Finally after a great trip and playing catch up I found some time to knock out a blog post.

Just a little recap and lessons learned from our trip in vegas. It was actually pretty cool. When they said nobody sleeps over there I thought it was just a figure of speech. People really dont sleep over there. We learned alot and and had alot of fun from shooting a music video, catching a lobster, dancing with bears, olympic lifts all day, made out with an m&m, getting asked how to get better at pushups while im being stripped searched, etc. Ahhh how fun that was!

Lesson#1

Wear comfy shoes because you will walk. Alot. I honestly dont think ive ever walked that much in my life. The funny thing is it reminded me of when I was trying to gain some muscle weight. Sometimes you dont have the hunger to eat all the food necessary so a little trick was to throw in some slow cardio. I know its the anti of what most people think of “bulking up”. A little slow cardio helps bring up the appetite to eat. An old trick I learned Plus it keeps your conditioning up. Nobody likes a bulky dude that cant go up stairs without wheezing and panting. “Bulking up” is an old school term for I just wanna eat whatever I want and not do any conditioning. Things dont work that way anymore.

Tons of walking

Lesson #2

Learn whenever you can, and take what you need throw away the rest. The main reason I went to vegas was for a seminar and to catch up with an old mentor of mine. Even though russian and bulgarian style training arent my specialty doesnt mean I shouldnt learn about it. Each training style, philosophy, etc has its great points and downsides. Take what you like or can apply and throw out the rest.

The Bruce Lee rule-“Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own.”

Lesson #3

Rest! Over there no one slept and what was supposed to be day and night turned into just a 24 hour period. Day and night blended into one. I remember finishing a long day of the seminar then heading out to the gym to do olympic lifts till I was wiped out on the floor. Heading back to the hotel room around 10pm in the elevator looking like I just came out of the movie The Hangover. Eyes bloodshot, sweaty, exhausted, looking like hell. Then as im on the elevator going to my room theres a group of dudes in the elevator barely heading out for the night. One of them looks at me and was like DUDE!!! You look like you just pulled another all nighter!!!! ALL RIGHT VEGAS!!! WOOO!!!!

Of course so I wouldnt look like a loser I was like yea it was fun! Then they left to start their night. First thing I thought was ive gotta be the biggest dork in vegas right now!

I tried heading out that night with Jen and only lasted 2 hours. After that I learned how to pace and rest. Lesson learned.

Lesson #4

Failing to plan is planning to fail. Plan ahead. Usually whenever we head outta town I have all my food and stuff planned out or have a bunch of shakes or bars ready. Most of the time I eat cleaner when im traveling then when at home I dont know why but im not gonna argue with it. Plan your food so you can eat cleaner.

Also just like you should have a plan at the gym you should have a plan on what to do. Luckily one of our awesome campers gave us a list of stuff to do while we were out there so we wouldnt waste time and have fun.

Lesson #5

Have fun when you can. My mom and lil bro came with us since my lil bro turned 21 over there. So I figured he would have a little fun.

Little did I know he’d be dancing with a bear. Even though it was a business trip we still found a way to have fun.

Ive been craving this for over a year!

Coolest crane game ever!

I think somethings off….

70′s night

Thats how I wake up, so Jen couldnt tell the difference.

The signature HIGH FIVE!

Dont tell Jen……

Snake Girl

We even filmed a music video! (sadly we didnt land a record deal)

Lesson#6

Dont let things get to you. While we were out I had a whole bunch of people happy we were finally taking a break. We havent had a break for about 2 years. So it felt good everyone telling us we deserved it.

Then I had a few emails upset about us taking a few days off for a break. I dont know why but I can have hundreds of people saying great things but I focus on the one negative thing one person sais. So the first 2 days over there I was actually pretty bummed out. It wasnt till an old russian guy at the seminar told me something cool.

KEKICH CREDO#52 – Dont be preoccupied with things over which you have no control, and dont take things personally.

