Learning About Jack LaLanne, The Founder Of Fitness

Earlier this week, one of the biggest influences in this whole fitness trend passed away. Before there was Cross-fit, before there was Tae-bo, Jane Fonda, even Arnold Schwarzenegger, there was Jack LaLanne, who passed away in his sleep over the weekend. He was 96.

Over the last eight decades, LaLanne has been trying to promote a healthy lifestyle to anyone who would listen. He worked out and ate right every day of his life to the very end.

In the 1950's, he created a workout show (the first of its kind) that lasted until the 70's. In the show, he encouraged kids to drag their mothers and fathers in front of the television to do all these great workouts he was doing. A lot of times he didn't use any special equipment at all. Just items that could be found in your home.

In 1936, he opened a health studio in his native Oakland, that catered to athletes and women. These were innovative thoughts at the time and went against the grain that weightlifting would make women look masculine and athletes become slow. This was believed to be the first health club ever opened in America. He later opened a chain of health clubs across the land that bore his name.

When he first started, he understood that people would look at him as an idiot proclaiming all these crazy movements would make you be young and strong. That is why he started performing stunts that would later be one of his many claims to fame. For example, at age 60 he swam from Alcatraz to Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco - handcuffed and shackled towing a boat.

He saw a need for fitness that has exploded today. Look at all the health clubs, personal trainers, specialty exercise niches out there. And it all generated from one man. The epitome of good health who continued to practice what he preached until the day he died. AWESOME!!

Savings At Columbus Grocery Stores This Week

Check these savings out at these stores. The savings are for healthy choices.

Meijer

Grapes (Red or Green seedless) $0.99/lb
Pears $0.99/lb
Canned Veggies 2 for $1
64 oz Premium OJ $2.39
3 lb bag of apples 2 for $5

Kroger

Grapes (Red or white seedless) $0.99/lb
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts $1.99/lb
Blueberries (and their powerful anti-oxidants) 2 for $5
Gala Apples $1.68/lb
Salad Blend Bags 2 for $4

Marc's

Nature's Pride Whole Wheat bread 2 for $3.98
Red or Fuji Apples 3 lb bags 2 for $4.00
Pears $0.99/lb
Homemaker Premium OJ $1.98
Krema Natural Peanut Butter $1.99
Uncle Ben's Long Grain Wild Rice 3 for $5

Speed Training For The Older Person Plus 24 Day Challenge Update

Here is what we're discussing today:

• Are You Too Old To Get Faster?
• The Lebron James Video Interview
• 24 Day Challenge

So some time ago, one of my friends was talking with me about what I do. You know all these years of being friends and he still didn't quite have a grasp of what I did. So, I was explaining to him about the speed training that we do with athletes and he asked me the question:

That must be nice, but you couldn't get someone my age (early forties) faster right? It's too late for me?

And I replied, of course I could get you faster. Now, how much faster can be debated? Can I get him as fast as he was when he was younger in his 20's? I don't know, but I can get him faster than he is currently.

I've worked with several gentlemen 50 years or older and the speed training is the same. Except that you have to modify your progression with the older individual. Especially, if someone is starting out, you might not be able to do some of the explosive drills (even the basic ones) because it might really make that individual sore if they haven't been doing anything in awhile. They could possibly pull a muscle.

With older individuals speed diminishes, in my opinion, for several reasons:

• Lack of flexibility - As we age, if you don't do a good stretching program or make sure you are doing movements in their proper range of motion, you lose your elasticity. Thus, the range of motion you might need for sprinting, your body just can't get into it. So you are slowed down by that.
• You just don't sprint as often - This is the bigger thing. As we age, you get involved with life and unless you are sprinting in your workouts, you just don't sprint that much. So, when you do sprint to say chase your kid, your body is not used to that high power output and you pull something. Vowing never to sprint again.
• Lack of strength - Once again, if you aren't lifting, you definitely won't be maintaining any strength you need to be fast. Plus, as we age, we lose a little bit of muscle each year. So, when they ask you to sprint, your doomed.

My point being, with a proper warm-up, solid strength program, stretching, and some sprint training, if someone wanted to get faster at an advanced age, they most certainly could do it. I had a masters track athlete in his early 60's train with me a few times and his speed matched any of the younger top notch athletes I was working with. His form was fluid, his stride was good. He looked great running. So, it can be done.

So, if you are older and want to get back into your old sprinting form, it can happen. You can get a lot faster than what you currently are. It just will take a little longer to get to that position.

