Saturday, December 29, 2012

Play Like A Kid

Hoop Fitness! You probably saw it featured in the local Intel / New Era. Now, try it for yourself. Recapture the playfulness of your hula hooping days as a kid while you sculpt your body, improve flexibility and endurance, boost your creativity and expression, and enjoy an action-packed cardiovascular workout.

New hoop fitness classes starting in January at Body & Soul Fitness Studio, Lancaster, PA:

Beginner Hoop Fitness

Four week series Tuesdays Jan. 8, 15, 22, 29 @ 6:00 PM

Perfect for the beginning hooper and those looking for a fun way to get into shape! Flow with the hoop in a class designed to tone muscles, increase flexibility, and strengthen the cardiovascular system while burning up to 210 calories in 30 minutes! We’ll also learn some moves that can be practiced and enjoyed outside of classes. Get in the hoop, get fit, and have fun! Hoops will be supplied during class, but if you have a favorite you may bring it, of course! Wear natural fiber workout clothing.


Intermediate Hoop Fitness

Four week series Thursdays Jan. 3, 10, 24, 31 @ 6:00 PM

Perfect for the hooper who has mastered sustained waist hooping and wants to add to the fitness routine. We’ll work on walking with the hoop, dancing, and add some new off body moves that will increase flexibility, strengthen muscles, and tone the core. Another action-packed cardio workout that’s exhilarating and glee-filled! Hoops are supplied during class. Wear natural fiber workout clothing.



Silver Hoop Fitness 

Wednesdays Jan. 2nd & 9th @ 10:00 AM

Would you like to try fitness hooping but are hesitant because you're a senior or have injury/medical issue? Check out our new Silver Hoop Fitness class. 

Join us for some gentle stretching, light cardio, and an effective full body workout of muscles and alignment, as you revisit the playfulness of your childhood with a hoop! There are a lot of healthy benefits to hooping, but most of all we'll laugh and play together to great music.



Instructor for all classes: Jenny Hill, Certified Body Hoops instructor
Cost: Beginners and Intermediate $40 / Silver $20


Call Mickey today at 509-7777 to register. Space is limited.
Non-members welcome.   Plenty of free parking


Body & Soul Fitness Studio
618 Columbia Avenue
Lancaster, PA 17603
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Monday, December 24, 2012

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

New Workout Study: Bodyweight Exercises Better Than Cardio

If you're a regular reader, you know I recommend Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training. Besides being a great trainer, Craig is kind of a research geek. Each week he scours hundreds of magazines, websites, videos, scientific research papers, hard copy books, and even university textbooks to uncover new ways of training to add to his TT workouts.

Recently Craig came across one NEW workout-boosting trick that is a GAME CHANGER for fat loss. Not only does it make your future fat burning workouts and bodyweight exercises even more effective, it does so in just minutes per workout.

From Craig:

Can 4 minutes of bodyweight exercises (like burpees) work just as well as traditional 30-minute cardio workouts?

Researchers from Queen's University say it can...

In their study, published in "Applied Physiology Nutrition and Metabolism", the scientists had 22 college-aged women do 4 workouts per week for 4 weeks, splitting them into one of three groups:

Group A did 30 minutes of treadmill running at 85% max heart rate.

Group B did 8 rounds of 20 seconds of a single exercise (burpees, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, or squat thrusts) with 10 seconds of rest between rounds, for a total of 4 minutes.

Group C did nothing (they were the non-training control group).

Here were their shocking results...

Despite training just 1/7th of the time, Group B increased their aerobic fitness levels by the SAME amount (about 7-8%) as Group A.

That's right... even the short, intense, bodyweight workouts were equally as effective as 30 minutes of boring cardio.

Now here's where the study gets interesting...

First, Group B was the only group to INCREASE their muscular endurance in common exercises like chest presses, leg extensions, sit-ups, and push-ups.

Second, these unconventional bodyweight workouts resulted in members of Group B reporting GREATER overall workout enjoyment.

And that was just from one 4-minute blast of bodyweight exercises.

I know you'll get TRIPLE the results, or more, when you use the Turbulence Training versions of the system ... not to mention these workouts can be done from ANYWHERE you want.

Click here to get the complete TT 20-10 Bodyweight Revolution program Special Holiday Deal


Mickey here again. If you're at all interested in effective, time saving, fat burning workouts, don't wait to check this out. This offer ends tomorrow. 

Here's that link again ==> TT 20-10 Bodyweight Revolution










Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Reminder: 2nd Annual "Toys for Tots" Workout

No Pink Dumbbells Boot Camp member, Becky Reever, is organizing her second group workout to benefit Toys for Tots.


When: Saturday, December 1, 2012
Time: 9:00 AM
Minimum donation: One new, unwrapped toy
Where: Body & Soul Fitness Studio


All fitness levels are invited. Exercises will be adapted or substituted, as needed. Anyone 12 and older is welcome to participate.



Please spread the word among your friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers.

The workout will last approximately 45 minutes, including warmup and cooldown.

Join us! You'll get a great workout, burn fat, and get to hang out with other cool people. :-)

2011 "Toys for Tots" Workout Participants

Body & Soul Fitness Studio
618 Columbia Avenue
Lancaster, PA 17603

Plenty of free parking


Call Mickey at (717) 509-7777
to register, for directions, or
for more information.

