WHAT DO ABS + JOHNNY FARNHAM HAVE IN COMMON?

Nothing really but here's a Instagram post I put up showing 3 separate core complexes I did the other day as part of my training, all to soothing sounds of Johnny Farnham's Touch of Paradise.

A complex is a series of related or non-related exercises that can be done in  flow style of training where you use the same implement (bar, dumbbell, med ball etc) for all exercises eliminating the need to change stations and thus increase training density.

Be sure to have mastered each individual exercise on it's own before putting them all together like this.

There's 3 vids so be sure to flick through each one as I'll break each one down below.

View this post on Instagram

CORE JOHNNY FARNHAM 9 excellent exercises sit into 3 complexes performed to the soothing summer sounds of Touch of Paradise, Farnesy's best song for mine #afltraining #afl #aflw #aflwomens #coreworkout #core #abs #abworkout #johnfarnham #farnesy #notretiring

A post shared by Troy Lange (@aussierulestraining) on Oct 17, 2019 at 7:53pm PDT

COMPLEX 1 - WEIGHTED SIT UPS

Exercise 1: Weighted Overhead Sit Ups
Exercise 2: Weighted Front Raise Sit Ups
Exercise 3: Weighted Sit Ups

I did 5 reps of each x 1 set and 3 - 5kgs is all you'll need for this.

Then went directly to...

COMPLEX 2 - PALLOF ROATATION

Exercise 1: Pallof 1
Exercise 2: Pallof 2
Exercise 3: Pallof 3

I use all these progression with all my clients so we'd do 3 or so sessions for pallof 1, then progress to pallof 2 and pallof 3 - then I mix them together in various combinations.

Again I did 1 set of 5 reps of each x 1 set and you'll only need a skinny band for these.

COMPLEX 3: REVERSE CRUNCH

Exercise 1: Toes to Sky
Exercise 2: Reverse Crunch
Exercise 3: 2 Leg Heel Drop

To keep the trend I did 1 set of 5 reps of each directly after the pallof complex.

So all up I did 45 core reps in about 90secs.

Be sure to have each station ready to go so you can go straight from 1 to the other without rest.

TOP 3 FARNESY SONGS

1) Touch of Paradise
2) 2 Strong Hearts
3) That's Freedom

LESSONS FROM HUMANS OF NEW YORK

I came across this Humans of New York post yesterday:



Here's what he said:

"...I was a really fat adolescent. I weighed well over 200 lbs. I was always depressed. I was in this ‘punk rock,’ ‘fuck the jock,’ kind of ethos. I looked down on sports culture. But we had a compulsory weight training course during my freshman year of high school. At first I hated it. Absolutely hated it. But the teacher was this terrifying, hulking man. So I followed his instructions. He gave me a sheet of exercises, and I checked off all the boxes. And afterwards I felt amazing. I don’t think PE teachers get enough credit. He changed my life. He forced me to discover the high you get from physical activity. And exercise has been my medicine ever since. Right now I’m working as a bike messenger. I ride about twenty miles a day. It’s not even financially necessary because I own my own company. But it takes the energy out of my weird thoughts. It keeps me from honing in on the negative aspects of my life. Things are good right now. I'm very lucky. And that becomes clear to me when I'm physically engaged. So I always keep moving. I'm literally cycling away from my depression, and it works..."

So many lessons to be taken from this for all of us regardless of our mental state.

- Physiological and psychological state go hand in hand so you need to work exercise both of them consistently

- Sometimes you'll need to go through some shit you hate to find some light at the end of the tunnel 

- When all seems lost then apply yourself to something, anything and give it a chance even when it seems like it's not doing anything right now

- Exercise is medicine in a lot of cases so prioritise your energy and make the time

- Being physically and mentally engaged and something keeps you from honing in on any negative aspects in your life

- Things can change if you want to change

HOW CRYING CAN HELP YOU

Crying may serve a real physiological purpose according to this article.

- A titbit from the study group is that they only used women because in pilot testing of sad video's shown to both men and women where both sexes cried, more women ADMITTED they cried

- Men will often cry "inside" or some form of bro-language or high 5's to hide from crying

- The actual study contained 2 parts with 1 being watching sad and neutral videos and noting how many people cried during them followed by a physical/mental task of having your submerged in ice water designed to cause pain at some point or another.

- Looking at cortisol (a stress hormone) levels, there was minimal difference between neutral video watchers, sad video non-crying watchers and sad video crying watchers so nothing to really report there.

- The surprising aspect though was the difference in breathing rates where the criers were able to maintain their breathing rates as the ice water got colder and colder, where the non-criers breathing rate elevated

- This shows that tearing up might assist with controlling breathing rates which can also help you with regulating arousal and serving as an emotional release.

