THE BIG 7 Exercises -by Nick Bolton

If you don’t already include at least one of these exercises in your workouts, you might want to reconsider.  They’re often referred to as “The Big 7” because they’re essential exercises if you’re looking for some real progress.  Some say these are the most important exercises, period.  These “compound” movements involve several groups of muscles so it’s efficient and enables you to move MORE weight (packing on the muscle faster).  In fact, together they hit EVERY major muscle group in the body.  And, if you’re in search for amazing calorie burning activities, these moves are at the top of the charts.  So next time you’re looking at kicking up the workout intensity and looking for more results, include at least one of these in your next session.

In preparation for Musclemania’s Fitness Universe, I’ve been hammering away at these.  With some help from my killer supplement stack of: MRI Black Powder Ultra, MRI NO2 Black Full Cycle, and MRI Crea7ine, I’ve been setting personal bests and continue to improve.  Eight weeks and I’ll show what I’ve been building.

Tips to Control Cortisol –by Nick Bolton

Controlling cortisol levels will help you manage your weight (lose body fat) and develop muscle more efficiently. Cortisol is a hormone that breaks down muscle tissue and lowers both testosterone and growth hormone. Here are some other negative effects of excessive cortisol levels:

• Osteoporosis
• Reduced muscle and increased abdominal fat
• Impaired memory and learning
• Impaired immunity
• Reduced testosterone and growth hormone output

Here are some things you can do to control cortisol levels:

• Hit the weights hard
• Proper nutrition for breakfast and post workout
• Keep stress to a minimum
• Get adequate sleep
• Proper supplementation

In order to see those gains while keeping extra body fat off, control those cortisol levels.

Arms with MRI Athlete & NPC Bikini Competitor Maribel Burgos

A few months ago I went to a birthday dinner. I wore a spaghetti strap top that day. Without even thinking about it, I raised my arm to scratch my head. What happened next not only made me feel AMAZING but at the same time I was a bit embarrassed (in a great way). The lady sitting across from me said “Whoa!!! You have some AMAZING arms on you!” haha! Well, needless to say everyone at the table turned to look at me and wanted me to “show” them my arms!

That is why I love working on my arms! Not only do compliments as such motivate me but I feel great in what I wear. In order to have the full package you have to work on every body part!

Here is ONE of my arm routines!

Arms:

1. Dumb Bell Bicep Curl.
2. Seated Alternate Dumb Bell Curls
3. Dumb Bell Preacher Curl
4. Cable Curls

Triceps:

1. Skull Crushers
2. Cable One Arm Triceps Extensions
3. Triceps Pushdown – with a rope or a bar
4. Bench Dips – body weight for a final burn out

I do 3-4 sets with 10-12 reps of each exercise. To help me get through my workout, I use MRI’s Black Powder ULTRA at least 30 minutes before I start training. Immediately after my workout I drink MRI’s ProNOS protein to help my muscles recover and grow!

Contest Prep for Fitness America Weekend -by Nick Bolton

It’s about 3 weeks away from the Fitness America Championships in Las Vegas.  I’m registered, hotel and flights have been booked so now I’ve been focused and training hard in order to make the changes I need for the stage.  A few challenges that I’ve been fighting though have made this contest prep rough:

• I’ve had to fight through some sickness a few weeks ago.  Balancing needed rest with the fire dept and gym time is not easy at this point in the contest prep.
• It’s been hard making time to eat on schedule at the station.  I keep my meals in a cooler and a few key supplements (MRI ProNOS, RED Shred, and BCAA’s) on the fire truck at all times.

I finally feel close to 100% and I like where my conditioning is at this point.  My diet is very clean and I’m keeping my water intake high.

In order to continue to lean out, I’ve made the switch to MRI’s Ripcuts on my cardio workouts, MRI’s CE2 Hi DEF for my weight training, and even some MRI RED Shred.  With my diet, training, and supplementation dialed in, I feel confident that I’ll look my best.  The lineup is looking stacked with some amazing competitors from around the world so I need to stay on track.  I’ll keep you all posted!

Leg Press Variations for Great Glutes -by Maribel Burgos

Targeting the glutes can sometimes be tricky. I have a couple of different exercises for targeting the glutes using the leg press.

1. Narrow Leg press: place your feet together on the middle of platform. Bringing your quads close to the chest and pressing through the heels to push through. Make sure to push all the way back up without locking your knees.  I start my first set with 90lbs and gradually increase to 270lbs. 4-5 sets with 10-12 reps
2. Wide and high leg press: place your feet wide on the platform but high towards the corners of the platform and point your toes out slightly. This will target your hamstrings and your glutes. Make sure to bring it completely down and push all the way back up for a complete rep.  I drop my weight to 180lbs and gradually increase to 230lbs.3-4 sets with 10-12 reps
3. My favorite because it targets just the BOOTY!!! Put your feet super wide at the top of the platform. Bring your quads right above your chest then do small little pulsating movements. This targets the glutes specifically for the nice round look all ladies want 🙂  !!!  Again, I drop my weight to 180lbs and gradually increase to 230lbs.3-4 sets with 10-12 reps 3-4 sets with 10-12 reps

Remember… in order to target the glutes you must always push through your heels and focus on targeting the glutes. Don’t just go through the motions!!! Focus on your targeted muscle group.

