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Ronnie Coleman Criticizes His ‘Horrible’ Olympia-Winning Physique in Throwback Photo with Jay Cutler
Legendary bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman is widely regarded as one of the greatest competitors of all time. He dominated the IFBB Pro League and shared a heated on-stage rivalry with fellow legend Jay Cutler. In a recent throwback post made on Instagram, Coleman bashed his Olympia-winning physique in the off-season posing snap with Cutler.
Ronnie Coleman first gained attention for his freakish muscle mass, size, and conditioning as a Men’s Open contender in the late 90s. He came out on top of his first Mr. Olympia appearance with a dominant victory over Flex Wheeler. After the win, Coleman went on a commanding reign that saw him ward off the budding talent and defend the title successfully seven times in a row. One of the toughest competitors he faced during his days of competition was Jay Cutler.
Cutler emerged as a promising contender who battled it out with Coleman on the Olympia stage several times. He presented a tough threat but kept falling short of Coleman until he finally dethroned him in 2006.
Since stepping away from professional competition, the pair have put their competitive rivalry behind them. The two joined social media fitness influencer Jesse James West for a collaborative upper-body training session earlier this year. They reflected on competing against each other as Coleman admitted how hard the loss to Cutler was for him.
Ronnie Coleman And Jay Cutler
Ronnie Coleman suffered from a series of health challenges and underwent multiple surgeries stemming from his intense training methods. He’d maintained a candid attitude about the pain he endured throughout the years. Fortunately, things turned around after he started stem cell injections nearly a year ago. He reported positive results from the treatment and revealed the pain subsided completely.
‘The King’ laid out his four favorite bodybuilding poses of all time two months ago. Then, he teamed up with former 212 Olympia champ and 2022 Mr. Olympia runner-up Derek Lunsford for a grueling back and biceps training session a week later.
Jay Cutler is one of the few athletes to have retired without any major injuries. He has kept up a high level of personal fitness and working towards his personal ‘Fit for 50’ body transformation challenge before turning 50 this August. He left the fans stunned with a jacked physique update earlier this month.
Cutler heaped praises on Coleman’s physique and believes no other competitor has come close to the package he presented in his prime. He followed up by detailing his methods for developing a massive chest and provided three movements for building boulder shoulders about two weeks ago.
Ronnie Coleman criticizes his Olympia-winning physique in off-season throwback photo with Jay Cutler
In a recent Instagram post, Ronnie Coleman bashed his physique in a throwback photo where he posed on stage next to Jay Cutler in the 2005 off-season.
“@daveliberman sent me this last night to remind me as I am crushing the next 10.5 weeks toward my goal,” wrote Cutler.
“This was 2005/06 when @ronniecoleman8 and I would guest pose week after week together before the hype of social media 16 weeks out onstage full offseason My weight 300 lbs Ronnie was 320 lbs here.”
Coleman weighed in with his take on the old physiques of the two.
“Hey where is my other arm,” commented Coleman. “I’ve been out angled by missing an arm. We are both out of shape and we both look horrible. It’s all good though. That’s what the off season was for, to be off, sometimes way way off.”
Jay Cutler opened up about his ambitions to add muscle mass while maintaining his lean build for the body transformation challenge two weeks ago. He showed off his shredded package in a physique update where he weighed 240 pounds.
Ronnie Coleman opened his own Metroflex gym in Tampa, Florida a few days ago. He reflected on his career and mingled with fans for the launch of the training facility.
Coleman’s latest comment goes to show the champion mindset he carried to become the winningest Mr. Olympia athlete in history.
Published: 27 May, 2023 | 4:31 PM EDT
Terrick El Guindy: ‘If Nick Walker Has Branch Warren Quads, He Wins Mr. Olympia The Next 5 Years’
Judge Terrick El Guindy and Chris Cormier are weighing Nick Walker’s chances ahead of his 2023 Mr. Olympia appearance this November. In a recent Prime Time Muscle podcast, Cormier and El Guindy explained why quad improvements could lead to ‘The Mutant’ claiming gold later this year.
Cormier and Terrick El Guindy have become major voices in bodybuilding with consistent online appearances where they tackle current events. Over the last several months, the Men’s Open division has undergone significant changes. Most notably, Hadi Choopan won the 2022 Mr. Olympia title.
Months later, Nick Walker and Samson Dauda battled for gold in Ohio at the 35th Arnold Classic. After Bob Cicherillo called Dauda in first place, the community was shocked by the result. Online protests raged until Walker told fans to calm down.
In the aftermath, Cormier and El Guindy dissected the show and Walker’s second-place performance. Given the shape, beauty, and aesthetic features of Dauda and Andrew Jacked, El Guindy cautioned that this trend could mean trouble for Nick Walker or any bodybuilder who leans on freak factor and size to win shows.
Terrick El Guindy, Chris Cormier Say ‘Bigger Quads’ Gives Nick Walker ‘The Illusion’ of a Slimmer Waist for 2023 Mr. Olympia
According to Cormier, Walker would benefit from adding volume to his quads.
“He did a vacuum or pulled up [during a front double biceps pose] which is not a good look because his legs are shorter and his torso is longer but I did like the fact that he was starting to crunch down on the abs that shortens the waist a little bit and therefore gave him a more balanced look.
But I think there needs to be more depth to the quads, just from the front, not so much even the sweep, but just popping out towards the crowd. That’s going to be a whole other look for him. He’s right there. I think with a little tinkering around he’d be right there,” said Chris Cormier.
Cormier added that more thickness to Walker’s quads would make his shoulders appear broader.
“You become wider on top and that makes your waist, the illusion makes it small. You get your quads out, big quads always helps, so you can increase the shoulder, you can increase the legs which is going to make the waist smaller. He’s been doing that. His waist is actually getting smaller. He’s been doing work to reduce his waist but mostly it’s going to be by adding muscle in certain areas.”
Having finished third at 2022 Olympia, Terrick El Guindy believes if Walker brings up his lower body he could win any show on the IFBB Pro League calendar.
“Nick Walker, he said he was going to win Olympia, he took third. He said he was going to win the Arnold, he took second. He’s a movement. People love him. They love his confidence.”
“I still want to see a little bit more quads on him. If he has more quads, that waist is going to look really small. And I think the quads plus some posing is going to bring Nick Walker to the position where he can win any show in the world,” El Guindy shared.
El Guindy stressed that Walker’s waistline would look smaller with a different variation of the front double biceps pose.
“He’s got to pose better on that front doubles biceps we’ve been saying, he wants to show his quads, create an angle like Flex Wheeler used to create that angle and that’s going to minimize the waist,” El Guindy explained.
Cormier, on the other hand, noticed that Walker had some issues staying full from prejudging to finals at his last two contests.
“That’s one thing I noticed from the daytime to the night. Everything needs to be managed to where on his physique the pecs are not very long so I noticed from the next day the pecs were a little fuller and that front lat spread improved in the next day because the first day it just looked like it was a little bit flat-ish in the pecs, the shoulders wasn’t that wide, but then when we came to the night show the next day it was a much fuller package there,” Cormier said.
At just 29 years old, Walker is brimming with potential. El Guindy is confident Nick Walker could end up becoming a dominant Mr. Olympia if he achieves Branch Warren-level quads.
“It’s just a matter of learning from the guys that have made mistakes from the past and they learned. I think there’s a possibility for Matt Jansen and Nick Walker to get with some of these guys from the past that were criticized like we’re doing it and they fixed it. If Nick Walker has quads like Branch Warren, it’s over, he’s winning every Olympia for the next five years,” Terrick El Guindy stated.
This isn’t the first time that Cormier and El Guindy assessed Walker’s potential. The two met for a special Prime Time Muscle episode in March, where they emphasized that Walker’s mental outlook and determination were critical factors to finding success in the sport.