- On top of that they also found that right before crying, participants tended to experience decreases in their heart rates, seemingly in the anticipation of crying and once the crying began then their heart rates tend to creep back up but not above the level they had been at before everything began

In the end it is crucial to finding emotional outlets to periodically release your emotions otherwise you're on track for an unexpected outburst at the worst possible time

Crying tells those around you that you need more sympathy, help or comfort so is also a means of communication, especially when you're an infant and that's all you can do.

Crying alone can also be a way of communicating with yourself by telling yourself about your own state as you might be terrible at reading your own emotions and situation/s and tears could be a way of saying "hey, take a break", that something's not right or take care of yourself - it's your body literally crying out to you!

Crying can occur in times of happiness, angriness and sadness but it's essential to know what's causing you to cry in the first place that could help us better handle our emotions and stress.

Need some help crying? Watch Coco or Toy Story 4!!

TO KEEP YOUR MIND SHARP - DO PHYSICAL EXERCISE

This article looks at why physical exercise, and not mental games, might be the best way to keep your mind sharp.

- The brain training industry is getting quite huge these days with the idea being that you can improve your memory, attention and powers of reasoning through the right mental exercises

- Software companies are forever releasing different games to increase cognitive abilities and brain training programs but 1 study showed that there's no evidence to support the widely held belief that the regular use of computerised brain training improves general cognitive functioning in healthy participants

- Children that exercise regularly displayed substantial improvements in executive function, were better at attentional inhibition (the ability to block our irrelevant information to concentrate at the task at hand), have heightened abilities to toggle between cognitive tasks

- Above all, the children who had attended the most exercise sessions showed the greatest improvements in their cognitive scores

- These benefits also seem to benefit adults too

1 study focusing on adults already experiencing a mild degree cognitive impairment found that resistance and aerobic training improved their spatial memory and verbal memory

- Another study found that weight training can decrease brain shrinkage, a process that occurs naturally with age.

- Exercise triggers the production of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF, which helps support the growth of existing brain cells and the development of new one's

- With age, BDNF levels fall and this decline is 1 reason why brain function deteriorates in the elderly

- Certain types of exercise, namely aerobic, are thought to counteract these age-related drops in BDNF and can restore young levels of BDNF in an aged brain

- Another study showed that, although far from conclusive, that small dosages of exercise could lead to cognitive improvements such as a 20 - 25min brisk walk several times per week, an exercise dosage achievable by all of us.

TRACKING BUILDS LONG TERM HABITS

I came across this article just this morning and it's a banger if sustainable changes is what you're after.

I track every a bloody lot of things from my own training currently and always have in some shape or form.

Back in the 2000's I'd write down everything I'd eat and drink every single day, as well as all the calories that entailed although I was never really aiming to eat at a certain calorie level or anything.

I've tracked all my training since even before then.

Currently I track my heart rate variability each day and from that I get 5 separate readings per day.

I have an excel spreadsheet that has all of my training logged into it from as far back as December 2013.

FYI I've missed about 475 days out of about 2050 of training since January 2014!

(Self back slap...)

In my training log I also note any days missed that were unscheduled such as sickness, house moving etc.

Getting back to the best part of this article, results from some study showed that those who tracked their steps for just 12 weeks, had maintained their activity levels long after the tracking had stopped.

For many they had even increased their activity levels by about 30mins.

That's mammoth as far as behavioural change is concerned because you've accomplished something you couldn't do otherwise, with pretty much zero extra effort or cost - the 2 biggest barriers to any sort of change you want to undertake.

Those in the study who were the control group and didn't do any activity tracking actually decreased their activity levels over time - ouch.

For the cherry on top, those who maintained/increased their activity levels also saw a huge drop in heart attack, stroke and stress fracture risk.

What implement and also what you track doesn't really matter, it's the process of goal setting and self monitoring that I think is the biggest factor at play here.

Lastly it goes on to say that the intensity of your activity is more important then the volume of your activity but that's a blog for another day!

GOOD VIBES ONLY

You need to surround yourself with good vibes.

Why?

Read on...

- If you bear witness to someone experiencing pain then you’ll often feel pain yourself which shows just how interconnected we really are

- In tight-knit communities, when 1 person feels loss then everyone does

- Even below-the-surface emotions like motivation are contagious and this is reflected in the workplace

- Sitting within 5 meters of a high performer at work can improve an employee’s performance by 15% but sitting within 5 meters of a bad performer can decrease performance by 30%

- Emotions can even be spread virtually such as through texts that are sent in low mood states being felt by the receiver

- We are mirrors reflecting onto each other and the people we surround ourselves with shape us and we shape those around us as well

- Associate with people you admire and aspire to be like where you don’t just get more skilful by doing what they do, but you actually garner the motivation/emotions that lead to improvement

- It also means that it’s much better to work with the scrappy but less talented performer than the star who phones it in

- Try and avoid meeting sadness with sadness and anger with anger, stopping to think and respond differently

WILLPOWER ISN'T ENOUGH

This comes from an article of the same name from performance coach and best-selling author Brad Stulberg and is obviously about willpower, or our lack thereof these days!

