1. Sleep - probably one of the most underrated and easily forgotten ways to stay healthy! Getting a minimum of seven hours of sleep a night on a fairly consistent basis is key to keep your body strong and healthy. A few hours of lost sleep a week can lead to weight gain -

Losing just a few hours of sleep a few nights in a row can lead to almost immediate weight gain. Even though we burn more calories when we stay awake, losing sleep is not a good way to lose weight. The light sleepers ended up eating far more than those who got nine hours of sleep, and by the end of the first week the sleep-deprived subjects had gained an average of about two pounds. NYT Well

2. Keep Moving - and spend more time on your feet. Simply exercising for a few hours a week in an artificial environment (note to gym rats) and spending the rest of your time sedentary will not do the job for general health. Our bodies respond well when it comes to movement in general.

the two most essential things are walking and stretching – neither are to be obsessed over but if you can fit in at least 20 minutes of walking everyday and start or end your day with a good total body stretch out you are on the right path. fundamentals

3. Eat What Digests Well - this is something new and what I have found works over the past few years. Eat what your body agrees with! Sometimes this is more refined food, sometimes it’s lots of fruits and starches and little meat. Other times it is the opposite. We are all different and respond well to different diets but over time you should be able to learn basic choices that make you feel good and stick to those, while avoiding things that you don’t digest well or agree with in one way or another.

This may sounds ambiguous but it is something we must learn ourselves. Certain premises still apply… but in general we all pickup and learn things about our bodies. Make use of this knowledge and adapt your diet accordingly!

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Editors Note: This is a contribution from Sergeant Michael Volkin, best-selling author of military books and inventor of Strength Stack 52 bodyweight fitness cards.

I don’t know about you, but I have too much stuff to do. Like you, every day I deal with email, Facebook, tweets, work, pets, family, and so on. Finding time to go to the gym is getting harder and harder each day. Well, have no fear. I have assembled for you a workout you can do anywhere called the 2 Minute Workout that only takes, you guessed it, 2 minutes! This workout will get your blood pumping, increase your energy level, burn some calories and strengthen muscles.  Not a bad way to spend 2 minutes!

Perform each of the below exercises, in order, for 30 seconds each.

Sky Kicks

Sit on the floor with your hands pointed toward your toes. Push up until your arms are straight. This is the starting position. Alternately kick your feet up and down.

Quad Hop

Get on your toes and place your palms on the floor facing each other. Keep your back parallel to the floor. Push up off the floor.

 Chest Taps

Assume the push-up position.  Lower your body until your arms are perpendicular to the floor, then explode upward tapping your chest.

Switch Backs

Put your hands and one foot on the ground aligned with each other. Put one leg back and bend your knees.  Keeping your hands on the ground, jump and switch legs. Each jump equals one rep.

For more bodyweight exercises check out Sergeant Michael invention Strength Stack 52 fitness cards, a unique way to transform bodyweight exercises into a fun and competitive workout. They are very cool – he just sent me a pack and I love them!

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Dynamic stretches are those done with motion where we move muscles without holding the position for too long. This helps to fire up muscles and get them ready for exercise.

This form of stretching prepares the body for physical exertion and sports performance. In the past it was the practice to undertake static stretching before exercise. Dynamic stretching increases range of movement, blood and oxygen flow to soft tissues prior to exertion. Increasingly coaches and sports trainers are aware of the role in dynamic stretching in improving performance and reducing the risk of injury.

Meanwhile static stretching, the more old school method of sitting and holding through a stretch for 10-20 seconds each major muscle group after a workout. Helping our bodies flush away lactic acid, reduce blood levels of adrenaline, lets resting heart rate return and reduces the amount of muscle soreness the following day.

Have a click on this image for a guide to stretches…

Stretching is something we shouldn’t ignore especially when doing serious sports. As we age our muscles and joints become less and less elastic therefore injuries are more likely to occur even if you are fairly fit. Take for example playing sports I find a quick ankle, knee, wrist and shoulder warmup invaluable for injury prevention when playing tennis or soccer. If neglected these joints ache/hurt for days after. This at least makes it worth stretching and mobilising the key muscles groups you are using for your chosen activity before you start.

After exercise focusing on static stretching of larger muscles like the hamstrings, chest, quads, back and shoulders is probably a good idea to flush the muscles and help them recover.

