Update!

Considering the fact that I haven't touched this blog in a while, I've decided that it's time for an update - a bit of explanation behind where I've been hiding. Anyone that's been following my Facebook and Twitter posts will know that for the last 3 weeks I've been logging a supplement for BodyActive Nation. I've also produced some independent blog posts for their blogging community and sadly its meant neglecting this page greatly. The supplement that I've been logging is called X Factor Advanced developed by a company called Molecular Nutrition. Basically, as BodyActive describe it ' X-Factor has the ability to rapidly assist in lean muscle mass gains, increase fat burning properties and amplify your response to training'. It's main ingredient is Arachidonic acid, an ergogenic acid that has a huge reputation for producing muscle gains. I've been taking this supplement for just over 3 weeks now, and its produced results beyond my wildest dreams. I've toned up and gained some serious muscle, especially in my shoulders.


Of course, its not just been the X Factor that's helped me to push towards my goals as of late. I've recently weighed in at 91.6kg - that's a whole 31kg lost since I started my weight loss journey. I've learned the hard way that if you don't take control of all areas of your lifestyle, then you've got no chance of really hitting your top goals. Since starting to log XFA, I've completely changed my lifestyle and really sorted out my training to ensure that I get the maximum benefits from such a powerful supplement. My diet is now cleaner than ever, and my training is hitting levels of intensity that I could only dream of previously. Of course, I haven't managed to do this all by myself; I've had a lot of help. Most of which has come from EZ, training wise I'm now loosely following his regime with regard to split and cycle. I've also taken some nutritional tips by following his training.


I guess to sum up this post; I've managed to really edge closer to my goals now, and they're almost in touching distance. Lately I've seen a lot of people wanting to commit to their training, but not knowing where to start, or even starting blind. I cannot stress how important it is to really plan your approach to training. A lot of the time, you're going to have to find ways to motivate yourself, you're going to feel like giving up at some point and some things will feel so easy to give in to. I say this because I've experienced it all myself - it's not going to be an easy ride at all. If you really want to reach your goals, you have to put everything you have into getting there. Sacrifices will have to be made, some that you really don't want to make. Believe me though when I tell you that it's all going to be worth it in the end. The sense of self achievement for seeing your goals get closer with each week is just amazing, its one of the best feelings in the world. One of the biggest tips that I can give you is to surround yourself with positive influences. One of the motto's that I live by now is one that I've been introduced to by EZ - 'A Product Of My Environment'. This could not be more true. For anyone that hasn't seen EZ's page, you can find him at - www.facebook.com/fitnessmadeez www.flexdem.com and www.youtube.co.uk/glyphmedia. They've helped me massively along my journey. Anyway, until next time guys,

Train hard, but train safe,


Alex.

XPLODE!

In the time in which I’ve been boxing, I’ve had some comments about the power of my punches and how they’ve improved. At first I put this down to natural progression; however after thinking about it, I discovered that the increased power output was due to my gym sessions – specifically my warm up. I came across this gem of a warm up in a workout video for Terry Crews as he prepared for his role in The Expendables (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-uBxxK4c3U). This short and sweet warm up really gets your engine running for a workout and also it works on your explosive power (perfect for people partaking in contact sports: Boxers, rugby players etc.)

In light of this warm up, I’ve tried my hand at creating a full workout solely based on developing and harnessing explosive power. Not only will it do that, it also works your full body, brilliant for your core and also because the movements are so fast it can serve as some form of cardio. It consists of ten exercises which are set out in the form of three circuits (4, 4, 2). Realistically you’re looking to complete 8-10 reps for each exercise, with two-three minutes rest in between sets. So without further ado, I’ll break it down.

Circuit 1

Jump Squats (With Barbell) – begin with normal squat motion, on ascent explode upwards and propel yourself off the floor.

Push Press (Barbell) – Hold bar at shoulder height, bend knees slightly. Quickly straighten legs and explode upwards with the bar, essentially performing a shoulder press.

