Author: Alien.

Unless your hair is supremely oily, washing hair every day is not only unnecessary, it can be damaging. Taking every other day off from shampoo - or even 2 or more days off if your hair is dry or damaged - gives your hair a break from the detergents and the inevitable roughness that comes with shampooing, both of which can rough up hair’s protective cuticle layer. A day away from shampoo also allows sebum - hair’s natural conditioner - to get a foothold in individual strands. And for those who are trying to live life more simply (read: use less stuff, shampooing less frequently means using less shampoo.

Most of us like suds, which is why shampoo manufacturers often make high-foaming formulas. Yet suds have nothing to do with a shampoo’s cleansing power. In fact, the lesser-foaming formulas are gentler on hair.

When I was a teenager, my friends and I never admitted to washing our hair any less than once a day - in fact, some of my friends used to brag about washing their hair twice a day. I told this story to a hairstylist once and he laughed. “For some strange reason, people get squeamish if you tell them to stop washing their hair every day. It’s as if they think easing up on the shampoo is going to make them unclean,” he said. After years of interviewing hairstylists and dermatologists, I’ve learned exactly what he is saying - and it has nothing to do with giving up bathing or showering.

Go ahead and get in the shower, go ahead and get your hair wet - just don’t pull out the shampoo. I think you’ll find that a good pre-shower brushing and a heavy dousing of old-fashioned plain water will do wonders for your hair. The brushing loosens up dirt, dead flaky skin, debris, and excess scalp oil, which the water then rinses away. If you’re worried about tangles, go ahead and work a bit of detangler or a light conditioner through wet ends then rinse out - again, just no shampoo.

About the Author:
Read more on Lipsense and senegence lipsense.

Author: Alien.

Demi-permanent hair color - which some people mistakenly call semi-permanent ­lasts from 12 to 24 shampoos. It contains a small amount of peroxide - which means a small amount of hair damage - but no ammonia, making demi-permanent color a midway option between semi-permanent and permanent color. True to its middle-of-­the-road position, demi-permanent color does a bit more than semi-permanent. First off, it stays in hair longer before fading away. In addition, demi-permanent color’s slightly more opaque formula does a better job of darkening hair more than three levels, covers gray better, and boasts more power to brighten hair. That tiny amount of peroxide can lighten hair, but only slightly - usually less than half a level. Again, if you have dark hair and dream of light locks, demi-permanent color is not for you.

How do semi- and demi-permanent colors fade? Shampooing loosens their pigment molecules, causing color to progressively diminish until all the molecules are gone. Because of this, you’ll never experience telltale roots with semi- or demi-permanent color.

Permanent hair color

As its name implies, permanent color stays on your hair permanently. Its tenacity becomes especially apparent when the colored strands grow out: you’ll see a line of demarcation between them and the new, untreated root growth. This, and the damage permanent color can cause (the formula contains both peroxide and ammonia), are its negative aspects.

On a more positive note, with permanent hair color you don’t need to worry about losing the color you love after 6 or 24 shampoos, you get superior gray coverage, you can brighten or darken hair as dramatically as you like, and you can lighten hair up to four levels. Be aware, however, that if you’d like to lighten hair more drastically, you’re better off with double-process color. Permanent color can lighten hair only so much ­go beyond four levels and it won’t be strong enough to remove all the natural melanin in your hair. The not-so-gorgeous result? Strands that are brassy; brassy, brassy.

About the Author:
Read more on Lipsense and senegence lipsense.

Author: Jon Cardozo.

One of the terms you’ll come across the most while reading bodybuilding forums is training to failure. You may have heard this around the gym, but often people will throw around these terms without really knowing what they mean. It’s important to define these terms since they can have a big influence (positive or negative) on our training regimens.

So, what exactly is training to failure? To put it in simple terms, training to failure means lifting weights with a particular muscle until it can not physically lift anymore. I have seen one muscle building guru tell his readers that training to failure is essential for building muscle. One trainer’s testimonial explained how he reached a plateau in his training. When he’s switched his training styles he began to make consistent progress again. He refocused his efforts on lifting to the point just before failure (which took some practice) and on making gradual progress each week. As you can tell, the subject is controversial, and you’ll have to find your own answers to the question. One trainer explained it this way.