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Friday, November 23, 2012

The Best Metabolic Workout Plan - Craig Ballantyne

Best Metabolic Workout Plan
By Craig Ballantyne, CSCS

The latest Men's Health magazine contained a shocking research study stat.

According to the article, you can boost your sleeping metabolic rate by 8 percent more than normal IF you workout with heavier weights.

That adds up to over 5 pounds per year...and it's why I'm a big fan of creating intense Turbulence Training workouts for BOTH men and women for rapid fat loss.

If you don't challenge yourself with exercises in the 6-8 rep range then you're leaving your metabolic burn boost benefit on the table.

Don't make that mistake.

To get maximum results, you need to use a fat loss workout system like this:

Step #1 - Bodyweight Warm-up

Step #2 - Metabolic Resistance Training (sets of 8 reps)

Step #3 - Metabolic Conditioning Training (higher reps) or Intervals

Let's say you only had 20 minutes to workout.

You could do this 20-minute metabolic boosting TT workout:

MRT: Metabolic Resistance Training
- 8 reps per exercise (per side, if applicable)
- No rest between exercises
- 60 second rest at the end of the circuit
- Repeat for 3 rounds

1A) Goblet Squat or Narrow-Stance Barbell Squat
1B) DB Row or TRX Rows
1C) DB Incline Press or Decline Spiderman Pushups (try with TRX)
1D) Goblet Bulgarian Split Squat

Take a 2 minute break and then move on to MCT.

MCT: Metabolic Conditioning Training
- 40 seconds per exercise (per side, if applicable)
- Rest 20 seconds between exercises
- Repeat for 6 minutes straight

2A) Kettlebell Swings
2B) DB Lunge or Prisoner Lunge
2C) Elevated Pushups (switch sides after 20 seconds) or TRX Rows

That's it, short and metabolically-boosting-calorie-burning sweet.

If you liked that, you'll love the complete Metabolic Workouts package and Bodyweight Bonuses that you'll get in the Turbulence Training Black Friday Sale.

This is the best Black Friday sale that you're going to get anywhere at anytime, and you don't have to camp out all night at Wal-Mart to do so.

Grab all 13 classic TT Workouts for 93% off the regular price.

There's never been a deal like this before, AND you get access to all the TT Metabolic Resistance Training fat burning workouts.

The complete package includes:

1) The Bodyweight Cardio Pack
2) TT MRT 1.0 and TT MRT 2.0 (2 of the most popular TT workouts)
3) TT for Beginners and Total Torso Training
4) TT Thermogenic-30 (The 2012 Workout of the Year)

This is a very limited time offer so check it out now ==> Turbulence Training Black Friday Sale.

I’ve offered some pretty good deals in the past, I know, but NEVER have you been able to get this many TT workouts, with this much variety, for this low of a price. NEVER.

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Tuesday, November 13, 2012

3rd Annual "Burn Fat & Give Thanks" Workout

Let’s face it, most everyone overeats on Thanksgiving. Here’s a way to lessen the damage and help sick kids at the same time.

Join me on Thanksgiving morning (Thursday, November 22nd) at 9:00 AM for my 3rd annual "Burn Fat and Give Thanks" Workout.

All proceeds will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where no child is ever turned away due to parental inability to pay and no family is billed for services not paid by insurance.

You'll get a great workout, rev up your metabolism, burn fat, and hang out with other cool people.

All fitness levels are invited. Exercises will be adapted or substituted, as necessary. Anyone 12 and older is welcome to participate.

Give thanks for the healthy kids in your life and help those who aren't as lucky. Donation is $20, or bring a friend for just $10 more.



Call Mickey at (717) 509-7777 for more info or to let me know you’ll be attending.

If you can't make it, please consider making a donation or sponsoring another participant.




Body & Soul Fitness Studio
618 Columbia Avenue
Lancaster, PA 17603

Plenty of free parking


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Wednesday, November 7, 2012

2nd Annual "Toys For Tots" Group Workout

No Pink Dumbbells Boot Camp member, Becky Reever, is organizing her second group workout to benefit Toys for Tots.


When: Saturday, December 1, 2012
Time: 9:00 AM
Minimum donation: One new, unwrapped toy
Where: Body & Soul Fitness Studio


All fitness levels are invited. Exercises will be adapted or substituted, as needed. Anyone 12 and older is welcome to participate.



Please spread the word among your friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers.

The workout will last approximately 45 minutes, including warmup and cooldown.

Join us! You'll get a great workout, burn fat, and get to hang out with other cool people. :-)


2011 "Toys for Tots" Workout Participants

Body & Soul Fitness Studio
618 Columbia Avenue
Lancaster, PA 17603

Plenty of free parking


Call Mickey at (717) 509-7777 to register, for directions, or for more information.



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Thursday, October 25, 2012

Think You Own Things You Pay For? Not For Long.


From Demand Progress:

Next week, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether you have the right to sell your stuff on eBay. Do you really own the smartphone or computer you’re using to read this? If you sold your books, would you be breaking the law? A federal court in New York says you would be, even if you legally paid for and bought them.

It's unbelievable, but trademark and copyright holders are trying to use a legal loophole to take away your right to sell things that you own. The mainstream media is starting to catch on, with the Wall Street Journal just running an article headlined, "YOUR RIGHT TO RESELL YOUR OWN STUFF IS IN PERIL". Please add your name here to fight back ==> http://www.youvebeenowned.org/.

