Sweet Potato Nutrition Facts

“My dream is to become a farmer. Just a Bohemian guy pulling up his own sweet potatoes for dinner.” –Lenny Kravitz

I probably should have posted this article before Thanksgiving.

However, I thought about it after my family decided to opt for sweet potatoes instead of traditional mashed potatoes this Thanksgiving. We made baked sweet potato wedges and they were a big hit. Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite dishes around the holidays, or anytime really. The bonus, of course, is that sweet potatoes are among the most nutritious foods you can eat. The following are some sweet potato nutrition facts that should make anyone want to include them in their diet.

There are plenty of good reasons why sweet potatoes are known as a "superfood".

Sweet potatoes are low in calories, but filling creating excellent satiety value. Continue reading →

The Best Exercise Equipment for Abs and the Best Exercises for Abs

“Improving in leg raises will cause the biggest impact on ab development.” –Rusty Moore

I’m tired of seeing ads for ridiculous abs equipment.

Whether it’s those ab rockers that supposedly help you do crunches more effectively or those ludicrous belts that claim to work your core without you doing anything, there are so many scams out there it’s not even funny. I could go on about this, but I’m not even going to bother. Instead, I’ll just point out a couple of things. First, when it comes to getting a defined midsection, the type of abs exercises you do are of secondary importance to your diet and overall fitness regimen… by far. Next, when you do work your abs, you don’t really need any equipment to get an awesome workout, especially not the gimmicky ones you see on late night TV. Having said that, I do have a couple of suggestions for the best exercise equipment for abs and the best exercises for abs which will actually help you get results.

Getting visible abs isn't as out of reach as you might think.

The first piece of equipment isn’t even an abs-specific contraption. Continue reading →

Britney Spears Workout Routine and Diet

“I don’t like defining myself. I just am.” –Britney Spears

Britney Spears is one of my favorite female celebs of all time.

I want to profile the Britney Spears workout routine and diet for a couple of reasons. First, she’s turning 30 this year (hard to believe, right?) and has never looked better. Not to mention she has two kids. Second, she didn’t always look this good. She has had some highly publicized issues with weight gain in the past, but has since overcome them and gotten back into phenomenal shape. This is important because a lot of readers can identify with this. Many of the celebrity routines I have reviewed display a near flawless lifestyle from the beginning. It’s not always like that for everyone.

Britney Spears' journey reflects some of the more "real life" struggles everyday people face with weight loss.

Back in 2007, Britney struggled with binge eating. Continue reading →

Simple Weight Loss Tips You May Be Afraid To Try

“Obesity is really widespread.” –Joseph O. Kern II

Are you thinking outside the box when it comes to weight loss?

If you eat three meals every day, believe fasting is unhealthy, and “wing it” when it comes to managing your calorie intake, then you probably aren’t. If this is the case, you’re not alone. The majority of people eat too much for their activity level without even realizing it. What’s worse is that they convince themselves that this is the healthy thing to do because they have been brainwashed into believing that skipping a meal or two is not okay. My aim is to offer 3 simple weight loss tips that will change the way people think about eating. I go into more depth on each of these tips in my free 12-page report called “3 Simple Tips for Weight Loss”. You can access a free download link by “liking” my Facebook fan page.

“Every creature deserves a warm meal.” Dr. Evil is definitely thinking outside the box with his “sharks with lasers” idea. If he can do it, you can.

Tip #3: Three meals per day may be too much. Continue reading →

The Best Metabolic Workout Routine for Fat Loss

“If you keep changing your program and including high-intensity exercise, your body will burn a lot of calories trying to keep up.” –Craig Ballantyne

In my last post, I discussed metabolism.

To recap, your metabolism is driven by several factors. The one factor that is the most influential (and also the one you have the most control over) is your activity level. So you should strive to be more active if you want to raise your metabolism. Based on this, it makes sense to spend as much time as possible exercising. Will any exercise do the trick, though? Are there some forms of exercise that do more to increase your metabolism than others? After all, you do want to be efficient in your fitness (and in everything else you do). The answer is yes. There are certain types of exercise that are superior to others when it comes to boosting your metabolism and thus your overall calorie burn. The best metabolic workout routine for fat loss is a high-intensity workout.

Kettlebell training is a fantastic metabolic workout routine.

You’ve probably heard a lot about high-intensity exercise and its benefits. Continue reading →

What is Metabolism?

“I guess I don’t mind so much being old, as I mind being fat and old.” –Peter Gabriel

Metabolism is one of the most misunderstood concepts in fitness.

The purpose of this article is to provide a simple but accurate explanation for one of the most important concepts you need to grasp if you want to get lean and stay lean for life. There are so many misconceptions about metabolism floating around and if you buy into them, you may very well be approaching health and fitness in a counterproductive way or at best, in a suboptimal way. If you want to optimize your body’s fat burning capabilities, you must first understand how your body uses energy. What is metabolism? The answer will help you unlock your body’s true fat burning potential.

What is metabolism? Despite what you may have heard, it's not all genetics and age.

I am not a biochemist and I don’t pretend to be one. Continue reading →

Coffee Protein Shake That One-Ups Starbucks

“There is a Starbucks across the street from another Starbucks. And ladies and gentleman that, is the end of the universe.” –Lewis Black

Are you hooked on Starbucks?

I must admit, I do enjoy the occasional frappuccino. But if you’re drinking these regularly, chances are your wallet is getting thinner and your waistline is getting bigger. Fortunately, I’ve got a solution that fits in with a healthy lifestyle. It’s another homemade concoction much like my homemade sports drink I wrote about a few weeks ago. I’m even more proud of this one, though, because it tastes like a delicious dessert but it’s actually a nutritious coffee protein shake.

