Fitperf, Health, Fitness, & Performance Tips. Fitness Performance

Maintaining Consistency in Your Workout Program

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 18:28:15 GMT

Behavior change starts with identifying what needs to change, building new habits, and supporting these changes. You notice that your body looks and works worse because you have not exercised. You decide that exercise is missing from your life. The best way to fix this is to start working out. First, decide whether you want to work out at home or at the gym. Gyms charge a monthly fee; home workouts mean buying dumbbells, a bench, or a ball. The weights you need depend on how strong you are now and on your future progress. If your building has a fitness room, you will not need to buy equipment. I recommend using a gym or fitness room rather than working out at home. Home workouts often lead to distractions because there are always other things you could be doing. You have chosen a gym membership. Now it is imperative that we define which days and at what times we will work out. A schedule must be developed and maintained; otherwise, the workout's prioritization will be disrupted by life’s many variables. If there is a bona fide reason that something else must be attended to, in lieu of exercise, it is a legitimate prioritization exception that must be minimized. Your workout regime resumes the following day. If you must miss a workout, do not beat yourself up; self-condemnation or self-loathing only creates a negative psychological state. Humans repeat activities that they find enjoyable. Positive reinforcement has better outcomes than negative reinforcement.

New Weight-Loss Drugs: Too Good To Be True?

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 18:41:38 GMT

The weight-loss medications primarily belong to a new class of drugs known as GLP-1 receptor agonists. These medications mimic hormones that regulate appetite and insulin, leading to significant weight reduction. Many users of GLP-1 agonists report a substantial decrease in constant 'food noise', the cravings and preoccupation with food that often lead to overeating. The reduction in appetite has already begun to affect the food industry, with some reports noting a decline in the purchase of snack foods and sugary beverages among GLP-1 users. The dramatic reduction in appetite has already begun to affect the food industry, with some reports noting a decline in the purchase of snack foods and sugary beverages among GLP-1 users. Employer-sponsored health plans face a potential financial crisis, with some estimates suggesting a company with 1,000 employees could spend over $900,000 annually on GLP-1 drugs. Many employers are being forced to add or strengthen utilization management requirements or to drop coverage for weight loss entirely, citing cost. Despite the undeniable long-term health benefits, the current U.S. list prices, which range from $900 to over $1,300 per month, are considered far too high to be truly cost-effective. To meet commonly accepted cost-effectiveness benchmarks, analyses suggest that the prices of GLP-1 agonists like Semaglutide would need to be discounted by 44%- 80% of their wholesale cost. While the drugs promise long-term savings from preventing heart attacks, strokes, and diabetes, many payers operate on short-term budgets and cannot afford the massive upfront pharmaceutical costs. Coverage is highly variable, leading to significant inequity: Medicare is currently prohibited by law from covering weight-loss medications, limiting access for older adults who would benefit most. As of late 2024, only 13 state Medicaid programs covered GLP-1s for obesity treatment. Because insurance coverage is limited, the drug's use is often concentrated in areas with the highest average income, meaning access is determined by the patient's ability to pay (frequently $1,000 or more out of pocket) rather than their clinical need, which is an ethical concern. Through my clients, I have witnessed the immediate efficacy of peptide-based weight-loss medications. The two major drawbacks, besides price, that I see are: Clients become attenuated to the medication, and what was appropriate for weight-loss appears to be insufficient for maintenance, let alone further weight-loss. These non-compensatory “wonder drugs” also do not require behavior modification, specifically the inclusion of healthy eating choices or creating and maintaining an exercise regimen. The drug companies have promoted a new drug addiction to fill their coffers. The pharmaceutical industry is about turning a profit to offset the costs of drugs that do not make it to market and to keep shareholders happy.

