Anybody Can Start Strong....

But we're going to Finish Strong.

 If you are one of my clients, or have worked out in my proximity, you have most likely heard me say this. This concept is amazing in its motivational context, but it is profound in its application to life.

Finishing Strong is what moves mountains. It is what got Transcontinental Railroad completed. I can only imagine that the first spike pounded in the ground was cake (and probably done by an overweight guy in a pea coat and top hat). But you can bet your ass it took tenacity, determination, and strong will to get the other 7,000,000+ into the ground.

Are we building a railroad single-handedly? Probably not. But the concept it prescribes can be lent to all aspects of life.

Let's start with exercise. There are hundreds of thousands of people that can rep out 10 beautiful air squats faster than the fittest people in the world. So why aren't they the fittest in the world? There are those people that can start their 225 pound deadlifts with superb technique, within a workout of, let's say, 21, 15, and 9 reps of deadlifts and handstand pushups. Let's say that Bill does the first 21 deadlifts in 40 seconds, and John does them in 60 seconds. Bill is more fit (at that exact moment) than John, because he did more work in less time. BUT, now Bill stares at the wall gassed out from the deadlifts, and John starts his handstand pushups. They continue on through the workout, Bill's form goes to crap, and John keeps solid. John finishes in 4:34, and Bill finishes is 6:30.

It is great that Bill pumped through the beginning of that workout, but he did not (COULD not) keep up his intensity, and therefore he suffered. More importantly still, and something people will sometimes neglect to focus on, is that Bill failed to Finish Strong in that his form deteriorated tremendously. If you walk into the room in the middle of Bill and John's workout, have no idea what they have done previously, and see them deadlifting 225, Bill with horribly rounded back and shoulders, and John with a tight midline and good form, who is "stronger" right now? Same weight, same lift, same work previously? I would argue (as would most fitness experts) that John is stronger. Because he is doing the movement with great form, and thus will be able to sustain that movement long without injury. So Finishing Strong isn't about slamming your body into a wall of poor movement to get more reps in, it's finishing with great form, AND high intensity. If that means you are lifting less weight, but you are giving it everything you've got with great form, you've finished stronger than Round-Back Billy.



Apply this concept to the rest of your life, and you'll find the outcome of your decisions will be better for it. If you start something, start it HARD. Give it everything you got. But life is short, so make sure it is worth your time to Finish Strong. Go into with great form, and have the same passion in the very last day as you had the first day you started the endeavor.

Make the very last rep as perfect as the first one.

These stones mark the first flights of the Wright Bros. I have no interest in aeronautics, but I respect these gentlemen. Their first flight was a measly (for today's standards) 120 feet, but they had passion for what they did and Finished Strong. And now you can visit California in a few hours via airplane. It was inspirational to stand here and see these landmarks.

I've started my journey into fitness with extremely passion, determination, and tenacity. I've absorbed so much from everything the world has to offer in the ways of nutrition, movement, exercise prescription, etc. etc. But I haven't even scratched the surface. You can believe that I will Finish Strong. Whatever Finish Strong means for my life of Fitness, I'm going to learn along the way. But my passion will be the same, if not more, than the very first day I decided that this is my calling.

Make sure what it is you are doing does the same for you.

Finish Strong, and

Stay Fit.

Good Grip, Bad Grip, and the Pain It Can Cause

Greetings fellow Fitters!

 Today, we are going to talk a bit about grip. I hear a lot about injuries/chronic pain/tweeks (let you in on a secret, all the same thing) in the elbows and the shoulders. Now I will say first and foremost, that a stable shoulder is the pivotal part of creating a stable upper body for all movements. And I will focus on shoulders in a post for another today. But today, it is about grip.

Your feet are where rubber meets the road. It is imperative to have good ankle mobility and stability to perform lower body movements. Well, the hands are the feet of the upper body (stay with me). The wrists are the ankles, the elbow is the knee, and the shoulder is the hip. See it? Without proper grip on the object in question (barbell, pull up bar, dumbbell, even the ground for pushups), suffering ensues upriver into these other joints. It would appear that your grip must change for all of these different objects. In some cases, you are correct (you can't get a full-blown death grip on the ground, but you can create torque through your hands for external shoulder rotation, for another day), but for the most part, there is a proper way to grip almost any object you can get your hand around. And it all pivots around pinky position.

Below I have some pictures of my hand around a regular sized barbell. Note the pinky knuckle positions:

Good: Top most knuckle over bar. Stable wrist.

Bad: Second knuckle from hand over bar. Wrist relaxed.

Bad: Last pinky knuckle over bar. Wrist lax.

Usually Bad: Thumb over bar, not wrapped. Pinky knuckle behind bar.

Hand Pinky Knuckle Over Bar:  with the pinky knuckle of the hand over the bar, is the most stable, and here is why. For pulling positions (pullups, deadlifts, dumbbell rows), this helps in two ways. It places the shoulder in a better position to create torque and external rotation (the most stable position for the shoulder, more later). Secondly, it puts more tension in the "front" of the arm (palm side), which is the stronger and larger portion of the forearm. Notice the slight bend in the wrist, this indicates that the larger flexor musculature of the forearm is activated. Want some proof it is a stronger position, watch what professional arm-wrestlers do with their wrists before the fight begins.

Distal Knuckles Over Bar: With the second position, and the third, where the hand begins to slip to the outer knuckles, you suffer two tendencies. First, the shoulder is now much more free to turn inwards (internal rotation), and any movement in that shoulder for movements like deadlifts and pullups that is not part of the intended movement can quickly lead to excessive wear and tear, tears and stresses, and boy oh boy some pain. Secondly, now the weaker flexors (and extensors) of the forearm are activated, making it much harder to grip, and therefore your hand begins to slip, leading to less forearm activation, etc. etc. until the bar is no longer in your hands, but your finger tips.

