A Little Something is Better Than All of Nothing.

I just wanted to address an issue I see happening around the gym.  It seems that this is one of the times of the year that it really starts to become prevalent.  I am talking about people taking time off from their workouts.  Every so often I will be walking around the gym or thinking about work and say to myself "hey, I haven't seen so and so lately".  Then inevitably after sometime, said person will show up.  When I ask where they have been the answer is some sort of  explanation about how busy they have been.  Maybe it's work related (often), or family obligations such as other member's of their families schedules have changed.  But it is usually some unapologetic justification for why they just took that time off.

I thought about titling this post "don't let life get in the way" or something like that.  My point being that when life's ripples come along and disrupt schedules, one of the first causalities is usually the gym.  I think this is really defeating.  The body adapts to continued and evenly applied challenges.  If we are inconsistent with how we apply those challenges (cardiovascular training, stretching, weight training, nutrition etc.) then we get inconsistent results.

I used to teach school and I will totally admit that there were times where I would take like a week or two off.  I remember how horribly out of shape I would feel and how much it felt like coming back to the gym was totally starting over.  Of course our bodies are more forgiving than that and it didn't take more than a week or so to get back into the swing of things.  BUT when I would add the week or so here and there that I took off throughout a school year and also the summer - I would realize that I had missed more than a month.  (I often see people at the gym missing months at a time - so how much of their year is actually lost?)

Our bodies were designed to be used.  Depending on who you ask, our ancestors spent a bulk of their day scavenging and hunting - using their bodies for survival.  We don't do that.  So it is up to us to challenge ourselves daily to keep our bodies fine tuned.  I suggest that everyone do a little something rather than nothing.  I would much rather see someone come to the gym and even do 10 to 20 minutes of cardio and one weight training exercise than just totally missing out.  They gym/exercise is about establishing a rhythm in your life.  You do it because it is part of your existence.  It stimulates your body just like food stimulates you to digest or air stimulates you to breathe.  I really like to think of it like that.

Of course there are times when life really does get in the way and you are forced to take more than a couple of days off.  And I think that you can justify that maybe once a year.  (Unless you are a hardcore weight trainer - then you can use some off time as more of a strategy)  Other than that, missing weeks at the gym is just another barrier that can lead to frustration with your goals.  So no matter how busy things get or what sort of "drama" you have going on at a particular time - make time to get your self into the gym for at least a little bit.  It will release good feeling chemicals, be more physically sound and for most - serve as a little therapy during those challenging times.  Also - taking time off before, during, and after vacations is also a common mishap I see.  Just because your time off is for pleasure related activities does not mean that it is any more justified. :)

Thanks

Andy

Untapped Potential and Missed Opportunities

If you have someone in your life that doesn’t work with resistance training equipment at all – I implore you to talk with you about it’s importance or direct him or her to someone who can.  The following blog was inspired by my last week.

Many of you may know that I had a death in the family just this past week.  Because of this I was forced to do some reflection.  This particular family member was around 75 and lived in a really nice community of like-aged folks.  As such, I met a lot of the friends this individual had and was able to spend time talking with them at the “celebration of life” that we held.  Before, during and after this event I reflected on what life must be like at that age and what thoughts people had on exercise in their later years.  Inevitably, at the “party” I would end up talking with these older adults about what they were doing for exercise and fitness.

            The most common thought I had as I listened is that these folks are missing a huge opportunity.  Here they are in the time of their life when often they have nothing but time and they are not seizing that moment as a chance to get and stay fit.  When I asked about what they thought about exercise I hear a lot of comments like “well I walk and that’s enough” or “I don’t want to lift weights because I am not trying to enter any physique contests”!  (Which is what I think is the funniest thing of all!   AS IF!  Do they know how hard you have to work to make your body look like that? … Well, obviously not)

            I just couldn’t believe how many men and women would say things that really showed that they felt like weight training was not for them.  One of the most common “rationales” is that they had an injury or ailment that “keeps them from being able to do much”!  WHAT?!?!  You have an ailment that you most likely got from not taking care of yourself … and your way of dealing with it is to take even less care of yourself?!?!  It just sort of drives me crazy to think about it.

            There was a lot of talk about injuries or physical limitations.  I would say over and over …”because you have an injury or limitation – you have that much more of a reason to make your body stronger and as functional as possible”.  I kept explaining that if there is something that holds you back physically like bad knees or back – then learn how to strengthen the areas around it – safely and with the aid of a trained professional who will push you but also show you the safe and most effective ways to work with your body!