Even though Mr. Olympia isn’t for several months, Nick Walker hasn’t slowed down in his quest to win. In a recent Mutant and the Mouth podcast, Walker signaled an intensity shift in both his training and PEDs. He explained that his strength was climbing as he and Matt Jansen entered the next stage of his 2023 off-season.
As for Samson Dauda, he’s been evaluating the potential Olympia lineup for November. Despite Derek Lunsford’s runner-up finish last year, Dauda believes with enough back improvements he could take him out and possibly dethrone Hadi Choopan.
Predictions for the annual Mr. Olympia event are all over the board. Walker says Choopan won’t repeat as champion whereas William Bonac says he will. Meanwhile, athletes rep Bob Cicherillo is convinced Dauda and Lunsford are the top two threats to Hadi’s title. Regardless of who competes, fans are in for a thrilling event come November.
RELATED: Chris Cormier & Olympia Judge Discuss Potential of Iain Valliere, Michal Krizo, And ‘Good Vito’
You can watch the full video from the Olympia TV YouTube channel below:
Published: 27 May, 2023 | 1:27 PM EDT
Charles Glass Targets ‘Fake Drugs’ in Bodybuilding: ‘You’re Taking Something That Will Totally Mess You Up”
Bodybuilding trainer Charles Glass has developed a keen eye for the sport over the years. In a recent series of Instagram posts, Glass discussed counterfeit steroids and encouraged athletes to attend regular check-ups with doctors.
As one of the world’s top bodybuilding coaches, Charles Glass has used his engineering background to design effective workouts for people with different fitness goals. In addition to posting workout demonstrations, Glass teaches his students how to contract the muscles properly for optimal results.
The role of steroids in bodybuilding has always been controversial. Over the last three years, fans and bodybuilders alike fear that drugs have contributed to a rise in deaths. In 2021, former Mr. Olympia Shawn Rhoden died due to suspected heart troubles. Then, a year later, former Arnold Classic champion Cedric McMillan died at 46.
Following McMillan’s passing, athletes Seth Feroce and Kali Muscle warned up-and-comers about the dangers of steroids. Feroce believes the ‘bodybuilding lifestyle’ is to blame, which operates around exorbitant amounts of food and steroids. And now Charles Glass is addressing the touchy topic, who argues that fake drugs have become more prevalent than ever.
Charles Glass Warns Against Fake Steroids: ‘Do It Right & Your Blood Won’t Be Like Molasses’
According to Charles Glass, fake insulin and steroids are being produced in underground labs.
“People was using insulin then but not as much, less [the 80s]. Oh my God, yeah, [the drugs have changed] there’s more counterfeit drugs out, there’s more fake drugs out, you think you’re taking this but you’re not taking it. You’re taking something totally different that will mess you up. Why would you take it? You don’t know what’s in there. You buy test for $30 and this guy sells it for $50, who are you going to buy it from? The $30 person because it’s cheaper. It doesn’t mean it’s good but it’s cheaper. Most of the time, if it’s that cheap it’s an underground lab,” Charles Glass shared.
As a gymnast, Glass said he was able to bench press 425 pounds with a natural physique.
“I was a gymnast in college I was already strong. I wasn’t taking any drugs and I was able to lift heavy. Considering how much I weighed I was lifting heavy. You’d be surprised what you can do. The thing of it is the mid to late 30s you start seeing [better] performance. I could bench 425 without anything.”
Lastly, Glass highlighted that bodybuilders today are too concerned with size instead of regular health screenings.
“Most of the bodybuilders of today, all we just think about getting big and we don’t think about all the other stuff that goes with it. You always always always got to see a doctor. How many of see doctors now? I have to save my money to buy this buy that, but if you take the time to do it right, you’re still going to grow and your blood won’t get thick like molasses.”
Charles Glass isn’t the only veteran of the sport who believes steroid protocols have changed. Rich Gaspari competed as a Men’s Open pro in the 1990s and suggested that dosages today are ‘way higher’ than what he used during his heyday. Moreover, Gaspari took to a different Fitness, Fame & Fortune podcast, where he argued that competitors today rely on the overuse of drugs rather than training.
Given Glass’ meticulous training approach, he continues to be a valuable source of knowledge to the bodybuilding community. Above all else, he encourages athletes to always take their time building muscle.
Watch the other Instagram videos from Charles Glass below:
RELATED: Bodybuilding Coach Charles Glass Shares a Must-Try Shoulder Superset
Published: 27 May, 2023 | 11:20 AM EDT
Cali pro 2023 just got way more exciting + Bold move by Rafael Brandao + Don’t sleep on Regan Grimes
#MrOlympia , #Bodybuilding , #bodybuildingupdates Cali pro 2023 open bodybuilding just got way more exciting + Bold move by Rafael Brandao + Don’t sleep on Regan Grimes , Sergio Oliva jr arrives in U.S. to compete at Cali pro 2023 , Shaaban jumps in Cali Pro as well , Last Contest for Beef Stu ,…
5 Simple Exercises – A Routine for Daily Calisthenics Training
There are several variables you need to consider when writing a workout plan. Once you’ve determined your training goal, you must choose a split, pick your exercises, put those exercises in the correct order, select a set and rep scheme, and allocate appropriate loads and interset rest times.
Invariably, your first draft won’t be perfect, so you’ll need to make changes on the fly, finetuning your workout until you’re 100% happy with it.
It’s no wonder some fitness professionals charge so much to design programs!
However, even the most well-designed workout routine is not worth the paper it’s written on if you don’t actually do it.
And that’s the rub, isn’t it?
You’ve got your gym membership, new workout, training shoes, lifting belt, knee sleeves, chalk, and all that other stuff you drag around in your gym bag. But, if you can’t get your butt in the gym and work out, you’ll never build muscle, get fit, or lose weight.
So, while variables like your training split, set and rep scheme, and exercise sequence ARE undeniably important, the most critical consideration for effective training is consistency, and consistency is KING!
In this article, we share an excuse-free calisthenic workout you can do at home. It’s designed to create an unbreakable exercise habit and make skipped workouts a thing of the past.
Use this workout when you are too busy to hit the gym or as an alternative to complicated, time-consuming gym-based programs.
Calisthenics for Excuse-Free Workouts
While there is nothing wrong with dumbbells, barbells, and machine-based strength training, you’ll need access to all this stuff if you want to use it. Of course, that usually means joining a gym.
Unfortunately, gym memberships can be expensive, and just getting to and from a gym can be time-consuming. When time is short, your workout will probably be the first casualty. After all, exercise is a leisure activity, and things like your job and family commitments will always take precedence.
While you could buy some equipment and build a home gym, this is not always practical; you’ll need enough space for your training equipment and the money to buy it.
The good news is that you can get a GREAT workout using just your body weight. In fact, the only equipment you really need is a pull-up/chin-up bar, which can be purchased very cheaply.
Calisthenics, or bodyweight training, has a long and storied history. The word calisthenics has its roots in ancient Greek and comes from the words for beauty and strength. Bodyweight workouts are the ultimate in fitness convenience, as you can do them almost anywhere and anytime.
And because you won’t have to travel to train, you should have no problem squeezing your workouts into even the busiest of schedules. With fewer barriers, sticking to your exercise routine should be a breeze.
But you’ll need to do more than a few push-ups a day to get fit, lose weight, or build muscle. Instead, you’ll need an effective but straightforward routine. And that’s where we come in.
In the next section, we share a simple yet powerful bodyweight workout program that always delivers excellent results!
The 5 Simple Exercises Routine – Overview
As its name implies, the 5 Simple Exercises Routine revolves around five basic calisthenic movements performed five days per week. You get weekends off for rest and recuperation.
