If there’s one online program that has seen an extremely high amount of success time and time again, Truth About Abs would be it.  This program has been available since 2004 and is still coming in top spot as one of the hottest products on the market.

But, is it right for you? And, does it really reveal the Truth About Abs as the name suggests?

Let me take a closer look at what I personally think of this product so you can get the need-to-know facts about whether this is one that you should consider.

The Author

The Truth About Abs Program is written by author Mike Geary, who is a certified personal trainer as well as nutritional specialist.  He has been published in countless fitness magazines and a graduate from the Susquehanna University’s Bachelor of Science program.

The Gist Of The Program

One of the biggest mistakes that some people make when looking at the Truth About Abs is that they think it’s just for people who want to get flat abs. They believe that the only goal this program will help them achieve is to lose ab fat and not much else.

That’s furthest from the truth.  The Truth About Abs program is actually a full body workout program that comes complete with diet advice.  So all in all, it’s a comprehensive way to lose body fat.

One of the key notions that the author points out is that you can’t spot reduce fat directly from the abdominal muscles, but rather you need to focus on losing fat from all over the body.  As you do this, you’ll start to look leaner and you’ll see what the truth about abs is all about.

The program itself is based around very sound concepts so there aren’t any gimmicks here.  You’ll be performing a workout program that focuses around the key compound movements that will increase your strength, enhance muscle tone, and improve your fitness level, all while burning fat at the same time.

The author provides picture illustrations of the exercises which is nice for those beginners who don’t quite understand what all that fitness mumble-jumble means.  The workouts are fairly simple and straightforward, so something that most people should easily be able to start doing.

In addition to that, many of the workouts can be performed right at home, so if you currently don’t have a gym membership, this won’t be a problem.  You’ll still be able to complete the program as-is.

On the diet side of things, the author gives good advice here as well.  Mike shares with you information that you may have never thought of before that goes beyond just counting calories, grams of proteins, carbs, and dietary fats.

He’ll get you thinking harder about the foods that you’re putting in your body and the effects that they have on you.  He’s a very natural eater and his philosophies illustrate this in his dietary approach.

This diet isn’t extremely low calorie nor is it extremely low carb.  It’s a moderate plan that will produce good results provided you stick with it.  And, it’ll likely get you  a whole heck of a lot healthier as well.

What You’re Going To Get

When you purchase the Truth About Abs Program from Mike Geary, you will get:

•  A 149 page manual that discusses exercise, nutrition, as well as motivational techniques to help you reach your goals
• A personal metabolic calculator to help figure out the precise number of calories you need to eat to burn fat optimally
• A Fast Track Meal Planner guide to make meal planning easy so that you can stick with the diet
• A Free subscription to Mike’s Lean Body Fitness Secrets newsletter, which has a current membership of
• Free DVD “The 5 Simple Keys To Guaranteed Fat Loss” from Kim Lyons, who has appeared on the hit TV-series, the Biggest Loser
• M-Power Fast Fitness Audio Series, which includes four different lectures with advice on how you can maintain your motivational levels.
• An 8 week dumbbell bodyweight fusion workout program
• An at-home workout program that combines bodyweight and dumbbell exercises

Pros:

• Fast paced workouts – most only take around 45 minutes to complete
• Additional ab workouts, however note that these only last 5-10 minutes done 2-3 times per week
• Focuses on healthy foods, not a fad diet approach
• Is user-friendly – even beginners can use this program
• Is realistic for those with busy lifestyles
• Is relatively easy to understand so you don’t have to have a large background in fitness to use it
• Works for both males and females
• Doesn’t require long cardio workout sessions to burn off body fat
• Comes with a 100%, 60 day money back guarantee
• Has many user testimonials of others who have achieved success on the plan

Cons:

• Supplements are promoted throughout the program and while you don’t need to buy them, they are repeatedly mentioned
• You won’t receive any videos of the exercises, so you’ll either have to seek elsewhere for this or learn just from the pictures provided
• The diet plans that he prescribes can be slightly more costly as much of the food is organic or pricier varieties (however you can purchase the cheaper varieties if cost is an issue)
• There isn’t as much community support with this program as there is with others, so you’ll have to go about it on your own

My Commentary

All in all, the Truth About Abs program is a very well structured program that will definitely help you see fat loss if you follow it properly.  The nice thing about the program is that it stresses good nutrition rather than just calorie counting, which I firmly believe is important if you hope to maintain the weight loss over the long run.

