Get a butt! Top 5 glute exercises

1) Full squat-This is the king of butt exercises end of story. You must get into a full deep squat which is thighs parallel to the ground to give your glutes the most work.

2) Deadlifts-If the squat is king then deadlifts are right behind in terms of effectiveness for the glutes. The key is to make sure you push through your heels on every rep to activate the backside of the body. If your doing stiff leg deadlifts you can achieve more glute activation by adding some extra bend in your knees.

3) Bulgarian split squats-A variation of the squat that is great for the glutes. Checkout my old post for the proper technique. http://h4training.blogspot.com/2010/03/eom-bulgarian-split-squat.html

4) High step ups- Proper box height should have your knee resting at a 90 degree angle. I believe you can go with an even higher box every now and then to thrash your glutes even more. When doing the step up make sure to push through your heel of the foot that is on the step. All of the work should take place from the leg that is on the box.

5) Hip thrusts- This is a great exercise that trainer Brett Contreras has made popular. The key to this is to focus on squeezing the glutes throughout and not allow your back to do the work. Watch this video to get all the details. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCm-70-9_XE

Deja Vu fat burning workout-#2

A1)Chest press with dumbbells-15 reps
A2)Dumbbell sumo squat-12 reps
*Do this for 4 rounds before going into B1/B2

B1)One arm dumbbell row-15 reps each
B2)barbell deadlift-8 reps each http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Syt7A23YnpA
* Do this for 4 rounds

Now go back and do one round of A1&A2 combo and then right into one round of B1&B2

Rest 1-2min

C1) dumbbell seated overhead extension-12 reps http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbX7Wd8jQ-Q
C2) goblet squat with dumbbell-12 reps http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k19eAnKHA5g
* Do this for 4 rounds

Now go back and do one round of A1&A2....then right into one round of B1&B2 and then right into one round of C1&C2

D1) Dumbbell bent over double row-15 reps ( move quick ) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DvyD1_Ahss
D2) Jackknives ( burpees )-8 reps http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_Dq_NCzj8M
* Do this for 4 rounds

Now go back and do one round of A1&A2....then right into one round of B1&B2 and then right into one round of C1&C2 and then right into one round of D1&D2

Rest 1-2 minutes

E1) Lateral dumbbell shoulder raises-12 reps
E2) Lateral hops-10 reps each side http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQyoJU9QP6Y&feature=related
* Do this for 4 rounds

Now go back and do one round of A1&A2....then right into one round of B1&B2 and then right into one round of C1&C2 and then right into one round of D1&D2 and then right into one round of E1&E2

Random thoughts......

• Some post workout ideas- Take two Kashi honey oat frozen waffles and spread peanut butter in between to make a waffle sandwich. You get your protein from the pb and get your carbs from the waffles. This is a quick snack that is fast and easy. Another on the go option is greek yogurt topped with sliced almonds and drizzled with honey. This snack packs protein and carbs.

• Schedule your workouts. People live such busy lives that we tend to fill up our days and bypass the gym because of it. You schedule and book appointments so why not do the same for your workouts. Treat your workouts like a business meeting.

• Success is not a right. Doesn't matter how great of a workout program you have, in order to have success with it you must earn it everyday.

• Do your core work at the beginning of the workout instead of the end. By doing this you will have more energy and not rush through your core exercises.

• Great breakfast-Turkey bacon egg sandwich on whole grain bread. Scramble 3 eggs with spinach top it with some swiss cheese and two slices of turkey bacon. Delicious and high in protein!

• I love parmigiano-reggiano cheese, I put it on so many things. I guess it is a good thing because research shows that it activates fat-burning hormones and has a high protein content compared to other dairy products
  

6 technique musts if you want to have a big bench

1) Keep your feet wide-This is important to give yourself stability and balance when pressing.

2) Get a strong grip on the bar- You can increase your bench just by increasing your grip strength. Think about leaving an imprint on the bar and squeeze it as hard as you can.This will give you the best control over the bar during the press. Try and grip the bar low in the palm towards the heel of your hand and keep your wrists straight.

3) Squeeze the glutes

4) Keep your shoulder blades tight together and pushed down-Your shoulder blades need to be pulled together and kept extra tight to give you a strong support system during the press.

5) Bring the bar low-Let the bar come low on the chest even with the nipple or just below. Doing this will help recruit more triceps and the powerful front delts.

