercises that almost nobody ever does in normal gyms), squats, deadlifts, lunges, step-ups, clean & presses, mountain climbers, sprinting, and other full body exercises and calisthenics. If you want great looking flat abs, focus on those instead of focusing so much on training the abs directly!

GD: When it comes to diet Mike, people really have tried millions of ways to get one thing... and that is fat loss. What recommendations have you used to successfully help your clients lose body fat and keep it off?

MG: I have included a fully comprehensive discussion of this topic in my book, which accounts for almost half of the book, but I'll try to make some nice simple generalizations to get people started on the right path immediately. The most important thing is that your diet is as natural and unprocessed as possible. It almost always comes back to the overprocessing of food that makes it unhealthy, and makes it totally wreck your metabolism and hormone balance in your body.

For example, why eat refined grains, when you can eat whole grains (even better are sprouted grains, as I usually recommend limiting grain foods overall for best results).

Why eat refined sugar, when you can get natural sources of sugar from a high nutrient whole food like fruit. Why eat highly processed, refined, and hydrogenated vegetable oils (these are THE worst thing in the modern diet), when you can eat natural sources of healthy fats like nuts, avocados, fish, eggs, coconut milk, organically raised meat, and so forth.

The point is to not fall for some gimmick like extremely low carbs (although I do believe in a fairly reduced carb intake as that is a big problem for most people), low fat, super high protein, or any other combination that has you focusing on one macronutrient vs. another.

Your body needs all macronutrients to thrive and obtain a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc. Trying to cut an entire food group out just works against what your body needs. I get into much more detail on this vitally important topic towards losing body fat (especially that stubborn stomach fat) for life in my book.

GD: Thank you very much Mike for sharing with us all of this great information.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this interview and plucked several nuggets of info to get you motivated and started on showing off your flat abs shortly. If you don't already own a copy, be sure to pick up a copy of my Truth about Six Pack Abs book and discover the entire system I've developed for ridding yourself of that extra ab fat for good!

With this article, I want to show you why you might be struggling to lose that stubborn stomach fat that is covering up your abs. These are the main reasons most people just can not seem to get those six pack abs that everyone desires. If you haven't already seen me around online somewhere, I'm the creator of one of the most popular abdominals and fat loss programs on the internet.

So in this article I want to highlight for you the main points and strategies that I use to make this program one of the most effective programs in existance for fully developing your abdominals as well as getting rid of that stubborn stomach fat that is covering them up.

Pay attention, because once you get this stuff right and start using these techniques regularly, you'll be showing off your ripped abs in no time flat, whether it's at the beach, at the pool, in the bedroom, wherever... Just think how great it's going to feel when people are complimenting you on your washboard stomach!

Alright, here's what make's The Truth about Six Pack Abs different:

1. The main focus of this program is NOT abs exercises... And, better yet, this program consistently get's better results by NOT focusing on abs exercises!

I know that sounds counterintuitive, but the fact of the matter is that abs exercises are ok, and you do need to do a certain amount of them to develop the abdominals as best as possible. But to be honest, most people that are trying to get better looking abdominals waste WAY too much time training the abs directly. What you really need to focus on is burning off the extra fat that is covering them up.

Let's get this straight right now... Abs exercises do NOT burn fat away from your abs! This can only be accomplished through a much more effective full body training routine that maximizes both your metabolic response and your hormonal response to your workouts. This is the main focus of my Truth about Six Pack Abs Program.

Now don't get me wrong. It wouldn't be an abs program if I didn't show you the most effective exercises for developing your abdominals. I also give you detailed instructions and photos on how to do them right. But like I said, the main focus of this program is the secret method that I use to compile the full body training routines and maximize your fat burning effect.

This is the main reason that this program will be much more effective for you than any other abs programs you've ever tried before. You've got my word on that.

2. This program uses none of your typical boring monotonous cardio routines.

In fact, you don't have to do any typical cardio if you don't want to! I actually recommend against it.

Seriously, almost every program out there tells you that you must do endless cardio exercise regularly to lose the body fat that is covering your abs. Most of them tell you to do 30-60 minutes of cardio exercise 3-4 days/week in addition to your strength training routines.

The truth is that this is not only unnecessary, but it can actually be counterproductive if you're really trying to get as lean as possible, as quick as possible. I go into this in much more detail in the book, but basically this all comes back to the aspects of your metabolic rate, how much lean muscle you have, the hormonal response in your body from the exercise, and the residual calorie burn in the hours and days following your workouts. And normal boring cardio routines are all wrong when it comes to maximizing these effects!

Now you're probably thinking that since I'm against typical boring cardio routines, then that must simply mean I'm a proponent of interval training. Yes, as a matter of fact, I believe interval training is MUCH better than typical cardio.

However, I also use a special exercise combination and sequencing in my Truth about Six Pack Abs Program that gets even more powerful fat loss and muscle defining results than interval training. And that's saying something, because interval training kicks butt! You'll find out how this system works inside the program.

Want proof that you don't need typical long-duration steady-pace cardio?

Well, first of all, I actually took a course recently that was devoted to scientific research into why steady-pace cardio exercise is actually not that effective at strengthening the heart. The focus of the research basically boiled down to the fact that the heart needs to be trained in a wide variety of ranges to actually be truly strengthened and ready for all the various stresses that life throws at it. Not only that, but steady-pace cardio was also proven in the research studies to be far less effective in the long term at reducing body fat stores.

To give you a real life example... Personally, I haven't done what most people would label "cardio" in probably well over 5 years, and I'm actually leaner now and have a lower bodyfat % now than years ago when I did cardio regularly. Not only that, but my heart is in the best condition ever, as I now consistently have the resting heart rate of an elite athlete at about 50 bpm (remember that lower is better). My resting heart rate used to be in the mid to upper 60's years ago when I used to do typical cardio and strength training routines like most people do.

This improvement in both body fat % and reduced resting heart rate is the direct result of the unique training methods I used in developing the programs in The Truth about Six Pack Abs.

3. This program does NOT revolve around having to use supplements or "fat-loss" pills.

Trust me when I say that for the most part, about 95% of supplements are a complete waste of your hard earned money. I've been approached by supplement companies in the past looking for me to promote their products for them, and offering me a lot of money to do so. Well, you know what I do? I tell them to shove it! Seriously, I won't promote something to my readers that I don't honestly believe in.

The fact is, I've learned over the years through my own experience, as well as hundreds of my clients and friends experiences with supplements, that they are really just selling you the dream that their pill or powder will be some "magical" solution to your struggle with getting that lean ripped body that you've been wanting for years. In reality, most supplements do nothing at all to help you improve your body.

Don't get me wrong... I'm not totally bashing supplement companies, but like I said, about 95% of the products they promote are worthless, and won't create any noticeable changes in your body. I will admit that there can be a place for meal replacements for people that can't find the time to prepare or pack all of their real food meals. I also admit that I do think a high quality, fast digesting protein like whey protein can be useful to mix into your post-workout smoothies.

But the fact is that real food is always better for you than processed supplements (as long as you pick the right "real foods"). Anybody that tells you otherwise has either been brainwashed by all of the propaganda and super-hyped up ads that the supplement companies have spread throughout every magazine on the planet, or they have financial ties to selling supplements in some way themselves.

I have dedicated myself to not being lured into the lucrative world of selling supplements. Even though I could make a lot more money selling supplements than by selling my abs program, it's just plain against my morals to rip people off like that.

Frankly, it amazes me that most people are more willing to spend $30, $40, even $50 or more on a bottle of pills or powder than to spend $30 on a comprehensive training and nutrition guide like this Truth about Six Pack Abs program, which will set them up for life on training programs and dietary secrets that will keep them lean and ripped for life. The only thing that bottle of pills or powder is going to do is give you expensive urine! You make the choice.

4. This program does not revolve around using any fancy "ab machines" or "ab gadgets".

In case you were suckered into buying any of these worthless ab belts, loungers, rockers, or any other worthless ab gadget or machine, I have bad news... You were ripped off!

The truth is that most of these machines and gadgets are not the best way to develop the abdominal muscles. Sure, some of them may help a tiny bit with strengthening the abdominals, but they are far less effective than some of the best floor, hanging, and standing abs exercises.

Also, more importantly, virtually all of these abs machines, belts, and gadgets do absolutely nothing to burn fat off of the abdominal area!

Again, losing the fat that's covering up your abs can only be accomplished with a smart nutritional program, and a well designed progressional training program that increases your metabolism and stimulates your fat-burning hormones in your body. Achieving this is simple once you understand the secrets I reveal in the Truth about Six Pack Abs program.

5. This program does not include some sort of fad diet or gimmicky diet trend.

None of that here. I promise you won't be given any more crap about needing to eat "low-carb" or "low-fat", or low or high anything, for that matter. The nutritional secrets I reveal in this program go against all of the authors and companies out there that are trying to lure you in with another one of their gimmicks.

The fact is that they need to come up with some sort of different "angle", so that their diet program appears unique and gives the media something to talk about. That's why there's always some gimmick, like low-fat, or low-carb, or high protein, or the "colors diet", the "low glycemic index diet", the fasting diet, the cabbage diet, and so on.

