information overload

Gah. Has it really been three months since I posted last? I seriously don’t know where my days go…

This post is in part inspired by a recent blog post by Leigh Peele (see it here).

I think I’ve been fairly lax in filtering the information that I’ve taken in lately. I’ve been doing a lot of reading on IF (intermittent fasting) and, you know how it goes, one webpage leads to another, and then another, and so on (and sometimes the subsequent pages have NOTHING to do with what you began reading about). And, then, in the process of looking up relevant information you check your email “real quick” which can lead to Facebook, and Twitter, and whatever other crap emails you have in your inbox. This can take up a ton of your day if you’re not careful. We need to learn to seek out the information that directly affects our lives, and ignore ALL the other stuff.

I never watch the news or read the newspaper. I’ve gotten a lot better with magazines (previously I had to read every word, cover to cover, literally). Web pages are still a problem for me, but I’m working on it. I’ve actually done a lot better lately and I’ve been a lot more productive, but I admit, I still need some work.

It’s all about priorities. Family comes first for me right now, and I pray that that never changes. Career is still important, but not nearly as much as it was when I wasn’t a mom.

I agree with everything Leigh says, so check out her blog post.

My daily rant: (Part uno) People seriously need to start questioning things more. Find the truth out for yourself and stop doing what everyone else is doing. Think for yourself! Just because something is on the news, or some morning show, or some “expert” has written a book about it DOESN’T MEAN IT’S TRUE. Come on people, we are a smarter nation than this.

With regard to fitness and nutrition – find reputable authors, coaches, specialists, etc. I promise you that all the links on the right side of this blog are great sources of information. (The TRX link is my affiliate link – however, it is an amazing piece of equipment and I would recommend it for anyone.)

(Part dos) And to all you vulnerable folks out there (we all can be at some point or another) – get wise to the fact that you are being force-fed crap every time you turn on your tv (or listen to the radio, read the paper, etc.). It makes me sick to think of all the people out there who just take everything they hear as truth. That’s not always the case… They will tell you what they want you to hear, nothing is objective anymore (if it ever was). My husband and I work with high school kids and it’s amazing to see how Mtv and songs off the radio become their reality. They see these people doing whatever in these videos and on reality shows and think that’s just how things are supposed to be. Mmm gotta love our mass media.

Wow, this post turned into something I didn’t expect – sorry bout that. But seeing how it’s my blog, I can write about what I want, huh.

so much to learn

Alright, who knew that taking care of a kid took so much time? I mean, I knew it took TIME, but not this much…

So, the last two months have been super hectic. I’m trying to learn how to better manage my time with a baby, work, keeping the house in check (clothes, dishes, oh my gosh), cooking healthy meals for Aaron and I, keeping up with current trends in the fitness industry, not to mention my own workouts and trying to get rid of this baby weight for our vacation in July (ten more pounds to go, but lots of muscle to put back on).

With all that being said, raising Roman is oh so rewarding. I’m blessed to be able to stay home with him and work at the same time, and being here to witness his first smile and first coo (and all that other stuff that only moms get excited about) has been a lot of fun. ##Sorry, that has nothing to do with fitness or nutrition.##

Anyway, in the midst of everything I’m in the process of reading The New Rules of Lifting for Women.

The New Rules of Lifting for Women is a super book. I highly recommend it for any woman that actually cares about doing the correct things in the gym that will set her on the path to an amazing physique. There are LOTS of stupid myths floating around training circles and TNROLFW strives to dispel these. There are 6 months of workouts included (written by Alwyn Cosgrove), and the nutrition section is written by Cassandra Forsythe. Good stuff.

What are you reading right now?

our new ((amazing)) addition

Roman finally made his appearance on March 6 at 3:54am. He weighed in at 6 lbs. 13 oz. and was 19 3/4 inches long. He’s such a sweetie.

I seriously never knew love like this existed. Sure, I love my husband with everything I have, but this love for my son is totally different.

There will be lots more pictures posted on Facebook. You can friend me here.

the biggest loser

We caught some of The Biggest Loser last night while folding clothes and doing other chores around the house. It never fails that every time I see some of the show I watch the trainers make the contestants do dumb things. Granted it could be a lot worse… but still. Last night it was jumping lunges -  Jillian was making one of the females on the green team do them. I don’t think it’s a good idea to have an overweight female (females are already more prone than males to knee injuries due to our Q angle) doing anything that requires jumping. Maybe that’s dumb on my part, but that’s just how I see it. There really is no point. There’s already a great deal of stress on the joints due to the extra pounds, now think about all that extra weight + gravity multiplying the load + bad mechanics…

That equation doesn’t equal anything positive in my eyes.

I would rather my clients lose the weight first through diet and sound training, focus on good body mechanics, then possibly add in more challenging movements such as jumping. How often is a female going to be jumping in everyday life anyway though? It all depends on their goals. If they are in good shape and want more definition in their legs, then maybe. There’s a time and place for everything is all I’m saying.

Any thoughts?

(one of) my favorite tools

Killer full-body workouts, extreme portability, and versatile. Check it out here: TRX by Fitness Anywhere.

big things in store for MOVEment

Alright, so I’ve got this idea for a program that I’m toying with running through my company here in Murfreesboro… Only women are allowed (sorry guys). Three months in duration. Lots of great, out-of-the-box training will be involved – no cardio bunnies in this class (sorry, I’m not a big fan of your “everyday,” boring training methods). Results guaranteed. I’m probably going to cap the sessions at 10 women at a time, possibly less depending on how it goes. It will be considerably cheaper than private training sessions, and more than likely twice as hard, which equals lots more bang for your buck (who doesn’t want that these days?). This will be a tough program, I’m not going to lie to you. No whiners are allowed – only women who are determined to reach their goals and have power over their food, not the other way around, will be allowed to participate. The women in this program will be strong, lean, and self-confident as a result.