Deadlifts (Barbell)

Kettlebell Swings – Using a single kettlebell, keep your back straight and legs slightly bent. Combine the power in your hips and arms to create a swinging motion, bring the kettlebell parallel with your shoulders and lower slowly.

Circuit 2

Power Clean and Press (Barbell)

Jumping Lunges (Holding medicine ball) – Perform a jump lunge and alternate legs, no break between legs. Ensure that you hold the medicine ball out in front of you.

Clap press ups

Swinging plate jumps – Begin in a half squat position with a light weight plate in each hand (2.5kg). Extend the plates behind you. Proceed to swing the plates forwards whilst jumping as high as possible.

Circuit 3

Box Jumps

Upright row (barbell)

So there it is, a workout designed to develop your explosive power whilst getting your muscles toned and ripped. You only need a light weight for this workout, I’d definitely recommend beginning with a really low weight. I again only use 30kg for the whole thing and its enough to really work me hard. Hopefully some of you will feel confident enough to try this workout, please feel free to come to me with any feedback or questions and any results if you do decide to stick with it. It's shown positive results both for myself and for my training partner; its definitely worth a go if you want to really unlock a high power output!

Train hard, but train safe,

Alex.

Nutrition Update

Over the last 6 months or so, I've been training hard and eating relatively clean but not necessarily adhering to a strict diet plan at all. In the interest of honesty, I can confess to many occasions where I've eaten junk food and strayed from my healthy eating. At first I felt pretty bad about it, but then I just came to realise that I'm only human, and that I shouldn't be too hard on myself. I mean, a bar of chocolate is nothing in the grand scheme of things. Its when the junk food becomes the only thing that you eat that a problem really arises. Anyway, in the last 6 months I've managed to progress massively with regard to weight loss, muscle gain and general toning. At the moment my total weight loss is 26.5kg, which amounts to just over four stone. Due to the noticeable amount of muscle mass that I've gained, its not easy to determine how much fat I've actually managed to shred. Whilst trying to eat as clean as possible, I also started intermittent fasting, opting to use 24 hour fasts twice a week for fat loss.

Whilst my original approach has produced promising results and I haven't plateaued as of yet, I still couldn't help that I could go even further with my weight loss and produce the results that I wanted even faster. With that in mind, I did all of my research and came up with a new eating routine for myself. Due to the fact that my training is going to be quite intense, I've made sure to keep a decent amount of slow digesting carbohydrates in my diet. To make this easier to follow, I'll outline this nutrition plan first and explain it afterwards.

Breakfast -
1 Pint of iced water
75g Instant oats
2 Small oranges

Snack - Handful of walnuts

Lunch - Quinoa Salad

Snack - Celery

Dinner - 1 Chicken breast (200g), Broccoli, Carrots, Kale, Green beans, Cous Cous (50g)

Snack - Blueberries

Obviously throughout the day I'll be chugging down as much water as possible and I'm aiming to drink at least one mug of green tea per day. In addition to this I'll be taking two Warrior Blaze Reborn capsules daily (one in the morning, one in the early afternoon). With regard to protein shakes, I'll be mixing them with almond milk; I'll be having one pre and one post workout. My pre workout shake will also contain wheatgerm for added protein - it has also been known to show improvements for strength; definitely something that I have to try out for myself. I'll also still be intermittent fasting for 24 hours twice a week - both on non training days. I'll be undertaking this nutrition plan for just over 3 months, bringing me up to the start of May. I'm also going to be taking progression pictures each month.

Well I hope that this post has been useful for at least some people, and maybe it'll even spur some people on to make their approach that much more intense. If anyone's got any feedback for this post, you can contact me on Facebook  - www.facebook.com/A.Wright.Fitness Twitter - @Wrighty__ Or alternatively leave a comment underneath this post. So until next time everyone, wherever you are,
Train hard, but train safe,
Alex.

Cardio or Weight Training - Which is better for Weight Loss?