Vincent Delmonte, who went through an incredible transformation himself, tries to distinguish between momentary failure and absolute failure. Training to momentary failure means that you perform enough reps for your muscle to fail before moving on to another muscle group. Absolute failure, in contrast, would mean that your entire body is completely wiped out from exhaustion. This kind of training should be considered overkill as it puts a heavy strain on your nervous system and immune system, not just your muscles. These bodies systems take longer to recover, so you may require additional rest even if your muscles feel ready to train again. You can probably see by now how this could cause great delays in your training programs, not to mention it can put you at risk for serious injuries or illness.

Vince illustrates his point with an example. He tells us that sprinters develop significant mass in their legs, but they do not accomplish this by training to complete failure. Can you imagine sprinters running and running until they literally collapse from exhaustion? I think you would agree that this is not the wisest approach.

It is also important to realize that training to failure may not be the best approach to measure your progress. If you simply train each muscle until it fails, you don’t have a reliable benchmark to tell you if you are moving in the right direction. Your endurance can certainly change daily due to a number of factors. A better approach would be to keep precise records on how much weight you lift, how many repetitions you perform, and how long your workout lasts. This is where a step by step, comprehensive program can take you a long way towards achieving your objectives.

About the Author:
If you would like to learn more about how to build body , visit Jon Cardozo’s Web site at http://maximum-muscle-gain.com. Learn the secrets to building a muscular physique and avoid the myths of the bodybuilding industry. Brought to you by Jcardozium.

Author: Ed Scow.

One of my preferred ways of working out is by doing 10 minute workouts.

They’re quick, intense and leave me huffing and puffing long after the 10 minutes is complete.

But I’m a personal trainer and already in good shape, so are they effective for the everyday person looking for fat loss? Can you really do a 10 minute workout and expect to lose fat?

My answer to that is a resounding YES!

If you are someone who says they really don’t have that much time to workout and that’s what’s keeping you from losing the weight you’ve put on, then 10 minute workouts are definitely for you.

Or, if you know you have a busy week coming up and are worried that your regular workouts are going to have to be put on hold, then 10 minute workouts are also for you.

The most important thing to remember when doing 10 minute workouts is that you need to throw out the time wasting exercises like bicep curls, triceps kickbacks and crunches and stick to exercises that work your entire body or at least a good portion of it.

I’ll give you an example of what I did earlier today. I had a very busy that was packed full of clients, however I had a 30 minute window where I needed to get a few things accomplished, one of them being my workout.

So here’s what I did after my quick warm-up:

1) 1-Arm Dumbbell Swing supersetted with 1-leg Decline Push-ups

2) Dumbbell Squat w/Shoulder Press supersetted with Dumbbell Bent-Over Rows

I did each of those supersets for 5 minutes completing as many sets of 10 as I could. After I was done with 1 set of the first superset, I would rest for 20 seconds and repeat.

Then, when 5 minutes was up, I went on to the second superset and did it in the same fashion.

By the time that 10 minutes was up I was huffing and puffing, and my heart rate stayed elevated for a while. I still felt pumped up for quite a while into my next training session.

So give that workout a try, or come up with your own. Just make sure that you pick exercises that use a lot of muscle groups like push-ups, squats, lunges, rows, etc. and stay away from crunches and isolation exercises.

About the Author:
Ed Scow’s fast, time efficient fat loss workouts have helped busy men and women lose fat faster than they ever could have imagined.
Ed’s workouts can be done in the comfort of your own home with limited equipment in as little as 15-20 minutes! To learn more go to http://www.fatlosstogo.com/

Author: Troy Anderson.

Referring back to my first paragraph, many of you are probably wondering why this GPP stuff is better than jogging/running. I will tell you exactly why. It is a proven fact that anaerobic work (i.e., work that raises your heart rate significantly) carries much greater benefit in fat loss than does steady-state aerobic work. This is a result of several factors but mainly what is called post-exercise energy expenditure, the amount of calories burned after work is done. Couple that with the fact that it takes less time to perform a GPP session, and you have one powerful fat-burning machine.

There are many types of GPP, but this month I will focus on non-weight callisthenic type of exercise performed in timed intervals. This type of GPP is not for the weak of heart. Even though the exercises may seem silly or menial you will realize that you have performed a significant amount of work at the completion of a session. The key is to go all out performing the exercise. Lollygagging through each set is not going to get the results you want. Shown below are three different phases of GPP along with a progression protocol that will help you adapt to each stage and progress to the next stage.

