Bodybuilding.com presents: The Personal Training Program

Disclaimer

Before beginning any diet and exercise program, consult your physician. The author and Bodybuilding.com disclaim any liability, express or implied, resulting from the application or misapplication of any of the information in The Personal Training Program.

Special thanks to our photographer Josh Marks who donated his time and efforts in the development of The Personal Training Program.

Intro:

Congratulations, you have made it this far. This manual will teach you everything you must do to have a great body. But remember, only you have the power to use the information that you learn. I was prompted to write this because I am surrounded by so many people that are constantly seeking out weight loss information. I know exactly what needs to be done and I want to show others.

It is impossible to know absolutely everything about fitness, and I'm not saying I do. But, I do know how to lose weight and the information contained in this manual will teach you just that. Before you start this program remember these three things:

"Most people are average because they do average things…"

Important Info

Did you know…

The average cost of a gym membership is $54.00 a month, for some of this it may seem expensive but did you know…

The average person would save over $72.00 a month from regular exercise due to the amount of medical bills that not being physically fit can cause. By exercising, you can save $25.00 a month. You can see that in less than a year you will save over $210.00 with the benefits of a healthier body.

To learn more on how to choose a gym, click here!

Work Ethic:

There are many workout programs that can and will help you, the program I have setup is what I have seen work in the past through my own experiences as well as what I have seen with experiences of others. But really, there are probably hundreds of other workout programs that could work just as well as mine if you are consistently using the program.

We will provide the information and resources you need to accomplish your goals, but only you can motivate yourself to do it. There are many steps to creating your ideal body, if you follow the steps we have provided I can guarantee success.

Setting Goals:

If you want to lose weight, you must figure out how you are going to get there. Figuring out the path to weight loss is called your direction. This book will give you that direction. But you need a place to go, somewhere to end. You eventually want to reach a final point. These are called your goals, they are what you have set out to achieve. Here is a little bit about goals…

Long-term goals:

Long-term goals are those aspirations that you have to work for. Ones that you know will take some work but you would like to accomplish. They can consist of basically anything; here is an example of three goals for someone who is trying to lose weight:

These are your long-term goals and should be something that you know you can reach over a period of time. Do not make goals that are unreachable because you will feel overwhelmed and give up if you think that they are not attainable.

Short-term goals:

Short-term goals are the week-to-week aspirations that you need to accomplish to reach your long-term goals. Here would be an example of some short-term fitness goals:

Daily and weekly goals are called short-term goals and are necessary to reach your long-term goals. Using this system will bring you closer to the body you desire.

Remember, without goals you have no guidance or focus on where you are going and it is very easy to lose sight of what you set out to do.

" Accomplishing a goal is not as important as the person you become accomplishing it."

Overview:

Save money from exercising
Use a positive work ethic to be successful
Set short term goals to help you achieve you long term goals

Key Terms:

These terms will help you understand what is discussed throughout this manual and give you a better understanding of some of the common gym lingo.

1. Abs, abdominals
The muscle in the front of the stomach that form the six-pack when one's body fat is fairly low. Their function is to draw the base of the ribcage and the hips towards each other, as occurs when performing crunches.

2. Aerobic
Aerobic means requiring oxygen. When describing exercise, it refers to extended sustained levels of exertion during which metabolic processes that provide energy are dominated by the complete oxidation of nutrients

3. Amino acids
Basic building blocks of protein

4. Bodyfat percentage
The amount of fat in your body, generally expressed as a percentage. To learn more about testing your body fat percentage, click here! To learn more about losing body fat, click here!

5. Compound Exercise
An exercise that targets a muscle group simultaneously; usually the movement involves flexing or extending at least two joints. Lat pulldowns, squats, and bench press are all compound movements. Exercises like leg curls, leg extensions, and flyes are not compound movements.

6. Electrolytes
Minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium used by cells in the creation and elimination of membrane potentials used to propagate nerve impulses and muscular contraction.

7. Failure
Lifting a weight until your muscles are so fatigued they cannot perform another repetition.

8. Forced rep
A repetition performed with assistance from a spotter after a lifter has reached the point of failure with a given weight.

11. One rep maximum
The greatest amount of weight that can be handled by a lifter for a single repetition in good form. Click here to find out what your one rep max is!

12. Overtraining
Training beyond the body's ability to repair itself. This can be caused by training the same body parts too frequently so that the body does not have time to recover before the next workout; workouts that are consistently harder than the body is able to recover from fully; or impairment of the body's normal recovery ability due to nutritional deficiencies, illness, or stress.

Besides impairing athletic performance, overtraining can increase the risk of injury or disease. Symptoms of overtraining include fatigue, reduced performance, and increased resting heart rate. To learn more about overtraining, click here!

Having Fun:

It seems like every time I pick up a book that has anything to do with fitness, they never say a word about having fun. The people in the pictures demonstrating the lifts have absolutely no trace of a smile on their face.

A coach of mine once told me there are 2 kinds of fun:

Getting your body into shape is like "building your house type of fun," there is a lot of hard work that is involved. But when you get the final result you are extremely happy about what you have accomplished and it is very enjoyable. The feeling of accomplishment stays with you as you enjoy your house everyday.

So, be happy and have fun when you workout. Have a friend come with you to the gym, or make friends at the gym. Laugh and smile as you are working hard to get the body you desire, it will make time pass very quickly. Whatever you have to do to have fun, do it. Be creative, never get embarrassed, and it will make time fly.

Having Fun Overview:

There are two types of fun
Theme park fun & building your house fun.
Having a great body won't be easy to get, but it will be fun when you get there.

Dieting is a dreaded word by some, but it is not what most people think. The word diet is defined as " One's usual food and drink. " So don't be scared when you hear the word diet because you are dieting right now. What did you eat with your last meal? That is what is part of your current diet. The following chapter will cover foods and eating habits that have been proven to get the results you desire.

Diet Offered:

We designed your diet, but you will be putting together the diet that works for you. This allows you to get more involved and choose the foods that you like to eat or that you think will be best for you. We have a complete list of foods that covers every category that you need.

For example, the protein category has a list of meats, poultry, eggs, whey protein, etc. You get to choose which of these foods you want to eat with every meal.

Final note before we get started:

The foods that we have listed should be a menu that you choose from. Whether your goal is to lose weight, tone up, or have more energy; these are foods that will help you get there. The cleaner you diet is, the cleaner your body will be. I promise that you will feel better and have more energy.

So you are probably thinking that I am trying to tie you down for life. No, I am just giving you some guidelines to live by for 12 weeks. This program will be a test of physical strength, but more importantly, it will be a test of your mental strength. You have made it this far and it is very apparent that you are ready for a change.