SMILE

Lesson#7

Dont forget your chapstick! On the flight back I encountered those new machines everyones so upset about. You know the ones that scan you and stuff. Theyre actually not bad so im not sure what the fuss is about. Theyre pretty efficient. So efficient they found the chapstick I had forgotten to take out of my side pocket in my shorts.

So I had to get taken to a room where I got strip searched. Funny thing is the guy asked the usual questions, what was I doing here,what was my occupation and after I told him I was here for a seminar and what I did he said thats what he figured I did cause im pretty fit. Then he went on talking about his training routine and how hes kinda stuck and wants to get better at pushups and asked for some advice. I helped him out a bit and we talked a little bit about post workout nutrition then I was on my merry way. It wasnt until I left that I realized I was talking to this guy, showing him different ways to help his push ups, etc all while I was in my underwear. Awkward.

moral of the story. Have all your things in check.

Lesson#8

Dont do what everyone else is doing. This was really the first time I gambled. I like the craps table and was learning how to play. Then along comes a “high roller” and rolls a 12. So he places $100 on his back bet, $100 on his odds, and $100 on the straight 12. If you dont know craps a straight 12 pays 30 to 1.

So after 2 rolls he hits the 12 again and wins $300 on his back bet, $300 on his odds, and $3000 on his straight 12. A total of $3600 on his $300 bet!!!!! I was freaked out!!!! Whoa that is AWESOME!!!!

So he cashes out and a couple of rolls later I decide to do the same thing. I was feeling lucky I guess. Well I ended losing! Luckily I only bet $5!

Moral of the story dont do what others do. If you see your favorite athletes workout routine on a magazine and do it yourself dont expect the same results. Theyve taken years to develop to that so 9 times out of 10 it wont work for you.

Hey everyone hope your rockin this week!

Today im gonna kill 2 birds with one stone. Theres been one exercise ive been meaning to show you for a couple of days now and havent gotten the chance to shoot any video of it.

So I figured I would show it on this mornings Great Day SA segment. It was tons of fun and the people behind the scenes were awesome as well!

The exercise is plank extensions. Not too many people have actually heard of it. Till now it was one of my secret weapons for toning up stubborn arms in the shortest time possible. I had to keep a secret, theres too many imitators

But I figured ill show it to everyone. Everyone deserves to get twice the results in half the time too right.

Its the first exercise in the segment.

Fellas trying to build bigger better triceps should do 5 sets of 15 to 20 3x a week so mon wed fri works good.

Ladies trying to tone up the back of the arms should do 4 sets of 15 2-3x a week.

Add these into your routine for a month and see what good it does to ya.

The plank saws would be a great addition to your core workouts. The hip extensions would be a great addition to your lower body workouts. Finally the jump lunges would be a great finisher for a leg day or any interval workout.

Check it out.

Have a great week!

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

Ive taken a couple of days off of blogging and article writing this week. But I just wanted to stop by real quick to show you something really cool. You see Jen likes to take pics during camp so everyone can see all the FUN everyones having.

Well the other day we were looking at some of the pics and saw something amazing! RIGHT BEFORE OUR EYES!

Let me show you what I mean,

This is Stefanie doing pushups a couple of weeks ago

Now this is Stefanie doing pushups recently

I did a double take when I saw this. She was transforming right before our eyes!

This is the kinda stuff that gets me excited and makes me love what I do!

Appreciation and recognition go a long way.

And in my opinion, we don’t give enough appreciation and recognition to the people in our lives, to our friends, family, and clients.

High five Stefanie!

Oh, heres the whole picture in case you wanna see

Have a great weekend and a happy Easter!!!

I have practically a room full of cascarones (easter eggs) . I eat a bunch of eggs during the year so I save them for easter. And if youre an angry birds addict like me then youll paint them like I did.

Ive posted this almost 2 years ago. Its probably gonna piss some people off (especially other people in my field) and im gonna get alot of hatemail because of it.

If you havent seen this documentary yet I suggest you should. Its one of my favorites because it shows the behind the scenes of some of the hush hush topics of the fitness world.

