A weekend treat made with all healthy and raw ingredients

Ingredients                                                                         

Apples

• 5 medium to large apples
• ½ tsp mixed spice
• 1 tablespoon of honey

Crumble

• ¼ cup of sunflower seeds
• ¼ cup of pumpkin seeds
• ¼ cup of almond meal
• ½ cup of desiccated coconut
• 50g organic butter
• 2 tablespoons of raw unheated honey

Cooking Instructions

Preheat the oven to 170c with a fan forced oven

•  Steam the apples till slightly soft
•  Add mixed spice and mix through honey until its melted
•  Place apples in the base of the pie dish or baking tray
•  Blend the sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds until fine.
•  Add almond meal and coconut and mix through evenly
•  Melt the butter and honey together
•  Mix it through the crumble with the palms of your hands
•  Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes until crumble is crispy and golden
•  Serve with Gluten Free custard made with Raw milk and Stevia, coconut sugar or Xylitol as a sweetener
•   If you have an allergy to nuts you can leave out the almond meal and increase the content of the seeds and coconut

Trans-fats are unfortunately common and wreak havoc on health. Trans-fats are not natural.

The easiest way to explain trans-fats is – a processed, chemically made fat that does nothing positive for the body. If that doesn’t put you off this will:

Shortening was developed in 1907 by the Proctor & Gamble Company. They were looking for an inexpensive alternative to paraffin (like kerosene) and beef tallow (think of lard) to make candles and soap as the meat packing industry controlled and monopolized the price of lard and tallow needed to make candles and soap (much like petrol prices are controlled by oil companies).

So with the help of German chemist, E.C. Keyser, they found a way to change the structure of the cottonseed plant to make the oil solid. They succeeded by inventing a process called “hydrogenation” which turns liquid oil into a solid. Now they could create as much soap and candles as they wanted without having to pay high prices for lard.

But with the discovery of electricity, the candle business rapidly declined and as such, their product had little use. Since hydrogenated cottonseed oil resembled lard, they thought, “Why not get back into business selling it as food?”

So the idea “Why can’t we cook with it?” launched a company known today as CRISCO.

Proctor and Gamble launched “Crisco” in 1911 where they repackaged and marketed their “food product” to housewives as a “healthier” alternative to animal fats. As a marketing strategy, they published a cookbook where all the recipes used shortening (trans-fats) and Crisco oils. This free cookbook introduced this new product to the public. Soon vegetable oil (which is another way to say trans-fats) was used in baking and included in packaged foods.

When I first made this discovery it seemed surreal. What’s even more surreal is the fact that the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) have listed hydrogenated fat in the “Generally Regarded as Safe” category (GRAS) despite 50 years of the worlds leading researchers producing evidence that trans-fats are undisputedly linked to ill-health and disease.

At the forefront of research, Walter Willent, Professor of epidemiology and nutrition, and chair of the Department of Nutrition wanted to see partially hydrogenated fats removed from the FDAs GRAS category, which would essentially eliminate their use. “Given that every major review of trans fats has concluded that intake should be as low as possible,” he said, “it is indefensible that they be allowed as GRAS constituents of foods.”

For more information visit:

http://www.motherlindas.com/crisco.htm

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/review/rvw_spring06/rvwspr06_transfats.html

Common food items that contain trans-fats:

• Fried foods
• Donuts
• Packaged foods
• Crackers
• Pastries
• Refined and processed oils (Such as canola and vegetable oils)
• Fast food restaurants

And that is just a small example. Check food labels for the term “partially hydrogenated”. That means there are trans-fats in the product.

Just for fun, look in your cookbooks and recipe box. How many of these recipes call for shortening? Most people believe that shortening is better than butter for making an apple pie or a dessert.

For the record, nothing is better than pure, organic butter; it’s one of the most nutritious foods and has been around for centuries (unlike margarine or shortening).

Trans-fats are essentially fats whose chemical structure has been altered through a process called hydrogenation so that the oil is no longer liquid – it has that thick, almost buttery texture. It’s desirable for a company to use this kind of fat because it is very stable and can sit on the shelf for years without expiring. As Udos Erasmus would put it, “It’s a manufacturers dream.”

Do you have shortening in the cupboard? How long have you had it? People hold on to these tubs for years. Now is the time to throw it.

What are the health consequences of trans-fats?

The main problem with trans-fats is that the body has no idea what to do with it.

It’s not a natural substance so when digesting it, the body gets confused. As a result, health problems can arise. In other words, people who eat imitation products (such as margarine) that are made with trans-fats may think they are doing something good for their health because the label reads ‘low fat’.

In reality they’re consuming a poison. People who are scared to consume saturated fats don’t realize that unlike trans-fats, the body is equipped to digest saturated fat properly. Humans have lived off saturated fats for centuries. How do old foods cause new diseases?

By the way, margarine is one module off plastic!

So, why exactly is it bad? The big problem with them is that they are in a lot of foods that we don’t expect. Companies try and hide trans-fats with marketing leaving the average consumer clueless about what they are eating.

A big marketing trick that companies use is fortification. They find a substance that has been well researched such as omega 3 or vitamin C then they add it to things like margarine or orange juice. This again is another strategy to confuse the consumer.

I don’t care how much omega 3 they put in margarine, it’s still not healthy!

Trans-fats are a dangerous form of fat that can definitely cause weight gain. When they are in foods, they are usually there in large amounts. Think about what happens when you submerge something in a vat of hot oil. Anything that’s deep fried in trans-fats absorbs a significant amount of this poisonous fat, and not only are these foods high in fat, they are also devoid of nutrition.

On the other hand, natural high fat foods, such as nuts or avocadoes are very good for you because of the nutrients they contain (and the fat is of a healthy variety). The fats in natural products contain essential fatty acids which the body requires.

Here are some other reasons why trans-fats should be avoided at all costs:

• Insulin – Trans-fats affect your body’s insulin sensitivity mechanism by causing it to lessen. It also heightens the body’s insulin response to glucose.

• Cholesterol – Trans-fatty acids have a direct affect on cholesterol levels. It raises levels of LDL cholesterol which we often refer to as “bad” cholesterol. It also decreases the body’s HDL level which is also referred to as “good” cholesterol.

• Triglycerides – Since the body doesn’t exactly know what to do with trans-fats when you consume them, one of the things that happen is that it increases triglyceride levels. This can lead to other problems, particularly heart disease. Chemically, triglycerides are the form that fats take on in the body in order to be stored.

• Essential Fatty Acids - There are types of fat called essential fatty acids that actually benefit the health and can work with the body to prevent disease. Trans-fats interfere with the body’s use of these vital EFA’s. As a result, the body could exhibit signs of deficiency which could have serious health consequences.

• Immune system – Trans- fats in general cause the immune system to slow down which means that you will be more susceptible to illness.

• Liver – Trans-fats can also slow the liver down and raise liver enzymes.

As you can see, there is nothing good about trans-fats. Why would you even want to eat something that was originally designed to make candles? That’s just silly don’t you think?

Summing Things Up

Trans-fats (and sugar) are nutritional nightmares. The majority of packaged food contains either one or the other and sometimes both. You must avoid these.

• Go through your cabinets and read the labels. If you care about your health, throw away anything that contains trans-fats or refined sugar. Don’t keep these things in your home.

• Avoid trans-fats and refined/processed sugar – period. Some labels will list the oil as “partially hydrogenated”, “hydrogenated” or “vegetable oil”. Keep these products on the supermarket shelf.

• Even if a food says “no trans fats” read the label ingredients anyway. By law, if trans-fats fall under a certain amount (currently 0.5 grams) they do not need to list this on the label and can make claims, “no trans-fats”. Anything that has small amounts of trans-fats (including anything hydrogenated) in the ingredients should be avoided. Additionally, most vegetable oils are tested for transfats AFTER the deodorisation process which is what creates most of the transfat in the first place.

• If your diet contains foods that contain trans-fats and sugars daily, it is important to rethink this! (And that’s putting it very politely). If you want to have a great body, you must pay attention to your diet and habits. There is no excuse for eating trans-fats or refined sugars as a regular part of your diet.

• Keep in mind that your body does need SOME carbohydrates. However, avoid refined sugar (such as table sugar) at all costs. Include natural carbohydrates as a part of your diet. Remember to ask the question, “Could a caveman eat this?”

• Remember, avoiding trans-fats and refined sugars isn’t just advice on how to look good, its advice on how to live longer.

• A sugar “craving” is often a signal that your body’s blood sugar has dropped. It’s best to avoid crashing by planning healthy meals in advance to sustain blood sugar levels through the day.

• Your body NEEDS the right fat (EFA’s) – but it will never need chemically made, poisonous trans-fats.

Eat well and train hard!
Maximus Mark Ottobre

P.S. Check out my free diet and nutrition program at www.eatyourwaytoabs.com.au – all you need to do is enter your email.

By Kristine

They say its Autumn here in Melbourne but today definitely felt like a winters day with a top of 13 degrees. By the time I got home from work I felt like eating something warm and hearty however my fitness goals at the moment don’t allow for foods with sauces. But that doesn’t mean I can’t give it to someone else to enjoy.

So I went about preparing a Tagine’s from one of my favourite Moroccan cuisines for my dear man who was getting home from another late day at work.

