The Top 5 Fitness No-No's

As you begin the year with new fitness and health goals, it is important to make sure you are practicing safe and effective exercise techniques to maximize your results and prevent injury. This article will help you identify the most common mistakes and misconceptions in exercise and fitness.

5) Holding on to the treadmill
*This technique places extra stress on the lower back and hips due to the production of an unnatural gait. The natural swing of the arms while walking or running causes proper weight distribution as well as strengthening of the core muscles by recruiting them to maintain balance. Finally, holding on the treadmill significantly reduces the total calories burn as well as increasing exercising blood pressure.
4) Abdominal exercises to lose fat in the midsection
*Every adult human being as a 6 pack! The difference between a “fitness model” midsection and a beer belly is the amount of fat sits on top of that 6 pack. Performing hundreds of crunches, side bends, and leg lifts will on help reduce that bulging midsection. The best abdominal exercises are called “put downs”. PUT DOWN that second serving of dessert!!
3) Walking/Running while carrying weights
*Carrying weights in hands while walking or running places extra stress on the shoulders, neck, and back. Using weights heavier than 2 lbs would cause you to swing arms across the body which increases the chances of pulling or straining a muscle. Carry hand weights slows you down and therefore reducing the intensity and the caloric burn of your workout. This technique is also very dangerous because it disables the ability to use hands in case of a fall.
2) Wearing a weight belt
*The usage of a weight belt should be limited to sets in which one is using the heaviest amount of resistance and maximum effort. Using a belt throughout your workout only weakens the core muscles and increases the chance of injury. Also, the necessity to use a weight belt during upper body exercises is a sign of bad exercising posture, weak core muscles, or a significant muscular imbalance.
1) Plastic sauna suits
*This is one of the most dangerous practices in fitness. Increasing body temperature by preventing the evaporation of sweat has been linked to numerous exercise related deaths. The belief that sweating is a sign of an effective workout is a myth that is been around for decades. One can sweat while seating in a car with the windows up in the middle of the summer and that does not mean they are exercising. Whatever weight one loses in sweat from a workout is usually all from dehydration and in turn would be put right back on once you drink any liquid. These suits actually do not make you even sweat more; they just prevent the normal amount of sweat you produce from evaporating.

Hopefully this article provided you with valuable information that would help you accomplish those goals more effectively as well as safer.

The Solution to the Resolution....

So it is about that time again, every one is talking about making resolutions. Now I am not a big fan of the "Resolution" because usually most people don't make it past Feburary and they are back to the same ol' behavior as last year. The reason is that we all want to improve on something in our lives that we weren't satisfied with but we don't actually address the steps needed to take to be successful.
One of the most popular resolution has to do with fitness, health, and more specifically weight loss. I first step to being successful with this type of resolution is to identify the specific things that stopped you from being healthier. Lifestyles, jobs, habits, mindsets, schedules, and even people(friends and family) are the main things that determine "what you look, feel, and act like". In order to be accomplish any goal in life you need to make the little changes that are necessary to accomplish a big goal.

Just Rubber...

This holiday season has been very busy, as usual. But luckily I only missed one workout...which was on Christmas Day. And of course you know I made up for it this morning. Today we had a "Chest and Back" day, which is normally our Tuesday workout. We incorporated the use of the strength bands on the barbell bench press. These aren't your average elastic tubing that barely give 15lbs of resistance. These are the heavy duty, reinforced bands that produces about 90lbs of resistance. Adding these to each side of the barbell as one performs a bench press can make even a 100 lbs feel very heavy. It's not the same type of "heaviness" that you get from regular plates which are providing the exact amount of resistance throughout range of motion. These bands cause a variable amount of loading that results in each rep to feeling different. The "middle" part of the motion is when the resistance starts to kick in. This forces one to explode through the rep or else the "load" would make it impossible to finish/lock out. Needless to say, this provides an instant pump to the muscle because of the added amount of force needed, and in maximizing strength gains.

The "Hype"...

