Zero Carb Day and I need to work on my Posing....

By: Alex Liska

Hey guys,
Thanks for stopping by to check my latest update on my journey to my next show.... 
Soooo the last time I checked the Canada Naturals was supposed to be on April 23, 2011. However I checked the OPA website yesterday and it says the next Naturals show is April 30, 2011 in Ottawa, now i'm confused...LOL... either way the journey shall continue!!! :) As you may know, i was training with Team O'Brien (Mindi and Dennis) for my last show (the Ontario Naturals) and they were awesome! The weight training programs were so intense, and i learned so much about nutrition and fitness from them!

Unfortunately this year with dieting costs and so many curve-balls that seemed to come flying at me from every direction I didn't have the funds to continue my training and afford my diet :( so i have been training myself and writing my own diets for the past month. 
Over the years, being in the fitness industry, working in gyms as a personal trainer and nutrition coach I have learned SO much about sports nutrition it is UNBELIEVABLE, so I've taken everything i learned and created my own diets and workout programs... So far everything seems to be going quite smooth...
I'm following a really neat approach when it comes to dieting, my body is responding quite well to it. I eat low-carb (under 50gr. per day) for 4 days, on the 5th day (my off-day from the gym) i have ZERO carbs..then on the 6th day i have complex carbs and some fruit with 3-4 of my meals (a carb re-feed) then i go back to low-carb for the next 4 days and the cycle continues! I've ditched the egg-whites and other stereotypical diet foods that were making me go broke and replaced them with tons of whole foods (eggs/avocados/nuts/fish/flaxseeds/cocoa powder etc...) that are more cost effective and they work well for my body type:)
I am not using much supplements, aside from whey protein (no more than a scoop a day 3-4 times a week) and I am still taking O3mega Extra Strength capsules from 'Genuine Health' these are by far the best fish oil supplement i've tried up to date. All i need is 2-3 capsules daily with my breakfast and i'm set for the day!!! I'm taking a multivitamin and 1 500mg Spirulina capsule. Here is a sample meal plan on one of my low-carb days:
Meal 1:
-Protein Shake (berries, essential fats/flaxseeds/flaxseed oil, Greens+, 1 scoop whey isolate, cocoa powder, ice and water)
-Green tea or blk coffee


-2-3 "O3mega Extra Strength Capsules"
-1 Spirulina (500mg)
-1 Multivitamin


Meal 2:
-eggs
-blk coffee


Meal 3:
-Tuna and hardboiled eggs
-Broccoli/cabbage or other greens
-flaxseed oil
-grapefruit or berries


Meal 4:
-white fish or chicken
-1 cup mixed green veggies
-walnut oil
-almonds


Meal 5:
-Extra large green salad
-tomatoes, cucumber, celery, mushrooms
-tuna or chicken with hardboiled eggs
-flaxseed or walnut oil
-grapefruit or berries


Meal 6:
-eggs or more fish
-1/3 cup greens
-nuts/seeds
If i'm still hungry or up late for whatever reason I'll have a Meal 7 which is usually eggs or a handful of mixed nuts or just a tablespoon of peanut butter and then i go to bed :)

Since I'm training on my own now i really have to push myself HARD at the gym, one of the benefits of having a coach was knowing that as long as i followed everything on my programs i was on the right track... Now i never seem to think i trained hard enough... I always do an extra set of each exercise or add in more H.I.I.T. cardio just to be on the safe side. i'm still doing just 20-30min of intense cardio and plyometrics 4-5 days a week. I don't wanna start the slow, steady state fat burn cardio until right before my show, cause i dont want my body to adapt to it. If i do too much cardio now by the last 3 weeks prior to my show i'll have to do like 2-3 hours a day...LOL yuck!! Plus, H.I.I.T cardio works more effectively at elevating your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate), your body adjusts too easily to steady state long-duration cardio...

And as you can probably tell by my latest posing video clips, i REALLY need posing practice :( luckily i still have over 2mths to prep for my next show *phew* .... So i will be doing posing practice every day!!!!

Anyhow, I will be keeping you all posted on here, as my transformation journey continues :))
I would also like to thank my friend Fern Assard (Ms. Fit Fern) for providing me with an awesome diet consult via Facebook and giving me some really useful tips when it comes to 'Carb Cycling' :)


Thanks for stopping by my site,
xoxo,

Alex L.:)

Plateau-Breaking “EVERY MINUTE COUNTS” PLYO-Workout

By: Alex Liska

Thanks for stopping by my site to check out my latest workout. The reason I say “EVERY MINUTE COUNTS” is because this workout can be quite challenging at first but even if you stop after 5-10 minutes, it’s enough to provide you with a great caloric burn, increase in energy and speed up your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate).  The complete workout was actually 60min. but I will only be posting the first 20-25 on here as a sample.

Here’s the workout:

TREADMILL/SKIPPING ROPE (REPEAT THIS CIRCUIT TWICE (10-15min.)

·      -Warm up for 5 min. brisk walking (3.8-4.5mph)

·         -Run for 1 min. and sprint as fast as  you can for 2min. (7.5-9.0mph)

·         -Perform 50 Jump squats (stationary)

·         -Skip for 5min. (timed)

STSTEPMILL/BIKE (15min.)

·     -2min. on the stepmill (1^st minute @Level 10-12, 2^nd minute walking backwards holding onto handles @Level 8-10)

·        -3min. on stationary bike (intervals) – Level 10-12

·        -3min. on the stepmill (1^st minute @Level 8-10 walking backwards holding onto handles, 2^nd minute @Level 10-12 walking forward & 3^rd minute walking side-ways (hold onto handles for safety) @Level 8-10.

·         -2 min. on stationary bike (intervals) – Level 10-12

·         -3min. on the stepmill (1^st minute @Level 8-10 walking backwards holding onto handles, 2^nd minute @Level 10-12 walking forward & 3^rd minute walking side-ways (hold onto handles for safety) @Level 8-10.

·         -2min. on stationary bike (intervals) – Level 10-12

COOLDOWN BY SPEEDWALKING ON THE TREADMILL FOR 5MIN. 

So that’s part of the workout, what you can do is break it up into 2 workouts if you’re a beginner, do the Treadmill/Skipping portion on DAY1 and the Stepmill/Bike Portion on DAY 2…

ENJOY!!!

xoxo

-Alex L.:)