Beef and Prune Tagine

Ingredients:

15g butter

500g of grass fed beef chunks

300g of organic diced tomatoes

½ cup of button mushrooms

Small handful of slivered roasted almonds

1 cup of water

½ cup of prunes

½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp of crushed ginger

½ tsp of lemon rind

1 garlic clove crushed

Cooking Instructions:

1. Put the butter, beef, tomatoes, water, slivered almonds and mushrooms in a deep pot and bring to a boil
2. Turn the heat down and simmer for an hour
3. Soak the prunes in boiling water for 20 minutes and drain the water
4. Sautee with butter the garlic, ginger, cinnamon, lemon rind and prunes in pan
5. Add the prune mixture to the beef and cook for a further 10 minutes until the sauce is thickened.

Pumpkin and Spinach with Pine Nuts

Ingredients

2 cups of diced pumpkin

1 cup of spinach leaves

¼ of thinly sliced onion

1 tablespoon of pine nuts

Coconut Oil

¼ teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon coriander

dash of cinnamon

½ teaspoon of lemon rind

1. Heat the coconut oil in a medium heat pan
2. Sauté spices and onion and add the pumpkin, pine nuts and lemon rind
3. Coat the pumpkin with the coconut oil and spices and cover with a lid to allow the pumpkin to cook faster
4. When the pumpkin is softened add the spinach leaves
5. Remove from the stove once the leaves have wilted from the heat

By Kristine

The two leading causes of obesity in the western world are, in my opinion, the over consumption of trans-fats and sugar.

Sadly, due to disguised ingredients, you might not even be aware you’re eating them even if you have sworn off them for life.

The Modern Diet

When you take a walk through the supermarket what do you see?

Most of the supermarket is filled up with canned, boxed, and processed foods. Supermarkets have entire aisles filled with junk foods. Crackers, cookies, cakes, chips, candy … all these things are placed in key areas in supermarket that are designed to entice us to buy them. You can’t go to the checkout counter without being confronted with several varieties of chocolate, candy, and chewing gum. It’s enough to make any health fanatic have a fit of rage!

The thing is, we ALL know (or should know) these foods are bad news; however some of us decide to eat them anyway.

These foods are completely devoid of nutrients. However, some customers have been getting savvy to companies’ sugary trickery, so companies have started fortifying these ‘foods’ with various nutrients to try to attract people to buy them. Basically what this means is that companies are adding synthetic compounds to refined sugar products to give them the appearance of being healthy. For example, Coco Pops are filled to the brim with sugar, but Kellogg’s now market them as having “added calcium”.

Sugar and Calcium – everything a growing body needs… Kellogg’s should be ashamed of themselves, marketing these kinds of cereals to children.

In other words, it has become increasingly less obvious to the consumer that these foods are nutritional nightmares. Energy and sport drinks, or better yet, that ridiculous ‘vitamin water’ filled with sugar, are another example of sugary junk foods in disguise.

In the modern supermarket the chocolate and lolly aisle would be a better place for commercial breakfast cereals due to the horrendous amounts of sugar content. These aisles may as well be called “the unhealthy aisle” or the “dessert aisle”.

This is very alarming as the problem is even worse than it appears on the surface. Trans fat and sugar both make their way into foods that people wouldn’t expect. If you want to see this in action, take a browse down your supermarket’s soup aisle and take a look at some of the labels. Do you notice sugar in the labels? No? Look again.

Things like “sucrose” and “fructose” or pretty much anything that ends in -ose represents a sugar, whether ‘natural’ or artificial’.

So why is sugar in minestrone soup?

When we cook these things at home, we don’t add sugar to them. I’ve never seen the words ‘add sugar’ in any soup recipes (or maybe I just buy healthy cook books?) So why is it in these packaged foods? Because it adds shelf life, makes products taste nicer, and is more addictive to our taste buds.

The unfortunate fact is the majority of consumers are completely clueless about what’s in the foods they are eating.

Trans-fats are equally as bad (if not worse).

Trans-fats often find their way into foods that on surface value appear to be healthy. Things like granola bars and even breakfast cereal can contain trans-fats. Look for anything that is “partially hydrogenated”. This is “code” for trans-fats. Once you start reading labels, you’ll be shocked at how many foods contain both of these ingredients. That’s why I tell my clients and readers, if it’s in a packet, don’t buy it.

What do we mean by sugar?

The issue of carbohydrates and sugars can be confusing.

The negative reputation associated with all carbohydrates is not justified. To sort out all the confusion lets break carbohydrates down into two groups:

• Caveman Carbs
• Modern Carbs

Caveman carbs are easy to identify, just ask this one question,

“If I was a caveman or woman, could I eat this food?”

Modern carbs are the total reverse. They are all the foods that we did not have access to as cave-people.

Refined “Natural” Sugars

Natural sugar occurs in things like fruit (fructose) BUT don’t get tricked into thinking the isolated version of fructose is good for you- its not. Processed refined sugar for the most part comes from whole foods (which includes fruit).

This processing creates its’ own product. We know these by many names such as:

• Table sugar
• Corn syrup
• High Fructose Corn Syrup
• Agave Nectar
• Sucrose
• Brown Sugar
• Organic Sugar
• Low GI Sugar

They are all refined sugars and all have the same impact on blood sugar and insulin despite which plant, fruit, or lab they come from.

While real whole fruit contains fructose sugar, it also contains a range of important nutrients and fiber. When we isolate the fructose portion from the food, there are no nutrients and no value despite the fact that ‘fructose’ came from fruit. Additionally, an apple has roughly 5 grams of fructose. Compare that to a 600ml bottle of US Coke Cola with 67.5 grams of pure sugar!

If you want more evidence of the dangers of fructose, look up ‘NAFLD’ which stands for ‘Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease’; which incidentally, is mostly affecting children in the US.

Fructose is not metabolized in the muscle, (unlike glucose); it’s metabolized in the liver. Compare that with ethanol (the kind that’s in alcohol): 10% of ethanol is metabolized in the brain (that’s why you get drunk) and the other 90% is metabolized in the liver.

That’s also why after years of heavy drinking people develop fatty liver disease because the liver has had to store too much ethanol in the form of fat in the liver.

However the onset on NAFLD is far more rapid as fructose can be easily consumed at rapid and large quantities. That’s why a high fructose diet causes NAFLD in a very short period of time.

Note: In Australia Coke is flavored with cane sugar. If it ever becomes flavored with HFCS, you will see the incidence of NAFLD rise.

The reality is our bodies don’t require sugar to function; the body has the ability to breakdown fat and use it as energy. A diet filled with sugar is not how the human body was meant to eat. It’s unnatural to the way we were designed. As a result, too much sugar can cause all kinds of health problems, such as obesity and diabetes and suppression of the immune system.

The focus then is to consume only unprocessed, natural caveman carbohydrates. These foods have the nutritional content still intact.

What’s wrong with sugar?

Refined and processed sugars have been stripped of their fiber and all of its nutritional value. This leaves a substance that has empty calories which means that it does little for our bodies except give us a short-term burst of energy which spikes our blood sugar and insulin and lowers our immune system.

It’s also important to understand that a spike in blood sugar will lead to a crash in blood sugar. This is what I refer to as the ‘sugar cycle’.

The worse part about it all is it is how common it is in foods. As mentioned above, it can be found in nearly everything. Most packaged foods are filled with sugar. And what’s worst is that it is in foods that we wouldn’t expect such as pasta sauce and canned soup.

They do nothing for us nutritionally except add extra calories. As we’ve learned, any sugar that isn’t burned off or stored in the body ends up getting converted into fat. In other words, refined sugar is a nightmare.

Sugar is an addictive substance.

Something that I found extremely interesting was a recent study by graduate student Maglie Lenoir and her colleagues at the University of Bordeaux in France, which showed that rats given a choice between highly sweetened water and intravenous cocaine overwhelmingly picked the sugar water!

Alain Dagher, M.D., and colleagues from the Montreal Neurological Institute also found that Ghrelin, the appetite hormone, worked on regions of the brain involved with reward and motivation. These are the exact same regions implicated in drug addiction. In fact, cocaine and nicotine can affect the same areas of the brain as junk food.

Think about that next time you think about going through a drive through!

Other research has also shown that rats can become quite dependent on sugar and act exactly like addicts when it’s taken away – shivering and shaking and exhibiting typical symptoms of addiction and withdrawal.

Everyone knows sugary junk foods are bad for them, so why can’t they just give it up?

From studies such as these one can gather that sugar is clearly an addictive substance. This is one of the reasons why refined sugar is in so many products, and don’t think for one second that food manufactures don’t know this. They do, and they will continue to monetize human addictions.

For the record, my advice is always to go cold turkey on refined foods and sugar and give them up completely (if you hadn’t already guessed).

If you’re feeling like something sweet, at the very least, have it homemade or freshly made by someone. Packaged sugary foods are off limits. This includes the majority of breakfast cereals!

Maximus Mark

Reference link:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12055324

http://maximusmark.com/2011/05/sweet-poison-the-sugar-show/

Janet has been training with us since 2007. I made this short video of her journey from 2006 to 2011… CHECK IT OUT!!

