1) Does anyone know any non-weight (or free weight such as dumbbell) that really works the legs? I know of free weigh lunges and squats. I am graduating college in a few months, and will no longer have access to the gym. Starting to look for exercises I can still do to keep tone. I do run, but is that enough to lose the fat/tone between my legs?

2) I have a weight training class right before I have a lecture (which just so happens to be during lunch time). I am looking for a shake or smoothie that I could make and bring with for after working out. I am VERY sceptical about using actual “diet” products and “protein powder” so does anyone have any good ideas or recipes? Do you think a smoothie with some milk and fruit would be filling?

Answer:

Toning exercises tone the muscle, they’re not going to lose the fat between your legs.  You can target fat loss.

If you want to lose the fat,  resistance training is the best, but you don’t have to use weights.  The only gym equipment you need are these:  Bodylastics resistance bands.  On the left side of their web page, you’ll see where you can get free access to their online workout shows.  The bands are adjustable so you’ll be able to adjust the tension for all the various exercises.  Plus, a complete set can easily fit in a gym bag so you can take them with you and workout where ever you go.

After your workout, you need protein to help fuel the muscles.  It’s not just about making a smoothie because you missed lunch.  At least eat a protein bar with it, but watch the ingredients for hidden junk like sugar and refined flour.  You can also try meal replacement drinks, but dude, do you really want to drink your lunch?  Pack some fruit or a sandwich.  You don’t need diet products and there’s nothing wrong with protein powder.

Answer:  To build muscle you need resistance.  The first thing that comes to mind are heavy dumbbells or weights, whether free weights or machines.  However, you want a lighter and easier alternative.  Hmm.  How about pull instead of lifting.  The solution?  resistance bands!  Not those wimpy flat Pilates bands, more specifically, Bodylastics elastic rubber fitness tubes.

Click here for a sampling of the exercises that can by done with Bodylastics.

Each Bodylastics tube has clips for attaching to the include accessories like handles, door anchor and ankle/wrist straps.  Multiple tubes can be clipped onto the handles to create just about any level of tension you need for any specific exercise.  Click here for a free download to learn how to combine the bands for custom resistance levels.

A:  You don’t need to buy a multi-gym to get effective chest exerices.  The only equipment you need is a set of Bodylastics resistance bands.  Click here to see some of the chest exercises you can do with Bodylastics.

A:  Building muscle is a combination of many things;  the right exercise, food intake, and your body’s physiology.  The right exercise is resistance training.  It can be from body resistance (effective, but there are better ways), weights and machines (expensive and bulky) or Bodylastics resistance bands.  The bands, elastic fitness tubes, actually, are a complete home gym system in a bag and systems start with the 88 lb Basic Tension set for $39.95 all the way to the monster 388 lb set for $129.95.  One set is all you need for a total body workout without going to  the gym.  Bodylastics has an excellent free muscle building workout show called Chiseled.  Click here to see a partial list of the exercises you can do with Bodylastics.  There’s a link to free workout shows on that page, too.

The right food intake is rich in nutrients and lots of protein to build the muscle.  Your body’s physiology is your genetic makeup and metabolism. 

A:  In order to see any part of the word ”tone”, you have to sculpt the muscle and then lose any fat on the arms so you can see the muscle definition.  The right exercises will sculpt, but you can’t target fat loss.  What you’ll need is some resistance, but not lightweight.  You need a moderate weight.  Lightweight isn’t going to do jack except build your endurance.  Buy a set of Bodylastics resistance bands.  You’ll be able to adjust the resistance as needed.  You can also use them for the rest of your body.  Click here to get arm exercises that you can do with them and to learn more about Bodylastics.  They also have a great free online Toning workout that you can do right at home, any time of day.  You’ll find the workout link on that page, too.

What are some exercises to get rid of my thigh fat, without them getting all huge (because they are already huge)
and what are some arm exercises to get rid of arm fat?

A:  You CANNOT spot reduce fat with exercise.  All the arm and leg exercises in the world aren’t going to get rid of the fat in those areas, just like all the situps in the world won’t give you a flat stomach.  Yes, the right kind of exercise will strengthen and tone the underlying muscles, but you must lose the fat in order to see them.

