JOESBLOG.FITTERSTRONGERFASTER.COM
Working The Physical and Mental
Hey all,
Hope you all had a great weekend, and you are preparing for a bit of a break over the Easter break.
This is kind of what I wanted to talk about today....the issue of losing motivation during different times throughout the year. This can be anything at all, can be coming up to holiday periods, or having a bad day or even just for no reason at all we lose some motivation.
Yesterday was a good example of this for me. We all have days were dont go our way. So yesterday some events happened that got me pretty irate....and for those of you know me that it takes a lot to get under my skin and get me a little angry.....so I was already not in the best mood.
It would have been easy to let this get the better of me, but I wasnt going to let it.
So I headed for a hard work out.....I am just about to hit it hard and I get a phone call which pretty much made my blood boil....things were definately going my way yesterday....so as easy it was to just admit that I wasnt going to work out, I took the anger and frustration of the day and hit the workout harder than i have for a long time....the problems of the day was a blessing in disguise! I pushed harder than I had for a long time.
And this is point that I am trying to make about working out. It does take hard work...but it also takes a strong mind to keep pushing when you dont want to. You will always feel better after the workout when you finish...I will guarantee that...but you got to keep your head about you ALL the time.
So when things seem to be getting hard, take all the issues that are getting to you and use it as your motivation to do one of your best workouts!
You will be amazed at how great you will feel after you have finished the workout.
Some people think that the key to getting good results is just hard work....well that is partly true. You also need the strong mind to go with it.
Not just for the reason of what I talked about, but also after you have been doing this for a while, your results dont come as quickly or as often as you would like and this is when your mental attitude will need to take over to keep pushing yourself to disregard what is going on and just keep going and going and believe that you will get past the "stale period" and will get the results again soon and then all the motivation will come back.
Ok time for me to share something that I know that I am going to get paid out about, but hey its funny and it keeps me going at times.
If anyone is into animated movies (I love them, but I use the excuse that I watch them with my son). Well one movie I like is "Finding Nemo"....if you have watched this a few million times like I have, then you will know that there is a scene where they go "Just keep swimming..Just keep Swimming...Just keep Swimming". Well this is what I say to myself in my head sometimes when I need the extra motivation to keep going through the workout. Check out the scene at the bottom for those of you that havent seen it before...or just need a reminder....
It doesnt always have to be something about training...it can be as silly as that...as long as it gets you going!
No go and find your motivation and hit the workouts hard....ALL the time!
Lookout For Workouts...Anywhere, Anytime!
Hi All,
Most people, would see it and go "well maybe another time".....but seriously, if you dont take advantage of it you are never going to do it.
Well I have been away for a little bit on a relaxing family holiday to Kangaroo Island. Was great break away, and we all had a fun.
Something that I, and my wife as well, are doing is that we will always be on the lookout for a workout when away.
Lets face it, if you have been to Kangaroo Island before, you will know that there isnt anywhere that you can go to have a workout. But as I keep preaching, you all know that I am a big fan of doing outdoor workouts and using your bodyweight.
So here was the deal.....we were driving along the highway and we passed this lookout called Prospect Hill. We both looked at each other and said "now that would be a good workout". Not that we were out to do a workout, but we couldnt miss the opportunity.
So turned the car around, and off we went. You can see by the picture that it is a fairly steep climb.
The great thing about this was that not only was it a steep climb, but the stairs were not the greatest and you really had to test your mental awareness as well.....which was great. So you would get tired, but you still had to be mentally on the ball so you didnt let your feet slip through the steps!
All in all it was a great workout. And it was something that was done on the cuff and not planned.
This is something that you should always be on the lookout for! This is what is going to keep you better than the rest. This is what will make you get your results quicker than others. This is what people who succeed do.....they see an opportunity and take it.
Most people, would see it and go "well maybe another time".....but seriously, if you dont take advantage of it you are never going to do it.
So guys, always be on the lookout on when your next workout will be.....because chances are the most unexpected workouts are the ones that will be the most fun and challenging.
Until Next Time,
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
The "F" Word
Well you may be thinking that I am talking about a "bad F" word, but not really.