Instead, I wanted to give you the truth about what it really takes to eat a nutritious diet that not only will have you burning off that stubborn belly fat, but will also have you feeling full of energy every single day. If you don't already feel energetic and alive every single day, then you are missing out, because it is an awesome feeling!

The great thing is that once you start eating balanced and healthy all the time, you virtually eliminate cravings altogether. Personally, I used to crave sweets constantly before I adopted the nutritious diet that I currently eat. Now, I can honestly say I can't remember the last craving I had. It had to be more than 5 years ago... no joke!

Not only that, but I actually enjoy everything I eat way more than I used to years ago when I ate a lot of junk. Does that mean that I never eat burgers, or pizza, or beer? Of course not... We all have a social life. In fact, there are actually very healthy ways and variations to preparing healthier burgers and healthier pizza that I occasionally use.

I hope this article has given you some insight as to where you may be going wrong with your exercise and nutrition plans in striving for those elusive abs. See below for more info on losing stubborn stomach fat and developing ripped six pack abs.

By Mike Geary

The answer to the age-old question of "What is the best ab workout for losing stomach fat?" is...

None! Ab workouts alone don't create enough of a metabolic response in your body to create fat loss.

As a trainer, nutrition specialist, and fitness professional, I often get asked what the best types of exercises and workouts are for losing stubborn stomach fat in order to bring out visible six pack abs. The problem is that most people with excess stomach fat looking to try to uncover their abs are searching for some "miracle abdominal workout" that is going to slash the fat off their abs in no time.

The thing is... they are going about the problem entirely the wrong way! The truth is that you don't lose stomach fat by doing ab workouts.

The problem is that focusing most of your time and effort on abdominal exercises and abs workouts to try to flatten your stomach and bring out 6-pack abs is simply wasting your time from doing the correct workout programs that will acutally reduce your body fat for good.

If I were to choose an answer as to what the best exercises are for losing belly fat, my answer would include full body exercises such as the following:

various forms of squats, lunges, deadlifts, clean & presses, snatches, swings, presses and pulls, mountain climbers, sprinting, etc.

These types of full body exercises would encompass a much higher percentage of the workouts I would design instead of abs exercises directly targeting the midsection. The way you combine those full body exercises into a strategic workout that maximizes your metabolism is also very important.

Don't get me wrong... I do recommend a certain amount of exercises that directly target the abs and core, but these are only a small fraction of the programs I design for my clients as your time is better spent focusing on the full body exercises that stimulate the greatest hormonal and metabolic changes within the body. In addition, a side-effect of working out using mostly full body multi-joint combo exercises are that you indirectly work your entire midsection even though you are not specifically targeting the abs.

Keep in mind that the most important factor for losing belly fat to see your abs is actually in the nutrition arena. No matter how hard you workout, if your diet is full of junk, then your abdominals will be covered with ugly fat. Nutrition is without a doubt the "king of getting a six pack".

So let's clear this up for good...

Stop wasting so much of your time focusing on situps, crunches, leg raises, and all those silly worthless "ab contraptions" in your efforts to try to develop 6-pack abs. Instead focus on high intensity full body lifts using combination multi-joint exercises all strategically combined into highly effective fat loss workouts. Couple that with a healthy diet full of natural unprocessed whole foods as close to their natural state as possible, and those elusive six-pack abdominals will yours in no time!

Check out below for more of my key strategies for getting flat sexy 6-pack abs for life.

Learn more about my secret strategies for losing stubborn stomach fat at the internet's authority for Getting Flat Six Pack Abs

For more workout and diet articles for fast fat loss, see Abs Diet and Training Articles for Fat Loss

For those super busy parents and business people needing fast but effective fat loss programs, go to Fast 4-Minute Fat Loss Workouts.

By Mike Geary

A unique ab workout that doesn't contain your typical boring stomach exercises - no crunches or situps here

by Mike Geary - Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

Instead of the typical ab routines that we see so often with crunches, situps, leg lifts, etc... I like to give my readers better options for metabolism-boosting high intensity workouts that work their entire body while also working their abs... thus building rock hard abs & core, but also creating a much better fat-burning workout than a typical ab workout.

I'm going to show you an example today of one of my favorite "ab workouts" that doesn't include any direct "ab exercises" at all. It's in a tri-set format (similar to a super-set but alternating between 3 exercises).

Here goes:

1a. Renegade Dumbbell Rows
1b. Front Squats with Barbell
1c. Mountain Climbers on Floor

A good rep scheme to use with this could be 3-4 sets of 8 reps for each exercise, or more sets for less reps, such as 5 sets of 5 reps of each exercise. Mountain climbers can be done for a time interval (such as 30 seconds) instead of "reps".

Exercise Pics & Descriptions:

Renegade dumbbell rows are done starting in a pushup position with the hands on 2 dumbbells. You then row one dumbbell up while stabilizing your body with the other arm. Bring the dumbbell back to the ground and alternate the rowing arm while stabilizing with the opposite arm. This stabilizing effect during the rows creates incredible work for your entire midsection core area. Trust me... you'll feel it in the abs!




Renegade Rows shown above

Front squats are done similar to back squats, however with the barbell in front of your body on the front of your shoulders instead of resting on the upper back as in back squats. You stabilize the barbell on your shoulders by crossing your arms and pushing your fists into the bar against your shoulders while keeping your elbows out in front of the body.

This takes a little practice at first, so you will want to seek a professional trainer at your gym to help you with the form. Front squats require extreme stabilization strength from the abs due to the barbell weight being shifted to the front of the body instead of the back. Even though this is mostly a leg exercise, you'll feel this one in the abs big time!




Front squats shown above

Mountain climbers are done by starting in a pushup position and then shuffling your feet in and out so that your knees are moving in under your chest and then back out to starting position. It sort of resembles climbing a mountain but flat on the floor. If you want an advanced version, you can also shuffle your hands 8-10 inches forward and backward in addition to the leg movements. This really makes it a full body exercise and MUCH more difficult than standard mountain climbers.




Mountain Climbers shown above

After finishing each exercise, rest about 30 seconds before starting the next exercise. Rest about 1-2 minutes after completing each "tri-set" before repeating.

This will give you one of the best ab workouts you've ever had without even doing any direct ab exercises. You'll see what I mean after you try it!

This is just a sampling of some of the killer ideas you'll discover in my internationally best-selling ebook program, The Truth about Six Pack Abs, currently the #1 most popular abs program on the internet (as ranked by clickbank.com) with over 200,000 users in over 150 countries. If you don't already have a copy be sure to pick one up today...

Not only will you receive a complete blue-print for challenging full-body workouts that will thoroughly define your entire body in addition to your abs (can be adjusted to beginners or advanced levels), but you'll also gain a thorough understanding of what types of nutritional strategies and other lifestyle aspects that it takes to reduce your belly fat to the level where your abs are visible. Remember, nutrition and mindset are MORE important than just the workouts!

The Worst Ab Exercise - Avoid This if You Actually Want Sexy Six Pack Abs

The truth about ineffective abdominal exercises and "ab machines"

by Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist

I was at a poker party up in North Jersey over the weekend at a friend's house. My friend had moved into this beautiful new home about a year ago, but I had never made it up for a visit until this weekend.

Well, as they were giving us a tour of the house, we took a peek into one of their spare rooms which wasn't being used for anything. The only thing they had in this room was one of those infomercial "ab loungers" covered in dust... you know, the ab-chair looking thingy that they hawk on the infomercials as being the end-all solution to a flabby stomach... telling you that you can get a flat stomach and perfect abs just by sitting on this thing and rocking a little bit while you lazily watch tv.

The cleverly marketed infomercials for these products lure you in by showing you the ripped sexy abs of the male and female fitness models that they hired for the show (who have never actually used these gadgets themselves...they actually got their toned near-perfection bodies through following REAL workouts and strict nutrition!)

Well, since this "ab lounger" was sitting in this vacant room getting dusty, obviously it wasn't actually being used, so it was really a waste of their money that they spent on it.

Regardless, even if it was being used regularly, it would never have given my friends the results they were looking for, because these infomercial ab gadget machines (and all ab exercises for that matter), don't accomplish the most important aspect of truly achieving flat six pack abs...

THEY DON'T STIMULATE ANY FAT LOSS AT ALL!

And worse yet, just for kicks, I jumped on this "ab lounger" and gave it a try.. I have to say, I've never done any abs exercise where I felt it LESS in my abs... As a matter of fact, this piece of crap lounger didn't even feel like it was making my abs work at all!

It felt more like a lounge chair I should be using to relax with a beer at a barbeque.

My point of this story is that there are still thousands of people every day that fall for these gimmicks and waste their hard-earned money on every ab-gimmick that comes out next.

So what does it REALLY take to get flat sexy six pack abs?

1. It takes some commitment to doing REAL workouts... full-body multi-joint workouts using strategic combinations of the most effective exercises for stimulating the release of fat burning hormones in your body and increasing your metabolic rate to new levels. These are the real types of workouts that actually stimulate the burning of stomach fat and increase your metabolism to reduce body fat over your entire body.

2. It takes introducing yourself to REAL nutrition... not fad diets, not restrictive starvation, not overly processed "diet" foods, not bogus "extreme fat loss" pills... but a truly nutrient-dense natural balanced diet that FEEDS your body with what it needs instead of starving it.

