Seems like so many scientists from so many different fields: chemistry, biochemistry, biology, anthropology, genetics, endocrinology, neurology, oncology, etc. all independently coming to the same conclusion, that man made sugars and lack of fiber and insulin response is the enemy not fats, yet our government, health experts, trainers, doctors, people on TV are not listening?
In our past, doctors and our government told us cigarettes were good for us. Will today's experts look as foolish years from now with their calorie counting and anti-fat pro-man made sugar recommendations? As big as Big Tobacco ever was, how big is Big Food? Big Food probably has more fans and supporters than tobacco ever did. There was never a TV channel and blogs/magazines/websites dedicated to cigarettes.
Today a smoker is considered a jerk. Also today, if you tell people to eat healthy or eat less or your just generally care about everything that goes into your body, you are also considered a jerk. 80% of the time I hear disdain in people's voices when I hear the word "vegan."
We're 25lbs heavier than we were 20 years ago. Adult males eat 187 more calories per day and adult females eat 335 more calories per day than they did 20 years ago. We also increased our consumption of low fat meals, how did they make up for the lack of flavor due to the missing fat? With fructose.
We say we are a drug culture sometimes. We are also a food culture now.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Miracles!
During this religious time of Passover and Easter, where there will be plenty of feasting, I am reminded of a little story. Maybe it's worth thinking about during this religious period.
Now there is a version of this story in almost every faith and belief, of a messiah feeding the masses. The most famous one is of Jesus feeding his followers. He had just a few loaves of bread and some fish and he was able to feed thousands! What do I take away from this story???
That people back then ate way smaller portions! A few loaves and some fish would feed maybe one modern person, but back then, shoot. So many! Maybe that's a trainer's perspective of the story anyhow, maybe there is a bigger moral there, what I got out of it was, people back then always left enough for the other guys to also eat.
Stories from every faith share this concept, that somehow a little bread, a little rice, some beans, some fish, a lamb, a goat, etc. was able to feed a family and their guests and so forth. It wasn't very long ago that being large was a sign of wealth. Why? It's easy to say wealthy people could afford more food. That was true, but it was also, wealthy people were rich enough that they didn't have to share. Wealth gave the person the ability not to have to share and have their own protected portions.
The regular people couldn't just think about themselves, whatever they had, they had to think about leaving enough to share with everyone else. This goes back to the dawn of man, meat sharing, sharing of gathered foods with the tribes. It made the tribe and community stronger. Now we don't have to share, now a portion for one person could feed a family from years ago, actually it could feed a present family in a poor country.
To quote Gordon Gecko from Wallstreet, "Greed is good." Somehow being greedy with our food, being able to eat a lot, taking way more than your share or that you can eat, became a good thing. Something to brag about, write about, take pictures about. Gluttony and greed no longer sinful when it comes to food. Look at how much so and so can eat? Wow. I bet I can eat more than you. Let me update my status on Facebook about how much I ate today and how well. Eating, and talking about eating even becomes competitive, people always want to out eat each other...
That story of the fish and loaf of bread, to me the miracle was the act of sharing and charity. Not greed and gluttony. Yesterday's feasts in today's standards would be a pretty weak table.
Christians like to ask themselves - What would Jesus do? I think that also encompasses these questions - What would Jesus eat? How much would Jesus eat? According to a new study though, religious people are twice as likely to become obese than non-religious people. There is definitely a disconnect from the message then.
Remember, the Jesus I know had a 6 pack.
Now there is a version of this story in almost every faith and belief, of a messiah feeding the masses. The most famous one is of Jesus feeding his followers. He had just a few loaves of bread and some fish and he was able to feed thousands! What do I take away from this story???
That people back then ate way smaller portions! A few loaves and some fish would feed maybe one modern person, but back then, shoot. So many! Maybe that's a trainer's perspective of the story anyhow, maybe there is a bigger moral there, what I got out of it was, people back then always left enough for the other guys to also eat.
Stories from every faith share this concept, that somehow a little bread, a little rice, some beans, some fish, a lamb, a goat, etc. was able to feed a family and their guests and so forth. It wasn't very long ago that being large was a sign of wealth. Why? It's easy to say wealthy people could afford more food. That was true, but it was also, wealthy people were rich enough that they didn't have to share. Wealth gave the person the ability not to have to share and have their own protected portions.
