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Today’s Top Tips will be posted and archived here! We hope you find them useful in your journey towards better overall health and wellness!

• Set your exercise order to get the most out of your time! The majority of your sessions should mean dumbbells, barbells, and machines—in that order. “The smaller, stabilizer muscles you use with dumbbells fatigue before your larger muscle groups,” says Charles Staley, a strength coach in Las Vegas. So progress to machines, which require less help from your smaller muscles, as you grow tired.
• Track your progress to see greater results! Test yourself often. Every 4 weeks, measure a variable—waist size, body fat, bench press—that equates to your end goal. “It’ll show you the tangible results of your training,” says Craig Ballantyne, C.S.C.S., a trainer in Canada. And that translates into motivation!
• Work your weakness first! Train your lagging or goal bodyparts first in your training sessions. By prioritizing these areas early in your workouts, you will be fresh both mentally and physically, and have more energy and strength because your muscle glycogen levels will not yet be depleted. For best results, try hard not to hit your favorites first!
• Cardio done right means on an empty stomach! More important than the time of day is that you have not eaten a full meal, especially a high carb meal, within at least 90-120 minutes prior to your cardio. Running on empty will allow your body to tap into the unwanted fat stores for energy, thus hitting the target. Pop some branched chain aminos right before for even greater results.
• Experiment with your grip! If you want to get the most out of your resistance training, you will most likely need to use a variety of different grips on many of your exercises! Sometimes closer, sometimes wider, sometimes underhand, sometimes neutral! Mix it up and feel the difference in the muscle soreness.
• Generate your own inspiration! Use photos to do so! They really do work! Find old photos of yourself in the condition you would like to return to or photos of someone who has the look you want to achieve, paste them to your bathroom mirror, in your car, and at your desk. We fail to reach our goals, only when we lose sight of them. Keep them in sight at all times!
• Train for your body type! Not everyone should train using the exact same number of reps, workout schedule or resistance, everyone knows that. But are you training for your specific body type? Are you an ectomorph, endomorph or mesomorph and are you training accordingly? If not, it might part of the reason you are not getting the results you want!
• Do you like chocolate milk, fruit or gummy bears? Odd question right? If you do, guess what, these are all excellent additions to your post-workout meal! Yes, you read that right! The simple sugars and make-up of these three things make immediately following training the BEST time for you to take them in…the ONLY time really. Enjoy!
• What was once one of the most popular accessories in any gym is now hardly ever seen…the weightlifting belt! This is not necessarily a good thing either. While you should not wear a belt throughout all of your training, you should strap one on during your heaviest sets on exercises such as rows, squats, deadlifts, and any overhead press work not done supported.
• Fitness fights cancer! Sure there are a number of reasons to live a healthy lifestyle, but did you know that regular exercise and a good daily diet can play a major role in preventing some 340,000 cancer cases in the U.S. alone? Significant reductions in stomach and colon cancers have been linked to even moderately healthier lifestyles. A good trade-off if you ask us!
• Water, water, water! Everyone knows the importance of ample water intake, but did you know that water can also play a large role in weight management? Water can provide a feeling of fullness, thus sending signals to the brain that limit hunger pains! Drink up folks, not only will you lean out, but your body and mind will function significantly better as well!
• Cardio on empty! Whether you can do it first thing in the morning or not is up to you, but doing your cardio on an empty stomach (assuming your goal is fat loss) is vital to get the most out of your session. The goal is to ensure that carb and fat stores, not recently ingested food, is burned for fuel! A very strong suggestion for even greater results…add 3-6g of BCAA -http://ow.ly/6gqg2
• Skip’em! Juices, sodas, “energy” drinks, coffees, etc. are slowly but surely killing our general health and wellness! Sure, anything of these things could be enjoyed in moderation, but unfortunately, that just isn’t the way we take them in. Isn’t it time you chose something that not only tasted great, but made you actually feel amazing? Seriously? Spark is the choice…
• Kill the excuses! If you think you’re too busy to exercise, try this experiment: For one day, schedule a time to work out, and then stick to it—even if you can exercise for only 10 minutes. At the end of the day, ask yourself if you were truly any less productive! You might actually be shocked when you find your efficiency and productivity actually increased!