So just a quick reminder to stretch before/after strenuous activity. With dynamic stretching and mobility being essential before and static stretching for 10-20 seconds on larger muscle groups after.

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If you are like most people, you spend most of your days sitting in a cubicle or office with your only exercise being a trip to the bathroom.  This constant sitting literally takes years off your life.  Even though the gym may be only a couple miles away, it seems like a hundred miles while stuck in the office.  Don’t worry, I have invented the perfect solution, I call this workout the Co-Worker Drop. All you need are some co-workers to play along.

If you have the Strength Stack 52 fitness cards, you can just follow the card games instructions here.

Goal: To get the most points by catching other players using drop words.

Instruction: Determine who will be playing the game. The more players involved, the more interesting the game gets.  One person must be the lead player. The lead player organizes the emails and tally’s the points.  A formal meeting is not necessary but an email must go out to all players informing them of the drop word. A drop word is determined by each player and can be anything from “keyboard” to “meeting” or even “action item”.  Very common words like “of”, “and”, and “is” are not allowed.  Once each player has selected their drop word, they email their word to the leader along with a bodyweight exercise (i.e. push-up, squat, wall sit, etc.). The leader then sends an email to all players informing every one of the drop words, exercises associated with that word, and rep count for each exercise.  Once the email is sent the game begins and doesn’t end until the end of the workday (or a time determined by the leader).

For the remainder of the day, whenever any player witnesses verbally or in writing any other player saying any of the drop words, the violator must perform that exercise. One important rule is the player witnessing the violation must inform the violator within 10 seconds. You cannot go up to the violator 3 hours later and say you remember him/her using a drop word earlier. Whenever a player uses your drop word, you get 3 points.  Whenever a player uses someone else’s drop word, you get 1 point.  Please note, you must physically hear a player using your drop word in order to get 3 points.

As a variation, you could have all the players determine drop words for people not playing. Then, whenever a non-player uses a drop word, all the players must do an exercise.

There are dozens of variations to this game, just get creative! By performing random exercises throughout the day you are actually increasing your metabolic rate.  You will find you are more attentive at work and the work day will go by much faster. Give it a try!

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You are better off finding a balance between the two. Doing exercises like pullups, squats, pushups, and sprinting. Whilst also using some more direct core work to help improve your posture, balance, co-ordination and everyday movement. Basically helping you in the real world. A weak core is not a good thing….

weak or inflexible core muscles can impair how well your arms and legs function. And that saps power from many of the moves you make. Properly building up your core cranks up the power. A strong core also enhances balance and stability. Thus, it can help prevent falls and injuries during sports or other activities

So what exercises are we recommending and when? How about doing some core work on its own when your body is strong or after doing some cardio or playing sports. We aren’t going for rippling abs but rather a tight, balanced, and strong set of core muscles that will decrease your chance of injuries, improve your posture and athletic prowess.

Reverse Crunch – One of the best, it is scalable and gives the lower abs and back a challenging workout.

Twisting Crunches – Throw some of these in to work the obliques and mobilise your spine.

Planks – Simple but extremely effective at working deep into the core.

Spidermans – More compound ab exercise that will work your hips and lift the heart rate

So 4 exercises. How about doing 3 sets of each without break for 1 minute each. That is a total of 12 minutes and a great core workout that you can do 1-2 times a week. Stick to it for a month ans see the difference.

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In the age of the Obesity Epidemic, thousands of new diet fads coupled with an overload of health and fitness information, there are really only a few key tips you need to keep in mind to stay healthy and fit.  If you Google “best health tips” you will get over 1.3 million results. How is anyone supposed to sort through 1.3 million results?! Even if you do, how will you know which tips are true and which aren’t?  I’ve refined these tips down to only the best of the best.  The tips below are not only true; they are timeless, meaning they will be true for generations.  So if you know nothing about fitness or are an expert trainer, keep these tips in mind to be in top shape.

1. You Are What You Eat – The next time you want to put yourself in a bad mood, go grocery shopping and actually look at the nutrition labels, ingredients and packaging claims on the food you normally buy.  Products are often labeled “natural,” yet have high-fructose corn syrup in them. In fact, natural products can technically have pesticides in them and not even be mentioned on a nutrition label.  This is actually allowed according to the FDA.  I could go on with shocking statements about what is omitted from nutrition labels, but the bottom line is always try and cook your own unprocessed food.  When possible; steam or boil your food.  Your body will thank you in both the short and long term.