The exercises are:
Push-ups
Air squats
Pull-ups
Reverse lunges
Hanging knee raises
However, rather than do the same number of sets and reps each day, you’ll do one set of four of the exercises and five sets of the other. This adds up to nine high-quality sets per week, which is more than enough to produce good results (1).
This is a form of daily undulating periodization, where the volume/intensity of your workouts varies from day to day. However, the exercises are sequenced in such a way that you do each one back-to-back, which makes for a very time-efficient workout. In fact, even if you take it easy, you should be finished in 15-20 minutes.
Here are your workout plans:
Monday
Focus exercise: Push-ups
#
Exercise
1
Push-ups
2
Air squats
3
Push-ups
4
Pull-ups
5
Push-ups
6
Reverse lunges
7
Push-ups
8
Hanging knee raises
9
Push-ups
Tuesday
Focus exercise: Air squats
#
Exercise
1
Air squats
2
Pull-ups
3
Air squats
4
Reverse lunges
5
Air squats
6
Hanging leg raises
7
Air squats
8
Push-ups
9
Air squats
Wednesday
Focus exercise: Pull-ups
#
Exercise
1
Pull-ups
2
Reverse lunges
3
Pull-ups
4
Hanging leg raises
5
Pull-ups
6
Push-ups
7
Pull-ups
8
Air squat
9
Pull-ups
Thursday
Focus exercise: Reverse lunges
#
Exercise
1
Reverse lunges
2
Hanging leg raises
3
Reverse lunges
4
Push-ups
5
Reverse lunges
6
Air squats
7
Reverse lunges
8
Pull-ups
9
Reverse lunges
Friday
Focus exercise: Hanging leg raises
#
Exercise
1
Hanging leg raises
2
Push-ups
3
Hanging leg raises
4
Air squats
5
Hanging leg raises
6
Pull-ups
7
Hanging leg raises
8
Reverse lunges
9
Hanging leg raises
How many reps?
The number of reps you perform depends on your current abilities and how you feel on any given day. So, for single sets, you do as many reps as possible (AMRAP), and for the five sets of your focus exercise, you do about 50-60% of your last AMRAP score.
For example, if you can do 25 push-ups in a single set, do five sets of 12 to 15 reps on your push-up focus day.
It’ll probably take you a week to get used to this program and zero in on the correct number of reps. That’s okay and no different from finetuning your weights for a gym-based workout. So long as you a) take your sets to within 1-3 reps of failure and b) strive to do more reps week by week, you WILL make progress!
As for rest periods, these, too, are based on how you feel. Move as quickly as you can between exercises but don’t feel you need to rush. Rest long enough that you can perform at your best, but don’t dawdle, either. You may need to rest longer between some exercises than others, e.g., after a leg exercise that leaves you feeling out of breath.
As you get fitter and more accustomed to the routine, you should find you can move more quickly between exercises and complete each program a little faster.
Related: Sets vs. Reps: Everything You Need to Know
The 5 Simple Exercises Routine – Exercise Instructions
One of the best ways to maximize the effectiveness of any workout is to perform each exercise with perfect form. This keeps the tension on the muscles you want to work and stress off your joints. So, not only will your workout be more productive, but it’ll also be safer.
While you may be familiar with the simple exercises in this program, review the instructions below to ensure you are performing them correctly.
1. Push-ups
Push-ups are the most widely performed exercise in the world, yet many people fail to do them properly. That’s a shame because a well-performed push-up is a thing of beauty! So make sure your push-ups are perfect – make your inner drill instructor proud!
Steps:
Place your hands on the floor roughly shoulder-width apart and your fingers pointing forward.
Walk your feet out and back until your legs and body are straight. Brace your core, rotate your elbows in toward your sides to engage your lats, and pull your shoulders down and back.
Bend your arms and lower your chest to within an inch of the floor.
Push yourself back up and repeat.
Do not allow your hips to lift or drop out of alignment at any time.
Muscles targeted:
Primary: Pectoralis major, deltoids, triceps.
Secondary: Core.
Benefits:
One of the best upper body exercises – period!
Teaches you how to use your whole body in a coordinated, synergistic way.
Can be modified and adapted for all levels of exerciser.
Tips:
Use push-up handles to increase your range of motion and take stress off your wrists.
Bend your legs and rest on your knees to make this exercise easier.
Raise your feet to put more weight on your arms and make push-ups more challenging.
2. Air squats
The bodyweight or air squat is a CrossFit staple. Working all your major lower body muscles, air squats are also great for hip and knee mobility and health. A high-rep set of air squats is very cardiovascularly demanding, so it’ll help improve your fitness and burn lots of calories, too.
Steps:
Stand with your feet roughly shoulder width apart, toes turned slightly outward.
Brace your core and pull your shoulders back and down. Look straight ahead.
Bend your legs and squat down until your thighs are roughly parallel to the floor. Do not round your lower back. Extend your arms in front of you for balance if required.
Stand back up and repeat.
Muscles targeted:
Primary: Quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteus maximus.
Secondary: Core, abductors, adductors.
Benefits:
The undisputed king of lower body exercises.
Highly functional.
Great for improving knee and hip health and mobility.
Tips:
Raise your heels on a one-inch block for a more quads-centric workout.
Use a wider stance to increase inner and outer thigh and hip engagement.
Pause for 2-3 seconds at the bottom of each rep to make this exercise more challenging.
3. Pull-ups
Pull-ups are probably the most challenging exercise in this workout routine. However, by doing one to five sets of pull-ups five days per week, it’s an exercise you’ll soon master. If you can’t do pull-ups, you can do inverted rows instead, which work the same muscles but involve lifting less of your body weight.
Steps:
Hang from your pull-up bar with an overhand, slightly wider than shoulder-width grip.
Pull your shoulders back and down and brace your core. Bend your legs if necessary, so your feet are clear of the floor.
Leading with your elbows, bend your arms and pull your chest up toward the bar.
Extend your arms and lower yourself back down under control.
That’s one rep – keep going!
Muscles targeted:
Primary: Latissimus dorsi, biceps, forearms.
Secondary: Core.
Benefits:
An excellent back and biceps builder.
A good indicator of body weight.
An effective way to stretch and decompress your spine.
Tips:
Start each rep from a dead hand – no swinging or kicking your legs.
You can also do underhand grip chin-ups if you prefer.
Use a resistance band for assistance if required, like this:
4. Reverse lunges
Working your posterior chain with simple bodyweight exercises is not always easy. Most effective movements for this region involve weights, e.g., deadlifts, kettlebell swings, reverse hypers, etc. Reverse lunges are more glute and hamstring-centric than forward lunges and are a great complementary exercise to air squats, which are more quads-dominant.
Steps:
Stand with your feet together and arms by your sides. Brace your core and look straight ahead.
Take a step back, bend your legs, and lower your rearmost knee down to within an inch of the floor.
Push off your back foot and bring your legs back together.
Switch legs and repeat on the opposite side.
Alternate legs for the duration of your set.
Muscles targeted:
Primary: Gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps.
Secondary: Abductors, adductors.
Benefits:
Good for identifying and fixing left-to-right strength imbalances.
An excellent mobility and balance exercise.
Provides an effective indirect cardiovascular workout.
Tips:
Lean forward slightly as you step back to increase glute and hamstring engagement.
Start each rep standing on a two to four-inch platform to increase your range of motion and the difficulty of this exercise.
Do this exercise next to a wall or handrail for balance if required.
5. Hanging knee raises
With so many bodyweight core exercises to choose from, it can be hard to decide which one to do. However, most are too easy to deliver much of a core strengthening effect. Hanging leg raises are much more challenging and effective, which is how they made it into this workout program.
Steps:
Hang from your pull-up bar with your arms, legs, and body straight.
