Here’s to 2009!

Well, it's finally here.

It's a day that you either loathe or love and it seems like there is no middle ground for this day. I have been trying to think of why some people love this time of year or why they hate it and I have come to no conclusions whatsoever.

So I won't stress over it.

One thing I am not going to do with this, the final post of the 2009 season, is what every other person has done with their posts: top 10 things I've learned. BLAH!

Instead, I am going to do what I will call "My top discoveries of 2009". There will be no limit to what I think of but as soon as I get bored, I will stop. Also, make sure to read the whole post as I have a couple big announcements that will come at the end.

Let's begin shall we?

MY TOP DISCOVERIES OF 2009

MUSIC

• Mudvayne – While this band has been around since 1996, I just recently discovered the amazing power of this band, thanks to satellite radio. The amount of power and fury that is conveyed in their music is amazing. From blistering guitar licks, to throat destructing screams, if you like your music hard and heavy, you can do no wrong here. I highly recommend their latest two releases: A New Game and the most recent release, a self-titled album Mudvayne.
  

  
   

• Five Finger Death Punch – The only way to describe the best new band I have heard in years is holy s***. This band was another discovery courtesy of XM radio and I am thinking of sending Kayla (Octane dj) roses since she was the on the radio when I first heard this. When I downloaded (yup, I downloaded it) their album, War is the Answer, I nearly came out of my skin. The first song hits you like a punch to the stomach and it doesn't stop for the entire album. I recently introduced a friend to them and the first thing she said was "ahhhhh, angry music". If you are in need of some good, hard leg day, blow your colon out your ass while squatting music, do your butt a favor and get this album.
  

  
   

FOOD

• Goji berries -- I first heard Tony Gentilcore talk about these little morsels on The Fit Cast. They are these tiny little red things that pack quite the nutritional punch. While they look like skinny versions of dried cranberries, these little guys pack a ton of good carbohydrates to your nutritional quiver
  

  
   

• Greek yogurt – I have been listening to people talk about this form of yogurt for a couple years now and this year decided to dip my toe into the craziness that is Greek yogurt. With less carb's and more protein than normal yogurt, the addition of this power packed mini snack to your every day food intake will do nothing be help you reach whatever fitness goals you set for yourself.
  

  
   

• Almond butter – I love peanut butter. LOVE IT. Yet just recently (like within the past 5 weeks or so) I was turned onto the all powerful taste of almond butter. I was at my girlfriend's house and she had no PB and gave me some almond butter instead. Needless to say, I have not bought peanut butter since. While loaded with the all important fats that people need in their diets, it also houses good carbs and a taste that only nut lovers can enjoy.
  

  
   

TRAINING

• Renegade rows – This is a row variation that I have come to love for a couple reasons. First, it hammers your rectus abdominus and oblique's and is what I consider to be one of the best ways to train your 6-pack without actually training your 6-pack. Second, it's a row and anytime you can throw a new type of rowing movement into your training, you will only better your physique and your postural health. Finally, it acts as a shoulder stabilizer and helps work those lovely little assistance muscles. I personally love doing these with kettle bells but if you are in a pinch or have no access to them, dumbbells work just as well.
  

 

• Front squat grip reverse lunges – I believe I got this one from Eric Cressey's Maximum Strength program. This movement covers the best of both worlds: front squats and lunges (yes, I'm a little sadistic). What I love about this killer variation is two-fold: you get to work your core and stabilizers while hammering your legs. Again, this movement is what I consider a best bang for your buck type movement. By holding a barbell in a front squat style grip, you are automatically engaging your core and abdominals. Yet you will be pleasantly surprised at how hard doing a reverse lunge with this style grip actually is. The fact that you have a barbell on your chest makes this subtle little movement twice as hard as holding a pair of dumbbells. Try this movement and you will find the results are quite impressive.
  

