Muscle Failure: Developing an Athletic Brain

Muscle Failure

: In weight training, training to failure is repeating an exercise (such as the bench press) to the point of momentary muscular failure, i.e. the point where a repetition fails due to inadequate muscular strength.

Training to failure is a concept every athlete knows well. Whether its bench press, squats, dead lifts, push ups or running stairs, training to failure is what sets the athlete apart from the masses.  Knowing how to push your body to complete exhaustion is a skill acquired only through rigorous training, usually reserved for people who have been involved in sports, martial arts, or military service. In the fitness industry most of the clientele are not athletes. In fact, most have had little to no experience with physical training at all, and even fewer have ever been pushed to failure.

Athlete

noun  ath·lete \ˈath-ˌlēt, ÷ˈa-thə-ˌlēt\

:  a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina

The first thing I do when I meet a new client is a fitness assessment. I’ll put them through several basic calisthenics, endurance, and strength movements. What I tell them I’m looking for is strength, flexibility, and stamina thresholds. For the most part I am, but additionally I’m assessing what type of person I’ll be dealing with. When I tell an athlete to put 135 lbs on the bar and press to failure, that’s exactly what I’ll get. The athlete will press reps until he/she can absolutely do no more. Once I see that, I can move forward with a training routine tailored to whatever sport or goal they came to me for. On the other hand, when I ask the average person to do the same, I might get 5 reps when I know they could’ve done several more. I have observed over the years that most people have never pushed their muscles to failure, and don’t know what their failure thresholds are. This is not to say that the average person cannot be trained, but that I will have to set the bar lower. We will start at the bottom and work our way up to failure.

Before I go any further, I’ll say definitively that I believe everyone can be taught to train like an athlete. However, the less time a person has had with physical training, the longer it will take. I use the three rules of rhetoric (Ethos, Pathos, Logos) to build rapport to the point that the client will trust me enough to allow me to push them to failure.

 Ethos is an appeal to ethics, and it is a means of convincing someone of the character or credibility of the persuader. I’ll spend our first few sessions going over functional movement, teaching primary and secondary movers, muscle groups, insertion points, concentric and eccentric contractions, etc.…This establishes me as a credible source of knowledge based advice.

Pathos is an appeal to emotion, and is a way of convincing an audience of an argument by creating an emotional response. For someone who has never been pushed to exhaustion, getting there can be a scary experience. Sharp Increases in heart rate and respiration are things usually associated with anxiety or panic to the untrained patron. With a new client, I will start easy and light, gradually increasing the workload over time, getting closer and closer to failure each session. This builds confidence and trust, as the client learns to push through barriers they have never tried to break.

 Logos is an appeal to logic, and is a way of persuading an audience by reason. Once its established that complete exhaustion isn’t a scary thing, getting there on a regular basis becomes just another part of their training. Over time the failure threshold gets further and further away as strength, stamina and prowess become more and more prevalent. Then one day, without even realizing it, you’ve become an athlete.

So is it possible for everyone to develop this athletic mindset? Absolutely. Whether you're training for the Olympics or a 5k. With proper training, trust in your trainer and trust in the process, we can all learn what our bodies limitations are, how to reach them, and when to push beyond.
*Did I sound like Morpheus just then?... I was totally trying to sound like Morpheus*

30 Day Fat Melting Diet

This diet is meant to be temporary since we'll be cutting back on carbs, and abstaining from alcohol, and all processed food. It's meant to work together with an intense 5-7 day-a-week training program.

This is a modification of the popular 40/40/20 diet.
It's a simple, strict diet that will help you shed fat fast and keep your muscle.

I'll preface this by saying that I am not a dietitian or nutritionist. These are dieting techniques I've used throughout my years of fitness training and bodybuilding.
Lets start with the No's

No's: 

Alcohol: Absolutely no nutritional value. Someone smarter than me wrote it better here: http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=563

Processed food: We'll eat nothing but real food for 30 days. Your body will function better and you'll burn fat more easily. Someone smarter than me wrote it better here:
http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/Pages/what-are-processed-foods.aspx

Dairy: My 12 years as a vegan taught me that dairy is just kinda gross. Cutting it out for 30 days will make burning fat way easier. Someone smarter than me wrote it better here:
http://www.dairyfree.me/healthbenefits.html

Here's all you need:

Protein: Lean meats: Beef, Chicken, Fish, Pork, whole eggs

Carbs: Fruits, Oats, white/ brown rice, sweet or regular potatoes

Fats: Organic peanut butter, nuts, avocado, fish oils

Veggies: Everything (raw or steamed)

Water or Black Coffee only (No fruit juice, soda, etc...)