So today, I was surfing the web doing some research for a project I am working on at work. This required me to find images of individuals working out with a personal trainer. First of all, I now know why it is so hard for those of us in the fitness industry to gain/earn the respect of the general population. I stumbbled across numbers websites of several individuals who are personal trainers. The motivation to write this post came from one particular website in which a guy claims to have a client who lost 26lbs and15% body fat in 8 weeks. Now to the average personal who is into to fitness, those numbers are believable but I am here to tell you it is what we (those of us who study and live health and exercise) call... THE HYPE. I am telling you from my experience as a Personal Trainer and Bodybuilder that those results are so incredible its next to impossible. If it this guy could get some to lose 15% of body fat that quickly he would be all over the news and research articles. That means this client was losing basically 2% of body fat EVERY week. The moral of this post, don't believe what you read, see, and hear about even from people who claim to be experts. THE HYPE causes us to set unrealistic goals and get discouraged when we don't achieve them. Hard work, determination, and knowledge would save you a lot time, effort, and money. To get the results you want, you have to earn it the right way...there are NO shortcuts.

Through sickness...

Last week was a really difficult week training for me. I was suffering from a combination of sore throat, congestion, and a cough. The last thing I wanted to was any form of exercise which would have caused me breathe deeper because even breathing hurt to do.
I somehow still found a way to make it through each workout. Now, I am not saying the intensity was at the normal level, but I still was able to push around the same amount of weight and perform the adequate reps for each exercise. Even squating 405lbs for 5 reps!
I am still not 100% this week, but I am feeling alot better. Looking forward to getting back after it. We are just under 50 weeks til my first Professional Bodybuilding show.

Thanksgiving.....

If you are like me, then you have enjoyed a few days of "good eating". This Thanksgiving Weekend was actually pretty good in the nutritional aspect. Everything was planned out and done with the "goal" in mind. I officially have about 50 weeks til my pro debut, so we are steadily taking little steps towards that. Thanksgiving came a the right time of me. I was able to spend some time with family and friends that I had "ignored" during this intense bodybuilding season. I worked out with high school buddies putting them through little taste of how I train. I am glad to be back on my typical schedule and now we are getting ready for the 2008. Many of big plans and projects in the makings for next year. We will be finalizing the contest schedule and locking in some dates for speaking engagements/seminars in the next few weeks. I would be sure to keep you all posted on any new developments.

The Revolution: Seminar in Review

As mentioned on previous posts, I lead a Health and Fitness Seminar at World Gym Bowie this past Saturday morning. The Seminar was a brief overview of the three major aspects of Health, Wellness, and Fitness. There were about 20 attendees, which was just the right number. The seminar was very interactive and the question and answer sessions provide the participants with opportunity to get even more information on any topic they were interested in. Due to the success of this seminar, Nsanetraining.com and World Gym Bowie would be have a 3 part series of seminars starting Dec. 1st 2007 that would provide for an in-depth approach on the topics that we covered on Saturday. For more information on the seminars....email me at ds@nsanetraining.com. Seating is LIMITED.

The Revolution: FREE Health, Fitness, and Wellness Seminar

You want to know the secrets to getting the body you have always wanted? Everyone wants something free right? I have gotten so many requests for nutrition and exercise advice that I decided to give out FREE information on a larger scale rather than individually. Join the fitness experts at NsaneTraining.com and World Gym Bowie for our complimentary fitness and wellness seminar on Saturday, November 17, 2007 at 11:00am (this saturday). Register today. Seating is LIMITED! To register email wgtrainer@gmail.com with your name and phone number, and type REVOLUTION in the subject line. Register TODAY, the first 10 people to register will have a chance to win FREE Personal Training as our gift to you. Daniel Silva

Already...

So after only three days on being back on my bodybuilding diet, I am already losing weight. I woke up this morning and stepped on the scale to see 174 lbs. I was really surprised by that. I would like to keep my body weight above 175 through out this off season time. But whenever I get that high my abs disappear, so I know that its not muscle gain but water and fat gain. Those two things are a bodybuilder's nightmare. Hopefully these 4 lbs in the last three days would slow down a little! I hope to be at least 170 on stage next year so that means that I need to be around 185lbs when I start cutting for my first show. Daniel

Training Notebook....10/5/07

So today was the first day of the growth phase...emphasizing heavy weights, lower reps, and adequate rest periods. As on every Monday with hit our legs today focusing on the Quads! *Leg extension (warm up) 160 x 20, 160 x 20, 180 x 20 *Hip Abductions (superset with leg extensions) 100 x 20 x 3 (with strength bands attached) *Leg Press (with strength bands attached except for last set) 5 plates(each side) x 6; preformed 5 sets adding a plate to each side, finishing with 10 plates *Step Ups 75lbs(each hand) x 6, 75 x 5, 75 x 5 *Leg Extension(burn out set) 140lbs x 30 x 3 (superset with step ups) And after all of this we had the bright idea to do about 300 meters of walking lunges around the outside of the gym. Needless to say my legs are NUMB after this workout! Just another day working out.