  
   

MISCELLANEOUS

• Satellite radio – I talked about this a little under the music section but without the addition of this to my new truck, I would go insane. I hate radio and haven't listened to it in years. The DJ's sucked and talk too much and the music they play is horrible. I get sick and tired of hearing the same 3 songs over and over again. Satellite radio is quite the opposite. The dj's don't talk hardly at all and the music is ever changing and completely random. In my opinion, this is the best way to discover new bands, minus Pandora radio.
  

 

That's about it. Honestly, I just can't think of anything else off the top of my head and am going for a hike with my doggie. So with that, I will close this post with a couple little announcements.

First, this is the first year I have actually had a resolution and stuck to it. Today is the last day of the "year without fries". Yes, I have gone 364 days without French fries. Was it hard? Kind of but not really. I actually can't wait until tomorrow when I go to In & Out and get me some fries! For next year, I plan on going with no red meat, i.e. no burgers, steaks or anything else that comes from a cow. If you are wondering why, read Michael Pollan's book The Omnivore's Dilemma. It will make you think twice about eating red meat.

I have actually contemplated not saying anything about this subject but I figured I live my life like an open book so I might as well talk about it.

Everyone knows that I drink and that I love the taste of alcohol. I love how wine can, when paired correctly, make any meal that much better. There is also nothing better than an ice cold beer on a hot summer day to quench that dry pallet. Still, alcohol is a poison to the body and I can honestly say my stubbornness and lack of ability to not drink has hindered me on my journey to reaching my physique goals.

Alcohol also impairs your judgment and your ability to make rational decisions and two weeks ago I made a choice that is going to drastically change my life for the next 10 years. Upon leaving a concert I was driving home and got a DUI. While I was lucky not to go to jail, I now have a battle in front of me that is going to be long and expensive. I think this couldn't have come at a better time, as I was drinking and driving more than I should have been doing.

It's funny the effect of getting a DUI can have on someone. Since it's happened, I feel that people now look at me like I have killed somebody, like I have done something so bad, that I can never be forgiven. Now I don't normally care what people think of me, but this is having a huge effect on me. It's very humbling to have to tell someone what happened and it is a definite learning experience, one that I don't wish on anyone.

So, with that in mind, it's about time I take a little bit of a break from the sauce. I really don't have a problem doing so right now either. It's time and it's been long overdue.

What a way to end 2009.

Here's to 2010!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do something, anything because I said so

If it seems like I'm a little random today, I'm blaming it on the fact that I slammed my head hard playing softball last night. Today my head hurts, I have the brightness of the screen turned down, loud noises really suck and the only thing that is making the pain behind my left eye go away is coffee. There are probably a host of other homeopathic remedies I could try and I plan on trying some of them later in the day, but as of now, crack in the form of coffee is doing just fine.

Just don't hold me to any sort of coherent thoughts and/or statements.

Let's begin.

I've really been thinking about life activities lately and the role the play in the life of individuals who are fit and healthy. There is a key acronym floating around our industry called NEPA, or Non Exercise Physical Activity. Basically NEPA is anything you can do to get some sort of extra exercise without actually doing any exercise. Confused perhaps? Let me provide you with some examples: parking far away from the entry to any sort of shopping store, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, disabling the automatic pull function on your lawn mower, walking a round of golf instead of using a cart and my favorite of them all…..surfing.

I am lucky to live in a place where it's sunny 330 days a year, so the option of being outside and doing something is always there and it show's with the people who inhabit this city. As I type, its blue sky and sunny with temperatures climbing up into the 70's. Yet there are people who aren't so lucky. The Eastern seaboard is getting hammered right now with horrible weather and odds are it's going to drive people in doors and on their couches. It's these times where you need to get creative. Can't get out of your house because you are snowed in? Here's a suggestion: during the next commercial break, do walking lunges across the room. Got a set of stairs? Do reverse lunges off the bottom step before you go to the bathroom (or after if you can't hold it). Got little kids? PLAY WITH THEM! Set the example that even though the weather sucks worse that Jake Gyllenhaal's acting, you can still stay active inside your house.

