Optimal Fitness - 3 Steps to Take to Get You Into Elite Physical Condition!

Optimal fitness has to be earned. In order for you to achieve an optimal level of fitness and total conditioning you must have a smart plan and follow it with absolute discipline and consistency. Check out the following 3 steps you can take in order to gain elite level fitness and transform your body forever.

1. Nutrition: In order to get a lean body you must couple an effective nutrition plan with a well-planned workout program. The nutrition is arguably the largest and most important part of your entire fitness program. You must incorporate this into your lifestyle and stick to it as consistently as you would working out. Manage your calories not by measuring them, but by monitoring what "types" of foods you take in day to day. By monitoring the exact foods that you put into your body then you will eliminate all of the junk. You will be surprised at all the crap you don't pay attention to when you eat. Give it a try.

2. Train With Intensity: In order to achieve optimal fat-loss and to ensure your success of getting in shape you must perform highly intense exercises to raise your level of perceived exertion. This is the MOST beneficial way for you to obtain the highest level of a calorie-burn. Train with a purpose and don't just go through the motions. Don't be scared of trying to challenge yourself by lifting heavier weight. This is the only way for you to develop a significant amount of lean muscle mass and to speed up your metabolism.

3. Engage In Multi-Joint Resistance Exercises: This is a big one. In order to achieve the 2nd step above you must be willing to do this one. Don't sweat the small muscle groups if you are wanting to get big results as quickly as possible. Instead of doing 9 sets of bicep curls to train the biceps, try doing 9 sets of pull-ups! This is way more intense and you will not only work the muscles of your biceps, but you will hit an array of others because of the multiple joints that are involved in the movement!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Weight Loss - Is There an Easy Way to Lose Weight and Get Fit?

Ok, I'm just going to come right out and say it again people. Weight-loss and fitness ARE NOT things you can BUY! They are things you have to EARN! The truth is that there is no easy way to lose weight and get a fit hard body. You have to put the necessary time in to get the necessary results in weight-loss, fitness, and strength!

I am sick and tired of hearing people whine and complain about not losing weight, yet they don't train their bodys' to lose weight. They don't eat the right foods to lose weight. So they go and buy some "magic pill" to help them with their weight problem. More times than not the pill may help them shed a couple of pounds, but the catch is that they are not good for your health and generally when they run out of their supply they end up gaining all of the weight back. These people are lazy. They can't even commit to taking the stupid pill long enough to get the results, but the truth is they shouldn't be taking the stupid pill to begin with. Get off of your lazy butt and move around. Move around a lot. Move around often. After you get in the groove of moving then move around while dragging a weight. Just do something! Stop wasting your time, health, and abusing the healthcare system for people like me and my clients who want to be intrinsically motivated fitness enthusiast. You have a choice. You can either choose to improve yourself or choose not to improve yourself. There is no grey area.

I am used to going off on people and if you are reading this article and know what kind of people I am talking about then please go off on them too! If you are not sure whether you should express an opinion like mine with the person you know then I want you to ask yourself a simple question: Would that person benefit from you NOT saying anything to them? Think about it!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

A Method to Strength!

Lets look at your strength. What areas of your personal program do you want to improve on in terms of your strength? For instance, do you want to increase one repetition maximum bench-press, the same with your squat, or perhaps you want to improve the number of push-ups that you can do. All of these are examples of strength and strength endurance!

If you want to improve any one particular thing it all has to do with manipulating the reps and the load. For example, lets say that you want to improve your one repetition maximum in the back-squat. For the sake of argument lets say that you can only do 150 pounds on the squat for a single rep. To get stronger you will want to get used to handling a slightly lighter load for about 3 to 5 reps.

So instead of going for broke with trying to lift the 150 lbs. then you simply lighten the load to around 125 or 130 lbs. to execute for 3 to 5 reps. Keep practicing with this weight until you can eventually do more reps. As you progress to being able to do 8 to 10 reps then increase the weight! Now go back to executing this new heavier load for 3 to 5 reps until you once again work up to 8 to 10 reps. You get where I'm going with this, right? By using this method to strength you will see your core strength, fitness, and overall power improve from manipulating the load!

