Let me clear things up: You don't need any fancy stuff to get a proper workout in. However, small changes can make a big impact.


The best workout equipment you actually need! 

There is so much talking out there about what you need and don't need for a
proper workout. Let me clear things up: You don't need any fancy stuff to get a
proper workout in.

However, small changes can make a big impact. There are some pieces, which are
nice to have and amplify the effectiveness of exercises.

Over the years I've tried a ton of products and I know what works and what
doesn't. So let me share with you my recommendations, which will save you money,
time and injuries.

Think twice about
Before I get into my favourites, let me explain why you should think twice about
buying a waist trainer or lifting belt.

Waist trainer
There is not a single piece of evidence to support the idea that your body can
be moulded into the desired shape using a waist trainer.

The most common marketing statement from companies looks something like this:
"Waist trainers will help you to lose fat from your waist, metabolise fat,
release toxins, compress your core and reduce food intake throughout the day."

NONSENSE! You'll only lose water weight. NOT fat!

Do you think you get slimmer legs by wearing super tight pants? No. Same with
waist trainers. You will definitely not lose fat or lose fat faster by wearing
them.

You might lose some weight (but sure as hell no body fat), but the reason behind
that isn't magical:

Wearing a waist trainer makes you sweat more. Hence, you lose water weight.

You can save the money and achieve real fat loss in a cheaper way: proper
dieting and a good workout routine.

Lifting Belts
If you can answer one of the following questions with "yes", you could think
about buying/using a lifting belt:

 * do you have a back/spine/core injury?
 * do you bench press at least 1.5x your body weight?
 * do you squat at least 2x your body weight?
 * do you deadlift at least 2x your body weight?

None of the above? Then you most likely don't need a belt!

A lifting belt can increase strength and reduce risk of injury by increasing
intraabdominal pressure. Basically, because you're able to push your abs against
the belt, you have more pressure and therefore more stability in your core
section. Which then, in turn, can improve performance and decrease injury risk.

And that's where most people get a belt wrong: they either use it to compensate
a bad form or don't use it correctly, because they wear it way too lightly. A
lifting belt has to sit very tightly around your midsection. If you can walk
around with it after your set, you're doing it wrong. You have to be able to
push your core against the belt. If you wear it like a fanny bag, it's useless.

But why the specific questions above? If you have an injury, a belt can be a
good idea to take load off your back, spine and core. And it can also help with
strength if you're already very strong and you're reaching your body's limit. In
that case, you can go beyond your limit by using a belt.

If you're not even remotely close to your limit, which is the case for 99.9% of
gym rats out there, you're not doing yourself a favour. You use your core less
during workouts and therefore build less muscle mass in that area.

Essentials what you should have in your gym bag
1. Blender Bottle [http://amzn.to/2iXOo44] - The best water bottle


Good hydration is the most important thing during a workout. Skip on sugary,
calorie-loaded sports beverages and go for plain or fruit-infused water.

It's best to get a refillable, resealable water bottle, which is good to carry
around and easy to clean.

I personally love the BlenderBottle, because you can use it for lots of
different drink and shakes, such as fruit drinks, smoothies, yoghurt, etc. You
can also mix thick textures such as peanut butter or ice cream without a
problem.

Sometimes I use it in the kitchen when creating gravy, omelette or pudding
mixtures. It really is an "all-in-one" solution bottle.

If you're looking for a bottle, the BlenderBottle is a must-have. Trust me, I
tried out all kinds of different bottles.

2. Good quality fitness apparel


If you’re looking for affordable gym clothes with superb quality, look no
further!

Echt Apparel it is [https://echt.com.au/]. No, I’m not sponsored by them (I
would love to ;)), I'm just in love with their quality and price.

I tried them all: Nike, Gymshark, Adidas, Myprotein, Primark, H&M... but nothing
was as good as Echt-clothes. If you follow me on Instagram, you always see me
wearing Echt leggings and tops. They're simply amazing.

Don’t be put off by their location. They offer a worldwide flat rate shipping.
Thank me later!

3. Mpow Cheetah [http://amzn.to/2AemSH9] - Good quality Bluetooth headphones


I don't know about you, but for me, good music makes the difference between a
good workout and a fantastic workout.