The regular people couldn't just think about themselves, whatever they had, they had to think about leaving enough to share with everyone else. This goes back to the dawn of man, meat sharing, sharing of gathered foods with the tribes. It made the tribe and community stronger. Now we don't have to share, now a portion for one person could feed a family from years ago, actually it could feed a present family in a poor country.
To quote Gordon Gecko from Wallstreet, "Greed is good." Somehow being greedy with our food, being able to eat a lot, taking way more than your share or that you can eat, became a good thing. Something to brag about, write about, take pictures about. Gluttony and greed no longer sinful when it comes to food. Look at how much so and so can eat? Wow. I bet I can eat more than you. Let me update my status on Facebook about how much I ate today and how well. Eating, and talking about eating even becomes competitive, people always want to out eat each other...
That story of the fish and loaf of bread, to me the miracle was the act of sharing and charity. Not greed and gluttony. Yesterday's feasts in today's standards would be a pretty weak table.
Christians like to ask themselves - What would Jesus do? I think that also encompasses these questions - What would Jesus eat? How much would Jesus eat? According to a new study though, religious people are twice as likely to become obese than non-religious people. There is definitely a disconnect from the message then.
Remember, the Jesus I know had a 6 pack.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Potatoes
Was something every culture ate in times of famine and scarcity. All the recipes for potatoes along with adding potatoes to dishes to make it more "hearty" came from this time. And you know what? Most of these cultures didn't do so well living off of potatoes because it lacked a lot of nutritional content.
Now in times of plenty when other foods are available we are choosing to eat potatoes more than any other vegetation. No longer out of scarcity. It's like with fish, the most expensive fishes were always the most bland and whatever was left at the fish market was what the commoners ate, the salty fish. Now we are choosing to eat that bottom of the barrel fish on purpose and ordering it at restaurants!
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Now in times of plenty when other foods are available we are choosing to eat potatoes more than any other vegetation. No longer out of scarcity. It's like with fish, the most expensive fishes were always the most bland and whatever was left at the fish market was what the commoners ate, the salty fish. Now we are choosing to eat that bottom of the barrel fish on purpose and ordering it at restaurants!
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Shoes
I don't care who made your shoes, how new they are, how much you've paid for them. If your shoes don't bend and let you get on the balls of your feet, your shoes have no value.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Food Poisoning
I've had a bad case of food poisoning for the last few days due to eating some bad oysters. Or maybe one bad one in the bunch? But I was still able to train all my clients due to two reasons. I wasn't contagious, secondly I did not want to be considered a wuss.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Idea Of Breakfast
Okay sometimes I will tell a client, try eating this for breakfast. They will respond with, "that for breakfast?"
We all have learned that breakfast food is one certain kind of thing, lunch is something else, dinner is something else. Typically breakfast is either pastry or some egg dish, lunch is some bread dish like a sandwich, and dinner is the biggest dish, usually meat and potatoes followed by desert. Where did that rule come from? It doesn't matter. Do not think of meals as breakfast, lunch, or dinner. They are more indicative of time not what sort of food. We are not designed to process different kinds of meals a day, like we process pastries better at night and eggs better in the morning.
A meal is a meal, no matter what time of day it is. Doesn't matter style, genre, category, just make it a good one. And forget about eating small meals or 3 square meals, etc. Eat when you are hungry, eat when you rise, eat long before you go to bed. There are no other rules. Food is abundant now but our bodies were designed when food was scarce.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
We all have learned that breakfast food is one certain kind of thing, lunch is something else, dinner is something else. Typically breakfast is either pastry or some egg dish, lunch is some bread dish like a sandwich, and dinner is the biggest dish, usually meat and potatoes followed by desert. Where did that rule come from? It doesn't matter. Do not think of meals as breakfast, lunch, or dinner. They are more indicative of time not what sort of food. We are not designed to process different kinds of meals a day, like we process pastries better at night and eggs better in the morning.