So, now we've hit the new year most people's goals will be to get rid of that holiday weight and get back into shape. Queue the endless streams of joggers and treadmill demons. Whilst running and other forms of cardio do indeed burn calories and therefore eliminate fat - it's extremely difficult to shed a decent amount of fat through cardio alone. In many ways, weight training (for males and females) is an easier and more effective way of burning that unwanted fat. The first, and most key point that I'm going to introduce to you; is that weight training burns calories before and after a session; whilst cardio exercises only burn fat for the total duration of the exercise. Now its important to note at this point that recently people have become to doubt this approach, but its no secret that there's millions of people that support the same views as myself. The reason for weight training being more effective is that a high muscle mass burns fat during every day activities simply due to the basic amount of energy that it takes to use the muscles. This is also true for periods of rest. In addition to this - there's what is known as the 'afterburn' effect. This is a direct product of an extremely high intensity workout. The only problem with the afterburn is it is extremely hard to achieve - it refers to a state where after any workout, your body's metabolism increases. To get to this state however, you have to achieve a ridiculously high intensity throughout your entire workout; which is no problem to those who rep to failure and give 110% as standard. To keep that kind of intensity up is difficult, but clearly thoroughly rewarding. Please don't mistake this post for me telling people to get into the gym and start becoming bodybuilders; you don't have to lift heavy weights to weight train. If you want to see how effective weight training is for females, all you have to do is head over to Lucy Doyle's Facebook page - www.facebook.com/lucycdoyle. In all honestly my inspiration for this post comes from a post from her page not too long ago; she started out on her own weight loss transformation and coupled weight training with a clean diet and the results she's seen, in the words of one of my friends are 'tremendous'.

In my opinion, weight training is the main way to go when trying to achieve either fat loss or muscle gain. However I'm not condemning cardio as a form of exercise. Obviously those who are engaged in any form of sport (myself included) will need to keep up some form of cardio routine to keep their fitness and stamina up.  My own personal approach is to combine 2-3 sessions of cardio (Boxing/Hockey) in a week with pure weight training and a small amount of cardio through weights (My warm up). Personally I've found this approach to be very effective, though I will be increasing my cardio in order to gain a higher level of fitness for boxing. In other words, I've fit every approach into my training as my boxing drills even contain a hell of a biometric workout. Though there's more of an emphasis on weight training over cardio. I'm not saying to forget about the cardio completely, I am saying that maybe its time to up that weight training and start experimenting with cardio through weights. If anyone wants to try a cardio with weights program, there's one on the earlier posts in this workout named 'Killer Workout' - however if I get enough interest in it I'm more than happy to adapt it into an entry level workout to work your way up to the intense one. Obviously if you're just looking to build muscle and not keep a decent level of cardiovascular fitness then heavy weight training is the way forward, however mixing in some cardio with weights, even if its just for a warmup (A prime example of this is Terry Crews' '24s' warm up) can be highly beneficial with regard to getting yourself pumped for a workout and hitting your entire body to get it ready for some intense weight training.

Well I hope this information has been useful to you all. Obviously I'm not saying that changing your workout style and nothing else can help you lose weight, you have to change your diet to help yourself! The best way to tackle a change in lifestyle is to get as much information as possible from a range of sources. With that in mind I want to direct you all to my personal favourite sources that have helped me infinitely -
Fitness Made EZ - www.facebook.com/FitnessMadeEZ; @FitnessMadeEZ; www.youtube.co.uk/glyphmedia; www.flexdem.com

JV Fitness & Nutrition - www.facebook.com/pages/JV-Fitness-Nutrition

Lucy Doyle - www.facebook.com/lucycdoyle

The Hodgetwins/ TwinMuscleWorkout - www.youtube.co.uk/user/twinmuscleworkout

Also can you all please like my page on Facebook - www.facebook.com/a.wright.fitness and direct any feedback there. Stay tuned for more posts in the near future! Until next time,
Train hard, but train safe,
Alex.

