We have some exciting stuff for you this week!  If everything falls into place we will be on Chanel 2 at 8:30am this week on Wednesday morning.  We will be talking about the miraculous stories of two of our beloved Lab Rats Michael Marker (lost total of 133lbs) and Voy Andrews (lost 117lbs and counting).  Both of who lost over 100lbs in under 1 year, with only 1hr of exercise per day, starting at the ripe age of 50!  The exciting part is not only how fast they did it, but HOW.   Not your conventional cardio bunny rat race, and not with restrictive 1200 calorie diets. NONE of that, they eat all day, and TONS of weights have been lifted!  Voy does 30 minutes of cardio a week TOTAL!

BUT the other exciting part is the fact that they are REAL people.  No HOLLYWOOD biggest loser situations with 6 hrs of exercise per day, weight loss ranches, hundreds of thousands in prize money, and crazy sadistic trainers.  Wait, maybe they did have a crazy sadistic trainer.  BUT, the point is they put into 1 week what those BIG LOSERS put in 1 day!!! Please check it out on Wednesday morning!

Next, I am very excited to introduce to you, a ‘partner in pain production’: Dr. Gina Lamonica, DPT!

Gina is a member of our insane Bootcamp, however she is also a marvelous physical therapist, who loves to run, attend bootcamp, and all around, “make it hurt!”  Gina has the gift if gab and one thing you might really appreciate in her article below is her ability to GET TO THE POINT (As opposed to someone else you know who tends to get a bit windy;).  Her clever, witty, and straight forward points will knock you out of your chair and kneeling on the ground begging for more!  Give it to us Gina!

Below Gina talks about something that so many people abuse and misuse.  The first thing ANY of our clients at The Lab learn about is POSTURE.  We teach the optimal positions to support your structure of bones, joints, muscles, tendons, and ligaments so that we may build on top of a strong foundation.  Our clients then hold these postures as we go through progressively difficult exercise movements and maintaining these postures under weight loads is what makes you more athletic, able, and less injury prone!  And, once mastered, more advanced movements are introduced.  BUT, if posture is inadequate, we can’t progress.  Likewise,  if you are further exacerbating an imbalance you are setting yourself for injury and the wrong kinds of pain, or worse under the knife in the ortho’s office.  Gina, shares my philosophy that we will do everything we can FIRST to keep someone from undergoing the knife or resorting to a pill. The human body is miraculous if you know how to work with it.

You know who you are, you may finally take the plunge to get to the gym and throw down, but do you perform the CORRECT amount of stretches. or perform them at all?  Failing to do so can leads to many problems as you will find out below. This is not your normal stretch article, Gina talks about the finer points below to keep your body in BALANCE!

PS:  Many of you may opt to try yoga in order to improve your ‘flexibility.’  While I have no problems with yoga in general.  This is not exactly the answer.  If you take away the message of Gina’s report, you will find that specific and focused stretching is what you need.  Not, generalized, aggressive stretching for an hour forcing EXTREME unstable postures (especially not in heated rooms God forbid!).  My point is that many times I have heard complaints of injuries from people jumping into yoga with the right intentions and leaving with a tweaked back….enough already…read below.
Enjoy this Majuscule!

Muscle Imbalance: The root of all orthopedic evils.

By: Dr. Gina LaMonica, DPT

The Guilty Position (aka: the OPPOSITE of the posture hold): “I Like to smell my own farts too, but this is RIDICULOUS!  And if I ever see you doing it, I promise I will light that fart on fire.”

But I digress…

Muscle balance is achieved by a combination of strengthening and stretching various muscle groups.  We depend on this (sometimes delicate) balance to maintain proper body mechanics and delegate appropriate stresses through our joints.

I myself am guilty of stretch-dodging.  In my mind, nothing beats a good sweat and a racing heart when it comes to my workouts.  Chasing the adrenaline rush or ‘runners high’ frequently leaves me with inadequate stretching time.  For more than a few years now, I have suffered the consequences of my foolishness in the form of occasional back pain.