A meal is a meal, no matter what time of day it is. Doesn't matter style, genre, category, just make it a good one. And forget about eating small meals or 3 square meals, etc. Eat when you are hungry, eat when you rise, eat long before you go to bed. There are no other rules. Food is abundant now but our bodies were designed when food was scarce.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Week 5
DAY 1 TO DAY 30
Height: 5'6
Weight: 130 to 120
Waist (measured at the belly button): 30' to 28'
Thighs: 20 to 18' 1/2
Arms: 11' 1/4 to 11'
So five weeks and ten pounds. You can really start to see the definition on her stomach. I don't see any point to keep this going and will end here. It is up to her now to maintain her results on her own. The last week she finished her work outs faster, with more intensity, and her diet became very manageable as she made small changes every week. The diet in it's simplest form is just protein and vegetables.She never counted calories or even had a target weight, her body just got leaner and stronger and she not only broke her 130 mark, but blew it away by going down to 120.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Train Like A Human
Sometimes I see people working out, and even trainers training their clients in a manner that wasn't meant for humans. I am not sure what animal that its meant for, to lay on the ground and lift my own leg up and down or hold a balance ball over my head and run in place. Looking at how we look now, we wouldn't know it but we are the fittest and most evolved of all animals. We have all this untapped genetic potential. They say we haven't tapped into our full brain potential? What about our full body's potential?
Not only did we for the majority of existence chase animals until they were exhausted, we then still had the strength to kill it, defend it from would be scavengers and other humans, and then drag it's heavy carcass home. If we gathered food, our radius that we gathered in was so large, and once the food was gathered, they had to be also able to carry all that food back. Not only enough food for themselves, enough food for a long time, enough food for their tribe. We look at serving sizes now, back then it was all communal and we had to share our food. Outside of that we rested.
You look at how people train now, it is way too long, not nearly intense enough, and no prescribed rest times. Certain muscles on humans got large for a reason and a majority of the time people don't even work their large muscles. We still can control the expression of genes, evolution gave us big legs and hips, will we now work against nature and try to give ourselves big biceps and small legs?
We not only had strong legs, we were the only ones with a strong enough and complex spinal and core system that allowed us to stay upright, to give us vertical advantage. Not only that it freed up our arms, and we had strong upper bodies meant to wield tools and weapons, even fling weapons. We look at wild animals now and think we would stand no chance against them. But in reality, throughout history, we did, we did better, we thrived. We were more mobile, had more range of motion, had free hands, could use a tool, use our brain, hunt in a pack.
I mentioned it in a post before, how a cheetah isn't strong enough to defend it's prey after the chase. When we see animals fight, we see them only fight for a few seconds, or a minute, then they are tired. If you watch MMA, humans can fight for 25 minutes! Back when there were no time limits, there are recorded fights lasting several hours. Do you train like a human being? Really? Does your trainer train you like one? Do you train like the pinnacle of animal evolution? Can you lift your own body weight? Run for a long distance and still have enough left to create explosive power? Can you generate explosive thrust? Torque? Can you lift heavy things with your arms? Can you lift it over your head? A real human has never lifted something light over their head a bunch of times and patted themselves on their back. A real human never jogged lightly forever. They chased or were chased. If you have been working out forever and you still can't lift your body weight up over a pull up bar several times or be able to hold at least double your body weight with your legs, man or woman and you are physically able, then you are not training like a human. I can't even insult an animal by naming one you may be training like, you are just training like something weak that would have died off by now.
We can ride waves and climb mountains. Animals can do that also, but what animal can do both? Only us. We can also run far and lift heavy things! We are supposed to be awesome. We are supposed to be...
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Not only did we for the majority of existence chase animals until they were exhausted, we then still had the strength to kill it, defend it from would be scavengers and other humans, and then drag it's heavy carcass home. If we gathered food, our radius that we gathered in was so large, and once the food was gathered, they had to be also able to carry all that food back. Not only enough food for themselves, enough food for a long time, enough food for their tribe. We look at serving sizes now, back then it was all communal and we had to share our food. Outside of that we rested.