So here is my challenge to you:

Dedicate 12 weeks of you life to see if you can make a change. See if you transform your body into the one you have always desired. Do exactly what is outlined and you will be successful. You bought this book so it is obvious that you are ready for some kind of change. The time for change is now; you are about to be presented with one of the tools that will help you get there. So lets do it!

Your Food Index

Proteins Complex Carbohydrates Fruit

Chicken Breast
Cottage Cheese**
Eggs
Halibut
Ham
Lean Ground Beef
Lean Meat
EAS Myoplex
Tuna
Turkey Breast
Whey Protein
Yogurt** Baked Potato
Baked beans
Cereals- Whole Grain
Corn
Corn Tortilla
Crackers
Cream of wheat
Flour Tortilla- 8 inch
Low fat chips
Low fat blueberry muffins
Pasta- cooked
Small Pancake
Plain Popcorn**
Quaker Instant Oatmeal
Rice (not minute rice)
Rice Cakes**
Rye Bread**
Waffles- Prepared from mix (7 inches)
Whole wheat bread**
Yams Alfalfa Sprouts
Asparagus
Beets
Broccoli
Brussel Sprouts
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Corn
Cucumber
Eggplant
Green Peas
Leaf Lettuce
Mushrooms
Onions
Tomatoes
Spinach
Zucchini Apple
Apricot
Banana
Blueberries
Cantaloupe
Cherries
Grapefruit
Grapes
Honeydew melon
Mango
Orange
Peach
Pear
Pineapple
Plum
Raisins
Strawberries
Yogurt**

Click here for a printable version the your food index!

** Indicates the food should be fat free or low fat.

This menu will be a guide for you when you start you 12-week program. I have listed some morning, afternoon, and evening meal ideas in Appendix A. So if you get stuck and don't know what to eat, there are a few suggestions that will give you some meal ideas. Details of when and how to incorporate this diet will be provided later.

Dieting Overview:

You are dieting right now.
A diet is "ones usual food and drink."
No one is perfect, but give an honest effort to try this program for 12 weeks and you will be happy with the results.
These foods will be incorporated into your diet on page 90, as you read step-3 "planning for nutrition."

Achieving Your Desired Body:

When people think of dieting, they think about losing weight. They think about a trimmer waistline and having more energy. What most people don't know is that a big part of weight control is your metabolism. There is a reason that young kids can drink 10 cups of kool aid a day, eat nothing but brownies, and still not gain weight. It is their high metabolism, and this is one of the major factors that affect our weight. A high metabolism would keep you from gaining weight whereas a low metabolism would keep you from losing weight. If you want to lose weight, you need to raise your metabolism.

There have been studies that show after we reach the age of 30, our metabolisms starts slowing down. This is why it is much more difficult to stay in shape as we grow older.

So what does this mean for you?

You have to change some things and work a little bit harder to keep your body in ideal shape, unless you are fairly young. The foods you consume, as I am sure you know, have a huge impact on your physique. Our focus will be changing your diet a little bit. The diet that is provided is more lenient than others. Instead of telling you how many calories a day you must eat or what you must have for each meal, I have setup parameters to guide you through your day.

These new parameters will help combat the effects of a lower metabolism, help you lose unwanted fat, and keep or gain more muscle. The more muscle you have the better your body will look, this is why you will need to keep track of your body fat.

Quality:

OK, so lets say that you have been on a so-called "diet" for 1 week and you haven't noticed any weight loss, and you have no energy. Every hour is just a hungry daze and you are not able to focus. The explanation for this is simple; you do not have a quality diet. In other words, you body is being deprived of essential nutrients and it is starving.

If you are going to diet, you must do it correctly by eating the proper foods. This is where "You Food Index" that I have created for you comes into play. The foods on this menu may not seem as flavorful as you are used to eating, or may not be what you prefer. But remember, the training cycle is in 12-week periods, and I am just asking you to try it for one period of 12 weeks. Also remember that you only have to diet 6 days out of the week, on the seventh day you get to eat whatever you want.

Quick & Sudden Weight Loss:

If you go on a miracle diet and lose 10 pounds in a week, guess what….it's not what it seems. The weight you lost was probably more muscle than fat. Studies have shown that for every 10 pounds you lose, 6 pounds is muscle. The goal is to lose fat not muscle. So to counteract this statistic, we have to eat properly and exercise. If more muscle is lost than fat, I can guarantee that you will gain that weight right back and plus a few pounds. The muscle in your body plays an important role in burning off unwanted fat and calories. So if you are losing more muscle than fat, you are going to be in trouble.

The diet we have setup will make sure that you lose the "fat weight" and keep the good "muscle weight." This is why we have included a bodyfat pincher so you can track you bodyfat.

To learn more about quick fat loss and miracle pills, click here!

Portions:

When you eat your six meals everyday, you will be eating a potion of protein and carbohydrates with each meal. A portion is about as big as your fist. A portion of carbohydrates for me would be a large apple. A portion for someone who is smaller than me would be a small apple. It's a pretty simple concept; the bigger you are the bigger your portion will be.

Lifestyle:

Since this diet is new to you and you obviously want to change, there are going to be some obstacles in your path, otherwise you would already have your perfect body. So you need to think hard and figure out what is in your way.

Do you always make excuses before going to the gym, do you put things off until it is to late to do them, or maybe you have an addiction to sweets. Whatever stands in your way, you need to recognize and change that particular issue. Pick three things to change. Here is an example of three things that I had to change when I first started to get into shape:

It was hard to change these things because they were completely mental. The hardest for me is getting up in the morning. I had been known to hit the snooze button 15 times. Once I finally got on a schedule, it was easy to get out of bed. It took about 2 ½ weeks before I finally adjusted and now I don't have a problem getting up in the morning. The hardest part is adjusting to the change.

Start thinking about a few things that you need to change; we will be revisiting this subject at the end of the book.

Keep in mind that you can workout as much as you want, but without a proper diet you may never see results. Also, remember that you may eat healthy and never see results without exercise. The two work together; so don't focus on just one.

Planning:

If you want this program to work for you, planning is going to be an important factor. If you are trying to eat the foods that are in the menu we have provided, you must have them available.

Pick a day of the week to sit down and figure out what you are going to eat. My day is Sunday and on each Sunday I sit down to plan what I am going to buy at the grocery store. I make sure that I have enough food to last me until the following Sunday.

If you don't plan you are setting yourself up for failure.

To ensure that your 12-week diet runs smoothly, you have to plan for success. This doesn't mean that you have to plot out every nutrient for every meal of the week. It just means buying enough food to supply six small meals a day.

If you can afford a meal replacement shake like Myoplex, I highly recommend that you buy a box of them. They contain all the nutrients you would essentially get from a meal and they are very convenient.

