Our campaign slogan for Pushups For Charity this year is “What do you push for?”

Since we’re now cranking on everything for over 113+ events happening all across the country on May 19th, I thought today would be a great opportunity for me to share a little more about what I push for…

Maybe you can share with me what you push for.

Here’s what gets me out of bed on those dark  cold Minnesota winter mornings.

My family

I’m wired to be a provider to my little girls Alannah and Hailey, my beautiful caring wife Kymn and my awesome stepson Brandon. They all depend on me to produce so they have food, clothing and shelter as well as a good quality of life.  Someday I would like to be in a financial position to do something really special for my parents who raised me right. Yes I’m not perfect but my values are a direct reflection of their job as parents.  These are the people who support me when I’m down and who love me unconditionally even when I’m not very lovable. 

Making A Difference On This Planet

No I’ll probably never be a hot shot millionaire or fitness celebrity. I’ll also probably never be a missionary in Africa but that’s okay. There are lenty of people who I can help right here in my own backyard. God gave me this passion for health and fitness and I love teaching an helping people improve their own lives with the knowledge and skills I’ve been blessed with. I could be having the worst day but when a client or someone tells me I made a difference in their lives it picks right up into a natural high. Our trainer Beth calls it the paycheck of the heart. I love the fact I have a career that is focused on doing something that benefits others.  It will be very satisfying at the end of life to look back and say I have helped a lot of people.

Anyone can take up space and time here is really short so I believe you need to make the most of it. Don’t just take up space anyone can do that.

Giving Back And Saying Thanks To Those Who Deserve It Most..

While the rest of us are hanging out at the lake or watching our kids play sport there are people sitting in a land halfway across the world really not knowing what is going to happen to them day to day. They could be killed or injured. They see some of their closest friends killed or hurt as well. 

I try to imagine what would it would be like to see one of my friends killed before my eyes and I can’t fathom it.   The things people go through over there are life changing.

Here’s the thing they do it to protect the freedoms and liberties we all enjoy like being able to start our own business,  grill out on our deck,  enjoy our kids’ little league games and listen to whatever music we like or watch whatever TV program we want.  All these things we take for granted because we have always had them.

Why have we always had them? Because of brave men and women who paid the price for the rest of us.

A few years ago I watched my high school friend Robb’s deployment ceremony at the capital as he was getting ready to go to Afghanistan. He stood there solemnly as he prepared to leave his family for a year and his wife and kids watched as he was about to head right into a war zone. My wife was crying I had a lump in my throat. The thought crossed my mind that he might not come back. Here was one of my best friends I grew up with going to serve his country and put it all on the line.

I was so proud to be his friend that day. I was also scared to lose my friend but nevertheless he went did what he had to do knowing the risks not one complaint just doing his duty so the rest of us can keep going on doing all the things we enjoy doing.  

Luckily he came back in one piece but not every vet is that lucky.

So many of these vets come back and suffer not just physical wounds but emotional and mental wounds as well.

If I can contribute in some small way by doing a few push ups and raising some money than I’m going to do it even if it does nothing for my bottom line or publicity. Screw it! It can’t always be about those things.

So there you go there are 3 things I push for.  I’ll be doing pushups this Saturday. If you would like to join our team or sponsor one of us  just go to www.pushupsforcharity.com/puravida-fitness

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I dug up this old email I wrote a few years ago after one my hunting trips with my dad.  Little did I know how it would resonate with people.  All too often we set goals and the first challenge that comes up we throw in the towel.  The best goals to accomplish are not the ones we breeze to but often the ones filled with the most conflict and challenges. It’s often the journey not the reward that brings the most rewards like building character and mental resolve. Things that will help us in other pursuits in life other than just that particular goal.

Anyway here is that old email hopefully it resonates with you too.