3. It takes the right success mindset to achieve these goals so that you can put everything into action and make it a part of your daily life for good. This mindset aspect is the one most often overlooked and one of the reasons most people fail in getting their desired body.

If you don't already have a copy, all of these techniques are detailed in my internationally best-selling program - The Truth about Six Pack Abs.

Tens of thousands of users in 143 countries worldwide have already used the program to change their outlook on true fitness for good. Check out common questions & answers about this abdominal fat loss program to see if this program is a good fit for you.

Also, you can see some of the results that other Truth about Abs readers are experiencing.

Alright, my stomach is growling for my lunch, so I've gotta go. My "abs-approved" lunch of the day is:

• A grass-fed bison burger topped with mushrooms and grass-fed cheddar cheese on an Ezekial sprouted grain bun.
  
• A side salad of baby lettuce, carrot shreds, olive oil & balsamic dressing and avocado slices
  
• A glass of lightly raw honey-sweetened iced green tea

Strategies You MUST Know if You Ever Want to Stand a Chance of Getting a Flat Stomach with 6-Pack Abs

by Mike Geary, author - The Truth about Six Pack Abs, interviewed by Craig Ballantyne - CSCS, Men's Health Magazine Training Advisor

Below is an interview that I did with world-famous trainer and Men's Health Magazine Training Advisor, Craig Ballantyne as he grilled me on the top secrets for fat loss and six pack abs. Check it out...

CB: Mike, give us a brief background about yourself

MG: Sure Craig. Well, I'm currently a Certified Nutrition Specialist and a Certified Personal Trainer. I've been dedicated to improving my knowledge of fitness, both training techniques and nutrition aspects, for over 15 years now, and I never stop trying to learn more each and every day. I've also been a contributing writer for Muscle & Fitness Hers Magazine, and I'm the author of the popular internationally-selling book, "The Truth about Six Pack Abs" which has had hundreds of thousands of readers in over 150 countries currently.

I just love helping people with this area of their lives, as not only does it improve their outward appearance and confidence, but more importantly, improves how they feel and their internal health, helping them to live longer and healthier lives. It's something I'm very passionate about.

CB: Okay, so where does the average man or woman go wrong when it comes to training abs?

MG: Ok, most people are probably going to be surprised with this answer. In their quest for 'six pack abs', the biggest mistake I see people making is wasting WAY too much of their time training their abs directly... pumping away with all kinds of different abs-specific exercises.

I'm sure you know what I'm referring to. The person is trying so hard to get those abs to show, that they're spending almost all of their time in the gym with hundreds of reps of various crunches, leg raises, twisting exercises, etc. Meanwhile, all of that wasted time directly training the abs could have been better spent on a properly designed full body workout program that would elicit a much better metabolic response and increase the fat-burning hormone levels in their body as well.

After all, losing the stomach fat that is covering the abs is the MOST important aspect for most people to finally be able to make their abs visible. Unfortunately, pumping away with hundreds of crunches and leg raises does NOT cause much of a metabolic or fat burning hormonal response. This is the main focus of my Truth about Six Pack Abs book... full body training programs and proper nutrition to strip off that stubborn belly fat and reveal the six pack that's hiding underneath!

Of course it wouldn't be an abs book if I didn't focus on ab development too, but I make sure firstly that the most important concepts for lasting body fat reduction are understood.

CB: Do you see any gender differences in mistakes they make? And more importantly, do you see any gender differences in the response to various types of ab training?

MG: To be honest, I don't really see any need for men or women to train differently. Bottom line... the best exercises are the best exercises regardless of gender.

However, in regards to mistakes I see between genders... Yes, I tend to see women more often are deathly afraid to use weight training with anything but really light weights. That is a shame, because THE most effective way to gain control over your body fat for life, is to maximize your lean muscle that your body carries, as well as working that muscle hard through intense resistance exercise regularly.

It's important for women to realize that regular strength training using heavier resistance will NOT "bulk them up" (as long as caloric intake is controlled), but rather is one of the key secrets for losing body fat and staying lean year-round. As a matter of fact, some of the leanest females that I've trained over the years are the ones that aren't afraid to work hard with the weights.

I also notice that most women (and a lot of guys too) spend way too much time with slow cardio exercise. This is simply not necessary, and the way I combine high intensity resistance training into full body routines provides enough of a "cardio" workout in itself usually. We'll get back to this in a minute though.

CB: What about ol' school sit-ups? Do you use these? Are they good, bad, or does it "depend"?

MG: Sit-ups are a controversial topic. I don't think they're good or bad per se, but rather "in between". I didn't include them in my program. I simply don't feel they are necessary, and I think there are much more effective abs exercises to focus on. Personally, I almost never do sit-ups except occasionally for a little variety every now and then.

CB: Give us a weekly sample ab training program. How many days per week? What are a couple of the best exercises you'd pick? How many sets? Reps? Rest?

MG: Well, first I'd like to point out that the full body movements that make up the majority of my programs indirectly work the abs and the entire "core" area to a fairly decent extent. However, I do include abs-specific exercises into the routines generally about twice per week. The "abs-specific" portion of the workouts generally only take about 5 minutes at most with very little rest between exercises.

Once people are past the beginning phase of gaining some initial ab strength, I try to get them away from the exercises that are too easy, where someone can do 50 or 100 reps, as is frequently common with standard crunches. Instead, I like to focus on higher resistance exercises that actually stimulate the muscle fibers to a much greater degree. One example of a higher resistance abs exercise is hanging leg raises with a proper "pelvic curl up".

It's funny but usually someone that has been wasting so much time with hundreds of reps of crunches can usually only do a few solid reps when they first attempt some of these higher resistance exercises. We also make sure not to neglect some rotational movements, as well as some work for the deeper muscles like the transversus abdominis.

CB: What do you use for burning fat, intervals or slow cardio? Or both? Any gender differences here? Or differences between fitness levels (beginner vs. advanced)?

MG: In most cases, my answer is definitely intervals... or as I like to call it "variable intensity training". In general, I think slow steady pace cardio is a waste of time, especially if the goal is lasting fat loss.

I think people need to get away from this thinking about "fat burning zones" and calories burned during the actual workout, and look at the bigger picture of what you're doing in your workout to stimulate the greatest metabolic response in your body... and the best metabolic and hormonal response is achieved through variable intensity training and strength training, not slow steady-pace cardio.

Now I will say that if someone is really deconditioned and can't handle higher intensity exercise routines just yet, this still doesn't mean that they can't simply use lower intensity routines, but still use it in a "variable intensity" fashion, by alternating between higher and lower exertion levels throughout the workout.

CB: And finally Mike, 1 or 2 of your top secret nutrition tips for carving out those abs. Open your vault of info!

MG: Well Craig, I think you'd agree that there has never been a more confusing time regarding proper nutrition for consumers. Every so called "expert" out there seems to disagree and contradict each other on what's the best way to eat for fat loss and overall good health.

One of the most important messages I try to teach my readers in this world of heavy confusion is that your diet doesn't need to conform to any of the fad diets... you don't need to go "low carb" or "low fat", or high or low anything for that matter to be successful in losing enough body fat to get lean enough to be able to see your abs. I like to try to simplify things for my readers. I think that balance is the key to success along with eating a diet that is made up of nutrient dense foods in their natural state (as unprocessed as possible).

In general, it is the heavy processing of foods that makes it wreak havoc inside our bodies. Most foods in their natural unprocessed state are inherently good for us. Of course there are always exceptions... a salad of poison ivy leaves is "natural and unprocessed" but certainly would not be good for us!

I will leave your readers with a couple of the most important aspects of nutrition that help to get you lean for life...

1. Get enough quality protein in the daily diet - not only does it have a higher thermic effect than carbs and fat (so you burn more calories digesting it), but it also creates satiety so your hunger is satisfied longer. Plus it's a building block for maintaining and building lean muscle... And remember that the amount of lean muscle you carry is one of the main factors for controlling your metabolism.

2. Think fiber! When it comes to carbs, make sure that almost all of your carbohydrate intake is from higher fiber sources like vegetables, fruits, and high fiber unrefined grains. Try to avoid refined sugars and refined grains as that is one of the main reasons so many people struggle with body fat. I personally don't eat many grains as I prefer to get most of my carbs from veggies and fruits, but I do use sprouted grain breads fairly regularly too.

I generally recommend looking for carbohydrate sources that have at least 2-3 grams of fiber per each 10 grams of total carbs. Remember that fiber helps fill you up and also slows down the glycemic response of the foods you eat, all beneficial for getting lean.

3. Don't be afraid to eat fat! Many people try to go way too low on their fat intake and this can negatively affect hormone levels in your body as well as causing more cravings. Try to eat enough healthy fats daily.

Good sources are all nuts and seeds, nut butters, avocados, olive oil, organic meats and eggs, coconuts and virgin coconut oil. On that note, saturated fats from tropical oils are VERY misunderstood, even by many nutritionists and other health professionals. Yes they are composed highly of saturated fats, but are actually beneficial (but that's way beyond the scope of this article).