The rules are simple:

Rule 1: Take in 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body weight each day.

Rule 2: Take in 1- 1.5 grams of carbs per pound of body weight (heavier on training days, lighter on off days)

Rule 3: Calculate your calories! Too low and you wont be able to recover from your workouts. To high and you won't loose weight. Here's the calculator I use:
https://www.loseit.com/

Rule 4: Take in a protein, fat and carbohydrate with every meal

https://www.healthysimplelife.com/pfc-balanced-eating-part-1-what-is-pfc/

Rule 5: Never more than one day off on a row!!!

Theses are the basic guidelines for the diet. Clients who are participating in the 30 or 60 day program have access to me personally for tips and adjustments.

HAPPY SHREDDING!!!

Gym Rat Rules

1. Hoodie up, head phones in. DON'T TALK TO ME! 

I was at the gym yesterday and this dude was like:
 "Man, are you getting bigger" 
10 mins later "You still vegan?" 
5 mins later "Dumbbells huh, You like them better than barbells?"
I gave one word answers and avoided eye contact. I wanted to say "DAMN!!! Take a hint"
Gyms are social places. I do chat with my friends when I see them. But if you see someone in the zone goin' mad-dog, straight FEELIN' IT! Leave him alone!

2. No curls in the squat rack

There is NOTHING more frustration than walking into the gym on leg day, ready to go H.A.M. on some heavy squats and and seeing some noob on the squat rack curling with 5 pounders on the bar. Most gyms only have on squat rack. They are for squats only!

3. Use proper form

You're not impressing anyone by bouncing 300lbs off your chest, and contorting like Emily Rose to get it up for one rep. You look like an a$$ and your gonna hurt yourself.

4. Keep off your phone!

There's one leg extension a my gym. I watched a girl today do 5 sets without getting up. She checked her phone every time she rested between sets. Three guys walked by and looked at her like "DAMN, YOU DONE?!?"
If you absolutely must check your phone GET UP and let someone work in!

HAPPY TRAINING!

Two-A-Day Training

So, you're on a regular training schedule. You get to the gym 4-5 times a week. You do your cardio and hit the weights hard. You walk out of the gym feeling great. Then what? You go to work and sit at a computer ALL DAY.
Check out this article about how sitting all day is one of the worst things you can do:
http://www.npr.org/2011/04/25/135575490/sitting-all-day-worse-for-you-than-you-might-think

This Pic made me laugh today

The Two-A-Day training schedule is one of the best ways to boost your energy, metabolism, stamina, and strength fast!
1 hour of hard cardio early in the morning will jump start your metabolism. But as the day goes on it'll slow down to a crawl, especially if you are sedentary. Adding a weight session at the end of the day will give your metabolism another boost that will keep your body burning all night.
http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/working-out-twice-day-raise-metabolism-12501.html

Summer's over and I'm back to bulk up season. I'm taking in a ton more calories and bulking up quick. Here's the Two-A-Day schedule I'm on to pack on size and keep lean.

Monday: 530 am 1 hour indoor cycle/ 6 pm lift (Pecs, Delt, Tri's)
Tuesday: 7am run (4-8) miles/ 4 pm lift (Quads, Hammies, Glutes, Calves)
Wednesday: 530 am group run/ 3 pm lift (Lats, Bi's)
Thursday: 10:30 am indoor cycle/ 4 pm lift (Pecs, Delts, Tri's)
Friday: 7 am indoor cycle/ 1 pm lift (Quads, Hammies, Glutes, Calves)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Long run (10-14 miles)

Give it a try. You'll see results quick! Be sure not to over train. Try one week of Two-A-Day training on, and one week off (one-a-day).

HAPPY TRAINING!!!

The Banana Peel

I love running. I do it every chance I get. I run with my personal training clients and with my group classes. I believe its a way to not only improve cardio vascular health, but self-esteem, self worth, and self efficacy as well. That said, many people I meet are intimated by running. Most believe the are too slow, too fat, or too unhealthy to run.  My answer to them is this: You don't have to run fast or far. All you have to do is run. You. Will. Get. Better.

