This is our ever expanding site for your questions. You do need to identify yourself so we know who we are answering. We will try to answer your question to the very best of our ability. If necessary, we may bring in an "expert" or authority or research report to answer your questions. Remember that as in any science, there are matters of interpretation as well as matters of opinion. In all my (Lasse) years in the fitness and exercise-, or health industry, for that matter, I have found that research is only as relevant as the intelligence of the consumer. We encourage you to ask reasonably "general interest" questions( relating to exercise and nutrition) and reserve the right to make that evaluation.

Q. from Kim Bjerga, Cedar City (you guessed it, he's my son): If I choose to do both cardiovascular and strength workouts in the same session, which should I do first?

A. My experience has been that it is better to do your strength routine before your cardio routine. Cardiovascular exercise, at least if it is approached with some level of intensity, has a more general exhaustive element to it that tends to leave you void of energy in the aftermath of the work out. I do highly recommend, however, that you spend at least 10-15 minutes of some form of warm-up exercise to properly prime your musculature and increase their distensability. As you progress from your strength routine to your cardiovascular work out, you will undoubtedly feel some "heaviness" in your muscles, due to localized blood pooling (i.e. more blood in the upper extremities), but it will only take the body a few minutes to steer the blood back into the working (typically lower extremities) muscle(s).

Q. From Betty Lord, Cedar City: How can I get rid of the "bulge", the abdominal fat?

A. This is the most common question I encounter from exercisers in general. Here's the answer: Fat is stored in the body according to a pre-determined genetical pattern, basically in three places: around and in organs like the heart, liver etc, in between muscle cells and "over" muscle tissue (under the skin). When "the cup runneth over" you know you have a problem with too much stored fat. Alarmingly, abdominal visceral fat- or an abundance of it- is linked to what the medical community refers to as the metabolic syndrome. The metabolic syndrome represents a clustering of plasma lipids, glucose, and blood pressure risk factors. Additionally, several nutritionists proclaim abdominal fat to represent a toxic "waist" dump; i.e. the fat around the gut envelopes toxins in the body (hence the term "liver gut"). You may only be able to rid yourself of this kind of fat by "cleansing" or detoxifying the body.

Doing an obsessive exercise routine for your abdominal wall will only have marginal effect on abdominal fat. You are much better off focusing on the total caloric output of your exercise program, keeping in mind, also, that strength training has a very profound effect on the body's ability to metabolize fat.

In sum: If you have a protruding and fat stomach, you have reason to be concerned. Eat healthy, exercise regularly and consistently, and consider a detox routine.

Q. from Brittany Show, Cedar City: What is the BEST exercise program?

A. I love this question, which I get all the time, because the answer is "the one that you WILL DO. I could have said none or every one, but when all is said and done - doing SOMETHING is what matters most.

Sure, we can rank exercises according to their "ability" to incorporate the larger athletic muscles and subsequently demand more oxygen and, therefore, energy expenditure. The differences are, however, not that significant as long as there is a) involvement of the large muscle groups b) sufficient intensity and c) a relatively steady, rhythmic flow to the exercise.

We can also rank exercise routines, but here opinions are more numerous than the number of possible program configurations, which are infinite!

Although it could take 50 pages of elaboration to respond fully to this question, here is my general ABC guide line on what really matters to make your exercise program the BEST:

A) Variation matters! Vary your exercise routine. Don't always do the same stuff!

B) Intensity matters! Tying your shoes is not "exercise"! You need to push your cardiovascular system and your muscle system regularly (not necessarily every day, but regularly)

C) Yes, it is BEST to find exercises that work your muscles in large, synergistic patterns. Although more specific muscle contracting exercises have their place, you will not be able to elicit the same general physiological response from these movements. Hence, less general results.