2. Stay Hydrated – This is one tip I can’t stress enough.  Many experts recommend drinking eight glasses of water a day.  Although healthy, this is a general guideline that has simply been passed down from generation to generation without any real scientific merit.  The proper consumption of water aids in digestion, absorption, circulation, creation of saliva, transportation of nutrients, maintenance of body temperature and more. When you feel your mouth is a bit dry, it means your body has been craving water for about 20 minutes. To answer the question all you beer lovers are asking now, yes beer is mostly water but it also contains alcohol, which causes dehydration.  A major—yet hardly ever discussed—advantage to water is the positive effect it can have on dieters.  Those on a diet should be extra vigilant about drinking water. Doing this will reduce your urge to drink calories from other liquids, and it is much easier to drink calories than eat them.  In addition to these benefits, water is also great for energizing muscles, flushing toxins out of your body and keeping your skin looking healthy.

3. Embrace Nano-Sport Periodization – Day after day I see the same people in the gym doing the same exercises over and over and over.  Your body has an amazing ability to adapt, thus reducing the effectiveness of your workouts over time, unless you change your routine often. Nano-sport Periodization is a phrase I coined for my fitness product Strength Stack 52, a deck of bodyweight fitness cards that keeps workouts dynamic and challenging.  Nano-sport Periodization will ensure your workouts are efficient, dynamic and effective.  First, let’s define Nano-sport Periodization:

Nano: Small or mini  - Limit your workouts to 30 minutes or less. Many scientific studies claim ¹ high intensity and fast workouts are the most beneficial for a healthy body.

Sport: Playing a game with a challenging component 

Have you ever played a sport with friends and realized after a half hour you are dripping with sweat and have burned more calories than you did all week in the gym? That’s because the power of a challenge brings out the best in people.  A challenge stimulates your mind to force your body to another level.  That’s because competition is fun, doesn’t adhere to a routine and stimulates a desire for you to win. It is human nature to be competitive and incorporating competition in your workout will push you harder.

I cringe when I see people in the gym with workouts printed that have pre-designated rep counts.  Using an arbitrary number to determine the end of the set is not beneficial.  For each set you should be testing your limits, not stopping when you reach a pre-designated number.

Periodization: Dividing exercises into segments of varying intensities

Almost every city in America now has CrossFit gyms, a term that hardly anyone knew existed 10 years ago.  CrossFit focuses on multi-joint and full body exercises, which has proven to be beneficial to your health and an efficient way to get an effective workout.  By working out in a group, as CrossFit enthusiasts do, you are getting out of your comfort zone and varying your workouts either by endurance, strength, time, or a combination of one or more of those.

4. Recovery is Key – Last but not least, let’s discuss recovery.  One of the most common causes of injury to athletes is overtraining. Resting properly allows your body to repair muscles and tissues. Between sets at the gym, rest 30 to 90 seconds, this allows your muscles to recover with the proper oxygen and blood flow needed to repair properly. Workouts with multi-joint movements require more rest than workouts with single joint movements.  If you are sore the day after your workout, you don’t need to take the day off.  The soreness you are experiencing is called DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness). DOMS is caused by microscopic tears inside the muscles. First, determine how sore you are.  If your muscles are sore to the touch or if you feel your range of motion is limited then take a day of rest or better yet, stretch your muscles. If you are just lightly sore, then do a light aerobic or weight lifting workout.

If you are sore before any physical activity, spend 5 to 10 minutes cycling to warm up your muscles and increase blood flow.  Be cautious about lifting weights when you are sore.  Lift weights no more than 30 percent of your one-rep max to prevent exacerbating the soreness and causing injury.  

With your new-found knowledge of health and fitness, grab yourself a deck of my new invention, Strength Stack 52 bodyweight fitness cards.

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Our bodies run on a delicate system with our fluids constantly being kept at a certain level of salt, sugar and minerals. This is regulated by our food intake, the fluids we drink and what kind of food/fluid that we drink or eat. Take for example plain water which we are told to drink all day long to stay ‘hydrated‘ this water contains no salt, sugar or pretty much anything else – therefore by drinking it we dilute out bodies delicately balanced fluids.