4. Avoid the two worst things in our food supply at ALL COSTS:

• artificial trans fats from margarines, shortening, and hydrogenated oils that are in most processed foods and deep fried foods
  
• high fructose corn syrup, which is in almost all sweetened products on the market.

Again, if you avoid processed foods, it becomes easy to avoid these two worst offenders in our food supply.

I always contend that once you get a handle on these 4 main points of your diet detailed above, the rest starts to take care of itself as you gain control over your appetite, blood sugar levels, hormone levels, etc. It all falls into place, and you eventually gain total control over how lean you want to get.

Fat Loss for Visible Abs - Workouts, Nutrition, and Lifestyle Tips for Success

Craig Ballantyne, Men's Health Training Advisor interviews Fat Burning Expert and Personal Trainer, Mike Geary

CB: Mike, let's start off with some background on the types of people you train, and your training background.

MG: Craig, I've been a Certified Personal Trainer for almost a decade now, and in recent years, I've become certified as a Nutrition Specialist as well. As for the types of people I train... I've trained everybody from skinny teenagers looking to add some bulk to their frame, to middle-aged housewives and businessmen looking to lose body fat, to senior citizens looking to get stronger and leaner in their golden years.

CB: You have a site, The Truth About Abs. So...what the heck is the truth?

MG: Well Craig, from what I see on a daily basis, one of the most common fitness goals people have is to get a flatter stomach and if possible, achieve some sort of a "six pack abs" appearance to their midsection. Unfortunately, most people struggle for years without ever achieving this goal.

Instead, I see so many people waste so much of their time on worthless abs exercises, and falling for every gimmick product that comes onto their TV screen promising them a 6-pack in only 2 minutes a day while sitting on their couch.

To be honest, seeing so many people over the years waste their hard earned money on all of these worthless ab gadgets, machines, and bogus fat loss pills was really getting under my skin.

That's why I developed my Truth about Six Pack Abs Program. Over the last couple years, this program I developed has gained popularity worldwide, and has now recently become the most popular abs program on the internet with over 200,000 people in over 150 countries using my system.

So what's the truth? The truth is that people are looking in the wrong direction to achieve this goal.. abs exercises are NOT the answer to six pack abs! Sounds counterintuitive I know. In fact, ab-specific exercises are the LEAST important training aspect in getting a six pack.

Most people think there must be some magical "underground" abs exercise that is going to finally get them their six-pack after years of struggling.

The fact is, the real solution to seeing a visible six-pack is simply bringing your body fat % down to a low enough level to where the abs become visible. Most people already have a six pack hiding underneath their stomach fat and don't know it. This is generally about 10% body fat or lower for men, and about 16-18% body fat for women from my experience.

Heck, even my 7-year old nephew has a six pack... do you think he got that by doing "abs exercises"? No way! He has a six pack because his body fat % is extremely low since he's so active running around playing all day at his age.

So the most important aspect to getting visible abs is actually a properly designed full body training program, combined with good nutrition that can be maintained for life (instead of a short-term gimmick diet).

CB: For a beginner, how much focus needs to be on abs? What other exercises would you give them for fat loss?

MG: For beginners, I generally start them off with the most basic bodyweight exercises such as bw squats, bw lunges, bw step-ups, pushups, inverted body rows, along with basic dumbbell exercises like overhead presses, rows, etc. We also work on body stabilizing exercises like planks and side planks and a few stability ball exercises to make sure they've learned to properly engage their entire "core" area in stablizing the body.

CB: What type of cardio/interval training do you use for fat loss?

MG:The programs I design are almost entirely based on high intensity resistance training instead of cardio. In fact, my resistance training workouts get people sweating and huffing and puffing much more than any boring cardio workout ever will.

The bottom line based on research as well as my personal experience... cardio is NOT necessary for fat loss! In fact, some of the leanest people I know NEVER do traditional cardio. Personally, I haven't stepped foot on a treadmill, elliptical machine, or stationary bike in about 8 years and I maintain single digit body fat year round.

Now don't get me wrong about the cardio thing... in reality, I actually work on exercises that are much tougher and more intense than traditional cardio... I prefer wind sprints, hill sprints, swimming sprints, speed rope jumping, etc to complement my resistance training... all of which are more anaerobic in nature than aerobic.

This type of training stimulates a vastly higher metabolic response in the body than steady pace cardio.

Of course, most people can't just jump right into doing wind sprints without injury until they've gotten themselves into pretty good shape first. I use various resistance training methods and interval training for most people before they are ever ready to even attempt any type of sprinting.

CB: Tell us about your favorite bodyweight exercises and how you use them in a fat loss program.

MG: I like to combine bodyweight exercises and free weight exercises into what I call "tri-sets" or "quad-sets" (aka - mini circuits). Basically, I pick 3 or 4 exercises that don't work the same body movements (non-competing) and combine them into high intensity mini-circuits for my clients.

A great example would be:

1. mountain climbers for 20-30 seconds
2. dumbbell squat & presses (combination squat then press overhead)
3. stability ball leg curl-ins
4. stability ball plank holds (a little harder than a floor plank)

This type of circuit can be done without much rest at all between exercises and we would repeat the circuit several times before moving to a new circuit. This creates a high intensity fat burning workout that works almost every muscle in the entire body.

CB: Let's turn to nutrition. What is your fat loss nutrition philosophy?

MG: I could talk about nutrition for hours and it's such a controversial subject, so I'll keep this brief...

It doesn't have to be as complicated as the "diet gurus" make it out to be. It can be a lot simpler...

1. whole, unprocessed organic foods, as close to their natural state as possible

2. High nutrient density food choices instead of nutrient deficient processed foods

3. Fruits and vegetables (lots of vegetables) as your main source of carbohydrates instead of so much reliance on grains as is so prominent in our food supply these days

4. Moderate amounts of high quality protein at each meal

5. High fiber intake to help appetite control and glycemic control (maintaining more balanced blood sugar)

6. Don't neglect healthy fat intake from nuts, seeds, organic eggs, wild fish or fish oil, virgin coconut oil and olive oils, avocados, etc (helps appetite control and hormonal balance)

Once you gain control over the aspects listed above, everything else usually works itself out in your diet... you no longer crave sweets or junk food because your body finally has all of the nutrients it needs. Another important thing that this style of eating does is that it tends to bring people naturally back to the proper amount of calories they need each day without having to attempt to count calories or anything like that.

CB: How do you address "lifestyle" with your clients to help them lose fat?

MG: One of the most important things I try to instill in my clients is that this has to become part of their lifestyle if it is ever going to work long-term. They need to make their health and fitness a priority in their life, and they must enjoy it...whether it's because they actually enjoy the actual exercise and healthy eating, or because they enjoy the feeling of strength or energy or confidence that it gives them.

CB: Give us some of your unique fat loss stories. For example, have you ever made one small change to a client's program that helped them get through a plateau? Or has a client ever responded to one form of training that surprised you? Stuff like that...

MG: I had one client a couple years ago... a guy in his early 30's...a classic case in reality. He'd been doing the same routine for years... about an hour of cardio 5 days/week while reading the newspaper, and then he'd finish it off with a few weight machines.

He finally came to me because his body was actually getting worse despite his long workouts. I asked him to put his trust in me, and asked if he'd be willing to try something drastically different...

I asked if he would fully give up his cardio for 6 weeks and follow one of my free weight training routines instead. I actually insisted that he didn't do any cardio at all during this experimental 6 weeks of change...only weights would be allowed. This was hard for him at first as he was so accustomed to just doing all of this boring cardio because it was easy. But easy workouts don't create a better body!

The results were incredible... I think his strength improved about 30-40 lbs on almost all of his lifts during that 6 weeks while simulataneously losing about 15 lbs of body weight, and his beer belly shrunk down considerably to the point where he had to go out and buy some new pants with smaller waists.

All of this by doing LESS CARDIO and more weight training (but in high intensity fashion).

Another story... As far as clients getting new results from just a small tweak ..

A few people that have been stuck at a fat loss plateau have come to me and I gave them a simple nutrition trick to try. This simple change was to start basing their last full meal of the day around just meats with lots of veggies and salad... basically, no starches with dinner, just meat and veggies.

As simple as that sounds, I've seen many people break their fat loss plateau just by implementing that into their diet. So many people think that their meals need to be based on starch like pasta or rice, but I think it's so much easier to lose fat when your meals are based around meat and vegetables instead of starch.

I could go on, but I hope that gives your readers some useful ideas for now.

How to do Great Ab Workouts at Home: The Best 5 Crunch-less Abs Exercises for a Flatter Stomach in Less Time!

by Craig Ballantyne, Men's Health Training Advisor, Author - Best Home Abdominal Workouts for Six Pack Abs

If you never do another crunch again, you will end up saving a lot of time and you'll still lose stomach fat and be able to get six pack abs. Why? Because crunches don't work very well for building 6-pack abs.

There are many better exercises, and you're going to discover the best 5 bodyweight exercises for a crunch-free six pack ab workout program. After all, if they did work, you wouldn't have to do them for 30 minutes like the bodybuilder magazines suggest.

Instead of wasting your life lying on your back doing an exercise that you can do hundreds of times, you need to replace crunches and all those other aerobics-era exercises with better, total-body ab exercises to get more results in less time.