Its called Bigger, Stronger, Faster. It gives you a behind the scenes look on how some of your favorite physiques were made.

Im not calling anyone out or anything before I get hate. Im just opening your eyes a bit. You see the bad part about the fitness industry is its just like supplements. For every good supplement theres 20 bad ones.

Again im not calling anyone out. Just be careful who and what you choose.

Ok on to one of my favorite clips of the documentary.

Thats pretty crazy huh! I remember the first time I saw that I freaked out. I mean ive heard of it being done but actually watching it happen right before my eyes.

Watch the whole documentary if you get a chance. Pretty awesome things, good and bad.

Hopefully this helps you steer clear of the shady stuff.

Arm yourself with knowledge (I heard it on spongebob)

Help kids learn about being successful ………………..check

Help over 1,000 people reach their goals……………….check ( actually turned into 2,000)

Propose to my wonderful girlfriend……………….check ( now its my wonderful fiance)

Read 100 books……………………… Check

Learn more about fitness and nutrtition…………….check

Hang out with some of the coolest top business dudes around………………….check

Hang out with 300 of the worlds top trainers………………check

Meet some amazing people……………………check

Ive done and learned alot this year. But there is one thing that I learned this year……..

This thing I learned is one of the most important thing ive learned. Its by far the one thing that made my life change drastically. In my own fitness and business.

Now before I go onto it, I wanna let you know that this isnt a magic bullet. ( “secrets” do exist and get you to your goal in  a short time but magic bullets dont exist)

Its actually been around for years. Its something that the worlds most successful people do and something that others dont. You can take the latest cutting edge supplement and still not get the results you want.

What is it?      Its…..

You can have all the tools in the world but if you dont take action then this new year will be the same as the last.

Writing down goals for the new year is GREAT but taking ACTION on them is what counts.

Ive met friends this year that have gotten the best coaching, the best coaches, and the best education…….but not taking action on it has taken them no where.

So for 2011 instead of writing a million resolutions. Write down 5 or 10 important ones and TAKE ACTION on them!

Great food, friends, family, and great workouts.

Even though the holidays are about family time and being together, it doesnt hurt getting some gifts for your friends and family.

As always every year I put my list of  best fitness christmas gifts. This year im gonna do it a little differently. Im gonna show you this years top fitness gifts NOT to get. If some of these were really on your list to get, quickly switch it out for a lump of coal. Im pretty sure the lump of coal will be more useful.

Here we go:

1.   SHAKE WEIGHT- Seriously there is nothing funnier than this thing right here. I could go on and on and say joke after perverted joke about it, but its just the first on the list so well save some space for the rest   By the way theres nothing manlier than shaking weight with your friends!

2.   THE HULA CHAIR-  When I saw this commercial I almost peed my pants. Ill be honest, I wanted to try it just to put a backscratcher on the back. I bet that would be a better product.  Think of it, imagine the picture below but with a backscratcher. PERFECT!

3.   NECKLINE SLIMMER- After all the research done about how bad crunches are for ya, why not forget the abs and just do it on your chin!

WARNING: If done too much you might get chuck norris syndrome and grow another fist

4.  ANTI CELLULITE WEIGHT LOSS SAUNA STRONG CORSET-  Honestly this is the actual name of one of the brands. There are so many out there. They claim to burn fat, lost cellulite, and make you slimmer. If you fall for this I have a plate set that was touched by JESUS himself! Well, my cousin Jesse.

5.  EASY CURVES-  To firm up your lady parts, cause nobody does pushups anymore.

Now if youre looking for a great fitness gift for yourself or for someone else then there is one that is actually pretty cool……….

Next wednesday on December 15th its official! Were back on again!

Just a quick hint……its gonna be an even better deal than our last one!

Hope youre weekend went great! Its MONDAY and its time to start rockin!!!!!

YUMMY

So today im gonna show you 2 of my favorite protein bars thatll help you without giving up great tasting stuff

Nobody wants to eat chalky tasting protein bars.

Let me know what you think