This past weekend I went wild turkey hunting with my dad in South Dakota. I know a lot of people think that it should be easy to get a wild turkey since they are all over the place. Well, it isn’t. Those things have super sharp sight senses and seem to know how to avoid danger plus you can only shoot 1 adult male turkey it is illegal to shoot a hen or more than one. So you really have to not only find the turkey but also the perfect shot. Anyway, back to the story. The first day we went out it poured on us and we tried calling the turkeys in but they didn’t gobble back but instead they would sneak up on us and see that we were waiting for them and then they would run and disappear like ghosts into the woods. We chased them all over that day and it was pouring rain. I even fell partway into a creek. By the end of the day I was soaked, tired, and turkeyless. Day two I started out sitting in a turkey blind braving the howling wind which really sucked. My hands were numb and I was freezing by 6am(we got up at 4am to get to the blind). No luck so we set out on foot into the hills to find the turkeys. We did find the turkeys and after an hour of crawling, spying and postioning to get the perfect shot I ended up missing a shot and the turkeys once again got away. Our hunting party regrouped and decided to cover another area of the ranch. I was starting to doubt if I would bag my turkey and thought I’m going to be out here until dark and have nothing to show for it. I was getting negative in my mind. So I set out with our guide down a ridge. We passed over two hill and came to a ridge and I looked over the ridge to see a huge Tom turkey strutting around. I quickly ducked down and came up with a plan to sneak up on the turkey. So I creeped along the upper edge of the hill staying out of sight. I was able to get behind a tree and slowly peeked over the ridge. And there it was… A perfect shot and this time I did not miss. I nailed a trophy sized turkey. I was so pumped and it immediately erased the other stuff that happened prior to getting the turkey like getting wet, being super hungry, freezing my butt off. As I was cleaning my turkey it came to me why I like hunting so much. It is not about killing things. It’s about a goal and the hunt is the exciting journey to get there. It is much like many things we come up against in life. We have a goal in mind such as losing weight and the goal is like the turkeys tricky to get and many times so difficult that we feel like quitting. However we only fail if we decide to quit! We might have setbacks and challenges but those things are what shape us and give us character. Believe me when I was chasing turkeys in the howling wind and rain a part of me wanted to say screw it and go warm up in the truck. I’m glad I didn’t. I accomplished my goal and it reminded me that the best things in life come from working hard and persevering. We are your guides in life’s “turkey hunt” when it comes to fitness and weight loss. Don’t give up! Good things will happen as long as you make the conscience decision not to quit. Here’s my challenge to you. If you are someone who is struggling with your fitness program or weight loss right now , we will offer you an opportunity to come in and do some goal setting and strategic planning free of charge from now until May 15th. So here’s your chance to get some free help and leave with a solid plan of action that makes sense for you!

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I have been in this industry for over 17 years and it has evolved considerably. Back in the day when I was a meathead fresh out of college it was all out about packing on muscle and being big for the guys.  Women focused on aerobics classes and where scarcely seen in the weight room. That was the culture back then and it was all good so we thought.

Enter the functional training era where everyone and their brother focused on the “core” by working on first stability balls and other toys like dynadiscs, bosus and foam rollers.  We all drank the kool aid myself included.  We totally got away from weights and trained on unstable apparatus to maximize our core function and stability.

Now here we are in what I think is the best era yet. Great new things are happening.

So first I’m going to address the new strategy for fat loss since the weather is getting nice and looking good is on everyone’s mind.

Here are three major advancements when it comes to creating fat loss in the body notice I said fat loss not weight loss. Many of the old school plans lost as much muscle as fat which makes you “skinny fat” not lean and toned.

1.) High intensity cardio vs. the “fat burning zone.” Cardio used to be out working at a lower intensity to stay in a zone where most of the fuel being burned is fat. It seemed rationale at the time but studies have revealed that doing shorter more intense bouts of cardio yield better fat burning results. You might burn the same or more calories during a long 45 minute marathon workout at a lower heart rate than a 20 minute high intesity interval training(HIIT) cardio session but the “fat burning” workout doesn’t create an afterburn effect like the high intensity one. So basically what we have found is work out in half or less the time just ramp up the intensity and you will conintue to burn more fat after the workout not just uring the workout.  This creates a virtual 24/7 cranked up metabolism. Much more efficient for fat burning.

2.)Eating focused on how the food effects you chemically/hormonally vs. calories in and calories out.  We used to just focus on the energy balance equation. Not anymore. Research has shown foods that are processed or are high in refined sugar actually keep our bodies in a fat storing state. also eating processed foods and drinking alcohol build up toxic load on the liver which is your primary fat metabolizing organ and when it is loaded down with toxins it cannot focus on fat metabolism instead it must refocus on processing the toxic substances and chemical we place in the body with our lifestyle habits and food choices which virtually shuts off the fat burning switch. so we still consider calories but we also are really looking at overall hormonal and chemical balance needed in the body for optimal fat burning.

