What you eat on a daily basis determines just about everything you can possibly imagine that goes with your body…your health, mental energy, body composition, athletic performance…you name it and what you eat has an impact on it.

These 7 simple rules are here to give you a little nudge in the right direction and make things a little easier for you in your own daily choices.

Rule #1 – If your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize it, don't eat very much of it

Many of the highly-processed pseudo-foods weren't around 50 years ago. Food was more "real" back then and it's an ideal you should strive for now. This basically means choose foods that are less processed and closer to their natural state. Notice I didn't say "don't eat it"…which leads me to Rule #2…

Rule #2 – No food ultimatums

The moment you say "I will never have pizza again," you will immediately start thinking about how much you miss having pizza, even if you hardly eat pizza to begin with. It's like telling somebody not to think about elephants…you just did it, didn't you . Same idea with food. That's why I never tell myself I can never have something…if I've got a specific goal and that food won't help me achieve it, I just say it's not on my list right now and I can have it later. No big deal.

Rule #3 – Don't keep junk in the house

And don't tell me you need to have junk food and sweets in the house "for the kids." If it's really for the kids, lock it up in a closet and give your kids the keys so you can't get at any of it then tell me if it's for the kids. Here's the other thing…your kids don't need that junk either!

Anyway, off on a tangent there – that's one excuse that gets me really whipped up. Bottom line is this…if you don't have it in the house, it takes a lot more effort to eat it. If it's in the house, it'll get eaten. If it's not, it won't. Simple.

Rule #4 – Multi-course meals will wipe out your digestion

The more different foods you eat in one meal, the harder it will be for your body to digest it all. Different foods and nutrients require different enzymes to digest…by combining too many foods in one meal, you will overload your digestive system and make it less efficient. If you frequently have digestive issues when you eat, try something radical and eat just one food per meal and see what happens. This is especially true of fruit and dairy. Fruit is best eaten separately and by itself.

Rule #5 – You don't have to eat 6 meals a day

That "small, frequent meals" rule you may be familiar with is actually based on a study that showed a very small increase in metabolic rate when a person eats a meal. This evolved into the idea that eating a bunch of small meals helps increase fat loss and nutrient utilization.

Naturally, this was immediately seized upon my supplement manufacturers who promoted the idea that you can't possibly eat FOOD that many times a day, so you should take our meal replacement supplement for those extra 3 meals.

Here's the thing…no study has ever confirmed that it's more efficient to eat 6 small meals as opposed to 3 big meals (or even 2!) in terms of body composition results. ZERO. Think about this…if you're constantly supplying your body with food, why would it need to burn bodyfat for energy then?

Rule #6 – Try to eat organic whenever possible

It's true…eating healthy can actually be pretty expensive. Unhealthy foods are generally cheaper because they can be manufactured in large quantities. Healthy foods are more expensive because they are more labor-intensive.

The payoff is that you won't die as soon when you eat healthy foods as opposed to unhealthy foods. I know that's putting it bluntly, but it's true. And you won't suffer from all the food-related diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes and MANY others (honestly, the vast majority of diseases and conditions being treated by doctors today are entirely avoidable with a good diet).

So when it comes to eating organic, just do the best you can. Get it when you can and realize this…when a food is of higher quality, it's more digestible and you're going to get more nutrition out of it and you can eat smaller servings (at least that's what I keep telling myself when I eat grass-fed beef…DANG is that tasty…it's hard not to eat twice as much of it).

Rule #7 – Take supplements intelligently

I judge supplements primarily on their nutritional value, not for how many bolts of lightning appear in their magazine ads. The majority of the supplements I take are there to help support my nutritional state, not to muck with my physiology.

I take a multivitamin, protein, vitamin C, vitamin D3 (for immune system function – VERY important in the winter!), magnesium, krill oil, fish oil, BCAA's, K2, calcium, and a few other things, depending on my current goals. All that exotic garbage you see ads for in the magazines is mainly just that…exotic garbage. You don't need it.

Conclusion:

These 7 rules are just a starting point…the key thing to remember is that good nutrition doesn't have to be complicated. If you know and follow some simple rules, you can eat healthy and nutritious food without worry and get the results you're looking for!

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Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 20 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's 30-day "Dirty Little Secret Program for Building Muscle and Burning Fat FAST," available at http://budurl.com/betteru

Here are some other great reads from my partners at Prograde ….

1. How To Knock 20 Years Off Your Body
2. Really Cool New Research On Fat Loss (BCAAs)
3. 5 Rookie Muscle Mistakes + 5 Belly Fat Foods to Avoid
4. Bathing Suit Nightmares ?
5. 1 Weird Belly Flab Buster
6. The Energy and Weight Loss Connection Nobody Talks About
7. DO NOT Let This Tropical Nutrient Source Fool You (Warning)
8. The Importance of Multi-Vitamins
9. The Most Critical Part Of Your Workout

Sincerely,
Lewis – Owner
www.atozfitness.com
www.articles.atozfitness.com - Fitness Article Blog
www.atoztoptrainers.com – 8 Top trainers reveal all.

If you have any questions, you can contact us by clicking here.

© Enterprise AtoZfitness

Click here to read this brand new article from Nick Nilsson that just came across my desk.

Till next time,
Lewis
Publisher
www.atozfitness.com

With this exercise you actually HAVE to use the power rack in order to perform it…and the reason WHY is going to light up your biceps like crazy!

Basically, one of the weaknesses of the barbell curl is the bottom of the movement…there is very little resistance until you get the bar partway up, plus you get basically ZERO stretch on the biceps at the start of the movement. Stretching a muscle is extremely beneficial for muscle growth.

