10 Best Exercises For Quick Weight Loss

Sunlight

Many people suffer from symptoms of seasonal affective disorder during the winter months. This is believed to be closely correlated with lack of sunlight exposure. Sunlight exposure can benefit mood by boosting levels of key hormones and also by producing vitamin D. Vitamin D is produced in the liver and kidneys from precursor chemicals that are synthesized in the skin, when UV rays from the sun shine on it.

Despite the limited evidence available currently, athletes and trainers in the early 20th century believed that UVB radiation was beneficial to athletic performance. Accumulating evidence (1,2) supports the existence of a functional role for vitamin D in skeletal muscle with potentially significant impacts on both the performance and injury profiles of young, otherwise healthy athletes. While further research is required to evaluate the level of vitamin D required for optimal muscular function, my personal experience says that getting 15 minutes of sunlight on a daily basis (ideally somewhere after your workout) can help you recover more efficiently. Consider this my bro tip.

Excuses

For the last couple of months while I have been training, the noise from a bar on the lower level of my house has been interfering with my sleep quality. Two to three times per week my sleeping quality sucks and there are days when I see it affecting my workouts. I feel heavier. Still, I pay my dues and follow my workout plan. My point here is that if you wait for the perfect conditions in life they will never come. You will always have at least some stress in your life, you might live in a country with not enough sunlight or you might have a kid that keeps waking you up late at night. Try to get the best out of your current situation and find a way to get your workout done. The only bad workout is the one that does not happen.

10 Best Exercises For Quick Weight Loss Photo Gallery

Abs The holy grail of fitness

I’m not a BIG fan of the expression – abs are made in the kitchen. Sure, its 50% true, but in order to lose fat and reveal the abdominal area you also need to train it. Abs are just like any other skeletal muscle. They are a striated, skeletal muscle group, which means that you need to work on them at least two times a week. Where people take a wrong approach to ab training is using the wrong exercises and overdoing it.

This is a picture of me last summer.

If you zoom in on it you can see that the upper part of my abs extends even more than my chest, so you could say my abs were quite defined during that time period. Also, I had a very low body fat percentage which, besides helping me look really ripped, also cost me some muscle loss; with my chest looking flatter than ever. During that period, the only direct ab-work I did was Dragon Flags. However, notice that I say direct work since I was doing a hell of a lot of bodyweight exercises.

How Much Abs is Healthy?

The first and most important thing I want to mention on this topic is that having a six-pack is not per se equivalent to being healthy. Once you start going lower than 11-12% body fat (21-22% for women) and start moving closer to 6% body fat (13% for women) you are likely doing more harm than good to your health. Of course keep in mind that people are different due to genetic factors and while some can feel great at 8% others might feel weak and even sick.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t try getting ripped if that is your goal. But, if your face is starting to look way too edgy, or if, besides your abdominal area, the rest of your physique starts to look worse and if other related problems start occurring; like experiencing a low libido, if you are a guy, or having menstrual issues, if you are a woman, these are good signs that you are probably doing more harm than good.

Abs tend to be a topic people obsess on a lot. Since the abdominals are part of a bigger unit – the core, I will also mention some important points about the core in general. First, let’s start with two of the most common myths when it comes to abdominal training…