When I started teaching group fitness classes back in 2008 I was surprised to found out the instructors weren't taking patrons out on runs. I immediately made runs mandatory once a week. We started out with 1-2 mile runs once a week before our weights/ calisthenic training.
As the class grew and people got turned on to running, I began to stretch the runs out a bit longer. We got up to 5-6 milers before a tragedy happened.

 Chelsea King was assaulted and killed while out jogging. (NOT IN MY CLASS)
This (understandably) frightened many of the women in my training group. Since on our runs everyone ran at a different pace, and our runs started at 530 am many of the runners were on their own in the dark for up to 5 minutes at a time. The gym asked me (understandably) to discontinue the am runs. I considered it for a bit, then decided that I wasn't going to let fear rob my clients, or ANYONE  of their right to train wherever and whenever the hell they wanted!

My challenge was to come up with a way to  run a group of clients ranging in age and fitness ability from 50+ year old couch potatoes to 18 year old athletes. I needed to simultaneously challenge the athletes and not leave the health seekers (couch potatoes) behind.

The Banana Peel was born! I'm not sure where the name came from. We just started doing it and one day someone said "Are we gonna do that banana peal thing again today?"

I modified an old Army drill "The Indian Chain" Where by a group of people run in a line. The last person in line will sprint to the front of the line (Usually to relieve the Color Guard) until the next person from the back of the line runs up to relieve him or her.

With the "Banana Peel" everyone can run at their own pace. The fast runners run as fast as they want, the slower runners runs as slow as they need to. Once the fasties get 100 yards or so ahead, they loop back to the last person taking everyone they pass on the way back with them. Everyone loops behind the last person and the run starts again. This way no one gets left behind and everyone has as challenging a run as they can handle.

The thing I didn't anticipate was the morale boost the slower runners get from the encouraging words and high-fives given by the fasties every time they go bag to pick up the slowbies!

Try it. It's kinda RAD!!!

HAPPY TRAINING!!!

Too Heavy, Too Soon.

There has been a rash of new heads in the gyms around town lately trying to move weight that is too heavy. With the rise of Crossfit over the past few years I've noticed more and more kids doing Olympic lifts, kipping pull ups, muscle-ups and other training techniques that only the well informed gym heads and trainers know about. This is great! I love seeing girls do front squats and dead lifts. That's something that you wouldn't see in your average gym 2 years ago.
That said, I'm seeing a lot of bad form and lift attempts with weight that is just TOO HEAVY.
Guys,
THE STRENGTH WILL COME. Focus on form!!! Work with a trainer. Watching the Crossfit games on ESPN is not enough to prepare you to do a 200lb Snatch!

The old rules are still true: 1. If you're training for strength keep your reps between 8-10 (every set to failure)
                                           2. If you're training for size keep your reps between 10-15 (every set to failure)

Trying for a "Max" or "PR" rep is okay to do once in a while (like 3 or 4 times a year) just to see how far you've come, but that's it! Single rep maxes are good for an ego boost, but there's a high risk of injury especially if your form is bad.

Happy Training!

Training with an Injury

Injuries are an unfortunate part of an active lifestyle. Take all the precautions you like, sooner or later something's gonna pull, strain, sprain, tweak, spasm, break, hyper extend, or tear. For athletes this can be a stressful time. Not training for a person who trains 1-3 hours a day 6-7 days a week  is unthinkable. Fortunately there are tricks that allow you to train around your injury. You may need to take the intensity down a few notches (which can be just as frustrating) but its better than sitting on the couch.
Recently I took on a client whose ankle needed to be completely immobilized for 4 weeks. She went from playing tennis 2-4 hours a day 5-6 days a week, to not being able to run, bear weight on her leg, and only limited walking (with a severe limp).  My challenge was to put together a workout intense enough to challenge her level of endurance without aggravating her injury. Very tricky since most of the high intensity cardiopulmonary drills in my wheelhouse involve sprints and sharp changes of direction.

Super sets are a great way to train opposing muscle groups. They allow one muscle group to rest while you train the other, all while forcing you heart to pump blood to both. Boom! Cardio without running.

 Super-set 1 (Immobile foot)

Heavy rope, double (seated) 60 seconds/ Seated dumbbell curls. 8-15 reps to failure. Repeat 3xs

Since we train 2 days on/ one day off I split our sessions into pushing muscle groups (anterior and medial delts, pecs, tri's) and pulling muscle groups (lats, posterior delts, bi's). This way we avoid over -training.  All super-setted with various 60 second heavy rope drills. It does get a little repetitive, but it's temporary.

