Do You Need 6-Pack Abs?

Good question! The first thing to point out is that abs have a very important function that is not cosmetic, its to help stabilize your torso to prevent lower back injuries as well as improves your performance in virtually every sport from golf to MMA. Even if you don't care about getting a visible 6-pack, you have to work your core! Like everything in bodybuilding, its a matter of priorities and you have to decide what your priorities are in your fitness program. Perhaps getting a visible 6-pack isn't on the top of your list, you cant make everything your top priority so you have to decide which are your most important goals and focus on them. Here are some:

• Increase strength
• Increase impulse strength (jumping/punching/kicking)
• Increase muscle mass
• Lower bodyfat
• Improve coordination
• Improve balance
• Increase endurance
• Increase speed
• Increase flexibility
• Minimize risk of injury
• Reduce stress
• Improve vitals (BP, lipid levels, etc)
• Improve sleep patterns
• Improve self confidence

Its ok to have other fitness priorities but you cant use them as an excuse for bad nutrition. Whether you want visible 6-pack abs or not, its important to stay lean. Obesity is the #1 health problem in much of the world. Good nutrition is really hard work and its extremely important for a bodybuilder. Its also very important to point out that are many health reasons to reduce your bodyfat other than getting visible 6-pack abs. Here are problems associated with being overweight:

• Joint problems
• Coronary heart disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
• Stroke
• Liver and Gallbladder disease
• Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
• Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)
• Gynecological problems (abnormal menses, infertility)

Don't believe me? Read what the CDC, has to say. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) is the most respected disease research institute on the planet.
Now that we have looked at why its important to stay lean and exercise your core, lets looks as some reasons why you may not want to make 6-pack abs your primary goal. Lets start with priorities. There are a number of sports where the professional athletes don't have abs, for example, powerlifters, sumo wrestlers, and football players. In these sports, their are other priorities higher than low bodyfat. The other group of people who might not want to make a visible 6-pack their first priority is really skinny people. For really skinny people, its probably more appropriate to focus on increasing strength and muscle mass than working on getting visible 6-pack abs. The other group of people who might not to make a visible 6-pack their #1 priority is pre-pubescent teens because they are growing at such a fast rate that its important they are not calorie deprived. Again, its important to be lean but the visible 6-pack might not be a priority. And certainly, anyone with a history of bulimia or other eating disorders should not make getting 6-pack abs a priority.

Twinkie Diet and Other Fad Diets

Weight loss is a huge industry, every month there is another fad diet book hitting the bookstores and the talkshow circuit. How can one differentiate between a dangerous fad diet and a good nutritional plan? First of all, don't be snowed by the authors credentials - use your own good judgment and critical thinking to decide for yourself if something makes sense or not. More than one dangerous, useless fad diet has been touted by a unscrupulous medical doctor interested in making lots of money on book sales. A sure fire sign of a fad diet is some "mysterious weight loss property" like the grapefruit diet suggests. The only thing mysterious is why so many people fall for this ridiculous diet. The current hot topic in dieting is the "Twinkie Diet" suggested by professor Mark Haub's research project which caused me primal pillow-scream when I read about it. The media has taken his research and turned it into a sensationalistic headline which decives people into thinking that maybe junkfood isnt so bad afterall. The first thing I shouted at the top of my lungs upon reading the article (scaring our new dog to death) was:

Weight loss is not the same thing as fat loss!!

The most dangerous misconception about diets is about weight loss. Weight loss is not the same as fat loss. When you weigh less on the scale, it can be because you have lost fat (good), you are dehydrated (bad), or you have lost muscle (very bad). If you weight loss diet is a poorly designed one, like the Twinkie Diet, then you will lose muscle as well as fat!
The one definite truth in the twinkie diet is that when it comes to weighing less on the scale, all that matters is your calorie deficit, not the quality of the calories you eat. Perhaps that's all poor Professor Haub was trying to prove, what was inexcusable though is that he measured BMI which is a useless height/weight calculation rather than bodyfat percentage which tells you the true body composition. Had he measured bodyfat percentage I suspect he would have found he lost significant muscle mass.
My mom always told me "You get what you pay for" and that's true with diets as well as with life in general, only in this case you are not paying with money, you are paying with effort. If you want an easy diet, you get bad results. If you want great results you have to be willing to put in lots of work.