Take the time to practice in order to get stronger. Remember that it isn't always about the weight as much as it is about proper technique. The simple movements and a sound technique can get you big strength gains!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Exercise - The Importance and Efficiency of Intensity!

Fitness is something that seems to rank right up there with entertainment these days. Everywhere I look I see magazines, books, internet, and TV pitching some gimmicky fitness product with the promise of huge results. People spend the money for every new thing that hits the screen to be "on top" of the latest fitness craze.

The fitness world is a world of image that people usually end up spending more for in plastic surgeries and a so-called "magical pills" rather than in the price of sweat and tears. I usually put my beginning clients through a workout that last only about 15 minutes and they feel more than they ever felt putting in 2 hours at the gym. You see the point that I'm making is that the 15 minutes of misery is much more beneficial than a lackadaisical hour of leisure time on the treadmill. The key to constructing a hard body takes sacrifice and that is accomplished through INTENSITY.

You absolutely must achieve a level of increased physical exertion in order to build lean muscle mass, superior cardiovascular conditioning, and a jet-engine like metabolism. It is just fine if your workouts last only 5 minutes as long as that five minutes is all that you can handle at the time. Keep pushing and you can get up to the full 15 minutes, right? Many studies have shown that the human bodys' level of growth hormone peak around 40 to 45 minutes of intense training anyway. Don't think of this as bad news because that little study just extinguished the excuse of not having enough time to workout.

Intensity is the answer to all of your fitness questions. You get more in less time and you don't have to train as frequently. So go get fired up and drive yourself to get REAL results!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Kettlebell Performance Training - 2 Kettlebell Drills to Improve Explosive Hip Power!

I can honestly say that the versatility of the kettlebell and its effects on developing the body go far beyond any specific fitness device that I have ever used. It impacts the body in so many ways that it almost causes immediate physical benefit and change! The following 2 exercises are tremendous for improving one's individual level of fitness and developing extreme athletic explosive power.

1. The Deadlift/Squat Jump Combo: You need 2 kettlebells for this particular lift. If you are reasonably strong and athletic then you might want to start with 2-16kg (35lb) bells. You want to stand over the bells with them between your feet. Your feet should be slightly wider than shoulder width distance. Enough for the bells to set side by side between your feet. The handles of the bell should be angled in the same position as a barbell would be if you were deadlifting it. Next simply squat down to grab the bells simultaneously and execute a perfect form deadlift. When you set the bells back on the ground after the deadlift then immediately execute a squat jump. After the jump immediately execute another deadlift. You see the pattern now.

2. The Full Range Swing: This one is pretty basic. You obviously want to learn the proper technique of the double-arm swing before you intensify this movement to do the full range swing. With the basic double-arm swing you basically are swinging the kettlebell back and forth between your legs using the force and momentum of our hips and glutes. With the basic swing you only swing the bell as high as chest level. When intensifying this drill we can do full range swings where you go 180 degrees with the arc of swinging the bell to all the way overhead! This involves way more explosive hip and core power to generate enough force to get the vertical lift with the bell. This is great for gaining explosive hip power and overall fitness and athletic performance.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

The Kettlebell 300 Workout - An Explanation of This Gruesome Workout For the Spartans!

 

If you have seen the movie then you probably saw a pretty accurate depiction of King Leonidas in terms of his fitness level. Gerard Butler no doubt went through a physical hell to get his body ready for the big screen, but the benefits were obvious to the movie goer. Since the movie there have been many people to create and use different variations of the infamous 300 workout. I want to address a version that I am partial to because of the simplicity of the concept.

The 300 workout that I am talking about teaching you is the kettlebell version. You first need to get yourself a kettlebell that will somewhat challenge you even in a moderate workout. This is important because the 300 workout will certainly challenge you in a whole new way. You basically want to come up with 10 different exercises with the kettlebell. The number 300 comes from the total number of reps that will be executed in the workout. You basically have 10 kettlebell exercises that will consist of 30 repetitions each. If you are a true Spartan you can complete this evil task in under 40 minutes. Now this is no doubt a killer program that will breed killer results. However, if you unable to complete the workout as described then you can modify it to suit your progress. A good example here would be to try 200 reps instead of the full 300. This will at least get you going in the right direction.

