Have a safe and blessed Memorial Day Weekend!

I will be in Venice Beach, CA on Memorial Day (Monday, May 31st) to judge the Memorial Day Muscle Beach Classic, featuring bodybuilding, figure, and bikini competitions.  Joe Wheatley always does an amazing job of promoting and producing a fun and health filled extravaganza.  Please come out and support the event. Last I heard, Joe Weider will be on hand to christen a set of brand new grandstands that he personally donated funds for … what an awesome way to show his support and appreciation.  Also scheduled to make a guest appearance is Sylvester “Sly” Stallone.

I absolutely love what the Muscle Beach Classic stands for … a true celebration of health and wellness.  Last year, we had not only local competitors, but also those from literally all parts of the world (Russia, South America, France, Mexico,  Vietnam, and Japan).  Again, come out and enjoy the festivities.  Have fun, be safe, and have a blessed Memorial Day.  Most of all, please take a moment to remember those who gave their lives, and give special thanks to the countless others who’ve risked as much so that we have a reason to celebrate.

Spring-boarding into an amazing Summer …

It’s that time of year again when fat burners are being snatched up by the bunches at local sports nutrition shops.  The air is warming up and everyone knows that you can’t go to the beach with a beer gut … unless you don’t mind the negative gawking.  If you are like me, I start early.  I don’t wait until summer is in full bloom before I make necessary changes to my diet and/or bump up the cardio.  I usually start cleaning up my meals in late-March and ease into the cardio so that by mid-April, I am doing about an hour of cardio every single day. This diet/cardio regimen ensures that by the start of May, my abs will be in full-bloom along with summer.

Will this work for you?  Absolutely.  Is it too late?  Definitely too late to be in shape by the start, but perhaps just in time to salvage at least a month or so of it.  Here are some tips to help you along the way.  If you are going to be utilizing fat-burners, maximize their effects by taking a serving in the morning and another one about an hour before training.  Don’t double dose or consume more than one serving at a time as all this will do is make you feel like shit and increase the likelihood of a major health catastrophe.  If you are going to be doing cardio, be sure to let your body breathe by not wearing heavy clothing such as hoodies.  Even though being well-covered promotes sweating, it also makes it much harder for the body to cool down, and increases your chances of severe dehydration.  So be nice to your body and let it breathe.  Do at least 40 minutes of cardio daily, preferably after weight lifting to get the most out of your fat burning.  Lastly, don’t rely on crazy fad diets that serve to trick the body into a rapid response.  Fad diets may work initially, but eventually fail as the body will do what it has to do to restore balance.  I have always been a proponent of balanced meals that offer a healthy combination of protein, carbs, and even fat (good fat that is).  For example, a typical healthy meal for me consists of about 6-8 oz of chicken breast or turkey, 1 cup of clean carbs (potatoes, rice, yams), and a salad with light-vinegar dressing.  If you have a fast metabolism, I suggest utilizing MCT (medium-chain triglycerides) to slow down the metabolism and give the body an alternate source of fuel.

Obviously there are many other things that can help you along the way, but the aforementioned are what I consider to be “standard practice” for leaning or toning up.  Use this wonderful opportunity to not only get into shape for summer, but also to foster a life-long habit of health & wellness.

Fitness Thought of the Day

Fitness is a daily commitment and endeavor. It has to be something that you can and are willing to repeat day in and day out for the rest of your extended life. I share this message with each and every one of my clients so that they can look back and reflect on how much their lives have changed for the better since embarking on their fitness journey. As human beings, we are competitive by nature, and therefore thirst for daily challenges. I firmly believe that if what you are engaged in does not make you feel a little nervous or unsure about, then it simply will not make you any better. This is true both in and out of the fitness world and is separated by a common door. In solving your fitness equation, you will learn what is required to be successful in your professional life. Conversely, if you are having a tough time solving your fitness equation, perhaps you need to review a success story in your life and apply the variables to gain a better understanding. At the end of the day, it takes time, commitment, consistency, and the resilience to try harder and/or try again.

Catchin’ the L-Train

It has been 8 weeks since my surgical procedure to repair a partially torn left biceps tendon and things are moving right along … probably better than I had anticipated.  I was very unsure about how much of my original strength would be recovered, but those fears are now a thing of the past as I have been able to increase my seated dumbbell curls to 60-lb for 6-8 reps.  In fact, I have been able to increase my workload substantially on all upper body movements.  I truly believe that the fact that I have been training legs very heavy since the injury has helped me recover at a much faster rate.  If I’ve said it once, i’ve said it a million times, heavy training intensity is what keeps natural testosterone levels high and maintains balance, even when a region of the body is not being trained because of is a significant injury.  I have recovered about 85% of my pre-injury strength back and am still making notable gains.  I should be close to 100% percent within the next few weeks.

A good friend whom I helped win his IFBB pro card back in 2006 at the NPC Nationals in Miami, FL stopped by this weekend to catch up.  Most people know him as “L-Train” but Lionel Brown is simply “Lionel” to me. I recall sitting with him at the steps of Cooks Auditorium in Anaheim, CA at the 2006 OC Classic and listening to how frustrated and lost he was about where he was headed with bodybuilding.  Lionel was very sincere and I believed in his abilities enough to help him stay focused for the upcoming NPC Nationals where he dominated the Heavyweight Class and earned his IFBB status.  Today, Lionel finds himself in the same predicament as he faced back in 2006.  He has already achieved what many before him can only wish about in a pro card, but he has a new goal … he wants to win an IFBB pro show.  We talked a bit and decided to hit the gym to get the competitive juices flowing again.  I had the absolute best workout since walking away from the IFBB back in 2007.  We did 6 sets of bent-over rows with 315 pounds for 10-12 reps and pounded 21’s with 85 pounds on the EZ-Bar.  We did a couple of other back and biceps movements … It was AWESOME!  Before any of you ask the question, my answer is  resounding “NO … i won’t be competing again!”  Although I love the sport of bodybuilding,  life has been too good away from the sport for me to want to compromise any of that.  As for Lionel, his desire to compete grew exponentially  with each passing repetition and set.  It was like old times again as we headed to Burger King for an order of a Double Whopper,  fries, and a milkshake to feed the machine.

I really enjoyed training with Lionel and catching up with him.  The only thing that I didn’t enjoy or agree with was the fact that Lionel has put all, or at least most, of his eggs in the IFBB basket.  Alike many IFBB pros, Lionel is looking for a new sponsor to help finance his IFBB dreams.  In this economy, it is very difficult to find a sponsor that is willing to do that.  I will always be there to help Lionel and all of my friends … but, I will also maintain my gripe against the IFBB for doing too little for its athletes and doing even less to undo the negative stigma that overshadows the sport of bodybuilding.