3. Whole body athletic workouts vs. split routines. While split routines are still effective for bodybuilders most people do not want to be a bodybuilder. Instead we have found we burn more calories, create a smarter more coordinated athletic body and stimualte metabolism by focusing on total body workouts.  Doing exercises like dealifts versus hamstring curls and kettlebell swings vs. bicep curls has produced leaner more athletic physiques.  Besides going back to the functional training era. Your body works as one unit calling on groups of muscles to communicate and coordinate it doesn’t shut everything down and only turn on your bicep or deltoid muscle to lift something.  In fact your body is like an orchestra. All muscles are like members of the orchestra each has a role to play.  Much like an orchestra when everyone is doing their part the music sounds good . However when members are each doing their own thing or are out of tune it doesn’t sound good probably like nails on a chalkboard.

So when your muscles are in harmony you move good are effcient, athletic and much less likely to get injured. You will run better, lift more weights and be successful at what athletic endeavors you have whether it’s golf, tennis or gardening. On the flip side when you move poorly you most likely will get injured at some point, exercise will always feel like a struggle and you will stress your body more leading to higher levels of the hormone cortisol which at high levels keeps your body from burning fat.

So if you are doing all three of these to some degree you probably know exactly what I’m talking about. If you are not than it might be time to ask yourself “is what I’m doing working?” If not it’s time to get out of your box. 

The next time I will talk about the new era of performance training. A radical way to look at increasing strength and power for sports. Believe me it’s not what you think. Stay tuned.

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There are a lot of people you see in health clubs that look good. They have defined muscles, six pack abs and look extremely fit but the reality is that many of them are an accident waiting to happen.

Why do you say that? It’s all about about being lean and toned right?

Yes it is good to look the good but let’s not throw out function completely. I know personally a lot of bodybuilders and fitness competitors that look like a million buck but do not move well and are one bad move away from throwing out their back.

On the inside their core is weak and they literally cannot control their body. 

They are basically a like a sports car without brakes.

Let’s look at the National Academy Of Sports Medicine(NASM) Optimum Performance Training Module

Generally speaking most programs start in the middle an skip right by the bottom or foundation of this module which has proven very effective at not only changing bodies to look better but helping people move better and stay injury free.

Notice what is at the bottom of the module?

Stabilization.

If you are going to build a nice home you need a solid foundation.  This means you have to allocate some of your workout time to create stability in the core and hips which are where all movement comes from.

So let’s give you three exercises to create a solid foundation or a good brake system for the sports car. These can easily be incorporated into a warm up or done between sets of regular exercises.

There are several other variations but these are three basic ones I like to use with clients.

#1-Hip bridge Do 2-3 sets of 15-20 repetitions hold  2 sec at the top squeezing your butt and drawing in your abs.  Progress to single leg when you can do 2-3 sets of 20 easily.

#2 Prone Plank Shoulder Blade Push Ups Start either on your knees or your toes in good alignment with a long straight spine. Lower your body 2-3 inches retracting your shoulder blades and drawing in your belly button to fire your abs.  Pause 2 sec at the bottom and push back to the start maintaining the straight spine. Do 2-3 sets of 12-20

#3-Balance with leg reaches Stand in tall stance with belt line level to floor. Reach leg forward, side and back while maintaining good posture and level belt line. Repeat 5 times each leg and do 2-3 sets each leg.

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It’s so simple right eat less calories and you will lose lose weight. “Wow that’s it you’re a genius!”

Sorry Einstein it isn’t that simple. We constantly see people who do not eat enough calories that are 50 pounds or more overweight.

I wish it was that simple but sorry to say it isn’t. Your body is much more complex than that.  What you eat and when is also extrememly important to turn your body into an effcient fat burning machine.

So here are three tips to consider if you really want to get serious about fat loss.

1.)Do not spike your blood sugar. Sugar is public enemy #1. When you eat sugar (I’m not talking about the natural sugars found in fruits but sugar found in processed foods and drinks like in pop, juice, cookies, cereals etc.) it basically sends your blood sugar through the roof. When this happens your body kicks out tons of insulin to counteract the spike in blood sugar. Insulin is essentailly a storage hormone so having high levels of insulin creates a “storage environment”  and high blood sugar levels make it extrememly difficult to burn fat as a fuel source. So if you eat some candy and then try to do some cardio you might as well just beat your head on the wall. This is counterproductive.  You also have to be careful of processed carbs many breads, cereals and snacks are highly processed so when they hit your system it looks just like sugar. The bottom line  is every time you put sugar into your system fat burning stops or becomes very difficult.