            Now I would like to say that this issue is an issue that is only in the elderly population  - but it’s not!  As I reflected and looked around me, I realized that people young and old alike are not tapping into their true potential because of misconceptions about exercise.  For the last time people (not really) weight training is for everyone!!!  It makes you a stronger more functional healthy version of yourself!!!  Learn how to work with your body and work with weights till the day you die.  IT WILL IMPROVE YOUR QUALITY OF LIFE!!!

            My family member who died thought they were doing all the exercise they could or needed (I think).  It wasn’t near enough.  This family member was slumped over and frail for as long as I knew them.  They had no weight training in their life.   Of course I encouraged – but I live far away and didn’t have as much chance to communicate or oversee, as I would have needed to.  I am not saying that if they had that the death could have been avoided but I do think that there may have been more of a fighting chance.   At least I know in my heart that they would have experienced better quality of life in the final months.

            On the way back to home I observed lots of people in the airports and on the plane.  I saw a lot of people that from my naked eye – obviously did little to no exercise and certainly no strength/weight training.  I saw all sorts of mobility issues and postural distortions etc. that I can’t help but know and believe could be alleviated if these people would just embrace the idea that their bodies can be stronger, more functional, more resilient and longer lasting if they would incorporate weight/strength training into their lives.

Thanks for reading,

Andy

Theme of the Day!

So the theme of the day is ... change things up.  Lately I have been having conversations with people that sound similar and I am finding that I am coming to this same point:  to create change - you must create change.  (Also - I think it's important to state here that much of what I write about comes from my own personal experiences/struggles)  Anyway, what I mean is that you can't continue to do the same things and expect different results (a client told me once that is the definition of insanity).  I spend a lot of time thinking/talking about exercise and diet being lifestyle related and that you have to develop routines to ensure that you will stick to your plan and reach your goals.  At the same time - if we want to create a change - lose fat, gain muscle, gain endurance, increase flexibility, etc. - then we must change how we are approaching that goal in order to make progress.  

The most common thing I deal with is people (myself included) who want to lose body fat.  When I delve into a person's plan of attack - often it involves just making sure that they are sticking to a program and working hard.  But if they are already working hard - and/or have established a program - and then want things to change - they have to change the program.  I am not talking drastic changes but things that manipulate variables in your program.  For instance if your diet is routinely 3 meals a day and 2 meals a day on the weekends - then bump up your meals to 5 a day and 3 per weekends but decrease the size of them.  (The eating 5 to six smaller meals a day idea is tried and tested)  But again - let's say your doing that already - well then change the composition of those meals - maybe bump up protein (almost always a good idea) and lessen the carbs, change the source of fats, manipulate the type of carbs you have and when you have them (less at nighttime), or make sure your breakfast is larger than the rest of your meals.  These are just a few of the options that you have available.  

Here is the important thing with regards to losing weight:  In general - calories in greater than calories out = gain in weight; calories out greater than calories in = weight loss.  Depending on what you are currently doing to expend calories  - if you don't change how many calories you burn per day and how many calories you consume per day (and in many cases the source of those calories) then weight loss chances are lessened.  Of course there are all sorts of variables to consider in diet and exercise but the basic formula of burn more than you expend is still the number one factor.

In less common cases - I hear people that want to gain muscle - I say great!!! But still you have to understand - to gain muscle you have to gain "weight/mass" which means more calories than you expend.  Also - this is where manipulation of the types/sources of calories comes into play - the protein/carb/fat balance gets very tricky and is often different for each person.  Point is - you have to again take into account what exercises your doing and how you are doing them (which is directly related to how many calories you burn on a given day) and then how much calories you consume per day.  

Finally, with regards to any other goal.  If you want to make an improvement/change - you have to continue to manipulate what you are currently doing (if you are doing it to the best of your ability).  So you want to increase flexibility - then stop doing the same stretches and learn some different types of stretches or learn how to make your muscles more supple before you stretch.  You want to increase endurance - then change the type of cardio you do and increase the time you do it but change other variables like incline or resistance.  You want to build strength - then change your rest in between sets but up the weight.  You want to to "tone/lean" up - then change the repetition count and the rest between sets and add more variety.  I could go on and on but this is what I have been thinking about a lot lately as I talk to folks about creating "change".  Thanks for reading!

Andy

7 Deadly Sins

The 7 Deadly Sins (of working out):

So I was working with a client the other day and as I talked about a movement that he suggested I told him that specific movement is one of the "deadly sins" you could do in a gym.  Then I thought about how there are several big things that you see people do in the gym that I, and I assume most trained/educated gym goers could agree are recipes for disaster.  The list is as follows with a brief description of each:

1.  Movements behind the neck:  Flexible and highly trained athletes that have done ample pre-training for the shoulder complex (rotator cuff and surrounding muscles) are the only people that should ever do an overhead movement behind the neck.  And even those people need to be very careful.  Some might say that no one should do these movements.  Examples that I routinely see that make me cringe are lat pull downs behind the neck and/or shoulder presses behind the neck.  A majority of people do NOT have the flexibility and muscular balance to do this movement without causing some sort of issue with the inner workings of the shoulder.