So ask yourself, what is the goal of your diet?
  1) lose muscle and fat
  2) lose only fat
  3) lose fat, and gain muscle


1) lose muscle and fat

Yes you can lose 40lbs in 10 weeks eating exclusively twinkies, its easy and fun!. Sounds too good to be true, huh? Well, like my mom always says "If it sounds too good to be true, IT IS". Because your body is malnourished and not getting any protein or vitamins, not only is your life in danger but your body cannibalizes your muscles in order to stay alive. A significant portion of the 40lbs lost will be muscle, who wants to lose muscle??? The only possible reason I could think of to be on a diet like this is to fit in a wedding dress where you don't care what you lose (fat or muscle) as long as it makes you smaller. Good nutrition is far more important when dieting if you care about your muscle mass.

2) lose fat maintain muscle

Using this method, its a bit more work but your results are much better. You wont lose any muscle mass, all the weight lost will be fat. This method also takes longer, but we all know from mom that "good things take time" :) Sorry, I will stop quoting my mom here. If you want to lose the fat while maintaining the muscle, you can use old fashioned good nutrition and moderate exercise. Losing weight this way isn't difficult and it really doesn't require any big sacrifices, just make smart substitutions: have a baked potato instead of fries, have a grilled chicken sandwich no mayo instead of a cheeseburger with special sauce, have a bowl of fruit instead of a piece of cake. You will never be hungry and it doesn't require any big changes to your lifestyle. For this you need to do daily cardio, just 20 minutes of walking 5 days a week is fine. Some simple bodyweight workouts at home three times a week for 15 minutes will insure that you don't lose muscle mass and you will probably gain a bit of muscle if you have never worked out before. Losing fat while maintaining muscle is something that everyone can do!

3) lose fat and gain muscle

The holy grail of fitness is to lose fat AND gain muscle and it IS possible! With education, dedication, strict nutrition, and hard work almost anyone can do this! Again, notice that this takes a lot longer than the twinkie diet, a full year instead of 10 weeks but with this plan you can gain 10lbs muscle and lose 40 pounds of fat - a true body transformation like Nhat accomplished. If you want to gain muscle while losing fat, you need hardcore weight training 5 days a week and 30-60min intense cardio every day. Most importantly though, you need strict nutrition, the quality of every single calorie counts. Strict means you have to be a nutritional nazi like me. Not a single calorie of sugar, simple carbs, bad oils, or alcohol. Every single calorie has to be loaded with vitamins, fiber, protein, complex carbs or all four. You need to cut your calories by 10%, no more, eat 6 well balanced meals a day, each with 1/6 of your daily protein and lots of vegetables. For an example of a nutritional meal that will let you lose fat and gain muscle, use my calorie calculator - it will plan a perfect meal for your weight loss. Now you understand why so many people claim this isn't possible, because its such HARD WORK!

So yes, you can lose weight eating just twinkies but you will be losing muscle as well as fat. I know my fans are much better informed about nutrition that the general population, its not you I'm trying to reach - its your friends and family! If any overweight family member boasts at the table about how all that dieting stuff is poppycock and you can lose weight eating just twinkies, please excuse yourself from the table politely, do a primal pillow-scream in the bathroom, then come back to the table and explain the difference between weight loss and fat loss.

Thanks!

Quick Healthy Meals

Here are some great healthy meals that you can make in just a few minutes. I am a horrible cook and I don't have time to shop, if I can do it you can too! If you are trying to gain muscle while losing fat then you need to be very strict with your nutrition and these meals fit the bill! These meals are truly easy, here are my standards:

• no more than two ingredients
• no chopping
• dirties no more than one dish
• takes no more than 5 minutes of my time

My standards for "healthy" is equally as tough to meet:

• high in protein, at least 20g protein in a 300 cal serving
• low in fat, no more than 5g fat in a 300cal serving
• high in fiber, at least 7g fiber in a 300 cal serving
• no simple carbohydrates
• minimal processing

Many have called my meals "boring", to them I say that you just need to train your palette to enjoy the subtle flavors of natural foods. For those of you who just can't stomach this stuff I make, please see the book review on the highly rated bodybuilding cookbook.

