A short brain dump and some random things that come to my head at 2am.

One of my “resolutions” this year was to blog more and the first 2 weeks of this year didnt go so smoothly with that one. These past 2 weeks have been a blur.

With everything going on its been hard to even find a few minutes to sit and write. But all thats done now

Everything ive been working on full speed is done and and its time to downshift a bit (only to 110mph). One of the main things is I finally finished the certification ive been working on for a while.

Usually when it comes to certifications and even certain degrees im really iffy about them. Nothing against any of them. Some of the certifications out there are actually pretty good. Its just that the majority of them are pretty shady and will leave anybody off the streets certified in a weekend. Sorry if that sounds harsh but it leaves the good guys to have to clean up the mess of the bad ones. Id rather go and learn from the top people in the industry, the ones that have been there and done that that are actually changing lives and making breakthroughs.

Thats the reason I chose this certification as my next cert. Fast forward to now and its done and its been awesome! Working with some of the top people in the country.

Happy to be a part of the Precision Nutrition team

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The weekend before this past one I was finally able to celebrate my mom’s bday (it was at the beginning of the year, yes I know I was late).

So my mom, her friend Marisol, and my lil bro came up that weekend. It was good to finally relax a bit and have some friends and family time.

Oh and its always mandatory whenever my mom comes up that I give her a workout and a few weeks of workouts to maintain her back at home.

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With all the holidays around my inbox was flooded with questions about alcohol. Now with spring break coming up pretty soon I have a feeling my inbox is gonna get flooded again so im gonna answer it here.

My take on alcohol is easy, I can say dont drink. But honestly we’re all human and this is the real world so its gonna happen. So I have a 5 drink rule, as long as its 5 drinks a week or less you should be fine. It doesnt matter if its 1 a day or all 5 in one day just as long as it doesnt pass 5 in a week.

You dont like that rule? Would you have rather I said dont drink?

The other thing I do is green tea! Green tea is awesome when it comes to alcohol and its negative effects. Green tea is full of antioxidants that combat oxidative stress all over the body.

What does this mean and why should you care?

Well research shows that antioxidants in green tea will protect the liver from damage from alcohol. One study found that green tea eliminated liver damage from alcohol intake, and it may help you minimize feelings of a hangover because of better liver function. AWESOME RIGHT!!!

So next time you know your gonna have all 5 drinks in one night. Then consider drinking a few cups of green tea before and a few after or the next day if its been an all nighter.

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Got an awesome email from the good folks at Groupon.com That were getting awarded with Best of SA 2011. One of my goals for 2012 was winning something like that so that was awesome!!!

I know that award was for 2011 so its still the goal for this year. But youll be seeing this cool logo around us

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Lately ive been playing top chef and playing around with healthy recipes and creating new ones

I normally have my own recipe for pizza using really thin pitas or flat outs and its great. But for someone whos looking for a really low/no carb pizza I found the perfect recipe.

Cool thing is its a way to get veggies in with your pizza (If the schools would make pizza like this then it’d be cool to classify it as a vegetable)

I got this one from none other then Dr. John Berardi

Cauliflower pizza

The crust is 1 head of cauliflower with 2 cups of low fat cheese, 3 whole eggs, and spices. And on top there’s some peppers, onions, tomatoes, more low fat cheese, and Parmesan

Ill be honest I havent tried this one yet so my best guess is mix that up and put it in the oven at 350 degrees for a few min.

Ill try it this weekend and let you know how it goes.

This is the pic of what it looks like when its done.

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Told ya it was a short one. More stuff to come

Hows your effort? Well I think its time for a tune up.

Your results are mirrored by your effort. If you put in half assed effort, then expect half assed results.

With everything, you get what you put into it. With work, you get paid more for doing more. Relationships work better when you work for it. So why should your fitness be any different?

You think because you got out for a walk once in a while your results are gonna go full speed? Yes as long as youre moving is great. But once youve got the moving down, then its time to step it up a bit.

When youre working out and stop because you dont like an exercise, or just do 20 half assed reps instead of 3 full good ones, or just skip the entire workout completely who does it affect? who does it fall back on? You!