Beginner Exercises

1. Jumping Jacks

2. Shuffle Splits -This exercise is performed by shuffling your feet back and for with while maintain contact with the floor with only the balls of your feet - similar to the movement that you will see boxer perform in the ring

3. Mountain Climbers - this exercise is performed by starting with you body in the push-up position and then alternately driving your knee toward your shoulder - imagine climbing up a very steep hill or mountain on “all fours”

4. Slalom (side to side) jumping - this exercise is performed by starting in the standing position and jumping laterally over an object (a piece of tape or crack in the floor will be sufficient), you want to be sure to keep all your weight on the balls of your feet, as well as keep ankles and knees together - imagine down hill skiing moguls

Intermediate Exercises

1. Jumping Jacks

2. Shuffle Splits

3. Squat Jump - this exercise is performed by starting in the standing position, with hands on hips, performing a normal squat - down to parallel (where thighs form a parallel line to the floor), once you have reached the bottom of the movement, explosively accelerate you body out of the bottom of the movement so that your feet leave the ground (i.e. jumping) and forcefully extending arms over head at the same time. Try to land “softly” on the balls of you feet.

4. Slalom (side to side) jumping

Advanced Exercises:

1. Jumping Jacks

2. Shuffle Splits

3. Squat Jumps

4. Squat Thrust to Star Jump - this exercise is started from the standing position, followed by squatting down so that you are sitting on your haunches and your hands are flat on the floor, from this position you will forcefully extend you legs behind your body so that you are now in a push-up position, then reverse this sequence, once back to the “squatting” position you will forcefully accelerate you body into a jump, extending arms over away from head and spreading legs - imagine old Toyota commercials Perform each exercise for 30 continuous seconds.

Progression Table:

Session Work Interval Rest Interval Work Cycles

1 30 sec per drill 2 minutes 4

2 30 sec per drill 2 minutes 4

3 30 sec per drill 1:30 minutes 4

4 30 sec per drill 1:30 minutes 4

5 30 sec per drill 1 minutes 4

6 30 sec per drill 1 minutes 4

7 30 sec per drill 30 sec 4

8 30 sec per drill 30 sec 4

Let’s put this all together. Depending on your current fitness level, start with the beginner, intermediate, or advanced program. You will perform each exercise for 30 continuous seconds and complete all four exercises in a work cycle. Once you have completed a work cycle, begin the appropriate rest interval. Alternate work cycles with rest intervals until you have completed four work cycles. All told, the longest that this program should ever take to complete is fourteen minutes. Not too bad for a workout that will kick start your fat-burning furnace, prepare you for any physical labor, and save you time. In my book that’s a win, win, win situation. So give GPP a try. You will be pleasantly surprised by its ability to Get Phat Off Phast!

About the Author:
Troy M. Anderson is the owner of Anderson Training Systems, LLC, a fitness coaching business based in Tempe, Arizona. Troy is often referred to as “the MacGyver of coaching” for his unique ability to build effective fitness programs using only the most basic equipment. For more articles and instructional video, visit http://www.andersontrainingsystems.com
To Read the ATS Weekly Blog go to: http://troyats.blogspot.com/

Author: Charlie Cory.

Whilst the use of knee braces have long been used to either support or prevent damage to the ligaments of American Pro footballers, recent scientific developments have highlighted a much more intriguing use: the knee brace harnessing the kinetic energy of the knee movement and storing it. Boffins from the University of Pittsburgh and the Simon Fraser University in Canada have found a way to harness 30 minutes cell phone time from 1 minute’s walking. Keep that up and The Pittsburgh Steelers could power their own floodlights during matches!

It has to be said that such a notion is actually along way off, but so far the bionic knee brace is causing quite a stir. It appears as a conventional example of a supportive knee brace; it weighs 3.5 pounds (that’s 1.6 kilos for the more metrically minded). It harvests the same energy from the muscular breaking motion of the knee in walking as regenerative vehicles, such as the Toyota Prius, will harvest electricity from the breaking capacity within the car. A minute or so of walking at a moderate pace of 2.2 miles per hour generated 5 watts of power.