ScoobySnack Protein Bars I perfected this recipe for all you students and hard working folks out there who dont have time to eat 6 healthy meals a day but want to maximize your ability to gain muscle and lose fat. These are healthy, cheap, and convienient. They dont even involve cooking! The only problem with this is that they taste so good that you might be tempted to eat too many of them. These are meal replacmement bars, dont overuse them! Here is the recipe for my ScoobySnack Protein Bars.
You "dont have time to cook"? You "cant afford healthy food"? Poppycock!! Here is a recipe that's really healthy, easy to make, dirt cheep, and FAST! Even students can make this. It takes about a minute per serving which is much faster than standing in the line at McDonalds and much healthier. Lentils are a wonder-bean. Tons of protein, fiber and vitamins. There is a reason that many people who dont want to eat meat or cant afford to eat meat choose lentils.
Egg whites are a great source of protein, this recipe shows you how to make them a tasty complete meal - in 3min!
Quinoa is a wonder grain, high in protein, high in fiber, and low in fat. Even I can cook it, just two ingredients: quinoa and salsa. Let it boil 15min and its done. Add a piece of fruit and its a complete meal.
If you are trying to cut down on the calories to lose fat, peas are great because all the fiber fills you up without many calories. If you are trying to gain muscle peas are great because they are so high in protein. If you want, you can put some chunked chicken or salmon into the peas for more protein.
Beans are an excellent source of protein and one of the cheapest. The fresh salsa provides a great flavor and some veggies. Add a piece of fruit for a complete meal.
A home made protein shake from bananas, whey and OJ or milk. OK, I know this violated my two ingredient rule but I cut it some slack because it didn't dirty any pot.

Don't even have time for those quick recipes? Here are some that only require no cooking at all, just heating up! Each of these meals only requires:

• can opener
• microwave
• blender

Some Suggested Easy Meals:

	2 biscuits (47g) 1.5 (360ml)cups nonfat milk 1 orange	365 calories 3% calories from fat 19.5g protein 7.7g fiber
	1/2 cup (40g) dry oatmeal 1.5 (360ml)cups nonfat milk 1 plum	315 calories 6% calories from fat 19.5g protein 5.7g fiber
	1 low fat TV dinner 2/3 cup frozen veggies	320 calories 5% cals from fat 18g protein 6g fiber
	2/3 cup (95g) frozen mixed veggies 1 cup (260g) kidney beans	290 calories 0% cals from fat 17g protein 13g fiber
	2 2/3 cups (380g) mixed vegetables 1/2 can (70g) boneless skinless salmon	310 calories 3% calories from fat 28g protein 12g fiber
	25g whey protein (type I use) 1cup orange juice 1 frozen banana	315 calories 3% cals from fat 27g protein 2g fiber
Emergency Meals - No heating, refrigeration, or preparation required.  Keep these in your backpack, car or office desk for times when you have "no time" to eat.
	3/4 can chili	315 calories 12% cals from fat 24g protein 10g fiber
	1/2 cup oats 25g whey protein (type I use)	260 calories 10% cals from fat 30g protein 4g fiber

Efficient Running Technique - For Heavy and Light Runners

This is an exciting running technique which can help you run faster if you are already a good runner and it can help you run without injury if you are "running-challenged" like I am. Why should you take my advice on running? I can only run 7 minute miles, and I'm even slower when I do the 10K portion of a triathlon so I'm certainly not the fastest runner. Why listen to a very large, slow, 50 year old runner with chronic tendonitis and a bi-partate patella? Because to run at all I needed to find the most efficient, lowest impact running technique possible! 140 pound teens don't need technique, they can just spin their legs quickly to run fast.
There are two advantages to my technique

1. It is more efficient, allowing you to run faster and have better endurance
2. It reduces joint stresses to a bare minimum reducing the chance of injury

Efficiency

Ever watch the Kentucky Derby? Have you noticed that jockeys don't sit on the horses? Ever wonder why that is? The jockey uses his knees and quads to effectively "float" above the horse, this minimizes inertial losses. Inertial losses occurs when something bounces. When a rubber ball bounces, each bounce is lower than the last because in each bounce part of the energy is converted into heat. Likewise, if a jockey just sits limp on the horse then the horse has to work extra hard to bounce the jockey up and down. On the other hand, if the jockey uses his legs as self-leveling device to keep his torso "floating" over the track at a constant height then the work the horse must produce to move the jockey is minimized. See where this is headed?

Fast forward to the gym, we have all experienced this. You hear this WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! coming from the treadmill area - it sounds like a clydesdale horse running on the treadmill. You look and to your surprise, its not a 400lb man but a 90lb woman! If you watch carefully, you will see that the woman is POUNDING the treadmill. Each stride she bounces up what seems like many inches then she lands straight legged, heel first and BANGS the treadmill like she was trying to kill monster cockroaches. She is like the jockey sitting limp on the horse, she is bouncing up and down and all that bouncing wastes energy that could be used to propel her forward!