SMART Fitness Goals

Sun, 12 Jan 2025 18:47:51 GMT

SMART Principles for Fitness *Specific *Measurable *Achievable *Relevant *Time-Bound. Delineate what are your fitness goals Set standards to measure progress Make goals reasonably achievable These fitness goals should be relevant to your wants, needs and possibilities Set time parameters for completion of each step. Vague conceptualizations yield a path to nowhere. You control the situation, or the situation controls you. #Mentalperformancecoach#Personaltrainer#Mentalperformance

Fitness Motivation Kids & Teens

Fri, 15 Dec 2023 18:50:37 GMT

There is nothing as warming to my soul as to see the eagerness and smiles as a child approaches my door to train. They may be driven to my studio by their parents, but the drive to train comes from within. Children and teens need to be relatively successful in their endeavors to fan the fires of enthusiasm. If any individual continually feels inadequate in meeting a goal, they will eventually abandon their attempts to succeed at that goal. The key to manifesting and maintaining self-efficacy is creating small, attainable objectives. I tell kids my conceptualization of winning in fitness is similar to winning a football game. The ultimate goal is scoring a touchdown; however, we as a team will concentrate on attaining a series of successful first downs. We know the need to move the ball 100 yards, but we will focus on moving the line of scrimmage at least 10 yards at a time every four plays. If the ball is received at the twenty-yard line at the kick-off, the accumulation of seven first downs put the team at the ten, with the availability of four plays to score and the option of an easy three-point field goal. Small successes create and build more considerable achievements. Telling a child, “You got this,” is meaningless unless that child has been successful in similar situations. I had a dear friend, Neal, with whom we frequented numerous Yankee games in the seventies. Neal would always be yelling just a single! Reggie Jackson always enamored me with his big fence-clearing home runs. When I asked Neal why he was settling for just a single, his response was three singles put together to score one run. Are not singles easier to hit than home runs? Small successes create and build more considerable achievements. Telling a child, “You got this,” is meaningless unless that child has been successful in similar situations. A child or teen should never feel after a session that he or she “didn’t get that.” I tell kids from the get-go that when we attempt new exercises or skills, we will try something a couple of times; if we don’t get it, we will move on and try another day. Failure can only be a tool in learning if it promotes strong will, perseverance, and the understanding that success lies on the cusp of failure. If failure is seen as personal inadequacy as opposed to being an integral part of the winning process, self-determination, autonomy, and belongingness will wither on the vine. Success is a trait that is nurtured. If success is unnutured, it manifests itself in failure, and failure begets further failures. My kids succeed every time they train with me. These successes will be internalized and utilized in school, business, and hopefully life edited 12/15 4:06pm

Senior Fitness Where and How to Start

Sun, 30 Apr 2023 18:54:34 GMT

The stereotypical image of a senior has changed dramatically in the last fifty years. The concepts and restraints of aging have changed. Many individuals retire much later and stay active and vibrant. Sitting on the porch with a blanket on your lap has eclipsed the same senior playing a high-level game of tennis. Being a senior does not make you old and frail; sitting on your butt

and eating in an unhealthy manner makes you old and decrepit. If you are sitting on a chair watching TV, shut the damn TV off, get up, get out, and go for a walk. Start with a fifteen-minute walk four times a week at a rate that only slightly raises your pulse. Note a landmark, a store, or an intersection. This place is your point of delineation. Continue that distance and pace for two weeks. After two weeks, increase your reach by ten percent, and set a new delineation point. You are now four weeks in; you are getting this done. Let us improve the pace we are walking to where you are breathing heavier but can still maintain a conversation with some effort. Continue at this new level of intensity for two more weeks. You are now eight weeks in; you may start noticing that you are waking up with a renewed sense of purpose: You may also see that your pants seem a little bigger than they used to be fifty-six days ago. Let us expand the distance by ten percent more, maintaining the same intensity. Your intensity is related to your rate of respiration and your pulse. Continue for fourteen more days. Wow, we are now ten weeks in. Friends are starting to notice the metamorphosis of your body. Going up the flight of stairs to the bedroom in your home is now something that requires no extra effort. You have made considerable gains without enormous time or physical effort. Can you imagine how you would feel, look, and function if you continued this pace for one year? When something is out of our routine, it takes more mental and physical effort. When something is part of our schema, it is just what we do. While it takes more effort to start the ball rolling, inertia is an object's propensity to stay at rest or remain in motion until acted upon by an external force-Newton's First Law of Motion. Get your butt out of your chair and get the ball rolling. Before starting any exercise regimen, please consult with your doctor.