DON'T LETS INJURIES SLOW YOU DOWN!

Why Vegan?

I'll preface this blog by saying that i'm not a nutritionist and that I think meat and cheese are delicious. Also, I have been known to back-slide from veganism on occasion, (mostly around the holidays)
That said, I am a strict vegan/ raw foodie (most of the time). Nuts, legumes, fruits, some grains and veggies are all I eat. I picked up the vegan lifestyle a little more than 11 years ago.
Before that I was the typical gym rat. Slingin' weight everyday, eating meat with every meal , getting larger and larger every year. At my biggest I was 260 lbs and about 7% body fat. Back then I thought being large and ripped was what fitness was all about.
 Like most (fitness minded) guys my age, I grew up worshiping Arnold Schwarzenegger, Paul Dillette, Kevin Levrone, Lee Haney, Shawn Ray, and Flex Wheeler. We all read the Arnold Schwarzenegger Body Building Encyclopedia and followed it religiously.
Not sure why but around age 23 I started looking around the gym at all the meat-heads and having second thought about where I wanted to take my body. I noticed that once bodybuilders hit 50 and 60 years old they looked awful.

I decided that being long, lean, and healthy, was the best way to go.

 I met a couple who were just breezing through town  (hippy types) who made a vegan meal for me. They showed me a few vegan propaganda pamphlets, and dropped some knowledge about the benefits of a cruelty free diet.
 I tried it out for a few weeks. I noticed right away that my body seemed to work better, feel lighter and cleaner, but when I notice a drop in my muscle mass I freaked and went back to my omnivorousness diet. This happened several times over the course of a few months. Eventually I decided that feeling awesome and healthy all the time was better than being yolked and feeling sluggish. I was vegan from then on.
 I started the same way most vegans start. Replacing meat with meatless products. This lasted a few years until I realized I was just eating chemicals instead of meat. Gradually I worked processed vegan foods out of my diet. Its taken a long time but I've finally gotten to the point where I'm able to stack on muscle, keep the fat off, and have enough energy to get through my crazy ass days.
   After 11 years of trial and error with a vegan diet, 22 years of trial and error training my body with every technique under the sun, Here are my conclusions:

1.) Don't eat dairy: Humans are the only species on earth who drink milk after infancy, and the only ones ever to drink the milk of another species. Kinda gross when you think about it.

2.) Train for the body you want: You wanna look like a cave man?? Huge traps shoulder and quads. Then spend your workouts in a gym slinging weight around with the other troglodytes

  You want a long lean body? Do everything! Distance running, some form of martial arts,  isolation and Olympic lifting, and speed work! Sprint, sprint, sprints!

3.) Get the hell away from American food: Have you looked at the ingredients on a box of cheerios or Velveeta shells and cheese??

Simple ingredients, fresh fruit, veggies, beans, nuts, (some) whole grains, and lots of water. That's. All. You. Need.

Don't make the changes all at once. Try to gradually phase out bad foods and replace them with good raw foods.                                                            

                                                                                           

                                                                                                                  Baby steps!

Happy Training!

HIIT Playlist

Music is a big part of my life and fitness is my career. Naturally the two are connected. I rarely take requests for music in my classes because I need  music that I enjoy to keep me motivated so that I can motive. I like it fast and I like it loud!

Someone asked me the other day if I would throw some Katie Perry in the mix.

I looked at her like:

Then she was all "What?? That's good music!" and I was all:

Then she was all "Well it's good to workout to..." and I was like:

A good playlist can mean the difference between a good workout and a great workout.
Here the playlist I've been using at HIIT class for the past few weeks.

Here I Come: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKRTtplc_98

Spiral Staircase: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VtRM9HgTjI

Sleep Now in the Fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w211KOQ5BMI

Decent Days and Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfJMqUN0FCE 

Apple Tree: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9u_zhBL5x4

Dead Wrong: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoYi9ympj_I

Stand and Deliver: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzT4m6fJ7jo

If your Going Through Hell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_ulRwXIzbo

Neon Jesus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfsKEdsmU7Y

Happy Training!!

Tuff Mudder

I did the Tuff Mudder a couple weeks ago with one of my clients and a dude we know from the gym. It's a 10-12 mile obstacle course designed by British Special Forces. It's basically all the stuff you've got to do in Basic Training. Wall climbs, low crawls, partner carries, a little swimming, and lots of running.