Minimize Joint Stresses

Does this sound like you? You say you can't run because:

• you are too fat
• big bodybuilders "can't" run
• your knee hurts
• your foot hurts
• your hip hurts
• you are too old

Well with this technique, even people who have joint issues (like me) find they can run because the stresses on the joints are minimized. If you have run in the past and had injuries or problems, its probably because you were running like the 90lb woman trying to crush cockroaches - wham, wham, wham! The impact force on the knee can be 300% to 400% of bodyweight with this type of running, that means that the 90lb person can generate 360lbs of force on the knee joint. People who are light can sometimes get away with this brutal running technique but heavier folks like myself cannot. The problem is that the knee joint of a 300lb person is basically the same knee as the 90lb person, if an average human knee can handle 400lbs of force, then the 90lb person can get away with the cockroach crushing running style because for them it only generates 360lbs of force. However, the 300lb person using the same horrible running technique generates a bone-crushing 1200lbs force on a knee joint that can only withstand 400lbs. Now do you see why running technique is so incredibly important for us heavy folks??

Scooby's Running Technique

My running technique has three components. They are not hard to master because each of the steps is easy to visualize and train independently.

• The Floating Head
• Claw and Kick
• The Torsional Spring

The Floating Head.

Like the prize winning jockey, your goal is to float over the ground. Watch the beautiful video up above, that's what you want to achieve. Your head should neither bounce up or down, but just float at a constant height over the ground. If you "float" rather than bounce then you are using your energy to propel yourself forward rather than wasting it on the inertial losses of bouncing up and down. Visualize a tea cup filled with scalding water on top of your head - don't spill it! You can even try running while balancing something on your head. You will naturally fall into the non-bounce stride when you think of your head floating. Mid stride you will bend your knees a bit more to keep your torso from bouncing upward. There are a number of ways to practice this and break yourself of the traditional "heel first, roll onto your ball" crush those cockroaches running technique. Barefoot running on pavement is way too dangerous in my book, save that for elite runners and those with 1/2" foot calluses. My favorite place to practice this is by running barefoot on hard pack sand, low tide provides nice hard sand. The hard pack sand is hard enough to constantly remind you that you cant land heel first but soft enough to provide some cushion and prevent injury. For those who don't have access to sand, use Scooby's patented pea technique. Taking cue from sleeping beauty, a pea is a great and inexpensive training device. In your running shoes, take a split pea and tape it in the heel of each shoe with the flat side down directly under the center of the heel. Best to use painters masking tape and replace it after every run, duct tape turns into a sticky, gooey mess. What this does is provide a gentle reminder on every stride to land on your claws (the ball of your foot) and not your heel! If you attempt to use the clydesdale cockroach crushing heel first running technique you will be very quickly and painfully reminded that you need to land on the balls of your foot. If the split pea is a bit too painful for you, start out with a lentil. A good way to check if your floating head technique is working is to look carefully at the horizon while you are running. If you are running properly, it should look like a rock-steady pan-cam in a movie. If you are doing it incorrectly you will see the horizon jolt and shake on every footfall. Note, you have to look at the horizon or something very far away to notice this effect easily.
It takes a long time to gain the ankle flexibility and the calf strength required to do this kind of running, you need to ramp up very carefully to avoid overuse injuries. When you are first starting out, only practice this for 5 min twice a week for the first month. The second month, increase the time to 10 min twice a week. Continue adding 5 minutes to the time every month till you work up to your normal running duration. Continue ramping up in this fashion till you can do your whole run without landing heel first. Running barefoot on sand you need to be especially careful and use the slow ramp up technique. Not only do our have our foot muscles atrophied from wearing shoes but they have decreased ankle flexibility, this is why many people who run barefoot get achilles problems. Take a look at a pair of tennis shoes or running shoes - the heel is significantly higher than the ball of the fool. What this means is that when you are walking the trailing ankle does not have to bend as much, take off the shoes and the ankle has to bend another 5 degrees. This may not sound like much but it can be enough to cause serious pain if you don't have the required flexibility.

Claw and Kick.

Running speed is your leg rpm multiplied by your stride length. If you can increase your stride length you will run faster without having to turn your legs into a human egg beater. Think about a long stride. Visualize the logo of the FTD florist, the runner with one leg extended way out front nearly horizontal and the rear leg pointed backward also nearly horizontal. Hamstring flexibility is required for this extension, you might need to start a daily stretching routine. Sand is the perfect place to practice this as I have found being barefoot makes it much easier to visualize your "claws". When you put your foot forward, try to put your claws in first and put reach them as far forward as you can. Try to keep your rear foot in the sand as long as you can, even try to flick sand backward with your toes. Claw and kick, claw and kick. Visualize that FTD florist logo!