You look at how people train now, it is way too long, not nearly intense enough, and no prescribed rest times. Certain muscles on humans got large for a reason and a majority of the time people don't even work their large muscles. We still can control the expression of genes, evolution gave us big legs and hips, will we now work against nature and try to give ourselves big biceps and small legs?
We not only had strong legs, we were the only ones with a strong enough and complex spinal and core system that allowed us to stay upright, to give us vertical advantage. Not only that it freed up our arms, and we had strong upper bodies meant to wield tools and weapons, even fling weapons. We look at wild animals now and think we would stand no chance against them. But in reality, throughout history, we did, we did better, we thrived. We were more mobile, had more range of motion, had free hands, could use a tool, use our brain, hunt in a pack.
I mentioned it in a post before, how a cheetah isn't strong enough to defend it's prey after the chase. When we see animals fight, we see them only fight for a few seconds, or a minute, then they are tired. If you watch MMA, humans can fight for 25 minutes! Back when there were no time limits, there are recorded fights lasting several hours. Do you train like a human being? Really? Does your trainer train you like one? Do you train like the pinnacle of animal evolution? Can you lift your own body weight? Run for a long distance and still have enough left to create explosive power? Can you generate explosive thrust? Torque? Can you lift heavy things with your arms? Can you lift it over your head? A real human has never lifted something light over their head a bunch of times and patted themselves on their back. A real human never jogged lightly forever. They chased or were chased. If you have been working out forever and you still can't lift your body weight up over a pull up bar several times or be able to hold at least double your body weight with your legs, man or woman and you are physically able, then you are not training like a human. I can't even insult an animal by naming one you may be training like, you are just training like something weak that would have died off by now.
We can ride waves and climb mountains. Animals can do that also, but what animal can do both? Only us. We can also run far and lift heavy things! We are supposed to be awesome. We are supposed to be...
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Your Body Is Not Just A Beater
To get your brain to work. Some people tend to think all their body is good for, or meant for, is to house their brain. They treat their car with more respect than they do their own bodies. They seem to think no matter how bad it gets, how beat up, how sick, they can still think, work, communicate, etc. They don't think that the brain is actually a PART OF THEIR BODY. That somehow the health of their body will not affect the health of their brain, that stress hormones will not get worse from the insulin responses in your body due to the foods you eat. That nervous system health doesn't affect your ability to think. That hormones in your body, high fat levels, lack of neural pathways, will not affect your ability to think.
Why are there fat doctors, out of shape professors, anthropologists and human genome scientists who eat donuts? How can people so disconnect their body from their consciousness? And anything related to a mind body connection is some new age mumbo jumbo? What is a brain without a body? Dead. What is a body without a brain? Dead. If you got shot in the head, you would die. Ironically if you got shot through the heart, you will also die. How can people pretend to be so smart, pretend to do their job well, pretend not to be a burden on society, have such a sense of entitlement, yet order or eat some of the worst foods and not choose to be active, and brag about it? As if they just made a brilliant choice with their life.
So how is it possible that people can respect their brain and their mind so much but not their bodies? It is widely accepted there are some foods that are good for the brain. If so, why are we not eating more of it? If we are so smart, why are we so stupid?
I remember watching an Animal Planet show about obese pets, and the veterinarian speaking on the subject was herself obese, and was telling dog owners not to overfeed their animals or feed it this or that, and how it needs more exercise. I wondered how some people can separate their academic and intellectual life from their real life? They must think their bodies are some kind of avatar and is not their true self. That the body is a trap. How disconnected they must be from their own bodies, how trapped by their bodies.
In this age, physical activity has become voluntary and food is no longer scarce. You could actually choose to live like an invalid if you wanted to, sitting all day, and gorging yourself on food. And when you do, and when you have, it's no wonder that your body doesn't feel like your own, and that you are trapped in it. It becomes a vicious cycle. Our brains haven't changed much in the last 10,000 years, we used to chase or be chased. We use to hunt and gather. Now we sit over the computer and read reports and check e-mails. We no longer have to rely on fight or flight instincts to survive so now that instinct gets triggered by everything, causing us anxiety. Our bodies are no longer naturally muscular. No wonder our body doesn't feel like our own and we are easily stressed out.
Your body is not just a beater to get your brain to work. Treat it with respect.
