Last week I said I would do the following:
- Read more of “The 4-Hour Body”
- Do one of two love handles workouts from Kozak Sports Perform 2-3 days after core workout
- Do full body workout before & after meals
Well I think I’ve read all desired sections of “The 4-Hour Body”, which basically includes the following:
- how to maximize weight loss/muscle gain
- how to improve quality of sleep
There’s a lot of information to process, and some of it is a bit unorthodox (i.e., no fruit in his prescribed, “The Slow-Carb Diet”, a plethora of supplements). But Ferriss does a great job at reassuring the reader that, yes, some of these tips/ideas may sound bizarre, but Ferriss follows up with supporting evidence and explanations (lots of in-depth explanations for those who really want to know the science behind his gospel).
Here are the most useful tips I gleaned from “The 4-Hour Body”:
- Doing full body strength training exercises (pullup, pushup, air squat) right before eating (to better channel calories to muscle instead of fat) and about 90 minutes after eating
- Replacing white carbs (bread, rice, pasta) with beans
- One binge day per week (to offset metabolism)
- Kettlebell swing (for fat loss/muscle gain)
- Myotatic crunch (for more defined abs) 2X/ week
- Cat vomit exercise (for more defined abs) 2X/week
- Philips goLITE (for better quality sleep)
- Nightwave Pulse Light (for better quality sleep)
- Before breakfast, 3X/week:
1 set: 20 2-legged glute activation raises from floor
1 set: 15 flying dogs, one set each side
1 set: 50 kettlebell swings (start with weight of no less than 20 lbs)
Below, I’ll go into more detail on each of the above areas:
I have already replaced a lot of my carbs with beans, and they have proven to fill me up very sufficiently. I probably need more fiber & protein in my diet anyways, so I’ll most likely stick with this change to my diet.
Remembering to exercise BEFORE eating has proven to be tricky, as I’m usually raring to eat before every meal. But like any habit, it just takes practice, and I’m getting better at remembering every day. Like I said in a previous post, I think this habit will coincide nicely with my goal of doing a full-body exercise once a day. I had been wondering how to break up the reps throughout the day, and this book gave me a pretty great suggestion.
Binge day sounds like an awesome idea, though I still do eat some carbs throughout the week, so I probably won’t go overboard on carbs on binge days. But the concept of offsetting your metabolism sounds fairly logical, so I will toy around with this.
I’ve been wanting to get a kettlebell for a while now, so this book just strengthened my resolve to get one. However, I never would’ve started out with a 20-lbs kettlebell, so I’m glad this book recommended I get a 20-lbs one.
I’m excited to start doing those two ab exercises (myotatic crunch & cat vomit), as I can’t tell you how frustrating it has been to see that extra bit of tummy fat everyday.
I had thought about using the Philips goLITE, or some variation of a light therapy appliance, but again, Ferriss’s explanations just strengthened my desire to actually buy one. Along with the Nightwave Pulse Light, I’m excited to start falling asleep and waking up easily, and feeling refreshed.
And I’m glad I decided to write a post today, because I nearly forgot about doing one of those love handles workouts from Kozak Sports Perform, hehe. I will do that in about an hour, after I have digested my dinner.
Next week:
- Do one of two love handles workouts from Kozak Sports Perform 2-3 days after core workout
- Do full body workout before & after meals
- Continually be on the lookout for a 20-lbs kettlebell
- Replace white carbs with beans
- Do myotatic crunch & cat vomit exercise 2X/week
- Add the following routine before breakfast, 3X/week:
1 set: 20 2-legged glute activation raises from floor
1 set: 15 flying dogs, one set each side
1 set: 50 kettlebell swings (start with weight of no less than 20 lbs)
By July, I will have six-pack abs!!!