4 New Shoulder Shapers

It doesn't matter if you're in the gym for aesthetics or athletics‐your shoulders matter. Healthy, strong, good-looking shoulders are the product of smart training and smart planning.

The problem with shoulder training, though, is that the effective exercises can grow stale. You can only do so many front raises and military presses before you start to feel like a wind-up toy.

Dreading shoulder day from sheer boredom? Add some new twists! These four shoulder exercises are unique and effective. You can throw one or two of them into your normal routine or do them all in one workout.

Either way, they'll help you add some boulder to your shoulders!

Dumbbell Side Swing

 Exercise 1 Dumbbell Side Swing
(3 sets of 8-12 reps to failure)

Stand with two dumbbells at your sides. Bring the right up like you would for a traditional lateral raise motion and the left arm up and across the front of the body. Alternating sides for each rep. Keep the arm that is crossing your body tight to the torso.

Kneeling Single-Arm Barbell Shoulder Press

Exercise 2 Kneeling Single-Arm Barbell Shoulder Press
(3 sets of 8-12 reps to failure)

Wedge an Olympic bar in a corner like you would with a traditional T-bar row and add weight to the free end. Kneel in front of the bar with the right knee down. Hold the bar with your right hand. Press the bar off the shoulder moving the bar in front of your face. Return with a slow negative to the starting position.

When the target rep range is reached with the right hand, put the bar down and set up with your left knee on the ground. Press with your left hand. Complete the appropriate rep range and that completes one set.

Lying Cable Upright Row

Exercise 3 Lying Cable Upright Row
(3 sets of 8-12 reps to failure)

Lie down in a cable row machine with an EZ bar attached to the cable. Place knees against the foot platform and your feet flat on the floor.

With a wide grip, pull the bar to the bottom of your chin and hold at the peak contraction point. Slowly hit the negative rep with a good stretch at the bottom. The back of your head should remain on the pad throughout the movement.

Repeat until target rep range is reached.

Seated Side Lateral Raise with a Twist

Exercise 4 Seated Side Lateral Raise with a Twist
(3 sets of 8-12 reps to failure)

Try dropsets, giant sets, supersets, pre-exhaust training, or use rest-pause.
Sit holding two light dumbbells at your sides. Hold the weight with your palms facing forward and slowly perform a lateral side raise with a slight bend in your elbows.

Don't stop when your arms are parallel to the floor, but continue until your hands are over your head.

When you near the top of the movement, rotate your hands so the back of your hands face each other.

On the way back down, rotate your wrists back so your palms face forward and finish where you started.

Continue until you reach the desired rep range.

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The Top 5 Exercises For Increasing Triceps Mass

The Top 5 Exercises for Increasing Triceps – The Breakdown

There are a number of exercises that will work the triceps, with many focusing on a broad range of muscles in the arm. There are however a number of specific exercises that will target primarily the triceps and deliver the best results.

While this article focuses primarily on using free-weights in the top 5 exercises for increasing triceps, there is some use of a machine within.  Keep in mind that you can alter your own exercises to use the appropriate machines and weights, provided you understand the form and function of the muscle groups within the triceps.

Weighted Dips

Top Triceps Exercise #1 – Weighted Dips
Muscle is improved by providing resistance. The primary source of resistance is by adding weight. Weighted dips rely primarily on your own body weight, though additional weight can be added in your lap to increase the resistance on the muscles.

Use two benches, placed approximately 3-5 feet apart. Sit on one bench with your heels resting on the other; you may need to adjust the distance between the benches depending on your height. Place your palms on the bench you’re sitting on and slide forward, using your arms to support your weight. Now, slowly lower yourself until the bend of your elbows reaches a 90 degree angle. Maintain tension and push yourself back up until your arms are completed extended.