The Torsional Spring.

Most people run like a poorly animated cartoon character, their legs spin like an egg beater while their torso is completely motionless. The core of your body, that is the abs and obliques, can help you run faster and longer if you let them. Use your core as a torsional spring. You know those old fashioned anniversary clocks that only need winding once a year on your anniversary? The pendulum on these clocks hangs from a thin metal torsional spring which allows the pendulum to spin one direction, then it slows down and stops, then spins the other direction. Think of your torso as this torsional spring. Every stride, your shoulders stay motionless while your hips rotate with respect to them - this does several things. First it lengthens your stride (which makes you run faster) because your hips are twisted, your forward foot can reach further forward and your rearward foot can reach further back. Second, by engaging your ab muscles in the running you are putting more muscle power into your stride - allowing you to run faster and further. The "torsional spring" technique works amazing when combined with the "Claw and Kick" technique but perfect each of them separately before putting them together.

Starting a Running Program

This is a good time to point out that its always a good idea to check with your doctor before starting any exercise program. Running is the most natural thing, but if its been decades since you ran or you are significantly overweight you need to start your running program very cautiously to avoid injury. Often people get very excited about their weight loss program and in their zeal to exercise and lose weight they get injured - don't let this happen to you! Running is easy and good for the body but you have to build up your strength and endurance slowly. First a shout out to the couch-to-5K running program, when I first started running I used some of their ideas to get started. If you are over 260lbs, I would not recommend running but rather would stick to walking till you get below 240lbs or so. Walking coupled with good nutrition can help you drop the weight quickly so that you can start this running program.

Week	Workout (twice a week)
1	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 15 minutes. Follow with 10min of fast walking
2	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes. Follow with 5min of fast walking
3	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 60 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes. Follow with 5min of fast walking
4	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 90 seconds of jogging and 30 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes. Follow with 5min of fast walking
5	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 90 seconds of jogging and 30 seconds of walking for a total of 25 minutes.
6	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 90 seconds of jogging and 30 seconds of walking for a total of 30 minutes.
7	Five minute fast walk. Alternate 120 seconds of jogging and 10 seconds of walking for a total of 30 minutes.
8	Five minute fast walk. Slow jog for 30 minutes
9	Five minute fast walk. Slow jog for 35 minutes
10	Five minute fast walk. Slow jog for 40 minutes

You will only be running two days a week, on your off days do a 20-40minute walk. Some important notes, you gotta have good running shoes. To reduce the chance of injury you need all the shock absorption you can get. I would also advise starting your first 6 weeks on a track if you can because the cinder or rubberized surface provides additional cushioning.

3 Minute Ab Workout

This is a 3-minute ab workout that will give you a strong core for better sports performance and also protect your lower back from injury in everyday life.
Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as spot fat removal. If you a big belly, you can't get washboard abs by doing this ab workout, or any other ab workout. It breaks my heart when I see overweight people at the gym doing 30 minute ab workouts, what they really should be doing is 27 minutes of jogging and this 3 minute ab workout. This 3-minute ab workout will make your abs strong, losing weight with good nutrition and cardio will make your abs visible by removing the fat covering them.
This workout is for those wanting flat, tight abs like a marathon runner. If you want big, powerful abs with big ridges and deep valleys like a pro bodybuilder then my killer ab workout is what you should be doing instead of this 3 minute ab workout. If you are not sure which workout you should be doing, then please watch this video "Big Abs, Flat Abs" where I explain the difference.

The 3 Minute Ab Workout

For best results, do this every day or every other day. Set a timer for 3 minutes and stop when it goes off. This workout consists of three exercises: crunches, planks and bicycles.

	Start off by doing as many crunches with good form as you can. Use slow controlled crunches lifting your shoulders up toward the ceiling. Don't flap your arms or nod your head. To see proper form for crunches, watch this crunch video. When you cant do any more with good form ...
	Do a plank on your left side. Put your left forearm on the floor and then straighten your body as straight and rigid as an I-Beam. Hold this as long as you can without sagging. When you start to sag ...
	Do bicycles. These are great because they do your obliques and abs at the same time. Lift your shoulder to your opposite knee while keeping the opposing shoulder on the floor, then alternate. To see the proper form of the bicycle, watch this video. When you cant do any more with good form ...
	Do a plank on your right side. Put your right forearm on the floor and again, hold your body straight and rigid as an I-Beam. Hold this as long as you can without sagging. When you start to sag ...
	Start all over again, no rest!!!!

