Tips For Staying Motivated!

Ok so we all have hard times when setting out to reach a fitness goal.  It is not going to be easy and there will be times where your frustrated and want to give up, but know this is normal and we all feel this at times.  Yes even Dan The Man!  I myself have a coach that helps me when I have doubts with my own goals.  Also have a social network of friends that support you in your goals.  They can be friends, family, girlfriend, boyfriend whoever just know that who you hang around will effect your goals in a negative or positive way.  Look to this social network for support when your struggling instead of emotional eating or even just as bad trying to cut corners by under eating or overtraining when you are down.  This will not help you reach your goals faster.  When Im am feeling down I try and shift my mindset to something positive or just tell myself to be awesome!!

Something that has helped me stay on track a lot is to track my progress.  I myself like to have progress pictures to show my results.  These provide a far better test than jumping on the scale and becoming obsessed over a number.  How you look and feel will prove better measure than numbers!

Lastly I would make a list of pros and cons of changing a lifestyle habit.  For example I had a client who had a sweet tooth (dont't we all at times)  We made a list of all the Positive changes that came as a result of cutting sweets out of her diet.

• a positive change in body composition.
• better health and less chances of disease like diabetes.
• More confidence and a more positive self image.
• Happier and more outgoing personality as a result of feeling better about her self image.
• weight loss
• felt healthier overall and didn't crash in the middle of the afternoon anymore
• craving diminished
• saved money that used to spent on cakes, pastries and even sugary drinks like soda.  All these things add up!
• this list went on for a while!

And the Negative 

• Well had to give up sweets and turn down desserts at dinner outings and yeah that was about it.

When you make this list and see the pros far out way the cons it is a lot easier to stay on track and think of the list when you reach for something that puts you further away from your goals.  Remember this change doesn't have to be food related.  Maybe your goal one week is to get more rest or take more time for yourself!

  I was a lot more focused when I stopped comparing myself to other people..  Compare yourself to nobody but you.  There will always be someone out there that is in better shape than you so don't let that be what you always compare yourself against.  Look at your own small progresses from week to week and be happy about them.  Maybe this week you trained harder than ever.  Or beat personal best in your sprints.  Whatever it is remember to celebrate and recognize your accomplishments!  If your always focused on the end goal you will overlook the small successes you have along the way!

As always Dan The Man appreciates any feedback and questions you may have.  Follow him on facebook a

at www.facebook.com/danthemanfitnessexpert

Having Trouble Losing Weight? Here is a Secret Too Help!

    Over the years I have worked with a lot of clients who have successfully lost weight without starving themselves and they definitely were NOT doing hours on end of cardio.  I have most of my clients for weight loss doing 2-6hours a week combined with weight training. which is not very much!  Most clients that have worked with me know that I stress resistance training and NUTRTION have a far bigger effect on fat loss than cardio.  You can do all the cardio you want but if your nutrition isn’t good (my view on good nutrition might be different than yours) you will not make a significant change in your body.  Until you make a change in your eating habits you cannot transform your body.  I do understand that it can be hard to follow a nutrition plan if it entirely changes your eating habits right from the start.  Implement it slowly.

So here it is, this is the most important thing I believe you need to understand when starting on a nutrition plan!

**You have to be aware of the term “Calorie Density”**

    Calorie density is simply the amount of calories per one gram of a certain food.  For example 100 grams of chicken is 158 calories, while the same 100 grams of bacon is 560 calories!!  Which is the better choice for protein?  Less Calorie dense foods are more filling with a fraction of the calories.  By no means do I recommend anybody count every calorie they eat but choosing foods with less calorie density will make it harder to overeat. 

    My point I’m getting at is even if in the beginning you don’t measure your food BUT try and eat less calories dense foods you will be eating less calories without noticing it.  Try to become aware of the calories per serving of foods and try to choose ones that are not as calories dense.  Even something like your morning trip to Starbucks can add 400 calories to your day if you like their fancy lattes!  Keep a food journal and work on switching out the calorie dense foods from your diet.  Need help identifying these well get someone to track it for you (like Dan the Man) and slowly make these changes every week!

Simple ways to decrease your calories:

·         use splenda and skim milk instead of sugar/cream in your coffee

·         Drink sugar free juices instead of high sugar juices and pop!

·         Use low calorie condiments like mustard, vinaigrette type dressings and salsa to flavor your food.

·         MAKE a list of Low calorie dense foods and try to pick foods from it when eating!

Remember it’s the small changes that count and will help you move towards your goals!

