About Your Core... Exercise 5

5. Cable Kneeling Chop

At a high-pulley cable, grab an end of rope with each hand. Go down on your right knee, with your left knee pointing toward the weight stack; this is the starting position. Rotate your torso away from the stack as you pull your hands to your chest, then down and away from you. Reverse to the start.

Keep your torso upright as you extend your arms away from your body.

About Your Core... Exercise 4

4. Swiss-Ball Knee Tuck

Assume the push-up position with your shins resting on a Swiss ball, hands slightly more than shoulder-width apart. Keeping your abs tight, draw your knees toward your chest until your toes are on top of the ball. Slowly straighten your legs so the ball rolls back to the starting position.

Lift your hips as you bring your knees toward you so your shins rise off the ball.

About Your Core... Exercise 3

3. Single-Leg Lowering

Lie on your back with your legs extended straight up. Keep your legs straight, lower your left leg until your foot is 2 to 3 inches off the floor. Return to the starting position, then repeat with your right leg; that's one repetition. Think about pushing the bottom of your heel away from your hips as you lower your leg.

Don't point your toes; keep your foot flexed toward you (Dorsi-flexion). Toes to your nose. Lead with your heel.

About Your Core... Exercise 2

2. Plank With Diagonal Arm Lift

Assume a modified push-up position with your feet hips-width apart, forearms on the floor. Keep your torso steady, raise your left arm forward, so that it points to 11 o'clock. Hold for 2 seconds, then lower and repeat with your right arm, raising to 1 o'clock. That's one rep. Your elbows should be bent 90 degrees and directly under your shoulders.

About Your Core... Exercise 1

Side Bridge

Lie on your side with your forearm on the floor, under your shoulder to prop you up, and your feet stacked. Contract your core and press your forearm against the floor to raise your hips until your body is straight from your ankles to your shoulders. Hold for 15 to 45 seconds, then repeat on the other side.

Contract your abs and butt muscles forcefully to keep your body straight, and to protect your spine.

About Your Core...

An Introduction To The Core

Every muscle in your body relies on your abs, hips, and lower back. Your core is your base - and your center of strength. Here are three things that you need to know about your core:

1. You can strengthen your core without moving a muscle. Whereas most muscles propel you, your core resists movement - for instance, to protect your spine when you twist your torso. So don't be surprised by how hard it is to stay still in your core workouts (especially in the exercises I will be posting for the next 6 days - that's right, a week dedicated to the core). You're conditioning the core to do its job more effectively.

2. Slouching sabotages your six-pack. Training your core helps to correct poor posture. But an hour a week of core work can't compensate for 50 hours spent slumped over your keyboard. The fix: stay tall through your hips and keep your head up and your shoulder blades back and down all day long.

3. Core muscles contract first in every exercise. All the energy you exert originates in your torso, before being transferred to your arms and legs. So a weak core reduces the amount of force you're able to apply to a barbell. When you hit a plateau in presses, squats, or any other strength move, ask yourself if you are training your core as much, or hard, as you should be.

Cayenne-rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa

Cayenne-rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa

One whole, medium avocado contains 17 grams of carbohydrate and a truly impressive 11 grams of fiber. That is almost half of the daily recommended minimum intake of fiber. Avocado is a real diabetes super-food. It provides an excellent dose of those good for you, unsaturated fatty acids. Avocados deliver almost 20 different vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients( the special plant chemicals that convey myriad health benefits ).

As far as this recipe goes, cool, buttery avocado makes a soothing salsa. It is a pleasing contrast to spicy meats, such as these cayenne-rubbed chicken breasts. Cayenne pepper is a thermogenic spice that will help both metabolism and digestion.

sea salt and ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves( 6 to 8 ounces each )
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, finely diced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 avocado, pitted and cut into chunks

In a small bowl, combine 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cayenne; rub all over chicken breasts.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken, and cook until browned on the outside and opaque throughout, 8 to 10 minutes per side.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine onion and lime juice; set aside. Just before serving, fold avocado chunks into onion mixture; season with salt and pepper. Serve chicken topped with salsa.

This is one of my favorite recipes of all time! And it's super easy!!

L-Glutamine

L-Glutamine: Produced by the liver, this is the most abundant amino acid in the body. It has been shown to support the building and maintenance of lean muscle tissue and has been used in hospital settings to promote overall health and repair the intestinal tract. The use of glutamine has been correlated with increased fat metabolism and improved mental clarity. It is used by the brain to manufacture neurotransmitters. Since we have the same neurotransmitters in the brain as in the colon, some claim it only makes sense that improving colon function will also increase brain function by helping the body to deal with mental and physical stress. In addition, glutamine has also been shown to alleviate blood sugar problems by decreasing insulin resistance. Olympic strength training coach Charles Poliquin uses it to help his athletes accelerate muscle glycogen resynthesis after exercise without elevating insulin levels, thus helping them to lose body fat.

3 Things You Probably Don't Know About Your Biceps

3 Things You Probably Don't Know About Your Biceps

1. The visibility of your cephalic vein, which runs across your biceps, has nothing to do with how many curls you can perform.
To make this vein pop, you need to drop your body fat below 15 percent. Don't be surprised if the vein is more pronounced on one arm than the other: Genetics also play a key role in determining its prominence.

2. Under a microscope, some muscle fibers look pinnated, or feather shaped. But the biceps' long parallel fibers give them the ability to bulge.
This means that devoting just a little attention to your biceps, especially compared with other muscle groups, goes a long way toward making them grow.