Now, what if you could do an barbell curl exercise that put a good stretch on the biceps at the bottom then went right into the NORMAL execution of the exercise from there so you get the best of both worlds?

Well, I can tell you from experience, you get GREAT bicep training out of it. And yes, it CAN be done.

Here's how you do it…

First, set the rails of the rack to just very slightly below the dead hang bottom position of your normal barbell curl. Set the bar on the rails and set it right against the uprights. Use JUST the bar the first time you try this one in order to get a feel for how it's done. Then you can start moving slowly up in weight (you don't need a whole lot for this one).

Set your feet back a few inches the bar so you have to lean forward to grab it.

Set your hands on the bar in your normal curl grip then lean forward over the bar, like a ski jumper position. Your thighs will be bracing against the bar in this position.

Your arms wil be locked out straight with wrists bent backwards. This is already putting a good stretch on the biceps.

Now, you're going to use your BICEPS to push your body back up to the standing position. Keep your arms locked out straight and imagine pushing your elbows forward, which will push your body back because the bar is braced against the rack uprights.

Push until you're almost at the normal bottom position of the curl (standing up) and then go directly into the barbell curl.

Do these with STRICT form, going for feel. This takes full advantage of the increased muscle fiber activation that happens when you start an exercise from a stretched position like this.

Come all the way up to the top (this part is really just a normal barbell curl) and hold.

Now lower the bar down under control then, as you get near the bottom, move the bar forward and set it back down on the rails and against the uprights of the rack to begin the process again.

This one will really wake up your bicep muscle fibers! The stretch at the bottom brings a whole new level of intensity to the barbell curl that you do immediately after that stretch portion.

It's going to necessitate using a bit lighter weight on the curls (to start with), but more than makes up for it by dramatically increasing the tension on the biceps.

—

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——————

Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 20 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "The Best Arm Exercises You've Never Heard Of" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's 30-day "Dirty Little Secret Program for Building Muscle and Burning Fat FAST," available at

Publisher
www.atozfitness.com

By Nick Nilsson – For AtoZfitness.com subscribers

Yes, it seems like such a simple thing. Now consider this…HOW you breathe during your training can have a HUGE impact on your strength and muscle activation! Breathe wrong and you could be throwing away results.

Breathing is one THE most often overlooked pieces of the puzzle when it comes to weight training…and it can have a tremendous impact on the results you get from your training!

Here's the thing that a lot of people don't know about breathing…different exercises require different breathing strategies.

Yep, how you breathe in a heavy squat is not even close to how you should breathe while doing a pulldown.

So here's a rundown of how to breathe while doing some of the more popular exercises (I will assume your form is generally good – going in depth into proper form for each exercise would make this a book instead of an article!).

** Please note, if you have high blood pressure or any issues with holding your breath (e.g. you easily get light-headed), you'll need to adjust these breathing recommendations accordingly. These instructions (for a few of the exercises, at least) are intended for those who don't have issues with short periods of breath holding.

1. Squats

As you start the descent, inhale deeply so that you complete the inhalation by the time you're about halfway down. Hold your breath from this point on, all the way to the bottom and then about 1/3 to 1/2 of the way as you come back up. Then exhale until you come all the way to the top. The reason you want to hold your breath like this is to maximize the stability of your abdominal region.

Breathing in or breathing out (especially out as you come up out of the very bottom), will destabilize the core area. To maximize strength and power, your muscles need a stable platform to work from. Keeping that solid core will also save your lower back from strain because more tension will held in the abs rather than being forced onto the lower back.

One of the key things I've found in my own squat is that core strength (in the frontal abdominal wall) is a HUGE part of successfully coming out of the bottom. If I breathe out at the bottom, I'm done. But if I save that exhalation until after I get past that point where I need maximum core stability, I'll hit the lift and power through that sticking point.

2. Bench Press

Improper breathing on the bench press is one of THE biggest reasons people are weak on this lift. If you breath wrong, you lose that stability (just like in the squat) and don't provide your body with a solid platform from which to move the weight.

This technique applies to heavier to moderate-weight benching – it's not as critical on the lighter, higher-rep training to follow it as is because the load is a lot less.

Picture yourself at the top of the movement with the barbell locked out. Now lower the bar, inhaling a deep breath as you come down. Here's the key…you should finish taking in that breath by the time you're halfway down (around your sticking point). This is important for torso stability.

Hold your breath during the bottom phase of the movement, just like in the squat. If you start breathing out right at the bottom, you will not only destabilize your torso, which will change the leverage in your shoulders, it'll also sink down your chest and flatten your shoulder blades out (which should be held in tight behind you during the whole movement to maximize leverage).

Once you hit your sticking point THEN start to exhale forcefully through pursed lips. At this point, it's actually good to change the leverage in your shoulders. When the bar is on your chest, it's not good, but when the bar is halfway up, it can give you a little extra leverage to get past that sticking point.

Keep blowing out all the way to lockout. Then you can go right into your next rep or, if you need it, hold that lockout and take in a breath or two before starting the next rep.

3. All Versions of Rows, Pulldowns and Chin-Ups/Pull-Ups

Breathing during back training is, to be honest, completely misunderstood by most trainers…if you have trouble feeling your back while training your back, it's generally your breathing pattern that is messing you up.

You have to breathe BACKWARDS when training back or your lats will never be in a proper biomechanical position to fully engage. I'll explain…

Generally speaking, you're told to exhale on the exertion and inhale on the lowering phase of an exercise.