Machines Are NOT Just For Beginners!?!

 

Machines have a benefit for everyone from profesional athlete to complete beginner.  Some athletes I have trained seem to think they are beyond machines and give me this funny look when I instruct them to do an exercise on them.  Almost like they think they are too advanced for them  There is really a reason to my madness, believe it or not!  Read on to fine out why!
    Well I think we can all agree that free-weights are beneficial to build up body awareness, balance, stability and most importantly strengthen your stabilizers muscles which is needed for any sport.  However there is a point where the stabilizers muscles become overworked!  Especially in programs for high level athletes where the volume and intensity of programs is quite high.  This is where machines come into play.  You see when going through a resistance training program these stabilizer muscles fatiques ALOT faster then the primary movers.  So if you keep going with free-weights after these primary movers are fatiqued they will become overtrained and increase the risk of injury.  So by switching to machines they will get a break.  By no means am I saying too only use machines and ditch free-weights. 
    Lets put this into simpler terms, say we are a football player which everyone know needs a lot of leg strength.  We are at the gym training legs.  We have just done 4 or 5 sets of heavy squats with free weights.  Now we move onto some heavy stationary lunges with some free weights. Next we blast the hamstrings with some still legged deadlifts with a free weight barbeall for 4 heavy sets.  By this time the quads and hamstrings are tired but not done yet.  However all these exercise use the spine erectors muscles( muscles that stabilize the lower back) .  We can all agree by looking at them that these muscles are by far smaller than the quads, glutes and hamstrings.  Now wouldnt it make sense after all the previous exercise to give them a break, maybe finish the legs off on a leg press, hack squat or even some leg extentions and curls?  I would prefer this choice over injuring my lower back! 
    Machines also come into place to work around injuries, I myself have a right shoulder that gives me a lot of problems.  This injury was not from training but from swimming competively when I was younger.  The Muscles in my rotator cuff were overworked from the repetitive motion of swimming and became sretched out.  Thise cause my shoulder to become loose in the socket.  By doing my shoulder presses on a smith machine it allows me to train my delts HEAVY without using those stabilizing muscle and overworking them again.  This does not mean I dont add in some free-weight exercise to keep them strong.

To get a customized program with the right mix of free-weights and machines built for you and your goals contact Dan The Man today at 403-606-3206! Remeber consultations are always free so you can pick my brain and see what I can do for you!  Train safe and train hard!!


  

New "Superfood" to Lose Weight!

        We have all heard the term “superfood” that claims do something amazing like lose 20lbs in a month or get you abs in a ridiculously short amount of time.  They range from some fruit juice containing some new berry, to some magic pill and special shakes!  If this worked everyone would be walking around lean with six pack abs!  I hear this term used mainly by a salesperson trying to make a quick buck.  Most of these foods are endorsed by some movie star who apparently used this to get in shape. Everyone by now has heard of Acai berry for losing weight.….hmmmm right!  Stop falling for this and understand there is no shortcut for getting in shape! 

            Some of these foods are high in a certain nutrients (omegas, antioxidants, vitamins etc.), but always think, does the nutrient in the food even have anything to do with weight loss or whatever else they are claiming the product does.  Most of the time what they claim doesn’t even make sense.  A friend of mine recently called me telling me about a new found “superfood” for weight loss that claimed to drop belly fat and help people lose 2 pounds a week!  He then went on to try and get me to market it too my clients.  I had to stop and think, did he really believe the product would help people lose weight or even understand what the product was he was trying to sell?  My friend worked as an electrician, lived an unhealthy lifestyle, smoked probably a pack a day consumed a lot of alcohol and ate fast food almost daily.  Right sounds like the authority on fitness to me.  Don't get me wrong he is a very nice guy.  Always look at who is trying to sell you the product and you can easily tell if they are trying to make a profit or actually knowledgeable.  Upon research I found the product he was trying to sell me was a natural plant high in fiber and maybe some vitamins taken in a pill or powder form.  Would that be something new to help people lose weight, not at all considering you get fiber and the same vitamins from vegetables and many other foods available at the grocery store!  Wouldn’t a healthy diet and exercise get people the same results without the expensive supplement? I think so.

           I do agree that some of these foods are high in certain nutrients and very well may be healthy for you, however how does overloading on a certain nutrient help you when your body only needs so much of it?  Just because something is healthy for you doesn’t mean there isn’t a point where too much is not healthy!  I know exercising is good for me but should I work out ten hours a day.