Top Triceps Exercise #2 – Close Grip Bench Press

This press keeps the elbows close to the body, with the hands no more than a foot apart – they should not extend out beyond your shoulders. The focus of the close grip bench press is on the muscle groups of the triceps however the mechanics of the bench press will supply some additional workout to the pectoral muscles as well the muscle groups of the biceps.

As you un-rack the weight bar, begin with arms fully extended and lower the weight toward the lower part of the chest slowly while keeping the elbows tucked in. Bring the weight back just before you touch the bar to your chest and return your arms to a fully-extended position.

Seated Triceps Extension 

 Top Triceps Exercise #3 – Seated Triceps Extension

This position places a great deal of emphasis on the triceps equally. For this exercise, it’s important to use a seat or weight bench of some kind with an adjustable seat to aid in back support. Choose an appropriate dumbbell weight and hold it with both hands. Raise the weight up and behind the head.

While holding the dumbbell, carefully lower it behind your head. Lower the weight behind your head so that it is even with the lower part of the back of your head – try not to let the weight fall too far to avoid over-exertion of the triceps during this exercise. Raise the dumbbell back overhead so that arms are fully extended and repeat.

Clapping Diamond Pushups

Top Triceps Exercise #4 – Clapping Diamond Pushups

We talk a lot about how resistance will bring on muscle gain. If you want your muscles to increase in mass then you have to use them. You need to use them a lot, from different angles and in different ways. This may seem a little unorthodox but this method will definitely push triceps to the limit.

Position your hands under chest like a push up but bring your hands together so that your index fingers and your thumbs are touching, forming a diamond shape. Perform 10 pushups like this. In order to get the clap in between each push up, you’ll need to push yourself with enough force to leave the floor, gaining enough height to insert the clap and still bring your hands back to a diamond form.

Rope Pushdowns

Top Triceps Exercise #5 – Rope Pushdowns

This can be easily done with a number of machines. When using a machine, try to balance the weight so you can fit it a set of approximately 10 reps easily while still feeling the proper burn in the triceps. This top triceps exercise requires a bit more form than others. When pulling the weight with the rope, it’s important to keep your upper arms locked at your sides while keeping your back straight.

If you release your arms, twist or bend your back you’ll start using your shoulders and back to take the brunt of the weight, giving little gain to your triceps.

Beginner Workout
•Close Grip Bench Press - 3 Sets of 10 Reps
•Weighted Dips - 2 Sets of 12 Reps
•Rope Pushdowns - 2 Set of 15 Reps

Intermediate Workout•Close Grip Bench Press - 3 Sets of 8 Reps
•Weighted Dips - 3 Sets of 12/10/8 Reps
•Seated Triceps Extensions - 2 Sets of 12 Reps
•Rope Pushdowns - 2 Sets of 12 Reps

Advanced Workout•Rope Extensions - 2 Sets of 15 Reps
•Close Grip Bench Press - 3 Sets of 6 Reps
•Seated Triceps Extensions - 3 Sets of 8 Reps
• Weighted Drops - 2 Drop Sets* - Perform 8 Reps to failure then drop all weight and perform as many reps to failure
• Clapping Diamond Push-Ups - 2 Sets to Failure

You’ll see the best results by adding the top exercises to build your triceps to your usual workout routine. When working on increasing muscle mass in triceps, remember that it’s important to take in the proper amount of nutrients and protein to sustain your exercises

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Chris Evans – Captain America workout

Chris Evans is no stranger to breathing life into comic book heroes, having previously starred as Johnny Storm in the Fantastic Four movies. But for the American actor’s latest role as the eponymous hero of Captain America: The First Avenger, he had to transform his physique into something as close to the perfect human specimen as possible.
 
‘The studios had a very specific idea about how they wanted Chris to look,’ says Evans’s personal trainer Simon Waterson, the man also behind the radical transformations of Daniel Craig as 007 and Jake Gyllenhaal as the Prince of Persia. ‘My brief was to build Chris a strong, big and lean body that was realistic, functional and in proper proportion. In the movie, his character is physically transformed into the perfect soldier specimen so he had to look the part.’

