The Weight Training Antidote - REVIEW!

I've been telling myself for a while that I'd sit down and take a long look at this FREE E-book, after all - what's the harm in taking advantage of free advice from an experienced source? There's no harm at all, in the health and fitness industry, experience acts as a huge cornerstone and its something that allows people to pass on tips and advice to help maximise others' training. For anyone that's not heard of this E-book, its written by Adam Kitchen, the founder of DPA Fitness - which is based primarily in Hong Kong. I first discovered Adam through the forums over at BodyActive whilst I was partaking in my trial of X Factor Advanced. He's a big contributor to their forums and always on hand to offer advice and words of support. Basically, what I'm saying is that the author of this E-book is a trusted and sincere source - he's not going to try and sell you wonder supplements, or bullshit you with mountains of unnecessary technical jargon. Instead he keeps things as simple as possible and makes his points as easy to understand as possible. He achieves this by first introducing his topics, then breaking them down and analysing them, before concisely bullet pointing the key points to be taken from those topics. Therefore you're receiving this information in three different styles, all of which compliment each other and make it all easy to understand. The text is also structured simply which again makes it easy to understand. Although this book is relatively short (53 pages) - it contains concise and reliable information, backed up by solid scientific evidence.

Now, enough about the structure of the book - on to the content! I'm very wary of giving too much away with regard to the information contained within the text, so I'll try and omit any chance of spoilers. Basically, Adam introduces a system to break up what he considers to be the most important aspects of a healthy lifestyle (A simple system which I thoroughly agree with) - He then goes into these key aspects in detail in each chapter. Basically, any aspect of healthy life that you can think of - Adam has it covered in one way or another, whether it's in regard to Training, Nutrition, etc. He also offers a complete and detailed structure for successful training plans, and even goes as far as to offer a sample of these workouts. The structure that he offers is something that I'd toyed with the idea of but I'd never really looked into it in detail - after reading his explanations of this structure, its something that I'll definitely be adopting with regard to future training. It's safe to say that this method has completely blown my mind and changed my outlook on training! He also offers some solid nutritional advice that I'll most definitely be adopting, as its the thing that I most struggle with. You can probably find some of this nutritional advice by piecing together countless other sources, but 'The Weight Training Antidote' is the only place that you'll find this information plus more in a coherent and effective manner.

For all of those people that are reading this, and thinking 'It sounds like a bodybuilding guide' or 'Its just for men' then you are SEVERELY mistaken. This e-book is about WEIGHT TRAINING - whilst some may associate that directly with bodybuilding, its not the case. Adam describes how and why lifting weights is the most efficient form of exercise and training, not just for bodybuilders, but for athletes, fitness enthusiasts, or even beginners that are looking to get healthy and fit and tone up. In addition to this, he explores the myths and reasons behind the inhibitions held by women over weight training, and why it won't turn them into hulk-like figures, and just make them toned and sexy instead. He offers training tips for both beginners and more advanced enthusiasts too. Overall, within 'The Weight Training Antidote' - Adam Kitchen provides his readers with a tried and tested system which is designed to allow people to lead a healthier lifestyle without having to sacrifice their social life or put things on hold. He doesn't aim this at a specific audience, he aims it at EVERYONE - It doesn't matter if you're Male or Female, Beginner or Advanced - this book will give you the tools and advice necessary to make a huge change in your life, without drastically affecting the other important things. In short, if you're interested in health and fitness in any way, then this book is a must read, I'm giving it a huge 10/10 for both content and structure!

For anyone that's interested in reading this E-book, you can download it for free from the DPA Fitness website  - http://dpafitness.com/the-weight-training-antidote ; Also for anyone that's interested in getting involved in BodyActive's community (Which is also free) then just head over to www.bodyactive-nation.co.uk and create yourself an account. If you're on Twitter then get following @DPAFitness and @BodyActive. You can also find me on Twitter @Wrighty__ and on Facebook - www.facebook.com/A.Wright.Fitness. Now get over to DPA and download this book, you will not be disappointed. Happy reading!
Take it easy
Alex.