2.  Knees in front of toes:  Again, there are a few highly trained athletes (bodybuilders with years of experience) who could possibly justify doing a movement that causes your knees to go in front of your toe on a squat or some leg pressing movements.  Doing so can really engage your quadriceps.  At the same time, it puts a tremendous amount of stress on the knee joint and all the tendons/ligaments etc. that are there.  Totally unnecessary to do in most cases.  Typically you see people doing this on leg presses, squats (especially on a smith machine) and also especially, lunges.  Allowing your knee to travel in front of your toe is a sure prescription for knee trouble down the road.

3.  Too much weight - too fast:  I hate it when I see guys walk in (sorry, but it is almost always guys) fresh off the street (or even worse from a sedentary work day) and go right into a heavy lift like a bench press.  Often they do this with little or no warm up.  They may do a few obligatory stretches (more on that later) and then right into it.  Their bodies are not ready for that amount of weight that soon.  Neuromuscularly there has to be a little "wake up" period before you throw heavy weights into the equation.  A little blood flow and joint lubricant is needed to help eliminate injury chances.

4.  Stretching before working out:  Now there is debate about this and I am not going to get into all that.  Suffice it to say, doing a full stretching workout before a weight workout doesn't make sense.  Stretching is a elongating and if done properly, gentle activity.  Doing a full stretch session before you workout when you are "cold" is like stretching a cold rubber band - greater chance is will snap.  Now there may be some rationale for doing a little pre-stretch or stretch after you have warmed up a little but a full blown stretching session is best saved for after the workout.

5.  Too much range of motion (or too little for that matter):  So someone sometime in the history of the gym I work at must of started doing little 1/4 rep motions because there are still people I see that do little movements on all of there lifts.  Most of these people do like way too much weight at the same time.  Unfortunately, these same people I think are genetically gifted and have a good physique that they are able to maintain with these "little wierd rep workouts" so they think it works - and it may - for them.  BUT not everything works for everybody.  Just like doing the opposite - big full range motions like a bench press with the bar going from your chest to a full locked out position or dumbbell chest presses with the arms going past 90 degrees is too much motion.  I think people lose sight of this fact.  The GOAL of lifting weights is to stimulate the muscle fibers a maximally as you want.  So any thing that takes the muscle out of the movement and transfers the load to a joint or other set of muscles is not productive and can lead to injury.  Also, any movement that is to short and doesn't elongate the muscle fibers enough also is not as productive as possible and if you are using to heavy of weight with that - then again you are prone to injury.

6.  Swinging the weights:  Why people do this is complicated.  I think there are definitely people who have athletic backgrounds that have included explosive training (like in football) that involves the whole body.  But that does not apply to a majority of people.  Swinging or using your body to move a weight is defeating your purpose and obviously (sound like a broken record here) inviting injury.  REMEMBER the goal of weigh training is maximally stimulate muscle fibers.  If you swing and "cheat" with your body the fibers you are targeting will not get the full benefit of the movement.  What's the biggest culprit here???  The barbell and dumbbell curls.  I see more swinging here than the late 70's!  (My attempt at a joke.  Good?)

7.  Not protecting the back:  The biggie!  I hear more lower back problems than anything else.  Why? - because people don't protect it.  Many ways to do this but the major things to make sure you do are avoid movements that cause your lower back to round, keep your core abdominal muscles tight during movements, work your abdominals regularly including your lower abdominals (which most people don't), and have adequate hip flexor and especially hamstring flexibility.  So much of what people complain about with regard to the back can best be avoided by practicing these preventative measures.  OF course practicing good posture helps as well.

I hope this doesn't sound like a know it all and comes off as it is intended to be - just helpful feedback based upon my experiences in the gym.  Comments always appreciated.  Thanks for reading - I know this is a long one.

Andy

My Soap Box on Working Out

One of my clients said the other day that I sometimes get on a soap box about certain issues so I guess I will prove him right by talking a little about the entire concept of working out.  I talk with people so much about working out and ways/methods to get what they want.  Often I that conversation has little to do with WHY they want what they want.  I think if we spent more time thinking about that and being honest with ourselves - it would help direct our goals.  Of course I have ideas about why people want to workout and I will list them here with my comments:

1.  To look good - Of course we want to look good or experience our version of what looking good means.  I feel like some people spend a great deal of time being hyper-critical of themselves while others don't think enough about what it is that they actually want to "look like".  It seems to me that a goal that is attainable has to be one that can be visualized.  Visualizing what it is that you want to look like and then developing a plan to do so is a great step in the right direction towards reaching your goals.

