5 Myths Killed Forever (Hopefully)

Over the past few days I've conversations with a few different people. These conversations were completely unrelated.

The thing these conversations did share however was the fact that I had to dispel various myths.

I don't mind dispelling myths when I need to but if I'm always dispelling myths I'm never talking about things that matter and actually work.

So here's 5 of the myths I hear most often. Here's my response to them. Tell your friends, spread the word near and far so that I don't have keep saying the same thing over and over.

1. Carbs are not bad. Protein is not bad. Fat is not bad. There are not-so-great versions of all of these but in themselves THEY ARE NOT BAD!!! Stop demonizing food.

2. If weight management (whether you want to gain, lose or maintain) is your main goal, then calories are all that matter. Where the calories come from doesn't make a difference. Total calories are all that matter.

3. Skinny≠healthy. Overweight≠unhealthy (necessarily). Weight doesn't tell us anything about health. Doctors and lab tests tell us about health. So you should have a doctor.

4. All diets work. All workout programs work. The one that will work best for you is the one that you can/will do each and every day for the longest period of time. Consistency is key.

5. You're always going to be busy. There isn't going to be a right time. There probably isn't even going to be a better time. The sooner realize this the better. Get started now.

It's Up To You Now

Halloween has come and gone. Hopefully you were successful at stealing your favorite candies from the kids trick or treat bags. I've definitely had my share of mini Snickers bars.

Anyway, we're about to be in full holiday swing. That means holiday parties and family gatherings and all other sorts of social gatherings. Today is November 4. There's a little over 4 weeks until Thansgiving and then another 4 weeks or so until Christmas.

So if you're reading this, you are now responsible for happens with your fitness over next 8 weeks!

I mean you're always responsible but I don't want to hear any complaints about how you didn't have time to get workouts in or how you ate so much at all the holiday parties.

You've been warned. Now is the time for you to strategize how you're going to get through the next 8 weeks without doing a ton of damage to your health & fitness.

Or you can do like most people and play it by ear and then wonder what happened when you notice you've gained 10 pounds.

The choice is yours.

A Look Into the Near Future

Halloween is a little over a week a way. Which means in two weeks you're going to be lamenting the amount of your kids' candy you've eaten.

Around the same time you're going to think back to the beginning of the year where you made that resolution to lose weight. You might even be motivated to work on that and you might even make it to the gym a couple of times.

Then someone is going to mention Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away. Now you may be like "sh*t, the year is over. I don't have time to reach my goal."

I'm confident you're going to have some variation these events happen. This will be my 14th holiday season as a personal trainer and coach. I've heard and had these conversations thousands of times. So trust me.

YOU'RE WRONG. THERE IS TIME.

Including this week, there are 10.5 weeks left in the year. If weight loss is your goal, at a conservative pace of 1lb/week, you could lose over 10 pounds.

All you need is the desire to achieve the goal, motivation to do the work (I'm willing to bet it's not as much work as you think) to achieve the goal and a plan to reach the goal.

Now I can't help with with the first two. You've got to figure out how important the goal is to you and how motivated you are to achieve it. (Hint, hint: if the goal isn't that important, you're probably not going to be that motivated.)

Where I can help is with the plan. I want to help you. Yes you specifically. So if you're ready and want to take advantage of these last 10 weeks of the year let me know.

We can schedule a 15 minute phone call to come up with your success plan. During the call we'll figure out the action steps you can/should start taking to reach your goal.

Again all you have to do is reply to this email and I'll reach out to schedule a call.

The Gift of Reaching Goals?

So I was just sitting and scrolling through Facebook killing a few minutes. I came across a video advertisement. I don't know what the advertisement was for but I'm sure that whatever the product is I'll see it a million more times because I watched this video.\

Anyway the video showed babies taking their first steps and their parents being super excited. 

It was very cute. 

The uninitiated non-parents will stop at it being cute. Those of us with kids know better. 