Stiff hip musculature and laxity in my core (or “lazy abs”) is the ultimate mother of my pain.  In my experience, this particular muscle imbalance is at the root of many incidents of chronic, recurring back pain.  The theory is simple: the stiff muscles in my hips pull on my pelvis and spine with greater force than the muscles in my torso winning the battle of the back (hips = 1, core = 0) This results in inappropriate forces through many of the tiny joints between the vertebrae in my spine (‘facet joints’).  My spine responds to the abuse by sending pain signals to my brain, essentially begging me to take the time to correct the situation.

When my back cries loud enough; I stop, apologize, swallow my pride, and take the time to nurture my muscle imbalance.  Usually, this means stretching the hell out of my hamstrings, gluts, and lateral rotators.  I also spend some quality time re-visiting my ‘lower’ abdominal muscles.  Suddenly, it becomes easier to maintain that ‘posture-hold-position’ Justin is always harping over and (bonus!) I feel less like an 85-year-old.

The beloved posture hold: “Pull arms back tight, shoulders pulled back and down, chest pushed up and out, head and eyes forward, low back tight and arched/con-caved, draw in the abs to the spine (without losing that arch;), flex the knees slightly, weight in the heels, curl your toes up, now hold tight and don’t let me push you over.”  The posture hold according to Justin Thacker This may not reflect everyone views on posture).

Finding your personal muscle imbalance ultimately takes the expertise of a trained professional.  Still, let my personal pain story be a warning to those of you who may be heavy on strength training and light on flexibility.

Tips on smart stretching:

1)      Achieve a “gentle” pulling sensation in the desired muscle.  Aggressive overstretching may lead to injury! (I’ve seen it, not pretty)

2)      Hold static stretches for a full 20-30 seconds.  This does NOT mean speed-count to twenty.  Toss in those ‘Mississippi’s or ‘one-thousands’ or (gasp) use a watch with a second-hand!  Studies show that 30 seconds (and no longer) is ideal to gain flexibility.¹

3)      Resist the urge to bounce.  A good prolonged, STATIC stretch will better achieve desired lengthening results.  Bounding or “ballistic’ stretches may actually trigger a reflexive muscle contraction and the desired benefits will be lost.

4)      Don’t overstretch already long muscles!  Unless you’re planning to run off with the circus as the ‘marvelous human pretzel’ stick to ‘normal’ range of motion in all joints.  Stability and flexibility is key to overall health

5)      Stretch after a warm up or workout when muscles are ‘warm’.  Think of stretching a piece of taffy cold verses warm (sticky!) taffy.  Muscles are a lot like taffy, just not as tasty.

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Why? Goal Setting and Competitions

“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.”
- Michelangelo (1475-1564)

The Lift: 170kg (also known as 374lbs)

I just got back from another competition this weekend.  I competed in the Arnold Schwarzenegger Classic in Columbus Ohio and got a couple of long time monkeys off of my back and made some lifts I have been struggling with for way too long.  I finally did an official 374 lb clean and jerk and did the highest competition total I have ever done.  I have been able to make these lifts for along time in training but never have been able to put them together in a competition.  Needless to say it was very gratifying and rewarding for me considering how much and how long I have been training and competing.  At this point in my training career a mere 10lb gain in strength in 1 year on my competitive lifts is a good year.

Yes, 12 months of training for a mere 10lb improvement is progress.  Consider that for a second.  That is not much folks.  I have many beginners who can gain 10lb in strength every single week until they dial in to their potential and taper off.  However, this is simply because they are learning a new skill.  They are NOT gaining that much muscle that quickly, that’s not how it works.  Most of these gains are through neurological improvements in coordination and passing through their learning curve.  Once this slack is taken out muscular changes begin to take effect.  And the process begins which can take more or less time depending on how much work is done, how intensely, genetic, and lifestyle factors.  The beginner will still however be able to make very large gains within one year’s time and for multiple years.

Thank God this year I gained more than 10lbs of strength!  But, its because after 19 years of this I am still learning new things, learning how to push and motivate myself, never losing sight of my goals, no matter how far away, you have to stay hungry.  But, all for a mere 10 lbs of strength, why?  I must really suck!  Yes, that is part of it, and I would love to blame my genes, but that is a cop out.  I wouldn’t accept that from my clients and I don’t accept that for myself.  Are my genes world class, hell no!  But they are capable ones, and I WILL get the best out of them that I can.  They don’t have a choice because my will power will always be in control over my body.