2.  To be healthy (Hear comes my soap box rant) - While I hear this a lot - I think people sometimes fail to realize what "healthy" with relationship to fitness really entails.  A healthy body is one that is strong,  that has cardiovascular fitness, flexible and functions properly.  Sometimes people focus on strength and not much else.  A lot of people focus on cardiovascular fitness alone (often with the goal of dropping lbs. and not thinking about the other benefits).  Some people (but seemingly a lot less) place more emphasis on flexibility.  And even though I think they would tell you differently, I believe a lot of people miss the whole concept of what a properly functioning body should be.  This is actually what inspired this post.  SO MANY people complain and talk about injuries and aches/pains that they have.  Most commonly in the shoulder, knees, and lower back.  All you have to do is delve a little into their daily patterns of activity and you will quickly discover that there is a gap in how they are using their bodies.  They usually have a job that has them in certain positions for long periods of time.  Then they come to the gym and do the same exercises over and over thinking that it will yield different results - and sometimes eventually quit when they don't have success.  I hardly ever hear about balance in people's routines.  When they come to the gym they may hit one or two.  Some people will do some weights and cardio (which should always be done in that order consequently) and every so often I will run across a individual who will actually get some strength training, cardio and flexibility training into their program.  But even them there is always one thing that seems to to take precedence.  I guess this all comes down to balance. People have unbalanced lives (I am speaking physically here - although I would suspect some of you would agree that applies to more than just physical health) and unbalanced bodies.  Of course everyone is different and strategies should be adjusted accordingly - but a BALANCED program is one that focuses on all components of physical health.  And when we talk about strength - we need to focus more on functional strength and even balance associated with it.  When we talk about cardiovascular fitness we need to recognize the impact of the repetitive motions and the amount of effort necessary to get the results we want.  Thinking about flexibility and implementing a program means giving our stretches due time during the workout and stretching all of our body parts - not just one or two.  And when we consider the whole body and how we train it - it is imperative that we train it as a FUNCTIONAL WHOLE - working to make sure that each limb and portion of the body moves correctly and is properly strengthened as well as flexible.  Do so will help ensure our bodies are so much more flexible.

3.  Enjoyment - I will just end with this.  If you can't find some sense of enjoyment from your workouts - however that comes - then I think that they are going to be not nearly as productive and you will lose enthusiasm quickly.  Learn how to work your body properly and completely - enjoy the process and find that balance that makes you feel like you are taking care of things in a way that will enhance the rest of your life.

Andy

My Story - A Taller, Awkward, Skinny-ish Kid with Bad Genetics

Long time no write.  I have been thinking a lot about the fact that I am a personal trainer and how sort of unlikely it is considering where I came from.  I think about this because I often get comments or suggestions that I am somehow more adept at working out or have more to work with than the average bear ... this couldn't be further from the truth.  We are our own worst critics but I am pretty certain that I just barely pull off looking like a personal trainer and will never look as good as some of my colleagues.  But of course - it isn't about how good you look (or is it? :) but really how good you feel and how healthy you are.  Okay - all that aside.  I want to talk about how I got here and what implications I think this has for everyone out there working out who feels like the odds are stacked against them.

When I was growing up I was not particularly athletic.  I tried and sort of participated in several different sports - none of which I was very successful at.  I was just sort of awkward and despite my height - I had no real potential for sports like basketball or football.  (At least that is how I remember it)  As I became an adolescent I drifted towards individual activities such as (of all things) skateboarding which I actually did for several years and got pretty descent at.  When high school rolled around I went into diving because believe it or not, I actually had a slight gymnastic ability.  I wasn't ever really good at that either and my longer awkward frame made it sort of ugly when I dove (again ... how I remember it).  I tell people this story from time to time.  When I was a sophomore, I was photographed for the yearbook with 3 other divers.  There we were sitting on the end of a diving board in speedos of all things.  The other three guys had what I wold describe as very typical mid-adolescent bodies that were being transformed by the raging hormones that we experience at that time.  They had little pecs, abs, guns, etc. etc.  And then there was me.  A longer skinnier version of those guys with a flat chest, almost concave looking arms (meaning they seemed to swoop in instead of out) and broad but bony shoulders.  Definitely not the genetic makeup of a guy with a proclivity for weight lifting.  To top all of this off - I had developed this horrible roll of belly fat right around my belly button.  A result of my mom's incredible cooking, my love of all things pasta, and a couple of years previous to that where I spent at least two summers doing nothing but watching cable.