Imagery

Thu, 22 Dec 2022 19:00:19 GMT

One of the many tools available to enhance mental and physical performance is the use of Imagery. Imagery is a visualization technique that lets the individual see the performance they wish to improve. An individual should meditate for at least 10 minutes before the execution of this exercise; this meditation is to clear extraneous thoughts that tend to ruminate in our everyday cognitions. Sit, stand, or lay down comfortably with measured but relaxed breathing. Start with whatever pre-performance ritual may be a component of the activity. I will use golf as an example in this discussion. Experience the smell of the greens-Feel the wind on your face-See yourself approaching the tee-Clearing your mind as you adjust your feet and body into your stance-Your body is loose-You are eager for the challenge of the game the ball is looming large and clear-You are gripping your club, which has become an extension of your body- Feel the muscles of your back, hips, and obliques torquing pulling into your backswing with a sense of ease as you wind back easily and deep-Seeing the juicy golf ball as you drive through the ball with force and authority-Watching the ball’s loft and trajectory soar exactly as you willed it-The sweetest effortless follow through; like watching a Daryll Strawberry home run-Feel the glow of being in the zone-The satisfaction of a successful drive. You visualize walking towards your ball, which landed in the desired spot. You continue through the course relaxed and easily. Seeing every swing with the proper mechanics and a focused mindset allows you to control your body and thoughts. This control is from your state of mindfulness. The feelings of mastery and self-efficacy permeate your very being. The game is you-you are the game.

Weight Training and Mindfulness

Sun, 02 Oct 2022 19:04:11 GMT

The mind is far more involved in exercise than just the neural innervation of a muscle unit. To optimize effectiveness in training one needs to be mindful of what you are attempting to do and what you need to do to meet your objectives. We live in a multi-stimulatory environment with constantly changing requirements. To be mindful one must drain the cup before you can fill it. A cluttered mind is like a closet with too many coats, you start squishing them all together and now you can’t find what you need, when you need it. In order to have functional cognitive processing there is the necessity to clear the mind, to have a meditative moment. Let all thoughts pass. Don’t try to get rid of them, just pay them no attention and they will disperse with no concerted effort from you. When your thoughts are unburdened, you will be attentionally free to focus on the task at hand, this particular repetition of this particular exercise. When the link between mind and movement is in sync the implicit abilities of the athlete (That’s You!) will be heightened to tax the systems so adequate stimuli will result in muscular and neural adaptation. You contract the muscles feeling the muscles shorten. Fully aware of your personal experience. Feeling the blood rushing in, engorging your musculature creating a “pump”. You are the only one in the room, though you are surrounded by others. Every repetition is a personal success, moving past compacity going where others fear the pain. Pain is not your enemy; he is your friend. You more than accept pain, you revel in it. There are no threats, only challenges. Repeat the clearing of the mind and the subsequential refocus before each set. The collective fatigue from multiple sets will be lessened for there is only the set that you are presently working on. Previous sets are in the past not in the present, using mindfulness. Next Article I will discuss visualization techniques to improve performance