This is not a new idea: aside from knee braces such energy harvesters have been tried in backpacks and heels of shoes. Unfortunately these devices have either been much heavier than the knee brace, or have simply been less effective in providing enough wattage.

The benefits of this knee brace technology have been outlined by the researchers: they envisage it use by the military, supplying the energy for everything to GPS devices to night-vision goggles. The energy from these knee braces will also help those people in areas where the mass generation of electricity is not possible: as with clockwork radios, these devices might allow the use of low-powered computers. Medically Knee Brace power could be used to help those who require prosthetics or exo-skeletons.

Of course, the idea of the human as battery has been the stuff of cinematic nightmares for years. Despite the beneficial claims, there will probably be a nagging doubt in everyone’s mind. There may be visions perhaps, of armies of “Cybermen” clunking around the planet, controlling the population through the power of their energy-harvesting knee braces. The growing pace of technology, has always fed these more negative speculations, but hey, at least this form of knee brace fuel is a greener type of conquest!

About the Author:
So do knee braces have use beyond protecting your knees? You bet they do! How about using them as a power source! You had better believe it. Charlie Cory is a retired sportsman who writes about knee braces and home fitness.

Author: Hailey Harris.

A widespread muscoloskeletal pain accompanied by fatigue characterizes Fibromylagia. The exact causes of Fibromyalgia are still unknown. Fibromyalgia means pain in the muscles, ligaments, tendons, and other fibrous tissues in the body.

Women are more prone to develop Fibromyalgia, although men are also afflicted by it. Patients suffering from Fibromyalgia may have one or a combination of all the following symptoms such as chronic pain, insomnia or sleep disorder, hypersensitivity to touch, chronic fatigue, depression, and irritable bowel syndrome. Some patients have also reported symptoms such as sensitivity to light, noise, odors, certain foods, and medications. Other symptoms reported are temporomandibular joint dysfunctions, morning stiffness, memory loss, dizziness, and dry eyes and mouth.

Fibromyalgia is often referred to as the invisible illness, as no apparent pathology is present. It is believed that psychosocial factors are responsible for this disease. Fibromyalgia is neither a fatal nor a degenerative disease; however it can affect almost all the aspects of a person’s life. The chronic pain associated with the disease is pervasive and persistent and can affect normal social and recreational activity. It has been estimated that about 30% of those affected by this disease are unable to work full time. The United States government recognizes Fibromyalgia as a genuine medical condition and patients can apply for social security disability benefits.

Physicians all over the world consider Fibromyalgia as a functional illness in which the symptoms are real but the medical tests turn out to be normal. Trying to understand Fibromyalgia through the bio-medical model is a futile exercise. Bio-medical model explains the illness as cause and effect and is based on dualism. The bio-medical model considers the mind and body as separate.

The reality is in fact contrary to this belief and most diseases like Fibromyalgia need to be understood through the bio-psychosocial-spiritual model. It is now well accepted that Fibromyalgia needs to be addressed after addressing, understanding, and accepting the inter-dependence of the mind, body and the spirit. Factors such as genetics, environment and the influence of the conscious and unconscious mind also play an important role in patients developing Fibromyalgia.

The root causes of Fibromyalgia are not in the head but in the mind and body. The brain is connected to the body by the spinal cord through the autonomic nervous system. Small protein molecules in the neuropeptide messenger system circulate in the body and carry messages back and forth between the body and the brain and vice versa. Hence, we need to look at the mind and the body to really understand Fibromyalgia and not through the bio-medical model. There is a direct relationship between stress and the symptoms of Fibromyalgia.

Stress is the perception of psychological or physical threat and the perception of being unable to deal with it. Two important things about stress need to be kept in mind. First, stress can occur at the unconscious level and the individual may be unaware that he or she is under stress from a cognitive perspective. Second, stress is always perceptual. Certain individuals may find a situation extremely stressful while others may not be affected by it.

Although there are a number of factors that are responsible for Fibromyalgia, one common factor in all patients suffering from Fibromyalgia is ‘STRESS’. Another factor commonly associated with Fibromyalgia is sleep disorder or insomnia. It is still not clear whether these two factors cause Fibromyalgia or vice versa.