Brace your core, bend your legs, and pull your knees up to at least level with your hips. Tilt the bottom of your pelvis forward to maximize abs engagement.
Lower your legs and repeat.
Muscles targeted:
Primary: Rectus abdominus, transverse abdominus, hip flexors.
Secondary: Obliques, forearms.
Benefits:
A challenging and effective core exercise.
An excellent way to strengthen your grip.
Provides a useful way to stretch and decompress your spine.
Tips:
Use chalk or lifting straps to reinforce your grip.
Progress to straight legs if your abs are strong enough.
You can also do this exercise sat on the end of a bench for a similar but easier workout:
Simple Exercises Routine – FAQs
Do you have a question about this workout routine or any of the exercises in it? No worries because we’ve got the answers!
1. Is it safe to do the same exercises every day? What about recovery?
While it’s generally accepted that muscles take 48-72 hours to recover from a workout, that’s only true when you do intense bodybuilding-style workouts consisting of several exercises and multiple sets per muscle group
Simple bodyweight exercises are much less taxing, and providing you keep the volume relatively low, you should have no problem recovering from one workout to the next. In fact, you are only doing one hard training session per exercise per week, and the workouts themselves are very short.
So, rather than being dangerous or difficult to recover from, you should find that daily workouts lead to quicker improvements in your fitness and strength, plus you’ll master the exercises and become more proficient at doing them.
2. Can I change the exercises?
You can, and we actually encourage you to do so! Doing the same exercises daily could become boring, so use variations to keep your workouts fresh and interesting. For example, you could rotate between push-ups, decline push-ups, deficit push-ups, paused push-ups, and diamond push-ups.
While so much variation will make it a little harder to manage your rep count, provided you take each set to within 1-3 reps of failure, it will have the desired results.
3. How can I work some cardio into this routine?
The best cardio options for home exercisers are those you can either do at home or start and finish at home. This avoids having to travel for your workout, e.g., driving to the gym to ride an exercise bike, which is a colossal waste of time.
So, good cardio options that complement this workout routine include:
Try to accumulate a minimum of 10,000 steps (or the equivalent) per day for your fitness and health.
4. Are push-ups and pull-ups enough to build bigger arms?
While push-ups are predominately a chest exercise and pull-ups mainly work your upper back, both also involve your arms. Push-ups hit your triceps, while pull-ups also work your biceps.
In fact, your arms will probably fail before your bigger chest and back muscles when you do these exercises.
As such, push-ups and pull-ups have the potential to help, you build bigger arms.
That said, if more muscular arms are one of your training goals, you may want to finish your workouts with a couple of sets for your biceps and triceps. For example, you could do a biceps and triceps workout 2-3 times per week or train your biceps one day and your triceps the next.
However, avoid the temptation to do lots of direct arm training. Too much could lead to overtraining and interfere with your pull-up and push-up performance. That would be unfortunate given how productive these exercises are.
5. What is the best way to warm up for this workout
One of the great things about bodyweight exercises is how joint-friendly they tend to be. As such, you won’t need a long, in-depth warm-up before your workouts. However, you should still spend 5-10 minutes preparing your muscles and joints for what you’re about to do. This will not only reduce your risk of injury but also improve your performance, leading to a better workout.
Start with five minutes of easy cardio followed by dynamic mobility and flexibility exercises for your main muscles and joints. Finish your warm-up with one sub-maximal set (e.g., 50% of your normal reps) of each exercise. After that, you should be good to go!
6. Is 20-30 minutes of exercise per day enough for weight loss and fat burning?
Weight loss and fat burning have more to do with your diet than your workout plan. It’s much easier to eat less than it is to exercise more. Providing you have a sufficient caloric deficit, your body will have no choice but to burn fat for fuel. Adding exercise into the mix merely increases your energy expenditure and raises that deficit.
If you aren’t losing weight with 20-30 minutes of exercise per day, the chances are that you are still consuming too many calories. Adjust your diet to create a large calorie deficit. More exercise is not always the best way to lose weight, as it’s seldom sustainable.
Closing Thoughts
The 5 Simple Exercises Routine probably sounds too easy to be effective. After all, most workouts are much longer and harder, right? However, those workouts are also much more difficult to do consistently, and sticking to them requires cast-iron willpower, motivation, and lots and lots of time.
And that’s the problem, isn’t it?
For any workout to be effective, you actually have to do it. Not just for a week or a month, but for as long as it takes to get and stay in shape.
In other words, forever!
And that’s where following a simple, convenient workout comes up trumps. With fewer barriers to participation, you’ll start completing more workouts than you miss, and that’s what will give you the results you want.
Simple, frequent workouts will always produce better progress than complicated workouts you hardly ever do.
So, if you are fed up with starting workout programs you can’t stick to, try doing something so straightforward that it’s excuse-proof. Don’t let the power of simplicity fool you. It WILL deliver results.
References:
Baz-Valle E, Fontes-Villalba M, Santos-Concejero J. Total Number of Sets as a Training Volume Quantification Method for Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review. J Strength Cond Res. 2021 Mar 1;35(3):870-878. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000002776. PMID: 30063555. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30063555/
How to Do Garland Pose (Malasana) in Yoga: Muscles Involved, How-To, Benefits, and Variations
A squatting asana, garland pose malasana is a true test of lower body strength, flexibility, joint mobility, and mental grit. You probably sat this way as a toddler, and you’ll see this sitting variation a lot in less developed countries. But most, unless squats are a part of your workout routine, never get down that low to test your joints and isometric leg strength and stamina. There are loads of benefits in this position, from stretching the groin to loosening the hips, building isometric leg strength, and keying in on some meditation.
The garland pose malasana is one we recommend doing daily because of its widespread advantages for the human body. Check out our full guide to a basic yoga pose and see which variations we like too!
Muscles Worked During Garland Pose Malasana
Garland pose is a decent lower body and core strengthening activity that also engages the back, and scapular region. Let’s talk about the muscles involved and what they contribute to our movement.
Quadriceps
If you want big quadriceps or quads muscles, you typically squat, right? Well, you’re squatting down in the garland pose and holding this position which activates the quads isometrically.
A five-headed muscle with the discovery of an additional head more recently in the anterior thigh area, your quadriceps cross the hip bone and extend down through the knee. Hence, these muscles assist in straightening the leg at the knee, and bending the hips when you drop down into a squat.
Hamstrings
The rear-facing thigh muscles opposite the quads, your hamstrings do just the opposite which is to bend the knee and straighten the hips (like when you stand up from a squat).
Calves
The calves are postural support muscles that point the toes down. In the squat, they also help support the weight load, also stretching out in the process. The calf muscles – gastrocnemius and soleus – also form the achilles tendon at the back of the leg, connecting the calf to the heelbone.
Rectus abdominis and obliques
Every squat will call upon your abdominal core muscles that when tensed, help stiffen the spine, so that you have a solid bridge to direct energy and force production efficiently.
How To Do The Garland Pose – Malasana
While anyone could plop down into what looks like a Garland pose without much thought, you’d be missing the most beneficial components. This section will detail the proper malasana technique with step by step instructions, tips, and a video demonstration.
This Exercise:
Target Muscle Group: Quads, glutes, hips, calves, rectus abdominis
Type: Yoga
Mechanics: Compound
Equipment: Yoga blocks (Optional)
Difficulty: Intermediate
Steps
Stand with your feet slightly wider than the shoulders, and point your toes slightly outward.
Bring your hands together in front of your chest like you’re saying a prayer (anjali mudra), then bend your hips and knees and descend into a deep squat, dropping your butt down lower than your knees.
Tuck your elbows on the insides of your inner thighs near the knees. Try to keep your posture upright, head up, and back neutral. Fix your gaze on one spot in front of you, to help maintain your balance.