Some people might feel it distracting, but I feel more in the zone as I can tune
out what's happening in the gym.

I tried out a few brands, such as Sony and Bose. But the MPow Cheetah's are the
absolute best.

They are absolutely affordable and super handy. You're getting the quality of a
£100 pair of headphones for a fraction of the cost.

4. Converse [http://amzn.to/2iXT7mk] - A good workout shoe


Some people wear running shoes when lifting weights. I mean, come on! They are
called running shoes for a reason. Wearing the wrong shoes makes the whole thing
much more difficult than it needs to be.

How? It creates an inherently unstable structure for a lift. Instead, wear shoes
with a harder, flat sole (I love to squat in Chucks) with a little arch and
ankle support.

5. Habinger workout gloves for Men [http://amzn.to/2iZwvlk] and Women
[http://amzn.to/2iZw62i]


No, gloves are not just for girls. Maybe you're just like me and tired of open
calluses while deadlifting.

Habinger's are simply the best. They are extremely durable and comfortable at
the same time. My husband lifts very heavy and it took quite some time before we
started to see some signs of wear.

Furthermore, what I experienced is they give you a good wrist stability, which
is pretty nice for heavy exercises such as bench press, dumbbell press or
military press.

6. Lifting straps [http://amzn.to/2k1E0F3]


I agree that it's important to build your grip strength than only rely on
straps. However, for me as a woman, it's nice to see how heavy you can go, but
my grip is not strong enough to hold a 100kg deadlift.

If you have trouble going heavy on certain exercises due to grip failure, too,
you should give straps a go.

Mind, let your grip break down before you strap. This way you'll build your grip
strength while being able to lift heavier. Also, look for straps which don't get
loose while lifting or are overly tricky to wrap tightly.

9. Myprotein Muscle Foam Roller [http://amzn.to/2AXdwyN]


If you never tried out a foam roller, you're missing out on one of the best
tools for recovering and injury prevention.

Rollers are the most popular mechanism for self-myofascial release. Rolling
yourself out on a foam roller is an affordable alternative to massage therapy.

You don't even need to work out regularly to get the benefits of foam rolling.
Simply use the roller during a commercial break to release some tense muscle.

What do you think about my gym essentials? If you have anything to add to the
list, please let me know in the comments below!

BTW, this blog post is not sponsored

The best workout equipment you actually need! - 9 things to always keep in your gym bag

We take something good and - in an effort to get greater, better and faster results - design a much extremer version of it.

The truth about extreme dieting

It must be in our DNA, but most of the time when trying become healthier or more
successful, it has to be in an extreme way. Such as "I don't eat any carbs for
the next month" [/carbohydrate-myths/], and then right after the 30 days, we
swing back to the other extreme, where carbs are eaten in excess. There is no in
between.

We take something good and - in an effort to get better and faster results -
design a much extremer version of it. Losing sight of what made it a good idea
in the first place.

We like these extreme rules, because they are simple to understand
[/one-size-fits-all-diets/], so we don't have to think about anything. We don't
have to actually learn how food affects our bodies or which kind of exercise has
which benefits. But being on such an extreme diet can have several negative
effects on your body and mind.

Be wary of extremes
Restriction and deprivation most often lead straight to the opposite we want to
achieve. Meaning binging, frustration, unhealthy substitutes and
overcompensation [/break-free-from-binge-eating/].

What is meant to make you feel great about yourself is now twisted into a
restricted diet, which is more stifling than rewarding
[/the-clean-eating-trend/].

Extreme diets


I know that losing weight isn't always the easiest. However, it is definitely
not rocket science [/truth-about-body-fat-reduction/]! And I understand why
people are constantly looking for quick fixes.

But please, do yourself a favour and stop googling for "fast weight loss diets"
or "how to lose weight in 3 days". You didn't put that extra weight on in 3
days, so you aren't able to lose it in 3 days. Look for more sustainable ways to
live healthier and to lose weight by making healthier decisions. This shouldn't
be a change that lasts for about 3 weeks or so and then you go back to your old
habits.

Incorporate more healthy habits into your lifestyle on a weekly basis. Even baby
steps are steps in the right direction.