 BTW, I was in the ARMY. I don't think I've mentioned that yet on this blog.

At the beginning I was indifferent about the whole thing. I approached it the same way I do all events. Which is knowing I'm probably in better shape than 90% of all the participants. Right away I was looking around, sizing everyone up, wondering who my competition would be. It was about what I expected. Lotsa frat boys, a bunch of military types, everyone in pretty decent shape 18- 40ish dudes mostly. 

When you've worked in the fitness industry as long as I have you develop an eye for physiques. You can usually tell right away who trains properly. 

1st. I picked out all the runners, swimmers, and cyclists. Long lean bodies, not a lot of muscle."These people" I thought "are gonna have a hard time climbing walls, pulling themselves up ropes, and carrying weight." Sure enough at the 1st wall all the people having the hardest time pulling and pushing themselves up and over were the endurance athletes.

2nd. I noticed the gym rats. Huge arms, legs, and chests. Not as lean as they could be. I thought "These are gonna be the ones suckin' wind on the hills and long run stretches. Sure enough, all the guys doubled over on the side of the roads were the meat heads.

3rd. The young heads. 18-25 ish dudes who look like they're in decent shape. (Mostly because they're 18-25) "These guys" I thought "have no idea what they're in for." Sure enough, littered along the whole course were young dudes puking, laid out, screaming with ab, calf, and leg cramps.

4th. I noticed the people I considered my competition. Long, lean, muscular, well trained bodies. The kind of body you get from years of cross-training, lifting, swimming, running, martial arts, etc.. These were men and women 27- 37ish, and looked GREAT! Sure enough the same faces I sized up at the start were the ones breezing through the run, killing the obstacles, and charging the hills (right along side me)...ahem

I'm sure this all sounds like hubris, but my point is that the road to ultimate fitness is varied. You've got to do EVERYTHING! 

Olympic lifting: For brute strength and power.

Martial arts: (I'm partial to capoeira) for balance, flexibility and coordination.

Isolation lifting: To strengthen your weak points and fine tune your physique. 

Cross training: Because you never know when you'll need to bear-crawl up or down a muddy hill. 

Running: Lots of it!

And lawd help me! even Yoga.

Unfortunately there's nothing that will prepare you for crawling on your belly, in water up to your chin, in the dark, being shocked by electrodes :)

All in all Tuff Mudder was an amazingly fun time! It was well put together, bloody well run, and all for a great cause! http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/

Check out the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=5FFRmXFmjYs

I'm putting a team together to do it again next year. 

Who's with me?!

Vegan Pesto Veggie Pasta

I've been on a no soy kick for about a month now. It's been tricky making meals without my go-to, quick source of protein (tofu), but it feels better knowing I'm eating food closer to the way it comes in nature.

A few nights ago I realized that I hadn't eaten pasta in a while. Not for any reason in particular. I just kinda forgot about it. 

Most people think pasta isn't vegan. Well, most of the time you can buy any kind of pasta from anywhere and it'll be vegan. Some pastas (not many) uses eggs, so you'll have to take a second to read labels.

Technically pasta is a processed food, but everything else is fresh, and or raw so I let it slide. Plus I love how full I feel after a pasta dish.

Here's all you need:

* Broccoli

*4 medium sized Portobello Mushrooms

*2 yellow peppers

*3 cups Penne Pasta

*6 table spoons Pine nuts

*4 cups Fresh Basil

*4 cloves Fresh Garlic

*1 lemon (3 table spoons)

*1/4 cup Nutritional yeast

*6 table spoons olive oil (extra virgin if you're fancy. My palate isn't sophisticated enough to tell the difference) 

*1 cup Sun dried tomatoes

*WINE!!! 

                             Pesto Sauce: I totally jacked this recipe. Check it out HERE

1. Put basil, garlic, pine nuts, salt, lemon in a food processor. Process until everything is combined and has a finely ground consistency.

2. Add olive oil and nutritional yeast and continue to process until you get a creamy sauce

The Rest:

1.Prep 3 cups of Penne pasta. Do you really need me to tell you how to do that??