There is a downside to standard crunches!

The other dark side of crunches, aside from them being useless for getting six pack abs, is that the crunch movement itself is actually HARMFUL to your spine and low-back. Every single time you perform a crunch, you are doing what the world's leading experts on back pain describe as a dangerous motion.

You see, every time you crunch, you do what is called spinal flexion, and spinal flexion compresses the disks between your vertebrae. If you do that too much, you could end up with a herniated disc. After all, it's the same motion as rounding your back to pick up something off the floor, and you probably know someone who has hurt their back that way!

So you don't need to do crunches, and you don't even need to go to a gym, if you have the right total body ab exercises in your home abdominal workout program. In fact, with the right program, your entire fat burning resistance training workout will take less time than most bodybuilders spend on crunches every day! Yet you'll still be able to get a flat stomach and six packs abs with this fast at-home workout.

Plus, you won't be doing long, slow boring cardio. Actually, your entire workout (resistance training plus abs plus interval training) will take less time (less than 45 minutes) than most people spend on slow boring cardio.

And you only have to workout three times per week, not six days per week like the bodybuilding magazines suggest. So you save time in each workout, and workout fewer times per week. That will give you more time to spend showing off your abs at the beach or anywhere else you please.

Below are the top 5 exercise replacements for ineffective aerobics-era crunches ..

1. Replace Crunches with Stability Ball Rollouts. You'll get a more powerful stretch in the Rollout exercise, and a more powerful contraction, all without doing excessive and dangerous spinal flexion.

2. Replace Crunches on the Ball with a Plank with Arms on the Ball. According to the Men's Health magazine, research shows that a Plank with Arms on the Ball is 30% more effective in working your abs.

3. Replace Bicycle Crunches with X-Body Mountain Climbers. This unique total-body ab exercise still works your obliques, but without repetitive crunching. Plus, it helps build invaluable abdominal endurance and stability to keep your low back healthy.

4. Replace Reverse Crunches with Stability ball Jackknives. You will still be able to work the lower area of your abdominal muscles, as well as your obliques with this Stability Ball exercise, but you also get the benefit of building back-protecting abdominal endurance.

5. Replace Sit-ups with Hanging Knee-ups or the advanced Pull-up Plus Knee-ups. Your abs will have never experienced anything like this exercise! You can also do a Chin-up Plus Knee-up for the same effect on your abs, and Chin-ups are a little easier. This is one of my current favorite exercises.

By getting rid of crunches you will lose nothing, while gaining time to work on better exercises to build your six pack abs and flat stomach, plus you will avoid exercises that are hard on your back.

Combine these total-body ab exercises (that burn more calories than crunches anyways) with superset resistance training and belly-fat burning interval training and you'll get more ab results in less workout time!

The Top Tips You Need to Know for Losing Stomach Fat & Getting Lean Abs

How to Get Flat 6-Pack Abs without Useless Crunches or Situps - Nutrition & Workout Secrets for a Lean Body and Flat Abs

Interview with Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist

This is a recent interview that was done with me. Pay close attention and you'll find TONS of useful info that will help you get lean sexy abs much faster and stop struggling with excess body fat. Enjoy!

SN: It's great to sit down and speak with you, Mike. To start off, how about telling our readers a little bit about yourself and your fitness background.

MG: I've actually been involved in the fitness industry for about a decade now, as a Certified Nutrition Specialist and a Certified Personal Trainer. I'm also the founder of TruthAboutAbs.com and author of the #1 best selling abdominals ebook in the world currently, The Truth about Six Pack Abs, with over 250,000 readers in over 155 countries.

I started developing the Truth about Abs program about 5 years ago based on how much I saw most people struggle with this topic and the amount of confusion and scams / gimmicks that were out there regarding abs and belly fat. I just saw that it was time somebody laid out the TRUTH about what REALLY works to get ripped six pack abs.

SN: Let's get right down to it. Everyone wants a flat set of 6-pack abs, yet very few people ever achieve that goal. Why do you think there's so much confusion on the subject? Is it really all that complicated of a process?

MG: You know, it's really NOT that complicated .. However, with that said, to get your body fat % low enough to really see a nice set of abs, it does take a decent amount of discipline with your food intake as well as a whole new level of intensity with your workouts than what most people are used to. The thing is, most of my clients always comment that the style of eating that I recommend is actually fun, and they feel more energy due to the more natural unprocessed healthy foods they are eating and more balanced blood sugar and hormone levels in their body.

The problem is that there's so much conflicting advice out there these days, it leads the average joe or jane to over-complicate things and end up totally confused about what's the best way to train and eat for six pack abs.

SN: You've said before that abdominal exercises such as crunches and situps are extremely ineffective when it comes to achieving a flat stomach, and that they can actually make your stomach look WORSE. Can you elaborate on that?

MG: Sure... First of all, let me make clear that I'm not saying that you shouldn't do any abs-specific exercises. Rather, my point of contention is that most people spend WAY too much time focusing all of their efforts on abs-specific exercises, instead of focusing their efforts on more effective full body exercises that stimulate a much greater fat-burning and muscle building hormonal response, burn more calories, stimulate the metabolism to a higher extent, and also indirectly work the abs to a decent degree anyway.

Let me give an example of how many people typically waste too much time on abs-specific exercises...

A lot of times I see the average joe or jane spending about 15-30 minutes of their total workout just doing tons of pointless repetitions of crunches, situps, leg raises, or some other "abs pumping" exercise. Many times this comes out to almost HALF of their entire time working out.

My point here is that this type of excessive abs training is really a waste of time training a relatively small muscle group such as the abs, when that time could have been better spent on full body exercises such as squats, deadlifts, clean & presses, lunges, upper body presses and pulls, dumbbell swings, snatches, etc, etc. Compared to spending that time doing abs exercises, all of the above types of exercises will give you magnitudes more results in terms of hormonal response, metabolism increase, calorie burning, etc... all while indirectly working the abs to an extent anyway.

After focusing the majority of your workout efforts on those types of more effective full body exercises, then it's ok to spend about 5-7 minutes directly training the abs with abs-specific exercises... but the point I'd like to make is that abs training should only be a small portion of your training program as a whole, and not the majority of it.

Also, back to the topic of crunches and situps in particular... Once you've got a decent amount of abdominal training under your belt, crunches tend to be one of the least effective ab strengthening exercises since they are actually a fairly low-resistance exercise. An example of a higher resistance abs exercise would be a hanging leg raise with a proper pelvic curl-up (different than what you see most people doing in the gyms, where they only raise their knees up).

SN: How often do you recommend an individual train their abdominals on a weekly basis? Is basic, straightforward training the best protocol, or are there advanced ab training techniques that will yield better results?

MG: I usually recommend incorporating abs-specific training into your routines about twice/week, and 5-7 minutes per workout. Remember though that you're also getting indirect ab work through most of the full body exercises that should be comprising the majority of your workout time.

Beyond the typical leg raises, ab bicycles, hip thrusts, ab pikes, crunches, etc... there are definitely ways that you can take your abs to a new level that most people don't even think of. For example, some of the best abs exercises aren't usually viewed as abs exercises at all...

A couple examples that come to mind are front squats, renegade dumbbell rows, mountain climbers, 1-arm snatches, and others. Front squats are typically viewed as just a leg exercise, but if you've ever learned to do a proper front squat, you'll feel a tremendous stabilization tension required in your abs due to the weight being shifting more to the front of your body compared to the back as in back squats. If you haven't done front squats in a while, or are just learning them, I guarantee if you do a few sets of them, your abs will be feeling it big time the next day!

Renegade rows are another example of an exercise that's typically just viewed as an upper back exercise. However, while you're rowing a dumbbell up from a pushup position while stabilizing your body with your other arm, there is an insane amount of tension and stabilization strength required in your entire abs/core area. This is another exercise that really surprises people at how much they feel it in their abs.

(I have posted an article giving more detail and pictures for properly performing front squats, renegade rows, and mountain climbers as great alternative ab exercises)

SN: The viewpoints on the effectiveness of cardiovascular exercise seem to be shifting among fitness experts recently, with some advocating no cardio whatsoever. What is your stance on cardio as it relates to achieving 6-pack abs?

MG: Well, I know there's a lot of mixed views in the cardio area, and I'll proudly say that I'm pretty much totally against traditional cardio in the sense of just doing long duration, steady pace cardio. I feel that steady pace cardio is a very ineffective way to train and a waste of time in my opinion that could be better spent on variable intensity (interval) training, or more high intensity resistance training (weights, bodyweight training, etc). In general, I feel that anaerobic training gives you more bang for the buck compared to wasting time with lots of aerobic training.

Let me elaborate a little so I can make my point more clear...

Let's look at a typical cardio workout such as someone going out for a 45-minute steady pace jog, or going on the treadmill or elliptical for a long duration steady pace workout. While this steady pace workout is going on, you're only training your heart in one specific heart rate range... basically, you're keeping approximately the same heart rate throughout the entire workout... as an example, let's say that your heart rate stays at 125 beats/minute for most of the workout. In essence, you're only training your heart in a very limited range.