Start by taking a walk every day for half an hour. Fill your fridge with more
veggies, cut out processed food, eat out only 2 times per month, start meal
prepping, try weightlifting. It's really not that complicated, especially if you
incorporate new habits step by step.

How can you determine if a new diet on the market is just another fad?
[/give-up-on-fads/] Here are a few tips:

 * The diet forces you to intensely cut back calories and/or cut out entire food
   groups
 * You're only allowed to eat certain foods with very specific instructions
 * Most of the foods you're allowed to eat, are expensive "superfoods", bars,
   meal replacement drinks, powders and similar non-food items
 * The product related to the fad or the fad itself is endorsed by a celebrity
   or self-proclaimed "health or fitness guru"
 * The diet claims it's better than all the others
 * The diet claims it's "new"
 * The diet claims it works for everyone

Generally speaking, every diet program that promises a weight loss of more than
5 lbs (2 kg) per week, every week, is utter nonsense! Why? It's almost
impossible - unless you weight A LOT - to lose so much fat every week. Nor is it
healthy.

What might work in the short term doesn't translate to long-term success, good
health and mental wellbeing.

See, fad diets just don't work in the long run. They come and go as quickly as
the new #1 hit in the charts. The truth is, they don't teach you how to change
your relationship to food, which most likely led to your fat storages in the
first place.

Do you want to solve the problem, or merely fix the symptoms? Just fixing the
symptoms usually means you're going to have to deal with the problem again a
little bit further down the road.

Extreme exercise


Being fit is good. I absolutely love lifting weights
[/benefits-of-weightlifting/]. It improves my mood, helped me develop my own
personality and strengthens my mind.

However, exercising is supposed to make you feel great about yourself and teach
you what your body is capable of. Often times though, it is used as a
punishment, for when the diet wasn't on point or you want to fix your "flaws"
[/ultimate-guide-to-imperfection/].

Let me be completely clear here: Exercise should never be used as a punishment
or to make up for a bad diet. You can't outrun a bad diet anyway!

Remember, too much of anything isn't healthy [/how-much-cardio-is-healthy/].
Listen to your body, it tells you when something is not right.

Extreme self-improvement

Never ever try to look better to meet society's impossible standards of beauty.
You already are beautiful! Do it for a healthier lifestyle, do it for a better
quality of life, do it to reach your full potential. Especially when it comes to
physical appearance, your flaws might not actually be flaws.

Perfection is a myth. It doesn't exist in the real world and it certainly
doesn't exist in human appearance. If you ask me, imperfections are much more
attractive.

Magazine editors know, to make a sale, they only have to play with our doubts or
create new ones, making us think we have "problems" that don't really exist.
Every part of the body is picked apart and scrutinised, with most articles
telling us outright which products we should buy to fix – or at least camouflage
– our numerous "flaws".

In other words, you are not a failure for not having a thigh gap, abs or a
bigger biceps [/the-sad-state-of-the-fitness-industry/]. We all struggle and
suffer from self-doubt from time to time, but you should never let something as
little as a "flaw" be the reason not to: smile, wear your favourite clothes or
enjoy the day.

Stop letting the mirror, magazines or other people's dumb comments dictate how
you perceive yourself. Especially on the internet, where everyone has an
opinion, because it's anonymous.

Don't get me wrong, becoming a better human being and aiming to live life to the
fullest is perfect. But don't allow that pursuit to consume every thought. The
"average" can be satisfying, too. We need to stop trying to force "perfect"
things in life, when things are perfect the way they are.

Bottom line
Improvement is hard work and not everybody is willing to work hard. So it's no
surprise that people look for extremes to reach their goal faster. However,
these methods don't offer any real long-term success. Balance and moderation is
the key to a healthy, fulfilling life. Remember, if you can't enjoy it, you
can't stick to it [https://www.slickcoach.com/].

Why good things get destroyed when taken to extremes - The truth about extreme dieting

Should you use a weight lifting belt and if so, how do you properly use it, to improve performance in the gym?

Do you need a lifting belt?

Ah, supplements and workout gear. The two areas where gym rats like to spend
huge amounts of money without seeing any results.

But before I drift off and rant about testosterone booster, fat burner, BCAAs
and others, let's focus on lifting belts.

In some gyms it's almost like a fashion statement to wear a lifting belt. People
who barely squat or deadlift their own body weight wrap belts around their core.
Even for warm up sets.