We know that while it's super exciting for the baby to start walking, it comes with a whole new set of problems. 

See when a baby starts walking everything 3 feet and below becomes fair game for the baby.

• Keep cleaning supplies in a cabinet under the sink? Well now you can't.

• Keep magazines neatly stacked on your coffee table? Not any more.

• Keep the phone and computer chargers plugged into surge protector? Only if you want the baby to get electrocuted.

Life then revolves around keeping the baby safe. So now you're constantly worried about where the baby is and what's the baby getting into if the baby is not in your eye sight. So what was a super exciting moment (the baby walking) has become a super stressful one. 

Not that you would change it.

So why am I telling you this? Just like when the baby starts walking, it's super exciting to reach your health and fitness goals (whatever they are). Also like when the baby starts walking, reaching your health and fitness goals can bring along their own set of problems and challenges.

For instance, if you lose a lot of weight you will need to buy new clothes. At best you love to shop and you have the means so all you're really losing is time. At worst you can't afford to buy a whole new wardrobe. 

Maybe you meet friends every Monday night for 10¢ wings, beer and football. With your new weight loss this doesn't fit your lifestyle any more. What do you tell your friends?

Now I'm not trying to be a downer here. Like I said you wouldn't change the baby walking and shouldn't change achieving your goals. 

That being said, you should be prepared for the challenges that reaching your goals will bring. 

When parents have their second child they know what they're in for. They baby proof their homes in preparation.

You can prepare too.

Talk to people who've achieved what you're trying to achieve. Think about all the things you used to do/enjoy before you started making changes. Do these things fit your new life? Can they be adjusted to fit into your new life? Do they have to be eliminated? If eliminated, what will you replace them with?

Take some time to think about this so your super exciting moment doesn't become a super stressful one.

Have You Gotten Started Yet?

Have you gotten started yet?

Last week I talked about how after the craziness of end of summer/back to school it was time to get back into the swing of things. 

I finished that post saying the longer it takes you to get started again the harder it will be.  

So I ask again...have you gotten started yet?

I typed the word "inertia" into Google and the above came up.

The longer you wait to get back to the gym or yoga or whatever the higher your tendency to do nothing will be. You have to be your own external force to enact change. (This paragraph only makes since if you actually read the definition above.)

Being your own 'external' force sounds weird but ultimately it is up to you to take action. The thing to remember is:

Imperfect Action > No Action

People that say things like, "I woke up and I was 50lbs heavier..." get caught in this state of inertia. It doesn't happen overnight. It happens over nights. Lots of consecutive nights. 

As the cliché goes, the best time to start was yesterday. The next best time is now. 

(I hate clichés and often use them very tongue in cheek. That being said, they get to be clichés for a reason.)

So I ask again....

Have you gotten started yet?

NOW is The Time

A couple of weeks ago I told you this time around Labor Day isn't the best time to begin a new health and/or fitness routine. You can check that out hereif you haven't already. 

Well now we're a week post Labor Day. By now you should have an idea of what your schedule is going to look like for the rest of the year. This is important. Now is when you should be figuring out when you're going to be hitting the gym. 

Again, this is important.It's important because if you don't budget this gym time now, you're never going to have it later. 

Now the sooner you can start and implement this new schedule, including gym time, the better. The longer you wait to get started the harder it's going to be. Each day that passes, without you going to the gym, cements that routine (of not going to the gym) more and more. 

So in the other post, I was urging you to take your time and plan and prepare for the stress that comes with 'back to school' and the unofficial end of summer. 

Now I'm telling you to ACT.Go to the gym. Take that class you've been wanting to try. Do something, anything. You're not going to find the thing you love the first trip or possibly even the seventh.

Go anyway. Keep going. 

Don't wait for the perfect situation because it won't come. Get started now.

---

I guess now is the perfect time to tell you the next round of my 28 Day Challenge begins a week from today on the 16th! This challenge is for anyone who is looking for accountabilitywhile losing weightand getting stronger. 