End of the Offseason...

So after waking up and weighing myself this morning and seeing the scale tip a whopping 177lbs...I decided to end my off-season one week early. At the rate I was going I would have probably hit 185 by Nov. 14th. I have been eating well needless to say! Still working out as much but I was also eating anything that "wasn't moving" these past few days. Not necessarily eating bad things...I was just eating alot of the good things. So now I am back on it!! I have realized that I have an addictive personality and that is a good thing when it comes to exercise and eating healthy, but it also carries over to when I am not eating as well. So people can do the moderation thing, myself I am all about the extremes...whether it be good or bad! Along with being back on the bodybuilding diet, I am also back hitting the weights HARD. Thanks to the encouragement of my workout partner/coach, my legs right now feel like jello

Review of First 12 Weeks...

This weekend marked the end of my first "12 weeks" program. Within that short period of time I went from being an average guy who works outs and eats healthy to joining the ranks of professional bodybuilding. Two weekends ago I won the OCB Charm City Classic and last weekend I placed 2nd in my division at the OCB Yorton Cup. Getting a Pro-Card this early in ones bodybuilding career is not something that occurs very often. I am excited about the endless possibilities that are now available for me. Officially, I am in my off-season for the next 15 days. I am back to lifting heavy and still eating very clean for the most part. I do indulge in some rice cakes and peanut butter almost three times a week though.
I have also decide to continue posting on this blog...in fact it is officially the "52 weeks til" fitness blog. I am planning on competing in my first Pro Show in Nov. 2008. I would like to give a special thanks to the trainers and nutritionists at www.nsanetraining.com who developed my workouts and diet throughout this process. As you can see these people know what they are talking about!

Being the Best....Oct. 20th 2007

So this weekend, I won a few trophies so I am sharing it with you....to re-live the moment with me!

Looking forward to next weekend already, this time is for my friends and family!

Charm City Classic....Men's Overall
http://youtube.com/watch?v=tnTOfMx9Iaw

Charm City Classic...Men's Lightweight
http://youtube.com/watch?v=gdJCl1xQc40

Charm City Classic....Special Award
http://youtube.com/watch?v=vribn4JGnfk

Pratice Show.....Pro Card

So i decided to compete in the Charm City Classic this past Saturday, just as a little practice for the Yorton Cup on the 27th. I needed alittle confidence booster! I was in the Men's LightWeight Open Division...weighing in at 161 lbs. I must say I wanted to be a little heavier. I didnt expect to win anything really....but at the end of it all....I was the Overall Winner of the Entire Show. For those of you who don't keep up with bodybuilding...that means I earned my Pro Card. I am officially....the newest International Fitness and Physique Association (IFPA) Professional Bodybuilder. It is still very hard for me to believe it myself.


Check out the link......Charm City Classic 2007



Here is a picture back stage after receiving the trophy

3 weeks...

These pics were taken Tuesday Oct. 9th 2007. I weighed 166lbs...still about 3-4lbs away from where I want to be. I was on my 2nd carb-depletion day, so I felt very "flat". Comparing with the pics from 2 weeks ago...I think I looked flat also.

Back poses still looking/feeling good!

Surprised...

So today I performed free weight barbell squats for the first time in a about 6 months...I was very surprised how easy it was to get right back to the weight I used last time. I am not big on sharing "how heavy" I lifted but I easily got 365 lbs for 6 reps WITHOUT a weight belt. I actually surprised myself with that number...I thought at least my back would not be able to handle that resistance because I hadn't placed that much weight on my back in such a long time. I am now in my "carb depletion" phase, I have been going for 2 days with very little carbohydrates and on the 3rd day I have a "refeed" in which I consume about 150-200 carbs in one meal and no other nutrient(protein or fats) with it. I have been struggling at work on the 2nd day to stay energized but other than that its not too bad. The premise behind this is to use up all muscle glycogen and keep protein levels high so that the body has no choice but to use fat as the source of energy.

The Countdown...28 days to go!!