Side Notes:

• I recently conducted a "video interview" with Lebron James. It is a short 5 minute video and the king was able to answer some of my questions for me about his strength and conditioning program. Lucky for you, I captured it on video and it is now up on Youtube. You can watch it by clicking here. Check it out. I will admit, it isn't entirely what you are thinking about a legit interview, but it should be entertaining.
• We are half way through the month and we have had several people take advantage of the 24 day challenge that I mentioned last newsletter. You can order it by clicking here. It is being offered at a reduced price right now through the end of the month. It consists of a 10 day herbal cleanse and a 14 day max phase which will lead you into great shape for continuing your health transformation. Remember, if you purchase this program and live in Columbus, I will provide you with a free Metabolic Assessment and 3 day meal plan so you can use it after your 24 day challenge. Or you can get a free online 13 week workout to get that kick started for the new year. Ask me how you can get 20% off of your nutritional orders as well. Only a couple weeks left so take advantage of this special and let's get going!!

To your health!!

Savings At Columbus Grocery Stores This Week

Hey it is January 16 and these are some savings I saw at some of the local grocery stores this week:

Krogers
Boneless pork loins are buy one get one free (loin is a leaner cut for a meat)
Chicken breasts are $1.97/lb.
8 lb bag of navel oranges are $4.99
3 lb bag of clementines are $3.99
Krogers canned veggies are 2 for $1
Blackberries or Blueberries are 2 for $4

Marc's
Chicken breasts (when I say chicken breasts I always mean boneless skinless) $1.69/lb.
Boneless sirloin pork chops are $2.69/lb.

Meijer
Apples are $.88/lb.
5 lb box of clementines $5.49
Oranges 5 for $2
Freshlike veggies 5 for $5

Walmart
Has navel oranges for $.33 each

My Interview With Lebron James

Yep, you read that right. Lebron James did a video feed interview with me just the other day and I am posting it right now for you. Check it out and see what you think. Exciting, provocative stuff that would make Barbara Walters cry!!

It's January: I Have A Health Challenge For You

If you have been following my newsletter for awhile now, then you know that I'm a distributor for Advocare. Advocare is the supplement products that my company has been utilizing now for the last 2.5 years. Not many people have heard of Advocare, but they are rapidly becoming more well known in our state.

Advocare sponsors one of the NCAA bowl games and they are also utilized by our Ohio State football team. Last night, Advocare held an event and one of the speakers was Eric Lichter, the football team's strength and conditioning coach. Not only does he have the OSU players taking Advocare products, but he is on their sports advisory council, along with strength coaches from Auburn (our new national champions) and Wisconsin (the team that beat us this year). You can see pictures of Eric at the event on my fan page by clicking here.

So, if these top level strength coaches are endorsing their products to their players, you can damn well be sure they would work for you as well. These products are not only NCAA compliant, but Olympic compliant as well. Meaning the Olympics have a longer list of banned substances and none of these are in Advocare products.

So what does this mean to you?

Eric was talking about Advocare's 24 Day Challenge. This is taken by anyone who wants to get healthier and started on the right track. Nutrition is the hardest part of any fitness program. The exercise might make you hurt, but knowing what to eat is really the hardest part. Advocare has put together this 24 Day Challenge so that you will get through the roughest part (the first 24 days), see great results, and want to continue on with your fitness because you will feel better, have more energy, and want to look good. You can read information about it by clicking here.

If you don't believe what proper nutrition and these great products can do for you, then I want you to watch the following video. This is of my client Andy who at the time of the video had lost 30+ pounds by just changing his nutrition and utilizing these products. Since then, he has dropped a total of 50 pounds and his doctor has pulled him off of blood pressure meds. I show before and after pics in this video. Watch it by clicking here and imagine yourself accomplishing the same thing!

The 24 Day Challenge consists of a 10 day cleanse. This will cleanse your body of toxins and other crap you have in it and prepare you for the better foods you will be eating. During this process, please stick with the meal plan that I will be sending you. It is just for 10 days, so you will have to give up some things, but it will be worth it. You'll be eating more whole foods, chicken breasts, fruits, vegetables and avoiding a lot of processed foods. Then the next 14 days will be the Max Phase where you really start correcting your eating habits and your body takes advantage of all the positive nutrients it is receiving.

So if you want to start your fitness off right this year, then here is the challenge. It isn't a challenge against anybody, but a challenge against YOURSELF! Can you follow this program for 24 days, lose weight, feel better, then continue on?? What is the worst that can happen? Nothing, that is what happens. If you don't feel the products are helping you, then you can return them and get 100% of your money back. No questions asked. I don't think that will happen, but you will never know unless you try it. Prove me wrong, but I don't think it will happen.

Why am I telling you this now? Because I have been slacking about spreading the word of these great products and I sat in a room last night seeing testimonial after testimonial of people losing weight and keeping it off. 6 people who lost a combined 300 pounds, lowered their blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides. AMAZING STUFF I TELL YOU! I'm a trainer and to be honest, some of my clients should have been up there talking about their transformation. So, I want to help you even more.