Public interest advocates are taking the case all the way to the Supreme Court, and Demand Progress is joining up with a coalition of groups -- including many of those that came together to kill SOPA -- to support the rights of ordinary Internet users and everyday consumers.

Once again, big entertainment company lobbyists are fighting us in the courts to ensure their profits are given higher priority than consumer rights. But this time the MPAA and RIAA have the Obama administration on their side -- they've all filed legal briefs asking the Supreme Court to restrict our right to resell the things we own.

We only have a few weeks to make our voices heard before the Supreme Court makes a lasting ruling. We are working to defend a long-standing principle known as the "First-Sale Doctrine." This common-sense rule gives us the right to sell most property we own, but big businesses have been trying to chip away at out our rights in the courts. If the Supreme Court supports the lower court’s decision, we won't really “own” anything if any part of it was made in a different country. And practically anything you own -- from your iPod to your house -- could have been made abroad, in whole or in part.

If we lose this fight, practically anybody who wants to resell products they bought -- from Macbooks and iPhones to our clothing and textbooks -- will have to ask copyright holders for permission first. And they'll have the right to deny it!

It's bad for so many reasons: It'll undermine Craigslist and Ebay, hurt the environment, increase incentives for manufacturers to move jobs off-shore, and effectively ban the traditional American yard sale. For more info, please check out Marvin Ammori's article about the lawsuit at http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/06/if-youve-ever-sold-a-used-ipod-you-may-have-violated-copyright-law/258276/.





Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Unique, Fun, and Free Way To Raise Money For Your Favorite Charity Or Non-Profit


Tired of the same old boring fundraisers? 
I can help!    

I run an indoor charity boot camp every Saturday morning at 9:00 A.M.  All you need to do is reserve a date and start inviting people.

The workouts last approximately 45 minutes and include a warmup and a cooldown. 

Workouts involve primarily body weight and dumbbell exercises. All fitness levels are invited. Anyone, 12 and over, is welcome to participate.  (Kids must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.)

Exercises will be adapted or substituted, as necessary, so those who aren’t in great shape shouldn’t be afraid to join in.   

Each participant can pay a set amount and/or you can encourage them get sponsors. 100% of the money donated or raised by your participants goes to your charity. I donate my time, the equipment, and use of the facility- there is absolutely no charge to you or the organization.

Hang out with friends, have some fun, get some exercise and raise money for a worthy cause.  What better way to spend 45 minutes on a Saturday morning?

Call me today at (717) 509-7777 for all the details and to reserve your date.  



Thursday, October 18, 2012

Why Tricep Kickbacks Suck

I haven't used Tricep Kickbacks for years in my programming and here's a great explanation why...


Triceps Kickbacks: A Poor Triceps Dumbbell Exercise  
by Nick Tumminello







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Monday, October 15, 2012

Collected Fitness Wisdom #53

Focus on habits – You can’t get on the scale in the morning and say “the scale is going to be lighter today.” But you can say “I’m going to eat a nutritious breakfast.” Eating a healthy breakfast is a good habit. Making the numbers on the scale go down is an outcome.

~ Mike Roussell



The biggest mistake too many woman make in the gym is too much cardio and not enough weights.

~ Nia Shanks



It's time we all woke up to this and stopped expecting and accepting the lies that accompany the journey to getting and staying in great shape and optimal health. The truth is, we've got to stop expecting easy, comfortable and quick experiences of something that at its core REQUIRES hard, uncomfortable time to accomplish.

~ Dax Moy



Even an inappropriately performed deadlift does not have as much intradisc pressure as sitting down and pushing or pulling on things (performing exercises).  Stand up and move!

~ Gray Cook



Do you want the best advice that I can give? It's really simple, it's completely free, and you can start right now. So, here it is...STOP MAKING EXCUSES! 

~ Jay DeWolfe

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Monday, October 1, 2012

Fall Fitness Frenzy to Benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Since Body & Soul is a small fitness center, I've chosen to support one primary charity and raise money for it throughout the year. That charity is St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, where no child is ever turned away due to parental inability to pay and no family is billed for services not paid by insurance.

Oct. 9, 2000 is the day I opened Body & Soul Fitness Studio. Besides what we do all year round, last year near my anniversary, I started doing a weekend of activities to raise money for St. Jude. This year, thanks to the generosity of the instructors below, I'm able to offer even more classes.
 
If you can't join us, please consider sponsoring someone else or making a donation. Please spread the word to your friends, family and co-workers.  
 
 
A Weekend of Activities to Benefit  
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

October 13th & 14th

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 13th:

9:00 AM  Fitness Boot Camp

Total body workout utilizing a variety of bodyweight, dumbbell and kettlebell exercises. All fitness levels invited. Exercises will be adapted or substituted, as necessary. Call Mickey at (717) 509-7777 for more info or to register.

10:30 AM  Short Form Tai Chi and Wuji Qigong

Gentle movement and deep breathing for flexibility, balance and peace of mind. Contact Jennifer at (717) 293-1442 or jgranthealing@gmail.com to register or for more information.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14th:

10:30 AM  Belly Dance

Belly dance is a wonderful way to have fun and express yourself, while learning an ancient art form. Designed for any age and any body shape. Contact Jody at kbellydancer99@aol.com or Mickey at (717) 509-7777 to sign up.