Now this can be a good thing if for instance you have just eaten a salty meal or have done exercise which has caused you to lose water and concentrate your blood mineral balance. On the other hand it can be counter productive if you havent eaten in hours or have been eating a low salt diet as water will just further dilute your bodies fluids leading to a host of symptoms like:

• Brain fog
• Cold hands and feet
• Low energy
• Cravings for food
• Low blood sugar (light handedness etc)

So how do you take care of this and drink the right amount of fluids to stay hydrated and maintain a good intercellular fluid level? Well it is pretty simple – listen to your bodies call for hydration… When are you normally most thirsty or actually craving a glass of water? It is probably shortly after eating or while eating a salty meal, or first thing in the morning.

The other day a friend of mine was complaining of feeling light-headed mid morning and then decided it was because she hadn’t been drinking enough water, so proceeded to have a few large glasses. This is exactly the wrong thing to do – mid morning is the time when we are all susceptible to low blood sugar and a few glasses of water would just further pronounce the symptoms she was experiencing  What should she have done? well a small snack like a banana with peanut butter or granola bar would have been a better option to rebalance her blood sugar and clear the light handedness, rather than a glass of water!

So going back to the original question, how much water? Here are some simple rules…

• Drink when you are thirsty, and genuinely thirsty
• Dont be scared of salting your food and even adding a pinch of salt to your water (especially after exercising)
• Avoid too much water in between meals
• Our bodies are smart and they know when to drink - dont believe the 2L of water a day hype
• Drink water with meals when it will be used to package nutrients and transport them around the body
• No harm in sipping on fresh fruit juices to keep hydrated
• Watery foods (fruit, vegetables etc) do count towards your water intake

When it comes to water listen to your bodies calls for hydration and do not be sucked in by the idea we ‘need’ a certain amount each day which will cause you to drink for the sake of it.

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Another interesting post from Michael – We often get lured away into the mindset that certain things work or don’t work in the world of health and fitness. Here are five of the most common myths busted!

1- Myth: The more ab exercises I do, the skinnier my waist will be.

BUSTED: Doing stomach exercises can strengthen your abdominal muscles, but it won’t burn body fat to give you that 6-pack you’re after.  If you want your ab muscles to show, you need to either be naturally skinny or embrace a diet low in carbohydrates and high in proteins with a decent helping of healthy fats and fruits and vegetables.

2- Myth: My diet includes diet soda, it’s zero calories so it has to be good for me. 

BUSTED: According to a recent University of Texas study, drinking just two or more cans a day accelerated waistline expansion by 500%. The artificial sweeteners disrupt the body’s ability to regulate calorie intake. In other words, your body is being tricked into thinking it’s ingesting sugar, so you crave more food and as a result, eat more food than you would have without drinking the soda.

3- Myth: By working out, I can convert fat into muscle.

BUSTED: You cannot convert fat into muscle as they are completely different.  In fact, when working out it is best to focus on either losing fat or gaining muscle.   In order to gain muscle, you have to eat more calories than you burn and, in order to lose body fat, you must burn more calories than you consume.

4- Myth: Cardio is more important for fat loss than weight lifting.

BUSTED: You will definitely burn calories completing a cardio workout, but to lose weight your primary concern should be muscle loss.  Muscles make it easier for your body to prevent fat gain.  Your body will burn more calories maintaining muscle than maintaining fat. In other words, the more muscle you build, the more calories your body will burn each day.  The less muscle you have the lower your metabolism.  A great weight loss program should focus on (in this order) your caloric intake, weight training and then cardio.

 5- Myth: Stretching before a workout prevents injury and increased my performance.

BUSTED: I know, you grew up stretching before a workout or sporting event because your coach or parents told you it was beneficial.  You were probably told that stretching prevents injury, when in fact, the opposite is true.  Recent studies show that stretching before a workout will weaken the muscle by up to 30%.  By elongating your muscles before strenuous exercise you actually may be increasing the risk of injury. Instead of stretching before a workout, get your blood flowing through your muscles with some low impact cardio for 5 to 10 minutes.  Stretching after a workout is great and still proves to be beneficial.