The plot of Captain America: The First Avenger sees Evans play Steve Rogers, a sickly young man who tries to enlist in the US Army in 1943 to fight the Nazis but is deemed physically unfit. He instead volunteers for Project: Rebirth, a secret military operation to aid the US war effort that uses a serum to convert him into the peak of human perfection and become the super-soldier that is Captain America. He is then deployed to bring down Hitler’s treacherous head of advanced weaponry, the Red Skull, played by Hugo Weaving.
 
Under Waterson’s guidance Evans increased his weight from 77kg to 82kg, while reducing his body fat percentage 
from 12.5 to just eight per cent.
 
To help Evans add lean muscle mass quickly, Waterson gave the actor a training regime based on high-weight/low-rep sets of the classic compound lifts, specifically squats, deadlifts, incline bench presses and weighted dips and chin-ups.
 
‘He also did a lot of bodyweight moves and included some plyometrics to fire up his fast-twitch muscle fibres, such as squat-to-box-jumps,’ says Waterson. ‘The aim was to keep his heart rate high throughout the workouts. I didn’t want to ignore this aspect of fitness because once filming started Chris was effectively going to have to work out on camera during the action scenes while wearing a 6kg costume as well as carrying a helmet and shield.’

Adding serious muscle while cutting fat is one thing, but doing so while managing not to injure a Hollywood leading man put additional pressure on Waterson to deliver the ideal leading-man physique.
 
‘Chris had done some weight training before, but as with a lot of guys it had been focused on the vanity muscles of the chest, arms and abs,’ says Waterson. ‘These guys are always amazed when I point out that they have muscles on the backs of their bodies too. But Chris was great to train. He understood the importance of a balanced physique. I had to work him hard but at a sensible pace – I couldn’t afford to have him sidelined for four weeks with an injury.’

The transformation didn’t come easy – Evans especially hated leg training. ‘But then who loves training legs?’ says Waterson. ‘Because if you are doing it properly it is the most painful session there is. Legs never hurt just for a day afterwards – it always lasts into the week. But your legs and glutes are the biggest and strongest muscles in your body so you must train them hard to get bigger and leaner everywhere else. So many men ignore legs because they want big arms, but pushing your lower body to the limit will transform your upper body faster than anything else thanks to a big growth-hormone response.’

‘The biggest challenge for Chris was eating enough to put on muscle but avoid storing any excess energy as fat,’ says Waterson. ‘We relied on low-carb protein shakes in between meals and snacks such as fruit and nuts. I also had him take branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) throughout the day to reduce muscle tissue breakdown and encourage growth. The aim each day was about 2g protein per kg of bodyweight.’
You too can get a superhero body with Evans’s legs workout and Waterson’s nutrition tips.

Captain America's legs workout

‘Pick a body part and hit it hard,’ 
says Waterson, ‘then give it 
time and nutrients to recover: 
fatigue, feed then leave – it’s really that simple.’ Perform one warm-up set for each exercise, then do three 
sets of six to eight reps at your eight-rep max.
 
 1 Squat
 2 Lunge
 3 Leg press
 4 Calf raise
 5 Hamstring curl

Captain America's nutrition plan


Breakfast
Bowl of porridge with dark berries and walnuts
Morning snack
Protein shake and 5g BCAA
Pre-workout snack
Apple with almonds
Post-workout snack
Protein shake and 5g BCAA
20min later
Chicken salad with brown basmati rice
Afternoon snack
Protein shake

Dinner
Lean protein, such as fish, chicken or beef, with vegetables. No starchy carbs.

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5 Ways to Torch Your Triceps

Triceps account for roughly two-thirds of your upper arm mass. So why in the name of Arnold do you spend so much more time blasting your biceps? If your true aim is to start using more tape measure around your arms, then you’re going to need to attack your tri’s with greater intensity. And once you’ve made that commitment, it’s time to refine your strategy.