12:00 PM  Introduction to Aikido

Peaceful self defense practice which uses the opponents’ energy to gain control and resolve conflict. Aikido uses the coordination of spirit and body rather than physical strength to overcome an attack.

For your comfort, please wear long pants. To register or for more information, contact Christian at (717) 461-3494 or at christian@lancasteraikido.com

2:00 PM  Vinyasa Yoga

Flowing series of challenging, athletic postures. For more information or to register, contact Jennifer at (717) 293-1442 or jgranthealing@gmail.com


$20 for one class or attend as many as you like for $30

Please pre-register by Thursday, October 11th.

 
100% of the proceeds benefit St. Jude Children’s
Research Hospital.


Body & Soul Fitness Studio
618 Columbia Avenue
Lancaster, PA 17603
(717) 509-7777

Plenty of free parking

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Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Research Shows Bodyweight Training Beats Cardio

Here's another article from Craig Ballantyne citing more research regarding the superiority of bodyweight training for aerobic fitness (based on time efficiency), muscular endurance, and exercise enjoyment.


SHOCKING new research (bodyweight training is better than cardio)

By Craig Ballantyne, CTT
Certified Turbulence Trainer
101 Bodyweight exercises

This might be the most interesting - and shocking - workout study ever.

Researchers at Queen's University tested a Turbulence Training style workout against long cardio.
(Reference: Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2012 Sep 20.)

22 college-aged women did 4 workouts per week for 4 weeks in one of three groups.

Group A did 30 minutes of treadmill running at 85% max heart rate

Group B did 8 rounds of 20 seconds of a single exercise (burpees, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, or squat thrusts) with 10 seconds of rest between rounds.

Group C did nothing (they were the non-training control group).

Results:

Both training groups increased their aerobic fitness levels by the SAME amount (about 7-8%). That's right, the short bodyweight workouts (of 4 minutes) worked just as well as 30 minutes of cardio. Shocking.

BUT...only Group B, the TT style training, also increased muscular endurance in common exercises like chest presses, leg extensions, sit-ups, and push-ups.

And finally, the TT style training used by Group B also resulted in greater overall workout enjoyment.

The scientists concluded that "extremely low volume bodyweight interval-style training" will boost cardiovascular fitness just as well as cardio while giving you BETTER improvements in muscle endurance.

All in just 4 minutes.  

Now you see why I use exercises like the 20-10 bodyweight squat move that I call "Punisher X".

Bottom line: TT bodyweight workouts KICK BUTT.

Get faster results with TT bodyweight workouts here  => 101 Bodyweight exercises


If you want a better body and fitness, use the TT bodyweight workouts instead of long, slow cardio.

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Monday, September 24, 2012

Burn 16.2 Calories Per Minute With Bodyweight Exercises


Burn 16.2 calories per minute with bodyweight exercises
By Craig Ballantyne, CTT
Certified Turbulence Trainer
101 Bodyweight exercises

In a recent study funded by the American Council of Exercise, researchers found bodyweight training can burn up to 16.2 calories per minute in men and 13 calories/minute in women.

(That's equivalent of running faster than 7 miles per hour.)

And now, almost everywhere in the world, is the best time of year for backyard bodyweight training.

Of course, bodyweight training is also perfect for those times when you are stuck indoors, like when I visit all those hotels with inadequate gyms on my travels.

Recently I stayed at hotel where the gym was so bad that the front desk attendant laughed at me when I asked where it was.

Fortunately, I was able to do a classic bodyweight workout in my hotel room.

That's where I created one of the two new "5 rounds of 5" bodyweight cardio circuits from the NEW TT Bodyweight Cardio 5 program that is now available for you to use anytime, anywhere.

Try the Bodyweight Cardio program and 101 bodyweight exercises here ==>

The 5 rounds of 5 left me dripping with sweat despite cranking the air conditioning being in the hotel room.

It's liberating to be able to ditch the equipment and use unique exercises for maximum fat loss and conditioning. That's why the bodyweight cardio program series remains so popular year after year.

Smart folks, like you, have had enough of the slow cardio propaganda. You know there is a better way, you know there are better workouts. You love the past bodyweight cardio programs and you're ready for a new challenge.

The 2nd 5 rounds of 5 challenge uses my patented "Gauntlet" exercise system and is also guaranteed to burn a lot of calories in a short time - so that you get lean and ripped.

And finally, there's even a new "Bodyweight Cardio 500" challenge workout featuring a 500-rep test of your fitness.

(Mickey's note: Based on the website, I think Craig means his Bodyweight Cardio 1000.)

Enjoy the new program.

Here's what you need to do to get started.

Just go to this page and you'll get my best bodyweight deal ever on the 101 Bodyweight Exercises System PLUS the NEW Bodyweight Cardio 5 program. Get it here:

=> 101 Bodyweight exercises





Bring on the bodyweight conditioning.






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Wednesday, September 5, 2012

7 Exercise Tips To Get Fitter Faster


If you’re like the average person interested in dropping body fat, improving your health and getting stronger, following these guidelines will help you get the best results from your strength training workouts:


1. Always begin a workout with a full warmup. A good dynamic warmup prepares the muscles for what’s to come and allows you to work harder and with less risk of injury. If you are short on time, cut back on your working sets, never on your warmup.