When you join this challenge you'll get workouts & nutrition advice designed to fit into your life. You'll also get a bunch of other bonuses that will help you get started living the healthy fit life you want to live. 

To sign up for the challenge, just click this link 

You work hard, Labor Day is yours

Happy Labor Day!

A day brought to us by the workforce that represents the backbone of the economy. This might be the holiday that truly represents the most people in the country. Most of us work, and work hard, to support ourselves and our families. So this day is truly for us. 

SO MAKE SURE YOU ENJOY IT!

Today is not the day to be obsessed with your diet and/or workout. Today should be about enjoying time with your friends and family not laboring. 

This doesn't mean you get to go crazy like a kid with no self control. It means you shouldn't feel guilty while you're having your burger/hot dog and a beer or two. Oh and if you want to eat dessert, go for it. You've worked too hard not too. 

My point here is, Labor Day is a holiday and holidays are meant to be celebrated. I can't remember the exact number but there are only about 10 national holidays on the calendar.

That's about 10 out of 365. Believe me the other 355 matter a whole lot more!

So that being said I'll be enjoying a burger with American cheese and a hot dog with mustard as I don't do anymore work for the rest of the day.

Now is NOT a good time

We just got back from vacation yesterday. The boys are actually still with their grandparents and won't be back until Thursday. Then as you all know it's Labor Day Weekend. And after that each one of the boys starts at new schools/daycares (and on abbreviated schedules at that). 

So, with all that being said, I feel especially qualified to say what I'm about to say. 

Post Labor Day/back to school is NOT a good time to start a new health and/or fitness routine. 

You were probably thinking it would be perfect since summer's ending and kids are going back to school. It's not. 

I don't doubt your intentions but here's what's probably going to happen: works probably going to pick up, little Jimmy & Susie are going to have different & new school and extracurricular activities and all of your friends and family will want to see you to tell you all about their summer adventures and catch up.

After all that stuff you know what's not going to happen: you're not doing that new workout routine or sticking to that new diet plan. It'll actually be hard to keep up the routines you normally have. Adding new stuff will just be adding more stress to an already stressful time. Don't do it.

Here's what you should do:

• Continue doing all the healthy things you're already doing. Remember this may be tough also so make it a priority.

• During the next week or two take an honest account of what your responsibilities are at home, work and with your friends. See what the actual demands on your time are.

• Start to plan out what you can/want to do. Be as realistic as possible as you can here. If you haven't been up before 7am in the last 5 years (you obviously don't have kids) don't lie to yourself and say you're going to go to that 5am Body Burn class.

• Set a time a couple of weeks from now when you'll start the new plan. Use the time in between to make whatever alterations you need. That being said, the plan is never going to be perfect. So when the start day gets here: START! No matter what.

Walking w/ Sunny

Yesterday was the first Sunday in God knows how long when we didn't have some children's activity planned. Miracles do exist. 

Anyway, I decided to enjoy this free time by taking a jiu-jitsu class. I ended up walking back home with a guy from class, Sunny. Sunny is a blue belt, this means Sunny is a lot better than me. He asked if I had any good rolls during class (rolls are to jiu jitsu, what sparring is to boxing). I explained that I finally had the opportunity to roll with someone who was relatively close to my level. (Just because of when I can make it to classes, I usually end up being there with people who are a lot more advanced than I am.)

Sunny said something that, I didn't realize at the time, was very perceptive. He said rolling with higher level people can good and bad. It's good because you learn how to defend yourself. It's bad because you never learn how to go on the offensive. Sunny had perfectly described my experience jiu jitsu thus far. 

As day went on and I thought about this more, I realized that this is how most people treat workouts and diets. Let me explain. 

Most people make the decision they want to get fitter or stronger or lose weight then they choose blue belt level strategies. Blue belt level strategies (think Keto, Paleo, Crossfit,  powerlifting, etc) work. They just don't work for most people. 

