A few inspiring quotes...

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”

- Wayne Gretzky

“Whether you think that you can, or that you can’t, you are usually right.”

- Henry Ford

“Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure… than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.”

- Theodore Roosevelt

“Burpees work…sorry..”

Michael Grayer

Are these errors holding you back? Part 1

I have a very bad habit bootcampers....
I often look around and see what others are doing in their training programs.

I guess you could say I'm a bit of a gawker. But the fact is I'm curious of how most people waste their time there?
Did you know that over 85% of gym goers do not achieve their fitness goals...!!!!

When I first started training, that is what I did. I watched those I wanted to emulate and copied what they did for training, and sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't.

Now I watch others train so that I can learn things that I can do and things that I will never do in my training or the training of my clients.

Unfortunately, the list of things I will not do is much bigger than the things I will do based on watching others.

Here are the top ten errors or things I will never do that I see in training

1. Too much wasted time

In my opinion, training programs should be short and to the point but must still get the job done. Long drawn out training programs are not only obsolete, but are unrealistic.

Solution- whether you are training for fat loss or strength, choose a few moves that will get the job done and then get out. Spending all your time in the gym limits how much you can show off your hard work outside the gym.

2. A full and busy cardiovascular training area and a near empty weight training area

This isn't so much an error but more of an observation. It just shows that the misconception is sitll out there that cardio is the best option for fat loss while weights are for those looking to get big and bulky.

Solution- Do what few others are doing. Try new things, explore the weight training aspect of your program.

3. Extra Long Rest Periods

When weight training, extra long rest periods are common. I kind of refer back to number 1 on this one. Extra long rest periods are a waste of time. Even for those looking to increase size. I am currently on a weight gain program where I train for less than an hour three times per week with weight training. And it is the most effective program for providing results that I have ever utilized.

Solution- Start training in super sets. Choose two moves that are opposites of eachother (pull up and Push Press) and perform them back to back with a shorter rest period (2 minutes). Make your entire program in this manner to trim time and see great results.

4. Too much machine resistance training and not enough free weight training

Free weights can be intimidating, ok, I get that. But the benefits cannot be ignored. However there are some benefits to machine training too. But all of one and none of the other in either direction can cause an imbalance and a compromise of results.

Solution- Train with variety. Explore free weights as well as machines to create a balance in your program. There are some movements that you will not be comfortable training with free weights so, rather than ignore the movements, find a machine alternative. Likewise, with machine movements, you may find more benefit from performing a free weight move.

5. Elliptical Machine

The machine itself is overused and underperforms for those who use it. Logically, training the upper and lower body simultaneously would provide a bigger benefit. Not true. The lack of full range of motion and the fact that the machine is doing most of the work for you limits how much benefit you really do get out of training with it.

Solution- Train on the bike, stair climber, rower, or treadmill. Even better solutions would be running, training with bodyweight exercises, or kettlebells. All of these solutions force the body to work harder thus creating a much higher calorie burn post exercise (which is where the real large amounts of calories can be burned with an effective program).

I've got some more, and I'll bring them to you next week.

Dispelling Myth of Women and Strength

There is a long standing myth that women shouldn’t lift heavy weights. The lame reasons are that women will get big and bulky, will hurt themselves, and that women have no need to be strong.

What a bunch of crap that is.I’m going to get right to the point on this one because it is perhaps the most rediculous myth I have ever heard. Women have just as much reason to be strong as men do. Having strength doesn’t mean being big and bulky. Being strong is being able to move your body with confidence and not have the fear that you will hurt yourself or belief that you can’t do it.
Strength is a vital component to a well rounded fat loss and conditioning program. If you are stronger, you can last longer, you can burn more calories, and you can get better results.

And lifting soup cans isn’t going to get you strong. LOL I'm sooo tired of seeing that one!!!

I’m talking moves like pull ups, deadlifts, squats, kettlebell snatches and swings, and push up variations. The very same exercises that make men strong are just as good for women. And the fear of becoming big and bulky has 80% to do with nutrition and 20% to do with exercise. Just like every other method of training, if your nutrition isn’t in the right place, it just isnt’ going to happen.

Intrafitt Survey

Hey Bootcampers,
To better serve all of you at Intrafitt Bootcamp. I would like to hear your opinions or questions or concerns that will help make our bootcamp the best. Please don't hold back!!! I'm not a baby and can take criticism. I want all of you to really be enjoying this service. If you feel something needs to change or be altered let me know.
Thank for your honesty,
P.S.I have started already this week being earlier for the 6am group because one of our campers made the suggestion for me to be earlier to set up so we can start on time.
Please remember that I want this to be a top notch fitness camp and service.
Just email me at intrafitt@hotmail.com

A few more things that fire me up!!!

