The first fat loss

I thought I’d tell you guys a small story about the very first time a saw success with losing extra fat. I had been doing lots of steady state cardio for with about 500 reps of different ab exercises a day and some very light bench press. Trust me, I didn’t lose 1 pound and my “trainer” had the nerve to say – ‘That’s just your body type. You can’t get lean.’ I just wanted to kill that guy. At this point, I started doing my own research. Although, the research was very incomplete, it helped. This is routine I was given by the trainer.

1 hour on the treadmill at intensity at 60% of my max heart rate
500 reps of my choice of ab exercises
3 x 30 bench press with 5 pound weights

Now does that look sensible? Anyways, after I did all my research, I created my own diet and exercise plan. My diet included milk, egg whites, chicken, yogurt, salad, whole meal bread and fruit. I avoided all carbs after 7pm. Took 7 small meals a day and drank lots of water. Now comes the fun part. This was my exercise routine.

Monday
Chest, shoulders and Triceps followed by HIIT for 15 minutes on a stationary bike

Wednesday
Back and biceps followed by HIIT for 15 minutes on a stationary bike

Friday
Lower body followed by HIIT for 15 minutes on a stationary bike

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
10 minutes on the stepper
15 pushups
15 squats
15 pushups
15 squats
15 pushups
15 squats
15 pushups
15 squats

A set of ab exercise routines (upper, lower and obliques without any rest alternating between upper lower and then each side of the obliques)
10 minutes on the treadmill

I followed the above routine for about 3 weeks an lost like 5 kilos and started to see some definition in my abs region. I also lost 2 and a half inches off my waist. It was so cool to through it in that trainers face. The funny thing is…he had 16 years of experience. I don’t know what kind of experience he was getting but he knew squat. I’m afraid there are a lot more trainers like that around as and we follow them blindly, hoping to see results. I’ll be posting some very interesting stuff very soon so stay tuned :).

The first day

Today was my first day back on training. I am following the free 10 week Burn 'n' Build program, which you can also download completely free of cost from the column on the right. I kind of modified it a bit. The diet didn't go as well as I had planned. I was planning to take in more protein and less carbs for today but due to lack of preparation, I had to settle for a few things that i didn't want. It is very important to keep eating every few hours. If you don't, the body tells itself to go into starvation more, your hormones start going crazy and you start deriving energy from protein as well i.e. muscle loss. If you eat a number of times, but in small amounts, you avoid the starvation mode, increase your metabolism, stay energized and always feel satisfied. Anyways, enough about the science stuff. I wanted to tell you about today's diet.
Today I had:
- A bowl of cereal (Fruit & Fiber) with fat free milk
- 10 Almonds
- 100g of chicken with a quarter plate of rice
- Yogurt and gram snack
- 250 ml of milk
- 1 tablespoon of peanut butter
Workout
- 250 grams of chicken, sprite (for the insulin spike), whole wheat bread.

I should have taken more protein in the breakfast, accompany the almonds with milk/yogurt/apple/peach/egg white etc. and I should have taken the rice just before the workout. Anyways, I'm sure I'll get it right tomorrow.

The workout was excellent. It was a Chest and triceps workout day and MAN!!! it was good. Doing almost every push up from wide, to narrow, to scatter to jump, to clap. I also did some isometric holds at the end. Ill be doing thighs tomorrow, which I'm sure will leave me lying on the floor :). In case you are wondering, I usually workout at home as my specialization is in home workouts and fat loss. I just thought I'd let you know :).

I guess I'll stop here for today. See you guys tomorrow..so keep visiting :)

Burn Fat 'n' Build Muscle - The journey begins

“I want a six pack like Brad Pitt.”
“How can I get a tush like Jessica Alba.”
“I am happy with the rest of my body, its just the belly I want to get rid of.”

Does this sound like something you would ask? If yes, then you have come to the right place. First of all, I would like to welcome you to my Burn fat ‘n’ Build muscle blog, a place where you will find all the answers to all your questions about health and fitness. Incase you don’t already know, my name is Usman Pasha. I am a certified sports nutritionist and personal fitness and aerobics trainer. I have been designing customized workout and diet plans for quite some time, in order to make it easier for my clients to achieve their fitness goals.

My aim is to make this blog a complete health and fitness hub where you will be able to find answers to any query related to workouts, nutrition, health, motivation and anything else you want. As the name says, the main focus will be on building muscle and burning fat at the same time. I know you must have read in a number of places that you CANNOT burn fat and build muscle at the same time. I will not pass a verdict on that just as yet. You will get the answer in a few weeks’ time; in fact you will get to make your own decision. Just to give you a taste of what to expect, please read my published articles (by clicking on the ezine articles link). You can also get a sample 10 week Burn ‘n’ Build program. All you need to do is enter your e-mail address in the Free 'Burn and Build' Program section and click on the ‘Give me my program’ button. It is completely free for you to try and comment on it.

In addition to writing about different health and fitness related issues and your concerns, I will also be posting details about my routine starting from Monday 21st of July (which is actually my younger brother’s birthday – HAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE ONE). I will keep you up to date with my progress and would also like to stay up to date with your progress. I hope to see you here very soon. Till next time – Stay Healthy.