Monkey Grip: The last picture shows the popular "thumb over" grip (or what I call the monkey grip). Many people take this grip more for comfort than anything, and if you have the grip strength and ability to maintain hand position, go for it. But with the thumb-over grip, you can see it is much more difficult to keep the pinky knuckle over the bar, thus keeping external rotation.

Along with instability in your shoulder with these weaker grips, you are also creating more rotational stress on that forearm, and into the elbow. I hear a lot of concerns from people with the thumb-over grip for dumbbell and barbell rows, and pullups, that they are feeling a sharp pain in the medial portion of their elbow. I would most likely attribute this to the fact that with the monkey grip, you are concentrating all of your stress (weight of barbell, dumbbell,  body weight hanging) onto a very select few muscles in the forearm (mainly the palmaris longus and flexor carpi radialis, for you fellow anatomy geeks out there). These muscles attach to the same location (the medial epicondyle of the humerus, or the inside of your elbow). Picture this...you are hanging from a group of cables. If you hold on to each cable equally, you are fine, but as soon as you let go of a group, it puts a lot of stress on the few cables you are holding on to. When you don't have a proper grip, you are doing the same thing, using only a few cables/muscles, and putting excessive stress on one anchor point. On a similar note, if you have overactive (tight) forearm muscles, the same thing can happen, since those muscles are pulling more excessively than the other muscles.  Roll it out!


A note, this grip talk is good for pulling, but a different grip (for a different post) is preferred for pressing movements (overhead presses, bench presses, dips, etc.)

So the next time you grip a pullup bar (or dumbbell or barbell, just think big pinky knuckle on the opposite side of wrist), make a better decision with your grip. It make some getting used to, but it is worth going down a bit in weight (let's be honest, there is no award for heaviest dumbbell row) to keep from having nagging, chronic pain in the shoulders and the elbows... right?

Stay Fit.

It came in! Now I am NASM CPT, FNS certified, TRX and CrossFit Level 1 certificated! It'll never get boring!

Focus on This to Live 100 Great Years

Welcome back!
 What a great weekend my fellow Fitters! Saturday, it started with a great breakfast, workout in the morning, then straight to campus to enjoy the Purdue game with the suite tickets my wife and I received from some family friends (thanks Pam and Courtney!), then left there and went to a movie, then finished with a visit with friends at 9-Irish (a local fan favorite). Today was a deep-clean of the household to prepare for the holiday week. What did you do for your mental fitness this weekend? How about physical?

Last week, we talked a little bit about the 10 domains of Fitness (see post titled "Running Does Not Equal Fitness"). With all of these aspects, it can be a little daunting at first to really incorporate all of these domains into your routine. What's more, it is very common for an individual to find those aspects of fitness that appeal to us more than others. Think about it, what is your favorite exercise? Running? Olympic weightlifting? Hypertrophy training (bodybuilding)? Agility drills? I doubt that you enjoy every exercise that exists. Ever see an individual exercising that you knew could probably do with a little more cardio, or perhaps incorporate some lower body exercises (perhaps lightheartedly called "chicken legs" by their colleagues)? As I have mentioned in previous posts, it is important for overall health and fitness to be the best you can be in all domains of fitness.

Inevitably, I get asked "What do you think is the most important focus of fitness?" What a tremendous and formidable question. If you had to spend the efforts of the rest of your life on one aspect of fitness, what would I suggest?

Firstly, we are asking this question accepting the fact that nutrition is above all else when it comes to the importance of your health. Without having sound nutrition, we can forget the question completely, for fitness is foundationally rooted in appropriate nutrition. Secondly, I am not recommending that any other aspect of fitness be ignored in the pursuit of any other.

With that being said, I do believe that one aspect of fitness, if pursued with proper nutrition, could help anyone live a fulfilling life well into their 70s, 80s, and 90s. And the answer might surprise you. Flexiblity.

Flexibility, and more importantly Mobility, is vital to being able to live, in what my opinion is, a satisfying life. With great nutrition, and normal physical activity, a person's body will remain healthy. Without proper mobility, however, one will quickly suffer. Not being able to walk, turn, jump, step up, crawl, etc. will lead to a very sheltered, and frankly, boring life.

We can all agree, needing assist through daily tasks is undesirable.

 As we get older, many of our abilities begin to decay, but a lack of mobility in particular is a very debilitating loss. Consider the aging adult. As an older man or woman begins to move less, their body becomes much more inflexible, including loss of shoulder mobility, as well as hip mobility. They begin to lose the ability to reach over their head, or sit into a deep chair. Soon, they are unable to reach (or hold) anything near head height, and it is impossible to get in and out of a chair without assistance.




To prevent this, we need to pursue two things: We need to move, and move well, through full ranges of motion of all bodily joints. That includes overhead pressing, pushing, pulling, deep squats, and more. We also need to improve our already limited range of motion with flexibility/mobility training. Many of us are already combating 20-30+ years of grody movement (knee or back pain? Blame poor movement), and we need to restore proper, full range movement.

Do what you love for as long as you can!

Want to live 100+ years going hiking in the Adirondacks, zip-lining in the Bahamas, site-seeing in France? Move your body, move it right, and work on the flexibility and the mobility to do it that way the rest of your life (and working on the other 9 domains of Fitness won't hurt either).





Stay Fit.

The Power of Positivity

Hello to you again!

 This evening, I want to reach out to you, my readers, in a way that may not be specific to fitness, but will (hopefully) assist you in fitness, business, social experiences, and personal journeys. I want to talk to you tonight about being positive.

I have been asked before, quite literally, "How are you positive all of the time?" I will say that I am definitely not positive every moment of my life. But I will say (and I pride myself somewhat in this) that I keep a positive mindset a majority of the time, and that is, in itself, a feat worth fighting for. Like moving well, being positive takes a conscious effort. It does not come naturally, easily, or without endeavor.