What are you waiting for? Can you hold your end up the way King Leonidas and the Spartans did at Thermopylae? Grab your kettlebell and embark on the strength training adventure of your life!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Real Walking Fitness - 2 Techniques to Turn Your Walking Program Into a Real Workout!

I am always big on intensity, but if you are involved in a serious walking program you can implement certain techniques to change the overall effectiveness of your workout. The beauty of a walking program is that you can walk anywhere. Your walking can be done around the block, on a treadmill, in the yard, or at a local park. I just want to make a couple of suggestions as to how you can intensify what you are doing to get the most out of it.

1. Carry Buckets Of Water: Oh boy, this is simply good old yard work turned fitness! Get a couple of buckets of water and fill them up to the desired level and weight of your choice. Start at one end of your yard and make sure you are on level ground. Walk across the yard with a bucket in each hand. Try to focus on not spilling any of the water because this stability and focus will add up to bigger results in your workout. When you get as far as you want to go set down the buckets and without breaking stride continue on your walk. As you get better walk a specified distance with the water and without it. Alternate this pattern back and forth as you build up your endurance.

2. Walking Backwards Uphill: This is another way to change the dynamic of your walking power. Find a reasonably long hill with a steady incline from the base to the top. You can walk the hill up and back down a couple of times to get the blood flowing. Next, turn and face away from the hill and walk backwards up the hill all the way to the top. You will find out real quick that this will seriously burn you thighs. As you get better at this you will find that your personal fitness training and aerobic walking program will improve drastically by including this simple technique.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Iron Will - An Insight Into the Power of Mental Toughness!

There is an intangible trait that I notice in all of my best athletes and clients that far outweighs pure talent. It isn't something that I can document on paper or critique on a video, but it is there. The amazing thing is that you can only see it when situations in training or competing become difficult. This trait to which I am referring is what I like to call "Iron Will," otherwise known as mental toughness!

Sports psychologist have studied this very phenomenon and determined that not everyone is blessed with this particular trait, and it generally separates the great ones from everyone else. "Iron Will" is basically the ability for an athlete, competitor, or hard-driven individual to push on harder and longer than the other guy regardless of the circumstances, the odds, or pain the individual may be experiencing. It is an unrelenting drive to do better and fight harder even in the most dire situations. I have seen this same trait in the most successful athletes and clients that I have had the pleasure of working with over the past 8 years. I will say that the people with "Iron Will" are few and far between. Most of the general population isn't blessed with this powerful trait. Most people don't have that kind of intrinsic motivation to keep pushing on and willing themselves to new heights. Its not a trait that can be taught or learned. I have spent my career trying to improve peoples' individual level of performance and fitness by teaching them, but this is one trait that I can't teach nor can anyone else.

"Iron Will" is certainly the most valuable trait you can have in your strength training and fitness program. If you have the desire it will be much easier for you to obtain your goals.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Kettlebells - 2 Great Lifts to Increase Your Lat Strength!

The kettlebell as you may or may not know is the ultimate hand held gym. You can use this fitness tool to manipulate your body in many ways to get specific results that you desire. For instance, you can develop superhuman lat-strength with this device with just 2 lifts.

1. High-Load Windmills-You may be familiar with the traditional stretch of windmills to target flexibility of the shoulders, hips, glutes, lower back, and hamstrings. To do this correctly proper technique must first be learned, but the same stretch can be intensified with the kettlebell in the hand that is above the head while you are basically bent over to one side. The normal windmill is executed by starting with your feet slightly narrower than shoulder width. Next, for the sake of argument, we'll assume you are doing the right side. The bell is pressed with the right arm above the head with your left arm tucked behind your back. Then you angle both feet diagonally with your toes pointing left or away from your right. Keep the right arm with the bell locked throughout the entire movement. Next you push your hips back favored towards the right and lower your torso to the left keeping your right leg straight. The movement should go down with a great stretch in the right side of your body before coming up. As you ascend in the movement you will feel the lats engage with the weight of the bell.