What I am talking about is FITNESS. To some that can be a very misguided and misunderstood word.
So what is fitness? Is basically all about looking good, or is it about being fit for a particular sport or something else?
Well I can tell you that it definately is not just about looking good and muscly that is for sure. If that were the case, then bodybuilders would be the fittest people on the planet....and if anything they are the most unfit people on the planet! If you know me well or have been following my blogs, you will know what my position is on bodybuilding...if not go through some older posts and you will find out....basically I am not a fan and body builders are the most functionally weak and unfit people around.
Anyway, so what do I believe that if real fitness? Do i believe that an olympic athelete is fitness and has a high level of fitness? Well yes and no.
No question that athletes are extremely fit, but they are specifically fit for their sport. For eg, lets just take a swimmer...sure they have a great aerobic capacity, but on the other hand they do not also posses real strength as they spend so much time in the water. Or on the end of the scale, what about the 100m olympic sprinter...now here is a person that has a tremoundous fitness that involves strength and explosive power....but they have no endurance. So what should we be doing?
Well if I had to put my opinion on any particular occupation or sport that would have the best fitness, I would be saying something like a SAS soldier or firefighter. These are the types of occupations that they need to be fit for anything. They need to be strong, but they also need to be explosive and fast, but they also need to have an endurance that can see them keep working hard and keeping a mental alertness for very long periods of time. And to make it harder, they usually have to do all this up while wearing loads of heavy equipment.
So this is what I believe is real fitness. Real fitness is a fitness level that can see you undertake any challenge that is thrown at you.
Ok so you may not be the fastest person in the world, or the strongest....but you will definately be able to survive anything that lifes situations throw at you.
And how do we get this fitness? Well if you are a member at my gym, you wouldnt be asking that question because you are already doing it. But if not, you should be doing lots of body weight movements, full functional strength work, combined with aerobic and anaerobic conditioning.
In essence, if you cant run, squat, do push ups, or pull ups....then dont even think that you are close to being fit or strong.
So next that pretty boy guy starts bragging that he can bench press 200kgs, ask him to do just 2 or 3 pull ups...and then you will see how strong he really is! I will bet just about anything that he cant do more than 1...if that!
Oh and if you think that this type of fitness is just reserved for SAS soldiers or firefighters, then you are wrong. Everyone needs to be ready for anything that may get thrown at them in life!
So go and take your workouts hard and become the fittest you possibly can!!
Until next time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
When Something Great Can Be Bad!
Well if you have been following me for any period of time or even better you are one of my clients, you will know that I am a big fan of Kettlebells.
For the uninitiated, these things are basically cast iron balls with a handle which will wreck you in no time flat....but they are great fun and one of the ultimate tools for fitness, fat loss, muscle gain, aerobic capacity, strength, conditioning etc; yep this one little thing can do all that.
So I have been using these before anyone knew about them...back in the days when it was hard to find a distributor to buy them through in Australia.
Now they are becoming popular. People are realising how effective these things are! You would think that I would be happy that more and more people are embracing the kettlebell...well to be honest yes and no. There is something that is really annoying me at the moment (well for a while now), about this new found popularity of the kettlebell.
This is basically the fact that every trainer is now going out there and training their clients with them, trying to make themselves look like they really do know what they are on about and that they are "really good" at training people.
The truth is, that it takes A LONG TIME to master the kettlebell. Hell I have been doing this for the best part of 10 years and I am still learning.....yet these "so called trainers" think that they can spend 20minutes watching another "so called expert" on youtube and think that they are experienced enough to teach other people...and think that they are "cool"
Trouble is, I struggle to find really good instruction of kettlebell use on youtube and the internet....there is not a lot of it around. The worst part is that big name trainers, such as the ones that appear on the biggest loser shows, are seen using kettlebells. Problem is that they have such poor technique that it is a wonder that they havent done any real serious damage to anyone yet (well that we know of)
And then there is all the fitness manufacturers getting in on the act and making kettlebells look "pretty", so they can sell them to the "pretty boy" gyms and make a bucket load of money!
Hey kettlebells werent designed to look pretty! They were designed to be effective, and all these new manufacturers wouldnt know how to build a kettlebell if they had Pavel himslef (the god of kettlebells) instructing them.
