10 Tactics to Try When Your Workouts Aren’t Working Out

It’s 7:00 in the morning.  The sun hasn’t quite risen yet, but you can see the first rays of light peeking over the horizon.  I’m on the beach with my partners-in-crime planning the Saturday morning boot camp.  We’re setting up equipment that you have probably never seen in a gym.  Sand bags, a large rope, a black strap with loops for handles … these will be our tools.  The workout is grueling, fun, and full of variety.

Aliens, Corruption, and Weight Loss

Inflammation: How to cool the fire inside you

Up the Down Escalator: 5 Steps to Simplifying Your Weight Loss

There’s a machine called a stepmill in my gym, and millions of gyms around the country.  It’s a piece of cardio equipment that continuously cycles through steps that you have to climb.  I was on this machine for 40 minutes, during which time I had an interesting revelation.  First of all, let me explain that I hate that machine, but I do it anyway because I like the results I get from it.  As I endured step after grueling step, I started thinking about how the machine is actually kind of a metaphor for the way most people (maybe even you) try to lose weight.

What excuses?

Way to go Nicole!

Check this out ...  I got a call from Nicole (a former camper) who tells me she is down to 203.  Read on to see why this is so impressive!

The mother of all antioxidants

Dax Moy's Lies Report

For those of you who want to read the report that inspired the conference call I posted yesterday, here it is.

Resolutions, Really?

Physics or motivation ... you decide!

In terms of reaching a goal, I remember something I heard once that helps to keep me going in the face of adversity.

Whenever you accelerate in your car (or a roller coaster, or anything that can accelerate quickly), the law of inertia tries to keep us in the same place. 

Motivation

Strategic Fitness: How to Avoid the “Frankenprogram” Syndrome

Act I Scene I: Fade in on a woman exercising in a gym.  She is working vigorously on an elliptical machine.  Her breathing is heavy and slightly audible.  Droplets of sweat have formed on her face, neck, and shoulders. 

Cut to the weight room.  We see the woman sitting at a chest press machine completing a set.  We can hear a “clank” as she allows the weight stack to rest after the final repetition of her workout.  She exits the machine leaving a vague sweat imprint.

Cut to the locker room.  The woman is seen exiting the shower area wrapped in a towel.  The camera perspective changes to her point of view.  A doctor-style scale comes into focus.  The scene is silent, except for the sound of a strong heart beat.  Still in first-person perspective, the woman approaches the scale, the sound of the heart beat becoming more intense.  Change to a close up of the woman’s ankles.  We see the towel drop to the floor...

Read the rest of this article, and much more on the CFS Fitness & Weight Loss Camp Blog.

You know what "they" say ...

So there you are.  

You've worked up the motivation to go to the gym. 

You've packed your gym bag ... your water bottle, your workout towel, your headband (it's okay, I'm not judging!)

You've shown spartan self-discipline at the kitchen table. 

You're ready to walk out the door and show this workout who's boss, when it happens.

Funny video on the cardio debate

Here's a video created by Scott Tousignant. His blog is called the fat loss quickie. Enjoy!



Here's his original blog post.

Honest-to-Goodness Fitness Results

If you’ve ever experienced a failed attempt at weight loss you know the frustration that comes with it.  You’re in good company.  In a country where more than 2/3 of the population is either overweight or obese, and where as many as 80% are trying to lose weight at any given time, I think it’s time for a mindset shift.  

Read more on the CFS Fitness & Weight Loss Camp Blog...

The "I Want To Quit" Zone

We've all been there ... that place where we can't imagine continuing to push ourselves any further ... that place where every second feels like pure torture.  Somehow we find a way to convince ourselves to carry on, but there are times where we just can't seem to push through it, no matter how much negotiating we do. 

This, my friends, is what I like to call the "I Want to Quit" Zone. 

Another story to combat quitting ...

One night, two frogs left the safety of their swamp and ventured into a nearby farm to explore.  They soon found themselves in a dairy.  Hopping and jumping around (frogs will be frogs, after all), they jumped into a milk pail half full of cream.

At first, they were both thrilled.  They had never tasted anything so delicious!  They drank and drank.  Soon (after some contended frog belches followed by much giggling) they were both full-bellied and getting just a bit sleepy.  “Time to get out of here and head back to the swamp for some shut-eye,” burped the first frog.

But there was a problem.  They’d had no trouble hopping in … but how to hop out?  The inside of the pail was too slippery to climb, and there was nothing on which they could place their feet for traction to get up a good hopping distance … or any hopping distance at all.

The awful reality dawned on them: they were trapped.

Frantic, they began to thrash about, their little frog feet scrabbling for a foothold on the elusive, slippery curve of the pail’s edge.

Finally, the second frog cried out, “It’s no use!  We’re doomed, my brother!  Let us save what dignity we have left and die here like frogs, with our eyes facing our homeland!”