So I am on the other side of a month til the big day. Went to a posing class today, really had a chance to practice some of my mandatory poses and interact with some other bodybuilders. It was very good practice with the guidance of a professional bodybuilder who really helped all of us improve on our "presentation". I must say I left feeling very confident with my progress and now I am really "pumped" for Oct. 27th 2007. I was informed that there would be about 150 total competitors at this show, so needless to say the competition is going to be very good. The only thing left to do now is start working on my routine, which is supposed to be 60 sec. display of various poses with the accompaniment of music. I have my song chosen I just have to put some poses together with nice smooth transitions.

All -In -One Breakfast

1/2 C Quaker Oats Old-Fashioned Unsweetened Oatmeal 1 Scoop Isopure Lo-Carb Vanilla Protein Powder 25g Raw Unsalted Almonds Water Put Oatmeal and Water in a microwavable bowl and microwave for 1-2 mins depending on microwave. Mix in Protein Powder after heating (not before causes oatmeal to "bubble and "clump" more). Add more water if needed; stir in almonds. Contents: 407 Calories; 19.5g Fats; 31.5g Carbs; 35g Protein; 6.5 Fiber; 2g Sugars *Great way to start of the day, especially for those of us who work out in the mornings you have a good amount of Carbs and Protein to fuel the workout. *Also note that out of the 19g of fat only 1.5 of those are saturated!!

1st Month of Boot Camp...

It is hard to believe that its been almost a month since the beginning of the Ultimate Boot Camp. Officially we have 6 participants in the boot camp, and we are already seeing results. I will be posting an updated assessment of our results later on this week. I am going to estimate that we are already close to about 35lbs in the first month, and thats with only meeting two times a week for an hour. And we all know that the first few weeks are always the hardest, so I am looking forward to even better results. There are still a few remaining spots available for the boot camp if anyone was wondering so feel free to contact me at wgtrainer@gmail.com if anyone is interested!

5 Weeks ....

These are just a few pictures to show you people out there following me where I am at right now with 5 weeks to go. I am currently at 168 lbs in that picture. I would like to lose about another 5lbs by the day of the show.

Front Relaxed Back Double Bicep...this is my favorite pose, and I am sure you can see why.

Side Relaxed

Arms Overhead Abdominal

Zoomed in Back Double Bicep

5 weeks til...

So as of Saturday Sept. 23rd, I am officially 5 weeks away from my competition. As usual, the time flies by so quickly. I am right on track with my nutrition. It hasn't been as has hard as I thought it would be to eat the same things for the last month. I have grown to like eating this way, I am seriously considering going for the rest of the year on my bodybuilding diet plan. Of course I will have a few days of enjoyment...Thanksgiving, Christmas, and etc. but I am really considering doing it. I would have loved to have captured my progress throughout this 12 week period, but I have decided to start now. I hoping to post pictures once a week until the show.
For right now, the exercise aspect is basically finished....one can only grow but so much muscle in 5 weeks. Thats just 5 workouts per body part left until the show! The focus now is my eating and posing, the body can change alot based on what one is eating for 5 weeks.
I have noticed that my sleep "cycle" is changing and I finding it harder to go to sleep and stay asleep. I am hoping this is something that is not going to get worst as the show gets closer.

You Can't be Serious....

So last week was the premier of the well-known weight loss show called The Biggest Loser. Even though I didn't have the pleasure of watching it, I had numerous discussions on a few topics concerning it. First and most importantly, apparently there was a guy who lost 30 lbs in the first week. Some of my clients asked my thoughts on this amazing feat. I must say at first I thought they misspoke...I mean for someone to lose 30 in a month is quite impressive. But 30lbs in one week is unbelievable. I must first think that someone working for the network is stretching the truth. And if that really happened, there isn’t one person who works in the medical, health, and/or fitness community that can actually say they are comfortable those numbers. If you were to call up your doctor and hypothetically report that someone you knew lost 30 lbs this week. I am sure he would tell you to take that person straight to the hospital and get them examined presumable for some serious condition. Even if the person who lost 30 lbs weighed 300+ that would mean that he lost about 10 percent of his body weight in a week which is seen in severe starvation cases or cancer patients, not from PROPER NUTRITION and EXERCISE practices.
My issues with shows like Biggest Loser, Celebrity Fit Club, and etc is that they set unrealistic goals in the minds of those who are trying to lose weight/gain muscle the correct way. Now if someone were to employ a personal chef, nutritionist, personal trainer, and a physician to monitor them 24 hrs a day to insure they are always on track then they would be able to compare the results on the TV shows with their personal weight lost.
Until then, believe half of what you see and none of what you hear. Just focus on your goals and doing all that you can do to accomplish them.