2. Loaded Lat-Press-This lift is performed exactly as the windmill is described above with the exception of you starting the bend of the torso with the bell being held in the "clean" position. As you bend allow the bell in your right hand to somewhat retract your shoulder-blade. You want to simultaneously press the bell as you are descending in the movement. Once the shoulder is locked out then simply stand back into it as you did with the windmill exercise. You will develop tremendous lat-strength by including this in your fitness training program.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Women's Fitness - The Kettlebell is the Perfect Gentlemen That Isn't So Gentle!

If you are a woman that is looking for that perfect workout date and don't mind some tough love then the kettlebell will make your dreams come true! Although your roles will have to somewhat be reversed because he certainly isn't going to pick you up for the date. You'll be responsible for that part. He also won't open doors for you, but he sure is capable of dinging them up. When its all over with you may even be a little mad at him, but just like most intriguing guys you might even want to give it another "Swing!"

If you are even somewhat familiar with kettlebell training then you know that the "Swing" I am talking about is one that is more challenging than any second date you've ever been on. It is the base lift of the bell and will tighten your thighs, hips, and legs more than anything you have ever done before. The funny thing is that this kettlebell can take a woman's breath away quicker than James Bond was ever capable of doing with any of his admiring vixens. You can also expect a tremendous amount of weight-loss due to the strain of the relationship, but the funny thing is that even Dr. Phil would classify it as a healthy courtship. I know that this all sounds like he is a bit rough around the edges, but I know that you will fall in love with him in the end.

All in all, you don't ever have to worry about him not complimenting you on how your legs and stomach look in certain outfits because he will make sure that you will receive plenty of those from everyone else. He's not jealous at all. He's the perfect exercise date and the perfect gentleman that isn't so gentle!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Leg Strength and Endurance - A Killer Squat Workout Using Plastic Water Bottle Caps!

If you have read any of my previous articles you know that I am a big proponent of utilizing your own body-weight to achieve mind-blowing fitness and conditioning. The key to doing this without the use of equipment is being innovative with how you distribute, move, and manipulate your own body-weight.

I want to describe one way, like above, to optimize your leg-strength and endurance in the convenience of your living room. All you need to do is collect 10 different plastic bottle caps. If you can't do bottle caps then coins, game piece checkers, or just about anything you can easily fit into the palm of your hand will work. Next, all you have to do is make sure that you have a straight uninterrupted stretch of floor space. From here just line up all 10 caps in a straight line with about 8 inches of space between them. From here you will execute a series of squats. Walk up to the first cap and straddle it with your feet shoulder-width distance apart. Now squat and pick up the first cap. Next, walk up to the 2nd cap and squat to put down the 1st cap. Immediately squat again to pick up the first cap followed by another squat to get the 2nd one. Then walk to the 3rd cap and once again put down each of the 2 caps one at a time to turn around and pick all 3 back up one at a time. Continue this pattern all the way to the end of the caps.

You will develop astounding leg-strength and endurance from doing these squats. As you get better don't be afraid to jump to doing 20 or 30 caps!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Plyometrics - Jumping Your Way Into Getting in Shape!

How many times have you been to the park or maybe watched your kids playing in the yard or at the playground? If you observe carefully they do a lot of running and jumping around. They are also getting a heck of a lot of exercise.

That jumping around and stop and go method of just being physically active is a great way to get into shape. The jumping and short burst running are also mild forms of what we recognize in the fitness industry as plyometrics. Plyometrics are specific exercises that involve quick burst of intense movements that stimulate the nervous system causing muscles to be conditioned in order to develop for more explosive and forceful contractions. This type of training is particularly used to work with helping athletes to develop more athletic and explosive movements. There are many variations of plyometrics and a beginner should always start with the most basic and lower intense plyometric-type drills. A great start is to master handling your own weight in order to jump. From here specific drills can be manipulated to progress into harder drills. For instance, you may just start by doing squat jumps and progress to jumping off of one leg and landing on 2 feet. From here you might just work on jumping and landing on just one foot! The end result is that you will end up getting a great workout.

Remember that milder forms of this can be performed by kids in a playground. You always want to make sure that you are intelligent and informed about how you structure your plyometric drills. Learn and practice flawlessly.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Exercise - The Importance and Efficiency of Intensity!

