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You are here: Home / Archives for Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT

Posts written by Michael J. Mahony

The following posts have all been authored by Michael Mahony

Burn Fat With Bodyweight Cardio Exercises

April 10, 2016 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

Burn fat

It is possible to use bodyweight exercises to burn fat. This bodyweight cardio is something that most people don't think of as real exercise, but it clearly is. Learning to burn fat using bodyweight exercises is an important skill. It takes away all excuses for getting cardio done.

Some Exercises to Use

In order to burn fat, use the following exercises to help you with that. They are all bodyweight style exercises.

1. Power Skip
Skipping isn’t just for kids. Raise the right knee up towards the hip while reaching your left arm overhead. Land on the ball of your left foot, and then alternate the skipping motion with the opposite arm and leg. Shoot for 10-15 skips as high as you can go.

2. High Knees
Stand tall with your feet hip-distance apart. Raise up your right knee as high as it’ll go, and then place the leg back down. Alternate legs and start picking up the pace. Try this jig for 30 seconds

3. Jumping Jack
This classic cardio move is a great way to warm up. Start with your feet together and hands at your sides, keeping the core engaged. Next, jump both legs out to the side (wider than your hips) while raising your arms overhead. Keep your knees bent as you jump again to bring your feet back together and arms down. That’s one. Now see what 20-30 feels like!

4. Mountain Climber
We’re not going up any real mountains, but these are a close second. Start down on your hands and knees, and bring the right foot forward to the chest while the left leg remains straight. Engaging the core, quickly switch legs, and keep this rhythm going for 15-20 reps.

5. Diver’s Push-up
Begin in a down-dog position with your arms firmly on the ground and gaze toward the floor. In a controlled and fluid motion, swoop the hips towards the floor while your chest rises. Keep moving until your back is arched and your gaze is towards the ceiling. Then swoop back down, continuing this motion for 10-15 reps.

These five exercises will help you to burn fat. None of them require special equipment. These can all be done at your home. This should remove all excuses.

The Strategy

By adding a bunch of bodyweight cardio exercises to your tool belt that will help you burn fat, you create something most people don't have. You take away excuses. These exercises can be done anywhere and need no equipment. Because of this I believe you will be in the position to burn fat more often. Leverage the strategy and you will see how much easier it is to consistently get your cardio done.

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Filed Under: Diet & Fat Loss, Featured

Why I Changed to the IIFYM Approach

March 8, 2016 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

Why IIFYM

At some point I decided that IIFYM would be a better nutritional approach for me. If you are curious about IIFYM and what it is all about, have a look at the following articles/web sites:

The Official IIFYM Site

Saturday Sharing: My Thoughts on IIFYM

Expose Podcast #1: Let's Talk About IIFYM

The reasoning for this switch was so simple when I examined everything. I have a busy lifestyle that involves children. Whenever you involve children there is a level of unpredictability. Because of this unpredictability I felt I needed a flexible eating methodology. I did my research and read up on the approach. It was immediately interesting to me because it espoused concepts that I already instinctively understood. Instead of thinking moment by moment, this approach looks at the entire week and makes adjustments as you go. This is important because if you eat birthday cake it isn't the end of the world. All you have to do is make sure that your carbs for the day (including the cake) hit the numbers and you are all good.

To me this is less of torture and more of a way to eat and get into better shape. While it probably wouldn't be suitable for professional level contest prep, it does the job for people like you and me. I think anyone looking to lose some fat should look at IIFYM and put it to work.

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Filed Under: Diet & Fat Loss, Experiment of One, Featured

Monday Madness: Back Blasting Intensity

March 7, 2016 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

Back workout

Today I bring to you one of the most intense back workouts you will ever experience. Use the two workouts in today's article to give your muscle growth a nice kick in the butt. You will see the difference over a few months.

Width vs. Thickness

Training the back is an interesting proposition because you have two realms to focus on. One realm involves making the back wider while another realm involves making the back thicker. these are two very important things to keep in mind if you want a great back. Today's workout is actually two workouts–one for thickness and one for width.