Been a while...Updates!

Since I posted last alot of things have occurs; some are distracting others motivating no matter what I am still focused.

* Boot Camp started on Thursday Sept. 6th and there was a great turn out. I even had a 12 year old boy joining in. As usual we worked hard and really had alot of fun. There are still a few more spaces remaining if anyone is interested. Be on the look-out for pics, graphs, and charts of our progress.

*Work Outs have been going very well. Still hitting the weights very hard, Cardio is actually starting to be a little fun. I am now adding a little bit of High Intensity Training into the mix. Which means I am actually getting my heart into the high 180's stairs, power cleans, sprints, and etc. Which I must say is a crazy feeling...but it is something suggested by a fellow body builder and I tried it out and I am loving it. Reminds me of my football days!!

*Nutrition is Nsane, the diet is as clean as can be. I will be eating the same things for the next 48 days. Today was the 9th and I am still not tried of it yet I am actually enjoying it. Oatmeal and Chicken Breast...YUM!! Still finding it hard to get in all the veggies I need to get but I am working on it.

Getting Serious...

So now that the summer is unofficially over, some of us are getting ready to put on our winter weight. You know, those who exercise to look good at the beach or the company cookout. If you are one of these people, then you might as well "log off" and check back in the spring time. But for the rest of us who are serious about our health and fitness level, we know that the winter time is the perfect time to get focused and start seeing some results. The distractions of the summer are now gone and the only real issues at hand are holidays.
Remember those New Year's resolutions we all made?? How many of us are actually accomplishing them? If you answered no, you still have alot of time to get to attain those goals. You just have to take that first step and here at 12weeksfitness.blogspot.com I will be giving you ideas on how to make those goals a reality.

It's OFFICAL

12weeksfitness.blogspot.com/ and World Gym Bowie proudly introduces The Ultimate Boot Camp! Designed to TRANSFORM your BODY while CHALLENGING your MIND, this boot camp utilizes a combination of strength training, cardiovascular conditioning, and flexibility exercises to achieve all your fitness goals. *Tuesdays and Thursdays 7- 8pm *Nutrition plan, bi-weekly assessment and goal setting, and achievement rewards for reaching your goals Camp begins Thursday, September 6, 2007 For More Information Contact CPT Daniel Silva 301-352-0100

My thoughts...

So, its been a while since I posted something. I am hoping you all are enjoying the new aspects of the blog. The videos are actually taken during my workouts in the morning so when you see me struggling to get out some sets understand that I am actually working out and shooting as I go, nothing is stagged. I know the quality is not the best, but that is being fixed in the near future. I have about 57 days til the competition...this is where things start to become even more interesting. I have decided to eat the same things every day until then. I have had a few ppl already comment on that decision. I am testing out my "will power". It is easy to workout, that is fun (well at least to me it is) but dedication to your nutrition plan is something that takes alot of effort, planning, and time. Just an idea of what my diet is going to be for the next 57 days...Oatmeal, chicken breast, egg whites, turkey breast, broccoli, almonds, protein powder, green tea, grapefruit, apple, and my personal favorite monster energy drinks(low-carb, low-sugar of course). Now that is a CAVEMAN diet. Well, I am sure someone could argue the protein powder and the monster energy drink.

NEW for SEPTEMBER

Along with taking my training and my nutrition to the NEXT LEVEL, I decided to take this blog to the next level. I have received alot of questions from individuals inquiring of my training and workouts. So rather than just talking to you about nutrition or exercise I have decided to start posting video clips displaying the exercises and other things that I think would be helpful for those of you who are also going through your "12 week" program. So log on more often and check out the workouts and make comments, suggestions, and criticisms!

60 days....

So with officially 60 days to go til my show...It was time to take it to the next level. Right now, the training is in high gear and the nutrition is getting stricter. So you can say by to the Peanut Butter, Sliced Breads, Whole Wheat Crackers, and Cottage Cheese. Now there is nothing wrong with eating these foods on a normal everyday basis, but when in contest prep I need to eat "cleaner". When ever someone asks me... what they should be eating? My response is very simple, EAT LIKE A CAVEMAN! When you pick something up to eat, ask yourself could a caveman eat this? If the answer is no then you shouldn't be eating it also. That goes with an exception for protein powder, of course.