Fitness is something that seems to rank right up there with entertainment these days. Everywhere I look I see magazines, books, internet, and TV pitching some gimmicky fitness product with the promise of huge results. People spend the money for every new thing that hits the screen to be "on top" of the latest fitness craze.

The fitness world is a world of image that people usually end up spending more for in plastic surgeries and a so-called "magical pills" rather than in the price of sweat and tears. I usually put my beginning clients through a workout that last only about 15 minutes and they feel more than they ever felt putting in 2 hours at the gym. You see the point that I'm making is that the 15 minutes of misery is much more beneficial than a lackadaisical hour of leisure time on the treadmill. The key to constructing a hard body takes sacrifice and that is accomplished through INTENSITY.

You absolutely must achieve a level of increased physical exertion in order to build lean muscle mass, superior cardiovascular conditioning, and a jet-engine like metabolism. It is just fine if your workouts last only 5 minutes as long as that five minutes is all that you can handle at the time. Keep pushing and you can get up to the full 15 minutes, right? Many studies have shown that the human bodys' level of growth hormone peak around 40 to 45 minutes of intense training anyway. Don't think of this as bad news because that little study just extinguished the excuse of not having enough time to workout.

Intensity is the answer to all of your fitness questions. You get more in less time and you don't have to train as frequently. So go get fired up and drive yourself to get REAL results!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Exercise - 2 Common Mistakes the Beginner Makes When Starting an Exercise Program!

It absolutely kills me when people get all motivated to workout and go crazy trying to buy up everything with the word "fitness" on the name brand. Now I understand that some things are essential, but I am addressing the efforts of those that have absolutely no idea what they are doing when it comes to taking the necessary steps toward a structured well-planned personal program.

Mistake 1: (Supplement Shopping) I really get frustrated with this ignorant kind of effort. I've seen many people that want to begin working out and basically replace their grocery list with a visit to GNC. Now I'm not coming down on all supplements or people that buy them. I'm just saying that the beginner is just that, a beginner. He or she don't even know how to approach getting started in working-out much less breaking down a list of supplements that they more than likely don't even need. The truth is that about 90% of supplements on the shelves do nothing for the body in terms of fitness in the first place. Of the remaining 10% different supplements serve varying purposes that may or may not be beneficial in overall weight-loss. Lets face it, most people that start back into getting physically active do it to lose weight.

Mistake 2: (The Equipment Purchase) Now I am a fan of fitness equipment just like the next guy, but I see many people that purchase enough equipment to be their neighborhoods' personal gym. I am mainly concerned with the purchase of the most BENEFICIAL equipment. If you have read any of my previous material you know that I am a big fan of the kettlebells, but to be fair I am really not trying to push those because of my personal bias. The truth is that I am a huge fan of all FREE WEIGHTS. Barbells, dumbells, medicine balls, and sandbags are all great tools for getting a hard hitting workout.

The bottom line is to be intelligent and informed about the purchases you make towards your fitness lifestyle. Read and learn!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Circuit Training - The Superior Way to Develop Total Hard Body Construction!

In my personal opinion there are two definitions of circuit training. The first definition is pain, misery, body-shock, and total mental and physical exhaustion. The second definition that Webster probably uses is the method of physical conditioning in which an individual moves from one exercise station to another without resting. Every station is different and can consist of a variety of exercises designed to challenge the body in multiple ways.

If you are looking to step up the intensity of your workouts this is the way to go. Every circuit training environment can be structured in a variety of ways. A circuit can be as little as 2 or 3 exercises coupled together or 20 exercises linked at once. Stations can be set up to be resistance-oriented, running-oriented, or both. Either way you choose to set up your circuit program its not going to be easy if you have done it correctly. The idea is to run through all of the stations before allowing yourself a rest period. Obviously the length of this rest period will depend on either how big and intense the circuit is or by your level of fitness. The bottom line is that you will be able to gauge how in shape you are when you do first start and when you have progressed to doing it on a regular basis.

Don't waste time getting the results you have always wanted. This is the quickest way to HARD BODY CONSTRUCTION! Remember that intensity is the key to fitness success.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Protein - The Absolute Truth About This Essential Ingredient For Building Lean Muscle Mass!