The first frog cried out to stop him.  “No!  We should never give up!  When we were tadpoles, which of us would ever have dreamed that some day we would emerge from the water and hop about on land?  Swim on, and pray for a miracle!”

The second frog eyed his brother sadly and said, “There are no miracles in the life of a frog, brother.  Farewell.”  And so saying, he turned his face in the direction of the swamp, gave a sigh, and slowly sank out of sight.

But the first frog refused to give up.

He continued to swim.  He swam and swam in ridiculous, pointless, useless, futile circles, hoping against hope for a miracle.  Fired by adrenaline, he paddled mightily … yet his brother’s dying words clutched at his thoughts, even more insidious than the growing fatigue that tugged at his weakening muscles.  Was my brother right? He thought desperately.  Am I a fool?  Are there no miracles in the life of a frog? 

Finally, he could swim no more … and with a great cry of anguish, he stopped paddling and let go, ready to face his fate like a frog.

But something odd then happened … or rather, didn’t happen.  He didn’t sink.  He just sat exactly where he was.  Ever so tentatively, he stretched out a foot … and felt it touch something solid.

He heaved a big sigh, both sad and grateful, said a silent farewell to his drowned brother, then scrambled up on top of the big lump of butter he had just finished churning …

… and hopped out of the pail and off to the swamp, alone but alive.

-Author Unknown

Turkey Day!!!!

Turkey Day!!!!  Happy Thanksgiving to our US friends -- and everybody else, happy November 25th!  Well, hopefully you've worked hard enough these past couple of months to indulge a little without feeling guilty.  There's nothing wrong with letting loose on special occasions, as long as 355 of the 365 days in a year aren't considered "special!"  There's nothing wrong with going a little overboard two or three days out of the year.  For a lot of people, those days are Christmas, Thanksgiving, and their birthday.  In my case, my birthday falls on Thanksgiving this year, so I only get two days to go nuts!

Enjoy your day and feel free to post a comment telling everybody what you are thankful for!

Bring It!!!!

Have you ever done a workout where, when you finished, you felt like you gave a less-than-stellar performance? Hey, we've all been there. So, have you wasted an hour? Should you go beat yourself up about it? Should you give up and go eat a cheese cake? No to all three!

Here's my "Dagwood" method of fitness success.

What are the chances they will make it?

The International Union of Closet Dwellers recently held a huge meeting where they discussed their biggest (and only) issue.


Read More...

Holiday Weight Loss?

With the holidays approaching quickly, it is pretty commonplace for our weight loss efforts to take a back seat. With heightened stress levels and temptations at every turn, it's no wonder why we statistically gain between five and nine pounds over the typical holiday season.

Never fear ... you can beat that statistic. With a little bit of preparation and dedication, you can be toasting 2011 without needing to make a resolution to lose weight.

Follow my plan and you'll already be on your way to a slimmer new year.

Day Five of the Self Esteem Project

Last night was the final day of the project.  I did a repeat of the previous night.  I took an inventory of the features and attributes that I like about myself.  Spoke to my reflection and capped it off by saying "I love you" and holding eye contact.  I actually do feel better about myself.  It's pretty cool.  I like myself a little bit more.  I've determined that I'm the kind of person I want to hang out with.  That's good, considering I'm always with myself!  So, now it's your turn.  A few people chimed in on the post where I announced my challenge, but nobody has kept up with it.  So I'm reissuing the challenge:  Spend some quality time with your reflection each day for a week.  Identify some features that you like about yourself.  Reinforce the goodness and attractiveness that you possess.  You might just discover that you actually like yourself!

Until next time, my dear readers ...

Day Four of the Self Esteem Project

So, last night I was looking in the mirror, and I drew a blank.  I couldn't seem to find any new qualities to tell you guys about.  It was really kind of bugging me.  I would have nothing to blog about, then I would be exposed as a fraud, and I'd be kicked out of the personal trainer's union.  Okay, there's no union, but the thought really did bother me that I couldn't come up with a single trait to blog about. 


Then it occurred to me.  Why am I stressing out over something that's supposed to be a positive experience.  I don't have to have a thousand great qualities.  A few will suffice just fine.  So the next time you're failing to see new good qualities, just go back and take inventory of your old ones.  There's no expiration date on good qualities (maybe that's up for debate, but it's a cool way to close the blog post!)

Day Three of the Self Esteem Project

So, last night I was staring at myself in the mirror, as is quickly becoming customary (not really, it's still pretty uncomfortable).  I was telling my reflection that I was proud of myself for doing this challenge.  Then, a sudden panic came over me as I recalled a memory from a Jack Canfield book.  He described a very similar task as what I'm doing and asking you all to join in on.  The one big difference is that he ended his mirror session by saying "I love you" to himself.  It's weird enough to say it to someone else (yeah, I have issues), but to tell myself was just downright embarrassing!  But I rationalized that I needed to put myself outside of my comfort zone for the entire week, and this would be a great way to step up my proverbial game.  So, I said it.  It was even stranger than I had anticipated.  I couldn't even hold eye contact with myself.  It was an interesting experience all around.  I think tonight, I'll try to say it and maintain eye contact.