Seriously...

So yesterday I was found out that one of my ex-clients had a stroke(actually his 3rd one)...That information really concerned me, in fact extremely irritated me. He was a hard working family man with three kids he put through college and working towards his retirement in a few years, now he has to be in constant care and barely has feeling one side of his body. Fortunately, it was a MILD stroke(whatever that means; some medical terminology used to reduced the seriousness of the matter) and he is making a recovery. This situation is one that a significant amount of people who are reading this are heading toward. Yeah I said it...You know exactly who I am talking about: the guy who puts work before his health, working over-time to make yourself financially stable while your waistline is getting bigger as we speak, or the young lady who thinks that my bigger hips camouflage those extra pounds and "besides guys like that anyway", or the middle aged person who figures its too late to start now. NEWSFLASH...the extra money you make now would be lost when you have to miss work 3-4 times a month later on in life because you are always sick,or you miss the promotion because your performance is lacking because you are always sleeping on the job, or when your hips and your waist become the same size, or it is really too late to start anything because you are in ICU as a result of a stroke. I am sure you are thinking...Yeah, but that would never happen to me, I am sure that's what the guy I was training was thinking also. Learn from the mistakes of others before its too late! It isn't about losing inches or getting stronger its about living longer and better. Are you ready to get serious?

Training Notebook....8/20/07

After a very short weekend it is always nice to beginning another week...with a Leg Workout. Mondays are the ideal day for a leg workout because one is well rested from the weekend and also one is getting what is usually the hardest workout done early in the week. Today we performed two "giant sets". The first set consisted of Leg Extensions, Leg Press, Sumo Squats with DB, and jump squats with a front raise(this is one of the craziest lifts I have ever done), then next giant set consisted of Walking Lunges, Step Ups, Splits Squats, and Sprinter Squats(we made up this one) great exercise for the quads. Needless to say this workout was "nsane" and again I had an episode of extremely low blood sugar during the day, post workout. I am still trying figure out how many grams of Carbs I need post work to prevent this from happening.

Nutrition wise.....the entire day was outstanding, but when I got home I indulged in 4 tbsp of natural peanut butter. Even though that isn't that bad, it is still outside of the meal plan that I have set up for myself. Luckily, I have ran out of PB for this week.

The Workout Notebook...8/16/2007

So today was another leg day with emphasis on the back of the legs...hamstrings, glutes, and calves. Warmed up the "hammies" with some leg curls. We did them Russian style...I don't know where the name came from but it is when you perform 10 sets of 10 reps with a given weight throughout a specific exercise. We usually do Russian sets on bench press...using 225lbs for 10 sets X 10 reps. I can honestly say I get up to the 7th set on this one and I am struggle to get out 6-8 reps.

Today we came up with the idea of doing leg curls that way. Starting with the weight at 180lbs on the seated leg curls for the first 5 sets then increasing to 200lbs on the last five. We "supersetted" the curls with Abductions and Seated Calf Raises. Then proceeded to straight leg deadlifts starting with 135lbs for 10 and finishing with 275 for 6 reps and supersetted them with Hip Extensions on the Freemotion Hamstring machine and Freemotion Soleus Calf Raises, which remains me....Freemotion is one of the best machine brand for resistance training. I used to be a huge fan of Hammer Strength but Freemotion blows Hammer Strength out of the park because of the stabliziation aspects.

Nutrition-wise it was a great day...I still need to find a way to eat more protein, I am trying to be as close to 300g a day, but it is very tough.

Eating Smart...

Today was a very good day...even though they all are. I am fully into the "swing" of things...feeling like B.Bonds(mild attempt at comedy). Cardio was great total of 45 mins...15 treadmill, 15 Elliptical trainer, and 15 treadmill. I must say if not for the Ipod I don't it I could have made it. Not lifting today was wonderful, I scaled the eating back a few hundred calories to balance things out. Right now I am around 2,600 to 2,800 calories on a normal day. It is always interesting to write down what you are eating and calculating the total calories, protein, carbs, and etc. It takes a little time but you will be surprised to how much food you are really taking in. How about this for an example...a cup of plain oatmeal and a handful of almonds(for flavor) together equal about 600 calories...so even though you might be eating healthy you can easily still be overeating without knowing it.

So don't just eat healthy, eat clean and eat smart....