You will notice a big difference from 2009 to 2011 – Its around the same time I went on a learning rampage (BioSignature, PICP and SCTS course with the Poliquin Institute) AND Janet took a much needed year off competing.

Knowledge and hard work always pays off,

Believe it,

Mark

“I started training with Mark in 2011 after getting to a point where I was tired of looking after my own training and nutrition as well as everyone else’s! As a personal trainer and health coach myself for over 13 years I know all the ‘facts’, but that doesn’t mean I can always be objective or motivated.

As I’ve had several stages of feeling that way, Mark is actually about the 6th or 7th trainer I’ve worked with to achieve my personal goals, I go through phases where I’m happy alone and others where I know I need support.

I chose to work with Mark because I knew him from various courses and had noticed that he was very observant, asked smart questions in class, and seemed to care about his clients well being beyond just the physical results. Furthermore, in various positions I’ve held in the fitness industry I’ve mentored hundreds of different trainers, and so I like to think I have an eye for who is a cut above the rest!

What I found is that Mark takes personal training to a level that most trainers possibly don’t even consider. His approach is very holistic, in that he took the time to regularly check in on how I was going with nutrition, lifestyle, stress management, even business management. All of the things which do play a part in whether or not you might stay on track or slip off path a little.

Two things that especially stood out to me in working with Mark were how accommodating he was of me bringing my toddler to training sessions (she loves it!) and also one occasion when he sent me an email that was very relevant to where I was emotionally with dealing with old food and body image issues. I don’t think there are many guys out there that either get where women come from when it comes to body image, or want to!

Mark’s workouts are challenging, fun and varied, and his training is result based. I was able to check a few pretty cool strength goals off my list. To be honest my jaded view of the fitness industry is that most trainers see it as a means to some undefined end and are watching the clock, but to Mark helping people IS clearly the end game and the way he presents as a PT shows that.”

Kat Eden

High-performance Coach for Women

www.womanincredible.com

5 Things I Learnt About Training Last Year By Erros Chiodo

 1. Deadlifts Rule!

If you have been to any decent gym in your city you have probably seen someone perform a deadlift, but not necessarily well!

If you are part of the elusive deadlifting club I encourage you to stay a member like I have for the past 8 years as the rewards will be great. Deadlifts are probably the most fundamental and primal of all movements within the gym. No other lift gives you the same raw strength increases whilst putting slabs of muscle onto your back, legs and traps. Pretty much every muscle of the body is involved in deadlifting, causing a great plasma shift of blood into the working muscles.

A large plasma shift induces boosts of anabolic hormones testosterone and growth hormone. You can also generally move more weight with the deadlift meaning there is far greater nervous system activation than any other lift, leading to more strength and muscle gains. Deadlifts have a great transfer to other lifts within the gym, I have seen my clients improve on other back exercises like barbell and dumbbell rows as well as squats because of them. Deadlifts strengthen the posterior chain like no other exercise providing great strength and stability all along the spinal column and through the hamstrings.

Honestly who doesn’t like being able to comfortably lift 200 plus kilos in gym? And if you don’t.. That’s fine you can stick to doing cable concentration curls in the corner!

Erros Deadlifting 255kilos /561 pounds :

 2. Strongman Training For The Off Season

If you are not sure what the sport of strongman involves, its basically lifting a variety of heavy things in different ways. Without going into too much detail on all the different events and competition process, I can say that there are definite benefits one can derive from implementing strongman training techniques.

Around 2 years ago I made the transition from natural bodybuilding competitor to strongman trainer. As much as I loved getting up on stage painted brown and in tiny Speedos the sport just wasn’t for me. Don’t get me wrong I loved the training and discipline involved in attaining such a physique. It’s ironic that the best thing I did for my ‘bodybuilding’ was strongman training.

You see strongman training involves many different compound movements, not just barbells but exercises like truck tyre flips and atlas stone lifts. These events get the fast twitch muscle fibres firing at an unbelievable rate as well as massive metabolic increases through repetition and strength conditioning.

Strongman training gives a muscular thickness and density like nothing else. During the period last year where I was preparing for Melbourne’s Strongest Man I solely performed strongman type training for 3 months. With an increased calorie intake over this period I put on significant amounts of strength and eventually took out the under105kg amateur title at the competition. Post competition I started dieting down and had significantly more muscle mass. If you spend the entire year working in this 8-12 rep range and performing isolation exercises, there is no reason for your body to grow bigger and stronger. I literally performed no isolation exercise for over 3 months to no detriment, if anything, I gained significant benefit. The take home message from this is:

• During the off season perform predominantly heavy compound movements combined with strongman event training if you have access to the equipment

• Cut the conventional bodybuilding high rep and isolation training during this period

• Make sure calorie intake in increased to ensure you have adequate energy for training and recovery

• As you lean down notice the difference!

Mark (winner of U90 kg’s) and Erros (winner of U105 kg’s) Melbourne Strongest Man

Watch this clip of Erros competing in the axel deadlift at Melbourne’s Strongest Man:

3. Over Train For More Gains

‘Over training?! What do you mean? I thought overtraining was bad..’

Well you would think so wouldn’t you? But this isn’t always the case. Hypertrophy is an adaptation to biological stress and the greater the stress the more the body has to adapt. When you are in an over trained state it would be symptomised by loss of motivation to train, depressed immune system and mental state, loss of appetite and decreased strength.

You may be wondering how this could possibly lead to drastic physique and strength improvements?

As I’m sure you know the body is an amazing adaptive machine, which can be frustrating as it may halter long term gains in strength and size.

The body tends to adapt very quickly to a training stimulus so people often find themselves stuck in plateaus, unable to make the gains they once did. One way to break through this rut is to have a period (around a week) where training volume is increased drastically until one reaches an over trained state. This puts the body into a state of shock, so that the physical recovery processes have to work overtime to get the body back to normal.

This recovery process is optimised by having a complete back off from training with no exercise for a minimum of 5 days.  As a result super compensation takes place, leading to increases in strength and muscle size.

Charles Poliquin, one of the leading strength trainers in the world is a great advocate of implementing over training for maximum results. This can be seen in his ‘super-accumulation’ program.

4. Cut The Cardio For Fat Loss

Taking a look at the picture below pretty much sums up this entire argument.

For the stubborn bodybuilder that would rather train like a mouse in a spinning wheel, I’ll explain why.

Excessive cardio can cause muscle fibre conversion which is not beneficial for a strength trainer or bodybuilder. As the body adapts aerobically, muscles start to oxidize fat in order to produce as much aerobic energy as possible. There is a conversion of fast twitch IIb fibres to IIa and eventually type I (slow twitch). This is bad because fast twitch fibres have the greatest potential for growth and strength. Increased muscle mass is also related to an increase in metabolic rate and so eventually a lower body fat %.

Cardiovascular training also has a detrimental effect on the central nervous system. Repeated low intensity aerobic activity confuses the brain, so when it comes time to recruit a maximum number of muscle fibres for a lift it may not be able to due to aerobic adaptations. It has also been shown that cardiovascular training decreases insulin sensitivity, meaning the body does not effectively drive nutrients into the muscle cells due to a lack of insulin receptors. All that cardio you are doing may in fact be making you fatter, not leaner.

What are the alternatives?! Well there are plenty. HIIT (High intensity interval training) is a great as the body performs maximal efforts for short periods of time.

This emphasises fast twitch fibre recruitment and a longer period of raised metabolism. Circuit resistance work such as complexes are another great alternative as they keep the body in an anabolic state while sending your heart rate through the roof! The main thing which should be manipulated in order to attain a lean physique is diet. Eat quality food, hit the weights hard and you’ll be lean in no time.

Mark and Chris dong 60 seconds of hell… High intensity cardio!

5. You Need To Have Bad Workouts

No-body wants to have a bad workout, hell having one is probably likely to ruin your day. We are all human and things generally don’t always go to plan. We may walk into the gym with the will and determination to take on Goliath but external and internal factors such as sleep, work, stress and food intake can stop us in our tracks.

If we never had bad workouts then we would never really have amazing one’s either. You can’t expect to walk into the gym everyday and blast through Pb’s, it just isn’t going to happen. It is from our worst workouts we learn the most because we can sit back and reflect on our mistakes. We can see where we need to improve and what we have to do differently in order to prevent it happening again. If you don’t have a trainer or coach you must be your own biggest critic otherwise who else will?

Bad workouts also teach you to listen to your body, and with time you will begin to see the patterns and cues so that you know when to take a rest day. Having said that, some of my best workouts were on days where I felt very average and was sure I was about to have a mediocre workout. The greatest trainers always test the physical boundaries of the body and sometimes it just doesn’t workout.

Instead of being down for having a bad session, the best thing is to do is remove yourself, reflect and learn.

Erros Chiodo has spent the last 6 years training with Mark, so it was a natural progress for Erros to join the team here at Enterprise Fitness. To Celebrate, Erros is giving away FREE Personal Training sessions to 5 lucky people. All you have to do is email your full name, date of birth, and mobile number to info@enterprisefitness.com.au and answer this question: Why do you want Enterprise Fitness to train you?

The 5 people with the best answer will receive a free training session with Erros!