If that HerbaLife diet is working for you, then keep doing it, but hear this, the fastest way to lose weight is to build muscle.  Each pound of lean muscle burns about 40-50 calories per day at a resting metabolic rate.  10 lbs of muscle will burn 400-500 calories.  20 lbs of muscle will burn 800-1000 calories.  The fat will melt off and you’ll end up with a lean body.     

To build muscle you want to do high intensity resistance training.  High intensity does not mean spending hours in a gym getting an intense workout and it doesn’t mean working out really hard so the sweat’s dripping down your face and it doesn’t mean hours of cardio.  It means doing roughly 8-10 reps with a level of resistance that challenges you enough so that it takes a significant amount of effort to complete that last rep.  Then rest for about 30 seconds and move to the next muscle group.  Workout out every major muscle group like this 3x times a week like Mon, Wed, Fri and then rest two days.  You do not have to spend hours in a gym to effectively build muscle and you don’t even need weights.

I highly recommend Bodylastics resistance bands.  They are considerably cheaper than weights, not to mention portable.  Bodylastics has clips on the end so you can easily customize the resistance level as your body adapts.  Also, the different muscle groups have their own tension needs.  Adjustable bands will prevent you from plateauing and will keep your muscles challenged.

Here is some more information on where you can get free muscle building workouts.  There are new workouts posted Mon-Fri.  There are also toning, cardio, pilates, workouts for teens and sports specific workouts.  All of it’s free.
 

A:  You can get your own free personal trainer if you have a computer and an internet connection.  Click here for free chest exercises that you can do with Bodylastics.  Your friends are on crack.  You can workout on your own, however don’t just work your chest.  You also have to workout the rest of your body, including your back muscles so those new chest muscles don’t cause an imbalance.  You don’t need expensive equipment, either.  All you need is a set of Bodylastics resistance bands with adjustable tension.  Oh, and don’t forget to get plenty of protein.  You can eat lean meat and fish and supplement with protein shakes.  The muscles must have protein.

A:  You can’t do isolation exercises for fat loss.  Isolation exercises will definitely work those specific muscles, but you can’t target fat loss.  The body loses fat all over, not just in one place.  Oh, and another misconception is turning fat into muscle.  I have to laugh every time I see that one because they are two different cell types.

The fastest way to lose fat is to build muscle with strength training.  You should be doing sets of reps and the weight should be high enough so that it’s very difficult to finish the last rep.  After these intense workouts, while the muscle is repairing itself, it’s burning that stored fat.  Click here for free leg exercises that you can do with resistance bands.  You’ll be able to do more with them then a bench. 

Also, if you want FAST fat loss on your legs, don’t just workout your legs.  You want complete, total body workouts.  Don’t ignore the rest of your body.  The more muscle you build, the faster the fat will melt off.  You can’t do total body workouts with a bench.  Get yourself a set of Bodylastics resistance bands.

A:  You CANNOT lose leg fat by doing leg exercises.  You can target leg muscles with exercise to strengthen, tone or build legs muscles, but you can’t do the same to lose leg fat.  The body loses fat overall and not on the areas where you choose to exercise.

The fast way to lose fat is to build muscle because the new muscle you build will literally melt the fat off your body during the after-burn repair process after a good strength training workout.  Luckily, the legs contain the largest muscles in the body so working out the legs is great.  But don’t ignore the rest of your body.  You need overall good muscle strength, including your back and abs. 

What you need to do is resistance training.  You can do bodyweight exercises, but I suggest saving up for a $49.95 set of Basic Tension Bodylastics resistance bands.  You’ll be able to workout your entire body with just the bands.  And, they’re adjustable so as you get stronger, you can increase the resistance without buying more equipment.  Click here to see a large list of some of the exercises you can do with them, including leg exercises.

A:  You can tighten and tone your chest muscles right at home without going to the gym and without handweights, but you will need some type of resistance to do it effectively.  Therefore, I recommend Bodylastics resistance bands.  Click here to see some of the chest exercises that you can do with Bodylastics.  In fact, you can workout your entire body with them.