Many people think of positivity as a hereditary attribute, that a person is born positive, is always positive, and will therefore always be positive. But even as you read this, you know that this thought is ludicrous. But it still comes naturally to think this way. Do you know someone who is always slightly upbeat? Who always seems to say something to make you feel better, or look at the positive side of things? To see the silver lining, the half-full glass?

  There are three conscious efforts that I have placed upon myself that make my life majorly positive, and I want to share them with you. I make it an effort every day to:

1) Remove the negative words from my vocabulary. Words like: can't, don't, won't, no, never, wouldn't, not, unfortunately, but, might, impossible, etc. Many of these words (like but or might) aren't precisely negative, but they are "flimsy" and therefore rob you of your certainty that the possible it real. Avoid these words! Change "Unfortunately, I can't do a box jump" to "I currently struggle with box jumps." By saying you can't do a box jump, you've given up on the idea of doing it. "Currently struggling" indicates that by continuous practice, you intend to one day conquer the box jump! It may seem silly at first, but every single thought has a positive spin. Fight to find it, andexpress it with everything that you have!

Which one of these runners KNEW he was going to win, and always told himself that?

2) Recover quickly from negative situations. When someone tells you something is going to fail, or a situation turns negative, recover quickly from it. Take a moment to collect your thoughts, or at least your attitude, and turn it to one of a constructive, postive force. Determine a way to solve the problem at hand, and complete the task. The most successful people in life are those who can rebound from an "unfortunate circumstance" and turn it into a positive outcome.

3) Exude an air of collected confidence. I tell all of my clients, when doing an exercise of extreme intensity, it is better mentality to portray outward calm in your face, posture, and breathing. By forcing yourself to appear calm, you are mentally working towards being in a calm state. The same can be said of negative and hectic environments. If you give the impression that you are calm, cool, and composed, people will follow suite, and you will find yourself more often in control of a stressful situation.

This man looks confident. If Ryan said something to you right now, you'd believe him. Even if he was about to crap himself.

 

I am in firm belief that positivity will be one of the major influences that changes the world for the better. If you truly believe this, and can be an ambassador for positiveness, you may be a catalyst for change as well. The worst possible outcome? You are happy for the rest of your life.....

 Stay Fit.

The Great Carb Debate (That Didn't Happen)

Welcome back!

 Snuggle on in for some discussion on carbohydrates (or carbs). Today myself and one of my clients (let's call her Jill for her protection of identity) got into what she called a "debate" on carbs, but really I found it to be more of a discussion (PLEASE read the "disclaimer" at the bottom in regards to my thoughts on "debates".) The idea was that we have different opinions on the amount of carbs we recommend to our clients. As a dietitian, she advocates 50% carbohydrates for their diet. From what she told me, she then gives them options of different carbs from categories such as grains, fruits, etc. This includes pastas, breads, and other forms of grains. Her thought was that we recommend different things, because my belief is that we as humans need to eat (see if you can remember it before you read it!):

Lean meats and veggies, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, no sugar.*

*Note: I've color-coded based on sources of macro-nutrient sources, with red being protein, yellow being fats, and blue being carbohydrates (I do realize that nuts and seeds provide some protein, and even carbs, but for all intensive purposes, we will go with this outline for simplicity).

With this formula, there is very little in the ways of grains, pastas, breads, milk, and other forms of highly carb-dense materials. Therefore, it would make sense to think that I recommend less of your overall calorie intake be in the form of carbohydates. That's actually not the case at all! It turns out, we both recommend the exact same proportion sizes to our clients (50% carbs, depending on the client and their goals). Here's where it gets really interesting!

The differences in our recommendations are in the sources. While her guidelines are more based on the total amount of carbs (percent of gram totals consumed per day) I am more focused on the sources. I agreed with her in full that it is more difficult to gain 50% of your daily calories in the form of carbohydrates when it comes from lots of veggies, some fruit, and a little bit of starch. However, easier isn't always better (I have to convince that to people on a daily basis on the topic of exercising vs. not!). There are many positives to choosing to glean your carbs from the sources above, two being:

1) Avoiding Hyperinsulinemia: In a nutshell, when you consume foods with high levels of processed carbohydates, it spikes your blood glucose very quickly (think pastas and breads). To store that, your body dumps a TREMENDOUS amount of insulin into the bloodstream. Over time, your body loses it's "sensitivity" to making insulin (much like getting used to caffeine after consuming it so much for so long) and stops being able to create it as readily. This inevitably can lead to pre-diabetes.

2) Calorie-dense vs. Nutrient-dense: If you consume 2 cups of pasta, that is roughly 30% of your daily intake of calories (not to mention the negative effects above). This to most is just a portion of a meal, not including breads, sauces and other side dishes. If you are gaining your carbohydrates from sources like blueberries, sweet potatoes (occasionally), zucchini, etc., you are going to be able to consume a much larger volume of food, without the calorie density of pastas and grains. And you are getting a greater deal of nutrients and vitamins from these foods as well.

 

One cup of broccoli, 1 medium apple, 1 cup of cherries = 188 calories (total)

One cup of pasta = 221 calories

 So we then talked about how getting our clients to consume 1 cup of pasta was better than consuming 3 cups of pasta, which is undoubtedly true. It donned on me then the true difference in our recommendations: she was using portion control to better clients' diets, while I was using sources to better the diets.

It then it all came down to a single question of a monumental dilemma all of us in the health care industry face. How far do we push our clients to change? And this really is a balance act. If we tell them they really need to cut out pasta from their diet, and they don't like that answer, they will move down the street, and if that person says the same thing, they will keep moving until they like the answer. So will getting them to cut back on their pasta help? Absolutely. Will it help to the extent that they will see the results they most likely want to see? Most likely not (but it is a great start!).  They still run the risk of Hyperinsulinemia with highly processed carbohydrates, and they are still going to be hungrier after a cup of pasta then a cup of all those fruits and veggies, AND lacking in vitamins and minerals they need.