If you havent already gotten the hint, this really pi****s me off to no end. It takes year of practice to master the kettlebell, let alone to teach the technique of it.
Lets get one thing straight here...kettlebell training is not a new concept....although if you look through all the fitness magazines, gyms etc; they will say differently. Kettlebells have been around longer than you or I have been training, so dont think that this is a new way of training....in fact, the training has had to be "toned down" from how the real men and women train with them because the mass public would not be able to handle the intensity of full kettlebell workouts.
So this is the issue i have. Too many wanna be trainers out there looking for the next best thing to try and make them look good. The other problem is that too many people dont know the difference...so ask yourself, if you have been training in kettlebell training, where are you getting your techniques and methods from?
If it is from the internet...this is a big no no and you will be injured very soon.
If it is from a trainer who looks as though they havent even matured properly, well the above thing will happen to you as well.
It is the same with anything people. If you want the best training, you need to find the best and be willing to pay for it!
It is frustrating the hell out of me seeing all these people get on the kettlebell bandwagon who have no right to be there! Hell I have seen people on the internet offering kettlebell certification, and they cant even do a swing properly....where the hell are they getting their certification??
Just because someone says they are a guru, doesnt mean that they are. Find out for yourself.
And if you do find someone who is really good at kettlebell training, your results will skyrocket like you wouldnt believe!
Ok thats enough ranting from me for now....I am sure I will have more to say soon about something else that I will need to get off my chest!
Until next time
Train Hard, but Train Smart
Joe
What Inspires Me?
Hey All,
"A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy.
"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
"One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, self-doubt, and ego.
"The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.
"This same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather,
"Which wolf will win?"
The old chief simply replied,
"The one you feed."
I know that I have written about things to motivate you in your fitness goals, but someone asked me a question not long ago which I wanted to share with you all.
The question was "what do I use to inspire me?" Thats a good question because it made me realise that I havent shared what I use to motivate me. So what is it? Well it is a combination of things.
I obviously have a handful of fitness guru's who I admire and learn a lot from. These guys inspire me all the time to achieve the best knowledge I can and to deliver the absolute best training methods to all of you who read my blogs and train with me.
Then there is always the inspiring story of famous people who overcome adversity to achieve their goals. Some of them are:
Sylvester Stallone
Muhammed Ali
Lance Armstrong
Oprah Winfrey
Rodney Dangerfield
Michael Jordan
Henry Ford
Colonel Sanders (Yes the KFC Guy)
There are a whole heap more, but this is a start of my top list. If you dont know the stories of these people, go and google them and read their stories. All of these people could have quit at any time as they had adversity given to them time and time again, but they just kept on going and pursuing their dream....No matter what life threw at them!
Then there is something else that truly inspires me. And that is the every day person just getting over their own problems to get on with life and working for their dreams.
This could be anything from raising a family on welfare and still having a positive attitude and raising their children with positivity and moral values. Or it could be the person who overcomes a terminal illness, or watching the kid in the park practicing his footy skills with his dad with the dream that one day he will be the best! This sort of stuff inspires me the most, and it is because it is all done behind closed doors...they dont have the world watching them and willing them on, they dont have fans, they dont have millions of people telling them how great they are....but they do what is right and they use their inner belief to achieve the extraordinary and knowing that no one will really ever know the massive achievement that they achieved.
Then there are a whole heap of quotes I love to go over and over that get me going all the time. So here are some of my favourite quotes
"If you think that you can or you think that you cant, either way you are right"
"To be extraordinary you have to do what the ordinary will not do"
"What the mind can conceive and believe it can achieve"
"Getting knocked down is a setup for a comeback"
"A real decision is measured by the fact that you have taken new action. If there is no action then you havent truly decided"
"Success is something you attract by the person you become"
"Losers quit when they are tired, winners quit when they have won"
"Pain is temporary, It may last a minute, an hour, a day or a year, but eventually it will subside. If I quit then it will last forever"
Finally I cant end this without saying that my wife (Jo) inspires me every day. She lives her life by her values and there has not been a day she has steered away from this. She is passionate about her family, her beliefs, her goals and life. She is a real person that will never go against what she believes in, no matter what....and with that I want to leave with you a an old parable which I came across a long time ago and have just rediscovered it again.