Conditions:

Must be over the age of 18

Must live in the Melbourne area

email info@enterprisefitness.com.au now… don’t miss out!

Erros is also the co-founder and co-owner of Power1 Nutrition. Visit http://www.power1nutrition.com.au/ for more information. Facebook: www.facebook.com/Power1NutritionAustralia

At the moment I’m working towards doing my first Figure competition. As we all know the food you eat for your competition prep can be rather restrictive and makes it tricky when having guests over or if your cooking for two.

As cooking tasty food is something I enjoy, especially when I get to eat it, I would be quite grumpy if I had to do a ‘chicken and broccoli’ diet for 12 weeks.

Here is a fresh and tasty salad that has all the right ingredients to keep you on track with your goal and you can add the dressing and extra flavours to your guests meals or that special ‘other’ that you’re cooking for.

Chicken Salad with an Asian twist

500g Chicken

1 can organic Coconut Milk/ or Fresh

1 grated carrot

1 cup of bean sprouts

1 medium sized cucumber halved and sliced

1 capsicum thinly sliced

¼ cup of fresh coriander chopped

¼ cup of fresh mint chopped

X1 tablespoon of sesame seeds

Dressing

1 tablespoon of sesame oil

Juice of one lime

1 teaspoon of red wine vinegar

Optional

Cashew nuts

Roasted Dukkah (gluten free)

Cooking Instructions

Poach the chicken in the coconut milk for approx 10-15 minutes or until cooked. Remove the chicken from the coconut milk and set aside to cool

When the chicken is cooled shred the chicken into thin long pieces

Put all the salad ingredients and herbs together in a bowl and mix through evenly

Put your salad aside before mixing the dressing, cashew nuts and Dukkah through

Put the shredded chicken on top of the salad and sprinkle with sesame seeds

Now everyone can enjoy a yummy, tasty and healthy meal together! Enjoy!

Kristine

These were the fitness entry requirements for Tough Mudder

10km run

25 push ups

6 pull ups

45 metre swim

Sweeeet!! I’m in!! I probably need to increase my running sessions but otherwise I should get through.

When I don’t have any set goals around my fitness (training for the sake of training) my training normally consists of a mixture of HIIT resistance training/Crossfit style training, strength training and trail running. I train to be stronger, faster, fit and feel awesome.

So all that being said here is what I did to prepare for the Tough Mudder:

Three Trail Runs a Week

These were about 8 km runs on an unstable terrain and included going off track to do some uphill sprints on the side trails. I never do steady state cardio, besides the fact that I find it absolutely boring and un-motivating. Steady state cardio is only useful if your goal is to do endurance sport such as a marathon. As far as fat loss, building strength and speed, steady state cardio is useless.

(above) Trail running… Tough Mudder Style!!

Strength Training

Twice a week I attended a Strength And Conditioning class at Dominance held by Murray Ballanden and learnt how to incorporate kettlebells into my workouts which helped to increase overall body strength and target weak areas such as my upper back and core. Murray is a great coach and loves working with people on repairing their injuries and correcting the imbalances (and like Mark is very particular about perfecting technique).

Strength Training consisted mainly of Plyometric and explosive movements such as clean and press, dumbbell snatch, overhead barbell press, torsanator, spider-man push-ups, jumping lunges, Farmers Walks, Pull Ups. I structured the reps and sets in a manner that I was training mainly fast twitch fibres.

I still incorporated Deadlifts, Squats, Cyclists squats and weighted lunges to maintain overall body strength. I trained these exercises at a general rep range of 8 to 12 reps.

The goal for training was to be fast, fit and strong to be able to run the distance of the 20km as well as complete all the obstacles. And at that stage I didn’t really know exactly what the obstacles were going to be so I felt I had to cover al bases.

DIET AND NUTRTION

Generally speaking my diet is Paleo and mainly consists of meat (lots of meat), fresh vegetables and healthy fats such as fresh coconut milk, coconut oil, organic butter, avocado and seeds. Carbohydrates are mainly sweet potato, pumpkin and berries. Of course on the weekend I include a few tasty treats but as a rule of thumb they must be gluten free (listen to Marks gluten podcast here to understand why).

My food intake remained basically unchanged. However due to increasing anaerobic activity I did increase my carbohydrate intake and had either sweet potato, pumpkin, berries, or a couple of figs directly after training. Figs contain high amounts of potassium and the glucose will be directly absorbed by the muscles aiding in recovery. (Figs after training only applies to people who have a lean body type and the goal is not weight loss).

I do occasionally enjoy a glass of wine over dinner on the weekends or when I catch up with friends but leading up to the Tough Mudder I eliminated alcohol as I do notice a difference in my training, energy levels and mental clarity even with one drink and I wanted to be feeling 100%.

SUPPLEMENTATION

It’s no secret I use Poliquin’s brand of supplements. I’ve been supplementing and training for awhile and I have to say that I have only started to notice the benefits of taking supplements since using his brand. Reason being they have a higher and purer concentration then the average grade supplement.

For recovery I used Glutamine and Glycine; both are amino acids and assist recovery.

The supplements I like to use on a daily bases are:

Vitamin C

Multi-Vitamin

B vitamin complex (in the Poliquin brand this is called methylators 3.0)

Fish Oil

Magnesium

Vitamin E

CLOTHING ATTIRE

I knew it was going to be wet and muddy so I wanted clothes that were still light besides being saturated.

My shoes needed to be comfortable and light as well and most of all they needed to stay on inspite of the mud pits trying to suck them off.

I wore Skins, and a Dry Fit top. The shoes I opted for were Barefoot Merrells made by Vibrim and they were fantastic!!

I purchased this shoe 3 months earlier as I was finding my feet were very heavy on my trail runs using Asics. I now keep my Asics for training at the gym and Merrells are for exploring nature I simply love them!

It’s a funny sensation to begin with to feel the rocks under your feet when you run and not having the same support you do from your average runner but it definitely feels more natural once you get used to them.

ON THE DAY

My start time for the Tough Mudder race was 12:45

Instructions from the event organisers was to be arrive 2 hours early prior to the race to allow for registration and parking.

Breakfast was at 07:00 and I ate my usual- Meat and Avocado with mushrooms.

I made some chicken mince burgers the night before with coconut milk and grated carrot and ate them a few hours after breakfast. I opted for a high fat, high protein approach.

The aim for this is to still have high protein but with fats to slow down the digestive process and keep blood sugar nice and even. Mark also noted that I didn’t need to carb load or do anything like that.

Mark suggested the perfect pre race meal would be organic rice crackers with ABC spread on them. This combo is perfect as it has slow digestion carbs that don’t have an immediate impact on blood sugar and the fat from the ABC spread will further slow the digestion and fill me up so I would be sustain thought-out the race.

YUM!!! I love ABC spread! I just wanted to layer that stuff on! But I didn’t. The worse thing would be to get indigestion during the race. I had about 5 crackers in total.

Mark added electrolytes to a bottle of water which I drank slowly over the morning before the race. This definitely helped keep me hydrated throughout the race. He also used the FAT Tool on my calves with a warming cream. I have to say, I think it really helped. It released the muscle fascia around my calves and shins which helped me not get shin splints on the run. It also (almost instantly) improved my flexibility.

I also took Beta Alanine and BCAAs before the race.

THE RESULTS

I have to be honest and say that I was very happy with my preparation for my first race.

I was very comfortable in what I was wearing both with clothes and shoes. I felt hydrated and energetic throughout the whole race and only stopped at one water station. While others scoffed down bananas throughout the race I felt I had no need to and kept running.

The only thing that slowed me down was the banking up of people towards the end of the course making me hold out a little bit longer to get to the end.

My favourite part of the race was seeing my man’s face in the crowds about half way through and he just kept popping up everywhere right through to the end. He made sure I had the right supplements before and after the race and that I was eating enough of the right foods, he was patient and supportive with my increased training even though it took up more of my time and he never complained about me getting up for my early morning runs.

I’ve received a few queries about training for the Tough Mudder so I hope this article has helped to answer a few questions. The best advice I can give you if are wanting to do the Tough Mudder course or a similar race or competition is, don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today. 

If you need a push in the right direction with either your health or fitness goals we can definitely help you.

Contact us at Enterprise Fitness 1300 887 143. Or, if you want to chat to me directly my email is Kristine@enterprisefitness.com.au

Thai Papaya and Avocado Salad

Mark and I recently came back from the most amazing holiday in Thailand!  Textbook! Yes the ones you see in the movies where you’re on ‘Cloud 9’ and every day is a new and exciting adventure.

One of the salads we experienced was so good I just had to share it with you and perfect for the warm weekends we’ve been having.  

Ingredients

½ firm papaya seeded and diced

½ cup of chopped dried figs

1 firm avocado seeded and diced

Juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon of fresh coriander chopped

Lightly mix all the ingredients together so the avocado and papaya don’t turn to mush and it’s ready to serve.

This salad is beautiful with Cajun or BBQ chicken or fish

Enjoy!!

Kristine

My day as a Tough Mudder…

As we arrived at Philip Island and parked the car I could see the Tough Mudder participants almost finishing their race…they looked tired and muddy and ready for it to be over. Eeekkkk!!! I’m here finally! The day had come around so quickly and I had no idea what to expect and was hoping I had trained properly for it.