Now lets talk about how you adapt this 3 minute if you have a really strong core. Many people could do crunches with good form for 5 minutes and the 3 minute timer would ding before they got a chance to do the other 3 exercises. For you people with abs of steel out there, you need to do weighted crunches and bicycles. Hold a weight behind your head like this with you head gently resting on the plate, choose a weight so that you can only do about 30s with good form.

That's my 3 minute ab workout. Strong abs are critical for optimal performance in every sport out there but more importantly, strong abs are important to support your lower back and prevent injury in every day lifting. And remember,

6-pack abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym!

Cardio!

Cardiovascular exercise ("Cardio" for short) is more important for your general health than weightlifting. More important than that to most people is that cardiovascular exercise helps you lose fat and look better! The quickest way to look like you have packed on 10lbs muscle is to lose 10lbs of fat, its a really cool bodybuilding illusion. It can take a years to add muscle but in a month you can look more muscular just by losing weight, it's because bodyfat makes the body round and shapeless which hides the muscles. Just check my video comments over the last 6 weeks, I dropped 7lbs of bodyfat with carb cycling and everyone keeps commenting how much more massive I look even though I haven't gained an ounce of muscle. So if you don't do cardio for your health, do it for your appearance!
Cardio is a confusing topic to many so I cover it in detail here. I discuss how much cardio to do, when do cardio, and how to know what is good cardio.
The Importance of Cardio
If you don't have time to do cardiovascular exercise, then skip weightlifting so you can do it - its that important.  Cardiovascular exercise should not be boring, it should be fun!  If you have to do cardio at the gym then find a good book, listen to the radio or books on tape - find a way to make it interesting and enjoyable.  Better yet, find a sport you love and do it with a spouse or friend and the time will fly by.  Walking, jogging, cycling, soccer, skateboarding, or whatever excites your passions.  If you don't have much time then jog to the gym, walk you kids to school, walk your dog, or start using your bike for transportation.  If you don't belong to a gym, and don't have a thousand dollars for a good stationary cardio machine, buy a jump-rope!  Jumping rope is an amazingly intense aerobic workout, in fact, you will probably have to start with just a few minutes and work up to 20-30 minutes a day.  Jumping rope is not only an amazing aerobic workout but is great at increasing coordination.  Contrary to popular belief, jumping rope is not monotonous either if done properly and takes a lot of concentration.  One drawback is that you need a room with high ceilings to jump rope or you need to do it outside.  Here are some great reasons to do cardio:

• To lose fat! - want 6-pack abs, only way is to lose fat thru cardio and nutrition.
• Cardio can improve your mood and significantly reduce depression.  Its been proven by study after study, cardio can make you happier! 
• Perform better at school or work!  Daily cardio reduces mental fatigue and gives you more energy. A recent study from the U of G showed that daily cardio reduces fatigue by 65%
• Tons of other health reason -
  • reduce risk of heart disease
  • reduce blood pressure
  • reduce risk of diabetes
  • live longer - 2hrs longer for every 1hr exercise

How much cardio? 
If you are happy with your body fat percentage and just want to keep your heart healthy then follow the American Heart Association's guidelines and do 30 minutes of  light exercise (walking, gardening, etc) a day.  If you want to lose body fat then try and do 30-60 minutes of strenuous cardio (swimming, running, fast biking) every day.
If you are lacking in time then find some part of your week where you can bike for transportation instead of driving, to work, the gym, or the grocery store perhaps?  Time sitting in your car is not only expensive but it is a waste of time, try and find some way of biking instead of driving the car.  If you are overweight enough that you don't feel comfortable biking then walking is a great option.  Try walking as transportation, beats wasting time sitting in traffic.

When should you do your cardio? 
There is a lot of confusion about when to do cardio, I get asked this question all the time! As many of you have heard, doing cardio before you eat in the morning burns off more calories so is that the best time? Lots believe that the right time to do cardio is before a weight workout to provide a warmup but just as many believe that the right time is afterward. Who is right? None of them! All of them!
The right time to do cardio is when you are most likely to do it! Cardio is very important and its 100x more important that you actually DO your cardio than when to do it! Lets look at some of the pros and cons of doing cardio at various times.
Doing Cardio And Weight Workouts Separately
Its optimal to do your cardio and weight workouts completely separately, that is, with four or more hours of rest between them. This way, neither workout interferes with the other and you can give each 110% effort. For those of us who workout at home, this is easy to do. For those who go to gyms, its not as easy if you depend on the stationary equipment for your cardio because then you need to make a second trip to the gym. Now lets look at the non-optimal compromises.