Now let's take a look at the mother of all interval training workouts...the highest intensity version of interval training... wind sprints or hill sprints... During a wind sprint or hill sprint workout (which based on higher intensity, generally can't last much longer than about 15-20 minutes at the most, saving you time), you're doing very high intensity "sprint" intervals of 10-20 seconds, followed by "recovery" intervals of walking back to your starting point for 40-60 seconds.

This type of highly variable training takes your heart rate screaming probably up to 150 or 160 beats/minute at the end of the sprint intervals, and then drops down to 100-110 beats/minute during your recovery intervals. This means that you're training your heart in a much higher range and making it MUCH stronger compared to traditional steady-pace cardio.

At the same time, the highly variable intensity training actually works your muscles in a more resistive fashion, stimulating a higher residual metabolic effect, hence burning more calories in the post-workout period compared with steady pace cardio.

I could go on with more reasons why I strongly believe that steady pace cardio is an ineffective method of training, but I'll make this point instead...

Look at the typical emaciated, sickly-looking body of a dedicated marathoner who has wasted most of their muscle away with long duration endurance cardio. Now compare that to the totally ripped, muscular, strong and healthy looking body of a world class sprinter, wide receiver, or other athlete that does mostly high intensity sprint work... which would you rather resemble? I rest my case!

SN: I'm sure you literally cringe when hearing words like 'ab belt' or 'ab rocker'. What's the honest truth about all of these infomercial gadgets? How about dispelling the myths right here once and for all?

MG: They're just about all complete junk! You can do more effective exercises just doing bodyweight exercises than all of this crap that they're hawking on the infomercials. I mean, does anybody really think they can "melt off slabs of belly fat" by sitting on their couch and strapping on some useless electro-stim ab belt? Don't get me started!

And I hope everyone realizes that those perfectly ripped fitness models they use in the infomercials didn't get their awesome bodies by using their pointless contraption they're selling... they got their perfect body because they are a professional fitness model, and they work their butt off with REAL full body workouts and lots of dietary discipline.

SN: How important is diet in relation to achieving a ripped stomach? Can you outline some common mistakes that you see people making with their nutritional approach?

MG: Diet is VERY important... probably the MOST important aspect. I've seen plenty of people that workout like animals almost every day of the week, but they have horrendous eating habits, and guess what... THEY'RE FAT! What's the point of working that hard in the gym, if you're gonna be embarrassed to take your shirt off because you have a big sloppy belly?

I also think that diet is the area of the most confusion. Everybody seems to think that they must follow some sort of "dieting gimmick" such as a "low fat" diet, or a "low carb" diet, or high or low something. The thing is, we should NOT be restricting what our bodies need... we should be feeding our bodies what they need with a balanced approach instead of restriction of a certain macronutrient or food group.

The only thing we need to restrict is processed junk food, sodas, deep fried food, and anything along those lines. I would also recommend restricting wheat-based foods and soy-based foods as both of these can cause major problems in the body (despite the hefty billion dollar marketing budgets behind both of these claiming them to be "health foods").

It doesn't have to be as complicated as the "diet gurus" make it out to be. It can be a lot simpler. Focus on the following aspects and you'll be well on your way to a more enjoyable eating style that will last you for life and get you better results at the same time...

1. Choose whole, unprocessed organic foods, as close to their natural state as possible

2. Choose high nutrient density food choices instead of nutrient deficient processed foods

3. Fruits and vegetables (lots of vegetables) as your main source of carbohydrates instead of so much reliance on grains as is so prominent in our food supply these days. Small amounts of grains is ok, but try to focus more on veggies/fruits for your carb sources.

4. Make sure to get moderate amounts of high quality protein at each meal

5. High fiber intake to help appetite control and glycemic control (maintaining more balanced blood sugar)

6. Don't neglect an ample healthy fat intake from nuts, seeds, nut butters, organic free-range whole eggs, wild fish and/or fish oil, virgin coconut oil and olive oils, avocados, etc (helps appetite control and hormonal balance).

You can also take some daily Krill Oil for healthy fats that are even more powerful than fish oil.

Once you gain control over the aspects listed above, everything else usually works itself out in your diet.. you no longer crave sweets or junk food because your body finally has all of the nutrients it needs and balanced hormone levels. Another important thing that this style of eating does is that it tends to bring people naturally back to the proper amount of calories they need each day without having to attempt to count calories or anything like that.

Hopefully that helps to simplify some things with this confusing topic.

SN: Let's say you have an individual who knows absolutely nothing about how to properly train and eat for 6-pack abs. What are the top 3 pieces of advice you'd give them right off the bat?

MG: Top 3 tips...

1. Focus at least 90% of your workout time on high intensity combinations of full body multi-joint exercises such as variations of deadlifts, squats, lunges, clean & presses, pullups, pushups, dips, bench presses, overhead presses, and upper body rows and pulls. The other 10% or less of your workout time can be dedicated to direct abs training.

2. Focus your "cardio" efforts on shorter duration variable intensity interval training, wind sprints, hill sprints, stair sprints, jump rope, and other higher intensity (and variable intensity) forms of training instead of relying on long duration, steady-pace boring traditional cardio.

3. With your diet, don't try to be too restrictive on certain macronutrients or go too low on overall calories as this can lead to muscle loss and reduced metabolic rate. Instead, feed your body what it needs to perform optimally and build/maintain lean muscle mass... lots of whole unprocessed foods such as nuts, fruits, veggies, seeds, eggs, organic meats, etc.

Try to maintain a reasonable balance of protein, carbs, and fat instead of trying to go too low or high on any one macronutrient. Some of the most important aspects of a diet that creates a lean body are getting enough quality fiber, protein, and healthy fat intake at most of your meals, and limiting foods such as refined starches, refined sugars, hydrogenated oils (trans fats), processed polyunsaturated oils such as soy and corn oil, and excessive alcohol.

7 Super-Effective Tips for Losing Stomach Fat & Getting Lean Six Pack Abs for Life

Lose Body Fat and Get a Lean Stomach for Good!

interview with Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist

1. Mike, what is the number one component to getting a six pack?

MG: Your training style, nutrition, and mindset are all extremely important if you want to stand a chance at getting a six pack... However, if I had to choose 1 component that is most important, it would probably have to be nutrition. Maybe you've heard the saying before that "abs are made in the kitchen".

It really is true, and that's where the majority of people go wrong in the goal to get super lean. Of course, this also ties into mindset, because you really have to get your mind in the right place in order to have the discipline to be able to eat consistently clean enough to get six pack abs.

There is a lot of confusion out there these days about calories, fat, protein, and carbohydrates.. every "expert" disagrees with one another on proper ratios and types of diets. I think people make this way too complicated... If you are just to focus on a good balance between fats, carbs, and proteins, and make sure to eat only natural unprocessed organic foods (as close to their natural state as possible) instead of packaged, processed foods, a lot of the problems that most people have with cravings, sweet tooth, overeating, blood sugar swings, etc all take care of themselves.

We still can't lose sight of the fact that you can overeat on healthy foods and gain fat even while eating healthy. Therefore, your caloric intake needs to be controlled to a level that will promote fat loss if that's the goal.

2. Excellent Mike! Next question... What is one thing I might be doing, unknowningly, steering my quest for a six pack in the wrong direction?

MG: I'll give 2 things that may be steering you in the wrong direction...

a. Too much cardio

Some people, in their efforts to try to get lean, focus way too much on hours and hours of cardio exercise. The problem is that this can backfire on you by making you lose lean muscle mass over time, which decreases your resting metabolic rate. Once this happens, it becomes easier to pack on body fat than ever before. I've even seen many people that do too much cardio and end up getting that "skinny fat" appearance, where they have very little muscle tone, yet they have excess stomach fat (even a "gut" possibly).

Instead of excess cardio, focus more on high intensity weight training (yes, even during a "cutting" cycle). This will help maintain your lean muscle mass throughout your body, so that you don't experience the metabolic rate decrease. Maintaining as much lean muscle mass on your body at all times is one of the most important things for staying super-lean for life.

b. Not eating enough healthy fats

This is another area where I see people go in the wrong direction. They are trying to lose body fat and they end up going WAY too low on their fat intake. When you decrease your fat intake too much, you are basically messing up your fat burning and muscle building hormones. It's not uncommon to see people decrease their fat intake too low and end up reducing their testosterone levels significantly.

Try to get some sources of healthy fats with every meal to make sure you don't go too low... This could be avocados, any and all nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans, etc), seeds (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds), nut butters (almond butter, natural peanut butter, etc), virgin coconut oil (good source of medium chain triglycerides), extra virgin olive oil, grass fed beef (good source of conjugated linoleic acid and omega-3s), whole eggs (yes, whole eggs...not egg whites), etc.

3. What is one unique way of boosting your metabolism, to finally burn fat, that I might be overlooking?

MG: Incorporate any form of clean & presses into your routines twice per week. This could be barbell clean & presses or using kettlebells or dumbbells. If I had to choose one exercise that burns the most calories and has the biggest impact on increasing your metabolic rate, I'd have to choose high intensity clean & presses (with squats and deadlifts being at the top of the pack also). I like alternating the use of barbells for C&P's one workout and kettlebells for another.

