Eat Food to Lose Weight? Yep.

Ask any one of my past or present clients and they'll tell you that in regards to nutrition, I do NOT believe in dieting. I believe in healthy and proper lifestyle choices and practices. I have never prescribed a specific "diet" to a client whether it be for weight loss, gain, or maintenance. Every Tom, Dick, & Harry out there thinks he has THE perfect dietary program for allowing you to shed your extra pounds. There's the Atkins Diet, the Zone Diet, the Body Type Diet, etc. Hell, even Dr. Phil's fat ass put out a diet book. Why in the bloody hell would anyone listen to Dr. Phil's nutritional advice? First, he's neither a nutritionist nor a dietician. He's not even a licensed psychiatrist (it's true, look it up.)! Secondly--HE'S A FAT ASS!!! Don't know about you gentlemen, but I'd have issues with taking eating advice from a unqualified fat boy. I'm just saying. So with all of that crap out there telling you how to lose weight, what are you to do? K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Stupid). Proper eating is about portions and timing.

Eating properly is not as difficult as it may seem. First and foremost, you have to determine what your daily caloric needs are (i.e. calories consumed vs. calories burned). For the sake of weight loss, you want to eat less calories than you expend per day. For example, if you eat 1,600 calories (kcal) each day, then your goal is to burn more than that through your daily activities (including your workout).

From there, your daily calories must be split up amongst 5 to 8 meals. That means you should be eating every two to three hours. Eating often increases your basal metabolic rate (BMR - the rate at which the body burns calories at rest), which in turn will help you lose weight if you're eating the proper smaller portions. A good rule of thumb, never catch yourself starving, and never catch yourself stuffed. You should be at a middle ground throughout the day. Remember, we eat food to fuel our bodies, not just for the hell of it.

But what's all the hoopla about carbs? Carbs are what our bodies like to use most efficiently for energy, so it's important consume them daily. Understand that not all carbs are created equal. There are generally two types of carbohydrates to initially pay attention to: simple sugars and complex carbohydrates. Simple sugars are found in your basic junk foods (desserts, soft drinks, sugary cereals, etc.). Stay away from these, as they are not good fuel sources and they convert to bodyfat quickly. Complex (or starchy) carbohydrates consist of pastas, rice, potatoes, and breads. They give off a slow burning energy over a longer period of time. This explains why cyclists and marathoners "carb up" prior to an event. If you don't utilize the energy that carbs produce, then your body WILL convert said carbs into bodyfat. And that, my good men, is what bodyfat is--stored energy. And it's precisely the reason why you DON'T go to bed with a belly full of carbs. Consume the majority of your daily carbohydrates earlier in the day when you are the most active. But as the day progresses, begin to decrease the amount of carbs per meal. For example, your breakfast should contain the most amounts of carbs, while your dinner should contain the least.

At each meal, you should take in a quality source of protein. Think of it like this, your muscles are mostly made up from protein and water. You want muscles? Eat protein and drink water. Pick from lean meats such as chicken (white meat), fish, and turkey. You should consume 1 gram of protein per pound in bodyweight per day in order to maintain muscle mass. If you have issues getting your daily fill of protein, then try supplementing with low carb/low fat/low kcal protein shakes and protein bars. Use the shakes/bars as a snack between your breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That makes for five meals! See how easy that is?!

As mentioned before, be sure to drink plenty of water. Taking in a daily minimum of 64 ounces is the standard. Oddly enough, water acts as a natural diuretic for your body. In other words, water helps you lose water. (And no, that's not a typo.)

Like I said, fellas, eating right is not exactly rocket science like some make it out to be. It all comes down to "what" and "when". Follow these simple guidelines and you'll be on your way to going shirtless in the winter.

Now, what are you going to do?

CAS

Top 10 List for the Well Dressed Man

So let us shift gears, shall we? I spend soooo much time talking and teaching about fitness and nutrition that one would never know that I have an affection for men's fashion. I actually consider it a hobby. My clients are always shocked to find that out, because they only ever see me wearing sweats and other workout attire. However, when I'm not at the gym, I like to play dress-up. And I'd like to think that I'm pretty good at it. But some of you fellas...well...a lot of you fellas are not. No worries! I'm here to help.

