move on

·         “You can spend minutes, hours, days, weeks, or even months over-analyzing a situation; trying to put the pieces together, justifying what could’ve, would’ve happened… or you can just leave the pieces on the floor and move the f$%# on.”

·         Tupac Shakur

Being defeated is optional

Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional.

No confidence

·         If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life. With confidence, you have won even before you have started.

Discipline

Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.

Action

·         "Life is too short to waste. Dreams are fulfilled only through action, not through endless planning to take action."David J. Schwartz - Trainer and Author

First step

If you are waiting for a sign, this is it. This is the moment to finally do what you should have done a long time ago. Be courageous, be bold...the future is in your hands.

The Truth About Losing Fat and Getting In Shape

SUMMARY:  Most fat loss plans help you control your food choices and energy intake.  Plus, they get you moving.  But there's one thing many of them ignore.  And that's what separates people who have success and those that don't. You must change your daily Routines and Habits!

THE 5 RULES OF FAT LOSS

Successful fat loss plans have a few things in common. Five, actually. You probably already know what they are, but let’s refresh just in case.

1. Don’t eat so much

In other words, if you’re eating a typical diet, you’re probably eating a bit too much food to lose fat. That’s right, the food you eat that isn’t used by your body for energy and re-building gets stored as fat.

Here’s a simple way to do that: Grab a notebook and write down everything you eat for the next three days. After three days of tracking your food, you’ll have a pretty good idea of how much food you normally eat.

Then all you have to do is replace a few calorie dense foods with calorie dilute foods. Or just trim back your portions a little. Voila. Same amount of food, instant calorie-reduction, no stress.

2. Eat healthy food

Depending on who you ask, “healthy” food can mean different things. But there is one universal truth: More nutrients with fewer calories is a recipe for success.

In general, the best foods are lean meats, vegetables, high-quality fats, and maybe a small amount of starches, depending on your carbohydrate tolerance. The best part about these foods? They’re also fairly low in calories compared to processed stuff.

And for those meals directly after a workout:

What about plant-based eaters? We’ve got them covered too.

3. Move more often

Most people think the only way to lose weight is to work out for 5+ hours per week or go for morning jogs. Fortunately, this isn't true. Taking the stairs, going for a morning bike ride, or walking to lunch instead of driving may seem like small steps, but they make a big impact on how your body feels and how many calories you burn. Of course, this isn’t all you need to become a cover model, but it does kick-start the fat loss process. It also supports rules number four and five.

4. Do strength training a few times per week

To look and feel better and speed up the rate of fat loss, you need to do muscle-preserving exercises like weight-training or bodyweight workouts. They don’t need to be too intense, and they certainly don’t have to take a long time.

The best thing you can do is start slowly and visit the gym two or three times per week. Perform a small circuit of full-body exercises like squats, lunges, rows, and presses. It all takes about 45 minutes.

A word of advise: It’s recommended to get the help of a personal trainer to get a program started (how about asking me : )

5. Do intervals (aka “Cardio”)

If strength training was your muscle-preserving exercise, intervals are your calorie-burning activity. Doing short bursts of work followed by longer periods of recovery helps your body burn a tremendous amount of calories.

To start, all you have to do is get on an exercise bike, treadmill, or other cardio equipment and try the following:

-30 second burst of fast pedaling or running
-60 second recovery of slow pedaling or jogging

That’s one round. Go back and forth between the “intense burst” and “recovery” and repeat that for a total of six rounds.  And that’s it.

THE WRONG WAY TO LOSE FAT

Your behavior. Your habits. What you do every day. The decisions you make — both consciously and unconsciously. But how do you change a habit?

Most people struggle to lose fat because they try to do too much at once. People take an "all or none" approach to their body: They remove all unhealthy foods, go full throttle on exercise, and even try to remove bad habits like not getting enough sleep. After a couple of weeks, those good habits are replaced by withdrawal, frustration, and a belief that you’ll never be able to look the way you want.

It’s heart-breaking because we see it so often. Trying to do too much at once — trying to adopt and change 20+ new habits from the start — never works.

THE RIGHT WAY TO LOSE FAT

Focus on one habit at a time. Mastering it, and then making progress. And by using that approach, you can lose fat faster than ever and get in the best shape of your life.

Alone, these small changes may not look like they’d make much of a difference. But add them on top of one another, practiced daily for a full year, and the results become mind-blowing.