4. What is your number one plateau busting secret to lose the last 10 pounds?

MG: When you get to the point that you're already fairly lean, but just need to lose that last 5 or 10 lbs of body fat that is covering up your abs, you really need to take your workouts to a whole new level of intensity.

Consider adding all-out wind sprints and/or hill sprints into your routine if you want to take it to the next level of intensity.

As for gym workous, this also means no jibber-jabbering for 5 minutes in between sets at the gym... Instead, you need laser-focused intensity, and one of the best ways to keep high intensity is super-setting or alternating sets. This means while you're resting one area of your body, you're working another area of your body. I usually like to do this by alternating a really tough lower body exercise such as a squat, lunge, or deadlift, with a multi-joint upper body exercise such as a bench press, overhead press, bent over row, or pullup.

Think short rest periods, full body exercises, multi-joint exercises, lots of sweat, and your chest heaving for air... if that's what your workout is looking like, then you're on the right path. If not, then you're not working hard enough, so stop being lazy.

5. What is your advice for me to deal with the social temptations of alcohol, eating out, and junk food?

MG: This is something many people struggle with, but if you set some limits, it can be easy to deal with and still stay lean. One thing I'd suggest is to make sure to not get in a habit of drinking alcohol excessively on a daily basis. If you're going to go out and have some fun with friends, try to limit the drinking to only 1 or 2 days max per week. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that we can still go out and have fun with our friends without getting totally smashed.

You need to decide what is more important in your life... do you want to live healthy and have a sexy lean body, or do you want to get full-blown drunk every night? There's a lot more to life than alcohol.

As for eating out... If you're serious about getting and staying lean, eating out should only be an occasional event. Cooking your own food on a daily basis is extremely important as it's very hard to know what is in all of the junk at restaurants and fast food joints. One of the tricks I use when eating out is to NEVER eat fries or sodas (in fact, I never eat fries or sodas AT ALL).

Instead, go ahead and order that burger, but substitute steamed veggies or a salad for the fries. Almost every restaurant will make that substitution for you. And water or unsweetened iced tea are the best beverage options to keep the calories under control when eating out.

6. Why do I lose motivation when trying to get a six pack?

MG: Most people lose motivation because they simply aren't seeing the results fast enough. If that's why you lose motivation, go back to all of the tips and techniques we've been talking about in here and see where your nutrition or training programs are going wrong so you can get faster results. Be patient and consistent and the results will come.

Also, you can really stay motivated by focusing on what has been successful so far. For example, maybe your fat loss hasn't been what you wanted so far, but maybe you've increased your pullups from 8 to 13 and your squat weight from 185 to 225 lbs. Keep focusing on your successes rather than your failures, and keep going for more successes.

More motivation tips -- Train regularly with a partner. This will keep you both focused and will keep you accountable to someone other than yourself. You don't want to disappoint someone else that you've made a goal with.

Also, keep a picture up in your house or at work of someone's body that motivates you to strive for those results. Look at it every day and keep visualizing your own body improving. Set a realistic goal and a time frame to acheive that goal, such as "I will lose 15 lbs of body fat in the next 8 weeks". The important thing here is realistic goal... don't expect to lose 30 lbs in 30 days (despite those weight loss scam ads that you see everywhere saying this is possible).

7. I understand you number have the number one six pack abs program on the Internet -- Truth About Abs. Why do you think it's so popular?

My Truth about Six Pack Abs program is so popular because it works! It's REAL nutrition and REAL training programs instead of useless gimmicks. I give the TRUTH on what people really need to get lean sexy abs for life and why they DON'T NEED fad gimmicks like diets, ab infomercial gadgets, and bogus fat burning pills that people waste way too much money on.

8. Who should order Truth About Abs and who is this program not for?

This program is for anyone that wants to truly live healthy and get super-lean for life. I have college students, parents, busy professionals, and even grandparents using this program successfully.

Who is this program NOT for? Anyone who is lazy, or thinks that there is a "quick fix" out there. There isn't! So stop looking for a quick fix, and learn the truth!

Plus, when you go to order, for a limited time, I'm actually allowing everyone reading this to "try it before you buy it", so that way you can try out the program, start seeing real results, and then decide if it's right for you.

In this article, I've posted the "diet tips for six pack abs" portion of our interview we recently did. Enjoy! Here it is...

CB: And finally Mike, 1 or 2 of your top secret nutrition tips for carving out those six pack abs. Open your vault of info!

MG: Well Craig, I think you'd agree that there has never been a more confusing time regarding proper nutrition for consumers. Every so called "expert" out there seems to disagree and contradict each other on what's the best way to eat for fat loss and overall good health.

One of the most important messages I try to teach my readers in this world of heavy confusion is that your diet doesn't need to conform to any of the fad diets... you don't need to go "low carb" or "low fat", or high or low anything for that matter to be successful in losing enough body fat to get lean enough to be able to see your abs. I like to try to simplify things for my readers. I think that balance is the key to success along with eating a diet that is made up of nutrient dense foods in their natural state (as unprocessed as possible).

In general, it is the heavy processing of foods that makes it wreak havoc inside our bodies. Most foods in their natural unprocessed state are inherently good for us. Of course there are always exceptions... a salad of poison ivy leaves is "natural and unprocessed" but certainly would not be good for us!

I'll leave your readers with a couple of the most important aspects of nutrition and diet that help to get you lean for life (and have any chance of getting those abs to show)...

1. Get enough quality protein in the daily diet - not only does it have a higher thermic effect than carbs and fat (so you burn more calories digesting it), but it also creates satiety so your hunger is satisfied longer. Plus it's a building block for maintaining and building lean muscle... And remember that the amount of lean muscle you carry is one of the main factors for controlling your metabolism.

2. Think fiber! When it comes to carbs, make sure that almost all of your carbohydrate intake is from higher fiber sources like vegetables, fruits, and high fiber unrefined grains. Try to avoid refined sugars and refined grains as that is one of the main reasons so many people struggle with body fat. I personally don't eat many grains as I prefer to get most of my carbs from veggies and fruits, but I am a bit of a fan of sprouted grains. I generally recommend looking for carbohydrate sources that have at least 2-3 grams of fiber per each 10 grams of total carbs. Remember that fiber helps fill you up and also slows down the glycemic response of the foods you eat, all beneficial for getting lean.

3. Don't be afraid to eat fat! Many people try to go way too low on their fat intake in their diet and this can negatively affect hormone levels in your body as well as causing more cravings. Try to eat enough healthy fats daily. Good sources are all nuts and seeds, nut butters, avocados, olive oil, organic meats and eggs, coconuts and virgin coconut oil. On that note, saturated fats from tropical oils are VERY misunderstood, even by many nutritionists and other health professionals. Yes they are composed highly of saturated fats, but are actually beneficial (but that's way beyond the scope of this article).

4. Avoid the two worst things in our food supply at ALL COSTS:

*artificial trans fats from margarines, shortening, and hydrogenated oils that are in most processed foods

*high fructose corn syrup, which is in almost all sweetened products on the market

Again, if you avoid processed foods, it becomes easy to avoid these two worst offenders in our food supply.

I always contend that once you get a handle on these 4 main points of your diet detailed above, the rest starts to take care of itself as you gain control over your appetite, blood sugar levels, hormone levels, etc. It all falls into place, and you eventually gain total control over how lean you want to get. Gain control of this part of your life, and those abs may be showing in no time!

Don't miss out on this free report detailing over 29 unique metabolism boosting secrets at Abs Diet Tips for a Flat Six Pack.

By Mike Geary

With The Truth About Six Pack Abs, you will learn -

50 highly effective abs exercises (which includes Stability Ball Killer Abs Workouts);

Fat-burning whole body circuits you need to do;

Scientifically-designed full body training programs laid out for you to follow

Why many popular ab exercises can harm your results;

Over 13 specific fat-stripping nutritional secrets

Why low-fat or low-carb diets may actually hurt your efforts to lose fat;

Over 15 specific tricks for boosting your metabolic rate to burn more fat on a 24/7 basis

The best part is - most of these workouts are short (a 40min ab-workout to15mins) - and can be done at home. The only drawback is some recommended exercises require gym equipment.

However, the workouts are great for a busy person or a busy mom who just can't afford 60 minutes a day exercising.

Lastly, you'll learn why eating right is the major key to getting ripped abs. Fact is, a good diet will account for 80% or more of your fat loss results.

And you can understand why Mike has focused his efforts on nutrition. You'll gain a solid nutrition plan on eating the right kind of foods that willspeed up the fat burning process and why certain 'healthy' foods willactually set you back with your fat loss results.

With Mike's recommendations - you won't feel bad if you enjoy a burger or something heavy once in a while.

Overall, is about total body transformation which focuses on specific exercises and a nutrition plan that will shed body fat around your waist and your body overall.

1. Is this program more for muscle building or fat loss?

The answer is that the concepts taught within the program can be applied to either fat loss or muscle building with some slight modifications and tweaks. However, I developed most of the details within this program to address the MAIN PROBLEM that 99% of people are facing as to why they cannot see their abdominals, and that is... losing the stubborn stomach fat that is covering up the abs.

2. What types of training ideas will I learn in this program? Is it only about abs exercises or full body training as well?