What kind of results do you think you get with that. You get what you put into it.

So start everyday of the week with these 2 questions.

What effort have you put into today that smashes yesterdays accomplishments?

Have you put in this much effort?

 Youre gonna have to learn to get out of your comfort zone and do work. Get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.” Anthony Robbins

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” – Albert Einstein

Quick monday post.

This is one of my favorite Credos

Kekich Credo #99 –

Experience is not what happens to you. It’s what you do with what happens to you. It takes a

wise man to learn from his own mistakes… and a genius to learn and profit from the mistakes

and experiences of others.

I really like it cause its true. Mistakes arent bad if you learn from them. But why go through the mistakes when you can learn from the mistakes of others and avoid it.

Now with that I leave you with these videos and give you the best advice ive probably ever given anyone.

DONT BE THAT PERSON!!!!!!!!!!

Now first up, a perfect example why the garage or backyard is the perfect place for weights. NOT YOUR ROOM

Heavy squats should have a spotter so you dont have to drop the weight. Like this dude

Anything made by Chuck Norris should only be used BY Chuck Norris

Deadlifts are one of my favorite exercises. If I could only do one exercise itd be deadlift. But not this guys way. Aside from horrible form and lack of breathing, this is the perfect example of why yelling is stupid.

Another reason why machines arent your friend. The bandanna didnt help him much either

This one might be gross for some…….but remember timing your meals around your workouts is important

If youre interested in kettlebells this one is great. Kettlebells are great once you learn the fundamentals of them. If not then youll end up like her. The only person probably worse off then her is Jillian Michaels

Another reason why you dont hold your breath during exercise.

Friends dont let friends kipping their pullups

 

And last but not least heres a compilation of different people not to be like. Some youve seen, some new. Have fun!

 

Todays point- Dont be that person!!!!!!

By a raise of hands how many of you have stayed up late and seen the infomercials of the latest and greatest fitness machines?

Ok good.

Now how many of you have actually bought them?

Ok bad!

Weve all seen the super awesome shake weight! The one exercise machine that brings you back to your adolescent days fellas.

Now theres a new one out called the Free Flexor! I have no idea whats worse the people that come up with these products or the people that buy them. Since youre a reader here I trust you dont buy them right?

I think Jimmy Kimmel actually has the best one out there. Check it out

Anyways all these late night products got me thinking………What is the best and most effective exercise machine?

Weve already ruled out those top 2. So what could it be?

The Answer is…..drum roll please……….Ta da! YOU!!! Yeah you. The best exercise machine is the one you were blessed with.

Your own body and bodyweight are perfect machines. Still dont think so? What if we add some tools.

Lets play a game. Look at the picture below and see what exercises you can do to create a great workout.

Lately i’ve been playing around with bodyweight workouts. More recently playground stuff. Now before you go and label me a bodyweight guy ill have you know im weight guy at heart and love nothing more then a heavy barbell. But its good to go outside your norm and add variety.

Reason 1- Ive been playing around with these kind of workouts lately because I got spoiled having most of my workout equipment in my garage. Now that its in the new place my garage is empty, pair that with a super busy october and youve got my 5 day a week workout cut down to 3.

So adding in bodyweight workouts saved me tons of time without sacrificing strength and muscle. Great Success.

Reason 2- Recovery. Ever wonder why it takes you 4 days to recover from a weighted leg workout? One of the main reasons is spinal compression. So by doing bodyweight workouts, it limits spinal compression thus shorter recovery time. Shorter recovery time=more workouts could be done. More workouts being done with great recovery=greater results!

For example push presses. They are great and build upper body strength and shoulders. But they also compress your spine. So what if you change that to hand stand pushups. Little to no spinal compression but still a heavy load for the press.

Now dont get me wrong, compression is neccessary. Without it we’d be weak and injury prone. This is just training smarter.

The list goes on and on. Point is easier to recover from so you can train more frequently. Take a look at gymnists. They do the same thing almost everyday and have the bodies to prove it.

