Answer Fitness®: Practical Fitness Advice for Everyone

Can You Mix Whey Protein Isolate in a Blender? | Ask The Fitness Nerd

Does Mixing Whey Protein Isolate in a Blender Make It Less Effective?

Dear Fitness Nerd,

I’ve been drinking whey protein isolate for a couple of years. Usually I mix it up in a blender with some juice or milk after I workout or for a smoothie in the morning. But a guy at the gym recently told me that it’s better to mix your whey in a shaker bottle and not in a blender. He said it has something to do with the blender messing up the whey proteins and interfering with absorption. I’ve never heard that before. Is there any problem I should know about with mixing whey in a blender? Tony — Staten Island, NY

Tony, I’m always fascinated by how myths like this get started.

After looking at hundreds of these types of questions, I’ve come to the conclusion that 90% of them start with some “guy at the gym.”  

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How Many Sit Ups for Stomach Flattening? | Ask The Fitness Nerd

Getting a flat stomach takes more than just countless sit ups. Find out the formula to a flatter, more defined mid-section.

Dear Fitness Nerd,

A very broad question that I’d like to read your opinion on regarding stomach flattening.

I’m a massive gym user and fitness freak. At the moment I weight 12.7 stone and at 6′ 2″ consider myself not only very healthy, but also quite physically fit. However, people who are heavier than me and often shorter have a leaner and more defined mid-drift (abs, obliques, back, shoulders, etc.)

My question is simply with a healthy diet in mind, how many sit ups a day would an average gym user need to do before they see results and a “flatter” stomach? Thanks! — Jack

Despite what you might have heard, a flat stomach really has less to do with the amount of sit ups you perform and more to do with your overall body fat levels.

While sit ups and other abdominal exercises like crunches, jack-knifes and hanging leg raises can all help develop more muscle in your torso (as well as contribute to overall core stability and strength), getting a flat stomach or having definition in your abs is really 80 percent diet.

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8 Ways to Break a Weight Training Plateau | Weight & Resistance Training Tips

Hit a Plateau with Your Weight Training or Resistance Exercise Routine? Use These Proven Techniques to Jump-Start Your Training and Get Back On Track.

Training plateaus are inevitable.

Anyone who has been exercising or weight-lifting for an extended period of time will eventually hit one. It’s never an issue of will I plateau, but when. 

It doesn’t matter if you’re a casual gym goer, a highly-conditioned athlete, an amateur body builder or a professional fitness model. You will hit a plateau eventually if you are exercising and training on any kind of regular basis. 

Training plateaus can be particularly frustrating because they will typically occurr when you feel the strongest or following a period of rapid progress. So psychologically, they can be demotivating because they take the shine off from all of that progress you’ve made over the previous weeks or months. You’ll feel like you are spinning your wheels and going no-where fast, and it can make working out less rewarding.

The good news is that there are a number of proven techniques that you can use to break through a weight training plateau.

In some cases, you’ll be able to break your plateau fairly easily with just one or two of these techniques.

In other cases, especially if you’ve been training for for several years and are already in a very good physical condition, you may have to try multiple approaches or some of the more advanced techniques.

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The Strongest Man That I Ever Knew: Remembering Jarrett Knyal

Jarrett Knyal taught me what it means to be “strong.” And in the the process proved that the mind is always more powerful than the body.

“If you are going to win any battle, you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do… the body is never tired if the mind is not tired.” -General George S. Patton

The strongest man I ever knew was named Jarrett Knyal.

And tonight, I want everyone to know who Jarrett was.

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1 Rep Max (1RM) | Fitness, Health and Exercise Glossary

What is the definition of 1 Rep Max (1RM) and what does it mean?

1 Rep Max Definition

1 Rep Max (also know as One Repetition Maximum or 1RM) is the standard measure of muscular strength. 1 Rep Max measures the maximum amount of weight that a given muscle can move through a complete contraction (eccentric and concentric) one time, with good form.

1 Rep Max is used in weight training to determine maximum strength and as a way to calculate the upper strength limits when developing a weight and resistance training program. In these cases, a percentage of 1RM may be used to develop target load levels for measuring and/or improving things like muscular endurance (typically 75-90% of 1RM.)

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Is Cardio Better Before or After Lifting Weights? | Ask The Fitness Nerd

When Is the Best Time To Perform Cardio: Before or After Lifting Weights? Or Does It Even Matter?

Dear Fitness Nerd,

Is it better to do cardio before or after you lift weights? I’ve been following your full body workout routine and love it, but I’d also like to slip in some cardio on top of the weight training. What are your thoughts? Should I lift weights before I do cardio? I’ve searched online and seem to get mixed opinions which is better. Any help would be appreciated. –  Andrew (Chapel Hill, NC)

Andrew, I get this question quite a bit. In fact, it’s probably one of the most frequently asked questions in the comments area on the Answer Fitness full body workout routine.

Whether it’s better to perform your cardio before or after lifting weights really depends on your current conditioning, stamina — and to a certain extent — your mindset. There are also some physiological  and scientific reasons you might preference weight lifting over cardio earlier in your workout — but even here you’ll find some disagreement among trainers, exercise physiologists and even bodybuilders.

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What Is BMI? | Ask The Fitness Nerd

What is BMI and is it an Accurate Measure of Weight and Health?

Dear Fitness Nerd,

Can you explain exactly what BMI is? I recently bought a Wii Fit and according to the BMI calculation I’m fat! I checked some other BMI calculators online and am getting similar results. But I’ve never really considered myself overweight. I exercise daily and think I look pretty toned, but according to the BMI charts I’m overweight! Should I be worried? — Erika (Atlanta, GA)

Ericka, the Body Mass Index, or BMI is one of those things that I wish would just go away, since it causes all kinds of anxiety for people who may actually be in very good shape. It also makes people who may actually have high body fat levels focus on the wrong thing: losing scale weight, when they should be focusing on reducing body fat and encouraging muscle building.

While BMI can be a tool for gauging a person’s body composition in relation to height and weight, it tells you nothing about a person’s percentage of body fat. So for people who have low body fat levels with substantial amounts of lean tissue (muscle), it can be very misleading. 

But before we get into this in greater detail, let’s take a look at what BMI is.

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