Why are there fat doctors, out of shape professors, anthropologists and human genome scientists who eat donuts? How can people so disconnect their body from their consciousness? And anything related to a mind body connection is some new age mumbo jumbo? What is a brain without a body? Dead. What is a body without a brain? Dead. If you got shot in the head, you would die. Ironically if you got shot through the heart, you will also die. How can people pretend to be so smart, pretend to do their job well, pretend not to be a burden on society, have such a sense of entitlement, yet order or eat some of the worst foods and not choose to be active, and brag about it? As if they just made a brilliant choice with their life.
So how is it possible that people can respect their brain and their mind so much but not their bodies? It is widely accepted there are some foods that are good for the brain. If so, why are we not eating more of it? If we are so smart, why are we so stupid?
I remember watching an Animal Planet show about obese pets, and the veterinarian speaking on the subject was herself obese, and was telling dog owners not to overfeed their animals or feed it this or that, and how it needs more exercise. I wondered how some people can separate their academic and intellectual life from their real life? They must think their bodies are some kind of avatar and is not their true self. That the body is a trap. How disconnected they must be from their own bodies, how trapped by their bodies.
In this age, physical activity has become voluntary and food is no longer scarce. You could actually choose to live like an invalid if you wanted to, sitting all day, and gorging yourself on food. And when you do, and when you have, it's no wonder that your body doesn't feel like your own, and that you are trapped in it. It becomes a vicious cycle. Our brains haven't changed much in the last 10,000 years, we used to chase or be chased. We use to hunt and gather. Now we sit over the computer and read reports and check e-mails. We no longer have to rely on fight or flight instincts to survive so now that instinct gets triggered by everything, causing us anxiety. Our bodies are no longer naturally muscular. No wonder our body doesn't feel like our own and we are easily stressed out.
Your body is not just a beater to get your brain to work. Treat it with respect.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Why It's Harder When You're Older
People seem to think the reason it's harder to get started in fitness when you are older is because your body is just broken down. That is not the case. If that were the case, all you would have to do is scale down the work out to meet the needs of the older athlete.
The problem is, as you get older, the further you are in life, the more things you've done; you feel like, you've already paid your dues. That is what is hard to overcome, because you have already paid your dues, why do you have to work out hard now? Why can't it just magically happen for you? Why can't this be easy? Don't they know you already paid your dues? It's really a form of entitlement, it's why you will sometimes see old people yelling in line that they've waited too long, because they have already paid their dues and they don't want to pay it again.
In fitness, the problem is normally not physical, its normally always mental. The symptoms of your mental health show up in your physical form.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
The problem is, as you get older, the further you are in life, the more things you've done; you feel like, you've already paid your dues. That is what is hard to overcome, because you have already paid your dues, why do you have to work out hard now? Why can't it just magically happen for you? Why can't this be easy? Don't they know you already paid your dues? It's really a form of entitlement, it's why you will sometimes see old people yelling in line that they've waited too long, because they have already paid their dues and they don't want to pay it again.
In fitness, the problem is normally not physical, its normally always mental. The symptoms of your mental health show up in your physical form.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Week 4
The Numbers:
Height: 5'6
Weight: 123
Waist (measured at the belly button): 28' 1/4
Thighs: 19' 1/4
Arms: 11'
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
Modern Man
If an athletic caveman lived in today's age, he would look just like the rest of us. The reason being is, in his day, he was forced to be active to survive, and his body had to conserve energy and store it. We are much the same today. Except today, physical activity has become optional.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Incentives
The world is incentives based. That's at least what economists say. You need proper incentives to get something done, even if the incentive is as simple as feeling good about yourself or comes in the form of pride, it is still incentive.
A friend and I are trying to find more time to train martial arts. To do this we need to at least meet up and train together three times a week, an hour at a time. We are both serious people, and committed martial artists, and even still we will fail at this with just a handshake and a promise. The only way we can get better is if we put in those three meetings every week consistently. So I told him we have to have a system. If one of us doesn't show up to practice, or cancels on the other person the same day, we will owe the other person a $100. So I guess we are taking our commitment very seriously right? And for sure now neither one of us will ever miss a practice, and we will get better very quickly. If that incentive isn't in place, I guarantee this whole deal will fall apart. How do I know? We have tried, as other martial artists have in the past and it always ends up one person mad at the other person as being a flake.