My point is I had poor genetics.  I did not have the natural V-taper of the back to midsection as my fellow divers and I carried my body fat in the exact wrong place at a pretty early age and my muscularity was pretty nil.  The only thing I did have was a decent set of legs that I think some of which came from using them during all that skateboarding.  I read once that the one time you can really make-up for lack of genetic potential in a short amount of time is early adolescence as your body is producing tons of great hormones at that time for muscle building.

Later in high school I got involved in wrestling which again, I wasn't great at but I actually learned a lot about in a short amount of time and still kick myself to this day that I didn't get involved earlier so I could of experienced a little more success in that sport.  It was actually a sport where I could learn to use some of my length to my advantage.  That only lasted for awhile and then my lack of experience would catch up with me. 

Anyway, around the time I was 13 or 14 I started to look at bodybuilding magazines because I was fascinated by those physiques.  I really never stopped looking at those magazines over the years.  But what started as a fascination with looking at the pictures became actually reading the articles and then eventually putting them into practice; especially around the time I was 16 or so.  I found my first serious gym and because I had spent years reading magazines that preached a lot about form, set and rep schemes, developing symmetry and balance and the "correct" way to do things - I was able to start training properly.  Over the years I tried a variety of techniques and strategies to train my muscles and work on my weaker body parts.  But I always kept in the forefront of my mind the lessons from the magazines that talked about things like working your chest as much as your back and how legs are just as if not more important than your arms.  And because I looked at all those pictures and read all those articles I believe I did so with consistent proper form.  I believe to this day that this is why I have avoided injury in 16 + years of weight lifting.  

Of course I sought out the advice of others hundreds of times and experimented with different ideas of the proper way to train.  And I definitely had my slumps where I would slack on the lifting.  Also, I didn't even consider doing any cardio work until college and on into my early twenties.  But weigh training remained a focus for me and has been one of the most consistent things in my life.

So to wrap all of this up.  I still don't have the best genetics.  But looking at where I came from - I have done almost as much as I could possibly do with my genetic potential.  What was once a flat bony chest actually has a little size and definition ... it is sort of one of my stronger parts now (a testament to lot's of incline presses and work which I believe so many people neglect).  And after all these years of practice makes perfect work, feeling the muscles work and connecting with them mentally has become second nature.  But that took time - a lot of time thinking about the exercises and "toying" with them to make them work for me.  I think I now have a much more complete physique.  Of course I still want to improve areas and of course I still battle that "genetic belly syndrome" (ooh .. I should coin that term).  And I understand that these will be things that I have to work on forever.  

And this is my lesson for the day! :)  I think people should realize that they have the bodies they have and that to make real change takes years, even a lifetime of commitment.  But this should not be an overwhelming fact as the idea that weight training and exercise will be part of your life forever should be comforting.  You will always have something to work on and you will always have a goal.  It gives me purpose in one aspect of my life and I think others who choose to should look at it that way as well.  True change comes from consistent, proper, specifically crafted training programs that make the best of your assets and help you bring up those areas you need to work on.

Thanks for reading ... I know this was a long one.

Andy

In the Grand Scheme of Things ...

I have been horrible about updating this blog.  After taking a little hiatus from full time training (2 mos.) I am back to working the gym floor only and really appreciative of the opportunity I have each day to work with people directly.  SO - with that said, a client reminded me that I should probably keep my blog up since I am back to training exclusively.  So here it goes.

Of course the holidays are here and we are facing another couple of weeks of parties and gatherings followed by the start of the new year.  This particular year we have had what seems to be an increased amount of inclement weather to add to the mix as well.  Of course, with all this comes extra hurdles to overcome concerning getting to the gym, working out, motivation, diet, etc. etc.  My thoughts on this are that in the grand scheme of things, a "slip up" or "slack" here and there is not going to ruin everything.

I have heard from several clients when speaking with them lately; "Well, I haven't been real good about my diet and am frustrated"  or "I haven't been getting all my workouts like I am supposed to".  They often say this with discouragement and seem to stop short of saying - but I feel like they are thinking - "So now everything is screwed up and I feel like I am making no or less progress".  

I guess I have to define how I look at exercise and how I think people should look at it.  It sounds corny but exercise and/or fitness should be a journey of sorts.  But I don't think it is a journey where you reach a destination.  I was reading in Newsweek the other day about these really old (like upper 90's) people and there lives and secrets for longevity.  The one very common thread seemed to be regular exercise.  Meaning, this doesn't end.  We don't reach a point where our bodies reach some pinnacle and then it is like coasting from there.  Exercise and training is a life long pursuit in one form or another.