Put another way, these strategies work but most people who try to implement them aren't knowledgeable enough and/or committed enough for the strategies to be effective. Especially in the long term. 

So even when these people see some positive results they are fleeting. Then these people end up spending a lot of time recovering (defending themselves) from self inflicted damage. This damage can in the form of injury or simply the fact that you've just really missed carbs and all you can bring yourself to eat is cake and pie (#cartmanvoice). 

These people never end up learning the basic skills that they can use over and over again to go on the offensive. Things like getting more sleep, burning more calories than you burn or learning how to do simple exercises like the squat or push up correctly. These foundational skills should be the first steps anyone should be taking to make lasting fitness or diet changes. The blue belt strategies should be used to put you over the top.

In the not totally unrelated department, if you're looking for a resource that will give you simple fitness and diet advice and tips that you can implement immediately you should follow my new Instagram account: @starting_line_fitness

On this account I share tips on how to properly do exercises, how to start designing your own workouts and nutrition practices that teach you how to eat healthy and lose weight without depriving yourself. Basically it's all the offensive skills I was talking about above.

Rules vs. Guidelines

You're making this way too complicated. Yes I'm talking to you. 

It's not your fault though. You're confusing guidelines for rules. So lets talk about the difference between the two.

Those are just screenshots from Google and Wikipedia respectively. To quickly sum up the relationship between the two: guidelines help you follow the rules.

GUIDELINES ARE NOT RULES!!!

So if you are trying to lose weight and/or burn fat there is only one rule you must follow to be successful:

***You must be in a caloric deficit!***

That means you must burn more calories than you take in. 

So, again, if you are starting a diet (whether it be Keto, Paleo, Weight Watchers, South Beach, Carnivore or any other one) with the goal of losing weight/burning fat* you must be in a caloric deficit. All of the diets listed follow this rule but they have different guidelines to get you to do it. 

So if you're precisely following Paleo or Keto or whatever and you're not losing weight, then you're eating too much or you're not exercising/moving enough or both. That's it.

*Interestingly enough many of these diets were developed for medical reasons, not weight loss. Weight loss just happened to be a byproduct.

---

 And, just so you know, I’m running a 28 Day Challenge that begins on 8/12! This is for people who are looking to take charge of their health & fitness in 28 days. It's a remote program so you can join from anywhere in the world.

I'm looking for 10 people to join the challenge who are ready to lose weight and be featured participants that I'll showcase over the course of the challenge. If that's you comment 'tell me more' below and I'll message you the details.

I Got Ghosted...

A couple of weeks ago a lady reached out to me on Facebook. She commented on something I posted about the 28 Day Challenge. Turns out she wanted to set up training in person. We spoke on the phone and set up an appointment for the very next day. 

The next day she ended up canceling about 45 minutes before we were going to meet; something about a contractor and tiles. Whatever. That was the week of 4th of July. I've reached out a couple different times and offered various times that we could meet. Basically I never heard back. 

This happens often. People will initiate the conversation and then when it's time to meet they disappear.

I'll keep following up with her for a while and we'll still be Facebook friends. So she'll keep hearing from me. I might not ever hear from her again.

So what happened? Here's what I think...reaching out and starting the conversation is the first step. I'm sure it's it's not an easy step. I post about challenges and other fitness stuff pretty much everyday. I have no idea how long she's been reading my posts or what made her reach out that particular day.

I know people always talk about the first step being the hardest but in this case I disagree. Here the first step is kind of abstract. It's just talking. The next step is the tough one. This is the step where you actually have to do something. You have to go and do the work. Work that you probably haven't been doing or haven't been doing well. And you have to do that work with someone you don't know well (yet). It's understandably intimidating. 

I said I might not ever hear from her again. Here's what will probably happen: she'll comment on something I post again. It'll start this process over again. It might actually happen two or three more times before she takes the next step to actually meet up for a session.