Here the notes I took down from it:

- Like everything else, if you rely/use willpower too much then it fatigues and gives out - then what are you left with?

- Constantly resisting checking your phone leads to lower physical and psychological performance

- Meditation and exercise can help improve it, as exercise requires willpower by it's very nature, but they are rarely enough

- You need to eliminate the need for willpower altogether

- Even when you have your phone facedown on the table and on silent during a face-to-face conversation, merely having the phone present detracts from the quality of the conversation because you're using up so much energy from resisting the urge to check for updates, energy that could be going into the conversation

- Design your environments to remove any temptations such as keeping bad food out of the house, keeping your phone in the car etc.

Check out the article as it provides a lot more temptation removals strategies than I've listed here.

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS 30 DAY PROGRAM (WEEK 4)

Week 4 is a 9 day workout week and is the final crescendo in the Glutius Monthius program.

If you've completed every day in this program so far, and will continue to do so for the next 9 days than hopefully you've been able to see some pretty noticeable changes in how your glutes look and feel.

Below is the last infograph so be sure re-take your photo's again in the same clothes and from the same sides/angles.

Feel free to send me your before and after's too!

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS 30 DAY PROGRAM (WEEK 3)

We're half way through Glutius Programius so hopefully by now your glutes are feeling different (probably constantly sore unfortunately) but also starting to look a bit differently too.

Volume ramps up again this week using the same exercises still.

At this point your fatigue will be at it's highest and this can then have implications on motivation so I implore you stick with the plan and if you can get through week 3, then you'll be through the hardest part and you can essentially breeze through the last week.

If you have any questions or feedback then feel free to contact me.

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS 30 DAY PROGRAM (WEEK 2)

So how are your glutes feeling?

Sore?

I hear ya.

Looking better already?

They'd have to be.

Week 2 is much of the same but MORE volume.

You'll be doing the same exercises on the same days of the week with your progression being more reps per set which will set your glutes on forte more so than week 1 but that's the point of this whole dealio.

If you've got any feedback or questions on the program then feel free to reach out to me.

Here's week 2:

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS 30 DAY PROGRAM (WEEK 1)

All week we've gone through the best glute exercises in existence and today we put them all together to tear it up for the next 30 days but before you start the program I want you to do a little something.

I want you to take some photo's of your self either in a bikini bottom, skirt or pair of jeans - whatever you choose.

Just make it a clothing item you really want to "pop" in come this time this month.

Take a back and (each) side photo and store them away because in 30 days you'll take the exact same photo's with the exact same clothing on to compare.

Also before the program I encourage you to head to Big W, Rebel etc (I found the K-Mart one's to be the best personally) and get yourself some resistance exercise bands but if you can't do that for some reason then you'll need to drop the side step and monster walk exercises and then add 10 reps onto the prescribed reps in the program the other exercises.

You can simply do the bodyweight versions of the glute bridges and hip thrusts too with the lack of resistance being interchanged for extra volume - no biggie.

Here's the exercise list again:

Band Side Step (continuous reps)

Band Monster Walk (continuous reps)

Glute Bridge (2sec Hold at the top of each rep)

Band Hip Thrust (2sec hold at the to of each rep)

Deficit Reverse Lunge

Walking Lunge

Curtsey Lunge

I won't put the number of sets in but rather a rep total for you to complete so if it says 50 reps then it's 50 total reps in as many sets needed to reach it.

Just remember that you don't start counting reps until you feel the burn in the glutes and if at any point the burn moves from the glutes to another area then stop the set, rest for 20 - 30secs, re-start the exercise and again wait for the burn to creep in before continuing your rep count.

Got it?

Let's roll!

Here's week 1 of the program and each Friday I'll put up the following weeks training.

If you have any questions then let me know and feel free to get your friends in on this.

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS EXERCISE #4 - HILL SPRINTS

Day 1 - Mini Band Glute Combo

Day 2 - Glute Bridge/Hip Thrust Combo

Day 3 - Single Leg Exercises

Over the last 3 days we've shifted from training the glutes in isolation to integrating them into single leg exercises yesterday so today we'll put the glutes into full body movement through hill sprints.

Hill sprints don't get fully utilised in my opinion because they seem so simple to do and everyone wants to follow the latest gimmick or fad which is usually ordinary in comparison.

Hill sprints are brings more explosive contractions into the mix and the glutes being a big powerful muscle with muscle fibres running in all direction, is built for exactly this.

Check the glutes on speed and power athletes, especially in track and field, to see this in reality.

In and around the South Yarra/Toorak area we're lucky to have a few hills and stairs at our disposal but I'd much prefer you to use a hill over stairs if possible as stairs usually shorten your stride up making the exercise more quads then glutes.