I know where the mentality of my "disgruntled" clients comes from though.  I deal with it personally all the time as well.  You look at things short term.  You think I have to lose such and such amount of pounds.  Or I have to be currently maintaining such and such amount of weight.  Or my waistline/figure needs to look like this in the near future.  These are goals and short term goals due inevitably lead to reaching long term goals.  However, I think we sometimes get lost seeing the trees instead of the forest.  We forget that in the grand scheme of things, we are simply putting in our time towards the ultimate long term goal - A Healthy and High Quality of life.  Aesthetic ideas and numbers are definite measuring marks to help up think about what we are doing/working for - but again, the ultimate goal is doing it every day to increase the likelihood that we are going to continue to be able to live long functional lives.  

So when looking at what we are are are not doing during this time of year.  Consider the idea that even though you may not feel like you are getting everything done the way you need to - the fact that you are in there making efforts and "participating" is time well spent.  Also, I don't want to give excuses for "missing" the gym or exercise or "blowing" your diet - but again, in the grand scheme of things a miss or laxing up a bit is not going to set you back exponentially.  Especially if you have been putting in your time for weeks, months, and even years.  Our bodies adapt to change but not rapidly enough to make the occasional holiday "splurge" ruin all your hard earned work.  

Finally, I just wanted to preface something I hope to talk about in future blogs.  I think weight as in how much you weigh, has some relevance.  But I think there is entirely too much emphasis placed on this as we age.  We want to make sure that we are strong functional humans and that means carrying some muscle mass.  Muscle weighs.  So weight isn't always as important as we make it.  Also, the idea that weight training is about functionality and strength seems to be a concept I am consistently hammering home lately.  Weight training does a lot of good things but I have been really focused on emphasising to people lately that it is only through strength training and weights that we increase our bodies structural fortitude.  Again, I hope to discuss this more in future blogs.  

Thanks for reading,

Andy

Food and stuff ...

I have been thinking a lot about food lately.  It plays such a crucial role in the successes (and failures) of people working to lose weight.  My own personal struggles with diet in particular cause me to spend a great time thinking not only about what does and does not work for me, but also about what works, in general, for others.  I am a horrible cook.  Because of this I have had to learn to be very creative when going to places.  Just today I was at one of my mainstays, PepperJax Grill (not sure on the spelling of that).  I went with a client of mine and I was reminded that not everyone orders like I do.  So he was game for ordering essentially the same thing as I did.  Mind you, we had both just had weight workouts.  Here is what we ordered.

Double Chicken rice bowl

- easy on the seasoning (very salty)

Vegetables (peppers, onions, and mushrooms)

White Rice

Ahhhh!  You are exclaiming, "why would a personal trainer order WHITE rice".  Well, my answer to that is I had just finishes an intense weight training workout and my body was in prime condition to "accept" and utilize the type of carbohydrates found in white rice.  Most other times, I would opt for a brown rice (if available - it is not at PepperJax), or vegetables in place of the rice.  

Anyway, this got me thinking about what other places I go to that I strongly manipulate my order to make it meet my nutritional goals.  NOW, mind you, this is not to say that all these meals are perfect and appropriate for every meal consumption.  But in a crunch or as part of neccessity, they do fine.  I must emphasize though, preparing and cooking your food at home is always the safer option.  A majority of the time, food prepared at restaurants are loaded with hidden additives that make them less "clean" than your own food.  Also, I eat a little more than the average bear and a little less than others, so adjust accordingly.

First Watch 

Two Egg beaters scrambled

One turkey Sausage Patty or two turkey links

Two pieces of dry whole wheat toast or a multi grain muffin - or if I can afford to burn it - ONE wheat germ pancake (dry)

water and/or coffee

Wendy's

One grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce only

1 small chili

water or ice tea or diet soda

Applebee's, Jose Peppers, On the Border, etc.

Chicken Fajitas (occasionally beef) - no sides except salsa

water, diet soda, or tea

Panera or any other sandwich shop

Some version of a chicken sandwich - possibly turkey

Multi grain or whole wheat bread

Eliminate spreads that are really cheesy or things like mayonnaise - sometimes I do ask that they go light on the spreads

A GREEN leafy salad if available or

A soup that is not cream based

These are just a few examples of a few places and a few meals that I personally do. You can obviously be much more creative than that.  I am actually sort of boring when it comes to food.  Any restaurant has some sort of chicken dish (without skin) and a vegetable of the day.  Add a soup or greeny salad to that and you should have a satisfying meal.  Also, I love cheesy and creamy things.  That is what I often crave.  I really like fried food.  ALL of this is off limits.  There is really no place in it for any sort of diet plan.  I little cheese here and there used very sparingly, I can sometimes justify.  Anything creamy - I can't usually justify that.  But of course I break down ever so often.  

My point with all of this, is that I know what does and does not work for me when it comes to eating out.  I have also worked to learn how much of the three main macro nutrients I can get away with eating without overdoing it.  Everyone should do this - find out what will  work best for them.  That way you are armed with a plan and won't go into things unsure - which is a easy way to just pick the thing that you think tastes best without being best for you.