The New Year Health Kick

I've been seeing a few posts around about people wanting to shift their holiday weight and those that "Can't wait to get back into the gym". Whilst its highly likely that they will indeed make a start to get fit and healthy; most will drop their efforts within the first few weeks. Don't mistake this post for an excuse to bitch about the lack of motivation in society; I would rather see people inspired than spend my time putting them down. Basically, this post is directed at all of those people who are really looking to get serious about their lifestyles. It's easy to just say "I'm going to get rid of this fat and get ripped and toned in the new year" - the reality of that statement is much harsher. If you're really going to get ripped/toned/gain some serious muscle; then you HAVE to plan your approach. There's no point in thinking that you can just turn up at a gym, hit the treadmill for 20 minutes, lift some random weights and then go home - it doesn't work that way. Also, if you really want that body that you've always dreamed about; then you can't just limit your approach to exercise - proper nutrition and a structured lifestyle are also the keys to succeeding in your goals.

Let's start with the getting fit part of the plans. You need to plan your gym sessions/workouts to tailor to your specific goals. If you're savvy with that sort of thing then it's pretty simple to come up with your own personal training plan. For those who aren't as good with that side of things - find someone to ask! Most fitness experts are more than willing to dish out advice to others because its likely that they learned their shit through the exact same methods. I'm also happy to help people out as long as they're serious and not wasting their time. Also for your viewing convenience there's a few workouts posted previously in this blog which can tailor for losing weight, building muscle or both. If you're looking to make some serious gains and really bulk up - then split your training. E.g. Monday - Back and Arms, Tuesday - Shoulders. Wednesday - Rest. Thursday - Chest and Arms. Friday - Legs. Once you have a structure like that, you can then plan your workouts accordingly. Those looking to lose fat may opt for 3 days a week (E.g. Monday, Wednesday and Friday) in which to do a full body workout, possibly combining cardio and weights (which I'd highly recommend). It's all about finding the right plan for you; also don't jump into a ridiculously hard schedule because if you struggle too much it'll put you off and that's your motivation gone. Get involved in a sport that you enjoy, perhaps one that you haven't tried before; think of getting fit and healthy as fun rather than a chore!

On to nutrition - in my opinion its the hardest part of changing lifestyle. The obvious first step is to cut down massively on junk food - takeaways, chocolate, crisps, alcohol (Excessively different for students) etc. Get to know what's in your food - those figures (Calories, Fat, Salt, Carbohydrate, Protein) that you see on pretty much every product are there for a reason! They make it very easy to monitor your nutritional intake and give you more power over what's going into your body. If you're looking to gain weight, don't think that you can just increase your protein intake massively whilst working out and it'll give you gains - a high amount of protein is good, but a ridiculous amount can, and will end in a heart attack if you're not careful with it. Bump up your carbohydrates and calories too if you're looking to gain - just couple it with intense training and that's where the real gains are made! If you're looking to lose weight, obviously you'll need to drop your calorie intake along with slightly adjusting your carbohydrate and fat intake. Check out my earlier post on intermittent fasting - it works brilliantly for those wanting to absolutely shred fat!

A few quick final notes - Firstly, supplements! Its all well and good going out and spending some money on supplements to enhance your efforts and put you closer to your goals. However I cannot stress enough how important it is to really research them and find out exactly which ones will work for you. Don't expect that you can throw back a few shakes without much weightlifting and suddenly become Arnold Schwarzenegger. Supplements only work if you put 100% into your training - they're designed to build on your positive results, not produce them for you! This applies to many people with regard to fat burners - they think that they can take a tablet and wait for themselves to become thin. This is not true - fat burners work on the understanding that you're eating clean and working out. No legal supplement can just hand your goals to you on a platter - you both need each other to get the ultimate results. However; its also important to ensure that you're buying the right supplements. In the course of my training I've found that there's only a few supplements that have worked for me. For example, my protein of choice is Syntha6 - I've found that it minimises recovery time and really helps to pack on muscle. When it comes to fat burners - Thermobol from Maximuscle is a complete waste of time - its effects are minimal to zero. However there are two fat burners that I would recommend - the first are Grenades; the only problem with these are that the side effects are brutal and those with a weaker system will suffer them badly. Luckily there's a trustworthy and highly effective fat burner, which would be my first choice. This is Warrior Blaze - however it has recently become Blaze Reborn due to a change and from what I can gather improvement in their already effective formula! Plus its at a completely reasonable and fair price! Warrior (@WarriorSupps) are also a brilliant company, who actually give a shit about their customers - the same cannot be said about big corporations like Maximuscle who are just after your cash. Anyone in the Wrexham/Llangollen area interested in supplements should get in touch with Nick Lingard (@Lingard_) on Twitter. He currently runs a small supplement business with great prices and decent products!