So yesterday I got you started on ten things that drive me crazy in the media, you hear from bad trainers, and from other people. So, I've got ten more for you today.
As I said yesterday, this isn't intended to tick anyone off and if it does I apologize, but I gotta get these out in the open.
11. Eating 'Organic' isn't always better. Just because a food says its organic doesn't make it healthy. The same rules apply to 'organic' foods as they do to non-organic foods. Organic chips are not healthy, neither is organic candy. Sorry.
12. Walking is not considered exercise for fat loss. For the older generation (older than 75), it is considered an activity and can be exercise to that population. But if you are younger than that (and even if you aren't), you will not lose fat from walking.
13. Don't buy into the cleansing craze. You get a perfectly good 'cleanse' from eating plenty of fruits and vegetables. Plus you get the added benefits of vitamins and minerals with them. Something you won't get with most cleansing products. Besides if you want a real 'cleansing' drink Clorox.
14. Get rid of the magic pills. The only pills you should be taking are multivitamin and Fish Oil. It's time to face the truth that no quick fix is going to cut it when trying to reach REAL results.
15. You don't need an hour in the gym to see great results. My bootcamp classes are 45 minutes long and that includes warm up, workout. By compressing the workouts, decreasing the rest, and utilize full body movements, you create a 'no time wasted' workout that gives you the same if not more benefit than training for an hour. Real world training for real world people (who has time for an hour in the gym anymore anyway).
16. High Fructose Corn Syrup commercials tellingy you that it is made from corn and is healthy in moderation is a bunch of BS. Crack is fine in moderation too, but you don't see those commercials on television. Bottom line: stay away from the stuff, it has no benefit to you what so ever. And as far as moderation goes, it is in all kinds of foods so you probably aren't eating it in moderation rather in abundance.
17. Not eating breakfast or only eating one to two meals a day. Sure you want to be at a calorie deficit but you don't want to be at a nutrient deficit. But that is what you are doing if you practice this activity. You must eat five to six small meals throughout the day just to satisfy your recommended servings for vitamins and minerals. Plus eating this often spikes your metabolism to release excess fat rather than holding onto it if you eat one or two meals. The weight you lose with such small calories is muscle not fat. It is a quick way to become skinny fat.
18. By 'eating healthy' you are making smart food choices, but it takes a lot more than that to eat supportively. Eating supportively is having the right amounts of healthy foods to optimize fat loss. You can eat all the healthy foods in the world but it won't help you lose weight if you aren't supporting your body in its efforts for fat loss. The right amont of carbs, fat, and protein at the right times is supportive nutrition. When a trainer tells you to eat right and exercise to lose weight, they are really telling you that they don't know the answer to that question and you should find another professional.

10 Things that Get Me Fired Up

Before I start my list of 10 things that get me fired up, I must warn you, I may offend you at some point in this post. It is absolutely not my intention to do so. I am merely making an effort to eliminate confusion as to what works in a fa.t loss program and what does not. This post is not intended to insult readers, rather challenge the bad information you hear every day. I'm using this format to express how frustrated I too am with the contraversial information that so many are confused.
If I do offend you I apologize ahead of time, but I also hope that I am able to shed light on the ever evolving and confusing topic on how to lo.se body fat. I am just using this platform to state my feelings.
Being a top fitness professional can often be very frustrating. I can't count how many times I used to feel like I was spinning my wheels. I mean I was fighting bad information from popular magazines, television, and worse of all bad trainers. I would tell my clients one thing and they would go home and hear something different from someone else. It got to the point where I was constantly fighting off myth after myth.
It's no wonder we as a society are in the state we are in. There is so much conflicting information out there that it is hard to believe what is true and what is not. Well, I'm about to clear the air big time.
Before you think I've gone sour from my normal positive wonderful, brilliant self, please read on. I will provide solid content after each gripe, so that you aren't just reading a complaint list from me. I know no one wants to hear me complain and my bootcampers, I'm sure will tell me to leave my excuses at home:).
Ok, here we go

10 Things that Get Me Fired Up:

1. The Definition of Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result- If you have been training the same way for longer than you can remember, stop it. You are not doing anything beneficial to you or your body. Change it up, your body likes change (well the fat loss part does). You can prevent overuse injuries and muscle imbalance. Become COMPLETELY fit and healthy not just with specific movements or motions.
2. Don't tell me exercise is boring. If you think it is, sit in on one of our bootcamp classes. We define fun and intensity. If you find exercise boring, your intensity isn't high enough, it isn't important to you, or see number 1. Change your routine, increase the intensity or watch some of our bootcamp videos to get more ideas on how to make exercise fun (in a sick twisted sort of way:))
3. If I hear one more person tell me that cardio is the best form of exercise for fat loss, I swear I'm going to... Seriously, I think this one is dying but it isn't going away quietly. Metabolism is the machine that burns fuel in your body, and your lean muscle is the main determinant of how fast your metabolism is. The only way to increase your lean muscle is, WEIGHT TRAINING.