12:45 was my start time.  As I jumped the first wall and stood in the ‘pen’ with 600 other ‘Mudder’ participants I listened to the commentator give us our send off speech. “Tough Mudder is a challenge” he said, “not a race. It is about camaraderie and helping your fellow team members complete the race and get to the finish line.

The course went for 20km with a mixture of running and 28 obstacles to challenge you. As he spoke about the obstacles ahead it definitely seemed you needed a team to complete them and I signed up to do the race on my own!

Oh well! I’ll just have to make friends and ask for help. And off we went! Some charged into the course, others jogged and walked their way in. It was easy to look around and watch what others were doing but I thought, I’ll keep a steady pace and do what’s right for me and sure enough I ended up passing others by as they ran out of breath and tired themselves out early in the course.

Obstacle 1- Berlin Walls

After a 4 km run I arrived at the Berlin Walls that was approximately 3 metres high and made out of wooden planks. You had to pull your body up with no assistance to get over it. I found it quite easy to jump up and pull myself up. (Training tip: do lots of pull-ups!)

Obstacle 2- Arctic Enema

This was a deep plunge pool filled with ice. You had to swim under some wooden beams to get to the other side. With no hesitation I thought, okay its time to get wet and now the fun starts! I could feel my heart rate instantly increase from the coldness of the water. It was ice cold! But once I was out I felt very refreshed and ready to keep running.

Obstacle 3- Berlin Walls

We hit the Berlin Walls again. It took a bit more effort to get over the top being wet and a little fatigued. One of the other Tough Mudder Participants helped to pull me over at the top of the wall. Awesome!!

Obstacle 4- Devils Beard

This was a shallow mud nest with netted ropes shadowing it in which you had to climb through. I was happy I had worked on my core strength to get me through.

There was a lot of running in between obstacles. People were starting to slow down and there was a bit more walking among the group. I just thought this is only early in the course. I better keep running.

Obstacle 5- Walk the Plank

I saw this Obstacle on the Tough Mudder website when checking out the course and thought it looked scary. I’ve never been much of a water baby. I am a Gold Coast girl but never took up surfing and always preferred to stay and jump the waves as opposed to ducking underneath them. But I knew I couldn’t hesitate so off the 5 metre plank I jumped (again) into the freezing cold water. With my heart rate up again from the shock of the cold water and probably from the jump I was out of breath trying to swim and ended up swimming on my back to get my breath back. A couple of the participants close by had to get rescued by lifesavers which I was very happy to see as I was struggling to keep myself above the water let alone try to help someone else. Once I settled my breathing I swam to shore with much difficulty from my shoes also weighing me down.

Ahhhh….back on dry land and quite happy to keep running and dry off.

Obstacle 6- Mud River

This was exactly like quick sand. You had to keep moving so your shoes didn’t get sucked off your feet.  There were a few deep holes which left people toppling over and ending up face first in mud. Wahoo!! No one told me they had free beauty treatments as well

Obstacle 7- Grease Lightening

A steep slippery slide into a lovely mud pond. I tried the best I could to stay upright but I ended up sliding down sideways and went head first into the pond. Ha!

Obstacle 8- Berlin Walls

I’m sure these walls were higher than the previous ones and I was very grateful for the assistance from the other Mudders to get over the other side.

Obstacle 9- Boa Constrictor

Narrow smelly pipes you had to slide your way through. And I’m not sure if they were smelly from the mud or because more than one Mudder decided to ‘let one off’ while going through the tunnel. Or was I just the lucky one that had the Mudder infront of them…fart..oops! Well they did J

Obstacle 10-Bale Bonds

Hay bale climb where you became king of the mountain once you got to the top. I pounced up this one! Might have been cause I saw my fiance’ standing by watching

Obstacle 11- Spiders web

This was a large roped web you climbed up and over and down.  Makes it a bit tricky having a few other people climbing up at the same time but it was pretty easy. Definitely helped being little and nimble. Obstacle 12- Firewalker

I’m one of those people that hold’s her breath when walking past a smoker. Well this was another story all together. The smoke was so thick you couldn’t even see through it at one stage. Eyes watering while trying not to inhale I made it through without too much damage I think; although my throat was a bit sore the next morning.

Obstacle 13- Hold your wood

This was exactly as it sounds. We held a wooden log over our heads. Some walked but I decided to try and catch up a bit as we were delayed at a couple obstacles from having to wait in a queue so I ran ahead till we came to ANOTHER mud river. Being little can have its advantages for being quick and fast but this time the water almost went over my head which didn’t help much when trying to carry the log over head as well. Lucky the deep water didn’t last the whole way through.

Obstacle 14- Mud Mile

I had just seen Mark who told me I had been going for 1 hr and 45 min. Awesome! I’ll smash through the next couple obstacles and be at the finish line in no time. However my enthusiasm was stumped when I arrived at the next obstacle to see no movement amongst the Mudders. We were standing at a full stop for about 20 minutes waiting to start our mud river walk. I was already freezing standing there all wet in the cold. When we started the walk through the river I just wanted the people at the front to go faster! It was like a traffic jam moving in slow motion. I was thinking about my brother Jason who is in the army and does this all the time!! Now that’s Tough!

People were jumping out of the river and running along. I did think about it but knew if I did then I couldn’t honestly say that I completed every obstacle. So I persisted through the cold and soldiered on.

Obstacle 15- Twinkle Toes

By the time I got to the next obstacle I was cold and stiff and shivering and the next obstacle was walking across a single wooden log over yet another mud river. The people ahead of me kept losing their balance and falling in which didn’t give me much confidence especially cause I was shivering but as with all the other obstacles there was no hesitation. I focused ahead of me and put one foot in front of the other and got to the other side without getting wet. Woohoo!!

Obstacle 16- Tyre Mountain

A pile of tyres that you climbed up and over without much effort. It was nice to have something not involved with mud or water

Obstacle 17- Funky Monkey

I normally love monkey bars and use them quite regularly with my Playground Workouts. But when I went to swing on these bars I found with my gloves being muddy and wet, left me without much of a grip AND the bars would turn towards me when I held onto them. Gave it a good go and then SPLASH!!! Into another cold muddy river I went.

Obstacle 18-Turds Nest

This was another roped spiders nest that wasn’t too hard to get across and I was quite happy to keep dry.

Obstacle 19- Everest

All I could see ahead was a crowd of Mudders standing there at what looked to be an oversized skateboard ramp. There were Mudders at the top holding their hands down trying to lift the Mudders up and over the wall. But from all the wet, mud and slime people were having a hard time sprinting up high enough to get hold of the wall.

I gave it about 5 attempts and slid down on my ass all 5 times. I touched the fingertips of my fellow Mudders up the top of the ramp but my muddy grip wasn’t strong enough to hold onto them to get me over. We could be here for another couple hours! The support crew brought us cellophane sheets to keep us warm and I was chattering and humbly accepted the kind offer.

Finally a team of Mudders decided to think outside the box and help get all of us over the wall. They build a pyramid with their bodies and one by one we climbed over the wall. Awesome!!

Obstacle 20: Electrotherapy:

The event organisers made this challenge sound the most dangerous and scary. My friends who had heard about the event all told me to be careful of climbing the electric fence but sorry to disappoint everyone but all I felt was a tiny little spark and that was it. Haha!! Either that or I was so glad to make it to the end I didn’t care about anything anymore.

And…Finish!!! I had completed each and every obstacle in the Tough Mudder Challenge and made it to the end. I was a Tough Mudder and had an awesome time being one.

There was an awesome team spirit amongst the Mudder crew and I was proud to be Australian.

I definitely recommend the event to anyone who is up for an adventure and challenge for you as an individual or to do as a team.

Stay tuned for training and diet tips to help you compete in the next Tough Mudder!

For training with Kristine email, Kristine@enterprisefitness.com.au

Tough Mudder shoe pile

Have You Ever Wondered How Sports Models or Figure Competitors Get in Shape?

SOLD OUT – Email info@enterprisefitness.com.au to be put on the waiting list

I certainly have. I wonder why more of them don’t end up in hospital with some of the diets, training and cardio regimes they follow…

I’ve been consulting and training female figure models and natural bodybuilders for a number of years and some of the “diets” and “training programs” I’ve seen are ridiculous and down right stupid…

I’m the guy that will tell you everything you have heard about health, fitness and comp prep is wrong… then back it up. Don’t believe me?

Check out some of the guys and girls I’ve trained and consulted for:

2 time Ms Olympia and 3 time Ms Australia, Janet Kane

He got rid of the useless supplements I was using – and this actually caused me to drop 2 kilos of fat within a week!

 Started Getting Results That I Only Had Dreamed About – Aidan Guyett

I Feel Myself Getting Fitter and Stronger Each and Everyday – Carley Smith

2 time INBA Mr. Australia, Tristan Boyce

I could go on but I think you get the point…

Let’s cut to the chase here; I’m known for two things, my no BS attitude and my passion for health and fitness. I’ve combined these two traits and put together a seminar packed with information you can take away and use to get the results you’ve been working so hard for.

The seminar isn’t JUST for people who want to compete… It’s for anyone and everyone who is passionate about their health and fitness and wants to look like they can compete.