An
old Cherokee chief was teaching his grandson about life...
"A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy.
"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
"One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, self-doubt, and ego.
"The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.
"This same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather,
"Which wolf will win?"
The old chief simply replied,
"The one you feed."
So there you have it. That is what inspires me.
So I want to know what inspires you and leave comments on what does and what some of your favourite quotes are.
Until next time
Train Hard, but Train Smart
Joe
Get This and You Will Succeed!
Hi All,
Last week I posted about some tips for getting real success in your fitness goals and what to do with your training and nutrition.
A good question I was asked was, "So all I have to do is follow that and I will achieve my goals?"
Well the answer was yes and no. Yes you do have to follow the tips, but no in the sense that the tips given are a waste of time if you dont have the most important part. This is the part that will determine if you will achieve your goals, or get dumped on the curb with so many other people with the intention of doing something about the fitness and health goals.
So what is it? How much is going to cost? Where can I get it? are the usual questions.
Well the good news is that you have had it with you all the time and it wont cost you a cent......I am talking about a determined mind!
Yep thats right people. If you dont have a determined mind you will NEVER and i mean NEVER achieve what you want!
How badly do you want to achieve your goals? That is the question you need to keep asking yourself every single day!
Some people say that they are doing all the right things but not getting their results. They tell me that they are eating right and that they are working out 5 sometimes 6 days a week, but still not getting their results. Once I observe these people I know why they dont achieve their goals.
The reason why they dont is that they quit or give up as soon as the workout becomes a little uncomfortable or they need to push themselves a little more.
Here is something to keep in the front of mind every time you workout. The body is capable of doing about 20x more than the mind thinks it can! What does this mean exactly? Well I am saying that when your mind starts saying "we cant do this anymore, it is hurting too much", that is when you tell your mind to shut the hell up and just get on with it......because the body will be capable of doing more than you could ever imagine! All you need to do is tell your brain to keep quiet and tell it that you are going to push yourself the end limits whether it likes it or not!
So are you at the point where you are wanting to throw up after a work out? No? Well you didnt push hard enough. Are you dripping in sweat after your workout? No? Well you didnt work hard enough. Are you physically incapable of lifting your own limbs let alone a weight? No? well you didnt go hard enough!
We are fast becoming a society of pansies! I know you may disagree but we are. We dont like to feel discomfort, we dont like to feel pain, we dont want to be doubting ourselves...so on and so forth! This is for the weak. This for people that will NEVER achieve what they want! This is for the people that will constantly go on and on about why they cant achieve their goals. You know what? Get out of my way and go and whine to someone else who wants to not achieve their goals.
So to get your results you need to pushing yourself and your mind. This will be an ongoing battle every workout, but if you win the battle, you win the war and you will get the success.
This is everything to achieving your fitness success (and any other success).
Push yourself hard, then go and push a little further! Then you will know what it is to win!!
Make sure you do this every single time you workout.
Till next time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
Last week I posted about some tips for getting real success in your fitness goals and what to do with your training and nutrition.
A good question I was asked was, "So all I have to do is follow that and I will achieve my goals?"
Well the answer was yes and no. Yes you do have to follow the tips, but no in the sense that the tips given are a waste of time if you dont have the most important part. This is the part that will determine if you will achieve your goals, or get dumped on the curb with so many other people with the intention of doing something about the fitness and health goals.
So what is it? How much is going to cost? Where can I get it? are the usual questions.
Well the good news is that you have had it with you all the time and it wont cost you a cent......I am talking about a determined mind!
Yep thats right people. If you dont have a determined mind you will NEVER and i mean NEVER achieve what you want!
How badly do you want to achieve your goals? That is the question you need to keep asking yourself every single day!
Some people say that they are doing all the right things but not getting their results. They tell me that they are eating right and that they are working out 5 sometimes 6 days a week, but still not getting their results. Once I observe these people I know why they dont achieve their goals.
The reason why they dont is that they quit or give up as soon as the workout becomes a little uncomfortable or they need to push themselves a little more.
