Archives for June 2011

An Every Day Venus

June 29, 2011 by John Barban 2 Comments

You’ll never know what you’re capable of or what the results will be until you take the step to do “it”, whatever “it” may be.

Changing your body requires the mindset and the confidence to take action but it also takes support. And the Venus Index community provided that support for Kimberley and it’s a good thing because she finished 2nd in our first open contest.

Kimberley Dransfield Venus Index Open 2nd Place

An 'every day' venus!

Kimberley is a rocket scientist by training and approached her body transformation as a business. She took an analytical and methodical approach to changing her body and tracking those changes. Kimberley explains how she used the knowledge from the Venus Index program and podcasts as leverage for her efforts to get the look she wanted.

First off you’ve got to do a market analysis of what information is out there and choosing what information you want to use. The next step is tracking your progress to know if you’re moving in the right direction. And the final step is reporting into the ‘boss’ (in this case the boss is the Venus Index community).

This is a unique view of changing your body and it makes perfect sense for those of your who are economic or business minded.

At the end of this interview Kimberley actually interviews me!

John

LISTEN:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Weight Training and the “Afterburn” Effect

June 27, 2011 by John Barban Leave a Comment

Weight training and cardio training are primarily used for two different purposes. We do weight training to build muscle and strength and shape our bodies. We do cardio training for the overall cardiovascular health benefits as well as for the extra calorie burn.

It’s become common knowledge that cardio only really increases the calories burned during the exercise session itself. There is a belief that weight training can increase your calorie burn throughout the day from the increased metabolic activity of added muscle. This second effect is greatly overstated as each pound of added muscle only requires approximately 5 calories per day.

There is however a third form of so called metabolic elevation that gets mentioned in the fitness media and that is the Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) after high intensity workouts. This is commonly referred to as the ‘afterburn’ effect and there is even research to suggest such an effect happens up to 48 hours post workout.

But before you go out and start doing maximum lift workouts the specifics of the research that shows this result must be examined. Upon closer look you’ll find out that much of the claims you hear about in the fitness industry aren’t exactly what they appear to be.

In today’s podcast, we’ll discuss where the EPOC and elevated metabolism claims come from and discuss if they’re applicable to you or not. We’ll also explain how easy it is for the fitness media to misinterpret research and send people on a wild goose chase of the ‘best’ workout, when in reality it doesn’t really exist.

John

For more information as well as how to get access to Venus UNCENSORED, click the link below:

Venus UNCENSORED Premium Podcast

Filed Under: Podcast, Uncensored Podcasts S01 Tagged With: afterburn, calories burned from weight training, EPOC, weight training

Getting in Shape is Worth it!

June 22, 2011 by John Barban Leave a Comment

The process of getting in shape is a journey more than a destination. Understanding this is the first step to putting a sensible approach in place to getting the body and lifestyle you want.

Leann Helle 6th Place Venus Index Transformation

Lean Dropped 12lbs

Leann made big improvements in her overall shape

The process requires effort, consistency, patience, and the right tools. It also requires setting realistic goals that can keep you motivated and moving forward as you reach them.

We all can easily slip into a pattern of wanting too much to change too soon, such is human nature. We want it all, and we want it now. The fitness media largely does us a disservice by promising such things. And when these too good to be true results don’t materialize you can end up feeling worse about yourself and searching for the next best workout or diet program. This is how the information overload problem starts…it is rooted in unrealistic expectations.

Setting a realistic goal and in a realistic time frame is a way to stay on track, feel good about yourself along the way and keep your stress levels low.

Once you accept all of this, and start on your path you’ll likely even surprise yourself at the progress you can really make.

In todays podcast I talk with Leann Helle 6th place finisher in the first Venus Index contest.

We talk about getting rid of the information overload of the diet and fitness industry. Getting the right tools for getting in shape, and finally we talk about setting realistic goals and embracing the journey of getting in shape…because in the end it really is worth it.

John

LISTEN:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Filed Under: Contest, Interview, transformation Tagged With: getting in shape is worth it, Venus Index Contest Interview

Asymmetrical Bodyfat…is this Possible?

June 20, 2011 by John Barban Leave a Comment

Multiple factors control the shape of your body including the amount of muscle and fat you have, as well as the symmetry of both your skeletal structure and your muscle structure. Your bodyfat will store in a specific pattern based on you genetics. This is what dictates if you store fat in the ‘apple’ pattern or ‘pear’ pattern etc.

These shapes are due to fat, not muscle, that means you can change them.

Once you start burning that fat off, your skeletal and muscle symmetry will become the predominant feature that shapes your body. This is also when you might notice if you have any asymmetries (from left to right).

As you lower your bodyfat percentage, it may appear that you are actually losing fat asymmetrically (ie: losing more fat on either the left or right side of your body). This apparent visual asymmetry of fat distribution is caused by an asymmetry of either your bone structure or your muscle structure (and in many cases both).

In today’s UNCENSORED podcast, we’ll discuss body fat distribution patterns and the illusion of asymmetrical body fat.