And just by the way they wear the belt (or even the type of belt itself), you
can tell they don't even know what the belt is good for and how it works.

So before I go through each of these points separately, let me give you a quick
decision shortcut:

Short version
If you can answer one of the following questions with "yes", you could think
about buying/using a lifting belt:

 * do you have a back/spine/core injury?
 * do you bench press at least 1.5x your body weight?
 * do you squat at least 2x your body weight?
 * do you deadlift at least 2x your body weight?

None of the above? Then you most likely don't need a belt!

Long version


What a lifting belt is used for and how
A lifting belt can increase strength and reduce risk of injury by increasing
intraabdominal pressure. Basically, because you're able to push your abs against
the belt, you have more pressure and therefore more stability in your core
section. Which then in turn can improve performance and decrease injury risk.

And that's where most people get a belt wrong: they either use it to compensate
a bad form or don't use it correctly, because they wear it way too lightly. A
lifting belt has to sit very tightly around your midsection. If you can walk
around with it after your set, you're doing it wrong. You have to be able to
push your core against the belt. If you wear it like a fanny bag, it's useless.

But why the specific questions above? If you have an injury, a belt can be a
good idea to take load off your back, spine and core. And it can also help with
strength, if you're already very strong and you're reaching your body's limit.
In that case, you can go beyond your limit by using a belt.

If you're not even remotely close to your limit, which is the case for 99.9% of
gym rats out there, you're not doing yourself a favour. You use your core less
during workouts and therefore build less muscle mass in that area.

And guess what, the reason you have abs, is to stabilise your body, so use them
for that! They are not there, so you have a visible six pack
[/why-your-abs-arent-showing/]. That's just a side effect.

If you prematurely use a belt, you'll limit yourself in terms of muscle growth
and you'll always need a belt, even for light weights, because your core is
underdeveloped. And then I even see people doing crunches, because they want
more abdominal muscle. Just don't use a belt for squats and deadlifts, mate!

But how do you get it tight? The most common way is to pull in your stomach in a
bit and close the belt rather tightly. When you release your stomach, the belt
will fit very tight. Don't overdo it though. You still have to be able to breath
and bend enough to perform the actual exercise.

In the beginning leather belts are a little bit harder and might feel
uncomfortable. Use it for a few workouts and it will get better!

Which belt should you buy?
Alright, so now that you know if you really need one and you still think it
would be a good idea, which one should you buy?

Fairly simple actually. You want a high quality belt that is rather thick and
sturdy. The flexible ones are plain nonsense. You might as well just wrap a
piece of foil around your core and save some money.

A decent belt should be roughly 9mm thick, have a very strong buckle, around
4"/10cm wide and made out of leather.

A good starting point is any belt that looks like this:



Or if you prefer a different buckle, like this:



The weight lifting belts from RDX [http://amzn.to/2uI5T9M] bring a great value
for the price, if you want a specific recommendation.

Conclusion
Most people don't need a weight lifting belt and would be better off, and have
better results, by spending their money on good, solid food
[https://slickcoach.teachable.com/].

So unless you're in one of the aforementioned groups, don't even think about a
belt, even when you see tons of weak people in the gym running around with one.

If they'd know what they are doing, they wouldn't be as weak as they are!

Learn from the guys/gals that look like they know a thing or two AND can explain
it. If they can't explain it, run, because they most likely only look this way
because of their genetics or pure luck. Keep that in mind.

And hey, if you're not strong enough yet, but still want a belt - just get
stronger and you can legitimately use one ;)

Happy lifting!

Everyone who has at least some very basic knowledge of nutrition and weight
lifting knows, that the media is often times misleading, poorly researched (if
at all) or sometimes just downright lying when it comes to those topics. Hunting
for views and reads rather than educating their audience.

The German ‘newspaper’ Zeit lately published such an article. You can find a
Google-translated version here
[https://translate.google.co.uk/translate?sl=de&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.zeit.de%2F2016%2F49%2Fmuskelaufbau-praeparate-gefahren-internet-werbung-social-media&edit-text=]
. In this post I want to address a few of their claims and straighten things
out, so you know the whole picture. This is relevant beyond the Zeit article of
course and suits as a general guidance.

