The ZeroCardio Diet - Part III

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Speed ladder drills have many benefits for mind and body!

In the first two parts of this series, I went over the numerous reasons why, if your goal is athleticism and/or aesthetics, you should stop doing cardio and start lifting weights. In this part, I am going to go into some exercises that you can and should do as part of your ZeroCardio Diet. Just to be clear, this program is meant to harness your athletic prowess as you develop copious amounts of lean, drop dead, mouth-wateringly sexy muscle. So if you want to run marathons or 5Ks or if you just enjoy running to clear your head... DO CARDIO. Just know that cardio WILL destroy your lean muscle gains so for MAXIMUM results, I do not recommend combining weight lifting with cardio.  Once again, cardio is NOT bad for you... it's just not the best for bulking up, trimming down, athleticism, and overall hotness.

When it comes to weight lifting, FORM is paramount...not the amount of weight you push around. Insecure jabronies sacrafice form for weight... don't be a jabroni. Also CrossFit warriors do the same thing. CLICK HERE to read about my OPINION of that "sport." But I digress...

I could go on and on about strength training routines and exercises you could do to BLAST FAT and improve your athleticism and appearance, but I'm not going to do that here. Instead, I invite you to send me an email ( strengthbymatt@gmail.com ) and ask me for a FREE, ZeroCardio strength training regimen. Whatever your goal is, be it body building, athleticism, bulking up, trimming down, or just plain getting a nicer ass! I can create a workout that will help you achieve it. Strength training is nothing without a proper diet though, so you won't be able to just lift right, you'll have to eat right too. I will cover that topic soon too.

Sled pulls are great for your heart and your
muscular development! 

The main concern people have with the ZeroCardio program is that they think that cardio is the only way to improve your CARDIOvascular system. But that thought is simply wrong. Among other things, sprints, High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). and super setting your lifts will improve your cardiovascular health. You won't be able to run a mile very fast, nor will you be able to mindlessly watch TV or read a book while doing them, but that dosen't mean your cardiovascular system is unhealthy. The aforementioned exercises create lean, sexy fast twitch muscle fibers while still giving your heart a workout and improving your overall cardiovascular health. I recommend including at least 1 day a week of interval training or sprints in addition to weight lifting. These exercises will not diminish the gains you see from weight lifting, they will actually improve them. Sprints especially are very efficient in burning through your bodies glycogen (carb) stores. When sprinting you use glycogen almost exclusively as an energy source. The faster you blast through that, faster you begin burning through your glycerol (fat) stores. You DO NEED CARBS in your diet though in order to fuel your muscles so that you can have a good strong workout.

My whole goal of creating the Strength By Matt brand is not to rid the world of treadmills and elliptical machines. My goal is to make this world a better place by helping individuals become stronger versions of themselves in the most EFFICIENT manner possible. As you become physically and mentally stronger, not only will your life improve, but so will the lives of those around you and in turn, the world will be a little bit better of place. If you feel the strongest version of yourself is a marathon runner, then the Strength By Matt resistance training program is not for you. Just tune out articles like these and read my posts on nutrition, supplements, mental health, and the like. I really do welcome your feedback and your points of view so keep it coming!

And as always... all of this is just advice.. you can do whatever the HELL you wanna do!

The Zero Cardio Diet - Part II

!!!!!!Send me an email if you want a personalized lifting routine!!!!!!!
strengthbymatt@gmail.com

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As people progress in age past their 20's, and in some cases in their late 20's, they begin to lose a percentage of muscle mass every year. This percentage increases with age. Now here's the kicker: Strength training combats this genetic decline... cardio accelerates it. You see, in order to continue to increase muscle mass as you age, you must create lean, fast twitch muscle fibers. Cardio tends to atrophy (eliminate) fast twitch muscle fibers in favor of less toned, weaker slow twitch fibers. What's that you say? You don't care about your muscle composition because all you want in life is to be skinny? Well, cardio dosen't help that either!

Women who lift trim down instead of bulking up!

Lean, fast twitch muscle fibers require more calories to function then their slow twitch counterparts. So when you run or bike for miles and burn all those calories in the short term, you are actually making it harder for your body to burn calories in the long run. If, instead of running for an hour you chose to lift weights, you would create lean muscle in your body, and as a result every activity you do would require more calories. In other words, lean muscle will increase your basal metabolic rate! This lean muscle also appears to be more firm and more aesthetically pleasing. And you will be able to maintain this appearance into your old age. You simply cannot get this benefit from cardio. 