The same thing is true for fitness. With my clients I too have a cancellation policy of 24 hours. If I let people cancel whenever without penalty, what will they do? They will inevitably cancel whenever. They will also show up to less sessions a week. Not intentionally, but never the less it will happen.
So what about people who are working out on their own or with a friend? They need goals, they need incentives. If you are working out with a buddy, make a promise of something like 5 dollars. It doesn't have to be a large amount like I am using (because I am planning on never having to pay it). It's not the amount that will drive the person to show up, its the principle they have to pay will drive your partner to show up. It's the incentive. All humans naturally have a sense of entitlement, use it in a good way, use it to attain your goal. It doesn't even have to be money, it could be like buying someone lunch, washing their car, etc. It's just that money is the most convenient, you may have to wait forever for that person to wash your car, in which case it doesn't work very well as an incentive. Or both people can put money into a pot and whoever loses more percentage wins the pot. Or both training partners can reward themselves with something when their reach their fitness goals.
If you are working out alone, it could also be the form of a reward. Or you will deny yourself a night of going out or seeing a concert you wanted to see if you miss a workout session. Or you can donate 10 dollars every time to a charity. It doesn't matter.
We just have to be realistic. If you never worked out three times on your own, it is unrealistic to think you will all of a sudden do it because you magically create a love of fitness. It's best to give yourself an incentive.
I find money the easiest thing to work with, because it's simple, the idea of gaining or losing capital. It's also the most convenient and doesn't take any extra leg work.
A friend and I are trying to find more time to train martial arts. To do this we need to at least meet up and train together three times a week, an hour at a time. We are both serious people, and committed martial artists, and even still we will fail at this with just a handshake and a promise. The only way we can get better is if we put in those three meetings every week consistently. So I told him we have to have a system. If one of us doesn't show up to practice, or cancels on the other person the same day, we will owe the other person a $100. So I guess we are taking our commitment very seriously right? And for sure now neither one of us will ever miss a practice, and we will get better very quickly. If that incentive isn't in place, I guarantee this whole deal will fall apart. How do I know? We have tried, as other martial artists have in the past and it always ends up one person mad at the other person as being a flake.
The same thing is true for fitness. With my clients I too have a cancellation policy of 24 hours. If I let people cancel whenever without penalty, what will they do? They will inevitably cancel whenever. They will also show up to less sessions a week. Not intentionally, but never the less it will happen.
So what about people who are working out on their own or with a friend? They need goals, they need incentives. If you are working out with a buddy, make a promise of something like 5 dollars. It doesn't have to be a large amount like I am using (because I am planning on never having to pay it). It's not the amount that will drive the person to show up, its the principle they have to pay will drive your partner to show up. It's the incentive. All humans naturally have a sense of entitlement, use it in a good way, use it to attain your goal. It doesn't even have to be money, it could be like buying someone lunch, washing their car, etc. It's just that money is the most convenient, you may have to wait forever for that person to wash your car, in which case it doesn't work very well as an incentive. Or both people can put money into a pot and whoever loses more percentage wins the pot. Or both training partners can reward themselves with something when their reach their fitness goals.
If you are working out alone, it could also be the form of a reward. Or you will deny yourself a night of going out or seeing a concert you wanted to see if you miss a workout session. Or you can donate 10 dollars every time to a charity. It doesn't matter.
We just have to be realistic. If you never worked out three times on your own, it is unrealistic to think you will all of a sudden do it because you magically create a love of fitness. It's best to give yourself an incentive.