Simultaneously push your elbows out against your inner thighs, and pull your thighs into your elbows. Keep your shoulders relaxed.
Hold this position for at least ten seconds if possible.
Tips
If you cannot yet get into a garland pose, sit on stacked foam blocks or something that’s easily measurable, and as you progress, take one block out from under you until you don’t need them for assistance.
If your heels cannot touch the floor, don’t force them. Instead, place a mat or blankets under your heels if it’s more comfortable.
Try to relax the scapula and avoid letting the head sinking into the shoulders.
Pretend to pull your glutes and neck in opposite directions to keep a tall and lengthened spine.
Wait several hours after eating a mean and feeling satiety before attempting the garland pose.
Benefits of Garland Pose Malasana
Compared to the average stretching routine, Garland pose malasana goes much deeper and encourages a longer duration to reap the benefits. Here’s why you need this pose and similar variations to improve your quality of life, and move as you should.
Stretches out uncommon areas
For many, a light chest, shoulder and standing thigh stretch is about the extent of their stretching routine. Yoga based techniques such as garland pose malasana and so many others give us a reason to reach those less stretched areas, which we really need.
Watch the garland pose, or try it out and try to determine where’s being stretched. If you do it properly, you should feel lengthening in the achilles tendon, groin, lower back, and spine.
These days we tend to sit a lot, and work from our desks which tightens the muscles we use during a squat. It’s good to keep these muscles loose, healthy, and functional especially as we get older.
Challenge your balance, stability and mobility
It’s not just the core, but to sit in this pose you need to activate the feet and legs to assist in stabilizing yourself in this seated stance. Most people are not used to ever sitting in a deep squat, which requires lower body strength, flexibility, and joint mobility. Garland root chakra, feeling a sense of safety and security.
Strengthen the pelvic floor
The pelvis floor can include the glutes, and sexual muscles. These are the muscles that control the flow of urine. Performing exercises like Garland pose helps strengthen this area which could support incontinence issues. It could also make intimacy better.
May support healthy digestion and improve constipation
It’s believed that this pose can improve the digestion system and even improve constipation issues. Posture and breath can have a big impact on your digestive system, if you’ve ever experienced the different between sitting and lying after eating.
Common Mistakes While Performing Garland Pose
Dropping down into a deep squat and holding is not easy for beginners. Common mistakes are forcing yourself all the way down and compromising good technique and your achilles tendon. Instead use some blocks to sit on or something low enough like a blanket. Don’t force it if you can’t do it. Take it in steps and try to progress over weeks. You don’t want the hips to be above the knee, lifting the heel up.
Another common mistake is only focusing on the squat component. Even during a squat, you don’t just dump your weight on your legs. It’s a combined effort from the legs, core, and upper body. With the Garland pose, you also want to focus on pulling the crown of the head up, lengthening the spine.
Lastly, two other form mishaps are rounding the spine, or hunching over, and tucking the tailbone. Maintain a neutral torso, as you would during a normal squat. In this technique, you want to focus on good posture.
Variations of Garland Pose Malasana
You can spin the garland (no pun intended) pose many different ways, and we’ve included some of the best versions of this sitting pose below.
Seated on a block
Blocks are an excellent progression tool for many yoga poses, and akin to training wheels on a bicycle. Assisted movements are very useful because they can help ease you into a technique by reinforcing proper form, strengthening the involved muscles, and helping with balance.
Grab a yoga block, stand it on the tall end, and slowly sit on the top end.
Garland pose with heels lifted
You’ll get off to a wobbly start for sure, but we like this heels raised version that loads the calf muscles, and will knock you off your toes, forcing you to concentrate on your balance.
Here’s a raw demonstration of this pose.
Malasana seated on your heels (Inner thigh stretch)
While similar to the previous variation, the one main difference is that you’re actually sitting on your heels and calves. It looks painful, and unless you’re fit enough to do it, you probably won’t be able to. But you’ll get a massive quad stretch, build your feet muscles, and benefit from everything mentioned in that section in this guide.
Steps
From the garland pose posture, stand up on your toes and move your feet close together under your butt, so that you’re sitting on your heels and calves with the toes pointed out. Spread your knees wide apart so they’re facing the same direction as your toes. Sit up nice and tall, and hold for ten seconds.
Malasana seated knees pointed forward
From the previous variation, simply bring your legs in toward each other so they’re pointing straight forward. The thighs should be parallel. Keep standing on your toes and perform a ten count.
Garland pose with forward lean
To target feet flexibility, from the standard Garland pose with your feet flat on the floor, lean your body forward, with your arms supporting you, and count from one to ten.
Garland pose hands up
Rely totally on your legs and core without the comfort of holding your arms in front of your chest for balance. Get down in the Garland pose and reach your arms overhead to see how this variation differentiates from the others.
Garland pose with a twist
You can add a basic twist, or go a lot further with more involved variations.
Half squat
One way to enhance the garland pose is to use similar isometric movements. You’ll toughen up your quads, hamstrings, and glutes, and condition them to support you in the deep seated position. But it’s also a squat variation, that helps reinforce proper squat mechanics, which is needed to get down in the yoga pose.
You can do it assisted by standing back against a wall, sliding down it until your knees are bent at a 90-degree angle. Or you can hold onto a counter, stall bars, power rack or any stable object.
Wrapping Up
Christmas season or not (Although we don’t quite know the correlation), the garland pose is a wakeup favorite that fires up the body on all cylinders. Appearing simple, this yogi squat isn’t easy for beginners, but can be easily progressed with assisted variations and other leg strengthening exercises. We need a lot more of these exercises through the various life stages, as these simple yet effective yoga poses train us to handle life’s challenges.
A resilient mind, powerful legs, a beastly core, and healthier hips, are just some of the many benefits you can explore in the garland pose, and you should introduce more advanced variations for more.
How to Burn 400 Calories a Day: 12 Effective Ways To Flame Up Your Fitness
Most people want to lose weight but never start their transformation journey because they have no idea how to go about their weight loss goal. On the flip side, some folks spend so much time thinking through choices that they end up with analysis paralysis.
In this article, we will take you through the psyche behind burning 400 calories daily, the results you can expect, the prerequisites you should know about, and the 12 most effective ways to achieve your new goal.
You must enter a calorie deficit to lose body weight. A calorie deficit includes burning more calories in a day than you consume.
But why 400 calories and not 300 or 500 calories?
We are glad you asked. A 400-calorie deficit hits the sweet spot. It is not as intimidating as cutting out 500 calories from your diet. Conversely, it is more effective at helping you improve your body composition than cutting 300 calories, which can be slow. Nonetheless, even the slightest calorie deficit is a good place to start for beginners trying to get rid of their spare tire.
Since shredding 400 calories isn’t an overly ambitious objective, most people can achieve this goal by making small adjustments to their daily routines. Plus, you don’t even need to hit a gym to burn 400 additional daily calories, which is often a bottleneck for folks with a packed schedule. You could burn 400 calories a day by mowing your loan or biking to work.
So, without any further ado, let’s get into the article.
If I burn 400 calories a day, how much weight will I lose in a month?
This is probably the first question that popped into your head after reading this article’s title. That said, it is an excellent question since burning an additional 400 calories daily requires serious effort, and knowing the final result can motivate you when you don’t feel like working out.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cutting your caloric intake by 500-1,000 calories a day can lead to a weight loss of 1-2 pounds weekly. Plus, staying in this range will keep your physique transformation journey gradual, steady, and sustainable. [1]
You must burn 3,500 calories weekly to lose a pound of body fat. Breaking this into a daily target gets you to cut 500 calories from your diet. Similarly, restricting 400 calories from your diet leads to a 2,800-calorie deficit, which will result in a weight loss of 0.8 pounds per week. Sticking to this regime can help you lose around 3.5 pounds in a month. [2]
Summary: A daily 400-calorie deficit will lead to a 2,800-calorie weekly deficit, helping you lose around 3.5 pounds monthly. However, your gender, age, training intensity, and activity levels can influence your results.
