AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH MAGAZINE

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ISSUE 49 - 12/16/2004

1. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Information is the most valuable commodity.”
- From the movie “Wall Street”

This is a line from the outstanding movie “Wall Street” that has always stuck with me. Without information, success in any endeavor will not be possible. It is does not matter how hard you work or how much desire you have. If you do not have the correct information, success will always evade you. Another fact about information is that you can never have enough. Once you think that you have all of the information you need, expect the twin brothers of complacency and regression to show up at your door. Work on being a sponge for information and soak it up from a variety of sources. It often comes from unexpected sources to those that are prepared to see, hear, and absorb it.

Live Life Aggressively!

Mike Mahler

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2. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH TRAINING ARTICLE

This week’s strength tip comes from sport’s performance specialist Shannon Clark.

Why Everyone Needs Cardio

It’s the one activity that most people usually dread when they enter the gym….cardio: mind-numbing minutes spent on the elliptical, bike or treadmill. Unfortunately, regardless of your goals, cardio should be incorporated into your training program. If you are trying to lose weight you will want to include a good amount of cardio, mixing both longer endurance sessions at a moderate intensity with a couple of shorter interval sessions, mixing both high intensity sprints with lower intensity rest periods. The longer endurance session will help you to burn more total calories while you are working out (thus aiding in increasing your calorie deficit – which is necessary for weight loss to occur), while the high intensity sessions will help send your metabolism through the roof by activating a principle known as EPOC (a process where your body burns a significant amount of calories once you have finished training to repair itself). This means that you will burn more fat while you are watching your favorite TV show later that night (Editor’s note: however watching shows such as “reality” TV and most sitcoms destroys this effect ;) Just kidding) – and who doesn’t want that?

If, on the other hand you are trying to put on some muscle size, your approach to cardio will be slightly different. Many people feel that all forms of cardio should be avoided if you are trying to build muscle as extra energy expended is literally wasted and could have been put towards building quality muscle. If you do your cardio right however, rather than “wasting” this energy, you can actually make it work to your advantage and help you build a better, more lean body. You will want to avoid long endurance sessions as these are more catabolic and make it more likely that you actually break down muscle tissue. However, sprint sessions are ideal, as they will stimulate many of the same metabolic processes that a good weight lifting session would. To illustrate this visually, picture a marathon runner and a sprinter. Both are performing cardiovascular exercise, but their bodies look entirely different. The marathoner is doing long duration sessions whereas the sprinter is going full out for a minimal amount of time. Both athletes are very lean, but the sprinter is able to carry a great deal more muscle mass.

And for those of you who are happy with your body, not training to gain or lose weight, but go to the gym just to relieve stress, socialize or improve your general health, it is important to choose a form of cardio that you enjoy and will likely stick with and work at a pace that is comfortable for you. Try and push yourself a little harder on some days and go easier on the days you are feeling tired. It is ideal to mix it up a bit as this will keep you interested, keep your body responding, and break up the monotony of watching the seconds tick by while you pedal to your hearts content. It is important to include cardio though, as it offers a tremendous amount of health benefits, such as reduced blood pressure, decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, and osteoporosis, as well as helping ward off the weight gain associated with getting older. It will also help to decrease your stress levels by releasing mood lifting endorphins, increase your energy, and make it easier to go about your daily life without feeling like you just climbed ten flights of stairs.

So find a form of cardio that you enjoy, set some realist goals with regards to your performance level and you’ll be well on your way to reaping all the benefits that this form of exercise has to offer.

For more information on Shannon, visit her webpage at Bodybuilding.com/fun/sclark and email her about her program design services at berryblis@hotmail.com

Thanks for the tip Shannon!

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3. GET THE AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH DVD COMBO PACK TODAY

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5. NEW AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH PRODUCT RECOMMENDATIONS

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6. THE AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH SOLUTION FOR THE ROAD WARRIOR

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7. KETTLEBELL TRAINING INFORMATION PAGE (NEW)

http://www.mikemahler.com/kettlebell_info.html

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8. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH MAGAZINE ARCHIVES

http://www.mikemahler.com/newsletter

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9. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH ARTICLES

http://www.mikemahler.com/articles.html

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10. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH TRAINING JOURNAL

http://www.mikemahler.com/journal.html

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11. RECOMMENDED READING LIST

http://www.mikemahler.com/reading.html

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Until next time.

Live Life Aggressively!

Feel free to email me with your comments and feedback at mahler25@yahoo.com

Mike Mahler

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