I’m working all the logistics out right now while I’m finishing up my pregnancy (7 weeks to go!), and I will probably have to wait about 6 weeks after Roman is born to get the ball rolling. I would like to figure out a way to include Precision Nutrition in the package as well. Nutrition is over half the battle, so why not teach the best?

Anyway, it should be a big hit.

And if you’re a women reading this (or a man that knows of a woman that would be interested) and you think you would be up for the challenge, please give me a shout. You can find all my contact information on the contact page of this blog.

what’s g?

I really like these commercials. Not sure why. Maybe it’s the clever marketing on Gatorade’s part. Maybe it’s the weirdness of Lil Wayne’s voice. Maybe it’s the athletes that are shown. Maybe it’s the simplicity. I dunno, I just like them.

And I totally did exactly what Gatorade wanted everyone to do after the first commercial aired during one of the bowl games (I can’t remember which one it was…) – I got on my laptop and searched for the company that was behind it. When I looked it up, there were already a ton of discussions going on. Since I’ve been studying a lot on marketing lately, it was really interesting. Obviously, not all of us have the billions to invest in big-time commercials like this. Advertisements like this get attention though, that’s your first goal when trying to make a sale. Spark your prospect’s curiosity (one of the main emotions targeted with advertising and marketing).

The ad doesn’t communicate very well though. No one knows what the commercial is advertising (unless they go looking for the information). It’s also not persuasive. It gives no reason why someone should go out and buy a bottle of Gatorade. No benefits are mentioned.

Anyway, it’s still a thought provoking commercial. I can’t wait to see what commercials are aired during the Super Bowl this year…

the best shaker and boot camp “gurus”

What’s the best shaker for protein shakes you ask?

I’ve been on a quest for the best shaker for a while. I’ve tried lots of different bottles, but none of them ever met my expectations. I read somewhere about the Blender Bottle, so I did some research and could only find good reviews.

I bought two a few weeks ago, and they haven’t let me down. It’s definitely the best shaker that I’ve owned. It doesn’t leak, and because of the wire whisk on the inside there are very few “proteiny” lumps in my shakes now. It says on the website that you can use it to mix up pancake batter and the like (probably would be good for eggs as well…), but I haven’t had a chance to try that yet. I’m sure it over-performs on this feat like it has on all the others.

Anyway, I highly recommend this product – well worth the money, well made, and lives up to its claims. Check out the link above if you want to know more.

About the boot camp gurus…

“Boot camp” style classes are all the rage right now, but I’m not really jumping on the bandwagon. I’m not exactly a big fan of some overly muscled guy in army fatigues screaming at and overtraining overweight women. Sure, I guess all that yelling and screaming might work for some, but not all.

The big issue that I have with these types of classes is that most of these women aren’t properly assessed prior to beginning the program. Their fitness levels aren’t equally matched with the type of training they are about to partake in. Their body alignment isn’t tested and their joints (and possibly heart and lungs) aren’t properly prepared. – An overweight or obese person doesn’t need to be doing plyometrics… Just think of all the weight already on their joints, and some of these teachers are instructing their clients to jump! – This, in turn, leads to many of these women getting hurt and discouraged during the course of the program.

My advice is this – if you are looking for a “boot camp” style class, choose wisely. Pick an instructor that is compassionate, properly assesses and prepares participants, and has been in the industry for a while. There is terrible regulation in the fitness industry, and you can be easily duped by someone that sounds like they know what they are talking about when they really have no clue…

great oatmeal recipe

I’m a weirdo when it comes to oatmeal I guess, but I don’t like mine all mushy and slimy. I never liked the kind that comes pre-packaged (you shouldn’t eat it either, look at all the extra sugar that’s in there). My husband and I are both big fans of chocolate and peanut butter together, so it just makes sense to make our oatmeal that way.

Here’s how I’ve been making mine lately:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal

Warm up a small amount of chocolate calorie countdown milk in the microwave (less carbs). Put old fashioned rolled oats in bowl, natural peanut butter, a little honey, and add milk. Mix well and enjoy. Lately I’ve also been adding a little coconut to the mix. If you make it this way, the oats don’t get all mushy and gross, they still have some texture.

If you do like mushy oatmeal, you can add it all together in the bowl and then warm it up in the microwave.

I haven’t tried it, but if you wanted more protein for breakfast you could add in a scoop of chocolate protein powder and water instead of the milk.

Let me know what you think!

attention aspiring trainers

I just read this post by Chris McCombs. Very good stuff. Go here to read it.

I totally agree with all that he says. It’s huge right now to focus on camps and semi-private training. I’ve read most of the books that he mentions and they are all great. Most trainers don’t realize the importance of customer service and follow-up. You have to establish a relationship with clients, not just tell them what to do then kick them out the door.

Definitely do things your own way. Most trainers have no freaking clue what they’re doing – look at what the vast majority of trainers do and go the opposite direction! Follow what top trainers do (I’m not talking celeb trainers here). Feel free to search the list of blogs and sites on here to see who I follow (there are probably some that I look up to that I haven’t listed).

Marketing is huge. Trainers want to focus on the training side of things, but if you work for yourself or eventually do want to work for yourself (which I recommend), it is crucial that you learn the marketing side of things. Marketing and writing sales copy is my next business venture, which will be run out of my home while I play the role of mom as well. (So if you’re a trainer reading this and want some killer ad copy, drop me a line.)

Anyway, just read the post. It’ll give you lots of new ideas and insights. Take the points he makes and expand them, read up on them, never stop learning.

(That should be a goal for the New Year for you – learn as much as possible. In all areas of life. Soak it all in.)