I decided to compile a list of wardrobe must-haves for the gentleman who is need of jumpstarting his closet (or starting over from scratch for some you). Think of it as a top 10 list, if you will, of clothes your closet must contain at all times. Without further delay...

1. Suits. This is a somewhat of a "top 10" list within itself! First and foremost, pick up THE two essential 2-button suits, navy and dark grey. They're the most versatile, as they can be worn with either black or brown shoes and belts. Build from there with a navy or black pinstripe or a check patterned piece. A light grey suit is great for the spring and summer seasons. Don't forget that the jackets can also be coupled with jeans for a great dressed-down look.

2. Dress Shirts. A wise man (my father) once told me that a man can never have enough white dress shirts. Gotta listen to "Pops" on this one. A handful of white and pale blue shirts will go a long way. Try to get different textures and collar styles to add variety. Also, get a couple with French cuffs for added formality and elegance.

3. Ties. A great tie can make your suit. A bad tie can and WILL break your suit. Go for simple colors with simple and subtle designs and patterns. Leave the goofy cartoon characters that douchebag, Bob in accounting. And learn to tie a variety of knots to coincide with the width of the shirts' collars.

4. Jeans. So many fits, so many styles, so many brands... I believe in variety, but let's simplify it. Start with one or two pairs of straight-leg dark denims. After that, you can wear all of the studs, big logos, and rhinestones you want to. But keep a simple pair or two for when you want to be taken seriously.

5. Dress Shoes. You'd be surprised at how many woman initially judge a man based on his shoes. Essentially, you need two pair: brown and black cap toe or wingtip Oxford style shoes. Keep the soles low profile. Dress shoes aren't made for playing kickball in, so they shouldn't look like it. And yes, your belt should always match your shoes. Always.

6. Dress Socks. Your socks should match your pants. Save yourself the embarrassment and do NOT wear white athletic socks with slacks and/or dress shoes please.

7. Pocket Square. There can be some confusion as to how to wear them. Follow this simple rule and you can do no wrong: NEVER match your pocket square to your tie in pattern or texture! Stay away from the matching tie and pocket square sets. You'll look like a low-budget Steve Harvey. Start with a set of basic white and then build up to different colors, patterns, and textures.

8. Wristwatch. Try to have one for every style of outfit you'll wear. That doesn't mean to go out and buy a trashbag full of different watches. I only own three watches. One for when I'm dressed up. One for when I'm dressed down. And one for when I'm in athletic attire. Get the point? Keep in mind, you're not Jay-Z. So your watches don't need to look like his.

9. Sweater. Go for a subtle slim fit, just like your dress shirts. You can do no harm with a couple of cashmere v-necks.

10. Overcoat. Because why let the rain screw up your shiny new suits? A dark grey or navy car coat or pea coat should suffice. Best of all, they can be dressed up or down with ease.

Honorable Mention:

Fitted Polo Shirts. Classic. Versatile. Probably should've been on the list.

Leather Jacket. Because it's just f'n' cool.

Tuxedo. Because renting is for high school prom-goers. Which reminds me... If you don't already, learn how to tie a bowtie.

There's your list of must-haves, gentlemen. Sometimes a first impression is all you'll have. Why cock that up with crappy attire? So you might as well look your best. Besides, when you look good, you feel good. Can't beat that. Happy shopping!

Now, what are you going to do?

CAS

Want Strength AND Size? Go 5 x 5.

Well, it's been a while since I last made a blog entry. The ol' work schedule has got me stretched a little thin these days, making it quite difficult to research and put together good information for you all. Thank you for being patient.