Here is something to keep in the front of mind every time you workout. The body is capable of doing about 20x more than the mind thinks it can! What does this mean exactly? Well I am saying that when your mind starts saying "we cant do this anymore, it is hurting too much", that is when you tell your mind to shut the hell up and just get on with it......because the body will be capable of doing more than you could ever imagine! All you need to do is tell your brain to keep quiet and tell it that you are going to push yourself the end limits whether it likes it or not!
So are you at the point where you are wanting to throw up after a work out? No? Well you didnt push hard enough. Are you dripping in sweat after your workout? No? Well you didnt work hard enough. Are you physically incapable of lifting your own limbs let alone a weight? No? well you didnt go hard enough!
We are fast becoming a society of pansies! I know you may disagree but we are. We dont like to feel discomfort, we dont like to feel pain, we dont want to be doubting ourselves...so on and so forth! This is for the weak. This for people that will NEVER achieve what they want! This is for the people that will constantly go on and on about why they cant achieve their goals. You know what? Get out of my way and go and whine to someone else who wants to not achieve their goals.
So to get your results you need to pushing yourself and your mind. This will be an ongoing battle every workout, but if you win the battle, you win the war and you will get the success.
This is everything to achieving your fitness success (and any other success).
Push yourself hard, then go and push a little further! Then you will know what it is to win!!
Make sure you do this every single time you workout.
Till next time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
Monday Motivation
Hey all,
I hope you had a great weekend and are ready to tear up the weekend. I know that I am!!
Well I have to admit it but lets keep it to yourself...there are some reality shows I get sucked into and actually enjoy. At the moment I am sucked into American Idol (my wife may tell you a whole heap of others, but she is just trying to embarrass me, so we know that they arent true....dont we 
)
)Anyway, back on to what I wanted to share with you. If you have been watching American Idol you may have heard of a guy called Chris Medina. I am not going to give anything away, but this really touched me (and I dare you to say that it doesnt touch you either!)
To me this is a guy, at only 26 mind you, can conquer anything. He is a real man. When someone asks you next time what a real man is, go and tell them to check out this guy. He is an amazing person, full of integrity, honesty, compassion, love, mental toughness, never say die attitude, commitment etc;
Not only is he an amazing singer, but he has the mental toughness to take on anything in life and win no matter what. Do you have this in you? I really wish that most people could say yes, but people like this are very few and far between. This is a guy you should admire.
Take the passion, the toughness, the integrity, the never say die attitude and the will that this man has got and go and get all of not just fitness goals but also your life goals. Never give in and always stick by what you love....this is what he did.
Watch the video and please leave comments, because we really need more people like this guy!
Until next time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Tips For Success
Something that I get asked ALOT is about the topic of weight loss. Everybody seems to be caught up on how much they weigh and not the real numbers of how your body is composed.
At my gym I do a monthly weigh in of all my clients, but I do this to track their progress and it is also a way of them seeing how they are going and if there are any changes that they need to make to their routine based on what their goals are.
So the first thing that I want to clear up is this definition of weight loss. It has nothing to do with how much you weigh. This is why I hate it so much when people start saying that they lost X amount of kg's on such and such diet.
I dont care that you lost so many kg's on such and such diet (by the way, the word "diet" should be banned as there is no such thing as a good diet program). Tell me how much of that weight you lost is of pure fat? My guess is that with 99% of people who go on diets the amount of fat they lose is not a lot!
What they end up losing is muscle mass, water weight etc; All the things that are important to the body. They body is a very complex thing and it will lose fat as a last resort. It will hang on to it because it can survive on it if you starve the body. This is why it is extremely hard to lose pure body fat.
In my opinion you should be losing body fat, and increasing lean muscle mass. This is what scales should be showing...and not the amount you weigh....because quite frankly I dont give a toss how much someone loses if it is not just pure body fat.
My methods of training are designed to lose just pure body fat and increase lean muscle mass. I would be a lot more impressed if someone said to me that they lost 5% body fat, put on about 5kgs of pure muscle and actually weighed a little heavier....that is a real and great result.