 I agree that something is better than nothing, but my final thought is this...When it comes to your health, isn't it best to shoot for "everything"? If you shoot for the stars, and don't reach them, at least you're on top of the world. If you shoot for a perfect diet, and slip every once in a while, at least you are great most of the time. Ideas to ponder. I hope you enjoy your carbs tomorrow, however you may get them. And remember.

Stay Fit.

And sometimes you just burn off bad carbs the fun way!

"Disclaimer": I want to thank Jill for the discussion we had today. It was great to talk about these topics with a true professional, and get their side of the story. I care for one thing, and one thing only, how to best help people become more fit. I only care about my own opinions in-so-far as they are the best way I know to help someone's fitness. Discussions are the best way to test your own thoughts, learn how to best present them to others, and at times, even learn when you are not right. If I learn something that is better than my own opinions, I will adopt them. That is why I hold opinions, and not beliefs. Opinions are much easier to change.

 I did ask Jill before I posted this if it was okay with her, and she agreed. I also knew she would be reading it, so thanks again for the talk today, it was a blast!

Why My Kid Will Do Gymnastics

Don't think this isn't for you because it said gymnastics, and kid. This is going to be for EVERYONE.

I've always told people that when I have a son (because, you know, I have a choice), he is going to do two sports (you know, because I have a choice). He's going to be in gymnastics because it generates some of the best athletes in the world (more on this in a second), and he's going to be in football, so he doesn't get beat up for being in the aforementioned sport.

So why gymnastics? Gymnastics is the most elite expression of your ability to control your own body in space. To do this, they must be extremely strong to hold and get into positions (some of the most strongest athletes, pound for pound, are gymnasts), enviously flexible to bend into positions, coordinated to be able to work on rings/floor/beams, cardiovascularly endured to do a very intense routine perfectly (they are even judged by the strain they exhibit on their face!), agile, powerful, and on and on.

But the big key factor is that they can control their own body STUPENDOUSLY. In all sorts of positions. For instance, I have my clients do handstands (and handstand pushups and walks for the more advanced). So now you may think "well, I'll never work with him, that's ridiculous! I'll never need to be upside down in my life." So let me ask you this. Your car flips, and your are stuck in it upside down, with your seat belt on. It won't unlatched because your body weight is putting too much strain on it. You have the strength in your shoulders to press yourself up...but you've never liked the idea of working upside down. Do you just give up? I know, a crazy, one in a million chance. It never happens...until it happens.

The Iron Cross. Don't try this at home. Or the office. Or without years of experience.

So I'm saying get out there, do crazy flips, stand on your head, and buy a set of gymnastic rings! Kidding. (Except the rings, those are amazing for so many things!) Gymnastics moves consist of you using your body weight in multiple positions to perform a task. So the Iron Cross (shown above) is a gymnastics movement (an extremely advanced one!), but so is the pushup, the air squat, handstand walks, L-sits (Google it!), regular and ring dips, and more. And the ability to control our body weight correctly in different planes, positions, and circumstances is about as important as being able to breathe (if you want to live a quality life). So get out there and work on controlling your body (and remember to keep that core tight, read my last post for tips!). Need some ideas to get started? Let me know. Because my number one priority is to help you do one thing.

Stay Fit.

Core, Do Core, Use the Core.....What is Core Again?

Welcome back!
 I hope you all are doing well, and you have overcome the troubles we have had recently here in our area from the storms, if you are nearby. My wife and I were fortunate to only lose power for an hour or so, and we were very fortunate to be able to house some friends who had lost power for a few days. Our hearts go out to any who have lost more. Let me know if there is any aid we can give.

Let's talk about the mystical core! The previous philosophy on the core in years past is that it was made up of:

1) The abs
2) the things on the side of your abs (aka obliques, aka love handles)

I credit this to the fact that when people think of "pretty muscles", they think of the 6-pack abs (because those people with minimal body fat can show their abs well, ergo abs=fitness). Luckily for the human race, we are starting to see (be it ever so minor) a subtle shift into function over aesthetics. For that reason, we must look at the core for what it is, a conglomerate of synergistically functioning parts. Because they work together, you can gain the greatest results in the shortest period (in regards to function), generate the greatest force, move the biggest loads, etc. if you train these muscles together.

Really think about what your rectus abdominis (6-pack muscles) are designed to do. They are meant to flex your spine....that's it! So by training them independently, you are going to get phenomenal at doing two things. 1) Sitting up HARD. 2) Stooping over. If you are looking to just develop these muscles, that's fine, but it's not functional. When you go to lift a heavy load overhead (like those fence sections I was lifting at the Boy's and Girls Club (see post titled Physical Activity vs. Exercise), those underactive lower back muscles are going to fail, and you just picked up a one-way ticket to Paintown. So train those muscles together, so they can work together.

Core muscles. I would add the quads, which are vital hip flexors.

So why is it really so important to have a strong core? (I told you, I'm a Why Guy) Your core is created to do one thing, and one thing it does well: protects your spine. The human body goes through great lengths to protect your CNS (Central Nervous System). From a thick skull, to blackouts, a strong core, and more. So bracing your core is really designed to prevent your spine for over-flexing (bending forward) or over-extending (bending backward).  What does it feel like when you lift something over your head and your lower back arches? This is over-extension, and from my experience, it sucks!

