“Robbie, don’t be late. We have family dinner at 6 pm tonight. Make sure you’re home in time to shower after the gym and that you’re dressed before people start coming over.” It was about 3:30 pm when my wife gave me that reminder. The gym was a 25-minute drive away. On average, my workout lasted about an hour. That left me about a 30-minute window to get home, get showered, and change. Plenty of time, right? The clock showed 4 pm as I put the car in park and exited into the … [Read more...]
Losing 10% Of Your Body Weight Is Much Easier Than You Think
The fitness industry loves to sell you on the idea of an unattainable goal. Whether you're talking about glossy 6-pack ab shots, fake before and after pictures, or photoshopped-to-death glamour pics, there's an excellent chance that you won't be able to look like the image you have in your mind. This is one of the problems with fitness. We see an ideal and we think we are less of a person if we can't accomplish this ideal. Never mind the fact that the images you see are often flat-out … [Read more...]
4 Reasons Parents Of Young Children Often Gain Weight (And What To Do About It)
Raising children is one of the most selfless things you can do. At times, it may just be so selfless, that you question your decision to have kids in the first place. You are literally giving your life away for a decade, perhaps longer if you're Catholic. By the time your children are finally dependent and able to exist on their own, you'll be at the stage of your life when you're eating dinner at 4 pm and munching on Werther's Originals in Florida. Okay, maybe it's not THAT bad. … [Read more...]
6 Stupid, Little Rules That Help You Lose Weight
This is the part where I tell you I’ve been lying all along. There actually is “One, Weird Trick” that will make all the trainers HATE YOU because you’ll put them out of business. The current trend in fitness is to have a “moderate, sane” approach. If you try telling someone they shouldn’t eat sugar, they’ll respond with: WAT? IIFYM, BRO! YOU CRAZY! Yes, calories matter, in fact, they matter more than anything else, pretty much. But that doesn’t mean all those “stupid, little … [Read more...]
Is Overeating Our Way Of “Checking Out”?
Our society is a fabrication of thousands of years of evolution. Slowly, over time, certain aspects of the world have grown and morphed into almost unrecognizable entities. As we have continued to grow and prosper as a civilized nation, there have been trade-offs made. Maybe we don't need to toil in the field for 16 hours per day in order to provide food and nourishment for our family. But this doesn't mean that we aren't paying the price for it. The Industrial Revolution paved the … [Read more...]
[Podcast] What Do You Need To Start Your Own Online Fitness Business
If you're a personal trainer or a coach, you may be wondering about how to go about starting in the world of online training. Online training is much different from in-person training. One of the biggest advantages to the online trainer is that they are not tied down by a strict time schedule. Before you start worrying about site designers, Word Press plug-ins, Facebook ads, and getting certifications, be sure you take care of the "musts" in the world of online fitness. Listen for … [Read more...]
Food: Emotions, Morality, Shame, Guilt, And Anger
It started off innocently enough. Our online fat loss clients have their own, private Facebook group for interaction and support. Joe, a long time internet buddy and client from the UK, asked the crew: I'm curious as to the different viewpoints in this group: What is your relationship with food, if you don't mind me asking? What seemed like an innocent enough question turned into a multi-layered, therapeutic, psychology-riddled thread of epic proportions. Answers swirled among the … [Read more...]
How To Become A Real-Life, Comic-Book Superhero
I must make a confession: I hate superhero movies. I know that makes me pretty much "The Biggest Weirdo Ever" in today's world full of comic book fanatics and Deadpool groupies. I loved superheroes growing up, though. I've always been a fan of Superman. After all, he was a "Super" man, right? Stronger than a locomotive, and faster than a speeding bullet. Truth be told, I loved Clark Kent more than Superman. Here was a man who went to work each day with a secret. He knew who … [Read more...]
No Squats. No Deadlifts. Huge Gains. (Available Now!)
It was only a matter of time before my quest for self improvement became a quest for more muscle. Priority #1 was lose the fat, which is a battle many of us face. And I needed to, badly: When I got serious about my fitness, I decided to take the path of many others before me. I began a basic, linear progression of The Big 3 - squats, deadlifts, and bench presses - all using a barbell. Combining these full-body moves increased my strength rapidly, shred fat effectively, and gave me … [Read more...]
If You Don’t Squat Or Deadlift, You Are Not A Man………Right?
Make one, little confession about not squatting or deadlifting, and everyone loses their shit. I actually feel great since I came out of the "non-powerlifting closet". It's like a weight has been lifted (no pun intended) off of my shoulders. I feel like screaming it from the rooftops: I DON'T SQUAT OR DEADLIFT AND I FEEL (AND LOOK) AMAZING! I think I hear the blood pressure of many of my clients increasing................... So, what in the hell am I talking about here? What is my … [Read more...]