Overcoming Changed Training Capabilities

Sat, 07 May 2022 19:09:13 GMT

There are times when one's training and their very way of life is drastically changed. These life changing events can be the result of things happening in our world and our reactions to them. There are also internal disruptions. Medical events can change our ability to train at previous levels. The athlete needs to deal with the psychological consequences that develop as an internal reaction to this training trauma. These are challenging times to get past and move forward from. The competitive athlete within us has always pushed ourselves to exceed previous levels of personal performance. We accept nothing but giving our very best," leaving nothing "on the table." Constantly striving to be better, faster, stronger. Whatever the game was, second place loses first. Within the last nine months, my life has been forever changed. Toward the end of last August, I went to my cardiologist to discuss the statin that I was presently taking. While at the cardiologist's, I was informed that my resting pulse was 165 bpm and that I was experiencing atrial fibrillations. The following day, I was at Valley Hospital's emergency room. As they were wheeling me through the doors, I commented to Caroline, "I hope this isn't a life-changing event." The doctors who worked on me initially attempted to cardio convert me. This procedure involves electrically shocking the heart back to sinus (regular) mode. This procedure failed. They then proceeded to move forward with cardiac ablation. My body was very beaten up. I believe I had been in cardiac dysrhythmia for almost three months. My reaction to the injectable beta-blocker in conjunction with the anesthesia was not good. They had also had not taken the precautions necessary to handle a patient with asthma. I experienced heart, renal and pulmonary failure. I almost died in the operating room. I was then transferred to critical care during the second day in C.C.U. I developed sepsis from a staff infection that must have been acquired while in the hospital. I had a bluish-green skin color. My temperature rose to 104.3. I was intubated and put into a coma-like state. My dear Caroline was constantly at my side, and I could feel her love every morning when they brought me out of my coma-like state for a few moments. I felt her love while I was heavily sedated and slept. Being Irish and a bodybuilder, I was just too thick-headed to die. I rehabbed myself to the point of decent fitness and muscularity. The doctors' investigation of what brought about my almost death five months prior concluded that I had a severely calcified aortic valve. Within a month, I had open-heart surgery at Weil Cornell hospital. Then a month later, it was determined that I needed to have a cardiac ablation to stabilize my atrial fibrillation further. I had missed or had to alter 8 months of training. My body and psyche had had changed in appearance and had to further adapt to the changed needs and capabilities of the moment. The medications I was taking was making me tired and listless. There were many times when going down the stairs to the gym or going on my recumbent bike were beyond my physical and mental capabilities. I knew that it was extremely important to raise my cardiovascular capabilities. The optimal level of heart function was needed for my health and longevity. I did not like how I looked in the mirror, to raise my sense of self I needed to put back some muscle. My training possibilities had expanded but were still greatly limited regarding how, and how much I lifted. I used to deadlift 400 lbs. I am now making progress deadlifting 150 lbs. Presently I can bench press the 50 lb. dumbbells for eight reps in contrast to the 75 lb. dumbbells for 10. I need to lift safely. My chest was cut open and wired back together 13 weeks ago. My training methods and goals have been forever altered. The game changes when the rules change. Learning from our experiences is a basic measure of intelligence. These experiences left me a very changed man. I now have a very different outlook of the world. I am far more understanding of people and the differences that may lie between us. I was also physically changed from 9 months of significantly reduced physicality. I had lost 20 pounds, a large portion of my muscle, from my lack of weight training. I have gained back 5 pounds I am fighting every day, regardless of how I feel, to do my cardio and get in my lifting. I know my bodybuilding competition days are behind me. I will get back in shape, but my heavy lifting days are behind me. I will have to settle on not being the biggest guy in the room but rather the nicest. My road goes on…… Sometimes staying in the race is secondary to winning the race.……….

Fitness Weight Loss and Goal Setting

Tue, 07 Dec 2021 19:20:52 GMT

Goal setting is a critical strategy in changing your diet and physical activity behavior The rate of obesity is increasing. A substantial body of research links poor diet and physical activity habits to obesity and chronic diseases. Producing sustainable dietary and physical activity behavior change to influence this rate of obesity is an ongoing challenge. Research shows that the most effective behavior changes from nutrition education interventions take place when the interventions are behaviorally focused and theory-driven. The Social Cognitive Theory, well known and widely used for understanding and researching behavior change, specifies goal setting as a key strategy - Lee, Locke, and Latham define a goal as ‘‘that which one wants to accomplish; it concerns a valued, future end state.” Goal setting is a significant facilitator of behavior change. Setting specific goals provides a potential strategy for organizing nutrition and physical activity information and skills into practical and manageable steps. I am presently pursuing my Masters of Science degree in Sport Psychology. I possess over 5,000 hours of hands-on experience in Personal Training and Sports Conditioning. I’m a credible source of information and expertise, ready to design and implement an exercise and weight loss program tailored to you. Call or email me to schedule your complimentary first session and let’s get started! In-person and virtual sessions are available. bill@fitperf.com 201 447-4055 cell 201 988-3560

Where did those Covid Pounds Come From?