“Life’s real failure is when you do not realize how close you were to success when you gave up.”
- Unknown

What I DO have, is work ethic (thanks mom!).  The will power and desire to put the work in, regardless of the fact that I will get so little of a return after ALL of that work.  I am no different than any body; I am not physically gifted in anyway. I go through pain everyday, I get tired, hungry, unmotivated, etc. All I do is keep going at it and never quitting, slowly but surely, I find little pieces of improvement and I am never satisfied, but content nonetheless.  And it’s enough to keep me going.  Maybe, I am just to stupid to give up.  But hey, whatever works right?

As you can see things just don’t happen on their own and take massive amounts of time and energy.  I find some peoples expectations a bit ironic and naive as they walk in the door expecting things to happen over night with less than optimal effort AND become discouraged when any opposition or struggle is achieved.  The journey IS the reward.

“I can accept failure, but I can’t accept not trying.”
- Michael Jordan (b.1963)

I urge you to consider what it’s like in my shoes for a second.  Everyone thinks they have it soooooo hard.  And bitch about putting in 60 minutes day, wow.  I put in 24 hours per week of training for a yearly gain of hopefully 10lbs in strength…talk about frustrating!  I have literally had to organize my whole life around being able to make any sort of improvements.  So, sorry folks, I don’t have much sympathy for the whining and complaining.  I understand situations are never ideal but if you want it bad enough, you will find a way.  In no way am I suggesting you do what I do to improve.  Please don’t, I have serious problemsJ  I’m just trying to relate with you and your struggles.   I have seen miracles happen over time with ONLY 1hr worth of exercise each day.

But, how do I stay focused and motivated for such a small gain. Pushing myself tirelessly year in and out for 19 years pushing my potential to its maximum?

First of all the rewards are much deeper than the 10 lbs strength gain.  The rewards are infinite and would take me over 20 pages of writing to fully detail and you don’t want that.

But, how do I stay driven each day?  I set GOALS.  More specifically, I compete in competitions.  Just like bodyweight or body fat percentage can serve as personal bench marks for weight loss, weightlifting competitions are the true measuring stick for what I do.  The truth is I really don’t like competing all that much.  I like to train.  For me, the training process is very rewarding and all the satisfaction I would ever need from exercise.

However, if I didn’t have goals to shoot for this process would unravel much differently and enthusiasm would suffer.  And complacency would set in.  And after a while I would see my fitness level decline…just like everyone else in this world, my body doesn’t just enthusiastically jump into 4hr workouts.  I have to MAKE it happen.  And 4 hours must be packed with QUALITY PRODUCTIVE work.  I’m not just killing time here.  If I could get myself to such a level with less work, believe me I would do it.  However, I just need allot of work to improve.  And, I found the point on that continuum required to make my body improve to the point I want.

Just like you I have to talk myself into it everyday, I have to internally motivate myself everyday, I have bad days, I must push myself to the furthest pain levels I can handle, I must put my body under so much stress that it is forced to improve, break, or die.  But, if I was just shooting from the hip with no target in mind or destination is site, this process would be very depressing and fruitless.

A friend of mine asked me yesterday why I compete.  And, considering I don’t exactly enjoy competing (I compete for many reasons, rewards, status, prestige, gratification, etc) but at the end of the day I NEED to compete so I can keep myself improving.  And in the end I am not competing against other competitors but MYSELF.  How do I do better and better while getting older and older? I hold myself to standards and behaviors each week that ensures I have the opportunities and ability to improve.

I compete for my own reasons and it keeps me focused and progressing.  What are your reasons? Each competition is nothing more than a set of goals and targets I am shooting for over a given period of time that I progressively work toward with single minded focus on that target. Losing 1 lb is a goal, a personal competition.  Getting yourself to run 1 mile, to be able to exercise 6 days per week.  All of these goals add up and serve as weekly bench marks and behaviors to get you to that target. Get clear on what you want, aim at your target, and map out your plan of action.  Then execute, execute, execute.  Over and over.  My last competition was 48 hrs ago and it’s now useless to me.  It’s now history and I must set new sights or I will decline in desire and ability.  It serves only as a bench mark to improve upon so that I may get better.