Most of us find ourselves in this
position for extended periods of time
every day, which is horrible for our
posture! 

Now let's talk about posture, which also tends to degenerate with age. Most of our lives today are anterior centric, or "forward leaning." From driving your car, to sitting at your computer, you spend a large part of your day hunched over with your shoulders rolled forward and your head sticking out forward like a chicken pecking for food. When you bike or run, you force your body to do the same thing only under a greater amount of stress! Just look at the next runner you see in your neighborhood if you want proof. This is horrible for your structural integrity, and for your overall appearance. Strength training, however, can correct this. I'll do a post soon about all the life benefits of good posture, but for now, just take my word for it... good posture is critical for long-term quality of life.

Next topic... let's address the concern that most women bring up to me... 

A lot of females believe that if they strength train they will bulk up like Arnold Schwarzenegger. This is simply impossible. Men have a much higher ability to gain mass and muscle due to their testosterone levels being far higher than those of women. Those "freak" female body builders are almost all on steroids. Women will actually appear thinner, and more trimmed down when they follow a lifting program. If you think you're different, you're not! Lifting weight burns both the fat surrounding your muscles and the fat within your muscles (and yes, there is fat within your muscles in the same way that there is fat in the middle of a nice juicy steak). This results in a trimmed down, toned appearance. Without the use of supplements like steroids and testosterone boosters, women cannot physically bulk up to "disgusting proportions". As long as females follow a healthy, calorie-conscious diet in conjunction with a proper lifting program, they will trim down, tone up and look sexier than they could ever look by doing mass amounts of cardio.

Biking, a form of cardio, is ineffective.

So cut the crap cardio and start getting more bang for your buck... lift weights! 

The Zero Cardio Diet - Part I

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You will only bulk up by lifting if that's your goal.
When it comes to bulking vs.  toning, it's all about what you
eat, not what you lift!

The key to losing weight and getting the lean shapely figure you're looking for is to burn more calories than you take in. To do this, most people think they have to run, bike, swim, hop on the eliptical machine or stair stepper, or row a 10k. WRONG! Cardio is not the answer! The answer is found in resistance training aka weight lifting aka pumping iron aka getting your swoll on. 'Merica.

The amount of calories you burn during a workout is determined by your heartbeat. Essentially, the harder your heart works, the more calories you burn. So here's the conundrum with devoting time to cardio in an effort to burn calories as you stive to achieve your aesthetic goals. As you get better at cardio, your entire cardiovascular system improves (hence the name cardio!) which means it requires less effort for your heart to pump oxygen throughout your body. Consequently, you burn less calories. To overcome that you must increase the duration or intensity of your cardio sessions. Ain't nobody got time for that! Additionally, your body begins to convert your lean, sexy fast twitch muscles into slow twitch muscles in order to adapt to the increased amount of cardio you've been doing. Lean muscle is made primarily of fast twitch fibers and is imperative to achieving the shape and pleasing aesthetic appearance that most people desire (if you show me someone who dosen't desire this, I'll show you a liar). More muscle on the body equals more calories burned in both the resting and active state. Why? Simply put, more muscle fibers are recruited and required during each and every activity that you perform. This means that people with more muscle burn more calories while walking, working, eating, watching tv, working out, and even sleeping than people with less muscle burn. 

To achieve the shape you desire for your body, you must change your body's composition. In other words, you must get rid of fat while simultaneously adding muscle. Cardio will drive you to lose some fat, but it does not allow you to gain muscle. The average overweight woman is pear shaped with more fat in the lower half of their body while the average overweight man tends to be apple shaped with more fat in their mid-section. Doing cardio then would drive these people to become smaller pears and smaller apples because they would lose some fat without adding muscle. Your goal however, should not be to look like pear or apple of any size. It should be to change your body's composition in your upper and lower half and in your core (abs and lower back). This goal can only be accomplished through strength training! 

I'll leave you with this final piece... I dare you to take the Strength By Matt challenge:
       

A not-so-uncommon sight in the cardio room.

Next time you're at the gym look in the cardio section and I'll bet you'll see a dozen or so people who look unhappy, are not losing weight, and are using cardio as an excuse to watch television. This form of exercise will closely resemble the time they spend on their couch! Next, look into the weight room and I'll bet you'll see a group of lean, toned, sexy individuals with great posture and a confident aura. Now answer this question... which group would you rather be a part of?

As always, I'm only giving you advice and inviting you to try something new as you strive to become a stronger version of yourself. You can do whatever the hell you want to do!