But here's the thing and where people get confused…in back training, the exertion LOOKS like the lowering phase of the exercise so THAT is when people tend to exhale! Instead, you actually want to INHALE as you perform the exertion. I'll use the pulldown as an example.

When you perform a pulldown, you want to puff your chest to meet the bar and have an arch in your lower back to fully activate the lats. You don't want a flat chest and a vertical torso position.

So when you pull the bar down, that's the exertion. If you exhale (which you normally would do) this actually caves in the chest and straightens out your lower back. The moment this happens, it reduces lat involvement and puts more stress onto other muscles.

Switch things up and INHALE as you're pulling down.

Now as you pull down, your chest is expanding and rising up to meet the bar, which instantly puts the lats in their best possible position to activate.

The difference is instantaneous and HUGE. If you've always had trouble feeling your back work, this will be a big eye-opener for you.

As you let the bar come back on the negative, THAT is when you exhale. It's a bit of a mind-bender the first time you do it…I can promise you it'll make a big difference in your back training.

You'll now just apply that same principle to the rest of your back exercises (except the deadlift, which is a whole different animal…more akin to the squat in terms of breathing). When you row, inhale as you pull the handles or bar into your abdomen. When you chin, inhale as you pull yourself up.

4. Barbell Curls

Another very popular exercise is the barbell curl…you may have heard of it

One of the main problems people have in the barbell curl is they are entirely too loose. When doing ANY exercise with moderately-heavy to heavy weight, you should basically "solidify" your body, tightening everything up so that you're operating from a strong, stable base.

Even a barbell curl should be done with a rock-solid body.

So at the bottom of the movement, start by taking in a deep breath, puff your chest up high and get your shoulders back. In my experience, I've found it best to keep your breath held until just after you get past the half-way point of the curl. To get past that sticking point, you need the most stability possible for your levers to operate maximally.

Once you get past that mid-way point, THEN exhale forcefully but not completely. You still need to keep some torso stability for holding the weight at the top of the exercise.

Hold at the top for a moment. At this point you have a choice…you can immediately start lowering the bar and inhale on the way down or you can hold at the top and take a quick breath in and out then inhale on the way down after that.

5. Deadlifts

Proper breathing for the deadlift is very similar to breathing for the squat…you want to have the most stable core at the bottom of the movement. In the case of the deadlift, this is the START of the movement.

So get yourself set up in front of the bar and get ready to lift. It's important to note with the deadlift (and I will include a technique point here because I think it's an important one), don't try and pop the bar off the floor, especially when using heavy weight. You want to SQUEEZE the bar off the floor. A heavy bar has to bend and if you pop it off the floor, the weight will bounce up then down and pull you back down. So get the bend into the bar with your initial lift THEN pull the weight off the floor.

When you first start the lift, you'll want to hold your breath during the first part until around the point where the bar has cleared your knees. I say "around" because if you're using really heavy weight, it may take you a bit of time to get to that point and you may need to start to exhale a bit sooner in the range of motion, i.e. below your knees.

This bottom range is the most vulnerable time for your lower back and you want to keep the greatest stability in your core during that time. So do hold your breath a bit at the bottom…don't start the exhale (through pursed lips, like you're blowing up a balloon) until you get that bar at least a few inches off the ground and moving up.

Keep going to the top, then take a quick breath then lower the weight.

Personally, I prefer to hold my breath on the way DOWN as well, simply because lowering the weight is also a vulnerable time for your lower back, especially as you get near the bottom. So inhale at the top then hold as you get down to the halfway point.

—

Conclusion:

Breathing plays a BIG role in proper lifting and in achieving maximum strength. It'll also make your lifting safer and overall, more effective. Give these breathing tips a try in your training and you'll feel the difference immediately!

——————

Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 20 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!", "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's 30-day "Dirty Little Secret Program for Building Muscle and Burning Fat FAST

Publisher
www.atozfitness.com

The function of the gluteus maximus muscle is to extend the hip…this essentially means bringing the leg backwards.

The treadmill tread (when it's running) physically BRINGS your leg backwards with no help from the glutes, taking away all the function of the glutes when you're on it.

So every time you do your cardio on the treadmill, you're overworking your hip flexors (which are the muscles that work to bring the leg back up in front of you) and underworking the glutes.

This can actually make posture and lower back problems WORSE (especially if you don't stretch the hip flexors after working on the treadmill) by heigtening the imbalances of the muscles of the hip.

And if you already find you have trouble feeling your glutes working when you do lower body exercises, "normal" powered treadmill training is about the WORST choice of cardio machines for you. It's doing nothing to help activate the glutes.

So here's the dead-simple tip for the next time you do anything on the treadmill…

Turn it off.

That's it!

When you use the treadmill without it being powered, what do you think has to supply the energy to move that tread?

Your GLUTES.

It's a DIRECT action for the glutes (and the rest of the lower body) that has you actually accomplishing some WORK rather than just moving your legs along for the ride.

This is also the reason you can run and walk so much faster and easier on the treadmill…the machine is doing the work of moving your legs backwards and you're not required to use the BIG muscles of the glutes to actually propel your body forward.

And the most IRONIC part of it?

This technique actually works better on a machine that normally IS powered. I'm sure you've heard of or seen treadmills that aren't powered…these have much less resistance to the tread being moved backwards because they want people to actually use them (you know what I mean .

When you're using a machine that is normally powered, there is significantly more resistance to the belt moving without that outside power and you're going to get a GOOD workout out of it.

So next time you use the treadmill, leave it off. Set your hands on the bar and lean forward like you're about to push a car. And start walking. Use GLUTE power to get the tread moving and keep it moving.