I find money the easiest thing to work with, because it's simple, the idea of gaining or losing capital. It's also the most convenient and doesn't take any extra leg work.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
Week 3
The Numbers:
Height: 5'6
Weight: 123
Waist (measured at the belly button): 28' 1/4
Thighs: 19' 1/4
Arms: 11' 1/4
She has gotten stronger and increased the weight on all the resistance exercises. She is only doing a total of 8 minutes of intense cardio/speed training. She has increased her speeds and lowered her rest times. She has stopped eating processed carbs.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
Religious People Twice As Likely To Be Obese
I guess due to most things that are pleasurable being sinful, I guess gluttony is the most forgivable.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Diet/faith-fat-religious-youths-obese-mid-life/story?id=13204624
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Diet/faith-fat-religious-youths-obese-mid-life/story?id=13204624
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Sumo Finishes Marathon
Remember what I said about distance training and that sometimes you don't have to be thin to run long distances, you just need a large heart? This is a good example of this.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-fatman-20110321,0,3121345.story
Remember running 5k takes much longer than doing 5 pull ups, but 5 pulls ups are much harder.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-fatman-20110321,0,3121345.story
Remember running 5k takes much longer than doing 5 pull ups, but 5 pulls ups are much harder.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Week 2
The Numbers:
Height: 5'6
Weight: 126
Waist (measured at the belly button): 29'
Thighs: 19' 1/4
Arms: 11' 1/4
So after 2 weeks here are the results. She was shocked to finally drop below 130, without counting anything, measuring food portions, or working out every day nonstop. It's the first time she's been there since freshman year of high school. She increased her protein intake and started to eat more whole foods along with some adjustments to her training. Her training time for the week increased to 3 hours a week. She gets plenty of rest and plenty of sleep.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Food Ego And The Search For Love
I was at a food court today, grabbing a bite after some tough training. I'm in the process of moving so it's hard for me to cook at the moment. So I sit down and unwind and eat. Directly in front of me, barely a few feet away is a table with plates of food. Then a girl comes by and drops off more and more plates of food.
This girl is overweight and not within a healthy buffer zone. All the food she is bringing is not healthy. Mostly fried stuff. I don't mean healthy in just a, "she will gain more weight sense" but also in a, "that food will give her cancer" sort of sense. She didn't look healthy and she didn't make healthy food choices.
That's not the thing that made me look, its the amount of food she got. It was so much food. Her friend came by with his own plate of food. Before he could bite in, she stood up with her phone. Then I saw the strangest thing. I thought she was just texting, but then she was hovering over the food. She was taking a picture! I was so confused. Why was she taking a picture? I would understand if she cooked it herself or it was food that was our of the ordinary plating and style. But no she was taking it to show what she was going to eat.
Then she began typing on her phone. Again I figured texting, then I realized she was blogging about it. Either on an actual blog, Facebook, Twitter, or Yelp. What is this madness? Then they began eating. They were so close I couldn't help but hear everything.
All they did was talk about the food. That's fine. But the amount of hubris she took not only in her eating ability, but her food selection...I don't know how else to describe it but call it ego. She actually sounded egotistical. People are developing food ego? My friend calls this being a "foodie." I thought that meant more of like a connoisseur like a wine aficionado or someone who knows what a good choice of meat is. She was proud of her food choices of heavily chemically treated and genetically modified food.
Observing her relationship with food was so baffling. It was an unexpected relationship with food. Then I looked around the food court, there were others just like her.
At the end though, even though she consumed so much (her friend ate a little bit, he was being taken out on a food outing and she was introducing him to different types of food) they threw over 2/3 of the food away. My mother would say at that point, "why did you order so much?" That is neither green nor sustainable practice. Does being a foodie make one against sustainability? I don't know.
Then I pondered why this relationship? What was going on? Posting this up of course would get her attention from like minded people, envy, devotion, people would love her blogs or reviews, etc. Then I realized what it was. Food provided love. Social media becomes the outlet. They even call some foods comfort foods because it feels comforting to eat. Emotional eating, eating when stressed, etc - people just want to feel loved and comforted. I think about my own upbringing as an Asian American. Asians do not get shown the most amount of affection growing up (this girl also happened to be Asian). Then when I look at food blogs, Yelp, and social media, there is a disproportionate amount of Asians on there. Finally relating, connecting, friending, complimenting, winking, poking, tweeting, sharing, devoting, all around something so common, something so universal and easily understandable that we can relate through all color, cultural, social, and economic lines - food. Even the cool kids had to eat right? So much easier and less scary to do it in cyberspace, and now even more acceptable.