2. Toss the Chopped the yellow Peppers, mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes and broccoli in a saute pan with a 1/4 cup of water and 3 table spoons of olive oil. Blanch until the water cooks of (30 secs-1 minute), then pan sear for (30 sec- 1 minute)

3. Top a bed of pasta with your veggies, top the veggies with your pesto sauce, top the sauce with pan seared pine nuts, and GRUB!

4. Drink the wine. ALL OF IT!  (I drink 2-Buck Chuck with my pinky in the air 'cause i'm classy)

No Soy?? No Doy!!!

Had a crazy day of training yesterday: 11 mile run, 3 mile run, 1 hour of Capoeira, 1 hour weight session. By the time dinner rolled around I was HANGRY!

I've been on a no soy kick for the past few weeks. I read some pretty scary stuff in Men's Health Magazine about its effects on men's testosterone levels: http://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/soys-negative-effects (I ain't goin' out like that)

My body needed lots of protein to recover and I'm not eating Tofu anymore. This meal is 100% dairy and soy free, and vegan obviously.  Here's what I had:

Quinoa, Lentils and Guacamole.

Quinoa: I use Quinoa instead of rice. It's got 2x the protein and 1/3 the carbs. Preps the same as rice. Takes about 10 minutes.

Lentils: Tons of protein and they cook up quick. I salted the water, add a little olive oil and 3 cloves of garlic. Takes about as long to prep as a pot of thick pasta. Check the health benefits: http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-5488/7-Health-Benefits-of-Lentils.html

Guacamole: Hass Avocado, Garlic, Roma Tomatoes, orange (I use orange instead of lemon cause I'm cool like that) Mash it up with a fork, and grub.

Raw Kale Salad:

 1 chopped head of Kale, 2 shredded carrots, 1 chopped red bell pepper

Tahini, Lemon, Garlic sauce:

4 lrg spoonfuls Tahini, 2 squeezed lemons, 2 chopped garlic cloves, equal parts water/ Tahini, salt to taste. A small food processor works best.

I made a bed of Quinoa, dropped a large spoonful of Lentils in the middle, topped it with Guacamole and Daiya cheese, then surrounded the whole thing with Raw Kale salad.

 The whole thing took about  an hour (I had a little help) I went to bed with a full belly and woke up in the morning turbo charged for my 5 mile group hill run.

Bon appetit and Happy Training!

Consistency, Accountability, and the Secret to Weight Loss

con·sist·en·cy  [kuh n-sis-tuh n-see] noun
1. steadfast adherence to the same principles, course, form, etc...

ac·count·a·bil·i·ty   [uh-koun-tuh-bil-i-tee]  noun
1. the state of being accountable, liable, or answerable.

                                                                                                               The Secret to Weight Loss:

AND THAT'S IT!

Plyometrics

Plyometrics (Plyo) is one of the best ways to develop explosive power. I've been using Plyo techniques in my training since high school. My track and field coach introduced me to it to develope more power for  my Shot put and Discus events.

 I work Plyo drills into my HIIT classes and personal training sessions fairly regularly. They will help increase your vertical  jump, boost your sprint capacity, strengthen joints ligaments and muscles, and shake up your workout.

As with any high intensity movements you should do a thorough warm-up, be free of any pre-existing contraindications and always train under the supervision of a trainer. These movements are high impact. If you have issues with your knees, ankles, shoulders or lower back Plyo training may not be for you.

                                                                                                     Weighted Squat Jumps

This movement works the same muscles as regular squats. The difference is that during squats your reps are slow, and there is a controlled contraction of your glutes and quads. With Plyo squats you contract your muscles fast and actually leave the ground. This teaches your muscles to adapt to a new way of movement that will improve your performance in all areas of sports and fitness.

Choose a weight that will allow you to do a 1 minute set with proper form, leaving the ground with each rep. Repeat 3x. You can perform your reps standing in place or travel forward with each jump.

I have clients who are in and out of town all the time either on business or vacation. I tell them "Came back fat and your ass is mine!" Or something equally as crude.

 Travel can throw off your training schedule, cause your progress to back-slide, and kill your motivation. Your diet suffers and many times there's no access to a gym.

Here are a few Plyo drills you can do when you're on the road with no equipment and just a little space.

                                                                   

                                                                                                                Frog Jumps

Lock your hands behind your head. Keeping your chin and chest up, squat as low as you can then jump as high as you can. Hit the ground with your knees bent and repeat. Push yourself to do a 1 minute set without stopping. Repeat 3x

             

                                                                                                                Clappers

Lower your chest to the ground, push off as fast and hard as you can, clap you hands, hit the ground, repeat. Do 3 sets to failure. If you really want to challenge yourself, clap as many times as you can before you hit the ground. As you get stronger you'll be able to get more claps in. Its a fun way to track your progress.