4. To go along with number 3, if you aren't performing weight training to lose fat, then you are still living in the 1980's. LOL (biker shorts and 7 min abs) It isn't your fault, you are only doing what you are told by bad resources.
5. The Scale is what you thought it was...EVIL. The scale is not the best indicator of results and its too bad we have come to the point that we rely on a machine to tell us how we are doing. If your clothes feel different, if you have more energy, if other people tell you, that you are looking great, then what other information do you need? That is the point isn't it? To look great and be healthy. We don't need a machine to tell us what our weight is because it will tell us so many different things that are completely innaccurate to the true results that we are feeling. Things that affect the scale: time of day, water intake, sodium intake, before or after your workout, if you just ate, and so many more. Want to lose weight? Stop drinking water and see how long that lasts.
6. Low fat isn't always the best choice of 'diets'. Again, this comes from the 1980's where fat was thought to be the evil lurking in all the foods we love to eat. That isn't the case. Fats can greatly help fat loss when accompanied by lean proteins. It's Carbs AND Fat combination that causes weight gain. Keep the carbs down and the fats and proteins at a moderate level and you will be just fine.
7. Ellipticals, Treadmills, and other cardio devices that assist you in movement. These two in particular are extremely popular among gym goers. Unfortunately they are also two that help you with movement more than most other machines. The whole point in exercise is for you to move to cause stress in the body, that is how you lose fat. If you don't cause stress, you don't lose fat (by stress I mean positive stress, obviously not heart attack stress). It is extremely difficult to do this on treadmills and ellipticals due to their 'assistance' factor with movement. If you have joints that don't allow you to run, find a stationary bike that increases resistance the harder you pedal and you got yourself an alternative.
8. Crunches for weight loss or to see your abs- STOP IT, your low back will thank you. In order to get abs, stabilization exercises such as planks, supermans, and others
9. To go along with number 8, if you really want to see your abs, focus on your nutrition. There are no exercises on the planet that will make up for bad nutrition. Oh yeah, and exercising just to eat what you want, that doesnt' work either. Your body craves nutrients and when you exercise you increase the amount of free radicals in your body (yup- those same free radicals that have been linked to cancer), so if you don't feed it the right foods (antioxidants like fruits, veggies, nuts), you are doing more harm than good. You won't see it happen overnight, but over time it takes its toll.
10. Weights Do Not Make you Big and Bulky- This is the one I think I'm most tired of hearing!!! There isn't a secret aura around weights that make everyone who touches them big and bulky. It has much more to do with your nutrition than anything you can do with them. Again, nutrition is king when trying to see results of any kind.

There's ten of them, I may continue tomorrow with a few more.

Your High Revving Metabolism Checklist

It's quite frustrating at times, Bootcampers.

I mean you think you are doing everything right but the fat will not go away.

Your frustration turns to anger.

And your anger turns to reverting back to old habits.

Eating junk food.

Eating only once or twice a day.

Eating in the middle of the night.

Until you are further away from your goal than you ever have been.

Then the depression sets in.

The anguish and anxiety take over.

You vow that this time it is going to be different.

And the cycle continues.

Suprisingly it may just be one or two details that are keeping you from attaining success. Check this list out and see what you are doing and perhaps what you are not doing to get your metabolism firing on all cylinders.

1. Eating five to six small meals per day that are supportive nutritional sources. Supportive means eating those foods that are good for you and creating a balanced amount of nutrients.

2. Eating enough calories to satisfy your lean muscle tissue. Too little calories and your body will save what it can get. And your body fat will actually increase because of this and your metabolism will slow down to protect the body.

3. Staying hydrated. Drinking .6 ounces per pound of your body weight is a good amount. A dehydrated body will at first retain water, then will slow down your metabolism to, again, protect the body.

4. Taking a quality multivitamin. Any discrepency in your vital nutrients and your body will be compromised in one way or another. A compromised metabolism is usually the first victim.

5. Make an effort to eliminate as many liquid calories as you can. Most of the time these calories are empty calories and do nothing for you or your metabolism.

6. Avoid foods that contain high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, and enriched flour. All of these ingredients are lethal to a high revving metabolism.

7. Eat breakfast. After a long period without food, your body needs desperately breakfast to wake itself up and get the fire burning again. Whether or not you eat breakfast will also set the tone for the rest of the day and how well your nutrition plan works or doesn't work.

8. Have a pre and post-workout snack. About an hour and a half before your workout and within an hour after your workout it is important so you can get the most out of your workout. Pre workout to build up the energy you will need for the workout and post workout so you are able to recover effectively from the workout.

9. Performing weight training regularly. Just cardio isn't going to get you anywhere. Your muscle is your metabolism. How much muscle you have is directly related to your metabolism. But you don't have to be big and bulky for a high octane metabolism. Weight training will create that lean look you want.

10. Performing effective cardiovascular training. Interval Training is the most effective cardiovascular training method for boosting your metabolism. Long steady state cardio sessions can actually do the opposite to your metabolism.

This list is a great start on many things you can do today. All of these items work together, so one will not work alone. Sure you can get some results by doing a few of these things but why bother if it isn't going to get the complete results you want?