Our expert panel offers its collective wisdom on coaxing the most growth out of this muscle group. But you can forget about hearing another cozy prescription for a few extra sets of pressdowns – these guys are going to help you push your triceps to their breaking point so you can get the bulbous, sickly-striated finish that you’ve always wanted.

Down Shift

1. DOWN SHIFT

Have you ever seen John Cena’s triceps? Well, if you haven’t, “tiny” is not a word that would be used to describe them. And though Cena is one of the hardest working men in show biz, he’s taken a fair share of his cues from WWE coach Rob MacIntyre, CSCS. When it comes to triceps specifically, MacIntyre likes to have his clients slow things down a bit.

“I like to use slow reps when training triceps especially on the eccentric portion of the lift,” he says. “Most of the time, the athletes I work with are training triceps explosively as part of other movements. However, when it is time to be pretty and get the big guns, I like to slow the reps down for isolations exercises. It is easy to develop tendonitis by trying to use fast, explosive heavy movements during isolation work due to the stress on the elbow joint. A triceps extension with a 5-10 second eccentric phase changes the game in terms of getting a pump. If you’re new to this type of training, be careful as the triceps tend to give out suddenly.”


TRY THIS: Lead off your triceps routine with 3-4 sets of triceps pressdowns or skullcrushers. Select a weight you’d use for 10-12 reps but use a 5-10 second negative on each rep – followed by an explosive concentric, or positive lift – and shoot for eight solid reps.

close grip bench presses

2. GET MECHANICAL

Josh Bryant, MFS, PES, CSCS, is a performance-first kinda guy. As such, he sees the triceps as a primarily as a supporting player in pressing movements. But when big presses lead to mind-boggling poundages and a superhero-like torso, training them hard makes sense..

“One of my favorite triceps tactics involves using mechanical advantage on the close-grip bench press with boards,” he says. “To do this, complete five, full range of motion close grip bench presses. Don’t rack the weight. Hold the bar pressed out at full extension. Next, have your spotter place one board lengthwise on your torso, so that the board runs from your belly to the middle of your chest. Repeat the exercise for another five reps, lowering the barbell until it touches the board. After each five reps, your partner will add one board to the stack. Little by little, this shortens your range of motion, working your triceps in different ways until you finish with four boards stacked on your chest. That’s 25 reps. It’s also just one set.” Bryant likes using this tactic because, he says, it combines aspects of rest-pause training, partial reps, cheating and drop sets.

TRY THIS: Bryant recommends using the system outlined above with your 10-5-rep max weight for 3-5 sets, with three minutes of rest between sets. This can be a stand-alone triceps workout, or you can follow it up with 1-2 isolation exercises for a more intense session.

tricep pressdown

 

3. FINISH WITH FAILURE

 

If your routine already consists of a challenging battery of close-grip bench presses, dips and skullcrushers, you’re on the right track. But how you finish is just as important as how you start. David Sandler, MS, CSCS, believes in getting a skin-stretching pump because of its effect on protein synthesis (read: it increases it).

 

“I love hitting the triceps pressdown at the end of the routine and doing drops on each set and finishing with some close-grip push-ups,” he says. “I try to hit eight reps on the pressdown set working at max, then the I drop about 25 percent and continue until I cannot get another full rep on my own. Immediately after, I drop to the ground, keep my hands no wider than shoulder-width, and bang out as many pushups as possible. I give myself a generous 90-second rest and do the whole thing again for a second and then third set. Your tri’s get so jacked with a pump, when you leave the gym, everyone knows it.”

 

TRY THIS: After 3-4 exercises worth of heavy triceps work, wrap your day up at the triceps pressdown station with three supersets combining pressdowns and close-grip push-ups. On the pressdowns, use a weight that brings about failure at eight reps, then drop the weight by 20-30 percent and continue on to failure once more before hitting the deck for a set of close-grip push-ups to failure. Rest 90 seconds and repeat for three total sets.

lying dumbbell triceps

5. VOLUMIZE

Why do 10 reps when 20 will do? This is a favorite refrain of the high-volume training crowd, which believes that muscles thrive on high-rep, high-set challenges. Justin Grinnell, CSCS, isn’t so single-minded in his approach but thinks that “more is better” is a philosophy that your triceps can benefit from.