 Ahem... I'm up to 7 claps

                                                                                                               Full Body Clappers

Once you've gotten strong enough, challenge yourself to push your entire body off the ground, clap your hands, hit the ground. repeat.

Do 3 sets to failure.

"Pffft, that's too hard, I'll never be able to do that."

      Here's 6 year old Rylan bangin' 'em out!

Your excuses are now invalid!

Happy Training!

D.O.M.S.

Delayed onset muscle soreness (D.O.M.S.) can make a softy out of the toughest of us. 

It's the pain and stiffness felt 24 to 72 hours after a tough workout. It can last from 2-6 days and can be extremely uncomfortable.  Not to be confused with acute muscle soreness.

If you have not worked out for a while D.O.M.S. is unavoidable. You can ease your way back into training by using lighter weights for your 1st few sessions, but there will still be soreness.

When clients come to me for personal training or group fitness classes after not training for a while they are always enthusiastic and motivated. They give 100% and leave feeling like a boss. They'll say "Oh man, that was great! I'll see you in 2 days!" 

It's all I can do not to laugh maniacally knowing whats in store.

I compose myself and say "Now, you're gonna be good and sore for the next few days. Don't let that discourage you." 2 days later they show up with a different look on their face...

The bad news is there's no way to avoid D.O.M.S. Pop some ibuprofen and suck it up!

The good news is after a couple weeks of regular training the soreness is nowhere near as bad. 

HAPPY TRAINING!

Abs!

Everyone wants abs. Here's the hard truth. WE ALL HAVE THEM, but if you are fat you'll never see them! 

Do all the crunches, sit-ups, leg lifts, bicycles, trunk twists, and body curls you like. Your abs won't show through layers and layers of body fat. That's not to say you're wasting your time. Having a strong, well trained core will help with your posture, stability, and performance in everything from sports to everyday activities. That said, this blog is about getting a 6 pack.

Abs (abdominals) is the name given to the group of muscles that form the trunk of your body.

Here are the exercises that will make your abs pop:

Straight legged hanging leg lifts:

Not for the timid. You'll definitely have to work your way up to this one. I've been doing it for years and can still only get 12- 13 reps. Do 3-4 sets to failure.  There's nothing better for building those hard to reach lower abs.

Oblique leg lifts:

Another of my favorite high rep drills. Do as many reps as you can then switch sides and do the same # of reps on the opposite side. Repeat 3x.  Nothing sexier on a men or woman that a well formed set of obliques. You'll get that "V" that starts right above your hip bones and runs all the way down to your money maker. 

le *nice*

Trunk twists (I call them Cherry pickers):

A high rep exercise. It'll take a little while to get the balance right. Once you get it, lift your feet off the ground and go to work. Challenge yourself to do as may reps as you can before you stop. Anything from 20 - 100 reps. Push yourself to muscle failure for 3-5 sets.

Cable crunch (body curl):

Low rep exercise. Pick a weight that will allow you to do between 15-20 reps. Pack on the weight, your abs are stronger that you think. I can do the stack at most gyms. These will make your upper abs really pop. 

These and many other exercises will give you a strong well developed set of abs that start just below your chest, run all the way down to your business, and wrap all the way around both sides of your trunk.

BUT !!!

If you want all your hard work to show you've gotta burn off all your extra body fat. 

Do your cario. Lots and lots of cardio!

HAPPY TRAINING!

The Plateau

Okay, you've been working out for a year. For the 1st 3-4 months you saw awesome gains. You leaned up and packed on muscle.  For the last 6 months you've been doing the same exercises and training just as hard but your progress has stopped. You my friend have hit your plateau.

Our bodies are great at adapting to stress. Say your chest routine is: Incline barbell press, flat barbell press, and dips. The 1st time you do that routine you're super sore for the next few days. The next time chest day rolls around you do the same routine. Again the next time and the next. After a month or so you're not getting sore, your pumps just aren't there, and you're not putting on any size. This is because by now your pecs know exactly whats expected of them. They have adapted and know that they don't need to grow any more.
If you make a few little changes to your routine it'll shock your muscles into breaking through your plateau.
Try this: Start with flat dumbbells instead of incline, incline dumbbell flys instead of flat bench, and decline beach press instead of dips. You'll notice your pumps are back, you'll be sore again, and you'll start seeing gains again. After a while though, the plateau will come back. That's when it's time to change up the routine again! This applies to all area of fitness.