Plus, Advocare is giving you this bundle for a discounted price until February 1, so we need to act fast.

Here is what you need to do next:

• Go to the website here and order the product for the discount. If you want some added benefits, order CATALYST with it. It will help preserve your muscle better and stave off catabolic effects.

• I then want you to take before pics and measurements and at the end of 24 days take them again. I want these to be your social proof. You will be so proud of them that I want you to send them to me to post on my blog and fan page.

• Once I see you have entered, I'm going to send you a document that has more instructions on how to do this challenge plus a sample meal plan you need to eat during the 10 day cleanse. Please follow it. This was created by registered dieticians and doctors of Advocare to enhance this program.

• ADDED BONUS: If you are a current client or subscriber in Columbus and you participate in this challenge, I am going to throw in my Metabolic testing and 3 day meal plan creation for free. You will be able to utilize this immediately after the 24 day challenge is over. If you do not live in Columbus, then I'm going to provide you with one of my 13 week workout plans. It is complete with sets, reps, and exercises you need to do to accomplish your fitness goals.

I am going to try the 10 day cleanse myself within the next couple weeks and give you a report on my blog daily how it is going. This is going to be a great year and I want YOU to finally start seeing your own fitness goals accomplished. So take the challenge, but if you are hesitant or have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask me.

To your health!

Savings At Columbus Grocery Stores This Week

Alright, I thought I would pass along some of the savings that I have seen this week. Eat healthy for less bucks. Enjoy!

Krogers

A bag of Gala apples for $3.49.
Instant oatmeal was $1.50
8 lb bag of oranges for $4.99
3 lb bag of clementines for $3.99
Yoplait yogurt basically broke down to $.50 a container
Gorman's grilled salmon was on sale for $3.29
I like Lean Pockets and if you by 5 at regular price you get 2 free

Marc's

Arnold's Dutch Country 3 for $5 (you can get 100% whole wheat bread)
You can get $.99/lb for gala and granny apples
Bananas are $.39/lb
Doles Classic Romaine bags of salad are 2 for $3
5 ounce cans of tuna for $.73
Uncle Ben's Whole grain rice 3 for $5 (look for the brown rice)

Meijer

Dannon Yogurt 10 for $5 ($.50 each)
1 lb container of strawberries 2 for $4
Large Navel Oranges 6 for $2
96% lean ground beef (really low in fat) $3.99/lb
Pork Loin chops (lower fat choice) $2.99/lb
5 ounce cans of starkist tuna 2 for $1

The 6 January Mistakes

In January, it seems that EVERYONE is either on a diet or they know someone on a diet. Either that..... or they are working out like crazy trying to stick to a New Year's Resolution. Statistics show that most people will fall off the wagon by January 21st. Sad, but, true. People try (they REALLY try) to stick to their resolution and they try HARD to change their lives and finally get back into shape.

I believe that the reason that most people fail is not because of effort, or good intentions, but because they are attempting to change with the wrong "technology". Trying to open your car door with your house key just does not work.

Accordingly to Phil Kaplan (renowned fitness educator www.PhilKaplan.com ), there are 6 mistakes that people make in January when they are trying to get in shape. Read on and see if you recognize any of them.

1. People go on diets

No matter how Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig tries to position their products, they are still putting people on calorie restrictive diets. Some programs sell a 30 day "cleanse" where you drink shakes instead of eating meals (cutting calories). When you take in fewer calories then your body needs to maintain metabolism, you lose weight. The weight that you lose is water, some fat.... and muscle. Doing this is a guarantee that you will slow your metabolism and that you will make your body BETTER at regaining and storing fat. Not exactly what you want for the long run. It has nothing to do with willpower.... it's biochemistry. The solution is to learn to eat meals that are supportive of metabolism and contain adequate nutrients (and calories) to maintain muscle and encourage fat release.

2. People overtrain.... or "mis-train"

In January, people tend to hit the gym. Hard. Motivation is high at this point. Optimism is also high. The programs and plans that people take on are usually not sustainable and soreness, lack of progress and loss of motivation result in missed workout days and finally abandoning the effort all together. Mis-training refers to the people that are motivated and excited (with good intentions) to REALLY change this year and they are determined to do it with the latest gimmick, program or trend. Think of the infomercial "stuff" that you see on TV at all hours. Trying to look like the models using the latest Ab gadget isn't going to happen by using that gadget! The good news is that the basics work. Always. All you need to do is to challenge your body in ways that it isn't used to so that it has to adapt (by getting stronger and fitter).