Now a lot of things are going on when your spine over-extends/flexes, especially in your shoulder region or hip region, too much to talk about in one post. But there is actually a proper way by which avoid it, and brace your spine. While many people think it is a simple "sucking in the belly button", there is a step-by-step process for doing so (thank you to Dr. Kelly Starrett, and his book Becoming a Supple Leopard, for this information):

1) Squeeze your glutes hard. This aligns your pelvis correctly.
2) Pull the front of your ribcage down. This aligns your ribcage over your pelvis (like stacking two soup cans, instead of letting them sit at different angles. If you stepped on stacked soup cans, no big deal. Two off-angled cans? You bet they will collapse).
3) Now you can "pull your bellybutton into your spine", or tighten your abdominals (all of them, including deep abdominals, and obliques). This locks both the pelvis and the ribcage into place, and tightens the muscles around the spine.
4) Finally, pull the shoulders back, then down. This activates the scapulae, and makes the shoulders stable. You can now relax the glutes, keeping the abdominal muscles engaged.

This is the process you should use before each major lift. the heavier the weight, the harder the "squeeze". But don't forget, a braced spine is necessary for all movements in life: walking, running, sitting, squatting, pushups, etc. You don't NOT have a spine after you are done lifting (you can't just throw it in your locker when you are done with the workout). Learn how to use your core well in all aspects of life!

Try the bracing sequence the next time you are about to sit, and see how it makes your core/back/shoulders feel. My guess is tired (they aren't used to being activated so well), but MUCH more stable. And that's what it's all about people. Moving (and not moving) well. This is how we stay young for 100 years. This is how we

Stay Fit.

Want to see abs? Eat well! Abs only show after we remove the subcutaneous fat above them.

Tonight's dinner - Yellowfin tuna, sauteed squash and zucchini, and lettuce. Finished off with some almonds. Lean meats and veggies, nuts and seeds!

The Magic Formula for Weight Loss

Greetings readers!

I am going to give you the secret to weight loss...soon. But first I'm going to set up why this is my topic (don't you dare skip to the later part!). Firstly, I get several questions about supplements on a regular basis. Remember, I sell supplements! I most definitely think supplements have their place! But it all depends on the activity level and goals you have for yourself. But without proper nutrition, your body is not going to need or be able to use your supplements effectively. Taking supplements on top of a poor diet is like putting racing fuel in a '98 Toyota Hunk-a-Junk, or putting a million dollar roof on a house made of sticks...without a good foundation, you won't get very far.

Unless you are training rigorously at very high volumes, your body can function extremely well with a great, healthful balance of whole foods. So are you ready for the answer? The magic formula, the secret of weight loss? Here it is (note, this is not my unique finding, but it is my duty to pass it on to the masses):

Lean meats and veggies, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, no sugar.

There it is! Now, let's break this down a little to see the Why of it (as I talked to one of my fellow trainers today, I am a complete Why Guy.)

Lean meats - Your body needs protein, and meat is the best source. There are plant ways to get it, but you will miss out on the amount of protein needed, and the vitamins associated with it. Lean meats because animal fat so easily turns to your fat when consumed.

Veggies - Vitamins and minerals, healthy carbohydrates, and very nutrient-dense without being calorie dense (as opposed to something like butter....very little nutrient value, extremely high in calories). So it is going to give you the nutrients you need, fill you up, without skyrocketing you calorie content.

Nuts and seeds - Healthy fats, necessary for a whole slew of bodily functions, and to keep the heart healthy. This is also the best place to get the amount of calories you need throughout the day. Don't get this confused with the fat we carry around that we want to get rid of. They are not one in the same!

Some fruit - too much fruit is too much sugar. Although it is fructose, which doesn't as easily turn to blood glucose (like, let's say, sucrose, or table sugar). But it still important to balance out the nutrients and vitamins we do need. Aaaaannd it's yummy.

Little starch - Very little. How little? Well, if you eat meats and veggies, and nuts and seeds, then "some fruit" would be less than that. So "little starch" would mean? You guessed it...less than that. There is no exact answer, it depends on your caloric intake (which depends on your exercise and energy expenditure, and your goals). Just make sure the proportion is less than fruit, which is less than everything else. Also make sure it comes from whole foods, like sweet potatoes and other tubers.

No sugar - No sugar. So how much is "no sugar"? This is where I would stare at you with a slight scowl in person....No Sugar. "But fruit has sugar!" Yes it does, but remember, it's fructose. We are talking processed sugars.

Once you can truly begin to adhere to a plan that follows this general guideline, then your nutrition is dialed in, and supplements can be used in your body as they were intended, to develop your athletic performance.

With all that being said, I do use supplements, again because my level of activity is....higher....than most of the population. And if you train or exercise on a regular basis, I recommend these things as well. Here is what I use:

Fish oil (Any brand, just look for the level of EPAs, or good omega-3 fatty acids) - helps with inflammation, helps blood flow well through the body, absorption of nutrients into the blood cell and other cells, etc. Good stuff.

Spark(Advocare) - vitamins, minerals, and a wee bit of caffeine (about one cup of coffee's worth). This is my coffee, and includes daily vitamins and minerals.

Post Workout Recovery Protein/Carbs ( Advocare) - Needed for the Branch Chain Amino Acids, and two types of proteins to rebuild muscles, and carbs to replace glycogen in the muscle.

So please please please always feel free to ask me to recommend supplements to you. But I forewarn you, I can't give you the "magic pill" because it doesn't exist, and I may recommend good ole fashion healthy food. Because it is always my first and top priority to help you---

Stay Fit.

Best way to get all of your nutrition needs, meaty salads! This is a taco salad, sans tortillas.

Physical Activity vs. Exercise

Hello All,
 Long day on Saturday, so I am making it up this morning! Started off with my wife and a great group from the Weight Loss Challenge at my club going out to the local Boy's and Girls Club to help tear down an old fence. We had a good time, and it felt good knowing we were helping out the community. It also reminded me that it is good to be fit! All of the heavy lifting over our heads, twisting and turning with the large fence sections would have been a lot harder had I not been physically prepared! There were a few times leaning over with the boards that I was grateful for strong legs so I did not hurt my back.

A great team doing a great cause!

Anything can be done with the right people and a big hammer!