As I mention in my letter on the home page, I do provide full descriptions and photos of all of the most effective abdominal exercises in existance (as well as which ones to avoid), but one of the main points I try to drive home within the program is that the abs-specific exercises are actually the LEAST important part of the program to actually get rid of the belly fat that is covering up your abs.

The majority of the program focuses on full-body training programs as well as strategic exercise combinations and sequencing that increases the metabolic rate and stimulates a fat-burning hormonal response in your body. I also detail a full-blown section on nutritional strategies and a fully comprehensive dietary plan that will actually have you enjoying food again and getting and staying lean for life.

Now these are the 2 most important aspects of the program that make it one of the most successful abdominal fat loss programs on the internet today with customers in over 100 countries around the world.

3. Is this program designed for men or women?

Who says that men and women need to train or eat differently to get lean? The truth is that they DON'T. The bottom line is that the best exercises for increasing the metabolism and stimulating the fat-burning hormones are the best exercises regardless of gender. The only thing that is going to change is that in general, the females will require fewer calories, and usually use lighter weights than the men, but the fact remains that the best training and nutrition strategies apply equally to both genders.

To be honest (and I explain this in more detail within the program), one of the main reasons that so many women struggle to make progress is that they aren't training the right way to increase their metabolic rate and trigger the proper hormonal response from exercise. The majority of women spend WAY too much time with monotonous endless cardio routines, and tiny little 3-lb barbie weights. This kind of training will get you NOWHERE!

In the program, I teach you ladies how to do this right without having to worry about "bulking up" as it seems that almost all women are afraid of this.

4. Am I too old? I'm older, heavily overweight, and out of shape. I also haven't worked out in years. Is this program going to be too hard for me to follow?

I developed the program with beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels of progressions. All of the training and dietary strategies can be used by everybody from teenagers looking to get stronger and leaner, all the way up to overweight grandmoms that simply want to feel and look better.

Even the most out of shape individuals will usually even be able to do most of the advanced exercises, except just with lighter weights or slower movements. Heck, even if you are so out of shape that you have to really go slow and start with the bare minimum of exercises, most readers have told me that the nutrition section of the book alone was well worth the investment and opened their eyes to dozens of things that they had never realized they were doing wrong in their dietary habits.

So there...even if you can't jump right in with guns blazing into the full blown advanced training routines, simply start to use the dietary strategies to get a head start on losing some of that extra body fat, and then slowly increase your workout intensity until you can work up to all of the advanced exercises.

5. Am I too young? I'm only 16, and I really want to get in better shape and get a flatter more defined stomach. Am I too young to start on a program like this?

This program can be applied to all ages. Keep in mind though that a portion of the program involves weight training. If you're younger than approximately 15, you probably shouldn't get into any extremely heavy weight training just yet. However, in the younger teen years, starting with bodyweight-only exercises is a great way to get started into fitness and get in great shape. In addition to the weight training routines, this program also involves a large variety of bodyweight based exercises which you will benefit greatly from.

You'll also learn the TRUTH about what a truly nutritious diet really is and learn to decipher all of the misconceptions in the world of food advertising and in the media. The nutrition aspect alone of this program is well worth the investment for both younger and older readers to achieve the lean strong body that everyone wants.

Personally, looking back to my teen years when I was just starting to get interested in fitness and exercising, I wish that I understood all of the powerful training and nutrition secrets that I do today, 15 or so years later. It would have saved me years of frustration when I was training and eating in ALL the wrong ways. That's where this guide will set you straight for life, so that you don't have to struggle to try to figure everything out on your own for years like I did.

6. Do I need to join a gym or can I do these workouts at home?

Either. It's really up to you. In fact, at a bare minimum, you can even get decent results simply by doing many of the bodyweight exercises featured in the program. However, please realize that if you really want to step it up and get maximum fat loss and full body strengthening results, having access to free weights (barbells and dumbbells) and some of the cable equipment at a gym will give you a lot more options to work with.

Alternatively, if you'd rather work out at home, I usually recommend a mix of bodyweight exercises as well as at least picking up a set of adjustable dumbbells such as PowerBlock Dumbbells, and maybe a stability ball and a medicine ball. The Power Block Dumbbells are probably the best investment you can ever make if you're going to decide to work out at home instead of being a member at a gym.

To be honest, you don't really need anything fancier than that to get the best results possible. The most important thing is that you have a means for improving over time, and that's why I recommend the adjustable PowerBlock dumbbells if you're not going to join a gym.

7. Does this program include any diet tips and meal plans to help lose body fat, or is it only about workouts?

Yes, that is actually the MOST important part of the program. Gaining a thorough understanding of diet and nutrition is absolutely critical if you ever want to stand a chance at truly flattening your stomach and seeing visible abs on yourself.

An entire portion of the program is devoted to helping you to understand the confusing world of nutrition, especially considering all of the marketing hype that is thrown at you daily by overly aggressive supplement companies, food manufacturing companies, and gimmick diet fads that keep popping up daily.

Since I don't sell supplements or diet fads, I give you the straight honest research-based answers and thoroughly explain such topics as:

• The true story about dietary fats and why the food manufacturers and media have confused you
  
• The widespread myths about saturated fats and what you need to know
  
• The shocking facts about trans fats in our food supply
  
• The truth about carbs and why you've been deceived by money hungry companies
  
• The facts about how much protein you really need
  
• A thorough understanding of the blood sugar and insulin process in your body and how this affects your ability to lose body fat
  
• Specific food types and little known tricks that will significantly help increase fat burning within your body
  
• The most effective method of meal and nutrient timing to best stimulate fat loss and muscle recovery
  
• Over 84 specific healthy fat burning meal plans to give you ideas for your own successful nutrition plan.

8. Does this program require me to buy any expensive supplements, powders, or diet pills?

Absolutely NOT! Approximately 95% of all supplements and diet pills are a complete waste of money anyway. They are simply luring you in with their devious marketing ploys to try and get you to believe that there is a "magic pill in a bottle" that will solve all of your body fat and muscle issues and have you looking like the fitness model on the bottle in a couple days.

The fact is that you don't need supplements to develop the body of your dreams! All you need is the most effective style of training, the right mindset, as well as good quality wholesome food in the right combinations and proportions, at the right times, and in the right quantities to achieve whatever your goals are... whether they are fat burning or muscle building goals.

9. What if I'm a vegetarian. Will I still be able to use the fat loss nutritional guidance in this program?

Yes, you can still use the principles of the fat loss nutritional strategies section and get great results even if you choose to be vegetarian. You will simply need to modify some of the examples to your vegetarian needs. However, since you've chosen to eliminate animal based products from your diet, you'll need to be extra careful to obtain sufficient quality protein and other nutrients to keep your body healthy and functioning properly.

10. How much time do the workouts in your programs take and how often?

The full body workouts within the Truth about Six Pack Abs Program generally take between 30-50 minutes/day and are recommended 3-4 days/week. Depending on which route you choose will determine how long your workouts are.

11. I'm nervous about putting my credit card info into a website order form. Is it really safe to place an order on your website?

I understand that many people are still just now making their first purchases online and are still a little nervous about using their credit cards on the web. These days, online payment processors have advanced to the point that they are actually MORE secure than many other forms of payment.

In many ways, ordering online is actually a safer method of payment than giving out the info on the phone or on a mail-in stub, etc where an actual human is going to have access to your info. With a secure online form, a human will not have access to your info, only the merchant bank.

Our merchant account uses SSL (secure socket layer) technology to protect your information from being viewed by any third parties. Even as the website owner myself, I don't even have access to any credit card information that you input for the order. Only the bank processes the information.

We use Clickbank to process our orders. Clickbank is the most popular and frequently used credit card processing company in the world for online downloadable products. Clickbank has an outstanding reputation and security has never been a problem.

You'll notice that when you get to the page where you are inputting your card numbers, the beginning of the web URL will change from http to https. That indicates that you are on a secure page and the info can not be found by a 3rd party. Keep that in mind on any websites where you are using your credit card. Always look for the https at the beginning of the web address on the actual page where the card info is requested.

Personally, I've purchased easily over 100 items online over the last 2-3 years on dozens of websites, and I've never once had an issue with security, nor has anyone I know, so it is definitely one of the safest methods of payment. Again, just be sure to look for the https at the beginning of the web address when you get to the point where you're actually putting in the card numbers.

12. What is an e-book and how will I download it?

An e-book is simply a quicker and easier method of obtaining the program you want to purchase. Instead of waiting for a physical book to come in the mail, you will be able to download the entire program in Adobe PDF format right to your computer immediately after ordering. All you need is the free Adobe Reader which already comes installed on all newer computers. However, if you have an older computer and don't have Adobe Reader installed, it is a free download. Just go to http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

The main program will only take about a minute to download if you have a high speed connection. Once you download the ebook to your computer, you simply save the pdf file to a directory and then you can open it and either read it on your computer any time you wish, or if you'd rather, you can print it out to bring with you to read anywhere.

13. Does it matter what country I'm in and is the sale in US dollars?

You can order online no matter what country you're located in. We've processed orders from over 150 countries currently. Our secure credit card processor will automatically convert the US dollars to your country's currency.

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