There are many fad diets and misconceptions all over the television, radio, internet, and in books about nutrition and fitness. Most all of these fads can be written off pretty quickly when in most cases people can't stick to them effectively due to unrealistic expectations and misguided loyalty towards the product. The following article will provide the facts about protein along with an appropriate recommended daily allowance of this specific nutrient.

I just want to discuss one of three main nutrients that is an essential ingredient in building lean muscle mass and necessary for muscle recovery. I am talking about protein. For you to have any successful strength and conditioning program you must be getting enough high-quality protein. This is the nutrient that builds our muscles back up to a recovered state after the wear and tear of working out. You see our skeletal muscles themselves are made up of nothing more than many fibers of protein, so it takes the same thing to nurture them back to a full recovery.

How much protein should I have? This is a great question. The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) has different recommendations for you based on your level of physical activity. Observe the amount below:

Mildly Active: 1 gram per kilogram of body-weight 
Moderately Active: 1.5 grams per kilogram of body-weight 
Very Active: 2 grams per kilogram of body-weight

Note: There are 2.2 lbs in 1 kilogram.

Tip: Protein from animal-based products or meats have a higher biological content than those acquired from a vegetarian or plant-based food product.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

My New Ebook: Better Than Steroids

I am very excited to introduce the release of my new ebook "Better Than Steroids!"  This is a project that I made sure would connect with the fitness culture. As a matter of fact, I explain the meaning of what I like to refer to as the Strength Culture in the ebook. This is a concept of mine that ties into my philosophy of training and life. There is a lot of hard-hitting information that I guarantee will improve your level of fitness and change the way you think about working out forever!  If you are interested then just simply go here to www.betterthansteroidsebook.com to learn more about the product and to get your own. Train hard and enjoy my friends!

Easy Weight-Loss - The Lazy Mindset!

I want to take the time to address the mindset of many people that are always looking for the "easy way out" when trying to lose weight. I have dealt with many people over the years that have a lazy mindset when it comes to working out and overall fitness. This article is meant to address that problem and to try to explain the importance of hard work and self-motivation.

I have had many years experience in training some of the greatest athletes in the world for the sole purpose of getting their bodies in top-notch condition in order to perform at the highest level. Because of this past experience with the most "Elite" I can certainly manage working with anyone else in the general population. Now I'm not saying this to sound arrogant because I'm about to get my point across. I just find it hilarious that a lot of people that THINK they have all the answers never totally get the results that they continually seek. Now the people to which I am referring are primarily those that want to act like they know what they are talking about, but are always looking for the easy way to try to get what they want!

You see them walk into the gym with 3 tubs of supplements and a huge gym bag full of other so-called quick fixes. You always see the ones with the "lazy mindset" spend all the money to get that "magical pill." The truth is that these people will never achieve their goals until they change their mindset and get motivated. I have even had people that pay for my services and because they spent the money think that I will magically cause their gut to disappear. This is a truly lazy frame of mind. The truth is that motivation comes from within. If you don't have the inner drive with anything in life, including working out, you will never succeed!

Change your mindset to be proactive and not reactive. Remember that only you can make YOUR OWN CHOICES!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Workout Plateaus - 3 Ingredients to Avoiding Them and Continue Gaining Optimal Fitness

Where do I begin? Well, I have often been asked, "What do you do to stay in shape?" Well, I pretty much reply with "Its my job." People often shrug or laugh, but the fact is our bodies are our responsibility or job. It doesn't matter if you are a world-class athlete or an average housewife. I have worked with both and all of us are only given one body at birth to work with for a lifetime. So this is how the fittest athletes, business executives, neighbor down the street, and myself avoid exercise plateaus and continue to burst through and continue gaining OPTIMAL FITNESS.

To begin, I want to explain the concept of multi-joint or multi-purpose exercise. Yes, it is what it sounds like. Multi-joint or multi-purpose exercise involves doing exercises that involve more than one joint, therefore more than one muscle is working at one time. When creating an effective exercise program this is going to be a huge ingredient in your quest for INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION! Yes, it will make a huge difference in your exercise program. An example of a multi-joint exercise is a push-up, squat, or dead lift. What sense does it make for me to try to strengthen my quadriceps muscle (thigh) by doing a seated leg extension, or my hamstring muscle by doing a lying leg curl when I can accomplish both by doing a free standing squat. The same goes for every other body part.