2.)Keep the liver clean. The liver is the body’s main organ for fat metabolism. Whenever you drink alcohol, eat processed foods and artificial sweeteners your liver has to shift it’s focus from fat metabolism to processing these things through your system. This is why having that nightly glass of wine won’t necessarily make you fat but it definentely stops fat burning.   Am I saying never ever have these things absolutely not but watch how often you are consuming these things. Put it in your mind that the more often  you put stress on the liver the less time it can focus on fat burning.  Another thing to consider here is hydration. If you allow yourself to get dehydratedonce again your liver has to shift focus and help the kidneys keep functioning because they are depleted of proper water.   So the bottom line is eat whole non-processed foods, minimize or avoid alcohol and sweeteners.  Also keep yourself hydrated and the more you do this the more the liver stays focused on fat metabolism.  One of my regular clients who has never been able to get his weight down to where he wants it decided to give up alcohol for 3 weeks. The result was 8 pound weight loss. Coincidence I think  not.

#3-Move better.  Sounds simple but many of us are walking around with poor posture, old injuries and poor movment patterns we are unaware of.  When we continually move around with these issues it is stressful on the body.  Constant stress produces a hormone called cortisol. When this hormone is present in high levels your body cannot burn fat.  Recently I was at a conference and a strength coach was presenting he had lost a lot of weight since I saw him last. He said this was due to the fact he had finally had hip suregey and his pain was gone. The pain in his hip had raised his cortisol levels and now that it was gone the levels had come back down allowing him to burn fat more efficiently again. So find a practicioner who can do movement screening take a look at how you move and identify what needs to be corrected and develop a plan you can integrate into your workouts so you can keep the stress on your body lower to allow for more fat burning.

There you go three out of the box tips to help you see more success.  If you are on a plateau I would bet one or all three of these can help move you off.   They aren’t super easy but doable so if you are serious about making changes you can’t neglect them.

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1.)    Write down what you want to accomplish and why it is important. With all the other junk in your head like work, appointments, kids’ activities, and house projects it is essential that you get your goals written down so you can refer back to them and check your progress. In today’s society it is all too easy to forget the destination we originally set out for after being sent on the many detours life will throw at us. Secondly we need to define our purpose for each goal.  If the purpose isn’t something that fires you up than forget it.  An example of a great purpose is something like “I want to lose weight so I am not in pain an able to play with my kids.” A poor example would be “I want to look good in my clothes.”  There is no emotion attached there. One that I heard today is from a couple who built their business so they wouldn’t have to live in a trailer anymore. So just make sure your purpose is powerful because it is the fuel behind the goal.

2.)    Create a plan-It’s great to have goals with purposes but the next step is to make to create a plan of action that will get you to the goals. Ask yourself what you need to daily, weekly, and monthly to move you towards that goal. Have someone who is an expert in the area of the goal you want to accomplish review the action plan to make sure it is going to get you there. For example if it is a fitness goal than have a trainer look at it if it’s financial has your financial planner look at it. They will be able to give you vital feedback as to if your plan is in line with your goal so you are set up for success.

3.)    Take action- I’ve seen a lot of people write up great plans and goals but they fail to do anything. I don’t know if it’s fear of failure or just overstretching themselves but many times they don’t even get out of the gate.  Don’t worry about making mistakes or setbacks.  These are all part of the journey. Many of the most successful people in the world failed repeatedly before they had their success.

4.)    Review your progress Make sure you stop occasionally and review how it is going. What is working and what is not. Going after a goal is a lot of trial and error. Think of a goal like cutting down a big tree with a saw. You have to stop sometimes and make sure the saw isn’t dull. You will get the tree down quicker if you stop and make sure the blade is sharp instead of trying to push on with a dull blade.

5.)    Watch who you hang around with. Too often when someone is pursuing a goal other people in their life will try and drag them back down to their level.  Whether it’s starting business or getting in shape you will hear those naysayers that will tell you why you can’t do it instead of encourage and support you. Keep yourself around like minded people and those who have done what you want to accomplish. Negative people can be toxic don’t let them spoil your dreams. You might have to reconsider who you hang out with. Also watch what kind of TV shows you watch and books you read.  All these things will affect your outlook and thought process so guard this carefully.  Keep yourself around people and things that give you energy versus suck it out of you.

There you go these are simple steps but very necessary. Failure to do any of them will diminish your chances for success

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The Crossroads

We will reach many crossroads

Throughout our lives

Our destinies are determined

By the direction we choose to go

Do we take the shortcut

Do we go in the direction

Others want us to go

Even though we know it’s wrong..