The author also does a nice job at dispelling some of the common myths out there about what it takes to get flat abs, so this will be key to learn if you want to see best results.

The workouts are straightforward and are designed to allow any user to utilize them with ease, so I feel this program will work great for most people.

The few people who may not want to use this program are those who want an extremely advanced workout program or those who prefer specific diets such as a very low carb or ketogenic diet.  This program will not cater to those needs, so another program would be a better choice.

In addition to that, those who are following a strict vegetarian diet plan may not want to use this program as meat and fish foods are a main component of the approach. You can of course make substitutions however if you have a good grasp over vegetarian nutrition.

For everyone else though, this is a sound plan that can produce permanent weight loss and teach you healthy habits that you can use for the rest of your life.  As it comes with the 60 day money back guarantee like most online programs do these days, you don’t have much to lose by giving it a try.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

So, I regularly like to browse through popular women’s magazines – Cosmo, Shape, Glamour, Fitness to name just a few becuase as a writer, it’s a great way to spark some new ideas.

Even if I’m reading about beauty, this doesn’t mean I can’t get an idea for a twist on a fitness article of sorts.

Recently, I was reading my copy of Glamour magazine (the January 2011 edition to be exact) when I came across something that really troubled me.

It was an article where the author was speaking on ‘The Truth About Winter Weight Gain’ and they were pointing out to readers that during cold temperatures, your body’s natural hormones may be altered.

Okay… there may be some accuracy here.

But then I came across this line:

“Snack on protein-rich foods like almonds, or have a cup of fiber rich oatmeal for breakfast to keep leptin on the level.”

Woah.  Hold up.

Almonds… protein rich?

If you turn to your favourite calorie counting website, you would come to see that almonds contain all of 6 grams of protein per ounce.  That is along with 164 calories and 14.3 grams of fat. And, this also makes them just a measly 14.6% total protein content.

Now, I’m not saying almonds are not a good food choice to be making – they’re an excellent source of healthy fats.

But, to classify almonds as a protein rich food, that’s a bit of a stretch, in my opinion.  And it’s statements like these that are leading far too many women astray.

To put this into perspective, if you were to try and meet your minimum daily quota for protein from almonds (okay, no one in real life would ever do this, but let’s just say…) and you’re about 150 pounds, this means you would have to consume 4100 calories.

I don’t know about you, but last time I checked, I did not burn 3826 calories per day.  In fact, not even this guy likely burns that many calories (< —- click to see).

If you nosh on almonds to meet your protein requirements, you’re going to be gaining weight.  There’s no way around that one.

While almonds will provide a small amount of protein, there is a far better way to go about accomplishing your protein intake.  Sadly, Glamour is missing the boat on advising you of this.

If you want to meet your protein requirements, you need to eat:

• Chicken breast
• Turkey breast
• Lean red meat
• Low-fat dairy products
• Eggs and egg whites
• Fish
• Seafood
• Whey protein powder

These are the foods that will contain high amounts of protein and will help you meet your requirements without having to consume a massive number of calories each day.

If you ask most women what a ‘protein rich food’ is, many have no idea. Some will even state completely devoid foods – like a banana, as being ‘protein rich’.  This shows just how far their misperception goes.

Memorize the above list.  It’s single-handedly one of the most important things that you could do for your diet success.  All of the above listings are 50% protein or greater (in most cases they come downright close to 100% pure protein).

So what’s my advice to you?

Read glamour. Soak up the beauty info, learn how to please your man, get the details on the latest celebrity gossip, but skip over the fitness stuff.

It’s simply not accurate in many cases and will just lead you astray.  Stick with me and I’ll keep you on track.

Hunger.

If you have ever been on a fat loss diet program before, you know very well what the hunger beast is all about.  You’re restricting your food intake trying to get your body burning off those body fat stores and your body itself is crying out for food.

It’s nagging you.

It’s demanding your full attention.

And, it’s making you think about nothing else other than that box of cookies you know is sitting in the pantry.