You're going to get a MUCH better glute workout and cardio workout by doing this.

On a side note, if you find the resistance is a bit too much on the treadmill, turn it back on and set it to an incline. Then turn it back off again and do the walking on a slope.

By walking on an incline like this, you actually make the exercise easier. Gravity is going to give you some assistance in moving that tread backwards but you'll still need a decent amount of push to keep the tread moving.

Once you've developed a feel for what it takes to move the tread on your own, then you can progress to some interval training and running.

The idea is exactly the same as with walking…get your hands on the bar and PUSH.

With the running, I recommend doing it as interval training, not just because it's harder but to MAKE it harder.

You see, once you get the tread moving, it takes less effort to KEEP it moving. So what I do is run for about 5 to 10 seconds then slow down then run again, then slow down.

What this does is increase the inertia of the tread, making you have to push harder again to get it up to speed again. This really increases the workload on the glutes and also the cardio training you get from this dead treadmill training.

If you do a lot or all of your cardio on the treadmill, you're going to be in for a BIG surprise when you turn it off and use it

It's going to wake up your glutes and double or even TRIPLE the cardio workload on you.

Now, what would this great training tip be without a shameless promotional plug for my book "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!"…a book designed specifically for glute training and nothing but glute training.

Ladies, click here to read about it	Guys, click here to read about it.

This cardio exercise goes PERFECTLY with the program. In fact, using this unpowered treadmill walking or running can actually HELP build the glutes because of the active resistance on the glutes and because of the tremendous bloodflow being forced into the glutes with every step you take (and increased blood supply is critical for developing any stubborn muscles).

——————

Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 20 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!", "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's 30-day "Dirty Little Secret Program for Building Muscle and Burning Fat FAST

By Nick Nilsson

You've got things to do and places to be…when you've got limited time available to train, you have to make FULL use of every single second you have available in your workout…

And that means circuit training…

And that means not your "normal" circuit training, either!

I've got a circuit for you that uses heavy weight, low reps, and covers all your major bodyparts in a simple, 3 exercise circuit. You'll get NO rest during the entire time period (I recommend at least 15 minutes), which will kick your metabolism into overdrive VERY quickly and help you burn fat FAST.

Plus, as a bonus, you're going to get an AMAZING core workout due to the single-dumbell work you'll be doing. Training unilaterally (a fancy way of saying one arm at a time) forces the core to engage strongly to stabilize the torso, and you'll be doing it on every single set you do.

You might not notice this core effect so much if you're doing high rep, light weight circuit training, so THIS circuit is done using 3 reps per side per exercise, using a moderately heavy dumbell (I'm using a 105 lb dumbell in the demo).

The first exercise you're going to do is the One Arm Dumbell Floor Press. This one is a GREAT core exercise and that one that's going to really light up your midsection in addition to your chest, shoulders and triceps. This is probably going to be weakest exercise of the three, so use a weight that you can handle specifically on this one.

Start with the dumbell on the floor then sit with your legs on either side of the dumbell. Reach forward and grab it with hands then set it on your thigh. Lay back on the floor and set your left upper arm flat on the floor, taking ALL the tension off the chest. You're basically balacing the dumbell with your forearm at this point. Your left leg should be shifted out a bit wide to the side to help stabilize for the press (you'll feel this when you go to start the press).

Now press up. You'll feel this a fair bit in the triceps, just fyi. And it'll hit your lower abdominal area/lower obliques, in addition to the transversus (the deep muscles of the core).

Do 3 reps on the left arm then set the dumbell on your chest and switch hands. Do the press on the other side now, being sure to set your same-side leg out wide to stabilize. Press up for 3 reps. To set it on the ground, grab it with both hands then roll to the side and set it on the floor.

Now stand up and do a one-arm dumbell row with the dumbell. I recommend using the same arm to start each exercise here, to give it maximum rest, e.g. if you started the press with your left arm, start the row with your left arm, too. You can brace your non-working arm on your knee to solidify your body for the exercise. This single arm row hits the rotational-stability aspect of the core as well.

Do 3 reps then switch to the other arm.

Next, set the weight on the floor and go straight into the next exercise, One Dumbell Split Squats. Hold the dumbell in your left hand and lead with your right leg, so the dumbell is in front of your back leg.

Do 3 reps then repeat on the other side for 3 reps.

Holding the dumbell in one hand as you do the split squat also puts rotational-stability tension on the core (see why this gives you GREAT core training, too)…everything you do in this circuit involves core stability with fairly heavy weight.

Now, with NO rest, go right back into the One Dumbell Floor Press.

And repeat for 15 minutes total training time.

You can do shorter or longer with this circuit, depending on the time you have available to you. I found 15 minutes to be a good range.

This is simple, straightforward training that will hit every major part of your body, and the secondary ones that contribute to these 3 big movements. Targeting these big "hot zones" with this much training volume will get your metabolism ROARING.

It's going to build strength and muscle mass along with your cardio capacity and has tremendous core-training benefits (which you will absolutely feel for the next few days after doing this!). Your core gets worked with all the movements but the rest of your bodyparts get selective rest as you work each side of your body with the different movements.

And all you need is a single dumbell and a patch of floor space to do it!

This workout can be done anytime you like, especially if you just need to do a fast workout covering all your bodyparts.

To see pictures and video of this technique in action, click this link.

And if you want an even MORE detailed fat-loss program that scripts out EVERY single training day and meal for you, definitely check out my Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss program. When I want to lose fat FAST, this is the one I use. It'll take you through everything you need to know to drop even stubborn fat extremely quickly and efficiently…every single day of the 36 day program is laid out for you…set, reps, exercises, what to eat, how much to eat and what supplements you can take to get even better results!