Results speak for themselves so I’ll let a couple of the members that attended the last seminar tell their story.

Story 1: Lisa Callingham: Can’t Believe How Unhealthy My First Comp Prep Was:

I did my first figure competition in May of this 2011 and was pretty amazed at how unhealthy my prep felt. I really thought there must be a way of achieving the look you need for competition without sacrificing my health and risking metabolic damage and so on, so decided to look for another way.

As a long time subscriber to Mark’s podcasts and info I knew that he was a great source of information on training and nutrition, so decided to investigate his online training program.

I would love to train with Mark in person, but as I live in Sydney the only possibility was to work with him online – and I’m so glad I did.

Mark provides you with everything you need for your specific training and nutrition goals – we had a specific time limit too – I started with Mark 10 weeks out from my competition and he guided me to be completely ready for Comp Day. He answered every question I had about my training or nutrition (and there were lots!), and always got back to me really, really quickly, and to that end I just placed 2nd in the IFBB State Championships Master’s Figure.

I learnt so much about proper nutrition, hormonal balance and the importance of other factors like sleep and supplements on how well I trained, allowing me to get the results I wanted. I also went through Comp prep full of energy with a smile on my face, which was completely different to the previous time where lack of food made me listless and miserable!

I can’t recommend Mark highly enough!

Lisa Callingham

Story 2: Victoria May: This Was About a Lifestyle

I came to get help from Mark after a very turmoil year that saw my eating and binging spiral out of control after competing. I was at wits end not knowing how I was going to get my body back into gear when I got the tip that Maximus Mark was the person to see. So I made the call and went and saw Mark..

From the moment Mark opened his mouth, everything made sense.. I was not going to be put on another stupid starvation diet, I was not going to be put on a ridiculous training plan… This was about improving everything from the inside out.. so that I would never have to diet another day in my life in order to stay lean nor would I have to do endless amounts of cardio to stay lean.. This was about a lifestyle.

It is hard to describe how grateful I am for what Mark has taught me, I have never in my life felt better, full of natural energy – yep that’s right, I don’t touch ANY fat burners or energy drinks or caffeine, its a daily natural high I sit on, I don’t get bloated anymore, I feel amazing, and I am not spending my whole week training! I do only what I need to which is very minimal in order to stay at a lean and at a healthy weight.

My mindset towards eating, training and supplementation has completely taken a 360 degree flip.. I absolutely recommend if you are feeling trapped and controlled by food, or training or you have obsessive behaviour about it; that you speak to Mark about what you can do.. I promise .. you wont ever regret it!

Victoria May

Champion Sports Model

Firstly we love running seminars so it would be our privilege to have you attend. Topics that will be covered:

• Evolutionary eating
• The truth about supplements
• Why farming is the over looked factor to health
• Why gluten makes you fat, dumb and infertile (check out the video from our last seminar on gluten)
• How to put a contest prep together
• The ‘Be X Do X Have’ formula for success
• Plus much, much more

Mark talking about Gluten

ACTION TAKER’S BONUS!

For the first 12 people to sign up they will also receive a closed door training session with Mark and the Enterprise Fitness team.

ACTION TAKERS BONUS #2

The Enterprise Fitness Cookbook eBook : 29 Recipes approved by your Personal Trainer!

My lovely fiancé Kristine is the best, healthiest cook you will meet! Ok I’m a little bias, but trust me, we receive emails every week from clients telling us how much they love Kristine’s recipes

ACTION TAKERS BONUS! #3

Step by Step Supplement and nutrition Blueprint to smash through any plateau

This is not for sale online. Only available to personal clients and people that attend our seminars. It doesn’t matter if you forget everything I say in seminar, follow this hand out and you will get in shape!

ACTION TAKERS BONUS! #4

Q and A with the 2 time Ms Olympia Janet Kane.

You get to ask Janet anything you like!

When?

Saturday, May 12th

Register at 9:45 am

Start 10:00 am sharp

End: 5:00 pm

Where?

855 Doncaster Road,

Doncaster, Victoria,

Quest on Doncaster

www.questondoncaster.com.au

Check it out on Google Maps here: http://maps.google.com/

Click the link below for further information about directions:

http://www.questapartments.com.au/Accommodation/72/australia/melbourne_suburbs/quest_on_doncaster/Location.aspx

How much is this investment to good health?

SOLD OUT – Email info@enterprisefitness.com.au to be put on the waiting list

Early bird rate: $147 (Paid in full before April 21st)

Regular rate: $247 per person (Paid after April 21st)

The seminar is limited to the first 20 people to pay in full. The first 12 people to pay in full will receive bonus 1#: A Closed door training session with the team at Enterprise Fitness. Do not delay, this always books outs. 

How to register?

To register and make a payment simply click here

Making a payment and registering online is simple and secure. We use a program called 1shoppingcart which is used by over 25,000 businesses worldwide. We do this to ensure your payment is 100% secure.

What other trainers who have attended say:

Mark’s Eat Your Way To Ab’s seminar was the most relevant nutrition information I have ever received. It provides useful & applicable detail to all who attend, regardless of background or training experience.

Whether you are stuck in the 80′s food pyramid or a hard-core Paleo fan, Mark’s insight into the “why’s” of his information is what makes you sit up & take notice.

Backed by real world experience, I would challenge anyone to follow Mark’s advice & NOT see results.

As a trainer, type 1 diabetic & absolute nutrition enthusiast – I would highly recommend Mark’s Eat Your Way to Abs for all.”

Wes Brinckley

2 X Ms Olympia and 3 X Ms Australia, Janet Kane

“When faced with the task to come in harder with much leaner legs for this comp and improve over the last comp, I was very hesitant to remove the cardio as Mark had wanted. There was no logic that I could apply from my experience that would give me the confidence with this plan, but with the sheer confidence I had in Mark’s knowledge, I trusted the result would come.

“In previous comp prep, I was used to doing 45 min cardio at 5 am (before the kids would wake) and then a grueling 2-hour weight session at 9, immediately followed by the second cardio session of 30-45 minutes.

The third cardio session would be somewhere in between doing the home reading with the kids after school and cooking the dinner. And all this was done at least 12-16 weeks out from a comp.

“Needless to say this comp prep did not have all that cardio included. Sure I trained incredibly hard in the gym and in the kitchen, and I literally swapped the cardio with more sleep and happier moments with my children.

I also felt much more calm and balanced and surprisingly still maintained a higher level of carbs up until the competition than I had in previous times.

“Having the weekly measurements, I was able to see the incremental changes in my body and that the program was working; seeing these changes, I became more confident in Mark’s plan as I am very results focused. If I were only to judge by the scales, then I would have ditched the program as there was not a whole lot of change in the body weight. Gratefully my body-fat was dropping, lean mass remained the same through the whole process and the targeted sites of my legs were also significantly dropping. I was very happy.

“Now that Mark has a process to eliminate the excess cardio and only use cardio as a final prep, WHY would you do it any other way?

“Thanks Mark – you truly are a trainer with exceptional knowledge and the results are there for all to see on stage”

—Janet Kane, Ms Olympia, Ms Australasia, 2X Ms Australia, 2X INBA All Females winner

Nothing We Did Seemed To Work… Until I Met Mark and Kristine

“As a Personal Trainer I had attended a number of courses on mainstream nutrition. I always walked out with unanswered questions and could never manage to shed my last 5kg myself, let along teach my clients to do the same. It was extremely frustrating. On top of that I was dealing with a husband and 2 children that were constantly getting sick, and I had no idea why! Nothing we did seemed to work.

I met Mark at the Australian Institute of Fitness; he was 1 of my coaches there. I instantly warmed to him; my gut instinct told me this was someone I needed to stay in contact with. And I was right. 18 months later, Mark was conducting the “Eat Your Way to Abs” seminar. Attending that was a no brainer. I had already attended a number of nutrition courses and had no results. Having looked at the people that consulted with Mark, I knew that I needed to be at this seminar. Not only did I attend, but took 5 people with me the next time he conducted this seminar.

At this seminar I had all my questions answered. I had a light bulb moment and everything made sense to me, regarding nutrition. Within 4 weeks of attending the “Eat Your Way to Abs” seminar the first time, I dropped 6kg! AND improved my lean muscle. On top of that I learned why my family was constantly sick; we were all intolerant to Gluten. I took us all off Gluten (yes including the kids!) and nobody has had 1 dose of antibiotics since then! It’s been 4 months. To give you an indication, my children took turns on antibiotics, 1 week each, and my husband had Tonsilitis fortnightly! So to be free of illness for 4 months is massive in our home.

I have implemented everything I have learned, and continue to learn, from Mark, with my clients too. They too are seeing some amazing results! My business has skyrocketed with all the success stories we are seeing. We always had results, we just have them faster now!

I highly recommend consulting with Mark and Kristine. You will not be disappointed! They are a wealth of knowledge and make it so easy to learn from them. They make you feel welcome and always take the time to answer any questions and provide you with the information to help you move forward. Not consulting with this couple, is doing yourself and your business (if you are a PT) an injustice.”

Just wanted to say thanks!

Just wanted to say thank you again for pointing me in the right direction with nutrition, I have attached a picture to show you the effectiveness your Eat Your Way To Abs seminar has had on me.