For most dieters, they’re perfectly fine going about their diet plan when hunger isn’t in the picture.  They have great will power and are ready to stay on track and see the results that they’re after.

They’re confident.  They’re calm.  They’re collected.

They are going to win the battle of the bulge.

A few hours later, hunger kicks in.

Instantly, they aren’t so confident any more.  Many people make the mistake of chalking up succeeding with a diet to pure will power.  Really, it’s so much more.  Will power is important for saying no to foods that you shouldn’t be eating, but when your body is screaming out for food, even foods that are on your diet list likely look extremely appealing.

It’s not so much that you need cake, candy, or pizza, it’s that you need more food.

But, this is your body’s way of trying to get you to eat more. It doesn’t like the fact you’re not eating enough and it’s out to put a stop to it.

How well you get beyond this will be a key determining factor as to how well you succeed with your weight loss goals.

So, what’s the secret to getting beyond hunger and carrying on with your diet?

Fortunately, small things that you’re doing on a daily basis will influence the degree of hunger you experience, so by getting the right strategies in place, you’ll play the dieting game much more successfully.

Let’s walk you through six things that you can do right now to put a stop to hunger.

Go Low Carb

Can’t stand the thought of going without your morning slice of toast or sitting down to a dinner without a baked potato? If you’re looking to banish hunger, you may want to consider it.

While I don’t agree that you must use a low carb diet to see fat loss, I will agree that low carb diets, by nature, will help you control your hunger level better.

Without carbohydrates coming into the body, you won’t get nearly as large of an insulin response and will keep your blood glucose level on a steady keel.

It’s the sudden drop in blood glucose that really prompts strong hunger pains – and we’re talking about the type of hunger pains that are damn well impossible to push through, so that is what you want to avoid.

Low carb diets accomplish that nicely.

While the thought of giving up those carbs may not be so appealing, if you often fall off your diet due to hunger, you may want to rethink this.  How important is success to you?

Drink Hot Liquids

Another quick and simple tip to help put a stop to hunger in a hurry is to sip on some hot liquids. Herbal tea, or even better, Green tea (since it also helps to boost the metabolism) is especially great for this.

They’re calorie free and will help promote better health over all.  Best of all, they also fill your stomach up, thus reducing hunger in that regard and also heat the body, which is usually another side effect of being hungry – you’re cold.

Hot liquids solve both of these problems fast.

Have A Protein Shake

Think liquids won’t fill you up as much as food? Think again.

Whey protein powder proves to be very satiating to those who consume it before a meal, so much so that it can actually reduce how many calories are consumed during that meal.

One study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition noted that whey protein has the potential to contribute to the regulation of body weight by providing signals that affect both short-term and long-term food intake regulation.

Meaning, using a protein shake during the day can both help you take in fewer calories immediately after consumption as well as fewer calories over the long term.  Just be sure whatever form of protein powder you select to have contains minimal carbs and fats to prevent a higher intake of calories.

Ideally you want to look for a protein powder that contains around 100 calories per scoop and has 22-24 grams of protein per serving.

Move It To Lose It

This hunger busting strategy has two benefits, first, reducing hunger (obviously), and second, burning calories.

Exercise itself can help to decrease your appetite, so next time you’re feeling hungry, get up and go for a walk.  Just keep in mind there are limits to this.

If you’re exercising for hours on end, this can actually increase your hunger level higher, so it may prove to create more of a problem than it solves.

Long endurance cardio sessions tend to be especially bad for bringing about higher levels of hunger, so those are what you’ll want to stay away from.

To have hunger reducing effects, we’re talking about a brisk 10 minute walk at the onset of hunger.

Don’t Neglect All Fats

Have you slashed all the fat from your meal plan?  If so, then it’s time to consider adding it back in.  Fat is the most satisfying nutrient of all three (proteins, carbs, and fats), so it’s important to add in with moderation.

Just do realize that fat contains more calories per gram (9) compared to both protein and carbohydrates (4), so don’t go too crazy with it.

5-7 grams per meal should be sufficient to help calm your hunger and help you stick with your diet plan.  Also make sure that you are choosing the healthiest types of fats to include in the diet such as nuts and seeds, olive oil, fatty fish (which is also a fantastic source of protein as well), and avocado.