Whey is garbage
Well, of course whey protein is a byproduct of cheese manufacturing. Which makes
it, on a protein-per-dollar-basis, one of the cheapest proteins to buy while
also being very high in important amino acids like Leucine. Only legumes are
cheaper, but have a worse amino acid profile on their own.

So in my opinion it’s nice that we have a very good protein source that is cheap
because it’s a byproduct, rather than relying on more expensive options — after
all protein is by far the most expensive macro nutrient
[/the-basics-what-are-macros-and-micros].

Plus, if you don’t like whey or you are lactose intolerant, there are plenty of
vegan options available as well, mainly rice, pea and soy protein powder.

Lastly to wrap this point up: of course you don’t need whey or any other protein
powder to be healthy and grow muscle. But it tastes nice and is cheap, so why
not. And by the way: whey is actually considered a food, rather than a
supplement. Or would you say cheese is a supplement as well?

Whey is for bodybuilder
To make this one short: as explained in the above paragraph, whey is cheap and
therefore even more interesting for ‘normal’ people who just want to consume
more protein and generally don’t spend a lot of money on food (e.g. students).

Most people eat not enough protein to be even healthy, especially on weight loss
diets. Latest studies show that the current daily recommendation for protein
might be as much as half of what is actually healthy. Unfortunately, laws take a
long time to be changed.

So no, everyone can benefit from whey.

Boosters are evil
First things first: if you are not training very serious, but rather just to be
a bit more healthy and fit: you do not need a booster, period.

However, if you think you need one: it’s true, there are some shady ones out
there, unless you live in Europe where supplements are quite regulated.

Caffeine being the main ingredient, the Zeit says 3g have the same amount of
caffeine as 14 cups of coffee. Obviously stupid.

But let’s put the Zeit’s claims to the test:

One cup of coffee has on average 80mg caffeine. Most people will actually have
more in there because the ‘real average coffee’ is stronger than that. Who brews
a weak coffee on purpose, right?!

But let’s cut them some slack. This means 3g of booster would have to have 1.1g
of pure caffeine per 3g in order to contain 14 cups’ worth. Which would not be
allowed in any regulated market, not even the States. Plus the manufacturer
would have a time hard to squeeze more ingredients in there, if more than a
third is taken by caffeine already…

The booster they target in particular (Tunnelblick) does have a lot of caffeine
indeed. Pretty much every booster has less, often just half. But again, let’s
give them the benefit of the doubt and check the facts:

Tunnelblick is produced in Germany which means it’s super regulated and the
label is very likely correct. The label states 400mg of caffeine per 18g! Yes
that’s 5 ‘cups’ of coffee per shot, a lot, but not even close to 14.

Furthermore, 18g is the maximum dose. Most people should take half of it (which
is one scoop or 2.5 cups of coffee/200mg caffeine). Guess what else has 200mg of
caffeine? Starbuck’s cold brew. Just saying…

Now I get the point, it’s dangerous if a 16 years old spaghetti boy takes 4
scoops. But he might as well drink 10 cups of coffee and 10 cans of Red Bull and
would be worse off. Are those not as bad? Plus, since there’s a label, you
actually know how much caffeine is in there. Not so with coffee!

Booster was illegal and taken down
True, Tunnelblick was taken off the market because of a certain ingredient. So
were other products. But the ingredient was made illegal after the product was
already on the market. That’s a huge difference. Plus in most other countries,
this ingredient is still fine to include. And it’s not like you’d actually
become ill from it. But the media likes to exaggerate, doesn’t it.

The industry can just ‘put together’ powders as they wish
Nope, not really. The market is quite regulated in Europe. Remember that time
your local supermarket had to throw away food products because the manufacturer
found out that a particular batch of something had pieces of metal or other
potentially deadly things in there?

Happens all the time. But nobody writes about it much, because it’s not a sub
culture and the big food corps don’t like it, when papers write about them. Not
to mention your local kebab shop with rats in the kitchen :)

Some products have dangerous ingredients
Again, in Europe not a problem. If you live in the US and really want to buy
something like a booster, just go with the highly rated products and buy them
directly from the manufacturer’s websites if possible. If you buy a supplement
or protein powder from a local store or GNC, it will be much more expensive or
have the same price with less useful ingredients.