When you are planning for the week, take a look at the foods I have provided in the menu and be creative. Make a taco salad or a breakfast burrito. Here is an example of one of my days:

Meal One: A three-egg omelet with onions in it with two glasses of water.
Meal Two: A myoplex meal replacement shake.
Meal Three: A tasty tuna fish sandwich with two glasses of water.
Meal Four: Precooked rice and vegetables that I prepared earlier in the week.
Meal Five: A seasoned grilled halibut steak with a fresh lemon squeezed on it to add flavor with two glasses of water.
Meal Six: A portion of cottage cheese with a portion of sliced peaches.

* Note: Meal six should be eaten about 1 hour before bed.

It really isn't that hard to eat six meals a day. You just have to use your imagination. You probably don't currently use this diet so it will take a week or two to get used to it. Once you have done this for a period of time you will have more energy and you will feel like your body has been revitalized.

Free day:

Once a week you are required to take a break and relax, this will be called your "Free day." Your free day will be a break from your diet and training schedule. Eat what ever you want on this day, really…I mean eat whatever you feel like eating. If you want to eat ice cream and chocolate all day, then that's what you can eat. If you want to eat some fried shrimp, head on down to the Red Lobster.

This break is mainly a reward for the past 6 days of hard work. You deserve it after 6 days on a fairly strict diet. Once you have satisfied all of your cravings and relaxed all day, you will feel relief and dieting won't be a problem at all.

The best part is that you feel no guilt because you know you have earned it and that is a great feeling when you have a mouthful of ice cream, the mouthful of ice cream is also a good feeling too, at least for me.

Most diets will break you, so I decided to break the diet. This means less stress for you and something to look forward to every week. Your entire dieting schedule is outlined later in the book, so there is no need to write any of this down.

Achieving Your Desired Body Overview:

Metabolism plays a huge role in controlling weight, exercising raises your metabolism and helps you stay fit.
The quality of your diet will decide how good your results are.
If you lose 10 pounds in one week, over 60% of the weight lost was likely to be muscle lost and not fat that was lost.
Be creative and six meals a day will be simple and delicious.
You will be required to take one day a week off from dieting and weight training. This break will be a reward for the past 6 days of hard work.
A portion of food is about as big as your fist.
If you plan for success, you will be successful.

Weight training stimulates muscle growth. But if you want to enhance and maintain your weight loss, you need to have structure in your diet.

This structure will come in the form of proper nutrition and will help you stay in the best shape possible. Eating right will not only keep you healthy, it will boost your immune system having an inside-out effect. It will make the internal organs in your body process more efficiently which will lead to better looking skin, more definition in your muscles, and an overall healthier looking body.

Here is a basic overview of the nutrients your body needs and what they do:

1) Proteins

2) Carbohydrates

3) Fats

4) Water

5) Vitamins

6) Minerals

Learn more!

Here is a more detailed description of the nutrients...

Proteins:

Q: Why Does The Body Need Protein?

A: Protein is a nutrient made up of amino acids. There are two types of amino acids. Non-essential Amino Acids that can usually be synthesized by a healthy body from the daily foods that we eat. Then there are Essential Amino Acids that must be obtained through the daily diet.

Protein has a number of important roles in the body, including:

Repairing of body cells
Building and repairing muscles and bones
Providing a source of energy
Regulating many important metabolic processes in the body

Without protein, you cannot build muscle tissue. In your diet, you will incorporate approximately one portion of protein with every meal. This will help build muscle tissue and give you a leaner body. The most effective source of protein is whey protein that is discussed in the next chapter.

Carbohydrates:

Q: Why does the body need carbohydrates?

A: The main reason your body needs carbohydrates is to provide energy. Carbohydrates consist of starches (complex carbs) and sugars (simple carbs) that are broken down into glucose, which then turns into energy. Since carbohydrates are the main form of energy that your body can utilize, you need them in your diet. Eating carbohydrates will provide your body with the energy it needs for day-to-day activities and exercising. In the dieting section we will explain how to incorporate carbohydrates or "carbs" into a muscle gain or a weight loss diet. Fats:

Q: I am trying to lose fat; do I need to incorporate fats into my diet?

A: Yes, fats are an important part of your body. They provide insulation and reserved energy when you need it. Fat has also been found to raise energy levels and contributes to your strength gains. When you short term energy supplies burn up (which can take 20-45 minutes), your fat cells are then used as the primary energy source.

Why do we need fat in our diet?

Fats are just as important as proteins and carbohydrates, they are essential for:

Providing energy.
Are building blocks for essential chemicals.
Carry fat-soluble vitamins.

However, eating too much dietary fat may lead to the following health problems:

Obesity
Heart disease
Stroke
Hypertension

So you probably want to know which fats are the good fats and which fats are bad fats. There are really three basic types of fat that include saturated fats, unsaturated fats, & polysaturated fats.

Saturated Fats:

This kind of fat is like Crisco, its bad for you. It solidifies at room temperature and can lead to a number of health problems. Saturated fats really have no role in our body. Foods that contain the most saturated fat include:

1) High fat beef
2) Butter
3) Cheese
4) Chocolate

You are better off trying to avoid these foods.

Unsaturated Fats:

These fats are better for you than saturated fats and are usually still liquid at room temperature. Your body cannot manufacture these fats on its own but they still need to be incorporated into your diet. They are found in olive oil, fish oil, and cold-water fish. Two important unsaturated fats are polyunsaturated fats & Monosaturated fats.

Polyunsaturated & Monosaturated Fats:

Polyunsaturated fats are essential parts of the structural component of your cell membranes. Not only do they promote healthy circulation, they help raise metabolism and burn off saturated and monosaturated fats. Our bodies and need to be taken in directly from your diet cannot naturally produce these fats. Since your body needs these and cannot naturally produce them, we call them essential fatty acids (EFA's). Some EFA's are found in:

1) Fish oil (salmon, trout,…)
2) Pecans
3) Almonds
4) Some margarines
5) Corn oil
6) Mayonnaise

The best way to utilize these fats is to eat a lot of fish or to find oils that contain these fats. Sunflower oil, fish oil, and corn oil all are all good sources of polysaturated fat.

It has been found that diets too low in EFA's will cause your metabolism to slow down. Your body will have a harder time burning off excess fat and the low fat diet becomes pointless. If you are looking for fats that will not affect your cholesterol, you would need to consume monosaturated fats that come from olive oil and macadamia nuts. They have been shown to actually help lower bad cholesterol levels and help raise the cholesterol levels that your body needs.

Should I Avoid Fat?

You should avoid foods that are fried, these contain harmful fatty acids. When fats are heated, they are not good for the body. When EFA's are heated, they also become bad for your body.

Water:

Q: How much water should I be drinking everyday?

A:At least 2 glasses with each meal

If you want to look your best, water needs to be an essential part of your diet. It is responsible for the transportation of vital nutrients and cleaning toxins from your blood. Your body is made up of 40%-60% water. From constant perspiration and daily activity it is very easy to become dehydrated. Many of us never even know that we are close to dehydration. When your throat becomes dry, your body is already dehydrated.