How Long Does It Take To Burn 400 Calories?
The 500-1,000 calorie deficit mentioned above can be achieved by cutting calories from your diet and adding exercise to your daily regimen.
Depending on the type of physical exercise and intensity, you can burn 400 calories between 25 to 60 minutes of continuous work. An exerciser can burn calories more quickly during high-intensity circuit cardiovascular training compared to low-intensity bodybuilding-style resistance training workouts.
That said, no two people will lose the same amount of weight using the same techniques. Your weight loss results will depend on your age, height, weight, gender, activity levels, muscle mass, body fat percentage, and genetics. Meaning your training partner might lose more weight than you following the same techniques.
Men usually lose weight faster than women. Higher estrogen levels lead to greater fat storage among women. Men also tend to have greater muscle mass density, which improves their metabolic rate and spikes their fat loss progress.
Folks that engage in regular exercise usually lose weight faster than sedentary people. Furthermore, advanced exercisers will shed weight and body fat faster than newbie trainers.
Summary: As with the amount of weight you can lose in a month with a 400-calorie deficit, your genetics, age, gender, weight, training intensity, and experience will affect the time it will take to burn 400 calories in a day. However, you can torch 400 calories within 25 to 60 minutes of continuous work.
Prerequisites For Burning an Additional 400 Calories Daily
Knowing about the following things can make your weight loss journey easier:
Know Your BMR
Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the number of calories your body needs to accomplish its most basic (basal) life-sustaining functions, such as breathing, circulation, and cell production. For example, if your BMR is 2,000 calories, it means that your body burns 2,000 calories to sustain itself.
Your BMR depends on your age, height, gender, activity levels, genetics, and target body weight. We will not consider your BMR calories for the sake of this article. You must burn the additional 400 calories through physical activities. Need help to figure out your BMR? Check out our convenient online calculator to find out.
Use Cardio Machines With Monitors For Precise Calorie Tracking
If you hit the gym to achieve a calorie deficit, you should use machines with monitors to track your progress. Spending hours on a machine without a monitor or other method to track your calorie expenditure can leave you confused about your progress. Thankfully, most cardio equipment in the gym, such as the treadmill, elliptical, bike, Stairmaster, and rower, come with a calorie tracker.
That said, the number of calories a 200-pound male burns from running a mile in 10 minutes will be different from the calories a 140-pound lady burns who logs in the same distance. However, a cardio machine will return the same result for both users.
Furthermore, some low-quality machines tend to have uncalibrated monitors, which can give you skewed results. Inaccurate machines can lead you down the incorrect path, which brings us to our next point.
Wear a Fitness Tracker
Although the in-built calorie trackers are great, they are usually inaccurate. A study conducted by Sam Houston State University found that elliptical machines spike the number of calories burned by up to 100 calories for each 30 min of exercise at moderate intensity. [3]
Using a fitness tracker such as an Apple Watch, Fitbit, or a chest strap can better gauge the calories you burn during a particular physical activity or throughout the day. Plus, since these apps require you to input your age, height, and weight, they also give you a fairly accurate reading of the distance you cover while running.
Remember, when using these trackers, you should look at ‘active calories.’ Active calories are the ones you burn through all kinds of movement, from taking the stairs at work to playing with the kids to cleaning out the garage. You should start a workout on your tracker before engaging in physical activity to get more accurate results.
Use Calorie Burning Calculators
Folks that don’t have access to a wearable calorie tracker but want an accurate calorie-burning estimation can use our calorie-burning calculators to measure their fat-loss progress. You can use these calculators to plan your exercise or daily routine to ensure you burn 400 calories a day.
These calorie-burning calculators can also be used to double-check the data from your wearable calorie trackers or the numbers on the machine. A conservative approach to your calorie-burning progress best ensures you are meeting your objectives.
12 Ways To Burn 400 Calories
Given below are 12 effective ways to burn 400 calories in a single day:
Walk More
This is arguably one of the easiest and most convenient ways to burn an additional 400 calories daily. Folks that find intensive physical exercise intimidating should focus on walking more throughout the day to burn an extra 400 calories.
An average 140-pound person will burn 400 calories by walking 10,000 steps a day. Depending on your stride length and walking speed, walking ten thousand steps equates to about eight kilometers, or an hour and 40 minutes walking.
Remember, most of us cannot walk 10,000 steps in a single session. You must break down these steps into 6-8 smaller parts to complete the desired steps. You can schedule a longer 3,000-4,000 step walking session earlier in the day to get a head start.
Going on hikes on weekends is another fun activity that can help you get in the desired 10,000 steps on your rest day. Take your friends or family along with you on your walks, as it can allow you to spend some quality time with them.
Check Out: Calories Burned Walking Calculator: Find Calorie Burn from Walking?
Get Comfortable Doing Your Chores
You must gamify your daily routine if you want to burn an additional 400 calories without hitting the gym. Wash your dishes, mow your lawn, wash your car, scrub your bathroom floor, or do anything that keeps you moving. Time yourself doing these tasks and try to set a new record every time.
It will take an average 170-pound individual around 60 minutes to burn 400 calories mowing his lawn using a power mower. However, the same results can be achieved in under 50 minutes using a hand mower.
Mowing the lawn is an underrated low-impact cardio activity that will help you achieve your calorie deficit goal without stressing your joints.
Check Out: How Many Calories Does Mowing the Lawn Burn?
Play a Sport
Most of us quit playing sports after graduating from school or college. However, this is one of the biggest reasons many people gain weight.
Most sports require intense physical effort, which can help keep you in shape. Plus, playing a team sport can make you feel like a part of a community, which can make you stick to the sport for the long term.
Choose sports that involve a lot of running for optimal calorie-burning effects. For example, an average 180-pound individual can burn 400 calories in 35 minutes playing football.
Check Out: Calories Burned Playing Football Calculator
Running
Did you think we forgot running? No, we didn’t.
Most people have a love-hate relationship with running. However, you are more likely to get hooked on running after you get over the initial hump.
It takes an average 180-pound male around 50 minutes to burn 400 calories while running. He can cover a mile during this period.
If you are not a frequent runner, we recommend starting with shorter runs, like a 100-minute easy jog. Increase the distance slightly after every 4-5 days until you can finish the mile at a comfortable pace.
You could also choose between running outdoors or on a treadmill based on your comfort level. Notably, running outdoors is more challenging than running on a motorized belt.
Check Out: Calories Burned Running Calculator
HIIT Workouts
If your primary goal is to lose body weight, we recommend doing cardio-based high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts. These will get your heart racing and will get you to your 400-calorie goal quickly.
HIIT cardio workouts generally involve a 5-10 exercise circuit that has to be repeated 2-5 times. On average, a HIIT cardio workout can help you burn 400 calories in a 25-30 minute session.
You could use HIIT protocols, such as Tabata, AMRAP, ladder, and EMOMs, to increase your training intensity. Ensure that you do not compromise your exercise form while trying to push the intensity, as it can increase your risk of injury.
Check Out: The Best HIIT Ab Workout: Get Ripped Abs in Record Time
Cycling
Cycling is the perfect middle ground between walking and running. It is not as easy as walking or as intimidating as running, and it gets the job done.
An average 175-pound individual can burn 400 calories biking within 35 minutes. You can get it done much faster if you push the pace.
A bike is easy to incorporate into your daily routine. You could bike to work or run some small errands. Furthermore, most cities have biking clubs that go out for a ride on the weekends. Joining such a club can make biking more fun and adventurous.