It is important that all concerned understand and accept connection between the mind and the body. Treatment and healing are two different processes. Treatment involves the application of something external and something given orally or intravenously, but healing happens from within. Patients should be encouraged to use their own power to heal themselves. It is a fact that Neuropeptides can be switched off and on through relaxation, exercise, diet, sleep, belief, and medication.

A change in lifestyle, improved eating habits, regular exercise, sleep and medication such as anti-depressants taken under medical supervision are beneficial for managing Fibromyalgia.

About the Author:
Hailey Harris is an expert in dealing with Fibromyalgia after suffering for more than 8 years with health problems. She is now symptom free and living a pain free life. She developed Ridfibromyalgia.com found at http://www.ridfibromyalgia.com to help others learn to do the same. To receive tons of info, tips, and healing strategies for free visit http://www.ridfibromyalgia.com/how.html .

Author: Troy Anderson.

Copyright (c) 2008 Anderson Training Systems

While training at the gym today, I looked in the mirror and realized that, although I’m toning up and starting to show definition, my gut seems to be growing! I know there is no such thing as spot-reducing, but what do you recommend I do to shed the love handles?

There are a couple of things that quickly flash to mind with your question.

1. Unfortunately, when we start to lose body fat, which it sounds as if you are doing, the fat usually does not come from the areas we most want it to come from first. As your “losses” continue, however, you should start to see the fat coming off your stomach area as well. Keep in mind that gender and genetics play a fairly large role in determining when and where changes occur during the process of reducing body fat.

2. The second thing that comes to mind is that the loss of fat from other areas creates the illusion that your stomach is growing even though, in actuality, it is staying the same.

Solutions:

Whenever I hear of individuals having trouble with body composition goals, I always look toward their nutrition first. Below is a list of some very common deficiencies.

1. Not enough vegetables in the plan. I usually recommend 4-6 cups of vegetables per day. Not only do vegetables have very high nutrient levels, they also have a lot of fiber.

2. Water is often a neglected nutrient. You should be drinking one ounce per pound of body weight of pure water every day. Dehydration severely inhibits your ability to lose body fat.

3. Not enough essential fatty acids. Flaxseed and fish oils should also have a place in your nutrition plan. At least one serving of each per day will insure that you are getting these very important nutrients that assist in keeping cholesterol and hormone levels normal and in maintaining numerous other body functions.

4. Protein is the final neglected nutrient. My general advice is to try and eat one gram per pound of body weight per day. These are not just some hair-brained dietary recommendations that I have come up with on my own. I have compiled this knowledge from listening to some of the best nutrition experts in the country, along with having analyzed hundreds of dietary recall journals.

The above deficiencies were apparent in almost every journal I analyzed. If you do have all of your nutritional “ducks” in order, however, then one more aspect you will want to consider is anaerobic interval training.

Basically, this type of training entails working at 90-100% of your maximum effort, recovering from that effort, and then repeating the effort again. I would recommend starting out with a moderate amount of time, something in the 15 minute range. The goal with this type of training is to steadily reduce the amount of rest needed between each effort. I have had some great results using this type of training in accomplishing body composition goals. Although this type of training can be a catalyst in helping break through a body composition plateau, you should not be overly reliant on it. I always recommend getting things straight with your nutrition first.

I hope you now have a better understanding of why your “gut seems to be growing” and have gained some helpful insight into how to accomplish your body composition goals. I wish you much luck in your continuing body composition changes.

About the Author:
Troy M. Anderson is the owner of Anderson Training Systems, LLC, a fitness coaching business based in Tempe, Arizona. Troy is often referred to as “the MacGyver of coaching” for his unique ability to build effective fitness programs using only the most basic equipment. For more articles and instructional video, visit http://www.andersontrainingsystems.com
To Read the ATS Weekly Blog go to: http://troyats.blogspot.com/

Author: Jon Cardozo.

I woke up this morning excited about my day and went straight into the kitchen to fix myself some breakfast. As I looked into the cupboard (do people say “cupboard” anymore?), I was disappointed to see the same boring protein shakes staring back at me. I know that I have to get enough protein everyday to complement my weight lifting. If I don’t get enough protein, then my muscles won’t be able to grow, right? But does it have to be so bland?