Doing Cardio Before Breakfast
Yes, studies have shown that you burn off more calories if you do cardio before breakfast, but its a lousy time to do cardio in my opinion because you wont do your cardio for nearly as long. Who can focus on cardio when your stomach is growling and you feel faint from lack of food? Not me! Besides, doing cardio before breakfast isn't the most convenient time for most folks.

Doing Cardio Before A Weight Workout
The fans of doing cardio before a weight workout point to its ability to help warm up your muscles to prevent injury, true it does this. For those who significantly overweight or are fitness beginners, walking or light jogging is the recommended cardio. For these people doing their walking or light jogging before their weight workout is perfect, it warms them up and doesn't interfere with their weight workout. On the other hand, intermediate to advanced athletes need to push themselves much harder in their cardio workouts - they get their heartrate higher and keep it elevated for longer. Cardio workouts of this intensity will exhaust the body to the point where the weight workout will be lackluster at best reducing potential strength and mass gains. If you are an intermediate or advanced athlete whose time is at a premium and don't feel its important to add more muscle mass then doing cardio before the weight workout is ok, otherwise find a better time to do cardio.

Doing Cardio After A Weight Workout
Doing cardio after a weight workout is my personal favorite, its not optimal but its a very good use of time if you are doing your cardio at a gym because it eliminates the need for a second trip to the gym. I always find that even after an intense weight workout, I still can give cardio the intensity it needs. One thing I always do though is make sure to eat a small meal after lifting weights before starting the cardio. Meal timing is important and its important to get a meal right after weight lifting and waiting till after you do 45min of cardio, shower, and get home is too much of a delay. If you do your cardio after your weight workout, you need to find some alternative way to warmup your muscles before the weight workout, not a big deal.

Cardio Is NOT Boring!
If you find cardio boring then you are doing something wrong and you need to fix it. How can you do this? Well, try doing your cardio outside in the real world if you can. Go for a bikeride thru the park, go jogging alongside the river. Join a soccer team or play ultimate frisbee, team sports have a way of making your cardio time fly by. If you are stuck indoors because of weather, you can still make those dreary stationary machines exciting. Watch your favorite TV show while you are doing cardio or read your favorite trashy magazine. Another way to make cardio engrossing is to download lots of interesting podcasts or music to your iPod/iPhone. An iPhone remote can make your iPod/iPhone much easier to use while doing cardio and makes it much less likely you will drop it. This is your chance to get away from the stress of everyday life and have fun!

What is "good cardio"? 
Its clear that there is a lot of confusion about cardio, its really quite simple.  Lets start with the basics.  The purpose of cardio is to elevate your heart rate and keep it (in the purple zone) there for at least 20 minutes.   How elevated does your heart rate need to be?  Depends on your goal, your age, and your health.  If you have medical conditions, ask your doctor what is appropriate for you.  If you are in good health, you can use these charts from the AHA

Age	Target HR Zone 50–85 %	Average Maximum Heart Rate 100 %
20 years	100–170 beats per minute	200 beats per minute
25 years	98–166 beats per minute	195 beats per minute
30 years	95–162 beats per minute	190 beats per minute
35 years	93–157 beats per minute	185 beats per minute
40 years	90–153 beats per minute	180 beats per minute
45 years	88–149 beats per minute	175 beats per minute
50 years	85–145 beats per minute	170 beats per minute
55 years	83–140 beats per minute	165 beats per minute
60 years	80–136 beats per minute	160 beats per minute
65 years	78–132 beats per minute	155 beats per minute
70 years	75–128 beats per minute	150 beats per minute

  http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4736
So if you are wondering if a particular activity is good cardio, its simple to find out.  Do it for a minimum of 20 minutes then measure your heart rate (15sx4) and compare it to the above chart.  If your heart rate is in the target zone, then its good cardio - simple as that.   With many forms of cardio, like cycling or walking, its easy to get lazy and just lolli-gag along.  Its important that you monitor your heart rate during the cardio to make sure that you are not slacking off.  Just a note, walking has the lowest dropout rate of all forms of cardio - probably because its so enjoyable.
OK, now lets talk about cardio equipment. I get lots of questions asking if a particular kind of cardio equipment is good.   First of all, I don't recommend buying ANY equipment.  I'd much rather see you get exercise outdoors by cycling, jogging, or playing soccer, its cheaper and more enjoyable.  If you have to workout in your home, I would recommend a cheap jump rope.  Having said that, if you are determined to spend money on equipment for indoor use, here is how you can tell if a piece of equipment is good. 
First of all, good cardio equipment is very expensive and typically costs over a thousand dollars  and has three main characteristics