Weekly Update

First off I'd like to apologise for the lateness of this post, I'll try and have updates up every Monday in future. Now, on to business - I've just completed my first week of training and its been an interesting experience. I'll hold my hands up and admit that I haven't been strict enough with my diet and I'm rectifying that this week. However, despite my cheat days I've still managed to make some major headway in the form of weight loss and muscle gain. For anyone that missed the previous post, my stats at the beginning of last week broke down like this -

Legs - 25.5 inches

Arms - 16 inches

Chest - 42.25 inches

Weight - 96.5kg

Max Deadlift weight - 100kg

Max Squat weight - 95kg (Below Parallel)

I managed to stick to my training completely last week, completing full body workouts in the gym on Monday, Wednesday and Friday; and also partaking in cardio exercise on Tuesday and Thursday. On Sunday I managed to fit in a fasting day, despite wanting to eat everything around me by the end of the day. With regard to supplements, I've been taking three Warrior Blaze capsules per training day, with a Diet protein shake post workout. Anyway, on to the results; I weighed in and measured up on Monday of this week, and here is how the stats have changed:

Legs - 26 inches

Arms - 16 inches

Chest - 44.25 inches

Weight - 92kg

Max Deadlift Weight - 130kg

Max Squat Weight - 112.5kg

So as you can see I've managed to make some major strength gains which I'm hoping to increase again by the end of the week. I've also managed to lose some significant weight - 4.5kg (9.9 pounds) whilst gaining muscle mass on both my legs and chest, whilst maintaining muscle on my arms. Its safe to say that the past week of training has been a successful one, despite my nutritional lapses. However, due to the huge weight loss this week, I'm not expecting anything big in the following week, I'll be happy just to maintain the weight that I'm at, as I'm hugely ahead of target, sitting just behind the half way point for my target. 

I've had a few people ask me how I manage to lose the weight and how I keep myself motivated. With regard to the weight loss, its all about the amount of effort you put in. I pride myself on pushing myself past my limits in every gym session and working as hard as possible - to put it simply, if you're not sweating heavily and feeling your muscles start to ache at the end of a session, then you're just not doing it right. With regard to eating, the last week has been an exception for me. I've learned to love healthy foods just as much as junk foods, and I try to keep my diet interesting. If you've got a boring and tasteless diet, then its more likely that you're going to want to cheat it and eat junk food. With regard to motivation, I get my motivation from seeing myself in the mirror week after week and seeing the improvements that training is having on my body, but most importantly I don't see my training as a chore or something I have to force myself into. It's become a huge part of my life now, and spending 3-5 sessions in the gym per week is standard to me, its just a bonus that I see such amazing results from it. Also, its all about who you surround yourself with, I try to surround myself with people that are passionate about fitness, Icon Nutrition have helped me massively with workout tips and info, Kavan Byrne has also been a huge source of info. Of course Fitness Made EZ has helped me massively with regard to motivation and my training approach, my last 5 months of training have been attributed to his advice and guidance. Also I encourage you all to get over to the community at bodyactive-nation.co.uk - its an amazing community to be a part of and they've helped me a lot over the past few months.

Well I hope that everyone's enjoyed this post, for anyone that's interested in my workout routine or the structure of my diet, its all in the post preceding this one. If people have any feedback or questions or even want to join me in my journey (as I've said before I'm happy to offer nutrition and exercise tips) then you can catch me on Twitter (@Wrighty) on Facebook (www.facebook.com/A.Wright.Fitness) or alternatively just leave a comment in the box below! 

Take it easy

Alex.

Up and running once again!

I thought that its about time that I updated this, apologies for the long wait in between posts. Since I've been away there's been so many new developments and my own training has come on massively, so much so that I've decided to share my experiences. Around the beginning of March I had the honour and pleasure of test driving a supplement for BodyActive (www.bodyactive-nation.co.uk) My entire log and final review for the product can be found here - http://www.bodyactive-nation.co.uk/forum/Supplement-Logs/4912-X-Factor-Advanced-Log. The supplement in question is called X Factor Advanced, essentially its a product that utilises Arachidonic Acid (an omega-6 fatty acid that has been proven to have anabolic benefits) to help build some serious lean muscle and promote strength increases. The trial itself was a 50 day trial, consisting of an intake of four servings (in capsule form) of the XFA per day. To give the supplement a chance to reach its full efficiency I increased my meals to four per day and increased my protein intake massively. The product not only did exactly as it promised, but it produced results that I wasn't ready for at all. For example due to my neglect, I was only able to deadlift 60-70kg before I tried the product. By the end of the cycle my deadlifts had increased to 120-130kg which was an increase that I couldn't ever have fathomed. In addition to gaining some serious strength and muscle, I also managed to drop 6kg in weight in the process thanks to a strict diet. 