To get the daily amount of water that your body needs, experts recommend multiplying your body weight by .55 and then drinking that many ounces of water each day. So a 200lb individual would need approximately 110oz a day (.55 multiplied by your body weight of 200lbs=110oz). Your muscles are over 72% water and in a sense become deflated when you reach dehydration.

To ensure that you are getting enough water I recommend drinking 2-3 glasses of water with every meal. This will help your body digest the food that you have just consumed and avoid dehydration. Most people will not multiply their weight by .55 and measure the amount of water they need to drink, so if you consume 2-3 glasses with each meal, you should be fine.

Since your body has a tough time transporting nutrients when the body is dehydrated, your muscles don't get the vitamins and minerals that they need. This can cause an overtraining effect on your body. Many people directly correlate overtraining to weight training, but this is not entirely correct. If your muscles cannot get the nutrients that they need, then they cannot repair and grow.

A quick word on soft drinks - Soft drinks are not a substitute for water, they cause more dehydration than hydration due to the sugar content.

Vitamins & Minerals:

It is a good idea to have a well-rounded multi-vitamin to get your essential nutrients such as Vitamin C and E. Vitamins and minerals are essential for the repair of body tissue and overall health.

Nutrition Overview:

Fat loss and weight loss are dramatically accelerated when you "clean up" your diet.
Proteins are the essential building blocks of muscle. Everyone needs protein in his or her diet so that muscle is built and not lost.
Carbohydrates provide energy.
Saturated fats are unhealthy, whereas unsaturated, polysaturated, and monosaturated fats are needed to burn off these saturated.
Drink water to help your body easily transport vital nutrients and to prevent the possible effects of overtraining.
Vitamins and minerals help repair bodily tissue and promote the overall wellness of the body.

What Are Supplements?

Before the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) was passed in 1994, supplements were considered to be vitamins, minerals, and protein. You could not get chromium picolinate, DHEA, or certain amino acids without a prescription. After this act was passed, the definition of a supplement changed and now includes vitamins, minerals, herbs, botanicals (excluding tobacco), and dietary substances that could be used to supplement your diet by increasing total dietary intake. Now, our laws seem to be more liberal than anywhere in the world.

A supplement is defined as anything to supplement or add to the diet.

Recommended Supplements:

The following supplements can and will help you if they are added to the diet properly. Again, I only recommend using these supplements to be added to your diet.

Whey Protein

What is Whey Protein? Whey protein is a by-product from cheese manufacturing and is the most preferred form of protein available.
What does it do? After whey protein is broken down, it supplies your body with branched chain amino acids, which are the building blocks of muscle.
Who should take whey protein? Everyone should take this supplement. It promotes the overall health of your body.

Whey protein has the highest biological value of any protein. The higher the biological value, the more protein that can be used by the body. It has a biological value of 100 (100 being the maximum), the highest of any protein. I highly recommend using this supplement because your body needs protein to build muscle. It is also good for adding into fruit smoothies, pancake mix, or really anything that is mixed.

How Whey Protein Helps:

Whey protein isolate is the highest quality of protein, providing you body with essential amino acids such as branched chain amino acids that are needed for your body to recover from your workouts. Whey protein is also extremely low in fat and lactose.

Best Time To Take Protein:

The best time to take protein is at night and in the morning. Your body naturally breaks down protein at night when you are resting. To help prevent the loss of this protein when you rest it is a good idea to have a protein shake an hour before you go to bed or first thing in the morning.

Meal Replacements:

What are meal replacements? Meal replacements. Pretty self explanatory, they are small packets, usually shakes, that provide your body with all of the nutrients that you would essentially get if you had eaten a meal.
Do you need them? Meal replacements are for people who are always on the run, but remember you still need actual meals to provide you body with minerals and nutrients.

Have you ever tried eating six meals a day? This is where meal replacements can help. It would be virtually impossible to prepare six meals everyday, unless you are a chef where you cook and eat all day. It has been proven by every credible bodybuilding expert that consuming a high of amount of small frequent meals increases your metabolism, energy levels, and exposes the anabolic affects of insulin. I personally consume one meal replacement everyday and I recommend you should do the same.

These low fat high calorie meal replacements can help you get the calories that you need while keeping you waistline trim. They also help you get your daily vitamins and minerals so you don't have to take a handful of pills everyday. Meal replacements can be a vital part of your success.

Energy Bars:

In earlier times candy bars were our choice product for energy bars, this all changed when Powerbar® introduced its first product line in 1987. Now, there are many other Powerbar® look-alikes that are trying to promote a healthier life. This new market segment now includes products like:

These bars have a great amount of nutritional value and have been found to increase performance when eaten before exercise. Some even taste like candy bars. You can take these bars with you when you exercise because they are small and convenient.

But should these bars replace fruits such as bananas, oranges, or other carbohydrates that contain essential nutrients?

No. Although the nutritional value of these bars are high in vitamins, carbohydrates, and protein; eating engineered foods has been show to have negative long-term affects. Replacing your diet with these bars can result in an even lower intake of the fiber, carotenoids, and other health-protective phytochemicals found in fruits, veggies and whole grains.

I am not saying NEVER eat one again, because I would be a hypocrite. I eat Powerbars® after I workout, but I also eat bananas and fruits after working out. I would urge using these bars in sports situation and for pre and post workouts. I would not recommend replacing your diet with these bars as snacks; they are more expensive and not as good for you. Energy bars easily cost $0.70 per 100 calories. In comparison, raisins are only $0.18 per 100 calories; bananas, $0.20; and granola bars, $0.28.

Click here to read the Bodybuilding.com bar taste test!

Supplement Overview:

I recommend these supplements:

Whey protein
Meal replacements
Energy bars
A good multivitamin

Supplements are intended to be added to the diet, not to replace it.

Whey protein should be taken by anyone who wants to improve the look of their physique, lower their body fat, and get stronger.

Meal replacements can make dieting very easy.

Eat energy bars as a pre or post-workout snack.

Body Statistics:

To ensure that you are making progress you will need to keep track of your body statistics. This includes measuring your body fat and taking tape measurements from your arms, legs, torso, etc…

For example, lets say that you have a 15-inch bicep and you measured your body fat at 10%. If you measure your bicep 1 week later and it is still exactly 15 inches, you might be disappointed, but if your body fat has gone down to 9% that muscle is now bigger and there is less body fat. This will make your arm look more defined.