You've got to keep your workouts new and fresh. I always say "Your workouts should be like snow flakes. Never the same one twice." This will keep you excited about training, keep the gains coming, and prevent repetitive stress injuries (RSI)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repetitive_strain_injury .

So you run everyday. Great! Gotta be sure to keep your joints and ligaments healthy. Try cross training in the gym for a month. When you get back on the road all the areas that take a beating when you run will be well rested and stronger

So you lift every day. Awesome! Gotta be sure you don't sleep on the cardio. Try cycle/ run training for a month. You'll lean out a bit, and when you get back into the gym all the pings and pangs in your elbows, shoulders, and knees will be significantly better.

If this seem like too much to remember, find a trainer who knows what the hell he's talking about (I know a guy) to keep you motivated and moving in the right direction.

Showing up is not enough

So you bought a few boot camp or personal training sessions. Good for you! You've taken the 1st step. Now the hard work begins.

I take my career as a personal trainer deadly serious. I ask nothing less than 100% from all my clients 100% of the time, and I promise to always give 100% back. If you come to one of my classes or PT sessions expecting anything less than the hardest workout you've ever done you have hired the wrong guy.

Showing up is not enough! You must push your body as far as it will take you on every set, every rep, ALWAYS! (obviously being sure to always use proper form and taking any contraindications into consideration)

So you can squat 100 lbs for a minute then run a suicide. Good for you! Slap on another 10 lbs for the next set and do it again! 

If you do a set of swing throughs with with a 20 lb kettle bell, run a 100 yard sprint, get back and have enough wind to chat with your buddy about work or whatever, YOU HAVE NOT PUSHED HARD ENOUGH!!!  Up to the next weight and run harder!

We are social creatures. Getting together in groups and talking smack about whatever is just what we do. But for 1 hour a day all  I ask is that you put that crap on the back burner and train as hard as you can.

It will suck, you might puke, you may want to quit. DON'T!!! 

You WILL get stronger. You WILL get faster. You WILL get leaner. You Will get better.

"That was the hardest workout I've ever done. I wish I hadn't" 

said no one ever.

Isolation training vs full body training

I'd like to preface this blog by saying that if you are up and at the gym good for you! Keep it up!

That said, I spend my days in and out of gyms, fitness classes, training clients and working out myself.

Nothing frustrates me more than watching people waste their time on ineffectual workouts. Sometimes they're on their own, but many times they are with a trainer! And i'm like...

I was at the gym today watching an overweight, 25ish women (with a trainer) go through a lack luster, dead eyed, boring workout.

They did standing dumbbell curls with 10 pounders, lateral dumbbell flys with what looked like 3 lb dumbbells,  and a series of other isolation lifts with weight that was way too light.

I wanted to run over and say HEY!!! Put that woman on the treadmill for 10 minutes then get her ass over to the SQUAT RACK!!!

Imagine your body is a huge block of rough granite. You want to sculpt it into a work of art RIGHT!?!

Well isolation exercises are sand paper. 

Squats, dead lifts, push-ups, and sprints are a hammer and chisel.

If you are one of the lucky few who are naturally lean and muscular then isolation, toning, and finishing exercises are fine. For the rest of us, hard cardio and full body movements that incorporate multiple muscle groups are a must. 

Squats work all the major and stabilizing muscles of your lower body.

 Do 5 heavy sets of squats to failure and you'll feel like you've just run a 5k

Dead lifts work all the same muscle as squats as well as your lats and traps

Push-ups work all the muscles of your upper body (directly and indirectly)

and finally, sprints are by far the ultimate fat burner

Running is great. Putting in the miles every week is great for your heart, body and mind. I run ON THE REG!

But how many over weight people do you know who run half and full marathons? I know plenty!

But I've never met an over weight sprinter.

The key to getting the most out of a sprint is to give 100 percent! Otherwise you're just running.

I incorporate these exercises and many, many more into my own work outs as well as my clients. They will get you where you want to be.

 Once you've gotten long and lean then maybe you can sand in the mirror at the gym and watch yourself do dumbbell curls.

Running

DO IT!!!