——————

Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 18 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's "2 Simple Rules to Double Your Muscle-Building Results"

have a great day,
Lewis

Publisher
www.atozfitness.com

By Nick Nilsson

Stuck in a rut? Hit a plateau? It's time to stop phoning in your workout and put some BRAINPOWER into action.

One of the most common issues I see with people in the gym, ESPECIALLY those who are having trouble getting results, is a lack of mental focus on the exercises they're performing.

Sure, they're going through the motions and in a lot of cases even lifting a substantial amount of weight…but what they don't realize is that by really engaging their BRAIN in the act of lifting they could be getting MUCH better results with the same amount of effort.

So to help with that, I've put together a list of my favorite "mental notes" for some of the most common exercises in the gym…using this can make an immediate difference in your exercise performance and even add some substantial weight to your lifts!

1. Bench Press – Push Your Body Through the Floor

Instead of focusing on pushing the BAR away from you, try imagining as though the bar is stationary and you're pushing your BODY down through the floor. This mentally changes the bench press exercise from an open-chain movement (where the resistance is moving and your body stays stationary) to a closed-chain movement (where the hand or foot is fixed and cannot move and your body is all or part of the resistance, like a push-up).

Closed-chain movements are more effective for muscle fiber activation and by at least MENTALLY changing the movement to a closed-chain exercise, you can potentially achieve some of the benefits of it.

2. Deadlifts – Fall Backwards

When doing a straight bar deadlift, as you're pulling the bar up your shins, mentally picture yourself falling/shifting your weight backwards as you're pulling up. This helps improve the leverage of the lift, using your bodyweight to help get the bar up. When you just pull straight up, you don't get this advantage. And wear long socks or pants if you don't want deadlifting "battle scars" up and down your shins because that bar should stay as close to your legs as possible

3. Squats – Pull Down on the Bar

To lock your torso and core into the squat, grip the bar HARD and pull down on it as you squat. Imagine like you're trying to bend that bar in half over your back. This locks the back muscles into a more solid position and helps stabilize the torso during the squat. This is especially critical as you start moving heavier weights in order to protect your spine.

4. Seated Cable Rows – Push Your Sternum into the Handle

To really maximize the contraction in the lats and other upper back muscles when doing a cable row, when you come to the top of the movement, instead of focusing on pulling your shoulders back and in (which is still effective, don't get me wrong), actively try to push your sternum (breastbone) into the cable handle. I find this gives an even stronger contraction than trying to pull the elbows in as it gives you a goal in FRONT of you to focus on achieving. The back contraction then happens automatically.

5. Barbell Curls – Push Elbows Together

At the top of a standing barbell curl, hold that position for a few seconds and try this…push your elbows together as though trying to touch them together. Because your hands are locked onto the bar, I find this increases the contraction by attempting to increase the degree of supination of the forearm. Even though it may not actually increase the supination, the act of TRYING is what will force the greater contraction.

It works because the OTHER major function of the bicep muscle is supination (elbow flexion is the first), which is basically rotation your hand from a palms-down position to a palms-up position. This elbow trick at the top works that supination function.

6. Seated Dumbell Shoulder Press – Bring Your Chest Up to Meet the Dumbells

When doing this exercise, as you lower the dumbells into the bottom position, I want you take a deep breath in and try to mentally focus on bringing the chest UP to meet the dumbells while keeping your shoulder girdle DOWN. It's important when doing this that you bring the dumbells ALL the way down as far as you can…until they almost touch your shoulders.

This trick will force you to reduce the weight you're using but it's going to work the actual shoulder muscles twice as hard and take the emphasis off the triceps, which tend to take over in the shortened range of motion that most people gravitate to with this exercise (because they can use more weight).

It works by increasing the amount of stretch that gets put on the deltoids at the bottom – shoulder girdle down and chest up is what does it. It'll be humbling at first but work with it and your shoulder development will SKYROCKET.

7. Stiff-Legged Deadlifts – Raise the Toes and/or Paw the Ground

This exercise is notoriously hard for people to feel the hamstrings working. I used to have this problem myself for a LONG time so don't feel bad if it's happened to you. I've got two techniques for this one…one is actually physical and the other is mental.

The physical trick is to elevate your forefeet…I usually use foam wedges or a couple of 25 lb plates. Set your heels on the floor and set your forefoot area on the raised edges of the plates, similar to a calf stretch…and this works BECAUSE it puts a stretch on your calves. Now do the exercise. I felt this in my hamstrings the very first time I did it.

The mental trick is to imagine pawing the ground with your feet as you start the lift. Think of a bull about to charge and it's pawing the ground….essentially, you're to activating the hamstrings at the hip by attempting to produce forward motion. Since you're planted on the ground, you're not going to be going forward but the mental intention to move forward will result in hamstring activation.

And if you put BOTH of these tricks together, your hamstrings will be SINGING when you're doing SLDL's

CONCLUSION:

Give these mental tricks a try next time you train any of these exercises and you'll know what it means to LOOK like you're doing everything the same yet FEELING like you're doing a completely different exercise.

I can promise you'll feel your muscles working a way they've never worked before and you will BLAST past strength and muscle plateaus.

——————

Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 18 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's "2 Simple Rules to Double Your Muscle-Building Results"

have a great day,
Lewis

Publisher
www.atozfitness.com

I'll keep this short and sweet!

If you haven't already picked up a copy of Nick Nilsson's "Mad Scientist Muscle" program and wanted to read a review of it first, I've got just what you're looking for.