By the way, my cheekbones are kind of cool and I have an amazing nose!  It's really kind of cool because it's kind of angular except the very end, where it gets round!  I guess I'm also appreciative that my ears don't stick out any further than they do.  I know that's kind of a back-handed compliment, but I just came to the realization that, sure they stick out, but I've seen a lot worse (Not that there's anything wrong with that!  That's just the reaction I had last night.).

Day Two of the Self-Esteem Project

So last night's mirror experience was all about the hair line, which has been a great source of insecurity for me since I was about 12 (that's when the hairline started retreating).  I've always kind of looked at it as something I hated, but as I was looking at it last night, I kind of started to see that it gives me some character.  I looked back at some old pictures to "compare the hair."  I think I still would prefer my old hairline, but I took a definite step in the right direction last night.

Next issue:  I started talking to myself last night -- in a healthy way.  I made sure my wife wouldn't hear me.  (I'm not quite ready to tell her what I'm doing, but I probably will after all is said and done.  I don't need the pressure of her listening in!)  I started telling myself some of the things I'm proud of about me.  I talked about my Master's degree, my family, my job, and how I influence lives (That last one was tough for me to put on the post.  There may just be someone reading this who doesn't think I influence lives, but I think I do!)

So there's the breakdown.  I hope you are getting some inspiration out of this.

Day One of the Self-Esteem Project

Okay, so if you read the last post, you know what this is all about. If you haven't seen it yet, you can read all about it here: http://corefitnesssolutionblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/you-are-what-you-hate.html

So last night (Monday), I gave myself a good look-over, and here's what I found:

1) I really like my eyes. I know that's kind of an easy one, but I really do like them. The color, the shape, the spacing. The more I looked at them, the more I liked what I saw.

2) The little divot (called a cleft) in my chin is kind of charming. Given the choice, I think I'll keep it!

3) The overall structure of my face is pretty nice. Things seem to be in the right place, the general shape is good, and nothing seems too out of proportion.

Of course, I'd be lying if I said that I didn't notice anything negative, but I'm not going to dwell on that at the moment, so you don't get to know what I found that I didn't like!

I felt a little weird doing the exercise, but overall, I think it was pretty positive. Tonight, I'm going to actually try talking to my reflection and tell it things that I like about myself.

(Note - make sure that anyone living with you knows what you're doing if you want to avoid the awkward stares from your family!)

More tomorrow!

You Are What You ... Hate?

A source of inspiration from the most unlikely source ...

Years ago, I was reading the newspaper - yes, before you could get all of your news on the internet - and I saw an interview somebody did with "Bobcat" Goldthwait, the really weird guy from the Police Academy movies. I know your impression of me just dropped a couple of notches, but it was a time in my life when stuff like that appealed to me!

Anyway, they quoted him in the article as saying, "You are what you hate."

Click Here to read the rest of this article...

All done? Good.

Now I'm going to go waaaayyyyy out on a limb and do the challenge for all the world (or at least all who read this) to see. Every day through Saturday, I'm going to post on this blog 2-5 traits that I find attractive about myself as well as my experiences with this project and I want you to do likewise in the comments section below.

Here are the apprehensions I foresee myself having:

1) That I will appear vein
2) That I won't see anything worth posting about
3) That the appearance of my "high self esteem" will crumble
4) That you might think it's easy for me because I don't have 50-100 lbs to lose

Now these thoughts are relatively irrational, but they are still thoughts that are going through my mind. Below, in the comments section, I want you to post your pledge to join me on this challenge along with your apprehensions.

Just think, that whole post was inspired by "Bobcat" Goldthwait. Who would have thought that such a weird guy could have taught me such a profound life lesson?

Doug Working Out

Have you failed? You're in good company!

7 Principles of Fat Burning - Book Review

Fitness Tech Tools

Just for fun ...

Commitment

You no longer have any excuses to wimp out on your workouts ...

Doug catches a beat down from ... Chelsea

I hate to admit defeat. I mean I really HATE it. So it comes as no small feat that I'm admitting being beaten ... by Chelsea.

Check out the video to see what I mean ...

Doug Was Fat?!?!

Inspirational story of the Rocky Movie

10 Minute Drill

The 10 minute drill is an intense workout that will keep you working for an entire 10 minutes, as opposed to all the resting done in a typical workout.

Click here to read the full article...

Mental Prep Work

Things people say that keep them fat ...

