I keep six honest serving men
They taught me all I knew:
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.

-Rudyard Kipling

 
What's the best way to lose weight around the stomach and achieve a six-pack?
                                                                                                                               -Jason R.
                                                                                                                       Miami, Florida
 
Ah, yes. Probably the single most frequently asked question any trainer will hear. The amazing thing is that this is not rocket science.
You have a few factors at work here: genetics, diet, and of course, exercise. You can take a positive handle with 2 out of the 3 factors
and improve upon them to make a very noticeable change in the appearance of your midsection.

The one thing that you have to remember is that there is no such thing as spot reduction. When you exercise, fat is burned from the
body from wherever it wants. you have no control over the area where fat will disappear. you can do crunches until you can't move
anymore and that does not mean that it's going to burn the fat off of your midsection. Granted, you'll have very firm abs, but if they're
covered with subcutaneous fat, it's not going to do you a damn bit of good.

Cardiovascular exercise is the most effective way of not only strengthening the heart, but also burning fat. In addition to the cardio,
building lean muscle is also beneficial to the fat burning process, so resistance training (lifting weights) will play a major part in that
also.

In reference to your eating habits, I cannot stress the importance of a well balanced diet. I've trained people in the past that had the
mentality that "since I work out, I can eat anything I want". WRONG.

It's been estimated that 70-80% of the way that you look is based on your diet. Eating 5-6 low fat, small meals every 2-3 hours helps
keep your metabolism on an even keel, which means that your body continues to use the food for energy and keeps burning fat.
Depriving your body of nutrients basically tells your system that it will have to hold onto any fat to use as fuel since you're not feeding
it regularly.

 

 
What's the best time of the day to workout at the gym?
                                                                             -Michael K.
                                                    New York City, New York
 
Unless your nipples are extremely talented and also double as a sundial, your pecs don't know hot to tell the time. The best time to work
out is any time you can get your ass to the gym.

 

 
When I started taking vitamins and supplements, I started to feel nauseous and had bad diarrhea. What could cause this and is this
normal?
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            -Emmit R.
                                                                                                                                                                                                   Fort Lauderdale, Florida
 
For the most part supplements and vitamins are natural, so when you start taking something new it can literally shock your body because
you're giving it something that it's not used to. These types of side effects should only last for a few days (sometimes a few weeks,
although I wouldn't recommend continuing to take them if they last that long) until your body adjusts. But if the symptoms repeat you
should discontinue the use of the product. Keep in mind that not all products are necessary and sometimes mixing them can cause the
symptoms you're talking about. Eating a well balanced diet with a multivitamin should do fine, but if you have any pre-existing conditions
or are overly sensitive to any minerals or vitamins, you should check with your physician before taking anything.

 

 
I've read that you should never eat past 8 p.m. They said that any calories consumed past that time will become bodyfat. Is that true?
                                                                                                                                                                                                                              -Chris M.
                                                                                                                                                                                                San Francisco, California
 
I must admit that sometimes I have an urge to bitchslap those people that insist that their workout routines are going to be beneficial for
everyone. The simple fact is that we're all individuals with different lifestyles and that requires us to have unique eating habits for our
energy needs and basic functions.

Imagine that you are a marathon runner or triathlete. You are going to be able to consume more calories (even into the evening) because
you are going to be expending a tremendous amount of calories through the day while training. It's an equation of calories in/calories out.
Or even if you work at night and you decide to do your workouts before you head to the nightly grind, why would you deprive yourself of
valuable energy and nutrients because of a generic comment?

However, on the flip side, if you're really inactive and you don't need much energy in the evening, it would probably be a good idea to re-
duce your carb intake late at night. The bottom line is, eat accordingly to your daily activities and energy requirements.