Thu, 17 Jun 2021 19:24:31 GMT

Those extra pounds that have accumulated on your butt, stomach, and legs are not the result of a viral infection. The self-inflicted detachment that people have made from society due to Covid has greatly curtailed their activities. Going to the store, rushing to the bank, going out with your friends, moving the body from here to there burns calories. This lack of reduction in burnt calories accumulates body fat. This weight gain can be further attenuated with the response of the stress hormone cortisol which wreaks havoc on the endocrine system. Your body does not care how it looks, it just wants to survive. Cortisol starts shutting down the machinery. Shut off all peripheral systems, they are using energy that may be desperately needed for a possible attack. Cortisol along with epinephrine and adrenaline are your three stress hormones.

Don’t blame all of this weight on cortisol. and your activity levels. Much of these accumulated calories you have ingested. Sitting around your home puts you in close proximity to food sources. The hundred calorie snack here and hundred calorie snack there if done two times a day equals 200 calories daily approximately 6,000 calories monthly. One pound of body fat requires about 3500 extra calories to be ingested. Doing the math !.71 pounds of fat a month times 15 months equals 25 extra pounds of fat.

Motivation

Mon, 17 May 2021 19:27:34 GMT

Motivation is something that, at times, can be pretty elusive. Sometimes it can be challenging to get yourself to the gym, even if it is walking downstairs to your home gym. It's best to find intrinsic means to motivate. It is about finding things that are important to you to get you going. They shouldn't be goals that are societally based. They should be about goals that fulfill your inner needs, Telling yourself that you want to lose weight because you want to be more aesthetically pleasing may not be the proper approach. Tell yourself that you're losing weight because you wish to be more healthy and more vibrant. Go to the gym and work out because it makes you feel good and will help you function better. Choose better food choices because it increases your feelings of health. Having goals is essential. Having obtainable short-term goals is imperative for long-term success. If the goals we set are too difficult to achieve, we run the risk of failure indeed. Failure is counterproductive to feelings of self-efficacy.

Soft-core approach does not = Hard-core results.

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 19:30:33 GMT

Too many "would be" bodybuilders expect to have size and strength with minimal efforts and a copy of Muscle Fitness Magazine. Following a three hour, massive volume, low intensity workout may work wonders for steroid fed athletes with an adequate base. These forementioned "pump worouts" do little for regular weight lifting trainees. If there is not sufficient force to tear a muscle fiber (myofibral) there is not sufficient stimuli to initiate change in that muscles structure. Training to get big and stronger is all about sufficient stimulation. Many successful bodybuilders have laid the foundation to their musculature with an athletic based, strength programs. When asked, off hand how to get bigger I typically respond, lift to you puke. Many former high school and college football players remember fondly, with languishing agony, the hours spent under a squat bar or pulling an unmovable weight in the deadlift. Following periodization techniques that allow for stimulation and adaptation with adequate deloading phases. Many of these concepts are lost on many personal trainers for they are not schooled in fundamental exercise physiology. Low intensity high volume training may do wonders for making a woman look reasonably better in a two piece bathing suit. Low intensity training will not initiate appreciative muscle growth. You can't have visible striations in a muscle, unless you can see that muscle. As Arnold would say in Education of a Bodybuilder "you have to put down the clay, to mold the clay". Training hard isn't just about how many hours you put in the gym, it's about what you do when you are there. Bodybuilding "pump" routines are great to flush the muscle with blood. This type of workouts cause temporary growth, or transient hypertrophy. Transient meaning lasting for a short time. When you are posing in front of the mirror the pump is everything, but you can't pump up muscles you don't have. I remember times in my training when a gym worker would advise caution for I looked wobbly, as though I was ready to pass out, I would respond glowingly I'm just getting to where I need to be. My Personal Euphoria. No Guts - No Glory

The sixth variable in weight training.

Tue, 29 Oct 2019 19:34:29 GMT

It has always been propounded that there are five variables that can be manipulated in weight training. The five variables of weight training has traditionally been, exercise chosen, order of exercises, weight loading, number of repetitions and sets of a given exercise and rest period between sets.
I propose a sixth extremely important but neglected variable- muscle contractile speed. There has always been the consideration of contractile speed in relationship to maximum weight lifted. This is not the topic here. I am talking about a conscious slowing of the contraction to maximize effort and to minimize inertia.
This type of "squeezing" has been used in bodybuilding to create "pump' or to maximize vascularity and promote the stretching of the muscle facia. This type of contraction will result in transient hypertrophy and not true myofibral hypertrophy. In essence a temporary increase in size but not an increase in strength.
This type of training can reduce injuries from constant muscle overloading and find it's place in a good weight training The sixth variable in the design of a weight training program.periodization program.