Check Out: Calories Burned Biking Calculator
Swimming
Swimming is an incredibly effective way to burn calories, especially in the summer when running or cycling outdoors can be challenging.
A 150-pound person will burn roughly 400 calories during an hour-long swim at a moderate pace. Plus, swimming can help in muscle toning and heart and lungs-conditioning.
Swimming is a very low-impact exercise that is perfect for overweight or obese folks. It is much safer on your joints than jogging or running. Put everything you have got into a few laps, and you’ll be gasping by the end of your workout.
The freestyle stroke has the potential to burn the most calories, as it allows you to cover the most distance in the shortest time. However, you should constantly switch between strokes to keep things interesting and challenging.
Check Out: Calories Burned Swimming Calculator
Jump Rope
Jump rope is one of those exercises that looks super easy but will have you begging for mercy by the time you are done with it. Beginners should initially focus on mastering the rope swing and hand-eye-rope coordination. Advanced rope jumpers can challenge themselves with high-skill movements such as double unders and crossovers.
A 170-pound individual can burn around 400 calories in 25 minutes if he jumps between 100 to 120 times within a minute. This makes the jump rope one of the most effective calorie-burning activities on this list.
You could choose between jumping rope for time or setting a rep target for yourself. Choose your jump rope wisely, as it can make a world of difference.
Check Out: Calories Burned Jumping Rope Calculator
Dancing
Depending on who you are, dancing can be the most intimidating or comfortable exercise on this list. Most dancing styles are highly demanding and can help burn a lot of calories in a short period.
Dancing can improve your heart and lung health, increase muscular strength, endurance, and motor and aerobic fitness, improve muscle tone and strength, help with weight management, build stronger bones, and enhance your coordination, agility, and flexibility. Furthermore, dancing is an art form used for centuries to express feelings, emotions, and stories.
Salsa dancing can help you burn about 400 calories per hour.
Check Out: Calories Burned Dancing Calculator
Yoga
Although most people consider yoga a relaxed exercise routine that requires sitting on an exercise mat with closed eyes, it is much more than that. Many yoga poses will send your heart rate through the roof and challenge every muscle, bone, and ligament in your body.
You should opt for Vinyasa yoga if your goal is to burn calories, as it is one of the most intensive forms of yoga. It can help you burn an average of 400 to 500 calories per hour.
Remember, you must perfect your poses to get the most benefit from yoga. We recommend joining a yoga class to learn the basics until you form a solid base and can do it on your own at home.
Check Out: Yoga Calories Burned Calculator
CrossFit
CrossFit involves constantly varied high-intensity functional movement, which can be broken up into three elements: weightlifting, gymnastics, and metabolic conditioning. It makes CrossFit a highly-intensive exercise form, which can help burn a lot of calories in a short period.
Since the CrossFit workouts are so varied, it is difficult to put a number to the calories you can burn during one of the workouts. However, it is not uncommon for an athlete to burn up to 400 calories during a 20-30 minute CrossFit workout.
Check Out: How Many Calories Does CrossFit Burn?
Resistance Training
Bodybuilding-style resistance training isn’t given its due credit when it comes to burning calories. However, a bodybuilder can burn 400 calories within an hour during a free-weight training session.
You must maintain a high training intensity to burn 400 calories in 60 minutes. Resting more than 120 seconds between sets will lower your intensity and hamper your training performance. Remember, compound exercises burn more calories than isolation and machine movements.
Check Out: Calories Burned Resistance Training
FAQs
Is burning 400 calories a day safe?
Yes. Torching 400 additional calories daily is safe. Furthermore, it is below the CDC guidelines, which recommend limiting your calorie restriction to 1,000 calories a day. Burning 400 calories daily can help you lose 0.8 pounds weekly.
Can I burn 400 calories a day without exercising?
Yes. You could burn 400 (or more) calories daily without hitting the gym or even going near your running shoes. An average 140-pound (63.5-kilogram) person will burn 400 calories on average by walking 10,000 steps a day. If you cannot walk 10,000 steps daily, you could instead do all your chores yourself to enter a calorie deficit. Doing one hour of chores burns around 400 calories.
What are some fun activities that can help me reach the 400-calorie burning goal?
Contrary to what most people think, burning calories doesn’t have to be boring. In fact, choosing a boring activity is a sure-shot way of dropping off your fitness routine. You burn calories by engaging in any physical activity; hence you should pick something you can stick to for the long term or at least until you achieve your weight loss goal. Use our calorie-burning calculators to determine how many calories you can burn during your favorite activity within a specific period.
Wrapping Up
Burning 400 calories a day isn’t as difficult as most people make it out to be. Most folks can achieve this goal by following a 45-minute HIIT workout. People that do not exercise can still achieve the 400-calorie goal by adjusting their schedule to add an outdoor run, walking 10,000 steps, or doing daily chores like mowing the lawn, cleaning the house, and doing the dishes.
You must, however, remember to maintain a calorie deficit if your goal is to lose weight. Burning 400 calories and eating 500 calories over your maintenance calories will get you nowhere.
You could switch between the 12 calorie-burning methods mentioned in this article to keep your daily regimen interesting. We recommend using a wearable tracker like an Apple watch or a chest strap to get accurate results. So what are you waiting for? Put on your shoes and let that fat melt off. Best of luck!
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021). Losing Weight. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html
Wishnofsky M. CALCULATION OF DIETS. JAMA. 1957;163(5):384–385. doi:10.1001/jama.1957.02970400056024
Glave, A. & Didier, Jennifer & Oden, Gary & Wagner, Matthew. (2018). Caloric Expenditure Estimation Differences between an Elliptical Machine and Indirect Calorimetry. Exercise Medicine. 2. 10.26644/em.2018.008.
Iain Valliere Shares Shredding Diet 2 Weeks from 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow
Canadian bodybuilder Iain Valliere is a promising Men’s Open contender who many believe to be in the mix of Olympia title contention. Although he missed a step in his last appearance, he’s determined to turn things around and get back on track. In a recent YouTube video, Valliere shared his shredding diet two weeks from the 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow.
Iain Valliere started competing as a Men’s Open contender in the IFBB Pro League in 2015. He turned in several strong performances in national competitions such as the 2016 Vancouver Pro and Toronto Pro Supershow. In 2018, Valliere extended his run with back-to-back fourth-place finishes at the Indy Pro and Vancouver Pro. The victories earned him an invite to the Mr. Olympia contest, where he placed 14th.
Valliere continued to work his way up the ranks. He narrowly missed out on gold at the 2019 Toronto Pro Supershow. While he did not make it to the Olympia in 2019, he maintained his consistency with top-four placings at the Vancouver Pro and Tampa Pro. He scored the top prize at the 2020 New York Pro and finished seventh at the Mr. Olympia. Then he earned the 2021 Texas Pro and 2021 Tampa Pro titles and got seventh at the Olympia.
Last season, Valliere came out on top of the 2022 Vancouver Pro and entered the Mr. Olympia brimming with confidence. However, he missed the mark on stage in Las Vegas last December. He finished 11th. Following the result, he opened up on his challenges with peaking for the show.
Valliere made the case for eliminating the Men’s 212 division earlier this year. He explained that the 212 should be absorbed by the Open class given the rise in contenders switching divisions as some have found success including former 212 Olympia champ and Open runner-up Derek Lunsford and Shaun Clarida.
Iain Valliere revealed he left Patrick Tuor to rejoin coach Matt Jansen two months ago. He believes the reforged partnership would put him in a better place for his return at the 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow. Then, he showed off a jacked physique update where he weighed 280 pounds and detailed his new diet and training plan under Jansen.
Iain Valliere shares the full day of eating 2 weeks out from the 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow
In a recent YouTube video, Iain Valliere shared his full day of eating and supplements he’s using two weeks out from the 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow.