John

For more information as well as how to get access to Venus UNCENSORED, click the link below:

Venus UNCENSORED Premium Podcast

Filed Under: Podcast, Shape, Uncensored Podcasts S01 Tagged With: asymmetrical fat, bodyfat distribution, bodyshape

Getting in Shape is Simple…but not Easy.

June 15, 2011 by John Barban Leave a Comment

Getting in shape shouldn’t have to be a second job, but many fitness marketers would have you believe so. Hours of daily meal preparation, complicated food combining, supplement dosing and mixing, and hours in the gym. It certainly sounds like a full time job. But who has this kind of time? Karen Check doesn’t and she got in great shape taking the simple straight forward approach with the Venus Index.

Venus Index Transformation 4th Place Karen Check

Karen lost 24lbs

Great Transformation

In fact she said that this is the simplest program and approach she has ever followed and over the past 10 years after trying multiple other programs, VI is the only one that finally worked.

Perhaps simplicity is the key.

Working out and dieting doesn’t have to consume your life if you don’t want it to. Yes it takes work and effort, but it shouldn’t take up more than a few hours per week.

The key is keeping a level head, a functioning social life and giving your diet and workout it’s fair space in your life, but no more than is necessary.

Fitting the diet and the work out around your life is the only sustainable way to expect to get in shape and then maintain that shape.

In todays podcast Karen and I talk about her past experiences and why this time things were different. She talks about simplifying the process and how many people including herself went down the road of super complicated and cumbersome diet routines that ended up being monumental effort with little pay off.

Once she embraced a simpler approach Karen finally got the results you see here today.

John

LISTEN:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Filed Under: Contest, Interview, transformation Tagged With: getting in shape is simple, Venus index Transformation

Are You Addicted to Food?

June 13, 2011 by John Barban Leave a Comment

Why do we eat the type and amount of food we do? What determines our food choices and when we choose to stop eating? There are a number of factors that play a role and now research is looking into the concept of food addiction.

Rats can become addicted to cookies...can we?

There is a growing body of research that indicates people could be addicted to food in the classical definition of addiction.

Researchers are showing that rats can become addicted to food and display all the symptoms of irritability, withdrawal and the ability to massively overeat when food is present. This research is giving us the framework to study if some people are also addicted to food.

Being addicted to food presents a unique problem as we must continue to eat. You can’t just go off of food cold turkey and never eat again.

So how do you overcome an addiction to a something that you need to consume on a daily basis to survive?

The first step is to find out if you truly have a food addiction or just tend to overeating at social occasions or when you’re bored. The reason some people overeat is never clear and the potential for true addiction is another factor in a long list of potential problem we need to tackle.

John

For more information as well as how to get access to Venus UNCENSORED, click the link below:

Venus UNCENSORED Premium Podcast

Filed Under: Food, Podcast, Uncensored Podcasts S01 Tagged With: food addiction

Muscle Building is a Lifestyle: Interview with Kris West

June 8, 2011 by John Barban Leave a Comment

Building muscle is a lifestyle. It takes time, dedication, persistence, and patience. You can start your muscle building life at any age and continue it for as long as you like (and you should). It’s one of the best things you can do for yourself to stay young and health for as long as possible…and that is exactly what Kris West has done since she was in high school.

Venus Index Open 3rd Place Kris West

In todays podcast we talk to Kris about how she got into muscle building at a very young age. She’ll share her insights on a lifetime of muscle building.

We talk about taking time off of the gym to recharge for another ‘season’ of weight training. We also discuss her unique style of dieting that she has kept covert for the better part of 30 years!

John

LISTEN:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Filed Under: Contest, Interview Tagged With: Venus Index Contest Interview

A Reexamination of “What is Healthy?”

June 6, 2011 by John Barban 4 Comments

The lines between weight loss, muscle building, fitness and health can get blurry. Having a clear understanding of each aspect and how it relates to your life is the first step to getting what you want out of your body.

Will You be "Healthy" if you eat these foods?

Weight loss and muscle building are a bit more straight forward than the others.

Fitness becomes trickier to define because its dependent on the kind of fitness and the level you want to achieve. Is the goal to be an olympic level endurance athlete, or a recreational level strength athlete?

Defining health is the most difficult of all, and this is the topic of todays uncensored podcast.

When you think of the word ‘health’ you probably have both a body image and a lifestyle idea that includes exercise and diet that matches your minds image of what ‘health’ means.

Health however is not a universal definition that can be applied to all people. In fact, it is a personal definition that can only ever be applied by one person to themselves.

In todays podcast we discuss what the variables are that can go into your definition of health and how each person has to decide for themselves what they want from their body and their life.

John

For more information as well as how to get access to Venus UNCENSORED, click the link below:

Venus UNCENSORED Premium Podcast

Filed Under: Health, Podcast, Uncensored Podcasts S01 Tagged With: definition of health, health, what is healthy

Archives for June 2011

An Every Day Venus

Weight Training and the “Afterburn” Effect

Getting in Shape is Worth it!

Asymmetrical Bodyfat…is this Possible?

Getting in Shape is Simple…but not Easy.

Are You Addicted to Food?

Muscle Building is a Lifestyle: Interview with Kris West

A Reexamination of “What is Healthy?”

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