Reason 3- Youll be surprised how rough a bodyweight workout can be. I only know a handful of people that can throwdown and good bodyweight workout and complete it.

Now back to the picture above. Here it is again.

Heres a cool workout you can do with the machine you were blessed with and the tools above.

Warmup (dynamic type warmup)

Frankenstein walk 10 each leg

Run in place 20 sec

pushup 10

lunge 10 each leg

jump jack 25

squat 15

Now the fun part-

Decline pushups 3x 15 or 2 sets of as many as possible

Ring pullups 1 set as many as possible

jump squats 25

suspended rows (using the swingset) 2x as many as possible

Pistol squat (using the swingset to hold on to) 3x 10 each leg (turn it into a jump if too easy)

Pike pushup with elevated feet 2x as many as possible

Dips 1 set as many as possible

Suspened lunge (back leg on swing) 2x 15 each leg (turn into jumps if too easy)

Ab rollout with swing 3x 15

Finish with some sprints- 3x 20 yards 1 min rest in between.

Now wasnt that fun? Do you think that workout will get you closer to your goals then the video above? Tired of me asking all these questions that you already know the answer of? Perfect!

I dare ya to test out that workout at any playground you can find. Side note- Try this workout when its not a peak time for kids. Nothings worse than a dozen kids trying to copy what youre doing and then parents thinking your the pod piper trying to whisk theyre kids away into a healthier lifestyle.

If you want a part 2 to that workout let me know Have fun!

Ever wonder what your kids do and think when you’re not around?

Ever wonder what kind of a role model you are or what kind of influence you have?

Some of the best goals Ive heard from people are not fitting into a size 2 or building huge amount of muscle, But teaching my kids good habits by showing them through my actions.

Every once in a while I go and talk to elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools about fitness and nutrition. I feel some people make bad health decisions because they arent educated about it. I really like talking to the kids because Im a big kid

Rarely do I see or hear things that make me say WHAT!?!?!?!

But at one of our recent school visits I said WHAT!!!!

One of the questions I had asked to the group was what is the best way to lose weight? I always expect the same answer, I know its boring but at least it teaches the kids the right way. The answer I was looking for was eat healthy and exercise. Simple right.

But one of the little girls who wasnt overweight or anything answered differently. All together everyone said the same answer except her. So asked her what it was she said.

“Getting liposuction!”

I had to a double take! WHAT! So I asked her how’d you come up with that answer? She said ” My mom said that exercise and eating right doesnt work for her, its too hard so shes getting liposuction.”  If that wasnt shocking enough she finished by saying “Im gonna get liposuction too when I get fat’.

WHAT!!!!!!

Seriously a middle schooler already thinking about liposuction! Where do you think she got that idea?

Now im not saying everyones bad parents. There are some parents that are worse, like the lady that injected her daughter with botox. Or these parents.

You get the point.

Im just  saying some parents should watch what they say or do around their kids. Kids look up to their parents and learn habits from them

What habits or things are we unknowingly teaching our kids. Nobodys perfect, and nobody wants to be boring but if youre going to teach kids bad habits then at least give them a disclaimer.

like * Warning these stunts are performed by a professional. See what I do in life and do the exact opposite*

All this leads to the question who are they when youre not looking?
Its up to the kids to make the right choices, but parents pave the way.

Hey hope all is well and you’re rocking it!

Every week I get tons of emails with different questions. This weekend I got one that comes up alot. So I thought id answer it in a blog post.

The question was “If im eating right and exercising right and doing everything im supposed to why cant I lose weight or see my body change?”

For the most part, backtracking with whoever asked the question usually finds the reason, and that reason ends up being they are not eating as good as they think they are. Or they aren’t exercising RIGHT. Yes exercising right.

But what if you really are on point with your nutrition and workouts? What if you really are crossing your T’s and dotting your I’s? What then?

Now this only happens to a small percent of people but its still important. So what do you do?

Its time to play detective!

Lets narrow down your symptoms.

Disclaimer- I’m not a doctor and in no way shape or form am I playing one. Consult your own doctor. I’m probably right though

• If you carry extra fat on your stomach, butt, and thighs- The culprit is most likely hormones.