Recipes and Stuff ...

Well, I haven't been very good at blogging so far.  I think I am at like one every two months or so.  Not a good record.  Anyway, just wanted to chime in on a couple of things.  In previous posts I talked about the fact that I was doing high intensity training and then moved on to a higher volume training.  So I did that for about six weeks and think that I liked the high intensity (heavier weights, slower reps, etc.) regimen.  Now I have moved on to a good old back to basics routine.  It is very "bodybuilding" oriented.  I am actually using a bodybuilder (from the 70's) routines as inspiration and adapting them for my needs.  As I stated in previous posts.  Everyone is really different and every body responds to different types of workouts.  I think the current routine blends the best of both the high intensity and higher volume components.  So I will hopefully keep folks updated on how that is working for me.  I will just say though, that my longer frame does not build muscle easily and I am applying the principles that I am using to gain as much lean muscle as possible - obviously without gaining fat - which is actually a really hard strategy and takes a lot of determination.

Anyway, I wanted to just post a couple of thoughts on recipes and diet.  I have been thinking a lot and talking with people a bunch about this subject.  First let me start by saying that this is my weakest personal area.  Every person really responds differently to dietary guidelines and no one way works best for each person so you have to experiment a lot.  I am a horrible cook so that makes experimenting on my own that much more difficult.  One thing that I have considered a lot lately is that the idea that people need to make sure that there calories don't exceed what the put out in energy is so important - but at the same time we also need to monitor the type of calories that we put into our bodies.  I always struggle to emphasize that the type of calories is almost as important as the amount of calories that you put in your body.  Also the timing of those calories and the sources are things to carefully consider.  My conclusions are too much to put right here but I would say that it is REALLY important to eat a sizable (biggest meal of the day) breakfast.  People just don't get this and really struggle to find things to eat in the morning.  Secondly eating more frequently and smaller meals tends to be the more appropriate way to consume calories.  Finally - as you go through the day you should taper your carbs and sources of carbohydrate - like a "bready" type products at night are not advised.

Okay - so as far as new recipes I have tried.  How about pizza?  I know - you are like "what ... pizza?"  Well I have made a new little pizza that I really like.  I use pita bread (which I have read has a pretty low glycemic rating) that is wheat (even better).  I put like a very thin layer of olive oil on the top of it (like a teaspoon) and smear it around.  Then I put like a tablespoon or so of Ragu sauce on it.  I use Hormel turkey pepperoni (only 5) and sprinkle about an 1/8th of a cup of 2% milk mozzarella cheese on it.  Oh and I have heated the oven to 425.  I put it in for like 5 minutes and it is awesome.  The calories, carbs and fat are all reasonable and it really tastes like decent pizza.  That is just my recipe.  You could add peppers or other vegetables to it to even make it better if you like.  

So that is it for today.  Let me know what you think.

Thanks for your time.

Andy

Exercise Psychology and what not ...

Haven't updated this blog as much as I would like so I am going to include a couple of different things here.  First - a little about what is going on with me.  I have entered a new phase of my training.  For the past 6 weeks or so I was doing a high intensity training regimen.  Basically, as I mentioned in a previous entry, this was a way for me to do one to two workouts and cover my whole body.  Also, the weights were much heavier and the sets and reps were much lower.  Less overall numbers but increased intensity.  The idea is that you get the most out of each set so you don't have to go back and do set after set with lots of reps.  Well, it worked well for me and I definitely got STRONGER.  I also think my body responded quite well.  For those of you who I haven't given my spiel ... basically my body is not genetically prone to gaining a great deal of muscle and my long skinny-ish frame has taken years to add shape and muscle size to.  So this was worth a shot.  I felt like I maintained and maybe even gained some muscle through this past 6 weeks.  Like an idiot I did not record my initial measurements to compare against.  Anyway, one other thing I did a lot of this past 6 weeks was write out all of my workouts.  In 16+ years of working out - I have never done this.  But I think now I won't ever stop.  It truly is an incredible way to document and remind yourself of what you have done and where you came from, so to speak.  I almost got excited writing out each of my workouts - which actually didn't vary too much as they were "one or the other" - but there was still something exciting about sitting down with my pre-workout drink and mapping out what I was about to do.   I WILL definitely continue to write out my workouts and would suggest that to anyone who is struggling with issues of consistency or motivation.  Anyway, now I am moving on to a higher rep - higher volume routine to hit more of my body parts more effectively.   I still am going to continue on with the 2 day split routine because I find that really "works" for me.  This routine is more reps, sets, and exercises per body part and a faster paced workout with super-sets and all that.  The idea is that hopefully it will lean me out and continue to shape the muscle that I have built.  Of course, I have to make sure the cardio and the diet are in check in order to make it all work together.