Warm regards,

Reece Adams
WON Fitness

A big thanks to you!

You know your stuff and I have really benefited from your help.  I now understand a hell of a lot more… How to eat, stay lean, get stronger and put on muscle at the same time.  I have set a goal to compete in June next year on the Gold Coast for the Asia Pacific Championships.  I know I can come in leaner and more muscular on the day without a ridiculous ‘bulking up’ (fattening up) phase in between!

You have been a great coach, a great help to me and now I am more confident than ever.

Anthony Cutajar, Realm Training

For more success stories click here

If you’ve attended our Eat Your Way To Abs Seminar you would have tasted our gluten free Fruit and Nut cookies.

This is another simple fail proof recipe that cannot go wrong and takes minimal time to prepare. You can also freeze the cookies and they will be just as good when you’re ready to defrost and eat them again.

Even though they are gluten free they are still very high in sugar so definitely enjoy them as a cheat meal or as Mark requests….”I need them for recovery after strongman training”….haha!! Sure babe

Gluten free cookies being mixed into one bowl

Gluten Free Fruit and Nut cookies

Ingredients:

250g of shredded coconut

¼ cup of dates, chopped

¼ cup of dried apricots, chopped

¼ cup of sultanas

½ cup of chopped nuts (macadamias, almonds, walnuts)

1 400g can of condensed milk

Cooking Instructions:

Preheat oven to 160c and line baking trays with baking paper

• Mix dried fruit, nuts, and coconuts together
• Add the condensed milk and mix through thoroughly.
• Make roughly shaped cookies with hands
• Place in oven for 20 min or until slightly golden and firm to touch.
• Let the cookies cool before removing them from the pan.

Enjoy!

Kristine

Hey, hey, it’s Maximus Mark, co-owner of Enterprise Fitness. Today I’ve got to drop some truth bombs. But first let’s lay the groundwork…

Coke a Cola, McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Hungry Jacks, Burger King, Safeway, Coles and mobile phones are not normal.

They are all apart of the social fabric that we call life… Common, but not ‘normal’.

Picture this… An Aussie Rules Football field…

If we start from one goal post and walk all the way to the opposing goal square, that distance represents the past two million years of human evolution. The tiny, single, little goal square on the other side represents the last 10,000 years of human evolution. In other words, industrial farming and grains becoming ‘apart’ of the human diet.

Now here’s the interesting part, the last millimetre, (yes, one of the most insignificant measurement you can think of) represents the last 100 years of human evolution.

What happened in the last 100 years?

Coke a Cola, McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Hungry Jacks, Burger King, Safeway, Coles and mobile phones, trans-fats, Canola oil, HFCS and GMO just to name a few.

Most people live their life on the last one millimetre. Then they develop modern diseases such as diabetes, heart attacks, lung cancer, food sensitivities, auto immune disease, etc, etc.

Let’s go back just 40,000 years ago, back before industrial farming. We ate based on what was available to us. You know the foods; things that were hunted, fished gathered or plucked. We ate real foods and real foods don’t have labels, they’re not cool and they’re certainly not ‘in vogue’. Let me define real foods with some basic principles:

• Would a caveman have access to this food?
• Would I be able to eat it 40,000 years ago?
• Is it hunted, fished, gathered or plucked?
• Foods without labels (e.g. vegetables)

So…

We live in this world with marketing presenting itself as fact, where the more you spend on a handbag, the higher on the social ladder you must be and a world where we have no idea where our food comes from. This is a relatively modern invention of man and has only been possible in the last 100 years.

We eat things that could not be made in our home kitchens. For example, imagine making High Fructose Corn Syrup or Red Dye 29 in your kitchen? It’s not possible. Yet we consume it like its going out of fashion.

McDonalds launches a new burger and we race to ‘try it’ with their new thick shake flavour. News Flash! Those flavours were made in a lab, they’re not even real, yet we wear a badge of honour as being ‘one of the first’ to try it (watch fast food nation, a movie based on the unknown facts of the fast food industry).

Someone say insane? No wait! That was the voice in my head…

So the point is health is your birthright.

Actually let me scream it from the mountain tops… HEALTH IS YOUR BIRTH RIGHT!!!

So if health is your birthright and you’re finding yourself becoming unhealthy it may be because you have been brought into false truths about the way you should live and eat. Many of our beliefs come from the excessive marketing and ads parading foods as a status item or a tool to fill an emotional void. We confuse marketing with health, or maybe it’s that we replace health with convenience.

Coke tells us that we can “Open Happiness” and now give us the ultimate status item, a coke can with our name on it. For the children of the world, they’re taught that happiness comes with a toy from McDonalds so if ever they’re feeling blue; a happy meal is just $4.95 away.

Anyone growing up in a western society is taught from infancy that processed food is normal. Coming back to the football field analogy; processed foods represent one millimetre of the field.

So here I am, basically standing in the face of western society saying that nothing it stands for is ‘normal’ or healthy or the way we were intended to live for optimal health.

As Sean Croxton from Underground Wellness would say, “how do old foods cause new diseases?”

So there comes a point where you have read enough “7 steps to fat loss” articles and you have to take on a new identity.

This is where most people fail. They do all the right actions but fail to become the person who maintains a healthy lifestyle. This is why diets don’t work.

To gain lasting results, to become a healthy person, you have to think differently. Simple!

So Mark, how do you become a healthy person?

So here’s the formula taught to me by both Dr. John Demartini and Brad Sugars. It’s called Be X Do = Have.

Most people just focus on the have. Example; I want to be 8% body fat with a 6 pack. Here’s where they go wrong;

They focus on the have first. DON’T focus on the have, focus all your attention on the “BE”. Ask, WHO do I have to be to achieve the material result. Then the “do” will take care of itself and you will get the have.

So there, I’ve done it again, gone all deep and stuff and I didn’t at all touch on what foods you should eat. If you want what foods you should eat download my free diet and nutrition program from www.eatyourwaytoabs.com.au … that’s why its there!

If you enjoyed this article be sure to check out these articles and podcasts:

The Law of 10%

Have you Improved

Socially Unacceptable To Be Healthy

Podcast: Power Hour with Mark

Maximus Mark Ottobre

SEMINAR WITH MARK: 12th of May 2012! Click here for more details!

Moroccan Chicken

This recipe is one of my favourites at the moment to make when I’m cooking for guests. Besides the fact that its quick and easy to whip up; its also easy to double, triple etc and you can use it for leftovers or lunches for the next day.

It really is one of those foolproof ‘safe’ recipes that never seems to go wrong.

We’ll start with the Marinade

• 2 tsps cumin
• 1 tsp of cayenne pepper
• 2 tsps paprika
• 1 squeeze of lemon
• Half cup of chopped flat leaf parsley
• Half cup of chopped fresh coriander

Ingredients

• 6 Chicken Thigh cutlets
• 1 400g of organic canned chopped tomatoes
• 1 brown onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup of chopped mushrooms
• 1 red capsicum chopped
• ½ cup of dried apricots

You need a large pot with a thick base or a casserole dish for this recipe.

1. Put all the ingredients together for the marinade and evenly coat the chicken with it and place in the fridge for four hours
2. Brown the chicken till golden in the pan and set aside
3. Cook the onion till golden
4. Add the garlic, mushrooms, red capsicum and apricots and cook for 5 minutes
5. Add the canned tomatoes
6. Add the chicken
7. Turn the heat down and let simmer for about 20 minutes
8. When the chicken has cooked through and you have a nice thick and chunky sauce serve

You can have this with steamed vegies or try green beans with almonds for something different. Enjoy!!

Kristine

Many figure and sports models around the world all have the same problem…

When they are in the “on” season, they are really on, training hard, doing cardio, taking their supplements, saying no to junk food, timing their meals perfectly, etc, etc… Basically they live like a well-oiled machine regardless of the pre-comp approach they take.

But in the “off season”… well… That’s a whole another story. Basically they get fat and worst of all, they become unhealthy (really unhealthy). They develop an unhealthy relationship with food and think, “I can eat whatever I want because I’m in the offseason.” Of course, they are human like everyone else and suffer the consequences (AKA. They develop a fat arse).

Why does this paradoxical situation happen?

I believe the root cause is the identity one takes on when they become a ‘figure athlete or sports model”.

Let’s take for example Christianity. If apart of your identity is that you’re a ‘Christian’ then you will probably go to Church every Sunday, say your prayers, celebrate religious holidays and chances are you might even believe your brand of religion is the way to go.

I am not putting a moral stance on the above saying its right or wrong. It’s what that person believes and from beliefs we shape our identity of who we are in this world. They are things we believe about ourselves to be true.

Once people identify themselves as a “figure athlete” or “bodybuilder” they forget they were first a healthy person who liked to train and look good all year around. (That’s why most people compete right?)

They forget that whey protein really doesn’t agree with them, or that that the glucose after training is actually making them fat, or that the fat burners they are on are actually causing them early stages of adrenal fatigue and causing them not to sleep.

The purpose of this article is to focus on what I believe to be one of the most damaging beliefs for the female competitor and replace it with a more empowering truth.