• Use your Catalyst! We know 5-6 small meals and snacks per day can sometimes be tough to plan and get! This is a BIG reason we recommend Catalyst to anyone having a hard time meeting that goal. This simple, yet powerful protein solution (3 little capsules) can help anyone fill in a gap to ensure fat burning stays elevated and muscle are not devoured! Check it out…
• Treat your exercise like a business meeting! How many times have you had the best of intentions to work out, only to push it aside to do something far less meaningful? Yes, it happens to everyone! Schedule your training as you would a business meeting or doctor’s appointment! Put your gym “appointment” in your calendar, phone, etc! How you see it, is how you will treat it.
• Contrary to often popular belief, fat is not the major culprit when it comes to excess weight gain and fighting obesity! You need to be as aware and concerned, if not more so, about sugars and refined carbs, than your daily fat intake. Gatorade, juices, sweets, sugars, chips, etc. do far more damage on average!
• Try a jump rope! Think jumping rope should have ended when you were 10, think again. There are not many exercises that almost anyone can do almost anywhere, that could have more impact if done properly! Trying jumping rope on high intensity intervals for 10 minutes. Oh yeah….
• Need a late night snack before bed? No problem if you limit it to protein or good fats. Carbs are NOT want you to take in before you go to sleep. Try peanut butter, a protein shake, cottage cheese, etc.
• Always warm-up with 5-10 minutes of cardio before your resistance training sessions. Not only will this help minimize injury risk, but it will also make you stronger, as warmer muscles fire better than cold muscles!
• Track your training program and progress or you are all but certain to waste a ton of time as it will be impossible to truly push yourself, and your body, to new limits with no idea as to where you have been. If you think you will “remember” the resistance you used, the time you rested, your energy levels or how many reps you did, from one workout to the next, you are sadly mistaken!
• An easy little tip, most people will love! When you’re drinking that water you know you need so much and want so badly to stay hydrated and functioning properly, drink it as cold as you can stand it. Ice it up! Cold water elevates your metabolism as your body needs to warm it up! Most people don’t like drinking their water warm or room temp anyway right?
• Millions of Americans these days are dealing with stress levels they never though possible before! Probably only hundreds realize the effects of this stress on the rest of their health and well-being and even fewer understand the direct correlation between the ability to deal with stress and one’s nutrition! For those you know battling heightened stress, we strongly suggest the look at Clear Mood soon!
• Always be aware of just how much foods like ketchup, white bread, canned fruit, and salad dressings you eat as they are most often hidden with high amounts of calories, carbs and sugars. Better health and overall weight management are often undermined by the little thing, not drastic changes.
• Cut the use of butter and margarine! Use apple, pumpkin, or other fruit butters on bread instead! All too often it is these little things that add up so quickly and cause the weight issues we so badly want to avoid! Seriously, is it asking too much of yourself to use a better tasting alternative? Small, lifestyle changes!
• Dessert doesn’t have to be forgotten, simply choose wisely! Pick fat-free, sugar-free ice cream or yogurt. Top with fat-free, non-dairy whip topping. Or, if you must have that favorite, simply cut off a small piece for yourself and limit your indulgence to that piece! You will soon realize nothing tastes as good as looking and feeling good feels!
• Never skip meals! Skipping meals can lead to out-of-control hunger, often resulting in overeating, not to mention drastic fluctuations in energy levels and mood swings. Learning to snack is an invaluable tool! Preparing and providing yourself with healthy snack options at all times can have a huge impact on not only your health, but your happiness as well.
• “Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper.” – Adelle Davis. Very important that your meal sizes shrink over the course of the day! If you are truly eating for your perceived energy requirements for the next three hours at every meal, you can quickly see why later meals should be smaller in calories and size! Small change, big difference.