To measure your body fat, you will be using the Parillo method. This is a nine-point body fat measurement method. You will be using the body fat pincher. The results will look something like this:

Skin Fold Measuring Sites	Measurement Results
Chest
Right Tricep
Right Bicep
Suprailiac
Lower Back
Subscapular
Stomach
Right Calf
Thigh

Sum of Measurements

Body Weight

((Sum of Measurements/Body Weight) x 27)= Your Body-Fat Percentage

Pounds of fat ((Body weight x Body Fat)/100)

LBM- Lean Body Mass (Body Weight-Lbs of fat)

Pictures and instructions that describe this process will be provided later. This will help you keep track of your body fat percentage so you can determine if you are losing body fat, gaining muscle, etc.

Click here to read about the different body fat testing procedures!

Your Workout Schedule:

Monday-Saturday will be the days you will exercise. This will include three days of aerobics and three days of weight training. The following is an outline of your weekly schedule:

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

Friday:

Saturday:

Sunday:

Compound Exercises:

These exercises stimulate the most responsive muscle growth. They place the most stress on your body and usually require many muscles to perform the movement. For the best results use free weights with these exercises. If you use a machine for these exercises some of the supporting muscles will not be fatigued and you will not get the maximum results from your efforts.

Compound exercises include:

Bench Press
Military Press
Deadlifts
Squats
Pull Ups
Bar Dips

Pull Ups are a great example of how a compound exercise can use many different muscles. Although this movement is often classified as a lower/upper back exercise, to achieve this movement you need to use your legs for balance and support and much of the upper body to complete the lift. This in turn stimulates the best results for your efforts.

These exercises require so many muscles, it would be almost impossible for any machine to match the stress and fatigue that compound exercises place on your body. This is where the best results will be seen.

You want to do these exercises at the very beginning of your workout. If you want to see noticeable results from your lifting program, you must do compound exercises. Perform these at the beginning of your workout. They are a key factor in building muscle, whether your goal is to lose weight or gain weight, these are essential to helping your body get the best workout.

Avoiding Plateaus:

A plateau is a point in your 12-week program where you are doing everything you're supposed to do, but you stop seeing gains in strength and you do not feel like you are making any progress. Many people get to a plateau and quit…this is a mistake! You have been doing your workout anywhere from 5 weeks or longer and your body has become accustomed to your workout.

You will reach a plateau sooner or later, I guarantee it. If you experience this, you simply have to change your workout. Find a workout that is different than the one you are using and switch, or change your workout parameters. If you like your workout and do not want to switch, change a few things around. Use a close grip when you are on the bench press rather than regular grip. You will begin to see results and muscle gains again.

Although you can combat the affects of plateaus by changing your workout, you can also avoid them. Here are a few ways to avoid reaching a plateau:

Change exercises (as mentioned above)
Change your workout tempo
Change the amount of repetitions and/or sets
Rearrange your workout so your exercises are in a different order

You can use one or a combination of all of these to avoid plateaus.

Rest is also another key factor in combating plateaus. Long-term rest is just as important as short-term rest. You will exercise in 12-week increments with a 1-2 week rest between each of them. This means that you will exercise for 12 weeks and then take 1-2 weeks off before going back to the gym to allow your body time to rest. You will feel rested and motivated to go back to the gym after these breaks. We also recommend taking a full 12-week period off every year.

Your muscles develop microscopic tears that never fully heal unless you are resting for a long period of time. A 12-week break will let your body fully heal and you will see noticeable gains after this break.

Learn more about plateau busting by clicking here!

You should follow a schedule similar to this:

Exercise January - March, then takes a one-week rest.
Exercise 2nd week in April - 2nd week in August, and then take a one-week rest.
Exercise 4th week in August - 4th week in November, then take 12 weeks off.
Repeat the process which would now begin the following March (12 weeks later).

This is an example of what your schedule might look like. If you want to see results your body needs these breaks. You cannot simply keep working your muscles or you will hit plateaus & possibly over train.

We are just asking you to try this program for one 12-week period, so don't worry about planning out your whole year right now. Let's just focus on the next 12 weeks.

Fatigue:

Your muscles need to be more than just fatigued to make gains; they need to be worked until failure.

This means doing your repetitions until your muscles fatigue to the point that they can no longer lift the weight or perform the exercise. Most experts agree that training to failure is the best way to stimulate the greatest amount of muscle fibers. The more muscle fibers that you can stimulate during a workout will yield the best results.

There are many ways to train to failure, here are some examples:

Forced Reps: Do your reps until you can no longer lift the weight on your own and then having a spotter help you with the last.
Negative Reps: Focus on letting the weight down rather than focusing on lifting the weight. If you were doing bench press, a negative rep would be lowering the bar as slowly as possible and then having your partner help you lift the weight up. You can train to failure here by doing negative reps until you can no longer hold the weight. These can also be performed after positive failure.
Negative Resistance Reps: Have your partner apply pressure on the weight as you are lowering it and try to go as slow as possible. These can also be performed after positive failure.
Rest-Pause: If you do not have a spotter you can perform these. Lift the weight until failure, put it down and take a short pause. Pick up the weight and perform 2-3 more reps.

You will get the most out of your workout if you train with maximum effort. You will get stronger and your gains will come quicker as a result of training to failure.

Grouping Your Workouts:

Some exercises use more than one muscle group to achieve the movement in a particular lift. Bench press for example uses your chest muscles, your triceps, and your shoulders. So wouldn't it make sense to do these three muscle all on the same day? Yes, your training program will incorporate this by training particular groups of muscles together. Grouping is just what it sounds like, you take certain muscle groups and you train them on the same day. Dips are also another example of an exercise that uses the triceps and the chest to achieve the movement in the lift. Here is an example of how I use grouping:

Group 1 - Chest, shoulders, and triceps
Group 2 - Back, biceps, and lats
Group 3 - Lower body (legs)

Resting is essential to the full development of your muscles; by grouping your workout you only have to train with weights 3 days a week. This saves time and helps your body recover so your gains are at a maximum.

Focus On Quality, Rather Than Quantity:

To get the best results from your workout I do not recommend spending 3 hours a day in the gym. You only need to work each major muscle group once every 4-7 days. So to get the best out of your workout, you must keep your workout shorter than 75 minutes. Mine range anywhere from 20-60 minutes. But don't let these numbers deceive you, although you do get to spend the majority of the day away from the gym; the time that you do spend there should be very intense.

Your intensity should be measured by the amount of effort you can give on any given exercise. If you give your maximum effort, you will start to see results with less time at the gym. I am not asking you to go to the local track and run a six-minute mile, just to give the maximum of your effort. When you are exercising you will be training on intervals, these intervals will have different levels of difficultly. It will start out easy and then work up to something that is hard for you. If it is hard for you, then you are starting to push yourself.

The best and easiest way to fatigue you muscles is through interval training. Interval training consists of warming up and then working up to an exercise that is very difficult for you. Interval training is discussed more thoroughly below.