Needed Recovery...

Usually by Wednesday I am already suffering from a huge case of fatigue. Especially now that I am in "full training" mode (11 and a half weeks out), making sure I monitor my Carbohydrate in-take and still exercise just as hard and actually even harder, makes it difficult to go throughout the day without "crashing". I crashed around 3 after lifting and doing a little cardio in the morning. I ended up diverging from my diet and grabbing a Gatorade. Not the type of carbs I needed (35g of sugar) but I had to be ready for my 5 oclock workout. I need to re-evaluate my diet plan...again!

The workout yesterday focused on Chest and Back. The reason we train both muscle groups on one day is that they are two opposing groups(push vs pull). So performing supersets of opposing groups maximizes time spent in the weightroom by allowing one to train on muscle group while the other is resting. For example, an incline chest press immediately followed by lat pulldowns. While the pecs are working, the lats are resting and vice versa. We used this concept throughout the way throughout the workout.

In the evening we got on the mats for some Mixed Martial Arts or MMA (for those of us who are fans.) It was a good hour long workout including both standing(thai boxing) and on the floor work (jujitsu.) I must say that MMA might be one of the best total body workouts I have done. The combination of muscular strength, flexibility, endurance, and explosiveness really get the HR beating.

Needless to say...today is definitely a recovery day. Doing only cardio and abs.

Wishful Thinking...

We all do it. We wake up with plans, goals, and ideas of what we are going to accomplish everyday. Unfortunately, we only complete a small percentage of them. I read somewhere that the average person who works 8 hrs a day, only gets about 3 hours of real work done. That same principle can be used in the gym. Basically, the average person might spend about an hour in the gym and spend barely 20 mins actually exercising. The rest is spent watching TV, listening to music, "resting", checking out members of the opposite sex, writing in the workout journal, and etc.....but not on exercise. Maximize the limited amount of time you have to exercise by making sure you have planned out the workout before you even walk in the door; STOP RESTING...you came to workout so why are you sitting there counting to 30; and save the ogling for the club/bar; perform supersets, dropsets, circuit training, and etc which are all ways to have a more effective workout in a fraction of the time.

Monday Workout...

The day began with cardio at 6:30 am...walking on the Incline Trainer and the Stairmaster. Never running! Why you ask...well, Running gets the heart rate too high for what I am trying to accomplish. When you run, the main source of energy is mostly carbs I actually dont want to buy my carbs I need them to lift but I want to burn fat, so I go at a slower more moderate pace. Usually about 3.0 mph with a 15-20% incline. Still gets the heart rate into the low 140's right where I want to be.
The same should be done by everyone...Duration when doing cardio is actually more important than intensity if you are looking to burn fat. Now if you are training for a marathon or something by all means go ahead and pound the pavement(or treadmill) as much as you want, but dont complain in 10 years when you have bad hips and knees.

Today was a leg day...focusing on the quads (front of the legs). A rather light day compared to our usual quad workout, made up for it with the freakiest reps.

Hmm...I am wondering if any of you out there would be interested in sample posts for the workouts we(myself and workout buddy) perform every morning. I might start

This weekend...

This weekend was a good one weekend for fitness. First I did the 300 workout on Thursday night...now of course the only reason I did it was because I was challenged by a fellow co-worker who "bought in to the hype" of the movie and that notorious workout. I will not disrespect you all by going into detail about the exercises...I am sure you can find it online somewhere. Needless to say it claims to be the workout that actors in the movie performed in preparation for its shooting. Does anyone see a problem with that statement? Those of us who workout know that one workout(which barely emphasizes resistance training) is not going to get you looking like those guys in that movie. I don't care how long you spend preparing for it. There is so much more to getting a "6 pack" that a workout that consists of 300 repetitions of a few random exercises. Can we say nutrition, cardiovascular exercise, lifting of weights (not just calethetics), proper sleep/rest, water intake, and the list can go on and on!

By the way...if you have done that workout, what was your time? Mine....18:09 secs.

WELCOME ALL....

Welcome to the first ever Fitness and Health Blog created as a resource for information, motivation, discussion, and the representation of anything and everything that has to do with FITNESS and HEALTH. Whether you are a professional competitor, weekend warrior, inexperienced beginner, or a fitness addict...this is a place for you to share your experiences, knowledge, questions, pictures, videos, and even jokes about FITNESS and HEALTH.