Another caveat of stairs is that you can't quite go at full sprinting pace as you're conscious of not missing a step and coming a cropper so if you have, have, have, have to use stairs then do so and skip every 2nd or 3rd stair and build up your pace each set during one of these sessions.

Here are some hills in the South Yarra/Toorak area that I've used in the past:

Location: Woodfull Street, Orrong Romanis Park, Prahran

This is a level 1 hill that I used when I was coming back from a pretty serous knee injury 4 - 5 years back so if you're not in super shape then something like this is a good place to start and you can always upgrade to level 2 if it feels too easy for you.

Location: Orrong Road, Orrong Romanis Park, Prahran

This is a level 2 hill and is the one I used in the middle portion of my knee rehab back then. 

It is done on the footpath seen in the image above along Orrong Road down to Malvern Rd intersection and allows for longer runs then the others listed here.

Location: River Street, South Yarra

I have used this hill, located at the bottom of River St towards Alexander Parade, for multiple hill programs over the years.

It's vastly more acute then 2 previous options and runs for 25 - 30m (light pole to pole as you can see on the right hand side here) so it's the level 3 hill.

If you've driven/walked up this before then you'll know that the image doesn't really show how hilly this actual hill is.

Location: Como Park, South Yarra

This particular grass hill is located at the car park found at the top of Como Park and is an absolute cracker.

It's as acute as you can probably get for a grass hill (where' you'd probably slip too much if it was any more acute) and it's a a little bit longer than the River St option too.

You get about most of the way up and you think it's done then it keeps coming at you so it really forces you to continue to push hard through your entire lower body until you get to the very top, or you're at risk of pretty much rolling all the way back down again.

There are a variety of hill at Como Park varying in steepness and distance so feel free to use either of them.

A couple of tips on doing hills:

- Choose a hill that you can as fast as YOU can for at least 20m

- Hill sprints has the word sprint in it, meaning you must sprint, not coast or run pretty hard but actually sprint

- You can sprint but you can't sprint for long so keep your time per set to 10secs at the absolute top end but the 6 - 8sec range is better...more is not better, better is better

- With sprinting at 100% all out effort you need to rest so after each hill sprint rest at least 3mins between sets to ensure you can attack each hill sprint with maximal effort

Tomorrow - 30 Day Glute Program!!

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS EXERCISE #3 - SINGLE LEG

Day 1 - Mini Band Glute Combo

Day 2 - Glute Bridge/Hip Thrust Combo

For day 3 today we're going to have a look at single leg exercises and even though all those IG models put up videos of squats all.the.time., they are a sub-par glute builder more often then not.

Enter the single leg exercise group.

I have about a million single leg exercises but I'll limit it to just 3 today.

EXERCISE #1: DEFICIT REVERSE LUNGE (LEVEL 1)

You probably seen/performed reverse lunges before but maybe not from off a deficit/step which increases the range of motion of the step back/eccentric portion of the exercise and thus increases the stretch put upon the glutes and an inability to walk the next day.

Not that soreness is in anyway way a gauge for the effectiveness of an exercise or workout but it's always reassuring that you are using the correct exercises when you can feel them the next day.

Tips to optimise reverse lunges of any variation are:

- Keep a vertical shin on the front leg, especially as you step the back leg down behind you

- Keep a relative vertical torso but without any lower back hyperextension and a little bit of forward lean isn't the end of the world

- Step width again isn't a huge issue but if you can get a 90 degree angle through both hips and knees at the bottom position than you're in a good position for maximal glute usage

EXERCISE #2 - WALKING LUNGE (LEVEL 2)

Again you've all done this exercise before but the same rules from above apply here as well to tear those glutes to shreds:

- Vertical shin on the front leg, parallel shin on the trail leg

- A step width that results in a 90 degree angle on the front and trail leg in the bottom position

- A vertical, or close to, torso

EXERCISE #3 - CURTSEY LUNGE (LEVEL 3)

About 90% of the single leg exercises that you've ever done are performed in the sagittal plane meaning front/back and thus only really hits the muscles hard that are required to hold stability and positioning in that plane.

The Curtsey lunge introduces a side to side (frontal plane) and rotational (transverse plane) aspect so now all glute muscles and pretty much all their fibres (that run in all directions) get trained pretty hard.

This can all result in the most soreness of any of these exercises!

Same rules apply for the most part (vertical front shin, vertical torso, step width/distance that allows for a vertical shin) but this does require so extra ankle/hip mobility and knee stability/control to perform correctly, hence why l've given you 3 levels of exercises today but by all means do them all if you can.

Give these a crack and be sure to check in for the 4th and final exercise tomorrow.

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS EXERCISE #2 - GLUTE BRIDGE COMBO

In day 1, we looked at a band hip abduction combination with banded side steps and monster walks so hopefully you've given them a shot in the last 24hrs or so and felt their benefits.