Mid Year Check-In

Believe it or not, we're already half way through the year. Are you where you want to be at this point in 2019? Now would be a good time to check on that so you can make the needed changes.

At this point I'm about 70 workouts for the year. As long as I keep this pace, I'll finish the year with about 140 workouts. That's pretty much a workout every 2-3 days. 

I'm counting any organized/planned bout of exercise as a workout. So for me this year that would include about 50 lifting sessions, about 10 cardio (runs) and about 10-15 jiu-jitsu classes (there've been a few days where I've lifted and done a jiu-jitsu class, I've counted those as one workout).

At last check (last Wednesday) I'm down 6 pounds since midway through January. Not bad considering weight loss hasn't really been a focus. I've been able to run further and faster on shorter runs. As far as jiu-jitsu goes there's been some improvement (I think). 

Now I'm telling you this for a few reasons. The least of which is to pat myself on the back, but that's definitely a reason also.

• Keep a log: I know all of this because I keep a log of all of this stuff. I track dates of my workouts and what I do in them. I also periodically track my weight and certain strength numbers. Nowadays most cell phones will have a built in app that will do this for you but I use mapmyfitnessfor my runs and google keepfor my lifting workouts. The log becomes a progress tracker and a motivational tool.

• Unintended benefits: consistency of workouts can bring some pleasant surprises. Weight loss hasn't necessarily been a goal so it was nice to see a lower number on the scale. It's also nice when someone else notices for you. These benefits aren't just weight loss related either. Better sleep and stress relief are a couple.

• Accountability: the only way to know if you're on pace for reaching your goals is knowing where you are in the moment. This requires that you check in periodically. Depending on the goal(s) this might checking everyday or it could mean checking every six weeks. Be careful with you check-ins though, depending on your personality type, checking in too often (or too little) could cause more stress than it's worth.

Know What to Expect

Beginning of session; client's back after 2 weeks of travel: 

Me: Welcome back.

Client: Bad news, I haven't lost any weight...I didn't gain any either.

Me: That's not bad news. That's a win. 

******

This was part work trip and part fun. There were trips within the trip. The client described the trip as a "nice change of scenery but not necessarily relaxing." When clients travel the only expectation I have is that they enjoy themselves if it's recreational and that they practice some healthy lifestyle practices if it's work travel.

Losing weight, and reaching other goals, is hard to do. Things need to be near perfect. When you travel or life throws you other curveballs things are never perfect. You don't have the foods you're used to eating, you don't have your own bed to sleep in, your gym to workout in...yada yada yada. 

Things are not perfect yet clients come back from two-week trips in which they gained no weight and call it bad news. People expect perfect results from imperfect situations. Don't do that.

Stop expecting perfect results from imperfect situations.

Instead celebrate the wins. In this case not gaining weight, during a stressful trip that included at least one scotch tasting and more than a few beers, is a win. The fact that my client averaged over 15,000 steps/day is a win. The fact that he recorded his meals about 80% percent of the time is a win. The fact that he scheduled and made it to a training his first full day back, that's a win. 

Selfishness > Selflessness

When is comes to your health and fitness anyway. This sounds harsh but it's true.

Now before I go on, I just want to say I'm not a selfish jerk. Actually, if you ask me, I'm a pretty swell guy.

I'm telling you this because I'm such a swell guy and I want to see you be successful reaching your goals. The biggest reason ("reason" is a nice word for excuse) people give for why they can't work out is time: they have to work, they have to pick up/drop off the kids, they have social events and so on.  Here's the thing though: TIME IS FINITE!

Discover & share this Best Gif GIF with everyone you know. GIPHY is how you search, share, discover, and create GIFs.

People treat time as though one day they're going to wake up and all of a sudden they'll have more of it. So are you going to quit your job? Willing to dump your friends? Giving up the kids for adoption? These are the only ways you'll gain more time. 