              You can’t just research the “top ten superfoods” and think eating them will make up for your lack of exercise and crappy diet.  These so called foods will not make up for the other poor choices in your nutrition.

            Instead of focusing on one so called “superfood” in your diet try eating a variety of natural clean foods and combining this with a realistic exercise program made for your goals and then you will see results!

Dan The Man’s Myth Busters! Myth #1- Spot Reduction!

People have been led to believe by the media trying to sell gimmicks that certain exercises will burn fat in certain areas.  We all remember the "Thigh Master", who go skinnier thighs from using that?  For example doing a thousand crunches and other abdominal exercises will drop body fat in your abdominal area right?...No this is ridiculous and doesn’t work!, Here’s why;

            This is a myth known as “spot reduction” and will not work.  Fat stored in the abdominal region, known as adipose tissue cannot be burned by the body until it is converted into Free Fatty Acids (FFA) by the liver witch when metabolized create large quantities of ATP; which provides energy for the body.  For this to take place your body needs to be burning more calories than are being consumed.  Unfortunately fat is lost on the entire body and is genetically determined where it will be burned from first.  Diet and exercise will reduce ENTIRE body fat not just from one place. 

         The truth is you have no more control over where you lose body fat from than you did over where you gained it!         

Dan The Man's Summer Shape Up Program!

Alright folks lets face it summer is just around the corner, lets go from FLAB to FABULOUS!



I am offering 3 months total body transformation to get you ready for summer! Program will run from April 15 until July 15th.  If your looking to gain muscle or shed that unwanted body fat this is the program for you!  Whats all included:

•  10% percent off regular prices (HURRY ONLY HAVE ROOM FOR 3 MORE CLIENTS)
• You will get three months of nutritional counceling and customized meal plan for FREE (this is valued at $300.00!!
• Your own workout journal so I can track your progress along the way.  Journal is packed full of fitness and nutrtion tips(valued at $25.00)
• Fitness evaluation and assesments every two weeks throughout the challenge
• 3 personal training sessions/week with Dan the Man himself at Vital Edge Health Studio!
• Customized Cardio and resistance training plan made for you!
• Unlimited Online support throughout the challenge!

To Find out Why Dan is the MAN like his page on facebook



https://www.facebook.com/#!/danthemanfitnessexpert

Frequently Asked Questions I Get As a Personal Trainer

             Q:  I want to get into shape but don’t have time to work out?

A)      My first answer too this is make time!  Everybody is busy with work, children, housework etc.  The list of excuses not to work out could go on forever.  How many hours do you spend watching television, sitting on the computer or whatever else cut that out and make time!  Think of it this way, you can be in awesome shape working out less than 6 hours a week.  That is including your weight training and cardio.  That is only 6 hours out of 168 hours in a week, that’s about 3% of your time which will be invested into yourself being healthier and living a longer life!  How can you not have time when you look at it that way!

·         Q)  What is a realistic amount of weight loss per week?

A)       First off I will ask you how long it took to put the weight on.  I can guess that didn’t happen overnight so neither will losing it! I believe 1-2 pounds/week is a healthy number to shoot for when losing weight.  This can be achieved without living in the gym and starving yourself.  With a sensible exercise/nutrition plan it can be done.  However keep in mind if you only have say 10 pounds to lose it will be a lot harder and slower going.  The larger amount of weight you are trying to lose it might come off faster in the beginning.  This number is an average some might lose slower but don’t be discouraged.  If the weight is dropping too fast I become concerned because a lot of that won’t be fat, it will be a lot of muscle mass which is counterproductive as it slows your metabolism down.

·         Q) I want to gain muscle and lose body fat at the same time, how can I do this?

A)     Um yeah me too, this is everyone’s dream, unfortunately it doesn’t work that way with gaining muscle you have to put on a little bit of body fat.  Your body needs that body fat as an energy source so it doesn’t break down that hard earned muscle as fast as your building it! 

·         Q) Will lifting weights make me bulky?

A)     NO! Lifting weights is going to help you look lean, toned amd get your metabolism going to drop body fat.  When you see people that are “bulky” from weight lifting this did not happen by accident. Their training program and diet was designed to make them that way.  With the right nutrition and training program you will look lean and toned from weightlifting!

·         Q)  What supplements are the best to take?

A)      My answer is get your diet on track first.  If your nutrition and training aren’t on track forget about supplements! Spend your money on someone knowledgeable and get on a meal/training program customized for you.  That will bring you more results then buying expensive supplements and having a crappy diet!  After that is on track then talk to me about supplements to help with progress.

