A lot of people into health and fitness might have great bodies on the outside; low body fat levels and rippling muscles, but on the inside their bodies are a mess. A diet of protein shakes, skinless chicken breasts and rice might give you a great body, but it sure as heck won’t make you healthy on the inside. What’s the point of looking good on the outside if you’re setting yourself up for sickness and ill health in the future?
Have you ever noticed how athletes in power sports tend to have the best looking bodies? Think of gymnasts performing the crucifix on the Olympic rings, 100 metre sprinters, track and field athletes, martial artists and boxers. These athletes are often quite big and muscular, but somehow manage to pull it off a lot better than your average gym rat with the same amount of muscle mass and body fat levels. Ponder that for a moment and if you’re a bit puzzled, then read on, because I think I have the answer.
I recently wrote about The Secret to Sexy Abs, so I was more than a little amused when I read the Wall Street Journal Online’s, Six-Pack Surgery: From Puffy to Buff.
This liposuction procedure basically just sucks out lines of fat around the abs in a mock six-pack configuration. Now, I’m all for looking good, that’s mainly what this blog is about, but not at the exclusion of the healthy benefits of exercise. To me, this is the ultimate expression of form over function, or the ‘all show and no go’ syndrome that I so dislike. Sure, I want six pack abs, what guy doesn’t? But I also want the functional strength, power and agility that go with the muscle.
I have a confession to make - I’m not a morning person. Usually, I don’t like to be spoken to for at least an hour after rising, or at least until I get my morning coffee. For a while now, I’ve been wanting to get up early, get to the gym and get a fresh start to the day. Evening rolls around and I’m fully motivated to get up early and start the day rearing to go. I set my alarm for 6am, set out my gym clothes and even mix up my gym drink. I do this because I like to perform as few tasks as possible with my early morning brain fog and I also figure that being prepared will increase my chances of actually getting up.
If you aren’t already taking a salmon oil supplement, you’re missing out. Every time a new study is done on salmon oil the results seem to point to a cure for some or other disease or ailment.
Salmon oil contains omega 3 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fatty acid. One of the reasons that omega 3’s are so good for us is for their anti-inflammatory properties. In a typical western diet we don’t get enough omega 3’s and consume far too many omega 6’s, another type of polyunsaturate that is pro-inflammatory in nature. That’s not to say that the omega 6’s are bad for us, but that we need to balance out the two fats in order to keep inflammation at bay. Other good sources of omega 3’s that you should consider are flax seeds and walnuts.
What makes salmon oil so special?
The real magic with salmon oil lies with two additional fatty acids it contains, namely EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). DHA is the building block of the brain and retinal tissue. It helps with the forming of neurotransmitters and may be necessary for normal eye function. It is these two fatty acids, almost unique to fish oil, that contribute to the growing list of benefits.
Nothing beats a good set of abs. And I don’t just mean a six-pack. I’m talking about the entire midsection, from the slender finger muscles of the serratus and intercostals that run between the ribs to the V-shape muscles of the external obliques that point suggestively below the waistline. Think Brad Pitt in Fight Club. (ok girls, get your minds out of the gutter and concentrate 
) Even on ladies, a firm midsection with an hourglass figure and that sexy abdominal line running down to the belly sends a strong message of vitality, power and health.
I thought I follow up my intro post with my philosophy on how you should be training to get the sexy, powerful body you desire. The problem I see with most web health and fitness gurus is that they’re all selling a cast-in-stone system, regardless of their audience. The main message that I want to drive home in this post is individualisation of training methodologies based on what your body needs to achieve your end result. Phew! So what does that mean?
Hi, my name is Michael and my vision for this blog is to help you create the Hot Body you’ve always wanted. Your new bod will not only look better, it’ll perform better too.
As a part-time personal trainer myself, I see a lot of confusion amongst the general public who just want to look sexy, be healthy and not dread showing off their wobbly bits at the beach. Quite frankly, this doesn’t surprise me. In today’s internet age we have an orgy of information at our fingertips, but wading through the blatant disinformation, inflated ego’s and supplement pimps has become a hazardous minefield. I find this to be especially true in the health and fitness industry and that makes me sad, because millions of people are failing this fitness challenge through no fault of their own.
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