Starbucks across from a Starbucks!

Here’s what you need: Continue reading →

How to Become Lean and Toned

“If you wish to grow thinner, diminish your dinner.” –Henry Sambrooke Leigh

Getting lean and toned isn’t a one-way street.

In my last post, I talked about how to become lean and toned and why it requires a two-pronged attack. As I mentioned, I choose to focus five days a week on fat loss and two days a week on muscle building. I haven’t always followed this approach in the past, but lately I have and I’ve been extremely happy with the results. In this article, I’m going to go into detail on what exactly I do during each of these types of days. What might surprise you is how very different the characteristics of these days are and this is exactly why you can’t do both at the same time.

Becoming lean and toned is a two-way street because you need to focus on burning fat and building muscle which require different tactics.

The fat burning days are all about discipline. Continue reading →

What is Lean Muscle and How Do You Get It?

“I go for two kinds of men. The kind with muscles, and the kind without.” –Mae West

Becoming lean and muscular is the holy grail of fitness.

The Hollywood celebrity look is often placed on a pedestal and for good reason. Look at movie stars like Brad Pitt, Ryan Reynolds, and Taylor Lautner. Then look at the people around you. How many people among your family, friends, and coworkers have achieved this kind of physique? Chances are few to none. The reason for this is simple. Everyday people either don’t know what it takes to get into this type of condition, don’t care enough to do so, or both. Almost everyone I know falls into one of these three categories. When you think about the build of the stars I mentioned, one of the first things that comes to mind is “lean muscle”. But what is lean muscle?

What is lean muscle?

What is lean muscle? Continue reading →

5 Fun Ways to Exercise and Stay in Shape

The best way to stick with anything is to make sure you’re enjoying yourself. Finding fun ways to exercise and stay in shape may be the most important thing you can do for your long-term health.

Rafi’s last guest post on the importance of a bodyweight workout was a big hit, so here is another one!

Bio: Rafi Bar-Lev is the blogger behind Passionate Fitness, where he recently wrote about how to gain weight fast without fat. Check it out!

You know, whether you want to gain muscle, lose weight, or just feel healthy – getting into great shape is really not that difficult. In fact, a huge portion of the information out there about weight loss or weight gain is actually quite accurate. So the question is – with so much good information available – while are people still having trouble getting into great shape?

Find fun ways to exercise!

Well, there’s one simple answer to that question. Continue reading →

Health and Wellness Jobs for Everyone

“Seventy percent of success in life is showing up.” –Woody Allen

In my last post, I talked about work ethic.

As an adult, you need a good work ethic to succeed at anything, including health and fitness. So how do you build a health and fitness work ethic? Begin a career in health and fitness. By this, I don’t mean quit your job and become a nutritionist or personal trainer. I mean take on a part-time job of eating healthy and working out and stick with it. Think about it… if we all had health and wellness jobs, would obesity exist? I realize this may sound a little crazy, but I have developed this mentality over the last couple of years and it works.

What if we all had health and wellness jobs?

Why does it work? Continue reading →

Develop Health and Fitness Work Ethic Traits

“I learned that the only way you are going to get anywhere in life is to work hard at it. Whether you’re a musician, a writer, an athlete or a businessman, there is no getting around it. If you do, you’ll win-if you don’t you won’t.” –Bruce Jenner

This is the first of two posts on the importance of having a health and fitness mentality.

My whole life, I’ve been intrigued by people who are the best at what they do. If they are people I know, I ask them how they go about things and if they are more well-known role models such as sports stars or successful business people, I read about them. I’ve noticed a few changes from my childhood days to my adult days. One big difference I’ve noticed is how people who are the best at what they do get to that stage. Developing good work ethic traits becomes very important as an adult.

Developing good work ethic traits is important to succeed at anything.

When I was younger, people just seemed to naturally be the best. Continue reading →

The Best Zig Zag Diet for Fat Loss

“I don’t know about you, but I’m not in to eating dried chicken breast and veggies six times a day, day after day, week after week, month after mind-numbing month.” –Joel Marion

Calorie restriction will take you a long way.

But it will only take you so far. Once you get to a certain point, your body starts taking measures to prevent fat loss and promote fat storage because this is what it thinks will help you survive. Your body can’t really tell the difference between a calorie restricted diet and starvation except that the former is simply a milder form of the latter. This is why the leaner you get, the more difficult it becomes to lose fat. You can create a massive calorie deficit by eating very low-calorie and low-carb for a few days, but take it any further than that and you will hit a fat loss brick wall. Your body will trump all your efforts by reducing levels of fat burning hormones and increasing levels of fat storing hormones. However, a zig zag diet will keep your fat burning hormones running solid.

You can eat like this and have a body like this too.

The main hormone that controls all the others is leptin. Continue reading →

Sports Drink Comparison: Market vs. Homemade

“It’s true that the time immediately after a weight workout is a prime opportunity for protein synthesis.” –Mark Sisson

I used to not buy into the idea of recovery drinks.

Recently, I have changed my stance. I started doing P90X about three weeks ago and one of the “add-ons” they recommend for the program is a post-workout recovery drink. I’ll admit, I used to believe that simply taking in enough protein throughout the day would be sufficient to get the most out of my workouts. Then I watched the intro video for the P90X recovery drink by Mark Sisson. I’m a huge fan of Mark, so I decided to get on board and give the recovery drink a shot. I began having a recovery drink within the recommended one hour window immediately following a workout and I have been pleasantly surprised.