Or do we listen to our heart

Have faith in God and go in the direction

That we know is right?

The direction God hoped we would take all along.

The crossroads are tests.

Tests of our character

Tests of our strength

And tests of our faith

Life isn’t about taking the easy way out

It’s about living…taking chances…

Giving of yourself

Your talents and abilities

But most of all it’s about touching the lives

Of those whose pathas cross your own

Because when you touch the lives of others

You are touching God and there is no greater gift

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If you don’t know who they are or don’t remember check out this video below:

http://www.disclose.tv/action/viewvideo/68786/The_Whiners/

Right now people are blaming Wall Street for all their financial woes. I would bet a lot of those protestors take advantage of the same system they protest.  There is this sense of entitlement that has infected us as a country that anooys me. We live in what is still the lan of opportunity and far surpasses any other country when it comes to having the freedoms to be successful.  Instead we whine just like Doug and Wendy Whiner.   The late Kirby Puckett once said “who says you are entitled to anything.” 

It’s true but many Americans think otherwise.

From a fitness perspective you see this all the time with people saying they want to lose weight but when it comes to taking action the whining starts “I’m too busy.”  “It’s too hard.”  “My back hurts.” on and on it goes like nails on a chalkboard.

So I ask you are you a whiner or a winner! If you look on our facebook page you see a story of Susan Peters who overcame being in a wheelchair to not only walk but walk 5ks. She never whined. Watch her story and then check yourself. 

Quit focusing on why you can’t and focus on how you can.

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Imagine driving in a car without a suspension or anti lock brake system. Pretty scary every time you hit a bump or a curb or had to react to soemthing you would feel it as the driver. Now imagine that the driver is your joint. 

That’s basically what happens to joints when those muscles around them aren;t doing their job.

So what’s the big deal!

Well each time that you walk your produce 3x your bodyweight in force. So if you take 5,000 steps per day a conservative estimate that’s 3 million pounds of force driving through your joints in one and 21 million in one week. If you run each foot contact produces 6-9x your bodyweight in force. So if you are producing all that force with out shock absorption from surrounding musculature then the force will hit your joints instead of your muscles leading to eventual breakdown.

So what do you do to ensure your muscles are working properly. Well a great step is doing some simple mobility exercises designed by a company called z-health which focuses on creating a better nervous system to enhance performance.  There are certain joints in your feet that are wired to these specific muscles. By mobilizing them you stimulate joint mechanoreceptors which keeps the wire connection strong between the joints and muscles thus the muscles are turned on and able to do what they are supposed to.

Here are three drills you can do.  Do them prior to exercise whether it’s cardio or strength.  Make a mental note of two things does your overall joint stiffness or pain decrease?  Do you feel stronger or more fluid with your movement?

Give them a try. I’ve notice a huge difference in my own workouts from them.

Z-health foot drills

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Many of us are like Daniel-son we want to see results yesterday.  Here is the reality when it comes to health and fitness if you are out of shape. You didn’t get out of shape overnight and you won’t get in shape overnight either. Years of bad habits take some time to undo.

Healthy let me repeat that HEALTHY weight loss that lasts shoulde be slow and consistent 1-2 pounds/week or 10 pounds/month is a good pace which doesn’t sacrafice muscle tissue that is essential for maintaining a healthy metabolism.
So as we roll back into fall and start thinking of getting back on track set goals based more on body composition rather than pure weight.  You can easily get this tested by a certified personal trainer using calipers on 5-7 sites.   Retest every 4 weeks to check progress. If you weigh 200 pounds and drop ten pounds but only improve body composition by 1% you have really only lost 2 lbs of fat the rest is water and muscle. So it gives you a clearer picture of what is really going on. 

You might actually add muscle and lose fat so scale weight can stay the same or  go up as inches and fat disappear. 

Set your goals to be “reach” goals meaning if you did everything perfect you could lose 10 pounds and 4% body fat in one month but allow for life to get in the way because most of us have other things going on besides working out and eating right. There will be those days where Mr. Murphy will come knocking. So back it off a little to maybe losing 5 pounds and 2% boyfat instead. Hey it won’t be easy and if you blow it away great!  That is more motivating than setting yourself up for constant failure.

Set yourself up for success but don’t make it too easy or there will be no satisfaction.  No goal that is truly worth it is easy.

The bottom line is in order to accomplish any goal it required one simple thing.

Consistent daily action that moves you towards that goal. Some days will be more movement than others but over time those little daily things add up to mind blowing transformation.

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