Here are just a few examples of the habits our clients work on over the course of a year.

Take fish oil and a multivitamin. Eat slowly. Work out at least three days per week. Stop eating at 80% full. Eat fewer carbs. Eat veggies and protein with every meal. Do 20 minutes of de-stressing.

No more up and down. No more rebounding. Just a great-looking, great-feeling body and a happier life.

And that’s exactly how you can use our principles to make your own body transformation.

Simply pick one habit — maybe start with one of the ones above — and practice it every day for two weeks.

Don’t worry about trying to follow anything else. Just focus on your habit. 

And after two weeks, pick one more habit to try.

It may seem simple - and it is.  But research shows that simple is the only way to achieve long-term, sustainable results.  And the results do speak for themselves.

 

Life is to Live

·         Life is to live. We are not here to exist or to simply get by, yet we often make settle for less or accept things as they are. Make today the day you chose to truly live, to not wish for your dreams to come, but to make them arrive. Not to hope for good things, but to aggressively pursue them. You must make the choice to knock on the door of opportunity and let your dreams know you are coming and the era of settling is over. Today is the day to chose to live your best life. There is one shot to be alive, so why wouldn't you chose the best?

Live your dreams

·         Live your dreams awake today. It is time, time to put aside all the reasons why not and focus on all the reasons why today is the moment. This is the point where you go for it and never look back. Dreams are meant to be lived. Make it happen today.

Fear

·          “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”

·         Eleanor Roosevelt

 

 

Problems

·          “I am grateful for all my problems. After each one was overcome, I became stronger and more able to meet those that were still to come. I grew in all my difficulties.”

·          J. C. (James Cash) Penney

 

View

The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life."  

Muhamad Ali

How to live

·         "As long as you live, keep learning how to live."Seneca

Top 5 Tips to Staying Lean All Year Round

Top 5 Tips to Staying Lean All Year Round

1.     Eat Natures Natural Fat Burners

Eat nature’s natural fat burners: Add cinnamon, grapefruit, and asparagus. Studies have shown these foods to have natural fat burning effects on the body. Cinnamon works by increasing the body’s sensitivity to insulin with 1g per day shown to be an effective dose. One study also showed that grapefruit, even in the absence of exercise lead study participants to lose weight. Similarly, Asparagus has been found to be effective for fat loss, containing the chemical asparagine, an alkaloid that breaks down fat. These are not all of nature’s fat burners. There are plenty of foods that can aid in achieving your best physique – do your research and turn to food first before looking to supplements.

2.   Keep the Carbohydrates on the Low/Medium Glycemic Index

Keep carbohydrates low/medium on the glycemic index: To stay lean or drop weight quick, limit your carbohydrates to those no higher than medium on the glycemic index. It is a system that measures the effect of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. The rapid spike in blood sugar levels from carbohydrates in the high range on the glycemic index is a leading indicator of obesity and chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. It is a lot more precise of a gauge than simply sticking to complex carbohydrates.

3.   Cardio

Cardio: Physical activity every day is important. If you want to stay lean year round cardio is a must. Not only do you burn calories during cardio but your metabolism stays elevated afterwards – keeping it revved up is important to remaining lean. My preference of cardio is HIIT (high intensity interval training).

4.   Superset and Full-body movement

Superset: Supersetting is a form of working out in which you perform several exercises at the same time; for instance, a back workout in between sets of chest press. Typically, it is best to superset opposing muscle groups, as the tightness of the opposing muscle group that would hinder the performance of the other muscle group is eliminated by working the muscles in tandem. The minimal rest keeps the heart rate and metabolism high further stepping on the gas when it comes to fat burning. Also full body movement increases your heart rate, which will effect your heart rate in a positive manner.

1.   Eat 6-7 Meals a Day

Eat 6 – 7 meals a day: We are stuck in this mentality that the less one eats the skinnier or leaner they will be. The problem with this is the lack of food slows down the metabolism and leads to muscle wasting. Eating several times a day keeps the metabolism high and as long as your daily intake of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats are balanced, you will get lean and retain muscle.

 

 

 

Role model

Before a person can achieve the kind of life he wants, he must think, act, walk, talk and conduct himself in all of his affairs as would the person he wishes to become.

Inspiring

·         Life is a gift, and it offers us the privilege, opportunity, and responsibility to give something back by becoming more.

·         Anthony Robbins

 

Never judge

“We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It’s one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it’s another to think that yours is the only path.”