Okay - enough about me.  So the title of this blog is Exercise Psychology.  What prompted this was a lot of the conversations I have been having with people.  The more I think about it and talk with others about it ... the more I realize what a huge variable psychology is in all of this.  No matter if you have all the experience, tools, background knowledge, and resources .... if you don't have the right "psychology" - it can sort of kill you.  Why else would anyone who has spent hours of time and money on diet stuff, gym memberships, trainers, and even personal research, still struggle with their goals.  It is all the mental aspect of it.  And it is more than just motivation and drive.  I know plenty of folks that have both but still lose the battle day after day.  

I am not a psychologist, but if I was, I would open a practice dedicated to "exercise psychology".  My background in education and psychology related fields has given me plenty of perspective though.  It seems pretty apparent that behind every behavior or lack there of one - there is a significant mental factor playing a role.  But it seems that we pay the least amount of attention to those things.  Like when someone is putting a food item in their mouth that they KNOW is not on their plan and defies all logic when it comes to what they would like to achieve ... why do they still throw it on in?  Or when a person comes to the gym day after day and is very regimented in there routine, why are they able to continue on with such discipline?  There is so much going on in these different situations that impact our choices and motivation.  I guess I encourage myself and others to continue to explore these issues with themselves or others further and see what role psychology plays in our own successes and failures.

Andy

What Works for YOU?!?!

I get to spend a lot of time talking to members at the club and as such I hear all sorts of interesting ideas on fitness. One of things I find most interesting about some of the people that I get to talk with is the individual differences there are in their lifestyles and respective bodies. I know people who eat whatever they want and workout, and as a result they look great. I know people that eat whatever they want and work out, and as a result they look not as good as they want and never seem to change. I know people that work their selves to the bone, try and eat what they think is an appropriate diet and still struggle to make the littlest amount of change. I know that don't work out much, don't eat right, and as a result look that way. And of course I know people that don't have a clue about what to do, don't really watch what they eat, and still look just fine. All of the variations in different people can most likely be attributed to genetics and a bunch of other factors related to lifestyle that I can't get into because I can't give all the information I need to here. Point is, people are different. As such, people need different approaches to reach their goals. I said to a client the other day, "It is really simple - you do X amount of work and take in X amount of the right type of calories and you have no choice but to lose weight". But of course, even though I was trying to put things in perspective for that client, it never seems quite that simple.
So what does all this mean to someone reading this (assuming that someone else is reading this besides me and I am not rambling to myself???)? It means that we have to quest to find what works for us each individually. Most likely you fall into the category of struggle with diet and struggle with workouts. If you don't and you happen to be one of those people who has found results through your efforts, then kudos to you. However, if you are the person that needs guidance and direction, start thinking about what truly works for YOU. Now - the most important thing to consider to determine this, you need to get a little scientific. What I mean is that you need to take a look at the variables in your life that you can manipulate. Things like what you eat, how much you eat, what sort of training you do and how much of it you do are all very important variables to consider. By looking at each of those individually and thinking about what you are currently doing - then thinking about whether or not that is currently working for you - you can start to think about what changes you may need to make. And not every variable may need to be changed right this moment. Some things you do because they really do work for you and without them, things wouldn't work. (Does that all make sense or I am lost in la la land?) Take an individual who is struggling to lose weight, get to the gym enough, work out effectively and eat right. So I take those variables and break them down. How much exercise seems doable right now ... and what are you currently doing ... how is that working out for you??? (Dr. Phil anyone?) Then I take a look at diet. What are you currently eating, what changes could you make, etc. etc. Some things may not work for you. For instance if you know that in the past you have done hours of cardio a day with little change, then you may need to consider that sort of cardio just doesn't work for you. What other sorts of cardio does your body respond to? If you have tried low carb or low fat diets and they have had mixed results not only in how your body responded but also in how you felt while on them and whether or not you wanted to continue ... then again ask, what works best for you. I know all this seems ambiguous and that is because there are so many variables that can be manipulated in so many different ways that to comment on them all would take a book. My thoughts are though, after talking with different folks and hearing all of the things that work and don't work for people, it really strikes me as important to take some time and really think about/meditate on/write out or whatever ... what works for you?
Finally, I am always struck by some of the people that I seem in the gym consistently that have everything clicking and really seem to have found what works for them. What I often find is most consistent amongst the people that have found that is they are strong in the following areas:
Consistency
Effortlessness (not in effort that is put out but effort it takes to muster up the energy to make them do what they have to do)
Schedule
Routine
Discipline
Contentment
Take those words for what they mean and think about that next time you are thinking about what will work for you.
Andy