My last point is on gaining and maintaining real motivation. Its very hard to really maintain pure motivation, but once you've put that hard work in and you're seeing results - training becomes more of a passion than a chore and suddenly you're self motivated at all times. However from time to time its good to get a fresh dose of inspiration and some brand new ideas. Personally, most of my inspiration comes from following Fitness Made EZ's training, new and old. (www.facebook.com/FitnessMadeEZ)  - its good to see someone who's ridiculously committed to and also highly enjoying their training. Also the Hodgetwins are a great source to gain some information from, plus they're funny as fuck. Check out JV Fitness and Nutrition on Facebook too! (http://www.facebook.com/pages/JV-Fitness-Nutrition) He's a fully qualified personal trainer and has some absolutely brilliant advice on the subject of health and fitness.

Anyway, I hope that the information on this post has been useful to people. As always you can get in touch with me on Twitter - @Wrighty__ Like my page on Facebook - www.facebook.com/TransformitToday; or simply comment underneath! Also I'm looking to revamp this blog a bit, possibly with a name change aswell so anyone that has got any ideas please don't hesitate to get in touch! Good luck to all of those that are undertaking a new lifestyle through fitness in the new year!
Train hard, but train safe,
Alex.

Intense Home Workout - Try if you dare!

Well, not so long ago I posted a home workout for everyone to try, nice and simple - and actually relatively easy. Since then I've had a lot of good feedback so I've decided to share the real workout with you all - the high intensity home workout - not for the faint hearted. I'd actually recommend trying the low intensity one first, if you find that difficult, then maybe stick to that for a few weeks before trying this one. This workout is guaranteed to shed those calories, and tone your body up greatly, but you have to stick to the timings and put everything you've got into it. If its taking you more than 15 minutes to complete the circuit, then you're doing it wrong. If you're not sweating ridiculously by the end of the first run through, then you are again doing something wrong. As with the previous workout, its completely bodyweight based, but some of the bodyweight exercises can be difficult. All you'll need is a stopwatch, and some water nearby! Anyway, enough with the build up - let's jump straight into it!

30 Seconds Running on the spot

15 Seconds High Knees

15 Seconds Sprinting on the spot

15 Seconds High knees

15 Seconds sprinting on spot

10 Seconds high knees

20 Seconds sprinting

10 Tuck Jumps
5 Seconds running on spot
10 Star Jumps
5 Seconds running on spot
10 jackknifes
5 seconds running on spot
10 squats
5 seconds running on spot
10 clap press ups
5 seconds running on spot
10 burpee tuck jumps
5 seconds running on spot
10 dorsal raises
5 seconds running on spot
10 squat thrusts
5 seconds running on spot
One armed press ups (10 each side)
5 seconds running on spot
Lie flat on your back, hands behind your head. Lift your legs 6 inches from the floor, hold for 3 seconds, open your legs, hold for 5 seconds, bring legs together, hold for 3 seconds, drop legs. Repeat 10 times.
5 seconds running on spot
10 twist sit ups
5 seconds running on spot
10 hand on hand press ups

20 seconds running on spot
30 seconds high knees
10 seconds sprint on spot
15 seconds high knees
15 seconds sprint on spot
15 seconds high knees
15 seconds sprint on spot