In this review, you'll get the full details of how this program works and whether it'll really add pounds of muscle mass onto you.  It breaks down exactly how the "controlled overtraining" theory (which all the programs are based on) works and whether the structural training (which is designed to improve your body's physiology to better support muscle growth) is actually scientifically possible!

Check it out here:  http://budurl.com/sciencemusclereview

Bottom line is, you want to build muscle and you want to do it without hitting plateaus.  You may want to gain muscle to get bigger for sports, to be stronger, to improve your health, or heck, to just flat-out LOOK better for girls (or guys!).

"Mad Scientist Muscle" is an extreme well-designed set of programs that can get you there.  But YOU have to take the first step!

==> http://crazyscientistmuscle.com (click here to learn more)

 Lewis
www.atozfitness.com

P.S.  Don't forget, you've got until Friday at midnight to take that step towards building the physique you WANT.  Nick has the book on a launch discount until then.  After that, the price goes up!

== http://crazyscientistmuscle.com

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Good morning,

If you are not on the AtoZ Focus on www Fitness Newsletter e-mail list you might have missed the brand new product launch from our firend Nick nilsson.

Here is what I sent to all my subscribers as well as an added bonus to blog subscribers a review of Nicks new  Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass .

Original message follows …..

Don’t Let Genetics Slow Down YOUR Muscle Growth! 

Rather than haphazardly doing sets and exercises in hopes that something will result in bigger muscles…rather than calculating percentages and tables trying to figure out what weights to use to try and squeeze just one more ounce of growth out…

Here is that link…  

10 Things You Can Do RIGHT NOW To Increase Your Bench Press FAST

By Nick Nilsson

Improving the bench press is ALWAYS at the top of almost every lifter’s list of goals.
Put these 10 tips into practice and power up your bench press fast!

The flat barbell bench press…the lift that everyone wants to know how much you can do when they find out you train. So you want to get your numbers moving in the right direction again? These 10 quick tips will make a difference in your strength and boost your bench FAST.

Keep in mind, these tips are coming from someone who has almost NO genetic gifts as far as bench press is concerned (bad shoulders, long arms). It’s among my weakest lifts and I have to struggle for every single pound I add onto it. Yet with those limitations, using the tips I’ll share with you below, I’ve managed to work up to a maximum single at 350 lbs. So it CAN be done!

At the end of the article, I’ll include a link where you can see pictures and video of some of these tips in action.

1. Work your Rotator Cuff muscles

Yes, this is completely unglamorous but it has the potential to add 20 to 30 pounds to your bench press in a matter of weeks. The reason? The Rotator Cuff muscles are the four small muscles that stabilize the humerus (your upper arm bone) in the shoulder socket.

Most people rarely, if EVER, work the Rotator Cuff but a couple of sets at the end of each workout can really make a HUGE difference in your bench press by helping to stabilize the shoulder joint.

The exercise that I use is one I call the "3 In 1 Rotator Cuff Raise." It’s an exercise I invented to work all 3 major planes of movement that the Rotator Cuff muscles operate in in one basic movement. It’s very effective and very time-efficient. Two sets of 8 reps of this at the end of each workout is all you need. I have a video and pics of this exercise at the link at the bottom of the article.

2. Get your grip-width right

Where you grip the bar can make or break your bench press before you even do a single rep. If you grip the bar in too close, you’re putting more stress on the triceps, which limits your pushing power and increases the distance you have to press the bar. If you grip the bar too wide, you do decrease the distance the bar travels but you put excessive stress on the shoulder joints.

So what is the best place to grip the bar? This is best determined with no weight on the bar at all and with somebody watching your form. Lie down and take the bar off the rack and lower the bar to your chest. Have your spotter eyeball your forearms. At the bottom of the press, your forearms should be perfectly vertical. THAT will give you the greatest pressing power as you won’t lose any power inside or outside.

It’s the same concept as throwing a punch – if the bones of the arm aren’t lined up properly when it connects, you lose a lot of power at impact.

3. Learn how to breathe

When you’re doing a heavy press, trunk stabilization is much more important than when you’re doing lighter, higher-rep training. You need a strong, solid base to push off of to really move the most weight.

When doing a heavy lift for only a few reps, breathe in deeply on the way down, inflating your chest as much as possible (this has the dual effect of increasing the stability of your trunk AND decreasing the distance the bar must travel, which is a bonus!). But as you press the bar off your chest don’t immediately blow out all your air in one big blow. That will destabilize the chest and weaken the base you’re pushing from.

Think of it this way…it would be like trying to do a dumbell press on the Swiss Ball as somebody is letting the air out of it FAST!

So as you start to press the weight, blow your air out through pursed lips. Basically, pretend you’re blowing up a really thick balloon. You want to keep your breathing muscles in your rib cage absolutely solid as they very slowly force the air out. This keeps your trunk solid and stabilized as you press, which is critical. The moment you lose that stability, you lose the lift.

4. Don’t neglect back training

Back training is important to your bench press in 3 major ways.

Remember what I said about stability in the previous point? Your back makes up a BIG portion of that base that stabilizes your body. The wider the base, the bigger the structure it can support (i.e. more weight). A comparatively weak back will reduce the amount of weight you can bench.

The second point is thickness. The thicker your back, the shorter the distance the bar has to travel and the more weight you’ll be able to lift. Look at how thick the torsos of the best bench pressers in the world are – they have huge barrel chests, thick backs and relatively short arms – their range of motion is probably about HALF of what a "normal" person’s range of motion is with the bench press. The thicker your back, the shorter the range of motion and the more weight you’ll be able to press.

