blows my mind

I haven’t had too much time to write lately simply because I’ve been trying to get ready to leave on the annual family vacation (leaving tomorrow!). I was working out this morning and it really blows my mind what I see other trainers doing with their clients… There’s no regulation in the industry as of yet – therefore there are some trainers out there that really don’t know what they’re doing. If you’re going to train other people and they’re going to pay your salary, at least know a little. Don’t get some weekend cert and then do random stupid exercises with your clients. At least have some rhyme and reason to what you’re doing, learn a bit about exercise physiology and anatomy (and no, this information shouldn’t come out of magazines that can be found at the grocery store). The programs in most of those magazines are bodybuilding programs, which aren’t for everyone. All I’m saying is study up. Don’t hurt somebody because you haven’t assessed your client’s needs and haven’t tailored a program to address this.

the truth becomes evident

So, I was at the gym yesterday and (this is the first week of the dead-week) there were a ton of high school football players there. I watched one player put 230 lbs on the bar… not a big deal for some football players, right? Well, this guy was little – not too much taller than me with some muscular development, but not a lot. Having muscular development doesn’t mean too much; some people can lift heavy loads with great form and have hardly any muscle to show for it… Back to the kid that loaded the bar with way too much weight for himself… I watched him struggle through about 5 reps. On the way up on each repetition his knees collapsed inward. Big no-no. Any time you’re doing any sort of lower body exercise (squat, deadlift, lunge, etc.), the knees must track with the feet. This could possibly mean that he has weak glutes and abductors, or possibly tight adductors (a physical therapist would have to make that determination though). Anyway, I was just waiting for someone to get hurt. I guess it just made me realize how uneducated kids these days are on the proper mechanics of lifting (possibly some coaches as well). There were no adults around to make sure their form was right or anything. Scary. If coaches are going to have their players lifting, they have to teach them how to do it properly. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t think an emphasis should be put on maxing out either. You can’t have a kid max out when they don’t have the correct form.

wow

Dustin Carter. What an inspiration to each and every one of us! Really makes you feel pretty stupid for getting ticked about the little stuff, huh? Think about that next time…

interesting concept?

Most of you have probably heard of the 80:20 Principle (or Pareto’s Law). If you haven’t, it originally stated that 80% of the wealth was held by 20% of the population. Since then, it has been found to be true about many other things… 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts, 80% of your business comes from 20% of your customers, etc. I wonder if this is true about exercise and physical activity? I’ll have to think about it some more… If anyone has an opinion, feel free to post in the comments.

pumping iron

Aaron and I watched “Pumping Iron” last night for the first time. I was worried that it wouldn’t be that good at the beginning… but it was surprisingly pretty entertaining. It was interesting comparing the current world of bodybuilding to what it was back then. Huge difference – no pun intended.

I still think Arnold looks TONS better than any of the bodybuilders today.

seriously?

Why have American kids gotten so lazy? I guess I understand that video games and the internet are “cool” or whatever but seriously, parents have got to grab the reigns again. My brothers and I never had video games in the house when we were growing up (dad always said “we watched too much tv already) and in the summer both my parents would shove us outside to play and lock the door. (Well they didn’t leave the door locked, they would just do that to keep us from coming right back in.) I guess it’s just kind of sad to see our society in the state that it’s in. Now we have overweight and obese children that are developing diseases (diabetes and heart problems for example – not too mention the toll that all that weight takes on growing bones, tendons, ligaments, etc.) that previously were only found in overweight or obese adults. We hardly ever see kids playing outside in our neighborhood. Schools aren’t helping much with the problem either with all that nasty food they’re serving our kids and simultaneously cutting back on physical education and recess. I can hardly sit still now for a long period of time, so I know that kids have a hard time with it if they never have the chance to get up and run off their energy. No wonder so many kids are being diagnosed with ADHD these days!!

Check out this story in TIME magazine this issue (there’s a whole big write-up about obesity and weight issues in children).

catch this documentary

Strong is a documentary filmed at Joe DeFranco’s place out in New Jersey. If you train athletes or weekend warriors that get pumped after watching things like this, definitely check it out. Hopefully it will be released soon.

strongmovie.com

don’t be ordinary

Ok, so I’ll admit I train like a guy. And I like it. A lot. I love feeling strong and being able to lift a lot of weight. I like not having to ask my husband to do everything for me because I’m too “weak.” We had to pour some atlas stones for the Page football team a couple weeks ago and when we took them back to the weight room we decided to work out there for a bit.

We did some tire flips to start out… I freakin loved it. I was so proud of myself too because my little 125 lb self was flipping the biggest tire they had at 220 lbs. Needless to say it was awesome.

They have a keg there that they filled with water, the atlas stones, a huge telephone pole, sled, and the basic strength equipment. Now they just need to get some kettlebells, some sandbags, ropes, and maybe a log (for log presses) and they’d be set. We’ll probably go back up there again to get some out-of-the-ordinary workouts in. I just wish there was a place to do all this in the ‘Boro…

If you need a break from the ordinary, implement some of the tools that I’ve listed. Use stuff that you have around the house – lift heavy stuff. Your body doesn’t know what kind of resistance is being applied (in the form of a barbell at the gym or a huge tractor tire), all it knows is that if a great enough stress is placed on it it will have to adapt physiologically. Break the mold and get out of that stuffy gym. It’s a heck of a lot more fun!!

quit lifting puny weights!

Ladies, I know most of you have seen those scary women that have bigger muscles than my husband either in the gym or out somewhere else and they deter you from lifting big weights because you’re scared you’ll look like them if you do… Well, guess what? You’re not going to look like them! I can lift a lot of weight for my frame and body type, but I’m still really small and I don’t even come close to resembling a guy. We as women don’t have enough testosterone coursing through our bodies to build that kind of muscle. So, why not lift big? I promise, it will give you a serious feeling of accomplishment and boost your self-confidence. Plus, you’ll be able to get more done in everyday life. More lean tissue (i.e. muscle) = more calories burned daily to sustain that muscle. Perform big movements: squats, presses, deadlifts, rows, pull-ups, etc. to build fat-burning muscle. However, if you’re not a fan of attention don’t do these. Most women stay away from these types of lifts with big weights so those of us that do them really turn some heads.

So, put down the weenie pink dumbbells and go for the big-boy weights. You won’t be sorry!

become legendary

What’s within you? Do you know how far you could go if you really tried? The sky is the limit… One of my favorite quotes: Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you’ll land among the stars. Not sure who wrote it, but it really resonated with me however many years ago it was that I stumbled across it. I want to always give everything I have to whatever I’m doing, no half-hearted crap allowed. But there has to be patience involved as well. One thing that I’ve learned over the years (sounds like I’m so old – I’m only 24) is that nothing good in life comes easy. And more than likely it won’t come quick.

I want to become what I know deep down that I am – do you??