2. Perform a total body workout 3 times a week with at least one day of rest in between. Forget the bodybuilding magazines and their body part routines. Muscles work in groups and trying to isolate them during a workout is a waste of time for most people.




3. Spend more time using free weight and bodyweight exercises than sitting on machines. You’ll work more muscles, burn more calories, and you’ll do it more naturally and functionally.






4. Concentrate on compound exercises. Exercises like Squats, Rows, Lunges, Pushups, Deadlifts, Presses, Pulldowns, etc. work multiple muscles at the same time, are more functional, and burn more calories than isolation work.





5. Ignore the "low weight, high reps to tone" myth that’s still floating around out there. For most exercises, you should challenge your muscles using a resistance you can only lift 6-10 times with good form.



6. Unless you are correcting a current imbalance, make sure your weight training program is balanced between opposing muscle groups. Don't ignore exercises you don't like or do extra sets just of those that you do like. Either scenario can cause muscle imbalances and lead to injury.


7. If you’re not training for a specific event (5K, half marathon, long distance bike ride, etc.) ditch the long, steady state cardio and switch to cardio intervals, or metabolic circuits. They’re more efficient and effective.

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Monday, August 27, 2012

Collected Fitness Wisdom #52

It seems to me these days the ‘vogue trend’ is training people to exhaustion then telling them how effective it is to have done so. This is the silly equivalent of saying to train for a marathon, run one every day – to train for a triathlon, do one every day. To train for a powerlifting meet, lift your 1RM every day. In these various realms of fitness pursuits this would be considered ludicrous of course.

~ Scott Abel



Conventional wisdom tells us that if you find yourself in a hole, you should stop digging--that's the logical thing to do. However, when it comes to nutrition, we aren't logical or conventionally wise. When clients have a dietary faux pas, their impulse, paradoxically, is to make it worse; after they eat the brownie, they think, "Well, I've ruined today. I may as well just eat whatever I want and then be good tomorrow."

That would be bad enough by itself; however, for many people, they carry the failure over to the next day, and the day after, and finally, "I'll be good tomorrow" becomes "I'll start again on Monday."

~ John Romaniello




Building muscle isn’t what makes a woman appear “big ‘n bulky” – excess body fat does. So, the solution would be to lose some body fat. And, if you want to look absolutely awesome, build some muscle!

~ Nia Shanks



I see women talk about fat loss and they do crap isolation movements that use small muscle groups with light weights. How many calories does that burn? Try using the large muscle groups like hamstrings, glutes, and quads with compound moves in which you can move heavy weights and the calories literally melt off you. And you build LBM (lean body mass) in the process!

I see men in the gym who want to build muscle doing half reps with toy dumbbells for dozens of reps. They look exactly the same as they did last year by wasting their time like this!

Resistance, folks!

~ Dave Chesser

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Thursday, August 23, 2012

This Type Of Exercise Can Damage Your Heart


This Type of Exercise can Damage your Heart
by Craig Ballantyne, CTT
Contributor:  Men's Health Magazine
Creator: Turbulence Training       

I’ve just emerged from my training research lab with a tsunami of scientific studies that give us 5 more scary reasons to cut traditional cardio from your fat loss workouts.

Not an efficient or effective way to drop excess fat.

This breaking research just goes to show you that unless you are training for endurance sports, there’s practically no good reason to engage in long, slow cardio (especially really long sessions as you’ll discover in a moment).  And if you do train for endurance events, you should be aware of the potential heart issues with excessive training.

First up, let’s take a look at why cardio fails as much as Jeff Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High. (I’m saving the scariest study for last.)

In a study titled, “Why do individuals not lose more weight from an exercise intervention at a defined dose? An energy balance analysis“, researchers found that weight loss from cardio was always lower than predicted (using a standard calories in vs. calories out approach).

The article, published in Obesity Reviews (Vol. 13 Issue 6), explained that cardio doesn’t work for FOUR reasons:

a)  Some people eat more when they start a cardio program
b)  Calorie burning at rest often decreases with cardio
c)  Calorie-burning lean muscle tissue is often lost (can cause reduced metabolic rate)
d)  Cardio programs cause you to do less activity over the day

So if you’re still trying to lose fat with cardio, those are the reasons why it’s not working (or why it didn’t work for you before you switched to Turbulence Training).

Second, speaking of TT style training, we now have another research study showing the fat burning power of interval training. This time, it’s from China…

In the study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness (2012 Jun;52(3):255-62), 60 overweight young women were separated into three groups.

Group 1 did a high intensity interval training (HIIT) program
Group 2 did moderate intensity continuous training (MICT)
Group 3 was a non-training control group.

Groups 1 & 2 trained five days per week for 12 weeks.

The researchers concluded that the HIIT group achieved better results than those in the MICT group.

But it’s not “new” to hear about intervals being better than slow cardio for fat loss, so finally, here’s the FIFTH scary reason you need to avoid long cardio... And believe me, it’s frightening, particularly to those who love their long-distance events like marathons.

In a study published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings (2012 Jun;87(6):587-95), researchers concluded that there are potential adverse cardiovascular effects from excessive endurance exercise.

Frankly, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. After all, what happens when you do a high-volume workout?

Well, your muscles get really sore, right? And that’s called muscle damage.



Now think for a second…what is your heart?

It’s a muscle.