“My favorite training intensity technique for triceps are high-rep supersets,” he says. “Since the triceps get a ton of heavy work from overhead presses, dips and bench presses, I like to get as much blood into the muscle as possible with isolation movements done back-to-back. Doing this will tap into some other muscle fibers that were not hit during the heavy work. I like lying dumbbell triceps extensions superset with overhead rope extensions for four sets of 15 reps. Make sure to keep continuous tension – don’t pause at the bottom of any rep. You want to force as much blood into the muscle as possible, and create as much time under tension as possible to maximize muscle tissue breakdown.”

TRY THIS: Finish off your next triceps workout with an isolation-themed superset. For max results, as Grinnell describes, try pairing two exercises that hit different parts of your triceps by varying arm positioning. An overhead extension paired with a pressdown, for example. Grinnell suggests four sets of 15 for each superset.


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5 Must Do Chest Exersice In Gym

Your chest routine consists of four sets of flat bench, incline dumbbell presses, and flat flyes. If so, well, you have plenty of company. It's the same Monday program countless lifters have been following for years without modification. And that's because it works—to a point.

If you've hit a training plateau, or if you just can't remember the last time you shook things up, consider bringing some new stimuli into your chest training. Working the chest muscles with a variety of exercises and angles is the best approach, and these five movements do the job and then some.
 
Must-Do Movements :


180-Degree Twisting Dumbbell Bench Press
If you're like me and have suffered a torn pec while benching, you'll agree that the barbell bench press is not ideal for everyone. I also find that my shoulders take over when I'm doing the flat and incline bench, so I prefer to use the dumbbell chest press instead.

But I don't just do any chest press. I add a twist—literally—in order to utilize the benefits of a supine or reverse grip. A study performed in my home town of Toronto determined that when subjects used a supinated grip during an isometric hold of the flat bench press, it resulted in increased activity for the upper portion of the pectoralis major as compared to a regular pronated grip.

1.Lie back on a bench holding two dumbbells with a standard grip (palms forward) and arms extended over your chest.

2.Slowly lower the dumbbells to your outer chest, then press and rotate 180 degrees as you push back up to starting position. You should have a supine grip with your pinkies inward and palms facing your face at the top of the movement. Hold this peak contraction for 2 seconds before lowering into the next rep.


3.Keep your shoulders back and down during the press to maximize pec involvement and minimize delt takeover.
Close-Grip Weighted Push-up
The push-up is a great exercise, but you have to do it a certain way in order to maximize chest activity. Try using the close-grip weighted push-up as a finishing move after you're done trashing your chest with the weights. The narrow hand position brings out the inner pecs and the added weight across the back elevates this from an everyday move to a pec destroyer.

Back in 2005, researchers at the Mayo Clinic tested 11 men and 29 women to determine the effect of three different hand positions when performing the push-up: shoulder-width, wider, and narrower. The study showed the EMG activity in the pectoralis major was greatest during push-ups with a narrow hand position.

1.Start in a push-up position with your hands about six inches apart. Add resistance by wearing a weighted vest or have a training partner place a weight or sandbag on your back.

2.Slowly lower your chest to the ground and press back up until you fully extend your elbows.
Cable Crossover 21s
Cable work is a great addition to free weights. It provides constant tension throughout the range of motion. But can it match the same level of muscle activation? Perhaps so, according to a recent study sponsored by the American Council on Exercise that investigated the EMG activity of nine common chest exercises.3 A team of researchers from the University of Wisconsin found that the bent-forward cable crossover produced nearly the same pectoralis major stimulation as the barbell bench press, which was rated the highest.

