The challenge has always been for people not just to lose a few pounds, but how do I get ripped muscles and abs. We have all been to the gym and think we look better though the belly still doesn't look the way we want. So instead of making it overwhelming, if you stick to some basic principles it may be the fast track for you to a ripped body. Most people inherently are doing typically one or two destructive simple things everyday that they are not aware of that keeps them from their goals.

1. 5 Small Meals - You may have heard that eating throughout the day is important though do you do it. Eating every 2-3 hours trains your body to burn fat as its major source of energy. Also, 5 small meals shuts off your body from storing fat into your fat cells. If you are not eating every 2-3 hours than every day you are doing something that stores fat and burns away muscle tissue. We know where most people store fat which is their belly or thighs. Meal replacement shakes are bars are perfect quick choices to help get a good meal with our stressful and hurried lives. Make sure your supplement has carbs for energy as protein only bars don't have the energy your body needs to keep burning fat.

2. Drink water and water - Yah, yah, I have heard that before. Though most people know they are supposed to drink water 6-8 glasses a day, the reality is people still don't do it. Making sure you get your water is an essential key to allowing your body to perform optimally. Without adequate water intake you have no chance to get a ripped lean body. If you take products like creatine you need more water as creatine absorbs water into your muscle cells. Water is need for all physiological process including your metabolism to function properly and to remove harmful toxins that damage your muscle cells out of your body.

3. Eat after 6pm - Most people think that they shouldn't eat after 6 pm or don't eat before going to bed. You want to eat as mentioned before every 2-3 hours. If you eat dinner at 6 pm and are up to 10 pm than you want another small snack at around 9 pm. People who starve themselves by not eating after 6 pm burn muscle tissue away all night. Your body needs energy; if you give your body energy in small portions throughout the day your body will reward you with a lean, mean, fat burning machine. Your body doesn't care about the time of day. Also, most people say don't eat a large meal before going to bed it is the large part that is the problem not the meal.

4. You do have do Cardio - Most people who want to rip up typically only exercise with strength training. To develop big muscles you do need to focus on strength training. To support ripping up though, you need to be able to shed extra fat off your body. Interval cardio training is considered one of the most effective ways to raise your metabolism and burn fat. People after doing an interval workout burn more fat during the entire day than any other form of cardio exercise. Interval workouts are short durations of high intensity followed by short durations of low intensity, and then repeated. Proper cardio training is best done with a heart rate monitor and having specific heart rate zones designed for your physiology.

5. Carbs and Protein - Most people attempting to rip up over do their protein intake. You can feel the extra protein going through you because extra gas or issues with your stools. Your body does need protein to rebuild muscle tissue and is essential in each on of your 5 small meals to get lean proteins into your diet. Most people cut carbs because they see the pounds on the scale drop when they do. Carbs absorb water and when you cut carbs your weight loss is coming from water not fat. During strength training your only source of energy is carbohydrates. If you are cutting carbs out of your diet or reducing them to low levels you will never have the energy to train at your max and develop the muscle mass size you want. You want at least 50-55% of your calories coming from complex carbs. As you get more ripped you increase total amount of all carbs, fats, and proteins, not just add more protein.

6. Antioxidants - The harder you train the most energy you produce. Energy or calorie production creates by-products that are toxic if left in the body. Especially, with people who train often and intensely they do not get adequate amounts of antioxidants to remove the harmful metabolic wastes. Metabolic wastes or free radicals left in the body do muscle cell damage and prevent you from developing lean muscle tissue from your hard work. Add a multivitamin with antioxidants or I recommend Meridium XN which is the most powerful antioxidant on the market.

The last thing for one more tip is get your sleep. All your body's adaptations and results occurs while you are sleeping. If today you had the world's greatest diet and fitness program and then got 5 hours of sleep you pretty much wasted al that effort. It is also important to get up the same time everyday including weekends.