Therefore, when you do high-volume cardiovascular training, your heart experiences a LOT of muscle damage, and over the long-term this can damage your  heart.

The researchers from the Mid America Heart Institute of Saint Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, MO, said that while regular, short workouts are good for your heart, that long-term excessive endurance exercise may cause “pathologic” structural remodeling of the heart and large arteries”.

Pathological is bad, very bad.

You’ve heard the phrase “pathological liar”, right? Well, just imagine someone with a pathological heart. Notta too good.

The scientists found that training for and competing in extreme endurance events such as marathons, ultramarathons, ironman distance triathlons, and very long distance bicycle races, damage the heart.

Worse, they found that if done for years, it creates “patchy myocardial fibrosis” and could lead to arrhythmias.

Something to keep in mind if you’re a hardcore marathoner.

Get your heart checked.

It always disheartens me to read stories of men who pass away while running (the Toronto marathon had another death during the race last year). So make sure your ticker is up to par if you’re a cardio fanatic.



Be careful with your cardio, if you must do it at all.

For fat loss, it’s certainly not mandatory.

Nutrition is much more important than exercise (for both fat loss and heart-health), so take some of that excessive endurance training time and put it towards preparing a healthier diet.

No matter what, I want you to be active, but safe and smart.

As the lead researcher in that last study wisely said:

“When people come to me as a cardiologist and say they want to run a marathon I say, ‘OK, do one and cross it off your bucket list and then let’s focus on an exercise pattern that’s more ideal to producing long-term health benefits and improving your longevity.”

Words to live by.

Pardon me, words to live a LONG-TIME by.

If you want a safer AND more effective way to train that strengthens your heart while also getting you super lean and chiseled, try out my unique TT Bodyweight Cardio Metabolic workouts. You can get ripped, anywhere, anytime!

Train hard but safe,
Craig Ballantyne, CTT
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Thursday, August 16, 2012

With Friends Like That...

If your "friends" question why you exercise, encourage you to eat badly or drink too much alcohol, criticize your body, dismiss your dreams, or make fun of pictures of you exercising on Facebook, FIND NEW FRIENDS!


I don't say that lightly. You are affected by the attitude and actions of the people you surround yourself with.

If you hang around mostly overweight people, you're more likely to gain weight. If your environment is a study in negativity, it's much harder to reach your goals. Your income correlates with the income of the people you associate with most.

Your success or failure, your health, your outlook on life, your income, your happiness, your eating habits, and more are all affected by those you spend the most time with.

 

Trying to make positive changes while surrounded by critics and naysayers is like running a race wearing concrete shoes. If your friends really care about you, they'll support your efforts not tear you down.



Too many people don't want you to succeed because it will make them look bad for not improving themselves. If you fail at shedding fat / going back to school / exercising regularly / getting promoted / learning something new / starting a business / etc. it "justifies" them sitting on their asses doing nothing.   

Someone who holds you back to make themselves feel better is not a real friend and you DESERVE better. Find positive, supportive people to hang out with. You'll be happier AND more successful.

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Thursday, August 9, 2012

Why Can’t I Lose Weight?

This is an excellent article from "The Boot Camp Girls", Alicia & Carrie. I couldn't have said it better myself so I won't. ;-) They even include one of my major pet peeves about people hanging onto the treadmill! If you want to know more about that, there's a great article here ==> Stop Holding On When On The Treadmill.



Why Can’t I Lose Weight?

Losing weight and burning fat DOES NOT have to be a losing battle! You have more control over it than you think.

Small tweaks can make a BIG difference.

Here are a few reasons why you’re not seeing the results you’d like:

You’re not strength training. Often, people who are not losing weight don’t do strength training. The more lean, sleek muscle you have, the faster your resting metabolism is because muscle is the body’s most metabolically active tissue.


You’re not exercising in a way that forces your body to adapt. The adaptive response requires energy; it raises your body’s energy needs. The body will then dig into stored fat for this energy.

They may not be pink but they're WAY too light.
If you’ve been strength training and the weight hasn’t been coming off, it may be because you’re not doing much more than merely going through the motions.

There’s the story of a heavy-set woman who was doing body weight squats. A trainer waltzed over, knelt beside her, said “Hi” with a smile, then handed her two 10 pound dumbbells (one for each hand).

The woman’s mouth fell open, but the trainer said, “You’re going to do eight reps of your squats but this time you’re going to hold a 10 lb dumbbell on each side.”

“I can’t do it with that weight!”

“Oh yes you can. Trust me. You’re going to complete all eight reps.”

The woman said her goal was to lose weight, but nothing was happening despite regular workouts. She began her squats, and it wasn’t easy. She had to fight her way to the eighth rep, but she completed eight full repetitions.

The trainer said, “Now that’s the way every set should feel. Apply this effort level to all of your sets for every exercise. You won’t lose weight if you keep doing something your body is efficient at. You must do something that forces you to struggle. Struggling begets weight loss.”

A month later the woman reported having dropped an entire dress size.

Moral of this true story: Exercises that require you to push harder will burn fat and spark weight loss, especially when paired with sensible eating.

No, a couple won't kill you but they do add up.


You eat mindlessly. Every little sample and nugget counts. One tablespoon of gravy is 100 calories. A “little bit here and there” adds up. Avoid eating when you’re focused on other things, such as watching TV or you’re on the computer.




