Aesthetics
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The Quick-Switch Cycle: A two-part plan for bulking up and leaning out
We’re all familiar with bulking and cutting. Typically a program is done for one to three months (or more) with a focus on bulking or cutting. However, the Quick-Switch Cycle will put your body through change and variation much more frequently with the goal of stimulating muscle growth while also keeping you lean. The Quick-Switch Cycle was created by holistic personal trainer, fitness model, and HFP-network contributor Joe Rodonis (@JoeRodonis). How it works Variation is what triggers your body to grow and improve. (Plus, you won’t find yourself getting bored following the same routine for a month or two.) You’ll be…
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The 10×10 workout plan to give your muscles an unexpected jolt
German Volume Training, or GVT for short, has been around the weightlifting world since the 70s. The idea between GVT is to overload your muscles with extreme volume, but with fewer exercises. The traditional setup you’d see would most likely be three main, compound exercises performed for a total of 10 sets at 10 repetitions each. Between each set you’d see a modest amount of rest—roughly a minute or two. And, as expected, the amount of weight used would need to be on the lighter side or else you’ll burn out early. On paper, it doesn’t sound too bad, but…
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The Hurricanes: 5 high-intensity interval workouts for fat loss
There’s not a whole lot more that can be said that hasn’t been said already. These 5 routines are not your standard “straight sets” where you do an exercise for 10 reps, rest of 60 seconds, repeat it for another 3 sets, then move onto the next. For these intervals or circuits, you’ll be performing an exercise for a prescribed amount of time (instead of reps) then moving onto the next exercise with little to no rest in between. Note: there are, however, some instances where you will be performing reps, but the workout is still structured in a circuit…
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The 4-week Body Reconstruction plan
This will be the year you dramatically change the composition of your body. A couple weeks in, take a look into the mirror, you’ll see noticeable differences in all the right places. Your face and jawline will show signs thinning; your shirts will tighten up in your chest, back, and shoulders. You’ll have visible veins in your arms, and you start to see those abs you never knew you had. With the recent (January 2018) updates to the Redemption plan and the fresh release of the 6-week Unlabeled workout plan, you’re probably wondering why we’re promoting another one. Well, it’s…
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Redemption: The 6-week workout plan
The Redemption workout plan was original published for Men’s Fitness magazine in January 2016. We’ve all limited ourselves, missed opportunities, or let time slip by. It’s never too late to redeem yourself. Redemption is more than workouts. It’s about finding the right state of mind, and igniting what triggers your motivation. For 45-60 minutes per day, your number one priority is to hit the gym and give your all. And while pounding away, rep after rep, think about everything you want to achieve. Know that with each successful push, pull, and lift that you’re inching closer to what you want. These…
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The 6-week Unlabeled workout plan
Over the last several months I got back into an old habit of writing my exact workout for the day on my to-do list. I hadn’t done this is quite a while, in fact, years. Similarly to the piece I wrote on intuitive eating, as you could imagine, my training tends to be intuitive at this point as well. That doesn’t mean I don’t think about what I’m doing, but it has become more of a back-of-the-mind kind of thing. I just do me. But, I still have a “goal” of sorts, I’m aware how I’m structuring the day and…
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The 4-week Winter Bulk Up workout plan
Winter does have its advantages. And one of the best is that you can set yourself up to be your at your biggest and leanest once the warm weather swings back around. The trick is to use the winter to Bulk Up, then transition into an aggressive shred during the spring. This gives your body a change it needs. You’ll be able to eat more, and to some degree, rest a bit more as well. Program designer Tim McComsey (@TimMcComsey) says there are three main components to the Bulk Up: If you’re very new to working out, check out our best…
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3 inspiring weight loss stories from men that lost over 100 pounds
Transforming the human body is far from easy. It takes hard work, commitment, and strong willpower. These are three men we got to meet over the last year to discuss their ups and downs. Their stories are proof that anything is possible. #2. Lionell Dixon, 150 pound weight loss Lionell Dixon (@LonnieFresh84) didn’t have it easy growing up. He was constantly stressed out and ate to tame it. At one point he was even sneaking food from buffet tables and putting it in his pockets for later. The eating habit was simply out of control for him. His tipping point…
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8 high-intensity fat-burning workouts to work off holiday weight gain
Let’s face it: there’s no out-training a bad diet. You just can’t do it. No matter how hard you try—at the end of the day—the war on extra weight is won in the kitchen. But a couple big holiday dinners aren’t a bad diet—they’re just a couple big holiday dinners. You can put those to use. Here’s how: If you eat “clean” consistently, 7 days per week for several weeks at a clip without a “cheat” then a big holiday splurge won’t make much of a difference. It’s a blip in the grand scheme of things. Take on a couple…
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The 5-day holiday workout schedule for staying in great shape
Yeah, we get it: you’ve got to live a little, enjoy a cheat meal or two, hell, maybe even a couple of drinks. Finding that balance, they say. But the truth is: if a lean physique is your number one priority then you’d better believe that back-to-back-to-back binge dinners and hard partying can do some damage—and quicker than you think. Have your pie, potatoes, and stuffing. Drink your beers and stay up late. Just don’t complain if you pushed it too far and those abs you started to see are smoothing out. HFP expert contributor John Gioffre has the plan…