The beauty of the cable crossover is that you can adjust the pulleys to any height you want, which is why I recommend cable crossover 21s. You get the benefit of high, mid-level, and low crossovers in one triset, attacking your chest from all angles. Remember to keep the arms and body stationary so that you perform the exercise from the shoulders. This will help maximize the stretch and contraction of the chest during each rep.

Low Cable Crossover

First 7 reps (low position)

1.Starting with the cables in the lowest position, grab the handles and move into a staggered stance with one foot forward and one foot back. Lean forward slightly from the hip. This is your base position for all three movements.

2.With the handles out at your sides and an underhand grip, squeeze the cables up and in to eye level using a scooping motion. Perform 7 reps in this position.

Mid Cable Crossover

Second 7 reps (middle position)

3.Move the cables to chest height, grab the handles, and get into the base position.

4. Push the handles out and in front of your chest with the palms facing each other.

5.Resist the weight as you open up in a wide arc. Pause when you feel a light stretch in your chest, then squeeze back to the center with the elbows slightly bent and locked in place. Perform 7 reps in this position.

High Cable Crossover

Final 7 reps (high position)

6.Move the cables just above your head, grab the handles, and move back into the base position.

7.Press the handles down and in front of your upper abdominals with palms facing inward.

8.Open your arms back and up until you feel a good stretch across the pecs, pause, and then squeeze back in and under your chest. Perform your last 7 reps in this position.
Kettlebell Flye
Kettlebells are harder to grip than dumbbells, which makes you work harder for each rep. Using kettlebells for chest flyes will cause your pecs to recruit more muscle fibers to fight the weight hanging below your palms. Start with kettlebells that are 10 pounds lighter than what you would use on a standard dumbbell flye.

If you find yourself bending your elbows during the lowering phase, choose a lighter weight to ensure proper form. You want this to be a full-range flye, not a half-flye, half-press.

1.Hold the kettlebells over your chest as you did in the press, but turn your palms to face each other.

2.Using a wide arc from the shoulders, lower your arms with elbows slightly bent until you feel a good stretch across the chest. Pause and contract the pecs against the extra resistance that the kettlebells provide at the bottom range.

3.Squeeze your pecs as you bring your arms back up in a wide hugging motion. Keep your shoulders back and squeeze your pecs together at the top of the motion.
Forward-Leaning Dip
The dip is no joke. It's a tough compound exercise that makes great use of your bodyweight. However, dips are usually performed in an upright position to target the triceps. By simply adding a forward lean to this already-effective exercise, you'll stimulate more chest activity.
You can attempt to do this on your own, but if you really want to get the proper angle you'll need a training partner to help you get into the right position. You can easily make it more challenging by adding weight via chains or a belt.

A word of caution for people with any shoulder issues: Start with a small range of motion and listen to your body to determine how deep you can go. I always advise getting a full range of motion, but not at the risk of injury.

1.Place your hands on the bars and push yourself up until your elbows are locked. Cross your legs back with your knees bent, core tight, and hamstrings and glutes braced.

2.Have your training partner hold and pull your legs back until you're in a forward leaning position, using just enough assistance to get you into the right angle. Your body should be at approximately a 30-degree angle to the ground.

3.Lower yourself until your shoulders are lower than your elbows, or you feel a good stretch across the chest. Listen to your body and don't push through shoulder pain.

4.Push yourself up by extending your elbows to 180 degrees for a full range of motion. Visualize the pec squeeze as you drive up.

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8 At-Home Workouts to Lose Weight and Build Muscle

We've all been there—the 5 o'clock after-work rush to the gym. It's loud, crowded, and you're waiting forever for equipment or free weights. But why deal with that mess when you can get a workout from home? Don't believe us? Well, here are eight routines we're confident you'll approve of.



1)
Perform all exercises as a massive superset. Rest 3 minutes, then repeat.