Now like I said, I'm a swell guy so I would never advise you to give up those things. They are important to you and you (hopefully) derive joy from them. But....

You are going to have to say "no" to some of these things some of the time. 

(This is the part where I say something cliché about "me time" but....actually that's exactly what I'm going to do.)

Listen statements and phrases get to be cliché because there is/was truth and usefulness in them. You do need "me time". You can't keep coming in fourth (to the three examples I've used) and expect to make any progress towards your goals. 

And to be clear, I get it. It's hard to tell people no. Especially when they are people that you like and love. Well that's exactly why you should tell them no. You want to give those that you love your best. That means you have to take/make time to take care of yourself.

So when it's between you and your significant other to drop off the kid a practice sometimes you're going to have to put your foot down and say "no you do it, I have to go to the gym." The great thing is if your relationship is where it needs to be then they'll understand and even be supportive. 

If the relationship is not where it's needs to be, well that's another blog post.

20 Years Ago Today...

It was on this day 20 years ago that I graduated from high school. At that point I was officially a former high school athlete and never really thought about my own health and/or fitness. I was going to college for Athletic Training/Exercise Science so I did at least have other people's health on my mind somewhat. 

Anyway over 20 years I've learned a few things. So why not list some of them out. Don't worry I'm not doing 20. You wouldn't read that many and even if you did you wouldn't remember half of them.

• Most people know what they should be doing. The internet will explain how to do most of it. So for most people it's a matter of being motivated enough to just take action. This goes for all things, not just health & fitness. 

• Don't respond angry and above all else BE NICE! I need to practice this more but I'm loads better than I was 20 years ago. 

• A little progress is still progress. Don't take it for granted.

• You think you've been tired and then you have kids and realize that you've never actually been tired. 

•  Time is precious. Stop wasting it by trying to figure out everything for yourself. 

• Money certainly isn't everything. That being said though, everything is easier when you don't have to worry about money. 

That's enough for now. This was a fun activity to look back and find the lessons. It's fun because most of these lessons come with a corresponding story that either made me laugh or think "I'm certainly never doing that again." 

Give a shot, you don't need a milestone like a graduation anniversary. Just pick a time frame and go from there. I think you'll be surprised at what you'll come up. I also imagine that the older you are the more meaningful the lessons are. Though I'm curious to know if these lessons will be replaced with new ones or if they'll grow deeper in meaning over the next 20 years. 

Let me some of the lessons you've learned over the years. I'm interested to hear back from you.

Reps- Quality over Quantity

Let's talk about reps, as in repetitions, for a minute. The number of reps is how many times you're going to repeat an exercise before that set is done. I have a lot of clients who get caught up in the number of reps they have to do. Lots of times they won't be able to start the exercise without knowing how many reps they have to do.

I get it, the number of reps sets an expectation for the exercise. If you only have to do 4 reps of an exercise, it's probably going to be "harder" than if you have to do 15 reps of the same exercise. This is good to know. 

Reps become a problem when you get fixated on the exact number. I often see people rush through a set just to hurriedly get to the prescribed number of reps. Or people will stop a set early (before they reach appropriate fatigue) just because they reached the number of reps. 

If the world were perfect, you would look at the rep scheme as more a suggestion. As a matter of fact when clients ask 'how many' I'll often give a range. The range will be based off of whatever the goal of the exercise or session/program is for that day. The most common rep range suggestions would be as follows:

• Power- 2-4 reps

• Max Strength- 3-6 reps

• General Strength- 5-8 reps

• Hypertrophy (muscle growth)- 6-10 reps

• Endurance- >10 reps

So depending on what you're trying to accomplish you'd pick the appropriate rep scheme. 

The thing is you don't have to be stubbornly committed to whatever rep range you choose. Particularly if you're working out for general fitness, just trying to lose weight and get stronger. 