There are many possibilities as to why your hormones are outta whack.

Estrogen-Too much estrogen causes fat gain in the stomach area, bloating, water retention etc.For men it causes man boobs, lethargy, etc.

Things like too much processed soy food, birth control meds side effects, vitamin deficiencies, too much stress etc. Staying from things like that and also adding in some strength training and interval training allows growth hormone and other hormones to come in and balance things out.

Cortisol- stress hormone- get more sleep, meditation, toxic environments

Insulin- Typically the reason why you hold onto fat in your love handles. We’ve all heard of insulin. Basically deals with carb management. Eat alot of high gycemic carbs then insulin goes up then down and it keeps doing that so your body stores fat.

Easiest way to reset insulin sensitivity is to drop carb intake drastically for about 2 weeks then go back to normal to reset it

• If you are extremely bloated, constipated, ect- The culprit is your digestive system

Find out if you have an allergy to gluten or dairy. This is a testing process. If you write down everything you eat in a food journal then start writing down how you feel at certain times of the day. That way you can narrow down what the cause is. For example if you feel bloated and crappy at around 9am then back track and realize that 2 cups of milk at 8am is probably the reason.

• If you are over stressed, anxious, always tired-The culprit is Adrenal

Now in the 21st century everyday living is usually stressful, and over time gets worse. Weve already established that stress leads to cortisol. But prolonged stress leads to other problems such as Adrenal Fatigue. Ever notice a coworker that lives on those 5 hour energy shots, complains about waking up in the morning, has no desire to exercise or even get of the chair. They probably have some form of it.

The good news is that its completely reversible!  The funny thing is all the treatments on the list of reversing all fall into a healthy lifestyle.

-working out

-eating better

-eliminating stress

-sleeping better

-getting rid of negative people

etc.

• If you feel sick all the time even though allergy and flu season are over- The culprit is Toxins

Toxins are often the most underestimated. Most of the things in your home have toxins like your cleaning products. Its common sense to avoid too much exposure to them but you’ll be surprised at how many people don’t really look at the quality of food they eat.

Going organic is always a great idea. Taking away all the toxins but also eating REAL food. Not just some processed man made stuff.

Ever see what McDonald’s nuggets are made out of ? Look here

Things like grass fed beef and free range chicken are not only a great idea but taste better.

A simple cleanse and detox would help. Just remember thats all it is. A cleanse and detox, some people use it as an all out weight loss miracle. NO!

Go down this checklist and see which one is keeping you from your results.

Yesterday I had the privilege of watching a screening of the movie Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Before I say anything else, yes it was awesome and yes you should go see it!!

Any ways im not gonna spoil it for anyone or anything but the theme of the movie ties into what im about to tell you.

Its story is about the fountain of youth.

After watching the movie I got to thinking about how many people wasted years searching for it. All the trials they  go through from mermaids leading them astray to near death experiences.

Jen asked me “do you think its real?”.

I think its real!!

Ive found it a long time ago! Im not the only one who knows about it.

Others have found it years ago. Look at Jack Lalanne R.I.P, he was in his 90′s and still could run circles around most people.

Ill let you in on the secret. The cool thing is you dont have to travel a far way to find the fountain of youth, bummer you still have to go through the trials.

You see the fountain of youth isnt actually a fountain. Dont get me wrong water is a huge part of it. Water is life. But its just part of the process. Part of the “ritual”.

The actual fountain of youth is exercise! Wait wait wait before you stop reading hear me out….

You see the secret is the ritual.

The 3 things you need to live forever. Exercise, healthy food, and water. Without the 3 the powers of the fountain wont work. Like I said others like Jack Lalanne, Richard Simmons (yes even Richard Simmons), Frank Zane, and Lee Labrada have found this secret years ago.

Lee labrada at age 50

Dont worry ladies watch this lady whos 73

So you see the good news is you dont have to go on a huge voyage to get to the fountain of youth. But you do have to go through the struggles.