Despite the amazing results that I saw on the XFA cycle, I'll be the first to admit that I've slipped in recent weeks - not so much with training, but with diet. Due to that fact I've managed to go back to 96kg in weight, whether that is due to some muscle mass or fat or a mixture of both remains to be seen. In light of this, I've decided to dedicate my summer (the next 12-14 weeks) to finally ridding myself of the rest of the weight that I'm carrying. As extra motivation I'm being joined by a friend (who will also be allowing me to post his progress on the blog) in my efforts. We'll be recording our stats at the beginning and at the end of our transformations and in addition will be sharing our diets and training plans. Personally I managed to shed 25kg of weight last summer, and I'm aiming to lose 12 kg in total this summer. Although this is only half of the weight that I shed last year, I'm anticipating that its going to be a lot harder to lose - due to this I've upped the intensity of my training and scrutinized  my diet to get the maximum results. So anyway, here are the stats for me at this moment in time - 

Weight - 96.5kg

Arm Size - 16"

Leg Size - 25.5"

Waist - 36"

My workout split at the moment is breaking down like this - 

Dynamic Warm up (Circuit, 2 sets)

Alt. Lunges - 12 each side

Deadbugs - 15 reps

Woodchops - 12 reps

Side Chops - 12 reps

Set 1 (Circuit)

Barbell Squats (5 Sets, 6 reps)

Dumbbell Chest press (4 sets, 10 reps)

Barbell Row - 4 sets, 10 reps)

Set 2 (Circuit)

Bent Leg Deadlifts - (5 sets, 6 reps)

Lat pulldown (4 sets, 10 reps)

Push Press (Dumbbells, 4 sets, 10 reps)

Set 3 (Circuit)

Press ups (2 sets, 15 reps)

Y Raises (On bench, 2 sets, 15 reps)

Cable Row (2 sets, 15 reps)

Due to the fact that my routine covers the whole body, I have decided to execute this three times per week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday). On the days that I'm not in the gym I'll be performing cardio (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) with Sunday being effectively a rest day. However as I'm a glutton for punishment I'm going to use Sunday as a day to fast, which will probably include me participating in fasted cardio, most likely brisk walking. After six weeks of this particular routine I'll be re-evaluating my progress and looking to switch things up to keep my training fresh and keep those positive results coming in. With regard to supplements I've kept things simple - I'm currently taking Warrior Blaze (Which happens to be the best and most powerful fat burner on the market, plus it gives you a huge buzz so doubles as a pre workout supplement), I'm also taking a multivitamin from MyProtein and Cod liver oil capsules. The protein that I'm currently using is MyProtein's diet whey, which is tasty and cheap and seems to be delivering promising results.

Anyone that would like to join myself and Rob in our efforts is more than welcome, just get in touch with me on here, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/a.w.fitness) or on Twitter - @Wrighty__. I'll try and help anyone that is serious about making a change by formulating workouts and helping with nutrition. I also want to say a quick thank you for the support I've received from everyone throughout my training. I always say this but a huge influence on my training and motivation, both directly and indirectly is Paul 'EZ' Corkery (www.facebook.com/fitnessmadeez, @Fitnessmadeez, www.youtube.co.uk/glyphmedia, www.flexdem.com). He's always there to give tips and offer his advice if its needed, plus he sells some awesome merchandise! In addition to this I'd also like to give a huge thank you to BodyActive and CDS Nutrition who have been really supportive and were generous enough to give me the opportunity to log a supplement (an honour that I hope may be repeated at some point). They also distribute some quality supplements at a really good price so check their website out - www.bodyactive-nation.co.uk. It's also worth signing up to the site and joining the forums, there's so much that I've learned by simply reading through the discussions! Also a quick shoutout to Icon Nutrition and in particular Kavan Byrne who have given me some good training tips over the past few weeks which have helped me make some serious headway with my training. 

Well that's everything that I had to update you all on. Hope that I haven't bored anyone and that you've all taken something from the post. Any feedback on the post is welcome as always, just get in touch with me over Facebook, Twitter or here and I'll reply as soon as I can. 

Train hard, but train safely,

Alex.