Paulo Coelho

Character

·         "Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving."
Dale Carnegie 1888-1955, Author and Speaker

 

Real friends

·         “If someone isn’t what others want them to be, the others become angry. Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about his or her own.”

·         Paulo Coelho

True friend

·          “A true friend knows your weaknesses but shows you your strengths; feels your fears but fortifies your faith; sees your anxieties but frees your spirit; recognizes your disabilities but emphasizes your possibilities.”

·         William Arthur Ward

 

Top Ten For your ideal Physique

Top Ten For your ideal Physique

1.    You can’t out train a bad diet

No matter how hard you train there is no magical workout program that will give you optimal results with a poor diet. A structured well balanced diet will increase your performance in the gym, sustain energy levels and set you on your way to a lean physique. Look at it this way, how many hours a day do you train? Now how many hours a day can you potentially fuel your body with nutrient dense foods?

2.    Give our body reason to change

When you are in the gym you need to be training at a high-intensity and apply progressive overloads into your workouts (lift heavier) So that your body has to adapt to the training stimulus and get stronger. A quick and easy way of doing this can be as simple as manipulating your rep tempo and rest periods, you'll be surprised at the changes you will begin to see.

3.    Have a set goal

Having a set goal is a great way of self-motivation, knowing what you want to achieve and picturing the end result. However your goals need to be specific measurable and within the timeframe you want to get lean? How lean and by when? Setting specific goals takes commitments and to achieve you need to be committed and if you want it bad enough you will succeed.

4.    Always have protein based breakfast

I have always lived by a protein-based breakfast; having a protein breakfast will slowly increase energy level without rapidly spiking insulin levels. You will feel fuller and more alert for extended periods of time, you will increase your energy levels without worrying about fat storage. Give it a try its great I did this throughout the whole of my competition prep, the difference noticed since applying this to my diet have been simply amazing.

5.    Fail to prepare and be prepared to fail

When setting out on a new or planned eating program preparation is a must! Whether it means getting up 20 mins earlier in the morning or while cooking dinner you cook for the following day too. If you don't have the willpower to add an additional 20 mins to your evening or morning to achieve your goal you don't want it enough. 20 mins of prep for 12 hours of clean eating I’ll settle for that any day!

6.    Reward yourself

It is always good to reward hard work and efforts, the main thing with this is to be honest with yourself. Did you give every session your all and leave the gym with nothing left in the tank? Did you give your eating plan 110%, when tested did you opt for the healthier alternative? If your answers are yes then at a scheduled time and date your should reward your efforts. Rewards are a great way to make your ragtime liveable long term and your results paramount.

7.    Planned periodisation

A big mistake people commonly make is chopping and changing between different workout plans or not sticking to the same program for long enough. Variety is essential yes! But how will you improve a lift, know your getting stronger, fitness levels and recovery improving if you only do it once or twice a month? Try giving yourself 4-6 weeks on a program, manipulate the reps, rest intervals and you will be on to a winner.
Give your body time to adapt.

8.    HIIT training

I will be honest I am not the biggest fan of cardio but hey sometimes it needs
To be done. It goes back to what I mentioned earlier "make intensity key". Keep the sessions short but intense work at a high thresholds maximum intensity vs maximum recover. Interval training is awesome for burning fat when done right, I hit some HIIT throughout my prep in my 16 week road to my fitness modelling comp I hated every minute but when you have a desire to reach your goals you need to push through pain barriers "give your body a reason to change"

9.      Make intensity a priority

Your workout should be kept within 45-mins/1hr make intensity the main factor in your workouts. Often I hear people mention they spent 2 hours in the gym working out sometimes even more! How hard are you really working if you are able to train for that long if endurance is not your goal? Keep your sessions within an hour, limit elevating cortisol levels, the less stress the more optimal your results will be.

10. Rest

Now this is hard even for me, but for optimal results from your training scheduled rest days is a MUST! The rest days are when the most adaptation will take place, as long as you stick to your eating plan you will not get fat or lose muscle! The rest will make you feel stronger and more motivated for your next workout, your body needs rest to allow growth.