Now it’s your turn.

You must find out your WHY to do the WHAT.  With no emotion or passion behind your efforts your TARGET may never be reached and when the going gets tough it will be very easy to quit, give up, and come up with excuses and reasons why you are not succeeding.  You will end up nowhere and repeatedly frustrated, no regrets!

No matter how big or small you must set goals (personal competitions) and know WHY you are doing it and use that to push you to new personal limits each day, each week, each month, all year long!

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In case you don’t know who Voy Andrews is, he is a current client of mine who has lost a total of 111lbs in under a year working out just 1hr per day.  Voy lost 0 pounds from day 1-90.  Naturally, Voy was NOT happy about that.  Voy was undergoing a physical and mental learning process and had some work to do before he was working hard enough within that hour to be burning off the pounds.  This isn’t all about just pumping out exercises or jumping on the treadmill.

In this mornings workout Voy smirked at me and said, “You don’t have to hit a home run every time.”  And I was very pleased with myself as the relentless brain washing has finally set in and he is repeating this statement to himself regularly (if you know me you know I say this all the time, and probably once a day).  Voy knows I am out for blood everyday he comes into see me and I know many of the days he doesn’t want to come in at all, as I AM going to push him to reach for a home run (ie. perform  personal bests).  But, he shows up and does his best.  Realizing it’s the effort and long term progression that matters.

He got through the 90 day hump and less than 9 months later has lost an astonishing 111lbs and counting.  In those first 90 days Voy was seeking instant gratification.  We changed his understanding of the process and now has a better working mental structure that gets him through each day.  Had Voy chalked up his efforts merely to the first 90 days and gave up because it wasn’t coming fast enough he would have never gone through the life changing transformation.  In fact we even had this discussion on day 90. I won.  Now when it’s tough (basically, everyday) Voy knows how to get himself in and out and do the required work regardless of what he would rather do.

If you would liek to be brain washed for success like Voy,  read below.

Enjoy this Majuscule!

We often get caught in mental traps and self deception habits that keep us from taking those first steps.  Tons of expectations and build up to go in and have the workout of your life, building, building, building, and waiting to take that leap into your amazing journey and transformation.

But, wait, nothing ever happened?  Procrastination, delays, and infinite reasons to never start.

What’s going on?

Many times people expect to much to fast or may even be worried about the pain/discomfort associated with undergoing such a process.  Or perhaps get stuck in the trap of doing only what they like to do (ladies: long slow runs and perhaps super light weights, and fellas: bench presses and bicep curls simply chasing big numbers in spite of proper form, ewww).

It dawned on me last night while having a conversation with a friend that nothing in life worth doing comes effortlessly or pain free. Humans typically opt for increasing pleasure and reducing pain as a survival mechanism, however this is a huge trap.  So much so that it’s funny to see how exercise recommendations have gotten more aggressive by the ‘experts,’ as they are now realizing they are more afraid of inactivity than over activity for the public.  The very conservative and loose exercise guidelines have helped build into peoples self deception that they can get healthy in just 15 minutes a day 3 times per week  (Yes, if you exercise plan is walking to the refrigerator, the former plan will make you MORE healthy).

Nothing is easy at first.  Nothing, learning to walk, speak, drive, read, tie your shoes, whatever.  A regular exercise program and healthy dietary habits are no different.  Everything has a price (Time, pain, money, sacrifices, failures, etc).  It is really important to learn to enjoy this journey and make it a lifestyle change or you will be one of the 90% + percent who relapse and gain the weight back or one of those who, “used to” be able to do this or that.  I have numerous clients into and well past their 50s in the best shape of their lives.

After thinking about this some more I thought of some of my favorite activities: Sex, working out, learning something new, and yes even social drinking….all of those things take effort, work, discomfort, and varying amounts of pain (to my knowledge everyone receiving this is over 18 years old;).  However, after some practice they all become some of the biggest pleasures in life.