For those that CAN get outside during the winter, there is really no excuse not to do something active. Walk on the beach, take a hike into the hills (urban hikes are fun too if you have no wilderness), take your kids to the park and teach them a new game or sport. Whatever you do, don't waste the opportunity to get outside away from the monotony that is the television and video games.

Take in some much needed Vitamin D from the sun (if it is available), start a snowball fight with your neighbor or shovel their driveway. Do something to take your non-gym activity level up a notch. It's during these times of winter where you can set the foundation for a newer, healthier you come spring time.

Only One Body

Guest post today courtesy of Mike Boyle:

Imagine you are sixteen years old and your parents give you your first car. They also give you simple instructions. There is one small hitch, you only get one car, you can never get another. Never. No trade-ins, no trade-ups. Nothing

Ask your self how would you maintain that car? My guess is you would be meticulous. Frequent oil changes, proper fuel, etc. Now imagine if your parents also told you that none of the replacement parts for this car would ever work as well as the original parts. Not only that, the replacement parts would be expensive to install and cause you to have decreased use of your car for the rest of the cars useful life? In other words, the car would continue to run but, not at the same speed and with the efficiency you were used to.

Wow, now would we ever put a lot of time and effort into maintenance if that were the case.

After reading the above example ask yourself another question. Why is the human body different? Why do we act as if we don’t care about the one body we were given. Same deal. You only get one body. No returns or trade-ins. Sure, we can replace parts but boy it’s a lot of work and it hurts. Besides, the stuff they put in never works as well as the original “factory” parts. The replacement knee or hip doesn’t give you the same feel and performance as the original part.

Think about it. One body. You determine the mileage? You set the maintenance plan?

No refunds, no warranties, no do-overs?

How about this perspective? One of my clients is a very successful businessman. He often is asked to speak to various groups. One thing he tells every group is that you are going to spend time and money on your health. The truth is the process can be a proactive one or a reactive one. Money spent on your health can take the form of a personal trainer, massage therapist and a gym membership or, it can be money spent on cardiologists, anesthesiologists, and plastic surgeons. Either way, you will spend money.

Same goes for time. You can go to the gym or, to the doctors office. It’s up to you. Either way, you will spend time. Some people say things like “I hate to work out”. Try sitting in the emergency room for a few hours and then get back to me. Working out may not seem so bad. Much like a car, a little preventative maintenance can go a long way. However, in so many ways the body is better than a car. With some good hard work you can turn back the odometer on the body. I wrote an article a while back ( Strength Training- The Fountain of Youth) that discussed a study done by McMaster University which showed that muscle tissue of older subjects actually changed at the cellular level and looked more like the younger control subjects after strength training.

Do me a favor, spend some time on preventative maintenance, it beats the heck out of the alternative. Just remember, you will spend both time and money.

You down with GPP? Ya you know me!

Okay, I might have dated myself with a little Naughty by Nature, but what the hell, it’s the holidays.

What exactly is GPP and what purpose does it serve in today’s training world?
GPP stands for General Physical Preparedness. Long winded? Yup. Hard to understand? Not really. Absolutely necessary? You bet your skinny ass it is. According to fitness journalist extraordinare and soon to be CSCS Roger Lawson, GPP is essentially one’s general conditioning level. You are “essentially using it as a measure of how ready they are to meet the tasks that they might face in an everyday situation.”

Nik Herold, CSCS also thinks along those same lines. “Personally, my definition of General Physical Preparedness is any type of training that helps you do what you're supposed to do in everyday life--squat, lunge, twist, bend, push and pull. It promotes being better balanced”

In the midst of pulling heavy weight off the floor while trying not to spray your colon everywhere or trying to stand up with the weight of a mini-cooper on your back, GPP does play a critical role in the development of even the most undertrained individual. It not only re-enforces movements and muscle patterns, but it also helps you prep your body for the one battle that not many people think about: getting old.