For day 2 today we're going to have a look at a glute bridge combination which focuses mainly on the big glute max muscle but also incorporating some abduction, which was the main focus yesterday.

For just about anything you should always focus on getting the most from the least - looking for the minimum effective dose so being able combine multiple actions of the 1 muscle at the same time ticks those very boxes.

EXERCISE #1 - GLUTE BRIDGE

We've all seen and done this exercise before but like yesterday's exercises, the benefits of the exercise will come from focusing on the specifics of the exercise, and not just going through the motions pumping air like Buddy Love from the Nutty Professor.

The tips/sequence you need to follow is this:

- Start with your lower back flat on the floor

- Initiate downward pressure through your heels into the floor but don't go straight into your hip lift, rather "roll" your bum, hips and then lower back off the floor like a worm

- As you approach the very top position, you want to make sure that you have rolled the front of your pelvis up towards your rib cage

- Once at the top of the movement then you should feel a pretty decent squeeze going on there but just for good measure, give an another conscious squeeze as well as you can never be too firm.

- Instead of just falling back down to the starting position, reverse the steps you took to get up there

Bonus Point - to keep constant tension on the glutes, as you get to the floor let your back flatten but try and keep your hips rolled/tucked up and go back into the next rep

- Same as yesterday only start counting your working reps once you feel the burn coming on

EXERCISE #2 - HIP THRUST

All the same tips apply here but ensure that you are lowering your hips as far down as is comfortable for you, the extra range of motion through your hips has you working the hip hinge movement which is also a great glute builder.

EXERCISE #2.1 - BANDED HIP THRUST

If you've got a long band like in the video, then take note of how to get "into" the band than follow all the same glute bridge/hip thrusts steps from above, but make sure that you are pushing your knees out against the band resistance and you might take a slightly wider stance too, to hit some extra abduction.

If you've only got a smaller Pilates type band then simply pop it around your knees and off you go but you can also try placing the band just above or just below your knees and see which one's fores those cheeks up the best.

Let me know how you go with these and be ready for day 3 tomorrow.

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS EXERCISE #1 - MINI BAND GLUTE COMBO

Glutius Weekius is here!

On day 1 (of 5 this week) we'll look an exercise combination a lot of you have probably seen or performed made up of 2 separate exercises, but easily interchange into each other.

EXERCISE #1 - BAND SIDE STEP

The Band Side Steps hits the glute medius muscle which is located on the side of the hip so that's where you should feel this bad boy.

For any low level glute exercise like this (and the one to follow) it is imperative that you feel the muscle you're trying to training doing the work.

Some tips to ensure that for this exercise include:

- Keep your knees not fully locked but pretty close to, limit your knee bend

- Also keep your hips tall, don't let your bum point out behind you

- Start your feet somewhere around hip width apart, take your working foot wider then your starting position and when you bring your trail leg across to complete the rep, put it down at the same width you started with.

- Make your reps not super slow but at least controlled with constant tension applied to the working muscle (GM)

- Once you feel the specific muscle working, then start counting "working" reps

- Do not use a band tension so tight or strong that it doesn't allow for all of the above steps to be completed and a lighter/weaker band is better for these exercises.

There is a similar variation to this exercise called Mini Band Side Steps that uses a much shorter pilates type band that fits around your knees or ankles  - use whichever variation./band you have available, no stress.

EXERCISE #1.1 - MINI BAND SIDE STEPS

EXERCISE #2 - BAND MONSTER WALKS

This exercise will also hit the glute medius region bt also a little more and a little bit differently.

The forwards and then backwards motion will result in some resisted hip extension as well so now your also hitting the glute maximus, the biggest glute muscle of them all.

The same tips from above apply for this exercise well.

Again there is a mini band variation and again use whatever band/variation you have available.



EXERCISE 2.1 = MINI BAND MONSTER WALKS

Your job for today and tomorrow is to give these 2 exercises test run and see how hard you can fire up those glutes with just these 2 exercises alone.

Let me know how you go or if you need any more tips and I'll be back tomorrow.

GLUTIUS WEEKIUS MAY 27th - 31st

Next week I'll be running a 5 day workshop on all things glutes.

Days 1 - 4 will detail what I have find to be the most effective glute exercises that requires minimal equipment and training experience.

Day 5 will supply a 30 day program that I'd like you all to follow along with before and after photo's if you desire.

This will all be free for everyone of course and I'll emailing, blogging and Facebook-ing daily next week so make sure you keep a close eye on your socials so as to not miss a day.

Feel free to get your friends involved as well by directing them to the workshop.

LACK OF EXERCISE IS MORE DEADLY THAN OBESITY

According to a study of 334,000 men and women, titled "Epic Study" found that twice as many deaths were attributed to physical inactivity than to obesity.