The third point is muscular balance. If you’re constantly doing pushing movements, your body will overdevelop those pushing muscles, which will lead to unnatural shortening and potential weakness. You MUST work the back muscles to pull everything into proper alignment. Walking around with your shoulders hunched forward and your arms bouncing around in front of you doesn’t look cool – I can promise you that.

5. Don’t forget to press with your legs, too

Leg drive is VERY important to maximizing your bench press strength on maximum lifts. When you set your feet for benching, don’t just place them anywhere and let nature take its course. Set your feet solidly on the ground and bend your knees a little past 90 degrees.

Here’s why…when you’re at the bottom of the bench press, driving with the legs can help you get that weight moving. You can demonstrate this to yourself by lying on the flat bench and setting your feet on the ground. Now think of how you’d need to set your feet if you wanted to use your feet/legs to slide yourself up the bench. THAT is what you do when you drive with your legs – you basically try and use your legs to slide yourself up the bench. But because the weight is holding you down, that force goes to helping push the weight up.

This leg drive is used at the bottom of the press to get the weight moving and makes a HUGE difference with getting big weights moving.

6. Get those shoulder blades squeezed together

This goes back to trunk stability. If you’re not consciously and religiously squeezing your shoulder blades together when you set yourself up on the bench press, you’re instantly putting yourself at a disadvantage.

To do this, lie down on the bench and grab the bar. Lift your body up off the bench then try and touch your shoulder blades together behind your back. Get them tucked in as tight as possible. When you set yourself back down, you’ll find you’re not only more stable on the bench but your shoulders are in a stronger pressing position AND your torso is actually a little thicker (which means shorter range of motion)!

7. Do partial-range training to strengthen your connective tissue

One big thing that’s often missing in the training routine of a person looking to maximize strength is a focus on connective tissue training. You can build huge, strong muscles but the movement is only as strong as the weakest link. If that weakest link is connective tissue, best case is it will limit the amount of weight you can lift. Worst case, you’ll snap your tendons when your muscles move weights that your connective tissue can’t handle!

So how do we strengthen connective tissue? That requires VERY heavy weight, the kind that can only be used with partial-range training like lockouts in the rack.

For building up your connective tissue specifically for bench press, DEFINITELY work on rack lockouts and static holds with monster weight.

I’ve got more information specifically on lockout partial bench press here:

http://www.powerfultrainingsecrets.com/trial-membership/19-partial-bench-press.htm

Personally, I really enjoy lockout training because you can use a LOT of weight (up to two times or more of your one rep max!).

8. Use training bands

Bands are one of the most useful training tools you can use with the bench press. There are two main ways to go…working AGAINST the bands to increase explosive power and working WITH band assistance to move more weight and more closely mimic the strength curve of the bench press (harder at the bottom, easier at the top).

When using the bands to work on explosive training, you attach them to something solid on the floor and then to the bar. You use a lighter weight on the barbell for these. Then, when you lift, you explode up as fast and as powerfully as you can against the bands. The bands stretch as you come up, slowing the bar so your muscles don’t have to. This teaches your muscles to fire at a much faster rate.

The other method is to use the bands for assistance (called Reverse Band Bench Press). With this technique, you attach the bands to the top of the rack and to the bar below. As you lower the weight, the bands stretch, making the bottom of the press easier by removing some of the resistance. As you press up, the bands lose tension, making you press more of the weight yourself, which exactly mimics the mechanics of the bench press.

Both of these techniques are great additions to your bench press training routine. You can grab bands here:

http://www.fitstep.com/goto/bands.htm

9. Don’t forget about decline bench press

One of the best things about the decline bench press is that you can use a bit more weight on it than you can on the regular flat bench due to the change in biomechanics and somewhat decreased range of motion. Working with heavier weight is good in two ways – mentally and physically. Mentally, it helps prepare your mind for working with heavier weight. Physically, it helps prepare your body for handling heavier weight on the flat bench.

10. Do your bench pressing in the power rack

Even if you have access to a regular bench press station at your gym, I HIGHLY recommend doing your bench pressing in the rack. Why? Two reasons.

The first is safety. You can easily set the rails to just slightly below the bottom-most position of your bench press. If you can’t finish a rep, you just set the bar on the rails, roll the bar forward and slide yourself out from under it. No harm done, no spotter necessary. You can’t do that on a regular bench press station!

The second is the freedom to REALLY PUSH YOURSELF without fear of dropping the weight and not being able to get out from under the bar. When you’re in a regular free bench press station, there is always that nagging fear that if you don’t make a lift, you’re going to have the bar come down on you.

When you do your pressing in the rack with safety rails set, that will NEVER happen and you can really free yourself to push things to the limits without having to worry about crushing yourself under the bar!

I have ALWAYS found it ironic that the station where people do one of the most dangerous exercises in the gym (and quite often lift more weight than they can safely handle on it!) is the one station that has almost NO safety measures built into it!

Think about it this way…when was the last time you saw somebody get crushed under a barbell curl, yet how many times do you see people doing curls in the rack while doing bench presses on a free station!

So basically, set yourself free and do your pressing in the rack. You can push yourself harder and fight through those sticking points without worrying about getting stuck under the bar if you don’t get it.

Conclusion:

If you want to maximize your bench press, put these tips to work. You’ll starting noticing a very big difference in how much weight you can lift almost immediately AND in the long-term!

For pictures and video of many of these tips in action, click Here ! 
——————

Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of" all available Here !