My leg and glute days are my toughest days in the gym. So I rely MRI’s Hemo Surge to make each workout more intense than the last and take each one to the next level!  Hemo Surge’s turbo-charged nitrix oxide gives me the massive pump, strength, and mental focus needed for these intense workouts! Once I have killed it in the gym I refuel my muscles with MRI’s French Vanilla ProNOS protein! Now it’s time to rest.  🙂

Tips for Staying Motivated -by Maribel Burgos

Very often I get asked how I stay motivated and enjoying what I do. For me, working out is my passion. From dance to gymnastics and now my competitive career staying fit has been a part of my life for as long as I could remember. Staying fit is a lifestyle so if I don’t work out I feel incomplete, like my day has been wasted.

With that being said, like everybody else I do have those not so “happy” days. For that reason and to answer the questions I have been asked, I would like to share a few things that I do to make working out fun for me. Here are a few tips on how to help you “Enjoy the ride”:

1. Most importantly do what you do, stay fit for YOU! Not for anybody else but YOU! Always remember why you started your journey!  If you don’t love what you do how can you possibly give it 100%?

2. Change up your cardio sessions so you don’t get bored with the same routine.

3. Upload new songs to your iPod/MP3. Music always gets me going… especially listening to Latin music.

4. LADIES, you are going to love this one. Buy a new workout outfit and / or sneakers. That definitely gets me SUPER excited and in an even better mood.

5. Workout at a different gym. It may sound strange but I like bouncing around to different gyms. It keeps me motivated. Not sure why, maybe it is the change in atmosphere. But it works every time!

The key is to stay positive and motivated in order to reach your goals.   It is up to you to make your journey fun and exciting! Remember… you are in control of your journey! Make the best of it!  One last thing I want to leave you guys with is that nothing is impossible, you are your own obstacle, don’t cheat yourself, and know that you are much stronger than you believe you are. NOW HIT IT HARD!!!

CE2 HI-DEF & My Road to WBFF World’s! -by Alison Burgess

As I’ve mentioned all over Facebook and Twitter, I recently decided to really go for it and compete at the WBFF World Championships in Canada this August 24-25th!  This is big news and I’m very excited!

I recently competed at the NPC USA’s in Las Vegas, so I have been maintaining competition-shape for a few weeks now.  The challenge though is that my body is so lean that it keeps wanting to eat muscle for fuel, and I actually need to fill my muscles back up for World’s!  So my issue here is:  Get a little more muscle while avoiding adding any more fat.  That’s not easy!  Usually the off-season is for muscle building…but I’m not letting this stop me!

This is where CE2 HI-DEF comes in.  It’s a pill-form, creatine product that:

1. WILL NOT BLOAT YOU!  (a miracle in creatine land!)
2. Promotes optimal muscle power so that I can lift as heavy as I need to; even though right now I’m on a low-carb diet (remember carbs typically help fuel you)
3. Has a low-stimulant fat burning factor!

Win, win, win!

So armed with this and my other precious MRI supplements, I have to say, my World’s training is going REALLY well!

It’s a big move I’m making, so being prepared is already ‘win’ number one!

Nick Bolton Discusses MRI’s Hemo Surge

One of my favorite MRI supplements right now is NO2 RED Hemo Surge.  It helps me focus in my workouts and gives me the boost I need to move some heavy weight.  I can feel it working almost immediately and it shows with increased vascularity.

When I use NO2 RED Hemo Surge, my workouts are more intense and my pumps last a lot longer.  In these intense workouts, my muscles need all those vital nutrients to help me make the strength and size gains I’m looking for – Hemo Surge does the trick.

I recommend this product to anyone looking at packing on some muscle and taking their workout to the next level!

Maribel Burgos Talks RED Shred for Fat Loss

MRI’s newest product, RED Shred is one of my favorites!  During contest prep, RED Shred gave me the boost I needed to jump start my metabolism to burn the few extra layers of fat. RED Shred has thermogenic ingredients that revved my metabolism. The carb-blockers helped slow down the absorption of simple carbs, using them as fuel instead of storing them as fat.  The Green Tea extract and small dose of caffeine in RED Shred gave me additional energy to get through the day without a jittery feeling.

I plan on using RED Shred even during my off season in order to avoid storing unwanted fat J !!! RED Shred will save me from hours of cardio when it comes time for my next contest prep!