• It gets your heart rate into the target zone
• adjustable speed, very impt
• sturdy = heavy, never seen anything sturdy under 50lbs most well over a hundred
• sufficient adjustable resistance

OK, some common questions I get about cardio.  Many people seem to be looking for shortcuts to cardio.  What if I sprint, can I just do 1 mile?  NO! You must do your cardio a MINIMUM of 20min, preferably 40-60min.  What if I do interval training, can I just do 15min - NO!  You must do your cardio a MINIMUM of 20min, preferably 40-60min.  I get questions about interval training all the time so lets talk about that a moment.  Interval training is alternating bursts of speed followed by short rests, for example in running you might sprint for 60s and walk for 30s.  Studies have shown that exercising in this fashion can burn off more calories than steady cardio.  If you want to do interval training

1. you still need to do it for a min of 20min daily
2. don't rest so long that your heart rate drops below the target heart rate zone (purple)
3. Be mindful of injuries, make sure to stretch - you are much more likely to get injured sprinting than

Wow, I'm really groggy myself.  Time for me to do cardio before I fall asleep.
Some important references:
http://www.depression-help-for-you.com/exercise-and-depression.html
http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/cgi/content/abstract/69/7/587
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080228112008.htm
 

Portion Control

The more you know, the more you realize how little you know so if you think you know everything then you know nothing.

One area where my bodybuilding ideas have been challenged the most by our excellent moderators and members on the AskScooby forum is in the arena of nutrition. I had to make significant changes to my nutrition page. Two of the main areas where I did a nutritional 180 was on fats and portion control. I used to be a hardcore, "the less fat consumed, the better" person but have been reformed. The other area where I have been reformed is in the area of portion control. My stance used to be that you should never count calories because that would lead to deprivation which would lead to binging which would lead to failure. I used to think that as long as you at a healthy diet high in fresh vegetables and whole grains that you could eat as much as you want and you would still lose weight. What I learned the hard way was that ...

You can always out-eat your exercise!

I would do two, three hours of really intense cardio a day, eat piles of vegetables but yet the fat only came off at a snails pace. I figured that with all the exercise I was doing that I could eat what I wanted and still lose weight, certainly all the healthy food I wanted. The only thing getting sore was my jaw from chewing so many vegetables. What I didnt realize is that eating healthy food and exercising a lot was only two thirds of the equation for reducing bodyfat, the missing part was portion control!

Reducing bodyfat requires:

1. eating healthy foods
2. exercise
3. portion control

And portion control is not a horrible thing, don't think diet and deprivation. Portion control for many is making sure they eat enough! From my experience, most people fail in their quest to reduce bodyfat not because they eat too much but because they don't eat enough! At the start of their diets, they are excited, ambitious and eager to lose the fat quickly - too quickly. They drastically cut their calories which causes two problems, first they burn muscle and second they feel deprived. For a week or two they are really excited that they are losing weight so fast but then the feelings of deprivation set in until the tipping point where they go off the diet and binge. If you want to lose bodyfat, the proper caloric reduction is ten to twenty percent - no more. You cant rely on a table in a book to figure out how many calories you should consume as there are too many variables that determine how many calories your body needs in a day (your TDEE). You need a precise value from a calorie calculator so that you don't reduce your intake too much!

What I personally have found is that if I eat a healthy diet, and reduce my calories by 20% that I am never hungry. Note the emphasis on healthy diet. A diet high in fiber and complex carbs is key to losing weight without being hungry. I can guarantee you that if you cut your calories by 20% but eat cheeseburgers and potato chips that you wont be successful!

So portion control consists of two parts, knowing how many calories to consume and the second part is insuring that you consume that calculated number of calories. Your #1 tool in this task is a digital kitchen scale.

Before you can weigh it though, you have to take that daily calorie total you calculated using the calorie calculator and turn that into meals. This is where most people fail. You have several options:

• You can use the meals that my calorie calculator or carb cycling meal planner automatically generate for you.
• You can slog thru it the old fashioned way, looking up the nutritional value of everything you eat and adding it up.
• You can use an iPhone application like "Lose It" to help you plan your meal
• Use a free interactive meal planner
• Buy access to a bodybuilding specific interactive meal planner, the best I have found is from Will Brink and you get lifetime access if you buy his eBook.

Once you have a meal plan for the day, weigh everything that passes your lips!