Fill Up On Fiber

Finally, the last quick way to calm those nasty hunger pains you’re experiencing on your diet plan is to fill up on fiber.  Fiber slows down the entire digestion process so it’ll easily help you stay satisfied for a longer period of time.

When on a very intense diet, your best bet for taking in fiber will be from vegetable sources as these are what will contain the fewest calories.  You can virtually eat a boat load of vegetables before it’s going to amount to much and make a difference on your diet plan.

When you are eating complex carbohydrates (such as around the workout period), then opt for the high fiber containing varieties such as oats, brown rice, quinoa, bulgur, and sweet potatoes.  Berries and apples are also fiber-winners on the fruit side of things so consider adding those in periodically and in moderation as well.

So there you have it.  6 quick tips to put a stop to hunger fast.  There’s no questioning the fact that hunger can very quickly take you away from seeing the success you desire so it’s time to take control over it and put it in its place.

Do you have any hunger-busting strategies you’d like to share?

Reference:

Akhavan, T. et al. (2007). Whey Proteins in the Regulation of Food Intake and Satiety. Journal Of The American College Of Nutrition.  Vol. 26, No. 6

Want six pack abs?  You’re not alone.  Getting the coveted set of six pack abs (8 pack abs for those of you who are really ambitious) is a feat that many people set out to obtain, but yet very few people ever actually do more forward to see success with.

Why is this so?

What makes getting six pack abs so difficult?

Lots of things.  Evolutionarily speaking, your body was not designed to have full-fledged abdominal definition showing.  This is especially the case if you’re a woman (take note, when it comes to fat loss, women almost always get the raw end of the deal).

If you want to actually see success and rip off that T-shirt come beach season to show off a chiselled set of abdominal muscles you are going to have work.  And work hard at that.

Sure, there will be a slim few of you who naturally just have abs (and the rest of us hate you immensely), but for the vast majority of the population, six pack abs does not come easily.

Let’s have a look at why this is so you can brace yourself for what’s to come.

A Falling Metabolism

The very first battle you’re going to have to fight on the road to six pack abs is with your own body.  Your body doesn’t especially want you to be very lean.  To it, fat is its source of survival.  Without it, you’d die.

Any time you threaten your body’s survival by trying to diet down to very lean levels, you can place your best bet that it’s going to fight back.

Believe me, you do not want to be in a fight with your body.

As the body recognizes the fact that there is so few calories coming in and most often there is a larger energy expenditure going out (as you, the ab fanatic are doing workout after workout after workout), it’s going to take action.

More specifically, it’s going to start to conserve fuel.  The fewer calories it burns on a daily basis, the longer that fat storage is going to last.  It only makes sense, right?

Remember, your body doesn’t have the same goals as you do.  While you strive to fit into your pair of skinny jeans or don ripped abs on the beach, your body is much more concerned with staying alive.  It’s going to start to do everything it can to hold onto your body fat stores so that you’re not risking, well, death.  Take your body fat levels too low and it would be fatal (they don’t call it essential fat for nothing).

So the first problem you’ll encounter is a metabolic rate that’s running on s-l-o-w speed.  It’s crawling along barely burning any calories during the day and your fat loss has come to a halt.

Insane Hunger Levels

Problem number two that you’ll encounter is hunger.  Most people who are relatively lean already are pretty well versed on the hunger issue.

Start cutting your food and hunger is inevitable.  Especially when you start removing both carbs and fats and are eating a strictly protein and vegetable based diet. You will simply not have any preferred source of fuel to run off of.

Your body, with its main goal of survival in mind, is going to try and get you to eat.  It does this by ramping up hunger levels to the extreme.

To be successful in the quest for abs, you need to:

1. Find a way to tolerate and push through this hunger (some people can do this incredibly well….others…not so much – the pantry is where they head)
2. Use specific food, exercise, and supplement techniques to decrease hunger levels

Preferably you’ll use a combination of both.  If you are unable to get hunger under control however, it’s going to be mighty difficult to maintain your reduced calorie diet and that is a must to be successful with the goal to get 6 pack abs.

Bloating

Moving on we come to our next hurdle,  bloat.  While this hurdle isn’t related to fat loss per say, it sure can be damn annoying.

You wake up looking leaner than ever and by evening, all abdominal definition has vanished.