You might think that I am crazy, but I will guarantee you that even though this person may not have actually lost "body weight", their measurements across their body will be a lot smaller than what they were before!
And this is what you want to be achieving. Sure it is hard work, and it is a slower process, but it is a lot more healthier for the body and I will guarantee you that you will feel great....better than the person who says that they lost 5kgs of body weight in the same time....mainly because their loss will be mainly muscle and because of this they will be feeling very tired and weak.....even though they may not admit it!
Ok so how do we do this? Well here are my tips for succeeding in losing body fat while increasing muscle mass.
- Eat only Organic foods as much as possible
- Cut out all refined sugars in your diet
- Cut out all soft drinks and caffeine
- Cut out all alcohol
- Drink LOADS of water. However, you should only be drinking small quantities at one time. You should be sipping water all day.
- Do not eat anything that is processed! That means white breads, white pasta, white salt....basically if it is white and it wasnt grown from the ground then it is BAD!!
- Eat only wholemeal grains only. Basically, the darker the grains the better it is for you.
- Eat EVERY 3 HOURS!! This is a MUST! If you are not eating every 3 hours you will fail in achieving your goals.
- Ensure you are getting a good source of Protein, Carbs and Fats in every meal
- Workout at high intensity at least 3 times a week.....yes this means getting to the gym or at least getting off your butt and doing some intense workouts.
- Invest in someone to show you how to train properly and guide your nutrition as well. They may be expensive, but they are worth it!
Also before I end up I want to try and tell people to stop trying to make excuses for themselves for why they cant do all of this! The best excuse I hear is that "I have to work", "I have to work late", "I was in a meeting all day", "I am tired and had a long day and just want to relax infront of the tv" etc; etc;
I have heard it all before guys. You are kidding yourself if you think that these are valid excuses.
If you think that they are then you are going to become a very unhealthy person and cut short your time on this earth and spending time with the ones that you truly love and value. You want to be fit and healthy so you can enjoy what is important to you.
Let me leave you with something to think about. Have you ever heard of a person who was on their death bed and said "I wished I spent more time at the office" or "I wished I spent more time watching TV"??
Go out and take these tips and achieve all of your health and fitness goals.
Until next time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
Your Body Is NOT a Machine
Hi All,
Well if you have been reading my blog for any length of time you will know my take on the traditional gyms that are out there these days. If not, in short I call them more of "pretty gyms". You know the ones that are all flashy that you would feel guilty if you actually got any sweat on any of the equipment (maybe this is why the people that go there dont actually sweat during their so called workouts!)
Anyway, I cam across an article the other day in which I truly believed in and it has been something that I have been saying (and arguing with lots of people) for years!
This is the issue that exercise machines that you see in the gyms these days do more harm than good.
I have always been a believer (and I have proven this over countless times) that machines will not make you stronger, or fitter, but they will make you weaker in every day movement and also will increase your risk of injury.
So here is the thing, the article I read went into how the scientific experts (the guys and girls who study how the body moves during certain movements) have finally proved that machines basically hinder a persons results. They have proven that they do produce a lot of injuries because these machines put a lot of stress on joints that should never have that amount of stress on them.....and the reason why they have so much stress on them is because they make the body move in a very very unnatural way.
Here is the thing about machines and the new pretty gyms. Basically the gyms these days are getting more and more like a nightclub. They are full of TV's everywhere, the place has to be immaculate and appealing on the eye, all the people in there seem to be wearing the latest fashions in gym gear. The machines all now have TV's, radios, digital displays showing you everything except telling you to stop wasting your time and go do a real workout.
Basically, gyms these days are trying to be more about entertaining people and making them feel like that they are not really working out...which they arent.
Here is the real reason machines are in gyms.
- They make the place look "state of the art" with all the techno gadgets they have on them these days. It makes people think that if they are using state of the art equipment then they must be doing the best workout possible. In reality, these machines do the same thing that the machines from 10 years ago did as well. They just look prettier.
- It enables gyms to get people into the gym and then they push them onto machines so that they dont have to pay much attention to them and they can worry about signing up the next person who they wont care about as soon as they hand over their money. It is a known fact that gyms factor in the fact that only 35% of people that they sign up will attend reguarly. They dont care about the person until the person wants to leave and they no longer are getting their money.