It made me wonder, is food a way for a lot of people to emotionally connect with one another? With their own families? I often hear from people that the only way their parents knew how to show love was by feeding them a lot. Maybe then until this is resolved, no diet and weight loss or exercise program can work indefinitely. Something emotional and mental must happen first before the body can respond. People obviously revere and respect food. What about a sense of respect for oneself and the world they live in?
In the end it made me want to call my parents and tell them I missed them. It made me want to devote more time to meditation and my martial arts. It made me want to share this observation on my own blog. Not a blog dedicated to food and flavors, but a blog dedicated to effort.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
This girl is overweight and not within a healthy buffer zone. All the food she is bringing is not healthy. Mostly fried stuff. I don't mean healthy in just a, "she will gain more weight sense" but also in a, "that food will give her cancer" sort of sense. She didn't look healthy and she didn't make healthy food choices.
That's not the thing that made me look, its the amount of food she got. It was so much food. Her friend came by with his own plate of food. Before he could bite in, she stood up with her phone. Then I saw the strangest thing. I thought she was just texting, but then she was hovering over the food. She was taking a picture! I was so confused. Why was she taking a picture? I would understand if she cooked it herself or it was food that was our of the ordinary plating and style. But no she was taking it to show what she was going to eat.
Then she began typing on her phone. Again I figured texting, then I realized she was blogging about it. Either on an actual blog, Facebook, Twitter, or Yelp. What is this madness? Then they began eating. They were so close I couldn't help but hear everything.
All they did was talk about the food. That's fine. But the amount of hubris she took not only in her eating ability, but her food selection...I don't know how else to describe it but call it ego. She actually sounded egotistical. People are developing food ego? My friend calls this being a "foodie." I thought that meant more of like a connoisseur like a wine aficionado or someone who knows what a good choice of meat is. She was proud of her food choices of heavily chemically treated and genetically modified food.
Observing her relationship with food was so baffling. It was an unexpected relationship with food. Then I looked around the food court, there were others just like her.
At the end though, even though she consumed so much (her friend ate a little bit, he was being taken out on a food outing and she was introducing him to different types of food) they threw over 2/3 of the food away. My mother would say at that point, "why did you order so much?" That is neither green nor sustainable practice. Does being a foodie make one against sustainability? I don't know.
Then I pondered why this relationship? What was going on? Posting this up of course would get her attention from like minded people, envy, devotion, people would love her blogs or reviews, etc. Then I realized what it was. Food provided love. Social media becomes the outlet. They even call some foods comfort foods because it feels comforting to eat. Emotional eating, eating when stressed, etc - people just want to feel loved and comforted. I think about my own upbringing as an Asian American. Asians do not get shown the most amount of affection growing up (this girl also happened to be Asian). Then when I look at food blogs, Yelp, and social media, there is a disproportionate amount of Asians on there. Finally relating, connecting, friending, complimenting, winking, poking, tweeting, sharing, devoting, all around something so common, something so universal and easily understandable that we can relate through all color, cultural, social, and economic lines - food. Even the cool kids had to eat right? So much easier and less scary to do it in cyberspace, and now even more acceptable.
It made me wonder, is food a way for a lot of people to emotionally connect with one another? With their own families? I often hear from people that the only way their parents knew how to show love was by feeding them a lot. Maybe then until this is resolved, no diet and weight loss or exercise program can work indefinitely. Something emotional and mental must happen first before the body can respond. People obviously revere and respect food. What about a sense of respect for oneself and the world they live in?
In the end it made me want to call my parents and tell them I missed them. It made me want to devote more time to meditation and my martial arts. It made me want to share this observation on my own blog. Not a blog dedicated to food and flavors, but a blog dedicated to effort.
About the Author:
Sam Y. is a Personal Trainer, Coach, Performane Enhancement Specialist, Corrective Enhancement Specialist, and holds multiple certifications. He is also an avid Martial Artist, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA. He is also the author of the popular fitness blog All Out Effort as well as the popular martial arts blog Inner BJJ. You can find him in the Los Angeles area personal training his clients, or at home annoying his wife, or on Facebook at his personal fitness page.
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