-Pushup (10-15 reps)

-Pullup (in doorframe, as many reps as possible)
-Plank (60 seconds)
-Renegade Row (10 reps)

 Repeat 5 times

2)
Perform exercises labeled “A” then exercise labeled as “B,” rest, repeat for prescribed sets/reps.
1A. Dumbbell Lunge
1B. Pushup
3 sets, 8-12 reps each, 90 seconds between supersets

2A. Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift
2B. Ab-Wheel Rollout
3 sets, 6-8 reps each, 90 seconds between supersets

3A. Dumbbell Curl
3b. Dumbbell Shoulder
Press 3 sets, 12-15 reps each, 2 minutes between supersets

4A. Plank
4B. Dip (can be done on a chair)
3 sets, as many reps as possible (60-plus seconds for plank), 90 seconds between supersets

3)
1A. Body-Weight Squat
1B. Lying Glute Bridge
As many sets as needed, 100 total reps for each exercise, 60 seconds between sets

2A. Reverse Lunge
2B. Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift
4 sets, 10 reps, 90 seconds between sets

3. Wall Sit Lean against a wall and squat down, until your knees are bent 90 degrees and your shins are vertical to the ground. Hold the position. Complete one set and hold for as long as possible.

4)
Perform all exercises as a massive superset, rest 2 minutes, then repeat 5 times.
1. Jump Rope (60 seconds)
2. Burpee (10 reps)
3. Dumbbell Curl-To-Press (15 reps)
4. Bear Crawl (60 seconds)

5)
1A. Ab-Wheel Rollout
1B. Superman hold
3 sets, 10 reps (30 seconds for superman hold), 60 seconds between supersets

2. Renegade Row
3 sets, 10 reps, 60 seconds rest

3. Plank
3 sets, 60 second hold, 90 seconds rest

6)
1. Pushup 55*
3 sets, 3 minutes between sets

2. Plank
3 sets, 60 seconds, 60 seconds rest
 
3A. Body-Weight Squat3B. Dumbbell Curl
3 sets, as many reps as possible, 90 seconds rest between supersets

4A. Dip (can be done on a chair) 4B. Pullup (in doorframe)
 5 sets, 5-10 reps, 45 seconds rest between supersets

* Perform 10 pushups, rest 30 seconds; then 9 reps, rest 30 seconds; then do 8 reps, all the way down to 1.

7)
1A. Body-Weight 1¼ squat*
1B. Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift
5 sets, 10 reps (as many as possible for squat), 90 seconds rest

2A. Walking Lunge
2B. Lying Glute Bridge
5 sets, 20 reps, 90 seconds rest

* Perform a body weight squat, come up ¼ of the way, drop back down to full depth, and come all the way up. That’s one rep.

8)
1A. Pushup
1B. Prone Back Extension
3 sets, 12 reps each, 90 seconds rest

2A. Plank
2B. Prone Pressup*
3 sets, 10 reps (60 second plank), 90 seconds rest

3. Staggered Romanian Deadlift
3 sets, 6 reps/side, 60 seconds rest

* Lie facedown on the ground, hands where they would be for a pushup. Push yourself up as in a pushup, but leave your hips and legs on the ground. Hold for one second then return to the start position.

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Top 5 Drinks That Help You Lose Weight

If you have decided to lose the extra pounds, then you surely know that the only way to do that is by combining workouts with a healthy, balanced and nutritious diet. However, there are some types of drinks that will speed up the fat burning and help you lose weight quicker than you normally would, and here you will find 5 of the most efficient ones:



Detox Juice (1)

1. Detox Juices

Detox juices are certainly your most trustworthy allies in your battle against the extra pounds – you can easily make them in your kitchen, either entirely out of fruits or vegetables or by combining these two. Citrus fruits are known to have a powerful detox capability, therefore if you are looking for foods to help you purge all the toxins that have gathered inside you over the months then you must certainly include them in your detox juice. High-fiber root foods such as ginger, carrots or apples are also highly recommended for these juices, as they are known to also support the correct functioning of your digestive tract, not to mention the wealth of antioxidants that they deliver to your body.