- Machines are self explanatory. This way it enables the baby faced "trainers" and I use that word loosely with majority of these kid trainers who have no experience, to look like that they are training the person. In reality these inexperienced trainers use these machines because they do not have clue on how to properly train themselves let alone their clients.
- It gives people a sense of being stronger than they actually are. This all for the people who love to brag about how much weight they used!
- Make it clear that the machine is either for doing "weights" or "cardio"
These machines can never train the body properly because they isolate the muscles. The body is not designed to work in isolation with itself. It is designed to work in perfect motion with all the other muscles in the body. A machine will NEVER EVER be able to do this. The only thing that can do this is doing full functional training using body weight, free weights, and using other odd objects that create instability within the body so it can train itself to get stronger.
Probably one of the worst machines out there is the leg press. This should actually be banned in my opinion. Not only does it generate an immense amount of force on the knees, back etc; it also gives the illusion to the user that they are really strong.
I have seen people leg press over 200kg. Theoretically is they are that strong they should be able to put 200kg on their back, squat all the way down and then back up again....I guarantee you NO ONE could do this....and since when are you sitting down in a 45degree angle pushing weights with your legs?? Seriously! People who do this exercise are doing it for their ego and nothing else.
These people who leg press hundreds of kgs, cant even squat and press a pair of 20kg kettlbells on their chest. What the?? How strong are they really?
I hate to say it, and this may seem harsh, but these "pretty" gyms are part of the obesity epidemic that we have in this country. They have all fancy equipment that makes you think that you are working out but you are not even breaking a sweat, they are more concerned with the amount of members that they can get money out of, and they sell their gyms by being more of a club or cafe than a real gym. If a member stopped going or wasnt there for a week, they would have no idea at all.
I pride myself in having a gym in whereby I personally know every single person in the gym. I keep my membership numbers small. I know if they miss even 1 session, and more importantly I care if they are not getting their results. I want them to succeed more than they want to succeed sometimes.
My gym has NO machines in it. And it never will. I train my people hard, they sweat ALOT! Its not pretty inside my gym, there is chalk everywhere, equipment that looks like it has been used and not like it has just come out of the box, people flipping tyres or throwing sledgehammers around etc; In short my people work hard and get results...it truly is an inspiration to watch. I still get inspired by the people in my gym, and I doubt that I will stop getting inspired by them.
So people, if you are thinking about joining a gym because it has the latest equipment, or are thinking of buying the latest treadmill because a young guy or girl told you it will get you fitter than you have ever been and will lose weight from it.....DONT! It wont work, I have seen it too often.
Save your money. Find a good trainer...someone who really knows their stuff. Invest your money in good food and nutrition and then you will have all the results and more coming at you quicker than you thought.
So if you just remember one thing.....the body is not a machine, so dont train it on one!
Until Next Time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
Supplements, Diet Pills, Detox...The Real Truth!
Hi All,
Something that you cant really escape at the moment is the huge amount of supplements, or detox diets, or diet pills, or shakes etc;. No matter what you are seeking to achieve, there seems to be a powder, pill or shake that you can take to help you achieve it....all without doing the exercise or eating right.
So what can we make out of all this? Simply it is all crap! And that is putting it nicely.
If you think that taking a pill, or doing a detox or taking some form of shake will help you lose weight, gain muscle, get lean etc; well then you are an extremely delusional person then you may as well stop reading now. Mainly because you dont want to do any hard work and if that is the case I am not sure you are going to like what I have to say next.
Firstly, all these "wonder products" come with a disclaimer of "must be used with a healthy diet and regular exercise"...well derr....that is because the product does nothing and by doing regular exercise and eating right is what you need to do to get any results.
Well what about the detox's or products that flush you out so you lose weight. Well yes, your body weight will go down....mainly because of the crap that is in these things makes you scared to be more than a metre from a toilet. What you are losing is just liquid and muscle, believe it or not the fat in your body will stay....mainly because this is what the body can survive on if you starve it from proper nutrition. So while your body weight may be a few kilos lighter, are you really healthy? Do you really know what that orange stuff you just put in your body is doing to you?