Your Maximum Effort:

You and I are two completely different people and our maximum efforts are different. So when I refer to your maximum effort, it means exactly that, the most reps you can do or the hardest you train with aerobics. It's what is hard for you.

Don't worry about being the best in the gym or trying to impress people. Focus on yourself and what you know your limits are. This will lead you to success in life and with this program.

Aerobics Interval Training - A 6 Step Process:

For the best results, you must do aerobic activity in the morning on an empty stomach. You should not eat 8 hours before aerobic exercise, so the morning is clearly the best time to perform this activity. If you do not want to exercise first thing in the morning, you would be forced not to eat all day and this would obviously create some bad eating habits. So right when your eyes open in the morning, put on your shoes and start your aerobic training. This will get your blood flowing in the morning and also help you have a better day. You will be alert and have energy.

The following would be an example of one of your (3) weekly aerobic sessions. Lets say you decided to take a jog on Tuesday morning for your aerobic exercise. However, if jogging were extremely hard for you, Tuesday morning would start with a walk instead of a jog; whatever is challenging to you. This is how it will look:

Interval 1:

Interval 2:

Interval 3:

Interval 4:

Interval 5:

Note: During your fourth cycle you should try to push through your comfort zone while performing interval 5. This is where you will improve. Push as hard as you can.

Interval 6: Decrease your pace to a light jog for the last two minutes.

You should repeat steps two through five until you have done this process a total of four times. The 4th time you reach Interval 5 it should be harder than the previous 3. Try to push through your comfort zone and this is where you will make your gains. The last two minutes of the 20-minute aerobic activity should be a slow pace as described in step six- the final step.

I use interval training while riding a bike, jogging, using a stair climber, or while using a rowing machine. Some days you will be able to push harder than others, so keep a strong mind and strive for improvement and you will get it. Our bodies are much more capable than we think they are. You will only have to do this two times a week and then you will have the remainder of the day to do whatever you want.

Here is an example of one of my aerobic sessions:

Click To Enlarge!

When you begin your aerobic sessions, refer back to this page for the format you should follow.

Interval Weight Training:

You will be training with weight Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It is mandatory that you train with weights. So there are two options:

Buy a membership to a local gym (I recommend this option).
Buy weights and setup a gym at your house.

Having a membership to a gym is much more productive. It gives you a chance to get out of the house, they have many different aerobic options, and they have a much better selection of weights than you could have with a gym at home.

When you are training with weights you will be training in intervals similar to the aerobic exercise. Here is an example of what you will be doing after week 4; let's say we started with bench press:

Interval 1:

Interval 2:

Interval 3:

Interval 4:

Interval 5:

As you can see, this is much like the Aerobic Interval Training that was outlined previously. The only difference is it is with weight training. On page 47 you will find pictures and descriptions of each lift along with an outline of your workout schedule.

On the next page, you will find an example of weight training chart.

Example Week

Workout #1 Warm-up Set- 15 Reps Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15

Bench Press 100 lbs 135 lbs 135 lbs 135 lbs

Shoulder Press 50 lbs 65 lbs 65 lbs 65 lbs

Tricep Barbell Extensions 25 lbs 50 lbs 50 lbs 50 lbs

Decline Crunches 21 20 22

Use these spaces to write notes:

Workout #3 Warm-up Set- 15 Reps Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15

Leg Press 100 lbs 225 lbs 225 lbs 225 lbs

Deadlift 50 lbs 140 lbs 140 lbs 140 lbs

Leg Extension 25 lbs 55 lbs 55 lbs 55 lbs

Calf Raise 50 lbs 100 lbs 100 lbs 100 lbs

Workout #5 Warm-up Set- 15 Reps Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15

Bicep Barbell Curl 100 lbs 135 lbs 135 lbs 135 lbs

Upright Row 50 lbs 65 lbs 65 lbs 65 lbs

*Lat Pulldowns 25 lbs 50 lbs 50 lbs 50 lbs

Side Crunch 26 25 25

Note:

*Reverse grip on lat pulldowns
Use the stairclimber for your cardio exercise.
Take a one minute rest between sets
Workout #2 - 20 Minutes of Cardio Interval Training
Workout #4 - 20 Minutes of Cardio Interval Training
Workout #6 - 20 Minutes of Cardio Interval Training

If you want to gain muscle and lose fat, you must train with weights. Follow the exercise schedule that is provided along with eating foods from the food index and you will see results.

Time Constraints:

Too often I see people wasting hours of their time in the gym; training for long hours will not get you better results. It is the quality of the workout that counts, not how long you are in the gym.

Keep your workout shorter than 75 minutes.

There have been numerous studies that show energy levels hit their highest levels after 60 minutes and then rapidly begin to drop. People that spend half the day at the gym are not making their best possible gains. Spending to many hours at the gym can increase the risk of injury and cause possible muscle loss.

Signs Of Overtraining:

Being precise with your workouts and dieting is the key to weight loss, its not "more is better" or "less is better," its about precision. If you train too hard your body will not have time to recuperate and you may not see results.

If you do not give your muscles enough time to rest there are a few things you will notice:

A decrease in strength
A decrease in energy
This will all result in a decrease in motivation

Do not train a muscle group more than once every 4-7 days, or you will be setting yourself up for burnout. Muscles are not made in the gym; they are made while resting.

Overtraining is not completely dependent on how frequently you workout. I have trained six days a week without overtraining. Here are some factors that can also affect your body:

Sleep and rest: If you don't allow your body enough sleep and rest, it cannot recuperate from the stress you put it under while working out.
Nutrition: If you do not provide your body with enough food it will not have enough nutrients to repair the tissues in your muscles.
Water: Perhaps the most overlooked nutrient of them all. If your body is dehydrated it can cause an overtraining effect.

Motivation:

This is where you can really make any workout successful, keep motivated, keep motivated, and most importantly, keep motivated. Motivation will take you through just about anything in life. If you think you can do it, you can.

Many people believe that it would be impossible for them to have a body that they are comfortable with or that they can flaunt. These people have already defeated themselves, if you believe in yourself you will be able to accomplish anything. Here is a quote that changed my perspective on how I approach situations:

"If it isn't impossible, it isn't worth doing"

This is not a misprint; if you believe in yourself and give 100% effort you can do anything. If someone tells you that it's impossible, prove him or her wrong.

My point here is this:

Stay motivated
Have dreams
See how following a few correct techniques can get you the results you want.

We have provided you with very useful tools to help you on your way to achieving your fitness goals, now its up to you to follow them.