The damaging belief is:

There is an on-season and off-season diet (or any mention of an off-season/on-season approach)

After years of doing one-on-one consults with females I have come to the conclusion that this mentality really damages them…

When someone competes once (yes just once) they identify themselves as a ‘bodybuilder, figure chick or sports model.’ They compete once and it lasts with them the rest of their lives in the form of an identity shift which can go hand in hand with a figure chick/sports model eating disorder.

How It Works

Well as previously stated, they compete once. Majority of the time they are on horrific diet plans and cardio regimes that I wouldn’t even wipe my arse with. But that’s another story for another day.

After the comp because they are so depleted (and hungry) they eat everything in sight. They beat themselves up for days and days wishing and hoping they had more self-control. Newsflash, self-control is not the issue! You were starved and told to exercise. Your adrenals are wiped and it’s going to take some time for your metabolism to kick in again… That’s if you get off the fat burners.

From this belief rises a very unhealthy relationship with food. They believe when it’s the on-season, they will be perfect (and they are). But that also means in the off-season they can eat whatever they want… Foods they wouldn’t normally be caught dead eating for no other reason than they are not competing. But don’t worry, “one day” they will compete again and when they do, then they will be ‘good’ with their food.

In my experience, one day never happens because they have done too much damage mentally, spiritually, emotionally and of course physically. It’s hard to recover and so I hear things like:

“I’m allergic to gluten and get really bad skin when I have dairy, but that doesn’t matter, I’ll cut it out when I’m competing”

It’s insane. When did looking good become more important than health? Maybe I’m the only one in the industry who thinks this way?

You can quote me for saying this; HEALTH is a side affect of looking good, but looking good is not a side effect of health.

Perhaps now you can see my perspective as why the ‘on-season/off-season’ mentality is so damaging.

Instead of believing in the off/on season, replace it with:

I am a healthy person who eats healthy foods all year round that build and nourish my body. When I CHOOSE to compete, I only have to make the slightest changes to my healthy lifestyle. I am in shape all year around.

If this article resonates with you, write the above out and put it somewhere you will see it everyday (like the toilet).

A quick point on males; it’s rare that males have emotional problems with food. It’s possible but not as likely. Males are more ‘logically’ driven creatures trying to ‘fix’ things whereas females will emote their problems.

My pre-comp philosophy is quite simple; Get healthy first. Then make changes to an otherwise healthy diet. This means foods that were created in the past 100 years (eg. McDonalds, processed foods and soft drinks) are certainly off the list 99% of the time.

When people compete for the first time they become part of the bodybuilding community. That 10 to 15 minute experience of getting up on stage can last a lifetime. For me there is nothing sadder than to see someone compete only for 2 weeks later for him or her to put on 15 kilos of fat. To me it speaks about their identity. At the root of every competitor (the ones who do it naturally at least) should be a health… (But then again, I would be indulging in the thought that people train and eat for more than just looking good.)

And don’t mistake this as an attack on bodybuilding and figure competitions; you’re smarter than that. It’s a distress signal to first time female competitors out there that your prep comp doesn’t have to be unhealthy… You just need to know what you’re doing.

A chicken and broccoli diet with 1 to 2 hours of cardio 12 weeks out from competing is not a diet or training plan; it’s a recipe for disaster.

Maximus Mark Ottobre– Find out how you can learn from me in seminar! Click here

P.S. Read part two, How To Shift Yourself To Health  

P.P.S. If you like this, you will love our seminars! Click here for more info

We all like yummy food! So here is a quick cheat sheet to give you a few alternatives you can use to make your food work for you.

Stay tuned for more cooking ideas to help give you plenty of variety in your food and keep you lean, strong and healthy all year round.

Happy and Healthy Eating

Kristine

By Kristine

A little while ago Mark entered into Definition 352 Strongman Competition for under under 90kg. He smashed through it and came 1^st place! I reckon it looked way too easy and next time he’ll have to do the under 105kg!

Being a proud girlfriend of her much loved hero I made him a cake of some of his favourite ingredients, Macadamias and Raw Cream and all gluten free. Check out the recipe!

Ingredients

¾ cup unsalted Macadamias

¾ cup gluten free self raising flour

¼ cup gluten free cornflour

2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder

4 tablespoons of baking stevia powder

130g organic butter (very soft)

3 eggs separated

¼ cup full fat raw milk

Icing

200 g full fat raw cream

1 teaspoon of stevia

½ teaspoon of vanilla essence

1 cup of desiccated coconut

1. Preheat oven to 170 c fan forced
2. Grease the base of round baking tray- about 20 cm
3. Place the macadamia nuts into a food processor or high speed blender and process until nuts are finely crushed
4. Sift the flour, cornflour, and baking powder into a large bowl
5. In a separate bowl beat the stevia and butter until fluffy and creamy and add the egg yolks and beat well
6. Add flour mixture and crushed macadamias and yogurt and stir well. It will be a thick mixture so persist until all the ingredients are stirred in.
7. In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff and they form peaks then fold into the cake mixture.
8. Pour the batter into the tin, spread evenly in the pan with a spoon and bake for about 30 minutes or until a knife or skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
9. Let the cake cool outside the oven for about 5 min and then turn over onto a plate or rack

When fully cooled you can put my man’s favourite part on…the icing!!! Actually I think he just loves cream fullstop!

The icing is very simple!

I would opt to purchase an electric mixer if you do a lot of baking cause if you’re anything like me I get so impatient. I think my workouts at the gym are intense enough.

1. Pour the cream into a deep bowl, add Stevia and Vanilla essence and beat until the cream goes thick and you can form peaks.
2. Spread the cream evenly on the top of the cake and around the sides.
3. Then carefully spoon the desiccated coconut on to the side of the cake, the whole way around.

It can get a bit messy so make sure the plate under the cake is larger then the cake itself to catch any coconut droppings.

Hope everyone enjoys the Strongman cake made for my man who won the under 90kg in the Strongman competition in Melbourne

Kristine

Arnold Schwarzenegger, Arthur Jones, Steroids and lots of Muscle!
Some would call it the “Golden Age of Bodybuilding”

In this Podcast Randy Roach and I discuss the history of bodybuilding. Randy is the author of Muscle, Smoke and Mirrors which is a three volume set, each over 600 pages.

We discuss Arthur Jones and the whole Nautilus thing, I ask Randy if Arthur didn’t use the Mentzers for their experiments and used an average Joe, would you think they would have gotten the same results? Randy’s honest and frank answer will surprise you.

We talk about Arnold and the impact he made. Did he deserve the credit?

And of course we talk about the drugs at the time. Randy really says it as it was. How much drugs did they really use?

One thing is for sure, this interview is a MUST download for any muscle head (or fitness fanatic).

Download the show here: http://maximusmark.com/media/historyofbodybuilding.mp3

Or click the play button at the bottom of the page

Right click and select save link as to download to your computer.

Note: If you are using FireFox web browser, you may experience problems downloading… This is out of our control. Try using Safari of Google Chrome for hassle free downloading

Download from iTunes or search Maximus Mark on iTunes

To purchase Randy’s books click here or search Amazon; ‘Muscle Smoke and Mirrors’. Remember there are two volumes available, make sure you grab both!

Maximus Mark

Like this interview? We have plenty more! Click here

By Kristine Coffey

Over the Christmas period while visiting home and catching up with family and friends one thing I got told a lot was, “well I think you need a balance”.

The definition of balance in the dictionary reads as;

1. A state of equilibrium or equipoise; equal distribution of weight or amount
2. Something used to produce equilibrium; counterpoise.
3. Mental steadiness or emotional stability; habit of calm behaviour, judgment, etc.
4. A state of bodily equilibrium: He lost his balance and fell down the stairs.

So in saying this…does eating healthy the whole week and then binging on every type of food you can put in your mouth sound balanced?

Does consuming copious amounts of alcohol to where you lose control of sense of self, morality or your actions sound balanced? Does the sense of guilt over your actions off going overboard sound balanced?

If I read the above it sounds like my lifestyle is in perfect balance and it is the things I love and enjoy that keeps me balanced mentally, physically and emotionally.

Is it because I care about what I put into my body that makes me unbalanced? Is it because I prefer to take time to cook and prepare healthy meals that not only benefits my health goals but also assists me in managing my time and professional responsibilities?

Maybe it’s because I love to feel energetic, strong and mentally focused, and squeeze as many things as I can in a day to help me move forward with my goals. But should I apologise for wanting things in life that you just have to work hard for?

When did Pizza and a Bag of Chips become so important that one thought they could never enjoy their life if they had to give up those things? When did junk food take precedent over our health and what is good for us? When did we stop caring about what we put or not put into our bodies and just cared about how it made us look on the outside?

We take such good care of our material possessions so they maintain good condition and last longer, why are we so careless with ourselves? We spend so much time clothing and dressing the ‘outward us’ what does the inside look like?

I eat the foods I want and feel great! I enjoy the occasional wines with my friends without going crazy and still feel awesome enough to train hard, feel fresh enough to enjoy the day and not feel awful because I’ve blown all my money.

The lifestyle I have gives me the results I want all year round and with always more room for improvement. So tell me why I would give that up and waste time going backwards and live what others may say is a ‘balanced’ life.

Kristine