Or, it may be opposite.  You go to bed looking lean and wake up looking smooth in the midsection.

Each of these scenarios happens for different reasons.  The first scenario is due to the incoming food and fluid intake throughout the day, which causes bloating to occur (food does take up space, after all).

The second scenario is likely do to a meal very high in sodium the evening prior which caused you to wake up retaining water weight.  In some cases it may not be sodium, it could be a food that you’re especially sensitive to (many people have issues with dairy, gluten, or artificial sweeteners and get this effect).

Any way you slice it, this bloat is reducing the image of 6 pack abs and is going to prove to be quite frustrating.

Fortunately, it doesn’t represent a real set-back since it’s not actual body fat, but nevertheless, it can get you down.

Learning how to effectively deal with bloating is your best bet to overcome this hurdle.

Motivation

Forth up we have your motivation level.  Simply put, your ab fat is most likely going to be the last fat that you lose on your body.

As the saying goes, ‘first to come on, last to leave’. You’ll notice that you seem to get lean everywhere else except your abs before you see any muscle definition coming through.

In some women, they may be very, very lean in their upper bodies yet still not showing six pack abs.

The reason for this is that abdominal fat is especially stubborn and is much harder to move off the body than fat elsewhere.

In males, lower back fat is similar (so you’ll be stuck with ab fat and back fat), while in females, hip and thigh fat reacts the same way.  For females, it is very, very difficult to remove lower body and lower abdominal fat.

Unless you’re using advanced protocols to remove stubborn body fat, this will definitely put a halt to your progress.

Your Genetics

Finally, last but not least, the remaining hurdle that you could face is your genetics.  With this, we’re speaking more about the shape of the abdominal muscles.

Most people who are seeking this goal have a very specific image of what they want their body to look like.  They’ve seen models on the covers of magazines with abs and they want to look just like that.

They put in the hard work, maintain their diet, and get down to low body fat levels.

But, much to their dismay, they look nothing like their ‘ideal’.

The reason for this is simply the shape and structure of their abdominal region. Remember, everyone is built differently so your abdominal muscles may be larger, smaller, or just laid out much differently than that cover model you had your eyes on.

This, unfortunately, is something that you’re just going to have to accept.  Since abdominal muscle structure is determined at birth, there’s not a whole lot you can do to change this.

Instead, focus on just getting leaner and getting your definition in place.  That’s all you can do to overcome this hurdle.

So there you have five main hurdles you’ll face when going after the goal to get six pack abs.  With enough determination, focus, and persistency, you can realize success with this goal, but you must be prepared for the battle ahead.

So you’re looking to lose fat.  Great – that makes you and hundreds of other people out there who are trying to win the battle of the bulge.

But, are you like the hundreds of other people who make the following vital mistake as they go about their fat loss goals?

As soon as someone sets the goal that they want to incinerate body fat, the first thing they think is, ‘I gotta burn calories’.

After all, it’s the basic equation of calories in versus calories out that will determine whether fat loss takes place.  Sure, there are some other factors that do go into the mix that will establish how quickly you lose weight and whether or not the weight is fat (good) or muscle (bad), but overall, that’s the bottom line.

Eat more than you burn and you’re facing an uphill battle.

Burn more than you eat and  B-I-N-G-O, you’re on the road to success.

This thought process is precisely what leads them into the biggest fat loss mistake that so many people make today.

What’s the mistake?

High rep training.

Let me explain.

The Premise Of High Rep Training For Fat Loss

As soon as you get into the ‘burn-baby-burn’ mindset in hopes of shedding that stubborn layer of body fat, two things often happen.

• You decrease your calorie intake significantly.  The less food coming in, typically the faster you’ll lose weight.
• You increase your activity level dramatically.  The more calories you burn, the faster you’ll lose weight.

Seems like it would make sense, right?

The problem here is that in doing so, you’re sending your body into shock.  The simultaneous slash to your food intake and ramp up of your exercise levels essentially cause it to think a famine is at play. You’re starving and you’re asking your body to complete hours and hours of exercise – both cardio and weight lifting.

Trouble is around the corner.

The high rep protocol comes in as people start to think that this is a very fast way to burn extra calories.  If you do 6 reps, 10 reps must be better.