Getting In Shape Overview:

Tracking your body statistics is way to see your results on paper and to ensure that you are making progress.
Mon, Wed, & Fri will be your weight training days.
Tues, Thurs, Sat will be your aerobic training days.
Compound exercises still give you the best results and must be incorporated into your weight training if you want to get results.
Avoid plateaus by changing the tempo of your workout, the number of repetitions, or rearrange the order of your workout.
If you push yourself until your muscles fail, your body can only adapt by improving strength and efficiency.
You maximum effort is the most you can do.
Exercise with intervals to get the best results.
Keep workouts shorter than 75 minutes

Step 1 - Body Statistics:

As mentioned earlier, we will be using the Parilloiii method to test your body fat. It is a fairly easy process, but you will need another person to help you take the measurements and you will have to do a little math. So lets get started, below are the nine-points on your body that we will be testing.

Using the body-fat pincher that was provided, follow these instructions for each of the nine points pictured below:

Click To Enlarge!

Step 1: While standing, firmly pinch the skinfold between your left thumb and forefinger, see figures 1 and 2. Place the jaws of the Personal Body Fat Tester over the skinfold, while continuing to hold the skinfold with the left hand, see figure 3.

*Important Tip: Make sure to slide the plastic measuring piece all the way to the over before every measurement.

Step 2: Press with the thumb where indicated on the Personal Body Fat Tester until you feel a slight click. The slide member will automatically stop at the correct measurement, see figure 4. After reading your measurement, return the slide member to the far right starting position. Repeat three times and use the average as your measurement. Refer to the body fat interpretation chart to determine your body fat percentage and what it means.

Step 3: Repeat for the nine measuring sites.

Step 4: Make sure to use your right bicep, tricep, thigh, calf, etc. This will ensure that you measurements are all accurate with each other.


Upper Chest (vertical fold)	Right Bicep (horizontal fold)	Right Tricep (horizontal fold)

Suprailliac
(vertical fold) Stomach
(horizontal fold) Subscapular
(vertical fold)

Kidney
(horizontal fold) Right Thigh
(vertical fold) Right Calf
(vertical fold)

Measure each site 3 times, take the average of the three and enter that number into the table below. Do this for each of the nine measuring points.

Skin Fold Measuring Sites Measurement Results

Chest

Right Tricep

Right Bicep

Suprailiac

Lower Back

Subscapular

Stomach

Right Calf

Thigh

After you enter all of your measurements into the table, add them all up and place that number in the "Sum of Measurements" column. In the column below that, weigh yourself and place the bodyweight measurement there.

To find your body fat percentage, get a drum roll going; take the sum of the measurements divide it by your body weight and then multiply that number by 27. This is your body fat percentage.

*Note: This will be a number like 15.9, this is the actual percentage 15.9%.

Now if you want to see how many pounds of fat you have, multiply your body weight and your body fat percentage. Take the number you get from that and divide it by 100. This is how many pounds of fat you have in your body. To find your LBM (lean Body Mass) -or- the pounds of muscle you have, subtract your pounds of body fat from your body weight.

So what do these numbers mean? Lets take a look at some averages and see where you fall in:

Click To Enlarge!

To read this chart simply find your age in the far left column and the numbers to the right of that age will apply to you. If you fall in the white, you are fairly lean. If you fall in the ideal shade, then you have an ideal amount of body fat. If you fall in the average shade, it means that you are about where everyone else is. Anything beyond that is considered obese. Women naturally have more body fat than men so their chart is adjusted accordingly.

Now that you know your body fat is; it is time to take your measurements. Using the soft tape measure, take these six measurements. In conjunction with the body fat measurements this will be a good way to track your progress.


Chest	Waist	Hips

Right Arm Right Thigh Right Calf

After you take each measurement, write it down the chart below:

Skin Fold Measuring Sites Measurement Results

Chest

Right Tricep

Right Bicep

Suprailiac

Lower Back

Subscapular

Stomach

Right Calf

Thigh

You can take your measurements as much as you want. I recommend taking them once every 1-2 weeks. I take mine every week but some people don't like to take their measurements that much. It is a reward to see the progress you have made.

Step 2 - Goals:

Take a few minutes now and think about why you purchased this book. Think back to this site, everything you read and what it was that finally talked you into purchasing this system. Try to remember reading the information on the website, if you can't remember go back to the website and read it again.

There was a reason you bought this system, and whatever that reason was could probably be turned into a goal. If this book was a gift, there was a reason it was given to you. Maybe you're interested in the subject or you would like to lose some weight. Whatever your reason is, you are here right now. So take out a pen and write down three things that related to fitness that you would like to see happen in the next twelve weeks. What do you want to do with your body? Lose weight? Tone up? Get Stronger? Write these down in the space provided on the next page.

Now go get some scissors and cut this page out of the book. Make it neat because you will be looking at it every day. After you have cut it out, hang it up in your bathroom. Now you will see it everyday right when you get up in the morning and right before you go to bed.

You will constantly be reminded of your fitness goals all day and all night. Your subconscious mind will take these thoughts and it will process them until they become real. This is very important if you want to accomplish this twelve-week test of mental and physical strength.

My Fitness Goals:

1. ____________________________________________________________

2. ____________________________________________________________

3. ____________________________________________________________

Click here for a printable version of my fitness goals!

Step 3 - Nutrition:

To ensure that we stick to the diet, we must plan for success. You will not see results unless you follow this diet and the exercise schedule. Just to refresh your memory, here is a list of the foods you will eat:

Proteins Complex Carbohydrates Fruit

Chicken Breast

Baked Potato

Alfalfa Sprouts

Apple

Cottage Cheese

Baked beans

Asparagus

Apricot

Eggs

Cereals- Whole Grain

Beets

Banana (small)

Halibut

Corn

Broccoli

Blueberries (raw)

Ham

Corn Tortilla

Brussel Sprouts

Cantaloupe

Lean Ground Beef (17% fat)

Crackers

Cabbage

Cherries

Lean Meat

Cream of wheat

Carrots

Grapefruit

EAS Myoplex

Flour Tortilla- 8 inch

Cauliflower

Grapes

Tuna

Low fat chips

Celery

Honeydew melon

Turkey Breast

Low fat blueberry muffins

Corn

Mango

Whey Protein

Pasta- cooked

Cucumber

Orange

Yogurt

Pancakes (4 inch in diameter)

Eggplant

Peach

Plain Popcorn

Green Peas

Pear

Qauker Instant Oatmeal

Leaf Lettuce

Pineapple

Rice (not minute rice)

Mushrooms

Plum

Rice Cakes

Onions

Raisins

Rye Bread

Tomatoes

Strawberries

Waffles- Prepared from mix (7 inches)

Spinach

Yogurt (Fat Free)

Whole wheat bread

Zucchini

Yams

From these foods you will need to eat six meals a day and as you probably remember, you will eat *one portion of protein and one portion of carbohydrates with each meal. If you have a hard time thinking of meals you can make, I have provided about 75 different meal options in Appendix A. Fill in each day and each meal in the table on the next page and then go to the grocery store and buy the necessary foods:

*Remember that a portion is about as big as your fist.