Most of us don’t fear getting old, mainly because we spend all of our time eating and promoting eating a healthy lifestyle. We are also doing some form of resistance training to make sure our bone density is good, we have the strength to move our body through any situation and most importantly, to look good nekkid.

So if GPP helps me do everyday things, how does one add it into a resistance training program? According to Herold, it’s added to help create balance. “I like doing metabolic circuits in between strength training days. They involve all the basic movement patterns that I talked about above yet they are done with lighter weights and higher reps and the sessions reinforce a balanced strength program.”

Lawson also has a plan to include GPP in his clients programs. “I would include some kind of brief interval based strength training circuit 2-3x a week after each workout, I.E. Barbell complexes, bodyweight circuits, etc”.

Either route you go, if you don’t have some sort of GPP added into your program, now’s about time to start adding it in. After all, the year isn’t over yet, so why not start to create that new healthy habit now, just in time for the new year!

Microsoft does suck

So I've been trying to use Microsoft Word for my new posts and it's pretty evident that it sucks considering none of the added pictures are showing and neither are my quotes. So I apologize for the crappy blogs lately.

So, as a gift to you, I'm going to give you an amazing recipe from diet plan I'm following courtesy of Naked Nutrition:

7.5 oz chopped chicken breast (I pre-cook this)
2 C low sodium chicken broth
1 C chopped celery
1/3 C chopped onion
1/3 C chopped tomato
3 t oil (I prefer Almond Oil but EVOO works as well)
3 T parmesan cheese

Lightly sautee all the veggies in oil. Add chicken and heat until warm. At same time, warm chicken broth and season. I used salt, pepper, basil and parsley. Add cooked chicken and veggies, and sprinkle with cheese on top and eat like soup.

Enjoy

Taking a vacation: is it really a bad thing?

For those of us who take this whole concept of healthy living seriously, we know how hard the rigors of strict eating and lifting heavy amounts of iron can be. We also know that without such dedication, we would most likely all look like Fat Bastard; and I personally don't want to look like that again.

So what do we do to prevent us from turning into complete sloths? Well, we train and we train hard, probably harder than anyone else; and we eat. We eat copious amounts of dead animals, we graze on fruits and veggies like the dinosaurs did and we train, but I might have already said that.

The one thing we also know and understand is that taking a much needed vacation is actually a good thing. Now I don't mean a vacation where you over stuff yourself silly at Old Country Buffet or decide that pizza and beer will be your new breakfast lunch and dinner. I am talking about a vacation from training; from eating healthy 90% of the time. I am talking about doing nothing and liking it!

In his manual "Muscle Building Secrets", Jason Ferruggia talks about the importance of taking a break:

"Taking a week off will actually allow you to get stronger and come back fresh and ready to train hard again. You simply cannot train balls to the wall for 52 weeks per year and expect to make progress. You will get too beat up and burnt out. Injuries will start to accumulate and your desire to be in the gym and work hard will start to dwindle. One thing that I have noticed is that people get very nervous about taking a week off because they think they are going to get small and weak. You are going to have to trust me here when I promise you it's not going to happen. Every single time I have forced a client to take a week off they have come back bigger and stronger, without fail."

The ironic thing is, I experienced this first hand recently. I had been training for 2 years without taking a week off, that's 104 days if you didn't know, and I absolutely dreaded going into the gym; I loathed it. I wasn't having fun anymore, my body didn't feel right doing any movements or exercises and I (admittedly so) slacked off on how hard I was training. So I forced myself to take last week off and I can already tell a difference as I hit the gym with reckless abandon this past Monday. The thought of lifting heavy gave me goose bumps and I have never felt better under the bar.

I also gave one of my clients the week off as well. His lower back was starting to bother him and he had been training for 6 straight months. When he came in on Monday night, he said his back felt 100%, his energy was high and he also had a monster lifting session.

So, if you feel like you are stuck in a rut, it might be time for a vacation. Take a look at your training; take a look at your nutrition and take a week off if need be. It will give you a chance to recharge your internal batteries. Your body will thank you for it.