Being happy

·         "Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect. It means you have decided to look beyond the imperfections."Gerard Way - Musician

Kindness

“Kindness is an inner desire that makes us want to do good things even if we do not get anything in return. It is the joy of our life to do them. When we do good things from this inner desire, there is kindness in everything we think, say, want and do."Emmanuel Swedenborg
1688-1772, Scientist, Philosopher and Theologian

Kindness

·         "Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom."Theodore Isaac Rubin – Psychiatrist

Enjoy your life

·         "Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don't wait for something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future. Think how really precious is the time you have to spend, whether it's at work or with your family. Every minute should be enjoyed and savored."

·         Earl Nightingale

 

 

To be yourself

·         Don't worry about what people say, they are the people who are finding faults in your life instead of fixing the faults in their own life.

Be confident

·         "Be confident. Too many days are wasted comparing ourselves to others and wishing to be something we aren't."

TOP TEN FOODS FOR FAT LOSS

TOP TEN FOODS FOR FAT LOSS AND BODY COMPOSITION

Use these ten foods in your diet to support fat loss and get the physique you desire. Assuming you are training regularly, including these foods in a high-protein, relatively low-carb whole food diet will help you get and stay lean, while feeling energized and motivated throughout the day.

These ten foods will help you lose fat because they support your body to do one or more of these five things:
•    Increase the body’s use of fat for energy, shifting it to burn fat instead of carbohydrates.
•    Decrease chronic inflammation and improve the sensitivity of cells to insulin so that blood sugar from carbohydrates is used for energy or stored as muscle glycogen and doesn’t turn into fat.
•    Improve the body’s internal detoxification system to enhance elimination of waste products and toxins that slow the metabolism.
•    Support tissue repair and increase the body’s resting metabolic rate so that more energy is burned when food is broken down.
•    Improve the endocrine response to food—there are many effects of this, including lower insulin and cortisol, better elimination of excess estrogen, and higher leptin, which blunts feelings of hunger.

#1: Cold Water Fish: Salmon, Whitefish, Mackerel, Sardines & Anchovies
These cold water fish are high in the omega-3 fats that improve insulin sensitivity and decrease inflammation. The effect is of getting the majority of dietary fat from omega-3 fats is fat loss and improved body composition. For instance, a recent study of healthy adults showed that taking 4 grams of omega-3s a day for 6 weeks significantly increased lean mass and decreased body fat. Other studies have shown an association of a better body composition in people who eat more than 5 servings of cold water fish a week.

Take Away: Get the majority of your dietary fats from foods that are high in omega-3 fats. Cold water fish is a great place to start, and grass-fed and wild meats can increase your intake. Eat a serving of one of these high-protein sources at every meal.

#2: Nuts: Walnuts & Almonds
Nuts are high in antioxidants, protein, fiber, and healthy fats, and research shows that supplementing the diet with them can significantly improve body composition. They not only increase the metabolic response to eating, but they increase feelings of satiety and blunt hunger—the hormone leptin has been found to be higher in people who eat nuts daily.

Walnuts may be the healthiest nuts because they are typically eaten raw with the skin on, which increases their antioxidant content. Almonds also top the list of fat burning nuts because of their high protein and fiber content, and they contain a lot of vitamin E that supports detoxification.

Take Away: Eating a serving of nuts a day in conjunction with a high-protein, low-carb diet can produce significant fat loss and help you feel satisfied.

#3: Whey Protein
Whey protein, which can be found in dairy products and taken as a supplement, is a super food for body composition because it enables the body to repair tissue and burn fat. It also enhances the body’s internal antioxidant system by increasing something called glutathione.

Research shows that exercise performance and fat loss are enhanced when the body’s glutathione levels are higher during strength training. For example, in one study that had men take 22 grams of whey protein daily in conjunction with a strength training program had them lose more body fat than a group that only strength trained and didn’t supplement with whey.

Take Away: Supplement with whey protein daily to increase your metabolic rate, antioxidant status, and support tissue repair.

#4: Berries: Blueberries, Strawberries & Raspberries
Besides being delicious, berries are great for fat loss because they contain fiber, antioxidants, and have been shown to blunt the amount of insulin the body produces in response to eating them with high-carbohydrate foods. Raspberries, in particular, contain a unique antioxidant called ellagitannins that have been shown to improve the brain’s sensitivity to leptin, making you feel less hungry.

Take Away: Get multiple servings of berries daily. Throw in a serving of the superfruits mango, pomegranate, and tart cherries for variety—all three convey similar benefits as berries and food scientists have called them all “anti-obesity” fruits.