Creatine is bad for your kidneys
Jesus fucking christ. Creatine is by far the most researched supplement of the
last 20 years. It’s freaking safe! People are taking it for decades without
issues.

Yes, too much creatine in your blood means you very likely have a kidney issue.
But what people miss is the concentration. The difference between taking
creatine and having a real kidney problem is literally 10x!

By the way, guess what, red meat has creatine in it as well! Just 2 pounds of
steak or fish have the same amount of creatine as a supplement would have (BBQ
anyone?). Didn’t say anything about that, did they?

And for the people who want to build muscle: yes, creatine helps you build
muscle faster, but just very little. It’s not like taking steroids! You might
notice a very small difference. But maybe not. Furthermore, some people are
non-responders and creatine just does nothing for them. Keep that in mind. Don’t
expect to grow like Arnold. And don’t even consider it unless your goal is
strength and muscle growth and you want to spend money on supplements.

Conclusion
As mentioned in the beginning of the article — don’t listen to mainstream media
when it comes to diet, nutrition and weight training. As one would assume, given
the current ‘level’ of journalism. But this article was so bad that I had to
jump in.

If you really want to dig into those kind of things, start to read real studies
and books based on those, not some random bullshit somebody came up between 10
and lunch, just to get the article out the door and hit their quota.

If you have questions about supplements, nutrition and training, let us know in
the comments!

Bodybuilding myths in the media

Why staying active is very good for your body and mind
It’s all about willpower when it comes to keeping up a good habit. You’ve been
told over a thousand times that a regular workout is good for you — and that is
true!

But will it help you reduce body fat?
Yes, but let me start by saying this: exercise is medicine, but for more reasons
than just burning calories. It’s extremely good for your mind-body connection
and will help you stay motivated. This is the main reason why I work out nearly
every day.

It helps me think clearer. During a sweaty workout the blood pressure and flow
increase everywhere in the body, including the brain. More blood means more
energy and oxygen, which makes our brains perform better. Working out during our
workdays makes us more productive and much more focused.

When it comes to weight loss it’s way more effective to start by cutting
calories, though. The key is to consume less calories than you burn. Yes, it is
as simple as that. As they say: you can’t outrun a bad diet.

Two of the biggest roadblocks in the effort to maintain a healthy weight are
probably sugar and processed foods. If you want to get in shape you have to quit
sabotaging yourself. Throw away your junk food. In fact, the human body responds
better to unprocessed foods that are low in saturated fat, salt and sugar.

However, adding muscle to your body burns fat because muscles need energy to
survive. A pound of muscle mass requires between 75 and 150 calories per day,
while a pound of fat only needs 3 calories per day. Also one pound of muscle
mass takes up about 20% less space than a pound of fat.

While muscles give us the metabolic ability to burn calories every time we
move — during exercise, gardening or walking — their true advantage is that they
constantly feed on calories. More lean muscle mass will help you burn more
calories even when you rest.

Combined with a proper diet, this will increase your metabolism and help you
burn off excess body fat at a much faster rate.

Adding exercise to a healthy lifestyle is certainly a more effective way to lose
weight than depending just on calorie restriction alone. Exercise can prevent or
even reverse the effects of certain diseases. In fact, it lowers blood pressure
and cholesterol, which may prevent a heart attack. In addition, if you exercise,
you lower your risk of developing certain types of cancers.

Exercise is also known to contribute to a sense of confidence and well-being,
thus possibly lowering rates of anxiety and depression.

Long story short
Muscles eat fat. The more you work on building lean muscle mass in your body,
the more fat you burn. Your body is constantly burning calories as energy for
everything you do. Yes, even during sleep.

If you want to win the fight against excess body fat
[/what-kind-of-body-fat-do-you-carry-and-why-its-important], get started with an
exercise program focused on building lean muscle.

Nutrition, diet and workout advise. Competition journals of a female vegetarian bodybuilder. Free tips and recipes.

The best workout equipment you actually need! - 9 things to always keep in your gym bag

Why good things get destroyed when taken to extremes - The truth about extreme dieting

Do you need a lifting belt?

Bodybuilding myths in the media

Correlation between exercise and weight loss