For the study, the subjects were tracked for an average of 12 years measuring height, weight and waist circumference and then used self-assessment to measure levels of physical activity.

They found that the greatest reduction in risk of premature death occurred in the comparison between inactive and moderately inactive groups meaning exercising enough to burn just 100 calories - the equivalent to a brisk 20 minute walk every day - is enough to be classed as "active" and producing significant health benefits as well.

Of the 9.2 million deaths among European men and women analysed by the study, 337,000 were attributed to obesity, classed as a BMI of 30 of higher.

Double the number of deaths - to 676,000 - could be attributed to inactivity.

In addition to preserving your physical integrity, exercise also keeps your mind sharp and is one of the most effective ways of preserving your brain function as you get older.

What's not to like?

I still have some spots available in the Lose 8kgs in 8 Weeks program if you need guidance, accountability and a sure fire way to become active and lose weight.

YOU DON'T WANT TO LOSE 8KGS IN 8 WEEKS?

Yesterday I posted about the 6 Infinity Stones that the "Lose 8 in 8" program provides for you with the last one being opportunity.

How many of these ads do you see on your socials?

Plenty I bet.

It seems that this opportunity will come along time and time again for you and you just take one of them up when you really want to.

Before you resign yourself to that line of thinking have a look at this image that I've loaned/stolen from Jon Goodman and his team over at Online Trainers Unite that shows you what this thought process actually does to you:

It's pretty self explanatory but if you've seen 50 of these offers before and ignored them then your gap is now resembling a chasm.

And as you've ignored 50 other "deals" on the notion that you'll take one up later...well you haven't done it yet have you?

Your not investing in your present and you're not investing in your future.

We all like to wait for our ducks to line up in a nice little row so whatever we decide to so will be as easy as it can be but that is nor reality.

You might think that 8 weeks is a long way away and you can't stay the course.

I'll do all I can to get you to the 8kgs mark even it takes longer.

I'm in for 8 weeks if you are, but it's your call.

You might think that the cost is too high but $50 per kilogram lost is a minor price to pay, considering a single shopping trip, a short term reward, can be much higher.

If any of these issues are worrying for you then hit me up for a quick chat and we'll see if we can put those worries at ease.

HERE'S YOUR 6 INFINITY STONES (TO LOSE 8KGS IN 8 WEEKS)

I'm sure most of us seen the Avengers and are aware of the all important Infinity Stones.

Bringing half of the universe isn't quite at stake here but this 8 week program supplies you with your own 6 Infinity Stones to lose 8kgs in 8 weeks.

INFINITY STONE #1 - NUTRITION 

I've seen countless fads come and go do you know what they all have in common and is the not-so-secret secret?

Calorie Deficit.

Unless you enter a calorie deficit, you will lose weight.

The popular phone app (you've probably already used it before I'm sure), works 100% on eating to a calorie deficit which is exactly what you need for this program to be successful.

INFINITY STONE #2 - PERSONAL TRAINING

I have an outline of a program that I feel fits this program the best but we're all different, we al like different exercises over others and we all have different training ages so my outline is exactly that until you tell me otherwise.

Once signed up to the program I'll get you on the phone and we'll have a chat about how we can optimise the training portion of the program to fit you perfectly.

INFINITY STONE #3 - SUPPORT

You'll have access to me near 24hrs (I'm not a robot, I do sleep) and you'll also need to check in with me daily in regards to outside training and what you're eating and the casual chat about the final episodes of Games of Thrones.

There will not be a time during the 8 weeks where you do not what to do, when to do it and how to do it.

INFINITY STONE #4 - ACCOUNTABILITY

Prior to the program I'll get you to write a little note about what getting in tip-top shape would do for you going forward and the commitment you've made to yourself for the next 8 weeks.

You'll hold yourself accountable just as hard, if not harder, then I will.

INFINITY STONE #5 - HOMEWORK

There's 168hrs in the week, 2 of which I'll see you personally for - that's a lot of down time.

To keep your mind and body ticking over in these down times you will be provided with a bunch of different workouts you can do in your own time whenever time permits.

The 14/28 program will also keep the smaller, minor challenges coming your way where increasing the smaller 10 - 15% smaller aspects of your lifestyle 1% each, resulting in an overall 10 - 15% improvement in how you look and feel. 

INFINITY STONE #6 - OPPORTUNITY

Right now you have been given an opportunity but opportunity is only that unless you seize it.

You've got everything at your disposal to reach the Endgame - 8kgs in 8 weeks - right at your finger tips.

Bring your own team of Avengers into the program and all these 6 INFINITY STONES become even more stronger!

Remember the program starts on Monday so if you want in, let me know by Thursday/Friday so there's plenty of time to complete all the pre-program requirements.

THE EASY 8 TRANSFORMATION PROGRAM - OPEN NOW!