Elbow Position

By changing the position of your elbows you will change what part of your back that you hit. Sometimes it also means moving much heavier weight. You can row more weight with an underhanded grip, for instance.

The Workouts

Thickness Workout

Exercise Sets Reps
Reverse Grip Pull Downs 3 12
1 Arm DB Row 3 12
Reverse Grip Bentover Row 3 12
T-bar Row 3 12
Deadlift 3 12

Width Workout

Exercise Sets Reps
Pull Ups 4 10
Hammer High Row 3 12
Wide Pull Down Behind Neck 3 12
Straight Arm DB Pullover 3 12

Conclusion

As you can see, this workout aims to increase the volume of your back workouts. If you must, train the last set to failure, but do not go to failure on any other set. You want to focus on good form, squeezing the muscle at the end of each movement. Don't get sloppy. If you cannot lift a weight with good form then don't attempt it at all. With this workout it is better to focus on form than anything else.

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Filed Under: Featured, Training

A Review of Week 2 of Mission Best Ever Take Two

March 6, 2016 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

mission-best-ever-take-two-week-2

Week 2 of Mission Best Ever Take Two is now in the books and man was it a good one.  I managed to get in all my training and all my meals. That is not the only thing that makes it a good week, so read on.

Goals

As you know, I have goals and I am planning to hit each and every one of those goals. I even try to set weekly goals. This week it was to hit all of my meals. I did that. I was able to eat exactly as my plan prescribed. So, the goal “eat on plan” gets a big old checkmark! Mission Best Ever Take Two was designed to keep me motivated and focused. I am motivating my own damned self and that's for sure!

Training

Training felt amazing this week. I'm getting more focused as Mission Best Ever Take Two moves forward which makes the training sessions that much more intense. I've always been the type that the more focused I am the better I train. I just can't train as well when my mind is wandering.

The Results

Comparison Photos Mission Best Ever Take Two

This week I managed to drop 7 lbs and 2% body fat! It was truly an amazing week! I am pumped and ready to keep this momentum going. I am being flexible enough to allow for any deviations from plan that might need to happen, but if a deviation is needed I am ready. I have realized that this is the key to everything–be flexible and respond to your circumstances accordingly. Forgot your prepared food for a day? Always have protein powder with you (I have a tub on my desk at work). Make intelligent food choices with whatever resources are available to you. Be sure to also follow my daily journal for even more progress updates.

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Filed Under: Diet & Fat Loss, Featured, Mission Best Ever Take Two

Running for Life

March 6, 2016 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

Running for life

Running used to be one of my favorite ways to get rid of stress. When I was in high school I would run for 6 miles each day. I did so with ease. Now, as I have gotten older, it is one of my least favorite things to do. At this point I am running for life.

When I wanted to drop some fat I started to look at my schedule and realized it was going to be hard to fit too much cardio into my already tight schedule. At the same time my son's soccer coach asked that all the boys run 2 miles when not practicing soccer. I put the two together and began going for runs with my son. It lasted for a couple months and was very rewarding on many levels. It is still not something I love, but when I do it with my son I enjoy it for some reason.

Running is a great way to drop the fat. If you have not run for some time it is best to start out slowly. I began with 20 minute run only. My goal was to increase how far I ran in that 20 minutes. I pushed myself and got to the point where I could do 2 miles in that 20 minute period. I enjoyed the benefit of losing the fat due to the running.

When you incorporate running into your fat loss routine you have to be careful not to get hurt. Just like with weight training, it is important to slowly build up to longer distances. Going too far too fast is a recipe for disaster.  There is no point in doing that because an injury will have you back on your couch for many weeks.

The 3 things I learned while doing my running:

  1. It is only hard if you forget that you are only competing against yourself and nobody else.
  2. It burns fat fast.
  3. It helps to increase your physical endurance.

Give running a try. You won't be disappointed.

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Filed Under: Diet & Fat Loss, Featured, Training

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