There's your circuit! Make sure that when you're doing the running/sprinting/high knees that you put everything that you've got into it. If you're doing it lazily then there's not much point in doing it at all - if you can't handle the intensity then simply try the easier one and build up. There's absolutely no shame in admitting that you're not quite at the right level for this and building up to it instead. With regard to any aspect of trying to meet your goals - a lot of the time its difficult and sometimes detrimental to try and jump straight into a ridiculously high intensity. You might not be ready for the intensity and you'll end up either not doing the exercises right and not getting the results - or you'll just hurt yourself and not be able to train for a while - that's gonna hurt both your goals and your confidence with exercising. If you're really serious about your goals then you'll be sensible about them too - know your limits and therefore know how far you can test them. It's all about being patient and finding the lifestyle that works for you! Anyone that tries this workout please get in touch with me and let me know how it goes, I'm interested to see if anyone sees the results that I have. You can tweet me @Wrighty__ find me on Facebook - www.facebook.com/transformittoday or leave a comment below this post. Thanks for reading!
Keep Testing the Limits
Alex.

Mixing it up!

Lately I've decided to completely mix my training up. Previously I was relying on workouts engineered by myself with a pretty conventional split. So I'd do three sessions and split them into Chest, triceps and shoulders; Back and biceps, and finally Legs. This worked for me for a while; but after a few weeks it became clear to me that I needed to up the intensity and try shaking things up if I wanted to carry on making gains and hitting targets. Otherwise, what's the point in training? So I thought that it would be best to take a leaf out of someone else's book, someone whose training advice I could actually rely on. I did contemplate the Hodge Twins, but had been using their methods for a while and had to try something completely different - enter Fitness Made EZ. I trawled through his YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/glyphmedia) and found his Flexdem workouts. I've been using these workouts for two weeks now, and I'm definitely seeing so many more improvements. My new workout split as a result of this is

Monday - Shoulders
Tuesday - Chest and triceps
Wednesday - Biceps and triceps
Thursday - Back and biceps
Friday - Legs

 In 2 short weeks I've been able to really improve my personal bests and I'm feeling great as a result of the change-up. For example, I've been able to up my bench press from 70kg to 90kg, and my Squats from 130kg to 140kg among other improvements; but they're the most notable. Just a simple shake up of routine and split can affect your progress massively. One thing I really want to point out is EZ's inclusion of a 'burnout set' - its a set at the end of a workout to target the smaller muscle used in your session. For example it would be tricep on a chest day, and bicep on a back day. Honestly, those sets really finish off a workout and leave you feeling pumped. I'm not going to share any real details of them, you have to check out his youtube channel to really understand what I mean. If you don't then you're just depriving yourself of precious training information.

Basically, all I wanted to point you towards in this post are the real benefits of mixing up your training. You can't allow your body to get used to a routine because it will become less and less effective with each session. You've got to be willing to try new things and up the intensity to see real improvements; that all depends on if you're serious about your training or not I suppose. Also, don't be afraid to take advice from different sources (as long as its not completely idiotic). In my experience, the Hodge Twins, Fitness Made EZ, bodybuilding.com etc. have been really useful. I want to point everyone's attention to another brilliant source - JV Fitness & Nutrition. (www.facebook.com/pages/jv-fitness-nutrition). Jason is a fully qualified personal trainer and was one of the first examples that I saw of dedication to fitness and nutrition. Honestly, he will be able to answer any queries at all on the subject of fitness. So please go and like his page on Facebook and see what he's got to say.

Speaking of Facebook, I've also started up a page dedicated to this blog. Its www.facebook.com/TransformItToday - It's just basically to keep people informed of updates on the blog as I won't be posting them on my profile anymore. It would be great if everyone could go ahead and like the page as its lacking at the moment. Hopefully I'll also be training with Grant (@jonesgx on Twitter) in the coming months and getting some training snaps/videos of proper form in exercises and I'm aiming to get them up onto the page. I've had a lot of good feedback from the latest posts, especially the home workout post. So any more feedback is welcome and I'm also happy to advise people on different aspects of training, whether that be nutrition or workouts.With regard to future posts; if anyone has got any suggestions for them then by all means get in touch with me and we'll work something out! So please direct all feedback to either my Twitter - @Wrighty__ , My Facebook page - www.facebook.com/transformittoday , or just leave a comment under this post!
Keep testing the limits,
Alex.