3. People will rely on supplements and chemical compounds

Fat burners don't burn fat. Muscle builders don't build muscle. In fact, MOST, supplements don't do what they are advertised to do. Supplements should always be seen as being ...."in addition to". In other words, they should be "supplemental". Supplemental to the right nutrition and exercise regimen. For long lasting, safe and effective results, learn how to speed your metabolism by eating "right" and adding some lean muscle to your body.

4. People cut carbs

(This comes directly from Phil Kaplan's Blog) "Here’s the deal. Carbs are not carbs anymore. I refer to the chemical compounds sold in various forms that our bodies haven’t a clue what to do with. High fructose corn syrup is abundant in the center aisles of the grocery store. It is not a friendly carbohydrate, in fact, it is a villain. It assaults the liver, alters insulin activity, and can lead to inflammation and disease when consumed frequently for an extended period of time. In foods labeled “healthy” you’ll find sugar alcohols, gluten, processed grains devoid of nutrient value, and chemically linked molecules of dextrose and fructose to form sugars. We’re dealing with metabolisms and digestive systems run amuck as these “non-foods” make up near half of our consumer food sales. With that said, natural carbohydrates, including fibers and natural starches, can prove to be the body’s premier energy supply. The difficulty lies in separating “what’s OK” from the items that should be on the “never eat this” list."

5. People will rely on aerobic exercise

Just like cutting carbs or calories might result in short term weight loss, relying on aerobic exercise (to the exclusion of muscle building exercise) MIGHT result in weight loss. It WILL, however, result in a less efficient metabolism and a body that is actually better at storing fat. Believe it or not, too much aerobic exercise can make you fat! The solution is a combination of muscle building and endurance exercise that will result in an enhanced metabolism, stronger bones, less body fat, improved blood flow, enhanced energy AND increased lean body mass.

6. People make too radical a change and step too far outside of their comfort zones

Your habits are with you for a life time. Making changes and developing new behaviours takes time. If you love wine and are told you can NEVER have wine again, you will fail. If you have never exercised and you try to exercise 6 days a week for 60 minutes.... you are going to fail. Our bodies want us to survive and will drive us back to what is "comfortable" as a defense. The good news is that small, easy changes over time can make a HUGE difference in your health, your fitness and your body. You have to give yourself room to fail (without being a failure)..... because we are all human.

This Ain't Your Sappy New Years Resolution

First off, I want to wish you a Happy New Year. I hope you had a great holiday, whatever you were celebrating, and hope that this year brings you everything you desire. I'm really happy you are a part of my "fitness family." But, I'm going to stop there with the warm, mushy stuff.

At the end of last year, I wrote a newsletter expressing my desire to be the best that I could be for you this year. Telling you how I truly want to help each and every one of you, blah, blah, blah. It must have really turned people off, because I had a bunch of subscriber removals after that email.

Well, not this year! I'm going the opposite way. I am going to give you my KISS list (Keep It Simple Stupid). If I have to hear one more person complain about, "why can't I be able to eat anything I want and not gain a pound of fat," I think I'm going to hurl.

Sorry, it just doesn't work that way. Get over it!

So, here is my KISS list for everyone this year. You want to get in shape, lose weight, have the physique of a Greek God/Goddess, then follow these simple rules:

1. You don't want to gain weight, then stop eating crap! Here is my challenge to you. Instead of downing a bag of chips, eat a bag of baby carrots. Instead of engulfing a pint of ice cream, have some fruit. You know what isn't good for you, so don't eat it. Name me the individual who has packed on 30 pounds of weight by eating a bag of baby carrots at 11 at night.

2. You can't go up a flight of stairs without losing your breath, then get active! Move more. Stop being a slug. Don't say, "oh while you're up will you get me this or that." Get your butt off the seat and do it yourself. Increase your daily activity to burn more calories.

3. You don't like the way you fit in your jeans, then exercise! Just get to the gym and do some routine. Any routine! If you absolutely feel uncomfortable doing that, then hire a trainer. Hire me for Pete's sake. Don't make excuses, just do it.

Ultimately, what this boils down to is be accountable. Last year, I said I would do everything in my power to help you achieve your goals. I still will, but unless you're comfortable with me putting a gun to your head to get you to exercise, I can't make you "WANT" to do it. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink.

The rules are what they are. Turn over a new leaf and find out what you need to do to achieve your health goals. None of this is easy. If it was, everyone would be in shape. You WILL have to put some effort into this and it WILL probably take awhile to get in shape. That is the honest truth. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you will see results.

So as 2010 leaves and you read this newsletter, if you unsubscribe to me, no hard feelings. It was fun having you. If you stick with me, hang on tight, because we're going to have some fun this year. I have a few good things planned and I can't wait to tell you about them, but all in due time.

Have a great New Year and be healthy and safe!!