After that demolition duty, I got a call from a buddy of mine to go play a game (or 6) of paintball. Run through the woods and shoot at people without anybody dying? I'm in! It was a great time as well.

At the end of the day, you can bet I was tired! Although I am a little antsy from not exercising, I was still able to stay active. To help explain the differnce (in my own terms), exercise is a routine, designed and structured period of time focused on improving your overall fitness. Physical activity is all the other stuff (from getting out of bed, to sitting and typing. For most people, increased physical activity can be a great way to stay healthy. If you are able to incorporate (more physical) physical activity into your daily lives regularly, it can go a long way towards calorie burning, strengthening, increasing range of motion (if you work in that range of motion), and most likely getting a lot more done throughout the day! As long as you are eating right, and still incorporating exercise into your lives, physical activity can be a true lifesaver. So get out there, rake those leaves, clean that house, volunteer, walk that dog, live that life!

Now I'm going to go workout before my head explodes! Have a great Sunday readers.

Stay Fit.

Running Does Not Equal Fitness

Now settle down!
 Before I get into it, I want to make something clear. Ironmen, Ironwomen, runners, marathon enthusiasts, and weekend warrior racers are all fit people. No beef there. But the misconception that the masses have with running and fitness being mutually exclusive, and that it is impossible to find one without finding the other, is irrefutably wrong! You can by all means use running as a avenue to find health, but by no means is it THE means to an end.

 So why is it that so many people find themselves strapping on their tennies and heading out for a morning jog? The answer is in the question! Running is so easy accessible (you simply need your shoes and an open area), that people misconstrue this concept to the point that they believe running is a simple, nontechnical exercise. And unfortunately for the masses, this is not the case at all. A study in SportsMed (van Mechelen W.), found that the rate of injuries for runners is between 36-56%. That means that in a group of you, that guy, and that other guy, one of you is getting injured this year. To put that in perspective, Runner USA found that in 2008 alone, there were 35,904,000 runners in the U.S. Using the percentages from the SportsMed literature, that would mean between 12,925,440 and 20,106,240 people in the the U.S. get injured by running a year (there are 6,537,000 people in Indiana). So I am saying running is stupid, right? NO! But it can be much more technical than people give it credit. Respect the running, and learn how to do it properly. MOVE WELL (see previous posts).

So what DOES = fitness (i.e. what makes you fit)? Running is a part of it, but only a fraction. Running can help you with your cardiovascular endurance, and even stamina. But there is more to fitness than that. You are most fit when you increase your work capacity in each of ten aspects of fitness:

What aspects of fitness are being used here?

Flexibility
Balance
Speed
Coordination
Agility
Accuracy
Cardiovascular Endurance
Stamina
Strength
Power


Are triathlon/marathon runners amazing athletes? Of course! But to become someone who is truly competitive in the sport (like, 1st, 2nd, 3rd place, getting paid to do it), they must sacrifice many of these fitness characteristics.  Many endurance runners have jump heights of a few inches, or can lift very minimal loads from the ground.

Does that mean don't pursue an act which brings you joy (if running is said act)? Definitely not. Run away. But if you have no intentions of winning these races, and use them only to test your mettle, and see what you are capable of, then don't sacrifice your ability to function in your day to day life. Practice and train for these other aspects of fitness. You'll find that life gets easier, and a heck of a lot more fun, when you are a more balanced, capable individual. Stay busy, stay focused, stay happy, and above all...

Stay Fit.

Pain is the LAST Step

Hello all!

   Welcome back, I hope you had a terrific Thursday! It was one thing to another today, meetings, sessions, food, meetings, donating blood, seminars, and meetings. But I didn't forget about you all. Tonight I want to talk about our acceptance of pain, and my inability to accept our acceptance (and perhaps your acceptance of my inability to accept your acceptance, should you accept it).

I avoid pain with foam rolling. This is how puppy Kratos helps.

 It follows somewhat my latest post about poor movement, and the implications of dysfunctional kinesiology. When we move poorly, our bodies tell us by hurting. We hurt chronically, it becomes a natural part of our daily routine, and we accept it. But pain is a response. It is a symptom of our dysfunctional movement. When you have a runny nose, is that the beginning of your flu? No! Your body is already wracked with the virus, and your immune system is just starting to show the signs. Pain is a similar symptom. You move poorly, this puts strain on your joint/ligament/tendon/muscle/nerve, your body responds: inflammation, tenderness, soreness, pain, Pain, PAIN! And when you continue to let the nagging irritation in your joint go unaddressed, injuries ensue. Rotator cuff tears, meniscus injuries, tendonitis.


So what to do? Step 1: Stop the movement that caused the pain. If you tried a new workout/movement, and you hurt later, discontinue that movement until you can learn to do it correctly. Step 2: Learn to move correctly (see my last blog, which will tell you to see me). Step 3: There is no Step 3. Moving correctly will cure your ailment. If your pain has not subsided and dissipated within a few days, you know damage has been done, and you should most likely see a doctor. There is no such thing as "working through the pain"! Pain is a Giant Red Blinking Light that is saying "System Malfuction", that you are using your available machinery (muscles and joints) outside normal, factory recommended usage (proper movement mechanics).

So don't wait until it hurts, don't accept the hurt, and don't work through the hurt. DON"T HURT! Move right, and be happy. And always always ALWAYS.


Stay Fit.

P.S. Fun fact, P.S. stands for Post Script.

P.S.S. Please add comments at any and all times to my blog. It feels good to know someone is reading, and outside opinions are the only way true education can be found. Without testing and combating thought, there can be no evolution of knowledge. So get to it!

Lunges aren't bad for your knees.....BAD lunges are bad for your knees.