• Nightly protein power! Do whatever you must to not miss this window of opportunity each and every night! Whether your goal is lean muscle gain or weight loss, proper protein consumption before snoozing will work wonders. Keep calories, carb and fat intake low so your protein choices are critical. Lean on cottage cheese, protein powder, Catalyst, even peanut butter if necessary…just get it in!
• Find your fatty acids! Very few things, if any, play as large a role in overall health, as Omega-3 Fatty Acids do! Not even multi-vitamins! Everyone over the age of three should be supplementing with Omegas daily! Make sure you and your children get your Omegas! Purple Champs for kids and OmegaPlex for adults!
• Do you know squat? Are you squatting during your leg training? If not, there is a good chance you are leaving up to 20% of your overall gains untouched. This is not about weight, it is about overall development! Your nervous system, your flexibility, cardiovascular endurance, and all of the legs stabilizer muscles will thank you! Make it a part of every leg session.
• Carbs only no no! Do you best to not eat carb only meals, at any time! This is almost a surefire way to unwanted weight gain! Carbs alone will cause spikes in insulin levels and fat storage probability, not what most people want. Always try to include some form of protein in every feeding to minimize this response.
• Do not skip…meals! Cannot stress how important this is, not only for weight management, but overall health, mental and physical function and your natural energy levels. This is really not hard to plan and prepare for with all of the healthy options available today so let’s make it happen!
• Increase your daily calcium intake to lower chances of obesity! Brazilian scientists have now shown that calcium intakes greater than 800mg per day were linked to lower body-fat levels. Couple this with the many overall health benefits and one can quickly see why proper calcium supplementation should be a priority for everyone. We choose Calcium Plus due to the additional nutrients and high quality!
• Post-Workout Meal Timing! We know “what” we eat immediately following our training sessions is very important, but “when” is also crucial to recovery and success. Do you very best to get your post-training nutrition into your body within 30 minutes of completion. Remember, this is the ideal time for a liquid meal as absorption is much quicker!
• Cardio comes last! If you are doing resistance training and cardio in the same session, NEVER do your cardio training first. Not only will this provide the greatest possible response to your resistance training, but it will also maximize the effects of your cardio training as your glycogen stores will already be depleted, leading to faster, greater fat burning.
• Free weights first! As smaller stabilizer muscles are called into play more during the use of free weights, you should almost always perform any barbell or dumbbell exercises before moving onto cable or machine work in your training program! There will be some exceptions to this rule, but they will be few and far between as you will want to be freshest when using free weights.
• Processed produces less! Eat fewer processed foods as they typically take fewer calories to digest, therefore have less impact on metabolism! Studies show an almost 50% less metabolic response in the digestion of processed foods. Couple this with their limited nutritional quality and you have good reason to shy away!
• Take a break! If you are someone who has been exercising regularly for months on end, take a short break, a week or so, to allow your body to recover systemically, not to mention your mind! Not only will you come back with a vengeance, but most likely stronger as well.
• Never miss a meal! Seriously, the ramifications of missing meals, of not getting in 5-6 small meals a day are truly detrimental, not only to your weight management, but to your energy levels, focus and overall health and well-being as well. It’s is not hard to get them in, it simply takes a little planning! Get’er done!
• Forget the scale! Don’t assume that the scale is always a true measure of what is going on with your body. Depending on your exercise routine, you may be putting on muscle but losing fat, thus losing inches even if you are not losing pounds. It’s always a good idea to do several body measurements to have a second, and more objective way to monitor progress.
• Check your ego at the door (mainly for the gents)! Like it or not, there will ALWAYS be someone bigger, faster and stronger than you! No need to approach your resistance training with the arrogance and ego of a teenager! The weights are a means to an end, a tool to create stress and therefore induce growth. They do not need to be, nor should the maximum amounts all the time! Train smart!
• If you have not put a Spark in your body yet, you are not living! Cut your cravings for sugars and sweets, ramp up your natural energy levels without those crazy jitters, feel your focus levels increase and watch your body transform before your eyes!

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