Where to start with Exercises

Fri, 29 Jun 2018 19:47:25 GMT

Reaching your Fitness Goals

How to start an exercise program can be daunting task if one does not know where to start. To quote a line from the Wizard of Oz “it is best to start in the beginning”. To evaluate where one needs to go one must first honestly ascertain and evaluate that individual’s health and fitness level. This is definitely the time one may want to enlist the services of a competent personal trainer. A personal trainer will accurately gauge your fitness abilities through fitness testing or from observation of exercise performance. Using the fore mentioned methods of evaluation a fitness trainer can then select appropriate exercises, exercise order rest periods and other exercise prescription variables.

The Fitness Performance blog article from November 8, 2012 “What is Fitness?” enumerates on the various components of fitness, this article can be used as a template for the lay person to evaluate their health and fitness needs. When first embarking on a health and fitness regimen set reasonable goals and expectations that can be reached. It is imperative to be successful in one’s initial attempt at self-improvement for it reinforces their desire, and the will to continue.

Let us start with a simple beginning progressive resistance program.

Rest 45 seconds between sets.
Squats=3 sets, 15 reps
Lunges=3 sets 10 reps alternate legs
Push-ups=3 sets 20 reps or
Dumbbell Bench Press=3 sets 12 reps
Shoulder Push-ups=3 sets 10 reps or
Dumbbell Overhead Press=3 sets 10 reps
Pull-ups=3sets 8 reps or
Dumbell Pull-Over=3 sets 12 reps
Crunches=3 sets 20 reps
Reverse Crunches=3 sets 10 reps

This is a good beginning routine for a novice. For more advanced programming please contact Bill Lutz of Fitness Performance, located in Bergen County N.J., for your personal training needs.

Psychological and Sociological Barriers to Proper Nutrition

Fri, 29 Jun 2018 19:44:22 GMT

It is not mine, it is my mother’s fault I’m fat

Over eating goes back to primitive times. Primeval man had no way to maintain or store fresh meat. The storage of meat through the use of salting goes back centuries. Salting removes the water content and turns meat into a storable form of, tasteless shoe leather. The killing of livestock was timed around the eating and use of the animal. Societies had feasting ceremonies where copious amounts of animal flesh were consumed over a period of days. These aforementioned feasting ceremonies are what we call holidays. Along with the gluttonous consumption of food came the overzealous drinking of alcoholic beverages. How could one celebrate without a good “buzz” on?

Starting to see how overindulgence might be programmed into our DNA, as socially expected behavior. When we were children and we were “good” what did our parents, or grandparents give us in reward? Cookies or candies were given to us reinforcing our socially accepted “good” behavior. When we were children if we were “bad” we wouldn’t get any desserts, for sweets only were for “good” children. The reward system for impressionable young minds is intrinsically meshed into eating high sugar and high calorie treats. Santa only brings good children stockings full of candy canes and ginger bread men.

Now that we know why we are so psychologically and possibly genetically scarred what do we do? When someone has a substance abuse problem such as drugs or alcohol they are told to stay away from their object of addiction. When someone has a problem with their relationship with food they are advised to indulge in their addictive behavior anywhere from three to five times a day. The individuals with food addiction have to limit their amounts of intake to that which is considered reasonable. This type of protocol would be wrought in failure in the dealings of other addictive substance behavior modification

Maximum weight or Maximum contraction?

Fri, 29 Jun 2018 19:40:07 GMT

Personal Training for Weight lifting

Weight lifters and bodybuilders have long debated whether muscle growth is initiated and maintained through maximum lifts, or maximum muscle contractions. There seems to be merit in both theories.

Heavy lifts are necessary to tear muscle fibers and initiate the process of hypertrophy, which is the enlargement of muscle fibers. This growth of type two fast twitch fibers needs adequate force to tear the cross bridging attachment between contracting muscle fibers. The constant reoccurring process of lifting and tearing results in larger muscles, through the growth of muscle cells.