Welcome back!
 One comment I hear a lot which is completely unacceptable (in my little world) is "I can't do that movement, it hurts my (fill in the blank)." Now I understand the implications of an irreversible injury (i.e. complete cartilage breakdown), but barring that, there is absolutely no reason why any movement/joint should ever hurt, twinge, ache, etc. If the movement is done in the intended (and available) range of motion for that joint, and done with appropriate mechanics, it should be pain free, and will be efficient as well. In fact, the very movements you avoid because they "worry" you are the same owns we should probably be focused on! Now, some days we may not be able to go through full range of motion, but we should be asking the most range we can safely out of our joints each day, and working on our mobility so that we don't seize up like an unoiled tin-man when we are 35!

"I can't do a full squat, it hurts my joints."

"Yeah, me either. We should stick with movements for people our age."

And coming back to the cartilage breakdown (or some other form of debilitating chronic injury). Unless you were born with a hereditary predisposition for the problem (not "my father and his father and his father were all carpenters, so we all have bad backs", I'm talking deep, internal hardwiring malfunctions!), there's a really good chance that poor movement got that person into the problem in the first place. But is it too late? NO! Our bodies were put together to last 100+ years, and do so well. Poor movement each and every day takes away years (like running the car with no oil). The longer you do it, the more damage that can occur. But put some oil in that car now, and it can run a whole lot longer! You owe it to yourself to move well, to learn to move well, because you move every day. You might as well learn  to do it the right way! And I promise, every movement you make has a "right way" and a WHOLE bunch of "wrong ways". Walking, running, bending, sitting, standing, jumping, hopping, stair-climbing, ladder-climbing, mountain-climbing, laying, lunging, sitting up, turning over, picking something up, and putting something down. Don't know how to move well? Read a book, watch some videos, or do the best thing you can do, hire someone who spends their entire life studying movement. When your car needs improved, you take it to a mechanic. When your body needs improved, you see someone like me. So after you drop that machine of yours off at the Body Shop (...really Lucas? Pathetic pun), remember to keep doing one thing for me.
 

Stay Fit.

Your body BEFORE good movement.

Your body AFTER good movement. (Man, you look goooood, I bet you deep squat, don't you?)

One Exercise on a Deserted Island

Greetings to you once more!

   So it always inevitably comes up...."What is your favorite exercise?" or perhaps "If you were stranded on an island, what one exercise would you want?" (which makes no sense, I know. What hypothetical situation would you be in where you could do a burpee, but not a pushup?). Well luckily for me, there is no internal debate when I am posed this question, for the answer for me is simple. SQUATS. Squats, squats, squats, all day every day squats. It is such a feared and avoided movement to the general masses. But what is a squat really?

TheFreeDictionary.com defines the squat as such: "To sit in a crouching position with knees bent and the buttocks on or near the heels." Wikipedia uses a fairly extensive definition, including strengthening the different muscles in the legs, something about tendons and ligaments, etc. (check it out here). Let me explain what a squat means to me. The Woody definition (and I'm sure someone else in the world would say this) is:

Lowering, and then raising, your center of gravity, using your legs.

That's it! It's a beautifully divine, irrevocably functional basic movement of the human body. You CANNOT function with any quality of life without performing this movement. Getting up this morning? Better stand up. Woo, first squat of the day! Going to the bathroom? Bet you do a squat. Sitting, standing, out of the car, into your chair, picking up a heavy object. You are a squatting machine! Imagine (briefly, for it is a scary, scary thought) of a life in which you could not perform this basic movement (let me know when you are done shivering with fear).

 So if you do them every day, you may wonder, why do you need to do them as an exercise?

I am a devoted advocate of functional movement. Do in your workout what you will do in your life. By squatting in a workout, you are developing the neuromuscular efficiency, strength, and mobility to perform this movement WELL. And when you can do it well, repeatedly, with great form at different loads, speeds, repetitions, and depths, then when life throws you a random act of squatting (or a RAS, which isn't a thing...yet) your body, and by that I mean your neuromuscular system and muscular strength, will be able to handle it. And that's what it's all about people. Being able to handle what life throws your way, and being able to handle it well.

Don't think this means a great squat comes naturally. It did when we were young and basically made of rubber muscles. Later in life, it takes work to perform a squat. I am still working on the mobility necessary to perform the perfect squat. But don't make that an excuse not to do it. "Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might as well put that passing time to the best possible use." - Earl Nightingale. And trust me, if anything is worth taking time to work on, it is the ability to lift your own body up and down. Want to know how to do it perfectly? Just ask my little friend below. And while you're doing that, do me one more favor.

Stay Fit.

The ability to perform this squat is in all humans. It is not your age, but your dysfuctional movement that keeps you from it. Work on your mobility, and you can be here too!

P.S. Please feel free to comment on all blogs (opinions, agreements, disagreements, all comments welcome!). Perhaps you would like to share your Deserted Island Exercise?

Trainers: Coaches, Healers, Teachers, Dreamers, Pushers, and Leaders

Hello hello hello!

     Before I get into it, how was your day? Really, how was it? Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and think about the lowest moment of your day (go with me, it'll get better). Got the picture in your head? Good. Now ask yourself, how low was that moment? In the big scheme of things, how bad did your day get?
     My lowest point today was when I received an email that someone was backing out of a commitment that I now have a short period of time to make up for. I know what you're thinking....Really? Really Lucas? You think that is bad? And the answer is no. I don't. I wasn't injured, nor was anyone I truly care about. It is a problem I can resolve with a little effort, and my life will continue on as normal. I am sure some people (even you sitting at home) may have had a worse moment. But remember, someone else has had it worse today. Someone lost a mother, someone else lost a leg, someone else lost a job, a chance, a life. Be thankful for the things you have, or have kept.
     And to end with the positive, close your eyes again. Take a deep breath, and think about the best moment of your day. Why was it so? Did you gain something, give something, learn something, or do something? The best moment of my day was giving my wife a long, deep hug after learning she had felt ill all day. It was the best part of my day because it forced me to slow down, and realize that the most important things in my life are already in front of me. And it brought me back to the times when we would spend all night talking on the dock of a lake in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where we first began being interested in one another (a story for another post). Don't get me wrong, some days my best moments have more of a selfish connotation (a 225 lb. box squat is awesome, also a good moment today), but it is good to feel so wonderfully about the smaller, deeper intricacies of life. The most successful people in life learn to focus on the positives, and rebound as quickly as they can from the negatives. Work on it.