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that most seekers of weight loss and fitness who fail to get a result do so because they sabotage themselves.  There are about a thousand ways we can do it, but they mostly involve the conversations we have in our heads. 

Levels workout

Here's an interesting workout I came up with a couple of months ago. It starts out relatively easy, but gets harder with each level (hence the name "Levels").

Click to check it out.

Try this out and let me know how you did. Post your comments below.

Accountability Call

The next time you feel like you want to quit ...

This is an awesome clip from a movie called Facing the Giants. It has a great message.

Doug becomes a financial planner ???

So, lately I've been throwing down a lot of new concepts that are -- let's just say "not mainstream."  I don't want to leave anyone with the impression that I am bucking the system or going rogue, so I wrote this blog post to give you an idea of how these newer concepts fit into my philosophy.

Let’s momentarily leave the world of weight loss, a subject where I am considered by many to be an expert.  Instead, let’s discuss a subject that I’m nowhere near qualified to talk about – Money!

Tabata Complex

Here's a great workout for you.  It's quick (literally 16 minutes long -- if you can make it to the end!), it's intense, it should burn a lot of calories (both during and after the workout) and it should kick your fat-burning hormones into high gear.  I call it the Tabata Complex.  Let me start by explaining each part, then I'll explain how I combined them. 

Complexes are a form of continuous resistance exercise.  I like to call them "hybrid" workouts or "resistance cardio" because they seem to encompass both modalities and fit nicely into neither one!  The concept of a true complex is to pick a few (4 to 8) exercises that you can do with the same amount of weight.  Typically these will be done with a bar, but dumbbells, bands, kettlebells, and body weight works also.  Next, pick a target.  Choose a number of repetitions or a set amount of time for each exercise.  Start your complex and move from one exercise to the next without taking a break or even setting down the weight.  When you've finished all of your exercises, then you can take a break.  Repeat as many times as your body will allow.

The Tabata Protocol was developed by Japanese researcher Isumi Tabata.  He experimented with speed skaters a number of years ago and concluded that they had all sorts of improvements (strength, speed, endurance, etc) by doing these specialized intervals.  In the protocol, you are supposed to pick an exercise and do it at maximal intensity for 20 seconds.  You then rest for 10 seconds and repeat 7 more times for a total of 8 rounds.  Here's the clincher: the workout only lasts 4 minutes.  One group known as Crossfit has taken the Tabata Protocol to even more of an extreme by creating other workouts called "Tabata This," "Tabata That," and "Tabata Something Else."  In these variations, you do multiple Tabata drills, each with its own exercise, with a minute of rest in between.  You can find a convenient Tabata timer at www.beach-fitness.com/tabata

Finally, my spin on the two workout modes is to combine them into one workout.  If we apply the complex concept to the Tabata Protocol, we end up with 4 exercises, each done for 20 seconds with a 10 second rest before going on to the next movement.  Twice through the series is equivalent to one full Tabata.  The full version of the Tabata Complex would be 8 rounds of each exercises (32 total rounds, 4 full Tabatas, and 15:50 total time -- 16 if you count the last rest period).

I leave you to your own devices to choose your own exercises, but don't wimp out and choose easy stuff.  Pack on the most difficult moves you can stand.  Try to use different parts of the body (i.e. choose a leg exercise, a pushing exercise, a pulling exercise, and a core exercise or a full body exercise).  The more joints you can move at once, and the greater distance you can move a weight, the better!

Post to the comments the movements you used and your experience with this workout.

Hybrid Muscle????

Follow me on flashback to my undergraduate years, won’t you?  

In school, we used to talk incessantly about different muscle fiber types.  Muscle fibers are muscle cells, known as fibers because of their long, string-like appearance.  

There are three basic types (some scientists claim more, but for our discussion, three will suffice).  

An extreme vision of success ...

This guy is pretty extreme, but he sure makes a lot of sense, doesn't he? Post your comments below and tell me what you think.

Setting the Stage: Creating the right hormonal envronment for weight loss

(Note to reader: I've started this blog post over at least 4 or 5 times.  Every time I write it, I end up deleting what I've just written because it becomes too technical -- aka "boring and confusing."  I'm trying to take a very complicated topic (one that makes grad students curl up in the fetal position) and break it down into some practical advice for you. So I decided to start with the practical tips and "sprinkle" the gobbledygook over the top of it.  Let's see how I did!)

Read The Evolution of Weight Loss Here

There are my top 9 tips for creating a fat-burning hormonal environment.  There is still much to learn about this topic.  You can research it further on your own, but this should be a good start.

Inefficiency of Cardio Conditioning

Here's a video that throws a monkey wrench into the mainstream thinking about fat loss and aerobic exercise. Officially, it's not the stance taken by Core Fitness Solution, but he sure makes a lot of sense. Tell us what you think in the comment section below.

I'll post more tomorrow about hormones and the effect exercise has on them.