Yes I HAVE been looking for a reason to use a Pam Anderson pic!

(answer by: Tom Venuto)
Question: I swim 4-5 times per week, which is great cardiovascular exercise, but is it important to do weight bearing exercise, i.e. running/jogging or power walking? Is the fitness required for swimming different from that required for running? Whenever I try and run a couple of kilometers it nearly kills me, yet I can swim laps for an hour!

Answer: The type of cardiovascular exercise you choose should be something you enjoy; that way you will be motivated to stick with it. So if you enjoy swimming, by all means, continue to do it. In terms of pure aerobic conditioning for your heart and your health, swimming is right up there with the best of them. Like cross country skiing, swimming is one of the few forms of aerobic exercise that engages your entire body; arms, legs, torso, everything!
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Posted on April 21st, 2008 by Adam Lea
Filed under: Health, Q and A | No Comments »

Q: I’m currently trying to gain some lean muscle mass and would like to give creatine a try. I’m not 100% sure exactly how it works though and in which way I should supplement my diet with it. Can you offer any advice?

A: Creatine, which was at one time one of the hottest supplements around, is definitely something that many people turn to when looking to add lean muscle mass to their frame.

First though, you must understand that creatine in itself is not actually going to cause you to gain weight. What it does allow you to do, however, is work harder in the gym and recover faster.

So, at the end of the day it is still your hard work that’s going to get you seeing results – creatine just helps you get there. If you simply choose to believe that you can take the creatine and not put in the hard work, you’re not going to be very pleased with the results you achieve. Read more…

Posted on April 14th, 2008 by Shannon Clark
Filed under: Q and A, Training | No Comments »

Question: What is a good diet to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time?

(answer by: Tom Venuto)

Answer: Losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time is possible, but it is the most difficult goal to accomplish and it is a very slow and inefficient process. It is common to see a large decrease in body fat accompanied by a small increase in lean body mass. It is also common to see a large increase in lean body mass accompanied by a small decrease in body fat. But one thing you will never see is a large increase in lean body mass and a large decrease in body fat simultaneously (especially if you are drug-free.)
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Posted on February 17th, 2008 by Adam Lea
Filed under: Health, Q and A | 2 Comments »

Q: Lately it seems like no matter what I do, I just can’t lose weight. I’ve been sticking with my diet for so long now and I’m really afraid to lower my calories any further because I am just barely getting by on my current intake. What could be going wrong?

A: Great question! This is something that a lot of women run into and unfortunately, something that halts all their progress.

I think the question you really need to ask yourself is when the last time you took a diet break was. Has it been more than 6-8 weeks? Are your calories less than 10 multiplied by your body weight in pounds? (say a 150 pound female consuming fewer than 1500 calories)? Are you generally feeling tired, cold, and irritable?

If you answered yes to two or more of those questions, chances are, you need a break. What very often happens is the metabolism ‘shuts down’ in a sense, in that it starts to really conserve energy, slowing down so it doesn’t expend any more calories than it needs to. This will translate to you not burning any additional body fat. Basically, your body is working against you.

It’s always a good idea to take a break from your diet every so often to ‘reset’ things a little and let your body know that it’s not starving to death.

My guess is once you eat at maintenance calories for a week or so and then move back onto the diet, things will be rolling again and you’ll be feeling a hundred times better.

Posted on December 7th, 2007 by Shannon Clark
Filed under: Q and A, Weight Loss | 2 Comments »