3. The average guy's biceps are composed of about 1 pound of muscle.
For both of your arms combined, that's just 3 percent of the amount of muscle mass in your entire body. Remember that number: It's a good way to keep a perspective on how much you train your biceps compared with your other muscle groups.

Men's Health Training Guide 2008

CHAI (Spiced Tea)

CHAI (Spiced Tea)

Makes 2 cups

2 cups water
1/4 cup whole milk
1 to 2 teaspoons black tea
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
2 pods cardamom, crushed
Pinch of black pepper
3 to 4 (1/2-inch-long) pieces fresh or dried lemongrass
Sugar, to taste (optional)

Bring the water, milk, tea, and spices (except the sugar) to a boil, and boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and steep the tea for 2 to 3 minutes. Strain and sweeten with sugar if you wish.

Per cup: 38 calories; 1 gram fat; 1 pram protein; 6 grams carbohydrate

For quick and easy chai: Instead of the spices in the recipe above, substitute the spices from one bag of Bengal Spice Celestial tea. Or you can buy pre-made chai from Yogi Teas or Oregon Chai. Add 2 ounces of almond, soy, rice, or whole milk, and drink warm or cool for a wonderful finish to any meal.It's warm and sweet, contains digestive spices, and can be satisfying as a dessert. Many people find that it helps them cut down their caffeine intake, and is a nice treat before bed if it is decaffeinated.

As a rule of thumb, people who are very active, overly competitive (like me, for example), and people who lose weight easily should intake mostly decaf beverages and can use whole milk and a bit more sweetener. Those with slower metabolisms, gain weight easily, and are sluggish by nature should use almond or soy milk and more of the heating, pungent spices, such as cloves, cinnamon, and all spice. Also, this goes for everybody, don't be afraid to use honey, true maple syrup, brown sugar, and other unrefined sugars to sweeten your food and beverages!

Protein Powders and Shakes

Protein Powders and Shakes

Real food is always best, but if you are in a hurry and don't have time to eat, a protein shake is certainly better than not eating at all. I do recommend protein shakes for post-workout refueling. Too many people train hard and then run around doing errands without ever having stopped to eat. This is actually detrimental to your training and your health, because after a workout, your cells are waiting for replenishment. To maximize your efforts, a protein shake should be consumed within about 30 minutes from the end of your workout. A balanced meal should then be eaten about 1 hour after your protein shake (this is especially important for people trying to build muscle, but not necessary for those trying to lose fat). The appropriate refueling ratio of carbohydrate to protein 4 to 1. This means that your protein shake should have 4 grams of carbohydrates to every 1 gram of protein. For added carbohydrates, have a glass of fruit or vegetable juice with your shake if it is pre-mixed. Most pre-packaged protein shakes do not have the proper 4 to 1 ratio (too few carbohydrates).

Combining a whey protein with 2 ounces of juice or almond milk or skim milk and 4 to 6 ounces of water, then mixing in some fresh berries or cardamom or cocoa, is a great way to refuel the body with simple carbohydrates, which are helpful after a workout. Adding them to the protein powder after a workout is the best way to use them, because they will help move the amino acids from the protein powder into the cells more quickly to be used in the growth and repair. This is the one time you want to increase insulin.

For the best digestion, it is recommended that people rotate their protein powders. Whey protein will be the most efficient for moving amino acids into the cells, but an excess of concentrated dairy products, like whey, can increase mucus and congestion in some people, so pay attention to how you feel. The same holds true for soy protein: it can be difficult for some people to absorb and digest, so try to use it no more than once or twice a week. Organic rice protein is not as biologically beneficial as whey protein because it doesn't contain all the essential amino acids, but if it's mixed with almond milk, it becomes a complete protein, and if it's the only one you digest well, it will serve the purpose.

Sicilian Roasted Stuffed Eggplant

Sicilian Roasted Stuffed Eggplant- Make them and eggplant they can't refuse. I'm serious; an eggplant has no business having this much flavor.

Serves 4

2 medium-sized eggplants
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 cubanelle pepper, seeded and chopped
1 jarred roasted red pepper, chopped
salt and black pepper
a handful of pine nuts, lightly toasted
2 tablespoons drained capers
a handful of green Sicilian olives, coarsely chopped
1(28-ounce) can of San Marzano whole plum tomatoes or diced tomatoes, drained(reserve a few tablespoons of the juices).
1 cup fresh basil leaves, about 20, torn or chopped
1 pound fresh mozzarella or smoked mozzarella

Heat oven to 400 degrees F.

Prick the skin of the eggplants with a fork, place them on rack in the upper half of the oven, and roast for 20 minutes. Remove the eggplants and set aside for 10 minutes or until cool enough to handle.

Heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, celery, and cubanelle pepper. While they cook, cut up the eggplants. Split the eggplants in half lengthwise and cut away most of the flesh, leaving just a little attached to the skins to hold their shapes. Arrange the eggplant shells on a rimmed baking sheet. Coarsely chop the flesh and add to the skillet with the veggies. Add the roasted red pepper and season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, then add the nuts, capers, and olives.

Add the whole tomatoes to the veggies along with a few spoonfuls of the juices to just moisten the veggies, using a spoon to brake up the tomatoes(skip this step if using diced tomatoes). Add the basil and stir to wilt the leaves into the vegetables. Spoon the vegetable mixture into the eggplant halves. Top with sliced mozzarella and bake for 10 minutes to melt the cheese and set the filling. Serve one stuffed half eggplant per person.

This recipe is from Rachel Ray-Just in Time!