  Now, to the topic at hand. What is it that Personal Trainers really do? Here is a short list of the most common thoughts on the subject. Trainers:

1) Count reps
2) Carry weights
3) Adjust machines
4) Make me look good
5) Get towels
6) Charge a lot of money

        And the answer to all of these assumptions is a resounding....sorta. We do those things, and that is what people can visibly see when we train, but there are things people are not seeing. They are not seeing our intense focus on the movement patterns of our clients to avoid injury. They miss the hours of time spent researching methods to correct poor posture. They cannot fathom the time put into books, certifications, articles, videos, and the most important (in my opinion) the hours upon hours of time spent in the Laboratory of Human Movement (i.e. the club/gym), where tedious and tenacious effort is placed into bettering our methods to better our clients.
         But I don't place any blame on those who don't see us as healers and teachers. It is our past that blinds most from the truth. A short history lesson for you: In years past, gyms and health clubs were a thing of fancy. Physical activity, in the form of farming and manual labor, negated the need for formalized exercise. Fast forward to the early to  mid-70s, and the desk job has done two things: 1) WRECKED our bodies (more in a later post), and 2) lowered our physical activity tremendously. Skipping ahead, gyms are created as a necessity to keep up your girlish form or manly physique.
         But what to do? "The machines are complicated, and I don't know where to start. But wait, who is that extremely ripped and muscular guy there? Maybe if I ask him what he does, I'll look like him. What's that? You'll make me look like you for a small charge? Sure!" And thus begins the career of a personal trainer. Sadly enough for most, we are still seen as such.
       I spend a good deal of time combating this mentality. I will boldly stand up for my kind in saying that in the next 10-15 years (although there are some elite trainers already at this level), personal trainers will rank at the top with physical therapists and medical personnel as being an invaluable source for people suffering from physical and health ailments. Here is the list of things I think we are as personal trainers:

1) Preventative maintenance for all things fitness and health
2) Lifestyle coaches
3) Healers of pain and poor performance
4) Teachers of great movement, flawless form, and sound nutrition choices
5) Motivators for those who have trouble motivating themselves
6) Pushers for those who need pushing, and Leaders by example

And finally (because I know it will come up in every first conversation I have about the benefits of personal training), a $900 package of personal training sessions (which includes lifestyle coaching at several levels) that is going to help you live a continuously enjoyable life of good movements and little to no pain, is MUCH easier to swallow than hobbling around on a bum knee for the next 8-12 years, with the end reward of knee surgery at a measly $45,000. And the kicker? A continued limited lifestyle with a new knee. Prioritize your quality of life.

If you know all this, then do me a favor. Share this with someone who has not had the realization of the benefits of a personal trainer. Let them choose to better themselves before they lose their freedom. Help them help themselves. And as always.


Stay Fit.

As my clients know, I dislike running. But my clients run, and life can sometimes demand running. I want my clients to know that I have felt the things they felt, and do the things they do. Train the things you suck at, and do things that you don't normally do, so that when the day comes that you need to, you know you have it in you.

What it Means to Stay Fit

Greetings to you all!
   If you are reading this blog, then you are no doubt one of four people:

1) My client
2) A friend of my client
3) A member of Club NewTone
4) Someone I have spoken to about fitness (you know, that one time, at that one place)

If you are not one of those people, fear not! I am happy to have you on board. I hope that this blog helps you out in one way or another for the time that you may devote to it.

I want to start off by explaining what it is that this blog has been born for. As with most online media, I will undoubtly go off an a tangent from time to time, but it is my goal that every thing I type, video, or photograph, I accomplish one or more of the following (not listed in any particular order):

A) Helps you in some way to better your physical fitness (I will talk about what fitness truly means in my opinion at length in this blog)

B) Give you insights into my personal journey in health and fitness in the hopes that it betters yourself

C) Give you resources on movements, equipment, instruction, education, etc. to advance you into a higher state of health and fitness.

D) Help you stay positive in a most outwardly negative world.

E) Have a hell of a lot of fun.

I will say that a majority of my reputation and acknowledgement as an individual comes from my position as the Director of Fitness at Club NewTone. With that being said, this is my PERSONAL blog, meaning I will much more likely give my personal insights and opinions, and (get ready to be lawyered) the views and commentaries of myself do not represent the views and opinions of Club NewTone, it's employees, or any affiliations of said company. That being said, if you came to Club NewTone and asked me my opinion on a subject, I can promise you the opinion will be exactly the same. I will not lie here, I may just say it a little differently!

Lastly (for this post), I want to explain my motto: Stay Fit. I hear all of the time, "I can't do that" or "I want to get in shape before I really start working out with a trainer" (cringe). I need you to really open your mind-ears for this one: WE ARE ALL FIT. Fitness is a continuum, and we are all on it. Granted, some of us are more fit than others, but that doesn't mean a damn thing to me. What matters to me is the intensity by which one wants to better themselves. And what's more, most of us are interested in, at the very least, being MORE fit. What does this mean?  Fitness is a mentality. Just the act of consciously yearning to be more fit is a part of fitness. So always remember that. You are where you are. And if you want to be farther, be better, be more, you have to do what it takes to get there.

You don't have to be perfect today. Just be better than yesterday.

Hopefully this blog will give you the tools, ideas, and motivations to get there. But until such a time comes where you are better now then you were than and that lightbulb switches in your head, I want you to do one thing:

Stay Fit.

Matt Chan and me at my CrossFit Level 1 Trainer seminar.