You drink diet sodas. Artificial sweeteners often trigger hunger.


Too many processed foods. These trigger hunger, and too much white sugar and high fructose corn syrup will get stored as fat.


You skip breakfast. Breakfast, even if it’s only a cup of yogurt, tends to tame later-day appetite. Skipping it can make you feel entitled to overeat later on.


You hold onto the treadmill. This has got to be one of the most weight-loss-sabotaging habits out there. The body has absolutely no reason to burn more fat in response to make-believe walking.

Instead, pump the arms and get winded to force your body to adapt. Remember, the body won’t adapt to something that it’s very efficient at doing (e.g., walking while holding onto something for support).


If you're trying to burn lots of fat, this won't do it.



You don’t do HIIT: high intensity interval training. This form of cardio blasts fat.






Inconsistent exercise habits. Regular exercise means the difference between success and failure. Even if you’re doing everything right in the gym, consistency is the MOST important thing.


Poor sleeping habits. Research shows that under six hours of sleep and over nine are strongly linked to excess body fat.





Too much daytime napping. Excessive inertia means a slowed metabolism to accommodate it.






Before you blame your parents and grandparents for having “the wrong genes,” review your lifestyle habits to find out what can be modified to promote fat loss.


For more information about how to get the best fat loss results from your nutrition and exercise programs, call Mickey at (717) 509-7777.

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Thursday, August 2, 2012

You Are Very, Very Sleepy




Unfortunately, many Americans are sleep deprived.






Researchers tell us that lack of sleep affects our performance, health, and even our weight but there are still people who brag about consistently getting by on 5 or 6 hours a sleep. It’s their norm so does it still have negative consequences or do their bodies adjust to less shut-eye?

Multiple studies have shown that no matter how tired you think you are, lack of sleep can influence the way you perform visual and cognitive tasks.

Other studies show a correlation to lack of sleep and weight gain (or diminished weight loss if you are trying to shed some excess fat).

It makes sense that being groggy could impair thinking and physical tasks but what does lack of sleep have to do with weight? Sleep affects the hormones leptin and ghrelin, which help regulate appetite and satiety.

Leptin helps you feel satisfied but when you don’t get enough sleep, your leptin levels fall so you don’t feel as satiated after eating. The hormone ghrelin helps control appetite. Sleep deprivation causes ghrelin to rise, making you hungrier.


One recent joint study between Stanford and the University of Wisconsin showed that those who slept less than 8 hours a night had lower levels of leptin and higher levels of ghrelin, and also higher levels of body fat. In fact, of the about 1,000 volunteers, the ones who slept the fewest hours per night weighed the most. 




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Sunday, July 29, 2012

Collected Fitness Wisdom #51

Fact is, motivation is way over-rated.

Instead I focus on setting habits. Why? Because you can depend on habits. Habits are what YOU DO, they aren't based on how YOU FEEL. Motivation is mental and largely based on emotion. Notice, "I don't FEEL motivated today." I don't care how you feel. I care what you do. If you only workout when you feel motivated, you'll get no where.

~ Dave Chesser



Women have been brainwashed by the mainstream fitness "gurus" to believe that if they train for strength, they'll "bulk up." Which is a load of unadulterated crap. I HATE this type of predatory marketing. 

~ Geoff Neupert



We are all capable of impressing - and even surprising - ourselves with what we are capable of doing. Not everyone (even with an insane work ethic) is going to look like Captain American or play on ESPN. It doesn't matter.

What matters is that you never shot for something less than that. You gave everything you had, and you ran that course until it was over. Wherever that point may be, you arrived there knowing that you didn't leave anything in the tank. This is the absolute most you could do, given the tools you had, and you can be happy and fulfilled knowing that. If you attack everything with that mentality, you will be successful and happy with the result, even if that result isn't exactly what you thought it was when you got started.

~ Eric Cressey



The goal of any weight loss program should be to be happy with, and proud of, your body- Not to hit some predetermined arbitrary number.

 ~ Brad Pilon

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Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The "I Love Carbs" Nutrition Plan

If you're a person who hates restrictive low-carb diets, I have great news for you. Craig Ballantyne's Simple Nutrition System guarantees you'll be able to enjoy lots of carbs and still dump excess fat.

Plus, you'll get his 31 Blender Drink, Smoothie, and Post-Workout shake recipes to fuel your metabolic fire. (I don't know why he calls it "31" recipes when it actually contains 43. Maybe those wacky Canadians count differently than Americans. ;-) )

I know how confusing it can be with all the different "experts" saying you have to eat a certain way to discard excess fat. But Craig is dedicated to helping simplify your nutrition program so that it's easy (and delicious) to follow for fat loss.

He knows what he's talking about. C.B.stays at 9-10% body fat year round, enjoying every meal and eating plenty of carbs.

So, not only will you get proven fat loss advice (his system is backed by clinical scientific research) but this program also takes the stress out of eating. It's so simple...even Craig's dog, Bally, uses the plan to get his six pack abs. :-)  (Yes, a vet actually told Craig his dog has six pack abs).

Let's be honest; we need simple. You may lose weight following a complicated, restrictive diet but are you going to continue eating that way for the rest of your life? Most likely, no. Then you're back where you started, probably even heavier because you binged on all the foods you weren't allowed to eat.