The fear of failure perhaps?  It is very easy to not do anything and keep telling yourself you will.  Or you will do it tomorrow, etc.  This just leads to larger build ups, expectations, and even larger disappointment when things don’t turn out well…it’s been built into a monster at this point.   People get very cleaver with self deception in these situations and wait for the perfect time or exercise gimmick, diet plan, etc to make the magic happen.  Hell, I have made fun of wii fit and bosu balls many times but if that’s what works for you-AWESOME!  Sure, my programs sure are ‘magical’ but they DON’T do the work themselves.  They must be WORKED and you only get out what you put into them.  In fact, these programs work 100% of the time GURANTEED when they are given 100% dedication.  But 99% or less and all bets are off.

Ready, shoot,  aim.  There is no perfect time, place, or magical formula that you need to wait for or find.  You have everything you need right now to do it.  All you have to do is go.  The solutions, the path, the motivation, and progress will all come with time but ONLY if you start now without hesitation. If you don’t, it will be pushed back another week as all of life’s nuances fall back in the way and the cycle continues.  So don’t kid yourself for one second that you are going to be some workout superstar from day 1 (nor day 10,000 for that matter).  I have been working out for 19 years and I am still making drastic progress.  I have earned every set and every rep along the way and it has NEVER  been an ‘easy’ process.

Many of my clients are so successful simply because I hold them accountable to show up and do the work.  It is a daily process of talking yourself into it.  You may see others and think, “wow it’s just easy for them, etc.”  Nonsense, perception is reality, and you have no clue what their internal state or thought process is, and maybe they are just having a good day, or maybe they just always smile, or maybe things have not gotten hard for them, YET.   Or maybe they have seen the light, dealt with the struggles, and have overcome, don’t hate them for it.  They don’t have super powers, they have will power.

Likewise, I mandate that my clients progress over time and show improvements in all forms of exercise, they never get to comfortable.   HOWEVER, they know I don’t expect them to hit a grand slam home run every time.  We are usually always swinging for the fence in some fashion, but struggle and failure is part of the process.  NO one bats 1000%.  That’s what this journey is about. Showing up.  Putting in the time.  Rome wasn’t built in a day right?

I even have many people feel embarrassed and ashamed when they come into the gym and say things like, “oh you probably think I am so week, or in pathetic shape, etc.” Like I am going to judge them or something!? Those thoughts NEVER cross my mind.  I have TONS of respect for anyone who steps up and tries regardless of ability.  I have seen men squat over 1000 lbs before, lift world record weights, and on the other hand I have seen someone not even have the strength to lift an empty barbell. It is irrelevant, I respect them both the same because they both stepped up to the barbell and tried.  I am only concerned with the mental EFFORT given.

The secret element is the wherewithal and perseverance to show up and put the work in regardless of what the short term outcome may be.  Being comfortable being uncomfortable and not seeing immediate results from one day of work.  Once you break free from this short sided thinking and harness the process, before you know it results appear.  Everyone has a relative ability compared to the next person and what impresses me is when someone does the best they can with what they’ve got….but not ultimately by what’s on the bar.  However, setting personal goals and smashing them is an addictive thrill and without them you will eventually end up spinning your wheels.  Do the best with what you have and always stay hungry as the process is never over, there really is no final destination.

If I know someone is capable of more, yet not putting in the effort, yes, that disgusts me.  What a waste.  I am truly more excited to see someone do or try something they have never done before (perhaps a pushup for the first time after working on a chest press machine) than a blowhard who is all hat and no cattle.

This journey is about nothing else other than yourself and personal development, not to show off to the world or please someone else.  The work and EFFORT you put in is what counts.  This can be one of the most rewarding journeys you ever partake in and will maximize your experience on earth in everyway.  To break free from the trap of inaction, realize this is a lifetime journey that will have peaks and valleys of good and bad times.  Setting forth idealistic expectations or comparing yourself to others is setting yourself up for major disappointment.  You must have goals but you also need to find perseverance and the daily internal motivation to get through the good and bad times.  Start now and never give up.

Otherwise, maybe a strong cup of coffee might work?

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