Australia is the greatest nation in the world and not because of the beaches and culture but because we have a pile of public holiday and long weekends early in the year as the Xmas break just isn't anywhere near long enough.

Unfortunately that means that getting into any form of a routine is a complete nightmare so here's your chance to right that wrong.

Introducing the Easy 8 Transformation Program.

It's 8 weeks and with full compliance, you could drop up to 8kgs without killing yourself and your social life.

It's also a similar time frame between now and the next long weekend so it's the ideal time to knuckle down.

Here's what you get as part of this program:

- 2/week small group semi private personal training sessions for all 8 weeks (value $720)

- 8 week app based nutritional program (with no restriction on what you can and can't have!)

- PDF of 5 workouts that you can do in your own time away from the gym (value $30)

- PDF copy of the 14 missions 28 days program to keep you accountable for the hardest part of the program (the first 14 - 21 days) to get you on the right track as soon as possible (value $30)

- PDF copy of my report on stress and pain and the implications that they can have on each other (value $20)

- You'll also receive a weekly progress chart of how you're progressing to keep you motivated for the entire 8 weeks

- Last but not least, you'll have access to me, a 14-year personal trainer, so you'll never be in the dark on what to do, when to do it and how to do it (value - priceless!)

All up that's a whopping $800 worth of resources aimed at giving you the very best chance of completing this program and accomplishing the Easy 8.

I've run a modified version of this program with my current clients in the past with my best result being 1 client who did reach the Easy 8 training just 1/week in total with a little extra walking thrown in, but this program is jacked up with the extra's.

The program will need a certain amount of dedication and sacrifice on your part, anything worth doing does, but it is by no means meant to ruin your life for the next 8 weeks.

The small group training sessions are as far from your drill Sargent as you can imagine and again you'll be challenged physically and mentally, but you'll have plenty to spare to get through work or to hang out with your mates - the aim is certainty not to leave you on the floor in a pile of your own fluids - that just isn't needed.

The cost is 50% off the total value price with 2 payment options:

Option #1 - 1 x $400 payment (cash/transfer/ezi-debit) prior to the start of the program

Option #2 - 2 x $225 payments (ezi-debit) prior to the start of each 4 week period

This program will start next Monday, the 13th of May so I'll need all confirmations and forms completed by then to get everyone set up prior to the starting date.

If you are interested in this program (and how couldn't you be?) or have any questions on this please let me know as soon as possible via the email in the image above.

FINE TUNE YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM

These tips come from an article of the same name that can be found here, bit I'll only touch on some of them so give the article to read all 12 tips.

I'll list them all but expand on those I think are most important.

Enhancing performance in absolutely anything is about balancing stress and recovery.

I've posted about the nervous system and it's implications on performance before but here's a very quick summary of how it works:

-  Performance is controlled by the autonomic nervous system (ANS)

- the ANS has two sub-systems being the parasympathetic nervous (PSNS) system and the sympathetic nervous system (SNS)

- PSNS inhibits/rest/digest

- SNS excites/fight/flight

The secret in balancing these 2 systems is to know when to excite and when to inhibit because if you stay "on" in times where you should be off (taking home work with you for example) then you're on a fast road to and illness sooner rather than later and it cascades from there when you cease to address it as time goes on.

1 - Don't Dwell on Your Training

2 - Big Events Require Big Recovery

- Big events are usually those that you aren't in your usually schedule and this your body probably hasn't adapted to that type or volume of stress as well as what you do day in and day out. When you are less adapted to something then it uses more resources to be fuelled and also more resources to re-fuel after it.

- A lot of us go wrong thinking we can simply add these big events on top of everything else and we'l be able to handle it but all that happens is that your stress cup overflows and the body will put the brakes on you to MAKE unable to do more, in the form of an injury (back pain for no reason) or illness

- With a big event on the on the calendar you'll need to drop something from your schedule in the lead up to the event, during the event and after the event and once you've recovered from the big event, then you can go back to your normal schedule 

3 - Don't Even Think About Program Hopping

4 - Relax

5 - Nap

6 - Pick Your Aggressive Spots

- The positive effects of the SNS are short lived so once you've used it for what you need it for (run from a bear, get that presentation done you forgot about) then you have to shut it down

- Don't amp yourself for a walk in the park, save it for life altering situations

7 - Do Compound Lifts

8 - Train Hard, Recover Harder

9 - Reconsider Your Training Split

10 - Celebrate Special Occasions

- I don''t need to tell many of you this one but when you do celebrate, don't think of the consequences

- Celebrating is almost the height of PSNS activation

11 - Account for Doing Something Different

12 - Learnt to Breathe

- Specifically learn to control your breathing

- Take the time everyday at some point to lie down and simply focus on breathing.

- Breath all the way in through your nose, hold for about a second and then most importantly breath ALL of the air out of your stomach and chest before going into your next breath.