Second, I have explained the key ingredient of multi-joint movement, but you are probably wondering well, what is next? To continue, the key is that the human body is basically capable of two basic movements. This involves either a push or a pull. When we look at a push movement a good example would be a push-up, bench press, or squat. Pull movements would involve pull-ups, dead lifts, or rows. Again, notice that I use examples of multi-joint exercises only. Now the key here in starting an effective exercise program is to start out your program by combining the push and pull together in what we know as a superset. This is where you will execute a push movement exercise first and immediately without rest you will execute a pull movement. By doing this while your push-oriented muscles are working, your pull-oriented muscles are at rest and vice versa. The key point that you will discover here is that the one muscle that does not rest here is your heart!

The third and final ingredient in obtaining OPTIMAL FITNESS is to progress your program into eventually doing a form of circuit training. This is where you may involve 3 or more exercises in a row without rest. If you are dealing with 3 exercises you may be dealing with a push-push-pull or push-pull-push complex. It doesn't really matter the order as long as you try to vary your workouts every session so you don't overtrain on a particular movement. At this point of your program you will discover that your overall workout has been intensified drastically.

Finally, by adding these principles and restructuring your daily workouts you will see that you have consolidated your resistance training and cardiovascular training into a single hard hitting workout. Remember, you have to be willing to make the change for success. Your body is your job! Show everyone that you are good at it!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.htmlI'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Workout Plateaus - 3 Ingredients to Avoiding Them and Continue Gaining Optimal Fitness

Where do I begin? Well, I have often been asked, "What do you do to stay in shape?" Well, I pretty much reply with "Its my job." People often shrug or laugh, but the fact is our bodies are our responsibility or job. It doesn't matter if you are a world-class athlete or an average housewife. I have worked with both and all of us are only given one body at birth to work with for a lifetime. So this is how the fittest athletes, business executives, neighbor down the street, and myself avoid exercise plateaus and continue to burst through and continue gaining OPTIMAL FITNESS.

To begin, I want to explain the concept of multi-joint or multi-purpose exercise. Yes, it is what it sounds like. Multi-joint or multi-purpose exercise involves doing exercises that involve more than one joint, therefore more than one muscle is working at one time. When creating an effective exercise program this is going to be a huge ingredient in your quest for INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION! Yes, it will make a huge difference in your exercise program. An example of a multi-joint exercise is a push-up, squat, or dead lift. What sense does it make for me to try to strengthen my quadriceps muscle (thigh) by doing a seated leg extension, or my hamstring muscle by doing a lying leg curl when I can accomplish both by doing a free standing squat. The same goes for every other body part.

Second, I have explained the key ingredient of multi-joint movement, but you are probably wondering well, what is next? To continue, the key is that the human body is basically capable of two basic movements. This involves either a push or a pull. When we look at a push movement a good example would be a push-up, bench press, or squat. Pull movements would involve pull-ups, dead lifts, or rows. Again, notice that I use examples of multi-joint exercises only. Now the key here in starting an effective exercise program is to start out your program by combining the push and pull together in what we know as a superset. This is where you will execute a push movement exercise first and immediately without rest you will execute a pull movement. By doing this while your push-oriented muscles are working, your pull-oriented muscles are at rest and vice versa. The key point that you will discover here is that the one muscle that does not rest here is your heart!

The third and final ingredient in obtaining OPTIMAL FITNESS is to progress your program into eventually doing a form of circuit training. This is where you may involve 3 or more exercises in a row without rest. If you are dealing with 3 exercises you may be dealing with a push-push-pull or push-pull-push complex. It doesn't really matter the order as long as you try to vary your workouts every session so you don't overtrain on a particular movement. At this point of your program you will discover that your overall workout has been intensified drastically.

Finally, by adding these principles and restructuring your daily workouts you will see that you have consolidated your resistance training and cardiovascular training into a single hard hitting workout. Remember, you have to be willing to make the change for success. Your body is your job! Show everyone that you are good at it!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.htmlI'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!