6) Figure out your strengths and weakness and go from there-Everyone is built different and therefore you need to make adjustments to your lift. Use the guide below when benching to lift the most weight you can.

Long arms – elbows out, wider grip,
Short arms – elbows in, closer grip.

Weak pecs – elbows in, narrower grip
Strong pecs – wider grip, elbows out

Weak front delts – elbows out, wide grip
Strong front delts – narrower grip, elbows close to torso

Weak triceps – elbows out, wider grip
Strong triceps – elbows in, closer grip

Top 5 most annoying people in the gym

1) The Inconsiderate sweater- the issue here is not the fact that they are sweating, everybody sweats when they workout. The problem is that they sweat all over the benches, cardio equipment and don't clean it up. The worst is when you go to bench press and find a pool of head sweat at the top of the bench. Find a towel and use it!

2) People who smell-everyone wont smell like roses while working out but there is no excuse for horrible body odor. If your shirt hasn't been washed since you joined the gym 2 years ago then I think you have an issue. On the opposite end of the spectrum are those who come to workout with the whole bottle of cologne sprayed on themselves. Either way, not good.

3) Sitters-These are the people who just rest on equipment forever while they wait for their next set. You go to the gym to workout and head out which seems easy until you run into these type of people. The equipment is meant for use not for you to sit and relax, daydream, or act like your serious.....enough!

4) Overly loud lifters-Ok so sometimes on your last set or two you will let out a loud grunt but this is normal. Others however think it is ok to grunt on rep 1 and every rep after that. Being ridiculously loud while lifting doesn't make it look like your a badass or big so just stop. Most of the time you just sound annoying so focus on your form and not your grunts.

5) Mr. Oblivious- This is the gym goer who pays no attention to anybody in the gym but themselves. They will walk right in your way while you do legs or they will stand right in front of you while you lift in front of the mirror. Be aware of others and don't walk around like nobody else is working out. If I hit you with the bar its because your an idiot and you don't pay attention.

Great chest builder

Sometimes when we train the chest we might not work in the incline and decline movements as much as we should so this workout uses both. As always, I would recommend doing this with a spotter. The first set of the incline will be with the most weight you can do for 6 reps and then you will decrease the weight and increase the reps every set after. The decline weight and reps will remain the same throughout.

Incline chest press with barbell-6 reps, 8, 10, 12
SUPER SET WITH
Decline dumbbell press- 12 reps

Take 90 seconds-2 minutes between sets

6 Ways to stay motivated

1) Be real with yourself and find out why you are working out and what outcome/results you are striving for. It is hard to stay motivated toward a goal if you do not know what that goal is.

2) Get rid of negativity! The " I cant's ", "I'm tired", and " It hurts" will only hold you back and keep you from making progress. Think it terms of the positives of what will come about from you exercising. Visualize how good you will look and feel.

3) Know going into it that working is hard and will be painful sometimes. If you expect everything to be roses and a walk in the park then your wrong. This will be a tough journey, but this is what makes it badass the fact that not everyone has the strength and toughness to do it and that is what will separate you from the average person. Go get it!

4) Reward yourself when you reach small goals or make progress. Self acknowledge that you now can do 10 full pull-ups or can go a whole 45 minutes of working out with minimal rest. Maybe you buy something or maybe you give yourself a cheat meal to enjoy your favorite food.

5) Get to know others in the gym. One of the best ways to stay on track is to find other people who have similar goals as you. On those days when you don't feel like working out they can help push you through your workout. Once a community atmosphere starts to build you will now become more accountable and be more likely not to miss workouts.

6) Change things up! It gets easy to become unmotivated when you are doing the same thing over and over. Get yourself amped up to go to your next workout by doing something new. Change creates change.

More weight loss tips

• Eat a small salad or a vegetable based soup ( non cream based of course ) before eating dinner. These foods are low in calories and high in water content therefore will fill you up.

• Snack on non starchy vegetables like carrots, bell peppers, celery and cucumbers, all which are high in water content and low in calories.

• Drink water all day and before meals

• If you feel like eating sweets ( chocolate in particular ), go out of the house and take a quick 10-15 minute walk. Some studies have shown that this has reduced cravings. If anything you just end up burning some extra calories.

• Commit yourself completely. Go all in!

• Every bite counts. Avoid nibbling on foods because in the end those calories will add up.

• Say no to sugars

• Be aware of food labels and read them