A dream body come true

To fitness expert Edward Mendez, a healthy and toned body is not achieved by obsessive diet and exercise. The road to physical fitness starts by having some understanding on how the body operates and allowing science to work to one’s advantage. Mendez (who also happens to be a TV and movie actor) is Sexy Solutions’ wellness consultant and is the author of the soon-to-be-released book Your Dream Body Come True.

Mendez does not believe in starvation diets and hour-long appointments at the gym. In fact, he states that in following certain guidelines, one should eat more and exercise less to be able to achieve one’s ultimate body. Mendez is also not a fan of the weighing scale as a primary tool in measuring one’s fitness progress. To him, the key to a toned and healthy body has more to do with gaining muscles rather than shedding pounds.

The more muscles a person has on his or her body, the more potential he or she has to burning fat. This can be achieved through mindful eating (as opposed to restrictive dieting) and weight training. And (Mendez cannot state this often enough), women who weight-train are genetically incapable of looking like a She-Hulk. “If you see women in the gym who resemble men in their physique, the chances are great that they are on steroids. It takes a remarkable amount of testosterone in a woman’s body to be able to create that masculine body structure. The only way for a woman to have that level of testosterone is for her to have it artificially.”

US-bred and educated Mendez, whose clients include Dr. Vicki Belo, Atom Henares, Raymond Gutierrez, Ces Drilon and Tim Yap, believes that one can achieve ultimate fitness by devoting as little as 20 minutes a day to either cardio or aero activities or weight training. If one were to make a pie chart of Mendez’s fitness strategy, one would see that 70 percent of the focus would be on nutrition and 30 percent would be devoted to exercise.

“Every meal should ideally comprise 40 percent protein, 50 percent good carbohydrates and 10 percent good fat,” Mendez explains. “Many people have been filled with pieces of fitness advice that do more harm than good. People believe that they are obligated to sweat profusely and devote long stretches of time in order to have a meaningful workout. Wrong. My workouts last under 20 minutes and incorporate multi-muscle activity in order to reach peak fat burning levels. After workouts, a lot of folks refrain from eating in the misguided belief that they are doing their body a favor by doing so. The truth is that eating a healthy protein-rich meal after a thorough exercise session allows the body to rebuild, repair and allow growth of muscles.

Mendez sees no reason for people in their forties and fifties to gain fat and stay unhealthy. “Fifty is the new 30 as far as I am concerned,” he laughs. “Mindful eating and a good cardio and weight training program will allow the increase in muscle mass and in so doing will tighten the body considerably. One can have an absolutely youthful looking and feeling body without having to spend a lot of time and going through phases of deprivation.”

Mendez’s fitness book will be launched this month and with it, he hopes to be able to break a lot of the misconceptions about health and fitness theories and practices.

“I do not put much stock in anecdotal data,” Mendez states. “To me, the roadmap to health and fitness is simple — doable and is backed up by science. But to know how is only half of the equation. The other half is all about the commitment an individual makes in order to realize the best body anyone can have; one that is not only aesthetically pleasing but also filled with strength and wellbeing.”

(For more information about Edward Mendez’s fitness tips, visit www.yourdreambodycometrue.com or call Sexy Solutions

at 0917-8671329. Sexy Solutions is located at 5th Ave. cor 28th St. at The Fort in Taguig City.)