Q) How many days a week should I work out?

A)     That is a complicated question that varies completely depending on your goals.  It will also change depending on your nutrition/sleep patterns/ stress levels/ fitness levels/previous training/ work and many other things that effect recovery.  If you hardly eat, don’t sleep much, party on weekends and are stressed out then you aren’t going to be able to train five days a week like some bodybuilders or athletes.  You would quickly overtrain and actually regress further away from your goals if you tried.  All these things will slow down recovery.  I don’t train over four days a week and I would say my nutrition, sleep, and stress levels are excellent.  I also have been training for almost eight years.  Remember more is not always better!

·         Q) How can I afford personal training isn’t it expensive?

A)     No, people can afford it. It is just a matter of how much you want to invest in your health.  I meet people who will eat out five times a week, buy a Starbucks coffee every day, go for drinks….this list could go on forever.  Get rid of the unhealthy choices in your life and invest that into your health and set your priorities straight.   Even myself being a trainer; has a coach who I pay to keep me on track, and I even used to have one when I was in university.  So if I could find the money for it while in school I believe it is more affordable then you think.

·         Q) Why can’t you just write me a program and well check up in a month?

A)      This doesn’t work for many reasons.  As a trainer it is hard for me to customize your program when I am not there to see your progress.  This is also a problem for me to make sure you are doing the exercises properly and pushing yourself.  Without the intensity you will not progress!  Also when I see you in a month and you haven’t been to the gym since it’s a problem.  I’m there to keep you accountable and make sure your workouts get not only done but finished properly.

Getting Started in the Gym….Here’s Some Tips to Get You Started in the Right Direction!

Over my career as a personal trainer I always get the same questions on people getting started in the gym.  So here’s a short article to cover the basics and get you started in the right direction!  These are the two most frequent questions I get asked.

How many days a week should I be lifting weights?

 This is a question I am frequently asked by clients from beginners to advanced that I have trained.  This answer can vary depending on your current level of fitness, training intensity, diet, occupation and many other variables in your life.  That’s something a GOOD personal trainer can determine what is right for you (Dan The MAN could help you decide this!)  But here’s some tips to help you!                                                                                                 

    Starting off resistance training you will see great results from 3 days/week of weight training providing that the intensity is there in the workout and you are using your time in the gym efficiently!  Average workouts should be 30-45 minutes to start.  Eventually increasing time to an hour. So that’s between 1.5- 3 hours a week of weight training.  So you can see you don’t have to live at the gym to see results!  Consistency is the key, doing three workouts one week and none the next week will keep you STUCK without progressing!

Don't forget that when it comes to losing weight or building muscle that at least 75% of your results are from nutrtion. Maybe more!  Only 25% is from your exercise program!

   I have been bodybuilding consistently for the last six years and am still following a four day/ week program right now.  So you can see you can still look good, be healthy and have a life outside of training!  I have NEVER made a client a program with more than five days a week of weight training.  This is what I see a lot in the gym are people trying to build muscle or lose body fat training six days a week! When is the body recovering?  Unless your sleep and nutrition are perfect, it’s probably not.  This can slow down results just as much as training inconsistently.

How Much Cardio Should I be Doing?

  The problem I see with people doing cardio in the gym is they are doing it for the wrong reasons.  If i see someone in the gym that is doing hours on end of cardio everyday and ask them why they are doing it they usually say to lose weight, looked toned or drop body fat.  Well that is for all the wrong reasons!  Cardio is not the ideal way to burn body fat!  My weight loss clients are started out doing an hour of walking split up into 20 min periods 3 times a week and increased from there.  Unless you are training for a marathon cardio DOES NOT need to be done daily especially if your following a resistance training program as well.  Weight training and nutrition is the key to burning body fat.  To much cardio (depending on the intensity and duration) can actually lead to muscle loss which will slow down metabolism and actually be counter productive to your weight loss goals.  Not sure how much cardio is right for you? contact me for your cardio plan today! 

Get started on that 6 pack BEFORE the summer!

...AND NO I didn't mean the one you get from the liqour store!

Here are some more advanced abdominal exercises to target different parts of your abs! The first exercise is going to target your lower abs. 

Hanging Leg Lifts

These are a great exercise to use when leg lifts on a bench become to easy for you!  We will first go through the exercise then show you how to increase the difficulty.  Start by hanging from a chin-up bar with the body straight, then raise the legs and slowly lower them back down.  Remember to keep it under control on the way up and down so your not just swinging!  If you find these too difficult bend your knees to make it easier.