Now that that's out of the way, let's get down to business. So you wanna be big and strong, huh? Well, as you gentlemen know, there's more than one way to skin a cat. No doubt about it, somewhere along the lines you've probably had what you thought was a productive conversation or two at your local Gold's Gym with someone who might be referred to as a "gym expert". Surveys say that that expert probably is NOT truly educated in the health & fitness industry and is NOT a ceritfied fitness professional of any kind. But in the end, you listened to him anyway, because the guy is kinda jacked and he reads a LOT of Flex Magazine. A word of advice: GET THE HELL AWAY FROM THAT GUY!!! He will get you nowhere fast. And worse, he can get you injured. Sorry, those guys really piss me off, and I went on a little tangent there. It had to be said though. In regards to putting on some size and coupling it with solid strength, there's an old fashioned program that has stood the test of time: the 5 x 5 program.

The good ol' 5 x 5 program is an old school program that has been recommended and popularized by world renowned strength training professionals such as Reg Park, Bill Star, Dr. Lon Kilgore (my college professor), Glenn Pendlay (my collegiate Olympic weightlifting coach), and Mark Rippetoe (one of my weightlifting mentors). These guys aren't exactly like that "gym expert" you've been chatting it up with by the pec-deck machine at 24-Hour Fitness. The concept behind the 5 x 5 routine is to train your core exercises (bench press, deadlift, squat, & overhead press) for five sets of five reps at 80-85% of your one rep max (1rm). I'm not going to sugarcoat it guys, the 5 x 5 program is tough! If your idea of a good workout involves spending the majority of your time in the gym chit-chatting, screwing around, and eye-humping every chick in the aerobic kickboxing class, then this program is definitely NOT for you!

Here's a couple of things to expect from using the 5 x 5 routine:

• Size & Strength. You can lift faster & lift more weight using 5 reps. Lifting fast recruits more muscle fibers and allows you use heavier weights. Lifting heavy stresses your body more, thus increasing hypertrophy (building more muscle).
• Shorter, More Efficient Workouts. The 5 x 5 method utilizes multi-joint, compound exercises that hit several body parts at the same time. This keeps the workouts brief, but extremely intense. Great if you’re short on time like me.

This particular program can be implimented on a three-day split (Mon., Wed., and Fri., for example). As mentioned before, use the 5 x 5 @ 80-85% intensity for your major exercises such as squats, deadlifts, bench press (or incline press if you prefer), and overhead press. For your auxillary exercises, I suggest keeping the rep range at 10 to 6. As an example, this is one way I would structure my own program:

Monday

Bench Press (or Incline Press), 5 x 5 @ 80-85% 1rm

Barbell Row, 3 x 10, 8, 6

Incline Dumbbell Press, 3 x 10, 8, 6

Weighted Pull-ups (or Lat Pulldowns), 3 x 10, 8, 6

Crunch, 3 x 15-25

Wednesday

Back Squat, 5 x 5 @ 80-85% 1rm

Romanian Deadlift, 5x5 @ 80-85% 1rm

Lunges (or Step-ups), 3 x 10, 8, 6

Glute Ham Raise (or Leg Curl), 3 x 10, 8, 6

Hyperextension, 3 x 15-25

Friday

Standing Overhead Press, 5 x 5 @ 80-85% 1rm

Close-grip Bench Press (or Weighted Dip), 3 x 10, 8, 6

Barbell Curl, 3 x 10, 8, 6

Triceps Rope Pushdown, 3 x 10, 8, 6

Dumbbell Curl, 3 x 10, 8, 6

Reverse Crunch, 3 x 15-25

(I like to superset triceps and biceps exercises with one another in order to increase the intensity of the workout. Not to mention, it helps me save a little bit of time as well.)

I can tell you from my own experience that you can expect to see some outstanding results using this program, provided that you remain consistent and eat properly. I can also say that this program is not for the weak at heart. Each repetition during each set feels as though it will be your last. But you have to grind it out and overcome your own mental obstacles if you want to thrive. This would also be a good time to mention the importance of having a willing training partner or spotter available. For anyone who decides to use this routine, hit me up. I'd love to hear of your progress.

Now, what are you going to do?

CAS