So, get ready to discover...
  • The Simple Nutrition Rules for fat loss 
  • The top 3 food myths that everyone gets wrong in their diet 
  • The 7-step detox diet plan (no zany detox methods required) 
  • Craig's grocery list and meal plan 
  • 43 blender drink, smoothie, and post-workout recipes 
Best of all? You get all of that for just $7. No, that's not a typo. Craig has put his Simple Nutrition System on sale for just $7 until Wednesday (July 25th) at midnight.

$7? You can spend that much on a cup of coffee.

So, don't wait. Click here to get the Simple Nutrition System & Fat Loss Recipes ==>
 Craig Ballantyne's Simple Nutrition System

Remember, this crazy special price is good only until tomorrow at midnight so don't wait to check it out.

P.S. - If you are sick and tired of confusing and complex diets, you need to stop the insanity and switch to the Simple Nutrition for Fat Loss System. Your results are guaranteed by Craig's 100% money back promise.

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Sunday, July 22, 2012

The Truth About The New Weight Loss Drug

I was disappointed that the FDA recently approved another weight loss drug. Reading the information on this medication, I found out that it was rejected in 2010 because its use resulted only in "modest weight loss". I planned on writing a blog post about it but haven't had time so when I ran across this article by "The Rogue Nutritionist", Jonny Bowden, I wanted to pass it along.

This situation reminds me so much of the hoopla around Xenical / Alli. Besides the health implications, I'm still baffled that people are/were willing to spend that much money to achieve an additional 1/2-1 pound average weight loss per month (especially considering the weight was regained after going off the drug). 

Anyway, read on for Dr. Bowden's assessment of the recently approved drug, Belviq.


Another Weight Loss Wonder Drug, Not!
by Dr. Jonny Bowden - PhD, CNS     

Have you heard of the new weight loss drug, Belviq?

Then gather ‘round, boys and girls, cause we have a rare opportunity to watch sausage being made.

This is the best time to talk about Belviq, because no one’s really heard of it—yet—so we have a chance to talk about what it does and doesn’t do before we’ve been subjected to what will probably be one of the most expensive pharmaceutical marketing campaigns in years. At that point everyone will have heard of Belviq, anyone who is even a few pounds overweight will be asking their doctor about it—(“Ask your doctor if Belviq might be right for you”)—and I will undoubtedly get a gazillion questions about it on the website.

So, as Ed Schultz would sway, “Let’s get to work”.

On June 27, the Food and Drug administration approved a new weight loss drug, lorcaserin, which is made by Arena Pharmaceuticals and marketed under the brand name Belviq. It’s the first time in more than ten years that a weight loss drug has been approved by the agency, so expect everyone to make a really big deal out of that.

Up to now, everything about Belviq has been “behind the scenes”. It was reviewed by the FDA in 2010 and rejected, one because it produced “modest weight loss” and two because there were concerns about a rat study linking the drug to mammary tumors. But Arena came back to the FDA with new data.

The new data—in research sponsored by the manufacturer—showing that 38% of patients had lost 5% or more of their starting weight in a year. Among people taking a placebo, only 16% of patients lost that amount of weight.

OK everyone, let’s do some math.

If you’re 200 pounds and you lose 5% of your weight over the course of a year—commendable, by the way, I’m all for it—you’ve lost all of 10 pounds. In a year. Which, if I remember my elementary school long division, would come to 10 divided by 12 months or a grand total of .83 pounds per month.

That’s decimal point 83, in case you missed it.

Meaning less than one pound per month.

Meaning approximately 4/5 of one pound. Per month.

Am I making myself clear?

Not only that, but 16% of patients were able to lose that much just taking a placebo, meaning that of the 38% of patients on the drug who had these nothing-to-write-home-about results, 16% would have lost the weight on a sugar pill anyway. That means that the actual percentage of patients in the study who achieved these results because of the drug was only 22%.

FDA Committee member and Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado Daniel Bessesen, who voted for approval, said the drug provides “a modest weight loss, and it’s not what we would like.”

No kidding.

Then there are the safety issues. The data shown to the FDA fell just short of the standard the agency sets to rule out an excess risk of valvular heart disease. An increased risk for heart-valve disease was what ultimately caused Fen-Phen to be withdrawn from the market.

The sausage making part of this story is this: Watch carefully over the next couple of years at how the data on this drug is spun in the sure-to-be spectacular marketing campaign that will be waged on its behalf. These guys are so good at what they do that they will make you forget that their own studies showed only 8/10 of a pound a month weight loss (for a 200 pound patient), and that most people didn’t even achieve that.

And when you’re tempted to give it a try, please remember to come back to this article and read it again.

Four-fifths of one pound a month.

In about 22% of patients. (In other words, 78% didn’t even achieve that!)

With potential safety issues and side effects that generally don’t become well known till a drug has been out in the market for a while (i.e. Vioxx, Fen-Phen.. shall I continue?)

But by the time Big Pharma’s marketing departments get done trumpeting “significant results” and “38% of all patients lost an impressive 5% of body weight” and showing you commercials with happy, slim people running around the beach, you’ll almost be convinced.

Don’t feel bad. I almost bought a thighmaster once. 


Dr. Bowden is a nationally known expert on weight loss, nutrition and health. He's a board certified nutrition specialist with a Master's degree in psychology and the author of five books including The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth and The Most Effective Cures on Earth.

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