Some parts of the story were twisted. The part about the mermaids leading people astray from the fountain and keeping them is true, but theyre not mermaids.

They are actually girlfriends wanting you to go to happy hour instead of working out. Or the guys leading you to guys night and pizza. Anything to keep you away. Damn mermaids.

Of course theres the same other obstacles like working too much, no time, always on the go. But once youre able to overcome all the obstacles do the ritual then age and health are yours!

High five!

Todays post is a little off topic and I know ill probably get some heat from it…….

Ill call it self awareness day. One of the best things I learned from one of my mentors as a kid was self awareness. Ill never forget it “self awareness is a pain in the ass! But without it youd never know what to improve on”. Nobody likes to know or even acknowledge their weaknesses.

Thats why nutrition journals are so effective. You really have to write down everything you ate and at the end of the day you realize you know what, I ate like crap today. But if you didnt then youd go on about your week thinking you did great. Again nobody likes knowing what they suck at or need work on.

So heres why a self awareness day is needed and my main point of todays post.

A friend of mine forwarded this video to me and in the midst of going 100mph with work I stopped dead in my tracks with my eyes glued to the screen!

Seriously! Its called soreness because the kid plays video games instead of playing outside. When I was a kid I used to wanna play outside all day! Pushups were fun to do NOT punishment. Punishment was keeping you after school so you wouldn’t play outside. A friend of mine is a PE coach and told me youd be surprised at how many kids bring notes from their parents to skip PE because theyre not feeling well or their doctor said not to exert themselves.

I understand if you have a doctors note and have asthma or something that really keeps you from just plain old activity.

As I get older I see a common theme keep popping up. My grandpa used to tell me stories like when I was a kid we did this and this. I used to say times change dont get too worked up about it. Then my dad used to say the same thing when I was a kid we did this and this not that and that. I would say the same thing to him. Funny thing is now im the one saying when I was a kid id do this and this not that and that. Thats because each generation is changing but sometimes not always for the better.

Im not much of a political person, to be honest with you I wouldnt know who is president if Obama wasnt always on TV. But hearing about all the programs that are being cut because of budget and the first ones to go are PE and music stuff.

hmm with all this happening and child obesity is literally an epidemic wouldnt it make sense to keep PE truly PE. Physical education. Teaching kids to keep fit and healthy.

Maybe we should be like PE in Russia

Im not cold hearted, I actually feel for the kid in the first video. Nobody likes being sore especially so sore you have to go to the hospital. But maybe, just maybe, its time for a self awareness day. Time see our weaknesses and how we can improve them.

Take some time today to see what you can improve on. It doesnt only have to be fitness.

I know for me its I should call my grandparents more, I should write more, finish 2 books I left lingering, etc.

have a great week!

Again sorry if I offended anyone

Fiesta is done and the last thing you wanna do is getting back on the grind. So I think its time for another motivational Monday

I really like this video, not just because I like will smith and his movies but I like his way of thinking. I’m a big fan of not swallowing supposed to’s. Your supposed to do this because everyone’s doing it, you’re supposed to be boring, you’re supposed to workout for hours on end, you’re supposed to be on a treadmill for 3 hours a day, etc.

Don’t get me wrong there are supposed to’s that you should follow. Like supposed to eat healthy, supposed to treat people the way you wanna be treated, you’re supposed to be active, etc. Learn to distinguish the difference.

Like how will smith sais 2+2 may =4 in your world, but not in mine.

Here it is.

I expect to see everyone back this week

Yesterday evening I finally got to watch the show Secret Millionare on ABC. I couldnt think of a better show on a better day. Really gets you pumped starting the week off right instead of the normal monday blues.

So back by popular demand its another motivational monday post.

Check out this video. If you liked the EXCUSES video the last time youll love this one (if you didnt get to catch the last one click HERE). Next time you have an excuse about anything watch these

One of the most popular excuses I hear is time. I dont have time for this or that.

You don’t find time, you MAKE time. So stop trying to find time for things that are really important to you, and sit down and MAKE time in your schedule for them. That’s the only way you are going to get them done.

Glad to see yall back from vacations this week