“We’re just about to have meal one getting all my digestive supplements and we got our betaine, digestive enzymes, digestive gut health and the zinc,” said Valliere. “I’m taking all these with my first and last meal. Two caps and the zinc carnosine. I’ve been doing one of these with every meal. Then dosing this tube instead of doing two once or twice a day I’m just taking one with all six of my meals.”
Valliere’s full day of eating
Meal 1: 220g extra lean ground beef, 140g rice
Meal 2: 220g chicken, 140g rice, green beans
Meal 3 (pre-workout): 250g fish, 100g rice, kale with RTD pre-workout
Intra-workout: 2 scoops of EAAs
Meal 4 (post-workout): 250g white fish, 150g Yukon or yellow potato, kale with 10g of glutamine, 5g creatine
Meal 5: 250g fish, greens (broccoli and green beans), 10g oil
Meal 6: 250g steak, asparagus, and cucumber
Iain Valliere is certain he’s in a good spot going into the upcoming contest. He revealed not much had changed in his preparations under Jansen but hinted at the possibility of a revamped drug protocol in the final stages of prep.
Olympia judge Terrick El Guindy praised Valliere for his impressive physique and work ethic earlier this month. Guindy highlighted a need for Valliere to level up his back and calves along with his posing skills. Meanwhile, the 32-year-old has focused on keeping his weight under control in the 2023 off-season. Valliere gave fans an update on his progress going into his next outing where he promised his best look yet.
Valliere appears confident about his chances at the upcoming 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow. He will aim to earn an invite to Olympia, taking place November 2-5 later this year.
You can watch the full video below.
RELATED: Iain Valliere Talks Atrophy in Lats, Says Big Ramy’s ‘Muscle Volume’ Led to ‘Severe’ Nerve Damage
Published: 26 May, 2023 | 11:33 PM EDT
2023 Giants Live World Open & Deadlift World Championships Full Lineup
The summer will be a delight for all Strongman fans around the world, as Giants Live has just revealed exciting information about the 2023 World Open & Deadlift World Championships. This event will take place on September 2nd, in Cardiff, Wales, and now the full 15-man lineup for the event has been revealed on Giants Live’s Instagram.
While the 2023 World Open and Deadlift World Championships are technically two competitions, they have been merged into one. So, the Deadlift World Championships only feature the deadlift where the goal is to set a new World Record. In turn, the same deadlift is counted as the first event of the 2023 World Open, which will then feature a series of events after it.
2023 Giants Live World Open & Deadlift World Championships Lineup
Note: Graham Hicks and Jamal Browner will exclusively participate in the deadlift event, while all the other athletes will compete in both the strongman and deadlift events.
Related: 2023 Shaw Classic Updates: New Competitor, Arm Wrestling Matches & More Revealed By Brian Shaw
2023 World Deadlift Championships
Judging by the lineup, the 2023 World Open & Deadlift World Championships are set to be better than ever. This is especially true for the Deadlift World Championships since many of the athletes specialize in this event. Furthermore, Giants Live invited Jamal Browner, regarded as one of the best deadlifters in the world of powerlifting.
Another contender for the Deadlift World Championships portion of the event is definitely Ivan Makarov. The Russian athlete has been chasing the World Record for multiple years now.
The next deadlift world record contender is Rauno Heinla, who had the heaviest pull in the last year’s edition of the contest with 476 kilograms (1,049.4 pounds).
2023 Giants Live World Open
As for the World Open portion of the event, the athletes will have to perform well in a series of events, rather than just the deadlift. So, the favorites for this competition are different. There are two main title contenders, and they have both been crowned as the World’s Strongest Man in the past. One is Oleksii Novikov, while the other is Tom Stoltman.
Many other athletes will still aim to surprise everyone, with the standout name being Pavlo Nakonechnyy. The Ukrainian has shown incredible strength in the past and proved that he is capable of anything.
Evan Singleton will also try to shake up the podium, as he is full of confidence coming off a fifth-place finish at the 2023 World’s Strongest Man competition.
Related: Eddie Hall & Martins Licis Revealed as Captains for 2023 World’s Strongest Nation
A lot of money will be up for grabs at the 2023 Giants Live World Open and Deadlift World Championships. Most notably, if anyone manages to deadlift 505 kilograms (1,113.3 pounds) they will receive $55,000 as a reward. This has been the case in the past years as well, but it looks very feasible this year due to an incredible 15-man lineup.
Published: 26 May, 2023 | 6:54 PM EDT
Dorian Yates Shares Optimal Time for High-Intensity Training: ‘Give Your Body Stress It’s Not Used To’
Legendary bodybuilder Dorian Yates carved out his own space in the sport with his intense workout philosophy. He dominated the Men’s Open division with unreal back development during his days of competition. In a recent Instagram post, Yates shared the optimal time for performing a high-intensity workout for muscle growth.
Dorian Yates made a name for himself with insane muscle mass, size, and stellar conditioning in the 90s. Starting his career on the national circuit, he earned a qualification to the Mr. Olympia competition in 1991. He turned in a strong performance and took silver behind eight-time champion Lee Haney in his Olympia debut.
Yates returned with a vengeance the next year and secured the coveted Sandow trophy. He went on to defend the title successfully five times in a row and moved on from professional competition after his sixth win at the 1997 Mr. Olympia. Besides his package, he was also renowned for his intense training techniques and tendency to stay away from the spotlight.
Yates laid out his favorite bodybuilding cycles he used in competition last October. He revealed Dianabol as his steroid of choice and detailed his use of TRT (testosterone replacement therapy) by micro-dosing daily. He opened up on the strong mindset which never allowed him to compromise on training, diet, or recovery. Although he doesn’t have any regrets, he admitted he could’ve taken things a bit easier.
The 61-year-old Brit set a high bar for the Men’s Open division. His impact can be felt to this day. In Dec. 2022, bodybuilding veteran Rich Gaspari invoked Yates’ back to bash Hadi Choopan’s back conditioning after the 2022 Mr. Olympia.
Dorian Yates offered fans his favorite exercise for building muscle in the back earlier this year. He encouraged using barbell rows with an underhand grip while giving some intensity tips to pack on the pounds. Then, he gave tips on properly performing lat pulldowns by pulling with the elbows.
Yates gave fans a look into some of his staple high-intensity training techniques to optimize workouts last month. He differentiated high-intensity from high-volume training and laid out the difference in using free weights versus machines.
‘The Shadow’ promoted incorporating lying hamstring curls with a full range of motion and a slow negative weeks ago. He believes in controlling the weight at each point to activate muscle growth.
Dorian Yates shares the optimal time for high-intensity training
In a recent Instagram post, Dorian Yates shared the optimal time for performing high-intensity training. Since the sessions are more exhausting, he suggested limiting workout times to 45 minutes.
“Overtraining and under recovering!” wrote Yates. “You need to give your body a stress that it’s not used to in order to get a response.
Bodybuilding is not an endurance sport, the aim is to train hard, heavy and intense to stimulate muscle growth.
If you train too much then your progress will come to a halt.
“It’s not possible to train with high intensity for too long, 45 minutes is enough.
Go to the gym, train… and get out. Each minute of my training was incredibly intense but with purpose and focus.”
Dorian Yates revealed his diet and training routine in the off-season and contest prep along with the steroid cycles he used last month. He revealed he quit steroids altogether and credited TRT for helping improve his mental health after retirement.
RELATED: Bodybuilding Legend Dorian Yates Breaks Down What Mr. Olympia Judges Look For
Yates opened up on his experience taking ayahuasca in Brazil as well. He argued against focusing solely on success and highlighted the need to practice self-love to achieve happiness. Considering the success Yates achieved, many will look to follow in his footsteps to level up their fitness game.
Published: 26 May, 2023 | 6:50 PM EDT