So if not a particular number of reps, what should you be looking for/working toward?

On one end of the spectrum you need to be aware of technical breakdown. Technical breakdown is the point when the form of the exercise begins to degrade. This usually happens when you're fatigued. So if you feel the form start to go on rep 4 out 8 on your squats, stop. Rest and recover. Live to squat another day (or another set, you know what I mean). Technical breakdown is where injuries occur so avoid it as much as you can.

On the other end of the spectrum you need to do enough reps to elicit a training effect. So  if you get through all 8 squats and feel like could've kept going you're probably not working hard enough. You either need to increase the weight/resistance or increase the number of reps. Again your choice will depend on whatever your goals are.

Your workout program should have appropriate rep schemes. The point is you don't have to be stuck on those numbers though. Use the numbers to help you make the necessary adjustments; especially when you're approaching technical breakdown. 

Motivations of Expectations

Let's talk about expectations.

We all have them and they can be very motivating.The motivations of expectations are where the problems lie, especially when it comes to health and fitness. You would think that something that motivates someone would be a good thing. Normally it is. The problem is motivation built on false expectation ends up becoming demotivating.

Bare with me here.

When it comes to fitness and losing weight we often hear things like "drink this tea or wear this wrap and lose up 20lbs in a month." There is absolutely nothing true about that statement. Again, to be clear, there are no teas or wraps that will make you lose weight. This sets is a false expectation.

If you didn't know any better (which you now do) that would sound like a awesome deal. Who wouldn't want to lose 20 pounds? In a month no less. See super motivating.

Until you don't lose the weight. Then you're like what happened. You drank all the tea. You drank it exactly when they told you to drink it. You only lost 8 pounds. That's no where near 20. Now you're thinking why'd you even bother? Not so motivated anymore right?

Here's the thing though: 8 pounds is a great and very sustainable amount of weight to lose in a month. It should be celebrated. It would've been celebrated if the expectation wasn't 20 pounds. The false expectation turned success into failure. That sucks.

(By the way, the made-up person above didn't lose weight because of tea. They lost weight because they ate less and exercised/moved more. For God's sake, teas don't make you lose weight.)

Whenever you're ready... here are 3 ways I can help you reach your health & fitness goals

1. Join My 28 Day Online Fitness ChallengeNext challenge begins June 3rd. You'll get daily accountability, nutrition plans and even a FREE cookbook. These challenges run once a month. If you want in just reply to this email and say challenge.

2. Work with me One-on-OneIf you're in Brooklyn or Manhattan you can schedule a complimentary training session in which we'll outline your goals and lay out the plan to help you reach those goals.

3. Grab a free copy of my e-book, Fitness 101: Get Started Lifting now.Use the book to learn all the equipment you'll find in the gym, how to use that equipment and all the exercises that you'll ever need to know. Let me know if you want it and I'll get you a copy.

Keeping Commitments is a Skill

My wife teased/made fun of me as I was leaving for work this morning. It's like 40° and raining here. The high is only going to be like 50°. Just as I'm about to walk out the door, Alli tells the baby, "Daddy is committed to wearing shorts."

Yes I'm wearing shorts today. See I have a rule where once I wear shorts for the first time when it gets warm, I wear shorts everyday until it's too cold. Despite my wife's teasing, she's right, I am committed to this. I realize this is probably a stupid hill to die on. It's also not a macho "I'm tougher than cold weather thing" either as I'm wearing three layers on my upper body. 

It's simply that I've committed to shorts and I'm gonna keep the commitment. Here's the thing about the commitments: keeping commitments is a skill. That means that you can/should practice keeping commitments (assuming keeping commitments is important to you). So my (again, admittedly stupid) "commitment to shorts" has some merit. 

See for me to stay committed on a day like today, it requires me to consider the importance of the commitment and whether or not I want to remain committed. It also teaches that keeping a commitment usually requires some forethought. A quick check of the forecast yesterday would've told me maybe a pair of tights or long socks would've been a good idea. This would've allowed me to wear shorts and not be cold and wet. 