In addition to upping the reps, often the sets get increased as well.  Whereas you used to do 3 sets for bench press, now you’re doing five.  You want to maximize the fat loss that session produces.

Due to the fact that you are increasing the reps along with the sets, it only stands to reason that the weight must come down.  Something has to give and there is an inverse relationship between total weight lifted and sets performed.

This is normal and natural – and, there’s no way of getting around it.

So what used to be a full body workout session that looked like this:

Bench Press – 3 sets of 8 reps
Squats – 3 sets of 8 reps
Barbell rows – 3 sets of 8 reps
Shoulder Press – 3 sets of 8 reps
Lunges – 2 sets of 10 reps
Bicep curls – 2 sets of 10 reps
Tricep Extensions – 2 sets of 10 reps
Calf Raises – 2 sets of 10 reps

Now becomes this:

Bench Press – 5 sets of 12 reps
Squats – 5 sets of 10 reps
Barbell rows – 5 sets of 12 reps
Shoulder Press – 4 sets of 12 reps
Lunges – 3 sets of 20 reps
Leg Extension – 3 sets of 15 reps
Hamstring Curl – 3 sets of 15 reps
Bicep curls – 2 sets of 20 reps
Tricep Extensions – 2 sets of 20 reps
Lateral Raises – 2 sets of 20 reps
Front raises – 2 sets of 20 reps
Calf Raises – 2 sets of 10 reps

I’m tired just looking at that.   But yet, for those doing full body workouts trying to lose fat, this is often what their routine will consist of.  Or, they may decide a body part split is more appropriate so that they can lift weights six (yes, you read that right, six) days per week.  That is not appropriate.

The Problem With High-Rep, High Volume Training

To help you understand why this is such a vital mistake when seeking fat loss, I want you to think for a second what the three main requirements are to build muscle.

They are:

• An overloading stimulus, usually in the form of more weight.
• Sufficient rest to allow for the recovery process to take place (keep in mind more work performed will demand longer rest periods)
• An abundance of calories to support the growth process.

Most people have a fairly good grasp over this.  Basically, lift heavy, rest, eat, and grow.

Now for fat loss, #3 is obviously removed.  There’s no way of eating more than you burn if you hope to lose fat off your body.  It’s just not gonna happen.

Wouldn’t it now stand to reason that the exact things that built that muscle in the first place are also the things that will help you maintain that muscle mass?

And, isn’t the goal when dieting to maintain as much muscle mass as possible so that you’re losing just fat mass, not muscle?  After all, your muscle tissue is what gives you that definition you seek and what also burns the most calories at rest so you can maintain an elevated metabolic rate.

So why would you do something that caused you to lighten how much weight you were lifting?  All you’re going to do is end up looking like this guy…  

Without that overloading stimulus, what reason are you giving your muscles to maintain themselves?

In your body’s eye’s, all it sees is that it doesn’t need to be as strong to perform the work you’re asking of it, therefore it’s going to get rid of the most costly tissue to maintain – that muscle.

When dieting, your body wants to get rid of muscle.  If it had its preference, it would hold onto fat and burn only muscle.  Fat is what keeps it alive.  Fat is it’s storage of energy for survival.  Your muscle mass is just burning up precious calories that you’re going to replace with your food intake.

So by shifting to the higher rep protocol, you’re basically sending the message to the body that it can reduce the amount of muscle it has since it won’t be required to lift as heavy of loads.

Is that what you’re going for?

Now, there can be a time and place for higher rep training.  Depletion workouts can be beneficial for fat loss purposes but that’s a whole other topic for another day. Some higher rep training can sometimes be used for isolation exercises as well at the end of the workout, but then one could argue over the fact as to why are you doing isolation exercises in the first place when your recovery is limited?

When dieting, volume needs to come down.  You are taking in less fuel than your body would like to be and therefore it has fewer resources to recover with.

Why would you increase the volume putting more stress on the body that it then has to deal with?

Again, it’s just a bad move.

So what’s the solution to avoid this common workout mistake that’s really sacrificing your results when facing fat loss?

Maintain your heavy weight lifting exercises and used a reduced volume protocol.  Basically, do the opposite of what your natural instincts tell you (if you’re 75% of the population out there).

That is what will get you results.