Secret Training Tip #665 – The CURE For Stubborn Shoulders…The Two-Phase Barbell Shoulder Press
by Nick nilsson

If you’ve got stubborn shoulders, this simple but extremely
powerful technique is EXACTLY what you need. Standard
dumbell and barbell pressing don’t work the WHOLE range
of motion equally – you’re leaving results on the table if
you’re just doing straight shoulder presses!

If you’ve ever had a hard time developing your shoulders, this exercise is going to be a lifesaver for you! Personally, shoulders are one of my WORST bodyparts. It’s tough to keep them strong…tough to get them bigger…and tough to really feel them working when I’m actually doing shoulder exercises!

But the first time I used this technique, it absolutely blew my mind. As soon as I finished the set, my shoulders felt like they were inflating! The blood was came rushing in and I knew I was on to something special…that RARELY happens to me with ANY shoulder exercises.

So what makes THIS exercise so special? You’re going to reach muscular failure TWICE within the same set. AND you’re going to do it with NO REST in between the two phases of the exercise. BAM BAM…one part right into the next.

But here’s the twist…it’s not a typical drop set in which you reduce the weight to achieve this! You’re going to use the SAME weight for both phases of the exercise.

The REAL key lies in the range of motion of each part of the exercise…

You see, when you do a normal barbell shoulder press, as you push the barbell up, you go through what is called a strength curve. In basic terms, it means at the bottom of the movement you are fairly strong. But as you press further (normally about 3 to 5 inches up in the movement) you hit a point where the leverage in your shoulders changes. The exercise gets a lot tougher.

This is called a sticking point – it’s basically the weakest point in the exercise. Another example of a sticking point is commonly seen in the bench press. If you were doing a bench press using a heavy weight, lowered the weight to your chest then started to press but couldn’t get past a certain point (a few inches above your chest), THAT is also a sticking point.

Bottom line, you can only lift as much weight as you can move through that WEAKEST point in the range of motion of an exercise. But OUTSIDE that sticking point, your muscles are stronger and can lift more weight!

The question becomes, how do we still do full range-of-motion lifting while putting greater tension on the muscles to maximize their strength in OTHER phases of the movement?

We’re going to break the movement into two distinct phases. On the first phase, you’re going to do FULL reps of the shoulder press. When you can’t do any more full reps, you’re going to do partial reps in ONLY the top, stronger half of the range of motion.

It’s a powerful technique and it’ll get your shoulders burning like crazy!

The key to geting the most out of this exercise is the setup…

How to Do It:

First, you’ll be doing this exercise in the power rack. While there IS a way to do it without being the rack (and it is still effective that way), the rack is going to allow you to really push your shoulders to the maximum.

Set the safety rails in the rack to just below shoulder height. You’re going to be doing a standing military barbell press for your shoulders, bringing to the front, of course! I NEVER recommend doing any behind-the-head shoulder pressing – it can cause shoulder damage.

For this exercise, start with a weight you can get at least 8 to 10 reps for. I would suggest doing 3 or 4 sets of this exercise in total for your shoulder workout.

Grip the bar with your pinkies or fourth fingers on the smooth rings of the Olympic bar. You need to take a narrower grip on the bar than with the bench press. The rails should be set so you have to bend your knees a bit to get under the bar. The bar should be held across your extreme upper chest.

Next, begin the pressing movement. Press the barbell up in front of your face then lockout at the top. When you do a military press, your knees should be slightly bent and abs tight to keep stress off the lower back.

Because of the path of the bar, you will be leaning back a little bit – it has to go in front of your face. But as soon as the bar clears your head, shift your torso forward so that the bar is DIRECTLY over your head. It almost resembles a bobbing-forward motion. This is a key point that a lot of people miss with the shoulder press. If you keep leaning back, it keep tension on the front delts and takes it off the rear delts.

Lower the weight slowly back to your chest then press again. Keep going until you can’t get the weight past the sticking point. Try and get it past the sticking point, though! We want to be sure you’re right at the limit.

When you’re done, set the bar back on the safety rails. And here’s the trick that’s going to set your shoulders on fire…keeping your hands locked onto the bar, drop down onto your knees under the bar. Now keep pressing in the partial top range of motion of the press!

Because the bar is now ABOVE the sticking point, your shoulders have better leverage and can continue with the exercise! Do as many reps as you can until you can’t even budge the bar. I prefer to set the weight down on the rails in between reps here but you can keep a continuous movement, if you want. Do it whichever way feels best to you.

By exploiting the top range of motion after fatiguing the muscles in the full range of motion, you’re going to finally be working the shoulders with FULL resistance in the whole range of motion.

When you’re done, stand up. Your shoulders will be swelling up any second now!

As I mentioned previously, there IS a way to perform this technique without a power rack.

First, perform the barbell shoulder press, just like above. Now, instead of doing reps until you can’t get past the sticking point, you’re going to have to stop a rep or two SHORT of that point of failure.

Basically, you’re going to have to complete that last rep to the TOP. When you’re at the top, now lower the bar only halfway down (just above where your sticking point normally is) then press it back up to the top.

Keep doing reps in this shortened range of motion until you can’t hold the bar up anymore!

Conclusion:

Give this exercise a try in your next shoulder workout. If you’ve got good shoulders, this will blow them up even more. If you’ve got poor shoulders, you’re going to be in for a treat!

To view pictures and videos of this technique in action, please click here.

——————

Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of" all available here ! He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com .

   Click-Here to download Nick’s 4 e-book sampler.
 Learn targeted fat loss techniques, unique abdominal exercises,
 specific exercises and programs for building the glutes,
 and innovative training for the whole body.
  
 You’ll get f.ree sample versions of FOUR training
 e-books in this powerful bundle – it’s PACKED with
 incredible information.