You’ve seen it at your local grocery store, at a popular fast food chain (why were you there in the first place?), or worse yet, in front of a mirror. Yes, it’s belly fat, a ponch, your gut, muffin top, the pooch, beer belly, whatever the cool kids call it these days.

More specifically, we are talking about lower abdominal fat, which can be broken down into abdominal visceral fat (AVF) and abdominal subcutaneous fat (ASF). I’ve talked about these two types of fat extensivly in previous articles so I’m gonna keep it simple stupid for us here. AVF is internal fat around your organs while ASF can be thought of as the outside fat we see in the mirror.

So how do

Now that you’ve made the commitment to starting an exercise program, the next step is choosing a gym that you will feel comfortable going to on a regular basis. If it isn’t, chances are you aren’t going to stick with any type of regular exercise plan and will eventually just stop going altogether. By being sure your gym is a good fit for you, you help take yourself one step further to realizing your health and fitness goals.

Keep in mind that if a traditional gym isn’t for you, you can definitely set up a home gym with smaller equipment and where you can get complete workouts all in the privacy of your

It’s a question that was recently asked of us here at The Fat Loss Authority and a very important one to discuss.

If you remember anything from your Health Study classes in school, you’ll remember that 99.99999% (I’m exaggerating but not by much) of the calcium in your body is stored in your bones and teeth. The other 1% is primarily found in your bloodstream and helps control muscle movements, blood clotting and nerve impulses.

Simply put: if you lose calcium from your bones, your bones will be weaker.

In a 2006 study performed by various physicians in the state of New York, it was found that the calcium concentration of water varies from 1 to 135 mg/L across the USA and Canada.

Most spring waters were found to have a relatively low calcium concentration, with an average of 21.8 mg/L. Purified

It’s usually a tough balancing act between losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time. The reason being is the opposite demands these goals impose on our bodies.

To build a lot of new muscle tissue, your body needs energy. In the simplest terms, you’ll need to consume more calories than you’re burning each day. To lose fat, you need to consume fewer calories than you burn.

If you do try to do both things at once, your progress towards either goal will be so frustratingly slow that it won’t be long before you say “screw this” and throw in the towel.

Wouldn’t it me amazing if the energy your body needs to build new muscle tissue came from stored fat? Unfortunately, when your body is in a predominantly catabolic state (which it will need to be if you want to

Shrinking an expanding waistline is not only a matter of beauty. Excess belly fat can significantly up your risk of heart disease as well as other dangerous medical conditions.

We’re all familiar with subcutaneous fat by now. It’s the outside fat that you see in the mirror and makes it hard to zip up your jeans. But it’s the visceral fat which is the inner fat that resides deep inside your belly that is so dangerous. This compact fat, sometimes called “hidden” belly fat, builds up between and around your internal organs.

How can you measure your abdominal fat?

Sometimes, losing weight boils down to how much you shove into your mouth during a given meal. All the interval training and low-fat yogurt in the world will not save you from consistent mis-steps at the dinner table.

I found a research study from Sweden where subjects ate 22% less food when they were blindfolded, but they felt just as full as usual. This brings new meaning to the phrase “Looks like your eyes really are bigger than your stomach“!

Conclusion: Taking vision out of the picture may help you achieve your weight loss goals!

Without the sense of sight, you are forced to rely on internal signals of satisfaction from your stomach and brain. Most of us normally rely on external cues such as an empty plate, the end

I recently had a fabulous pasta dish topped off with giant portobello mushrooms. Now, I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t usually opt for a carb heavy entree when dining out, especially pasta. For one, I’m Italian, and all Italians prefer their mama or nonna’s homemade pasta dishes so why order something I can get at home?

I did it for the mushrooms!

[Do you remember the Super Mushroom in Super Mario Bros? It caused Mario to grow larger along with the Fire Flower, which allows Mario to throw fireballs; and the Starman, which gives Mario temporary invincibility. I may dust off my Nintendo tonight!]

Let me explain. Mushrooms are a terrific substitute for meat as they contain a paltry 18 calories and zero grams of fat per cup. They also possess a meaty flavor and hearty texture which helps out your

It may well go all the way back to the land of dinosaurs, but it seems that to the male of the species, an open fire and charring meat and the outdoors go together like peanut butter and jam.

With the warm weather upon us now, barbeques everywhere are heating up with roasted corn and juicy hamburgers.

Here are 11 tips to ensure you have healthy and safe BBQ meals this summer:

1. How fat is your meat? Select lean, or extra lean cuts of meat or better yet have your butcher grind a prime piece of beef or turkey for burgers. Fresh fish should be purchased no earlier then a day before eating.

2. Choose your picnic spot wisely! Everyone wants to be under a tree sheltered away from the sun, but insects think alike. Also, things drop from trees

Even if you’ve packed on a few winter pounds, had kids, or neglected your belly for years, it’s never too late to get your middle section into a firm and sexy shape.

[Win or lose, Melissa Rycroft sports the best looking abs during this seasons' Dancing With The Stars] 

The following moves hit all of the major ab muscles, specifically the rectus abdominis (ie. the “six pack” muscle) and the obliques. They also force you to focus on your abs throughout the motion (no worries about sleep walking through this routine). Perform these exercises 3 times a week, in addition to your interval training routine.

After speaking with Vince DelMonte last week (click here for Part I of our conversation), we now know why building muscle is the fastest way for men and women to burn fat, and get incredible looking bodies.

But can building muscle also save your life?

[Have you ever tried rock-climbing? Bloody hard, but a great test of your mind and body. Give it a whirl at an indoor facility first, before you attempt anything remotely close to the picture above!]

Here’s what Vince had to say in a follow-up conversation:

Vince: Most men follow my No Nonsense Muscle Building program because they want to get huge muscles and impress the