#5: Avocados
A recent review of foods that can treat obesity and prevent diabetes wrote that the “avocado has tremendous antioxidant capacity,” and has been shown to completely eradicate chronic inflammation related to high body fat in mice. Adding avocados and pomegranates to the diet of the mice allowed for them to lose fat and have better insulin sensitivity over time.

Take Away: Selectively include avocados in your diet. Depending on other fat intake, eat them a few days a week. One avocado contains 250 calories, 10 g of fiber, 15 g of monounsaturated fat, 4 g of protein, and 20 essential nutrients.

#6: Broccoli & Cruciferous Vegetables
The cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower help the body clear excess estrogen—both naturally occurring and chemical estrogens such as BPA. By a variety of mechanisms, compounds in these veggies can interact with the genes involved in estrogen binding, while clearing estrogen from the body.

In addition, research shows that the high fiber content of these veggies will delay carbohydrate absorption, favorably modifying the glucose response. Their inherent high fiber brings about a very moderate insulin response, thus making them an ideal fat loss food. Dark green vegetables usually have a large antioxidant content as well.

Take Away: Shoot for multiple servings of cruciferous vegetables daily. Broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, kale, collards, arugula, radish can be eaten raw, added to salads, or steamed. Raw food are better for fat loss, but the key is to eat them daily, so if cooked is more palatable, go for it.

#7: Eggs
Eggs are an excellent protein source and they also provide a nice dose of choline, which protects the liver from accumulating fat and is the precursor to the energizing neurotransmitter, acetylcholine. Increasing acetylcholine levels can increase growth hormone, which is a potent fat burner. Plus, eggs are very filling, and you get a nice boost in metabolism on account of the thermic effect of  their high protein content.

Incorrectly feared due to their cholesterol content, eggs haven’t been found to elevate serum cholesterol. The body actually uses the cholesterol to produce testosterone and other androgenic hormones, and it improves the integrity of muscle cell membranes. One study showed that eating 12 eggs a week didn’t increase LDL cholesterol at all, and when exercise was done, the high egg intake improved the participants’ ratio of good to bad cholesterol to the same degree as a group that ate no eggs. 

Take Away: Eat eggs a few days a week to increase your protein and choline intake. Avoid eating them daily because this has ben shown to cause intolerances.

#8: Coffee & Green Coffee Extract
There is compelling evidence that coffee increases your metabolic rate so that you burn more calories, and it can help shift the body to burn fat rather than glucose for energy. In addition, we know coffee enhances the body’s defenses against reactive oxygen species, can help modulate blood sugar, and may even reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

The fat loss effect of coffee drinking hasn’t been studied extensively, but one study showed drinking 500 ml of coffee daily for 4 weeks produced 2.5 kg weight loss in overweight subjects. Perhaps more effective, green coffee extract, which comes from the bean before roasting and can be added to any beverage, has been shown to produce significant fat loss: One study compared the effect of giving participants a high-dose green coffee extract (1050 mg), a low-dose (700 mg), or a placebo for 6 weeks and found that the large dose resulted in an average 8 kg loss in body weight and a 4.4 percent drop in body fat—very impressive. The low dose and placebo produced no changes in body composition.

Take Away: Using green coffee extract and drinking coffee can help you lose fat in conjunction with a healthy diet. They aren’t a weight loss solution, but a nice addition to a complete fat loss diet. Green tea provides similar benefits as coffee if it is your beverage of choice.

#9: Kimchi
Kimchi, a fermented Korean food made from napa cabbage, onions, garlic, and fiber, has been shown to aid digestion, improve insulin sensitivity, and produce fat loss. A recent study showed that overweight subjects who ate 100 grams of kimchi at every meal for 4 weeks produced significant fat loss and decreased body fat by 1.5 percent. Blood pressure and blood sugar control were both lower by the end of the study.

Take Away: Include kimchi and other fermented foods in your diet daily for better health and fat loss. Get kimchi at an Asian food store or Whole Foods.

#10: Vinegar
Vinegar aids the body in storing carbohydrates as muscle glycogen rather than storing them as fat. In addition, studies show eating vinegar as a seasoning with meals can improve pancreatic function, and lower the insulin response to carbs. Even if you just add vinegar to your salad or cruciferous vegetables, it can lower the insulin response to your whole meal, leading to a more moderate elevation in blood sugar.

Take Away: Balsamic and white wine vinegar are some of the most delicious vinegars, but you can add any kind to your meal daily and get the fat loss benefits.