As you may know already, antioxidants are essential as they protect your body from the negative effects of the free radicals that can wreak havoc on your health if you allow them two. One eight ounce glass of detox juice per week will certainly keep all these problems far away from you! These juices have a double benefit – while they help your body get rid of the toxins, chemicals and all the dangerous substances that have accumulated inside your intestines, they also help you lose weight in the fastest and most natural way. One thing is for sure, though: all those who want to shed pounds yet stay healthy at the same time must go through at least one or two detox sessions throughout the course of a year.

Vegetable Juices (2)

2. Vegetable Juices

Vegetable juices, on the other hand, can also benefit your weight loss efforts in the long run and it is a known fact that the most suitable type of veggies for weight loss are the cruciferous ones. No matter if you juice them alone or you use them in conjunction with other fruits, these veggies (cabbage, kale, broccoli or cauliflower) will be your most efficient fat fighting weapon, and there is no better way to keep all the toxins away.  Another notable benefit of the vegetable juices is that in addition to helping your body fight free radicals and keeping you healthy, they will also balance the hormone levels in your body and prevent the hormone disruptors from interfering with the normal hormone levels. Cruciferous veggies are very rich in natural phytonutrients that are perfect for reducing the overall amount of body fat, for reducing inflammation and controlling the blood sugar levels, for balancing the hormone levels, boosting your metabolism as well as providing a thorough general detoxification.

Green Tea (3)

3. Green Tea

Green tea has been used for hundreds of years due to its numerous benefits, and weight loss is just one of them – although green tea alone will only help you lose a few pounds, it will certainly serve as a great addition to your diet in the long haul. No matter if you do not have the time or you do not like to workout on a regular basis, drinking one cup of tea per day will deliver all the antioxidants you need and it will also help you burn fat at a faster pace, by boosting the metabolism. These teas are perfect for burning more calories as well as for increasing your overall energy levels and for suppressing your appetite. As a matter of fact, this is exactly the main mechanism of action of these teas as they help you shed the extra pounds by suppressing your appetite, thus decreasing the amount of food you would normally consume on a daily basis. Green tea is very popular amongst the Japanese people, and it is said to also help you reduce stress and relax better.

Cranberry Juice (4)

4. Fruit Juice – Cranberry And Pear

Fruit juices are delicious, easy to prepare and very rich in nutrients, vitamins and minerals – besides this, there are literally hundreds of different fruits you can choose from and pear and cranberries are only two of the most delicious, most efficient and most sought-after ones given the fact that they contain high amounts of vitamin C. Not only will the cranberry and pear juice help you lose weight by boosting your metabolism (your body’s natural fat burning machine), but it will also increase your overall energy levels and deliver your body all the essential vitamins and proteins that it so much needs. At the same time, it is a known fact that the cranberry juice is essential for preventing various infection of the bladder, such as the infection with the E-coli bacteria. Pears, on the other hand, add magnesium, potassium as well as phosphorus to your fruit juice and they are essential for a healthy lifestyle, not to mention that they are very rich in Vitamin C and Calcium, the latter being particularly important for keeping your bones healthy and strong.

Black Coffee (5)

5. Black Coffee

Last, but not least, it is a known fact that if consumed with moderation, black coffee can have a plethora of health benefits – not only does it contain antioxidants that fight off free radicals and lower the risk for certain types of cancer, but it can also reduce the risk for diabetes as well as heart disease. At the same time, caffeine is perfect for boosting your metabolism and for increasing the number of calories you have burned. Be careful, though, because if you want to lose weight by relying on black coffee you will have to consume it without any milk or sugar, as any sweetener can increase its calorie count!
To conclude, these are the top 5 most efficient drinks that you should embed in your diet if you want to lose weight quickly and naturally, without resorting to any pills or supplements that may have side

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