Oh and there is another one that claims to fill up your stomach with some sort of absorbent type foam or something so you dont feel hungry and dont eat as much. Seriously? Are we supposed to buy this? Are we really that stupid?
This would be the same as putting some polly filla down your throat. And then not eating is ridiculous, because how are you supposed to get all the nutrients from good wholesome foods that the body needs?
Then on the other side there are the muscle proteins, all making sure that they have some form of the words steroids, or testosterone, or muscle or some meat head ego word! All claiming to put on lean muscle...seriously, people do you really believe this? All this is going to do is to make you fat...but hey if that is what you want then go ahead and dont let me kill yourself.
So is there anything that I do believe in or promote for healthy well being? Well yes there is.
Due to the type of workouts that I give to my clients and for myself as well, they are intense and they do hit the body hard. Which means that the muscles are taken to their limits and as a result they tear (which is exactly what you want). For this reason I recommend that people take a HIGH QUALITY protein supplement immediately after their workout..and I mean immediately after it! This will help the body with the repair process.
Something that you cant really escape at the moment is the huge amount of supplements, or detox diets, or diet pills, or shakes etc;. No matter what you are seeking to achieve, there seems to be a powder, pill or shake that you can take to help you achieve it....all without doing the exercise or eating right.
So what can we make out of all this? Simply it is all crap! And that is putting it nicely.
If you think that taking a pill, or doing a detox or taking some form of shake will help you lose weight, gain muscle, get lean etc; well then you are an extremely delusional person then you may as well stop reading now. Mainly because you dont want to do any hard work and if that is the case I am not sure you are going to like what I have to say next.
Firstly, all these "wonder products" come with a disclaimer of "must be used with a healthy diet and regular exercise"...well derr....that is because the product does nothing and by doing regular exercise and eating right is what you need to do to get any results.
Well what about the detox's or products that flush you out so you lose weight. Well yes, your body weight will go down....mainly because of the crap that is in these things makes you scared to be more than a metre from a toilet. What you are losing is just liquid and muscle, believe it or not the fat in your body will stay....mainly because this is what the body can survive on if you starve it from proper nutrition. So while your body weight may be a few kilos lighter, are you really healthy? Do you really know what that orange stuff you just put in your body is doing to you?
Oh and there is another one that claims to fill up your stomach with some sort of absorbent type foam or something so you dont feel hungry and dont eat as much. Seriously? Are we supposed to buy this? Are we really that stupid?
This would be the same as putting some polly filla down your throat. And then not eating is ridiculous, because how are you supposed to get all the nutrients from good wholesome foods that the body needs?
Then on the other side there are the muscle proteins, all making sure that they have some form of the words steroids, or testosterone, or muscle or some meat head ego word! All claiming to put on lean muscle...seriously, people do you really believe this? All this is going to do is to make you fat...but hey if that is what you want then go ahead and dont let me kill yourself.
So is there anything that I do believe in or promote for healthy well being? Well yes there is.
Due to the type of workouts that I give to my clients and for myself as well, they are intense and they do hit the body hard. Which means that the muscles are taken to their limits and as a result they tear (which is exactly what you want). For this reason I recommend that people take a HIGH QUALITY protein supplement immediately after their workout..and I mean immediately after it! This will help the body with the repair process.
However outside of this I believe that the rest is just a whole heap of crap. You are wasting your money, and destroying your body in the process.
If you feel like you need to detox or anything like that then that means that you have been abusing your body with your diet and lack of exercise....want to fix it? Get off the couch and exercise and start eating properly!
I still cant believe the amount of people that are looking for a quick fix. There is no quick fix. If you want results then be prepared to work for it.
Here is the harsh reality guys....if you want to lose weight, feel better, etc; then get off your butt and do something about it. Exercise hard...that means working out really hard....not going for a leisurely walk and think that you have done something. And have a healthy diet. Sounds simple doesnt it? Well it is if you just do it.
So if you have any of these types of products in your cupboard at home, go and throw them out and spend your money high quality organic food.....I guarantee you that that will work out better for you.
Until next time
Train Hard but Train Smart
Joe