The bodybuilding concept of maximum contraction results in transient hypertrophy, or the increase in blood fluids and a corresponding rise in blood pressure. The contractions also stretch the muscle fascia which is the membranous tissue surrounding muscle bundles. This repeated stretching of the fascia can result in the ability to have a greater “pump “because of the aforementioned stretching of the surrounding tissue around the muscle fibers themselves.

My advice as a personal trainer and a lifter is: Work with heavy weight in a safe fashion to build larger muscles. Work with lighter poundage’s with maximum contractions when the body needs rest to recover from heavy lifting. Older lifters will find they need more “pump” sessions and less heavy lifting to allow the body to recover.

The theory of periodization covers much of these concepts.

Supplements- Don’t Trust The Snake Oil Salesman

Thu, 28 Jun 2018 19:56:30 GMT

In the pursuit of physical perfection, and the improvement of physical performance the use of supplements to amplify and cause changes is not a new concept. The search for ergogenic aids, or supplements to improve the boy’s functioning or performance is as old as: the ancient Greeks consuming ground lions teeth or the native Americans consuming ground buffalo testicles. The public’s conception of the means to change the body is not much better hundreds or thousand of years later. The claims and marketing of today’s supplements make the concept of eating buffalo testicles seem logical. Supplement companies are interested in making money not necessarily in helping, or furthering the health of their consumers. Protein powder mixed with proprietary additives makes the claim that Mr Universe uses this formula to help achieve his massive chiseled body. Mr Universe is obviously on a heaping helping of; Steroids, HGH, Insulin and Sarms but they fail to mention that. Proprietary additives are their special blend of not listed, and God knows what, ingredients. Athletes of all types can generally benefit from a good multivitamin, possibly Creatine along with as needed protein and carbohydrate augmentation as dictated by their diet. Everybody does not need everything. Diet, sports specific nutrient timing and proper hydration are a matrix that is sometimes difficult to maneuver let alone understand by the layperson. When in doubt about what to ingest for size-strength-performance or body composition do research seek out knowledge don’t run to GNC or the Vitamin shoppe to have someone who has knowledge of what products to push, which may not be based soundly in sports performance or nutrition.

Planet Fitness is Poisoning the Media

Thu, 28 Jun 2018 19:53:57 GMT

HOW I WENT FROM A PENCIL NECK TO A LUNK

We are bombarded with commercials talking about a no Lunk Zone. Lunks are what Planet Fitness has characterized as what body builders are. They are trying to reinforce the image that muscles equate to mindless idiots. They wish to create a gym where no one is really in shape but rather are happy with their level of don’t try hard complacency. This is a place where people can eat their pizza, and sip their sodas while they work out. This is a so called fitness company where people aren’t fit. This is what Planet Fitness imagines as a good thing, creating an atmosphere where people don’t push themselves to the next level. People need to raise the bar as far as their fitness levels, not put the bar on the floor, and aspire towards nothing.

Years ago when I first started going to the gym yes I was intimidated by the big guys lifting the big weights. Though I was intimidated I knew that if I worked HARD that one day I too would be a big guy lifting big weights. Back then I was 27 years old, Six foot one inch, 170 pounds and flabby- skinny probably 20 per cent body fat. I am still 6ft. 1 in. but I weigh 205 pounds with an eight per cent body fat and I look muscular and ripped. I am sixty years old and I can; bench press the 95 Lb. dumbbells for 8 reps, Deadlift 315Lbs for 10 reps or 405 lbs. for a single, I power squat over 800 Lbs. on a machine and do dumbbell Kroc rows with a 135 lb. dumbbell, I also do Lat pulls for reps with the full rack. This all would not have happened or had been possible if I didn’t try and push myself day after day. That is the body building credo push-push-push, don’t give up, make yourself bigger stronger and better.

Our society is inundated with health issues caused by our lack of strenuous activity and bad dietary practices. Taking some tips from the bodybuilding life style surely could do a lot of us some good. Proper sleep, good nutrition and hard work in the gym never hurt anybody. Don’t let media hype put you into the no judgment zone. The only one that truly can judge us, is ourselves. Don’t let yourself down, aspire to be better and work towards that goal.