Well, the first thing you can do to improve the taste and not traumatize your taste buds is to add flavoring to your protein shakes. Fruit, peanut butter, flax seeds, even chocolate (but watch that sugar!) can add some much needed zest to your daily routine. Even so, you’ll still probably get tired of drinking liquid meals all the time ‘ so what’s the solution? Simple: Don’t drink them all the time.

Most of your meals should be coming from whole foods anyway. You need to get plenty of fiber, vitamins, and other nutrients which are often not available in your everyday protein powders. Even if they are, it just isn’t the same, is it? Remember one protein shake supplements were created. OK, they were made to make money, but besides that they help to fill in gaps when we can’t get enough protein from other sources. Most of our protein sources are less convenient for our busy lifestyles. We can’t always drive around with chicken, milk, tuna, or almond butter (trust me when I say that all you’ll get is a dirty shirt and a bunch of laughing coworkers).

Nevertheless, these whole foods should make up the bulk of your diet, at least the protein part of it. This will make life a little more exciting, and when you do need to add some liquid meals they won’t be such a drudge. When you consider that many experts recommend 1.5 g protein per pound of body weight each day, you will likely need some protein shakes as part of your overall weight gain plan. Add some variety to make things easier for you.

In a previous article, I shared the story about my friend who drank protein shakes without lifting weights. In all his excitement, my friend failed to add a tiny, minuscule, trivial little ingredient ‘ resistance exercise.

If you don’t add strength training to the picture, just increasing your calories will not build muscle. You have to force your body to build muscle, since it requires much maintenance. In other words, you have to force your body to build muscle by exposing it to strength training. When your muscles are challenged by unusually heavy weights (at least unusually heavy for your muscles), your body will respond by gradually increasing muscle mass.

About the Author:
If you would like to learn more about secrets to natural bodybuilding , visit Jon Cardozo’s Web site at http://maximum-muscle-gain.com. Learn the secrets to building a muscular physique and avoid the myths of the bodybuilding industry. Brought to you by Jcardozium.

Author: Ed Scow.

Today was a crazy day.

I had non-stop appointments for 8 hours straight, including a couple deep tissue massages.

Needless to say that when I finally sat down I was spent. That’s OK, because I love what I do for a living.

I get to wear comfortable clothes, I own a private personal training studio, which means nobody is around to bug me or my clients. No weirdos lurking around the gym, no inconsiderate people leaving sweat pools on benches and the music is good.

Anyway, after my day I didn’t really want to workout. I could have believed the excuse I was giving myself “I worked hard all day training clients and giving a couple deep tissue massages, I don’t need to workout”.

It’s true, I probably could’ve gotten by taking a day off. The only problem is that believing that excuse begins a cycle…and a bad cycle.

Where does it stop?

Pretty soon I’ll be telling myself that I don’t have time to workout.

That’s not true. I’ve been telling my clients that for months, if not years. That’s not a viable excuse.

If you have 10 minutes, you can fit in an effective fat loss workout and I’ll prove it.

All you have to do is make sure to include exercises that work many muscles at once. Exercises like push-ups, lunges, squats, chin-ups, dips, etc. You also cannot use machines for these workouts. Only dumbbells, bodyweight or resistance tubing.

The next thing you need to make sure to do is limit the rest time. If you sit around and chat up your workout partner or watch television in between sets, you won’t get anything done. It renders your workout largely useless.

So now that you know the rules, here’s the workout I bucked up and did after my hectic day. You can do it too if you have the equipment in your home gym.

Warm-up 3 sets:

Wood Chops - 15 reps

Push-ups - 15 reps

I had a little over 8 minutes left in my 10 minute workout after the warm-up and did as many sets as possible of the following:

Chin-up - 10 reps

Dips - 10 reps

I only rested 15-20 seconds after the dips before returning to the chin-ups. I don’t remember exactly how many sets I got in because I was breathing so hard and was in kind of a daze from all those chin-ups.

Needless to say, this fast 10 minute workout was a killer!

Before you bash the workout and say I didn’t work my legs, I’d like you to give it a try and then tell me that it’s not an effective workout.

About the Author:
Ed Scow’s fast, time efficient fat loss workouts have helped busy men and women lose fat faster than they ever could have imagined. Ed’s workouts can be done in the comfort of your own home with limited equipment in as little as 15-20 minutes! To learn more go to http://www.fatlosstogo.com/