With your new-found knowledge of health and fitness, grab yourself a deck of my new invention, Strength Stack 52 bodyweight fitness cards.

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1. Interval Running - The way I like to do interval running is by setting a timer to 1 minute work with 30 seconds of break time and repeat 8 times. That is a total of 12 minutes. enough time for a solid workout but not too long to get bored or overworked.

Pick two spots to run back and forth between and stick to that distance during the one minute. The distance of around 30 metres each way, this is great as it forces you to change direction every 5-10 seconds, this keeps your co-ordination and balance working. Although it is hard work the pain is over quickly – check out this research done on short hard intervals in comparison to standard duration workouts.

“The hard work is short,” “so it’s tolerable.” Members of a separate, exercise control group at the rehab center, assigned to complete standard 30-minute moderate-intensity workout sessions, have been watching wistfully as the interval trainers leave the lab before them. “They want to switch groups,”  - Dr Maureen MacDonald

2. BodyWeight Tabata’s - There have been several posts mentioning tabata’s on ZTF but they get another mention here due to their time efficiency and how effective they are when it comes to revving up the metabolism. They can be done using several different exercises but work best when you stick to one exercise or body part. For instance tabata squats or lunges are very effective in creating an oxygen debt in a large muscle group that will then go on to burn fat and build muscle for hours after the workout.

If you have a smart phone you can get one of the many tabata apps available. My favourite is Tabata Timer which is FREE.

3. A Run - Although everyone is about the short intense, interval workouts you can’t go wrong with an old-fashioned twenty or thirty minute run. While running is not something that we recommend you do every day it is a great tool to throw into your life for fat burning and generally feeling better. A run can clear your mind, relieve stress, boost endorphins and get your body into a fat burning zone. Couple it with a few sets of push ups and bodyweight squats and you have a pretty good full body workout that is also time efficient and requires no real equipment apart from sports shoes and clothes. Learn to run naturally and listen to your body though…

But she adds that the overarching message of the study is probably relevant for most runners. “You can optimize your gait naturally,” she says, “by becoming more conscious of your running movement and how it feels.” Your body, at least in the early stages of becoming a runner, can be a fine and knowledgeable coach. – find your ideal running form

It is important to run properly and learn a method of running that minimises impact and risk of injury for your joint. The article linked and quoted above is a great read.

So there it is, three ideas for fat burning workouts you can implement now to shed the holiday weight.

*Honourable Mention goes to Hill Sprints.

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Whether you’re a fitness enthusiast or just acquired your gym membership you have most likely scoured the internet for effective exercises to get you in shape.  As a fitness enthusiast for over 20 years, there isn’t a week that goes by where I don’t try and incorporate something new in my workout routine.  Your body has an amazing ability to adapt.  If you aren’t constantly challenging yourself with new techniques and exercises you are not maximizing your workout time. So I challenge you to incorporate all three of these below exercises in your next workout.

1. Body Rocks - Lay on your back with your legs in a vertical position and your arms over your head. Use your abs to rock your body up to almost a seated position. Rock back down. Do these for 30 seconds and your abs will feel like they’ve got the workout of a lifetime.

1. Shoulder Annihilators - Assume the push-up position with your forearms on the ground. Rotate up and out off one arm ending with your chest perpendicular to the ground.  Your shoulder muscle should be bearing the weight of the body rotation. Do 10 of these for each arm and your shoulders will definitely feel the burn.

1. Scorpions - Assume the push-up position. Move your left leg as far as possible past your right leg and rotate your head and body to the left. Repeat with other side. Do 10 of these on each side and your mid-section will wish you didn’t read this article.

All of the above exercises can be found in my new bodyweight fitness cards called Strength Stack 52.  Whether you choose to do the exercises above or find some different ones of your own, keep in mind that varying your workout is of utmost importance. I see too many people in the gym, like zombies, doing the same exercises week after week.  To maximize your exercise time, spend 15 minutes a week searching the internet for new exercises to do the following week.  This is the single easiest thing you can do to increase your workout effectiveness.

This article was written by Sergeant Michael Volkin, best-selling author of military basic training books and inventor of Strength Stack 52, a unique way to transform bodyweight exercises into a fun and competitive workout.

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