Click Here For A Printable Meal Plan!

It may seem like a task to fill this all in, but it actually makes grocery shopping so much quicker that you end up saving quite a bit of time at the grocery store. You get what you need from the grocery store and you get back to doing things that you want to do.

Step 4 - Exercise:

Now you need to plan out the days you want to exercise and what you would like to do on each day. The following chart is how I suggest you structure your exercise schedule.

7-day exercise schedule:

Day 1
Mon. Day 2
Tues. Day 3
Wed. Day 4
Thurs. Day 5
Fri. Day 6
Sat. Free day
Sun.

Weight Training Aerobic Training Weight Training Aerobic Training Weight Training Aerobic Training Free Day

Note:

*Reverse grip on lat pulldowns

Use the stairclimber for your cardio exercise.

Take a one minute rest between sets

Workout #2 - 20 Minutes of Cardio Interval Training

Workout #4 - 20 Minutes of Cardio Interval Training

Workout #6 - 20 Minutes of Cardio Interval Training

Here is the 12-week schedule that I suggest you follow:

Sun. Mon. Tues. Wed. Thurs. Fri. Sat.

Week 1

Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 2

Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 3
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 4
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 5
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 6
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 7
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 8
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 9
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 10
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 11
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

Week 12
Free Day Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics Weights Aerobics

This is the 12-week schedule that most people use. If for some reason this doesn’t work for you, it is all right to move things around. If you want your free day on Monday instead of Sunday, that is fine. If this plan conflicts with something in your personal or business life, write a new schedule in the table by Clicking here!

Click Here For A Printable Log Of The 12-Week Schedule!

That's it, now you should have everything scheduled in a time that works for you.

Step 5 - Order Supplements:

Now that you are almost ready to begin the program, I highly recommend that you order supplements. Supplements will make dieting easier and will help enhance your results. I am not big on the hype that supplements get, but these supplements have helped my clients and myself in the past. I give them my highest recommendation:

1. EAS Myoplex meal replacement shake.
2. Whey protein powder
3. Multi-Vitamins

These supplements can be found at this URL:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/index.html

You can order these supplements from this website or go to a Bodybuilding.com store. Every health and supplement store will carry these products. Click here to see the stores!

Step 6 - Announce Your Goals:

If you really want this program to work, you must make a public commitment by telling three people your goals. Think of three people that you see once a day or a few times a week. These people will be very helpful through the 12-weeks. On the following lines, write down the names and phone number of the three people you are going to call:

Name:_______________________ Phone #:__________________________

These people can be anyone, your mom or dad, a neighbor, a friend. Just someone that you talk with or see on a regular basis. Tell the guy at the front desk at your gym. It doesn't have to be a long drawn out conversation. It could be "Hey Bob, in 12 weeks I am going to be 15 pounds lighter," or "Hey Bob, I am going to lose 5% of my body fat in the next 12 weeks."

Step 7 - Recognize possible obstacles:

With everything that we do in life, something always seems to come up. These "things" that come up interfere with who we want to be and where we want to go in life. I love to sleep in and it created obstacles for me in my life. So I had to recognize that it was getting in the way and change that behavior. So there are some obstacles in your fitness path otherwise you would already have the body you desire.

In order to achieve our goals we need to recognize these obstacles. Take a few minutes and think about what is getting in your way. Is it an eating habit, a sleeping habit, or maybe exercising just wasn't important to you in the past. Write down three possible obstacles on the following lines:

3 Possible Obstacles:

1._________________________________________________________________

2._________________________________________________________________

3._________________________________________________________________

Now that you have recognized these obstacles, make a commitment to change these three behaviors so you can achieve your goals. If you have a bad eating habit, make an extra effort to fix it. If you can overcome obstacles it will be smooth sailing until you have a great looking physique.

Step 8 - Begin the program

That's it. You're done; this could be the end or the beginning. Its up to you now, if you want to take 12 weeks out of your life to accomplish your goals - do it now. Make a commitment to do the program and you will be glad that you did.

It is a test of physical and mental strength. Remember if you want to be average, you can do average things. If you want to set yourself apart from the majority, you have to do a little more than just average things.

A true challenge is never easy; otherwise it would not be a challenge. The hardest part will be getting started and sticking with it. If you are going to give up, you will most likely do it in the first few weeks. Be aware of that and focus as you begin the program. If you find that you are having a difficult time sticking to the diet or to the exercise schedule, please contact me and I will do my best to help you. You can email me at: will@bodybuilding.com. Please also share your success stories with me, I will be publishing success stories and testimonials on the website.

Get started today and you will be very happy with your results in 12 weeks.

Step 1 - Body Statistics:

Using the body-fat pincher that was provided, follow these instructions for each of the nine points pictured below:

Click To Enlarge!

*Important Tip: Make sure to slide the plastic measuring piece all the way to the over before every measurement.

Step 3: Repeat for the nine measuring sites.

Step 4: Make sure to use your right bicep, tricep, thigh, calf, etc. This will ensure that you measurements are all accurate with each other.


Upper Chest (vertical fold)	Right Bicep (horizontal fold)	Right Tricep (horizontal fold)

Suprailliac
(vertical fold) Stomach
(horizontal fold) Subscapular
(vertical fold)

Kidney
(horizontal fold) Right Thigh
(vertical fold) Right Calf
(vertical fold)

Measure each site 3 times, take the average of the three and enter that number into the table below. Do this for each of the nine measuring points.

Skin Fold Measuring Sites Measurement Results

Chest

Right Tricep

Right Bicep

Suprailiac

Lower Back

Subscapular

Stomach

Right Calf

Thigh

To find your body fat percentage, get a drum roll going; take the sum of the measurements divide it by your body weight and then multiply that number by 27. This is your body fat percentage.

*Note: This will be a number like 15.9, this is the actual percentage 15.9%.

So what do these numbers mean? Lets take a look at some averages and see where you fall in:

Click To Enlarge!


Chest	Waist	Hips

Right Arm Right Thigh Right Calf

After you take each measurement, write it down the chart below:

Skin Fold Measuring Sites Measurement Results

Chest

Right Tricep

Right Bicep

Suprailiac

Lower Back

Subscapular

Stomach

Right Calf

Thigh

Step 2 - Goals:

Click here for a printable version of my fitness goals!

Step 3 - Nutrition:

*Remember that a portion is about as big as your fist.

Click Here For A Printable Meal Plan!

Step 4 - Exercise:

Now you need to plan out the days you want to exercise and what you would like to do on each day. The following chart is how I suggest you structure your exercise schedule.

7-day exercise schedule:

Workout #1 Warm-up Set- 15 Reps Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15 Work Set- 15

Bench Press 100 lbs 135 lbs 135 lbs 135 lbs