So even though this is a silly commitment it will have long term implications for my more important commitments in the future. Most of us only think of commitments as these big things that have a lot of meaning. In doing so we forgo a lot of opportunities to make smaller (& sillier) commitments. This robs us of the chance to practice our commitment keeping skills.

Calling It Quits...

I'm quitting on a workout program. I should say that I've already quit on it. I haven't done any workouts from it in over a week. I should also say that it isn't a bad program. It's actually pretty good, I mean I wrote it. The program has everything that you would want or need to get strong AF (as the kids would say).

So why am I quitting it?

The problem with the program is that I just don't like it. It's not fun. I don't get excited to go to the gym to do these workouts. I don't feel particularly good after the workouts are finished. That's why I'm quitting this program.

Now normally I'm all about telling you to stick things out to see the results. I'm still going to tell you that because it's good advice and the surest way to make progress. As I said, if I keep at this program, I'm sure that I would get stronger. I'm still quitting.

Now in my defense, I'm just quitting this program. I'm not quitting working out all together. I'll either put together a new program or go back to an old one I've had success with. The goal is still to get stronger. I'm just going to find a program that I enjoy more. This will increase the likelihood that I'll actually get the workouts done and not be walking feeling guilty that I missed a workout.

Most of us aren't being paid to work out or getting paid for any of the benefits that working out affords. So with that being said, it's ok for enjoyment to be the main criteria when choosing your workout routine. This way you'll ensure that you're being consistent. No one is ever consistent doing things they hate.

There's an important caveat I need to mention here. By choosing that what you enjoy the most you could be choosing the "lesser" (from a technical standpoint) of the two options. Like I said, I wrote myself a good program. If I stick to it I know I will get stronger than I will on whatever program I start. I know this because I wrote the program to specifically get stronger. The new program will have more emphasis on enjoyment and less on strength.

I'm ok with this because it's an informed decision. Also, getting back to the consistency thing, is a program better if I'm not going to do it?

My Boys Weekend

I spent the weekend with my boys. All by my lonesome, no mommy in sight. Alli left Thursday morning and didn't get back until last night after both of the boys went to bed. In that time, I had to get them both to daycare on Thursday and Friday and then keep them fed and entertained all weekend. Luckily, some friends invited us to meet them at the Botanical Garden on Saturday and we had a birthday party that I had forgot about on Sunday. So the entertainment portion of the weekend was pretty much taken care of.

Every adult I came across was like, "wait, your by yourself...with both of them...all weekend?" People were treating me as if I was one of the Avengers. I was surprised at the level of praise I was getting (don't get me wrong, I deserve and will accept all praise hoisted upon me). I mean they are my children.

Now this isn't going to be a post about parenting double standards even though I did get the feeling that if Alli & I switched roles this weekend she wouldn't have gotten the same treatment. It's a post about the parenting stress and stress in general.

Parenting really boils down to, like I said above, keeping them fed, entertained and well rested (which will play a part in their entertainment). It doesn't seem like it should be hard. We spent the majority of weekend either home or in places where they could run freely. Easy enough right? Well that becomes, I haven't seen Graham in 15 seconds where is he? Or what's in Charles' hand....no no don't put that in your mouth. Then feeding: with one it was "oh my god, I wish you would just focus on eating" and with the other it was "oh my god, you've eaten so much you can't still be hungry".

I found myself living for nap time. Not for the peace and quiet it afforded but so that I could take a nap myself. Even that was ruined that too as one would invariably not sleep long enough or sleep too long. Yes even sleeping too much is stress inducing: is everything ok, is he sick....

The point is life is full of stressors. Everyone always talks about the stress of that big project at work. You should talk about those. You should also realize and recognize that your everyday life couple be, and probably is, stressing you out.