- Each breath should take about 6 - 8secs if you're doing this properly - don't rush this!

There's a lot of good stuff in this article and most of the points can be implemented with a little bit extra planning and minimal effort.

I incorporate a lot of this stuff into my programming for personal training clients so if your program feels a little out of control and you need a bit of overhaul, feel free to contact me.

WHY YOUR BRAIN BECOMES MORE FLEXIBLE AFTER WORKING OUT

- In this study, participants performed 30mins of moderate cycling

- The moderate intensity represented about 60% of your maximum effort

- Immediately following the workout the motor cortex has less gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, a neurotransmitter that inhibits activity in the brain

- This is similar mechanism for how aerobic exercise promotes neuroplasticity, or the brain's ability to reshape itself

- What this process might do is enhance early acquisition and consolidation skills leading to improved motor memory and performance

- This means that a workout could prime strike victims fr more effective physical therapy allowing them to recoordinate their limbs because memory isn't just mental, but physical

How can you take advantage of this?

Glad you asked!

If you have a big day at work planned then if you train in the morning then make that session of a moderate intensity and duration to prepare your mind and body for what you have to do later, rather then hitting the high intensity class that leave son the floor for 30mins, making you late for work and breaking your day before it even starts.

Luck is also on your side as I have opened up 8 spots for 30mins sessions starting from next week so get in contact with me if you'l like a good dose of neuroplasticity!

WHAT CARBS SHOULD YOU PERSONALLY EAT?

Important Fact - Carbs are NOT the enemy, calories are.

That being said, different types of carbs you consume can have different effects on you personally so it's worth taking notes of what effects they are if you'd like to optimise your energy levels at specific times.

A nice by-product of that is tat choosing the right carbs for you can also decrease overeating and this weight loss as well.

Win x 2.

While 1 person may pile on weight eating rice, another can barely maintain weight with it - and the same for almost any food you can think up.

Culturally, some populations have eaten specific foods for their entire existence and have biologically progressed to be able to handle these types of foods over thousands of years.

Introduce them to newer food/carb types that their bodies aren't great at processing and the story can be very different.

Finding out your blood sugar response to various carb sources can help you greatly in determining what exactly happens when you eat.

Food is highly addictive and we are biased towards foods thus we can rationalise with ourselves on what foods are good for us or not, but a blood sugar tester gives you the absolute truth.

If you register a high blood sugar reading then you might hit the dreaded carb coma where you wanna take a nap but you'll also feel hungry again pretty soon after which will break whatever weight loss or maintenance aspirations you have right in it's tracks.

There are no good carbs or bad carbs - it all depends on the person eating them and we're not sure yet why this is but there's a feeling it's got a lot to do with our individual genetics  and how they work with our gut bacteria.

Blood sugar levels are measured in millimoles of glucose per litre (mmol/l) and our levels fluctuate throughout the day, with a normal reading being between 4.4 - 6.4 mmol/l.

If you go the tester route (a quick online search found them for $40 at Chemist Warehouse) then eat different carb sources each morning for breakfast and see how they test.

You can have a drink with breakfast as well but keep it the same each morning you test so there''s no interference with the carb food source.

If you go without the tester then simply note how you feel in the 20 - 60mins after that meal in regards to energy and satiety and also note how long after it you start to feel hungry again and then analyse the results of each carb source where you'll find some maintain satiety right up until lunchtime while others barely make it through your commute to work.

Also be aware that energy levels and blood sugar readings may not match up perfectly where something might provide you with long lasting energy but it also spikes a high blood sugar level and doesn't fill you up for very long.

As we all pile into chocolate this weekend (I have a giant bunny in the fridge from my son as we speak), give this a little trial and see what you find yourself doing.

TRAINING THE FEMALE ATHLETE PART 4/4

BODY COMPOSITION

We all have different body shapes, which leads to different body fat storage patterns but females take this to a different level than men.


Body Composition is critical to elite performance but is too often overlooked at the local/amateur level but you’ll see the players with better body composition will generally be the fittest and most injury resilient players.


Here some points on getting that elite body for sport, specific to women:

• Blood sugar imbalances can increase testosterone which can make it impossible to lose fat

• Adrenal and gut dysfunction will affect blood sugar levels

• The rate of fat or weight loss for females will be slower than men simply because women have less overall mass so it’s easier to lose 10kgs off 100kgs then 5kgs of 50kgs.

• Females tend to lose body fat from top to bottom

• Women have less vascularisation in the lower body as less blood vessels + lower fat stores = harder to mobilize fatty acids

• Females need more training volume and thus energy expenditure because of higher relative body fat levels to lose fat

• Women can’t restrict calories as much as men as they still need a minimum amount of calories so again women need to look at energy expenditure for the most part.

• Respond better to low carb nutritional strategies then men which is great for keeping insulin and blood sugar levels down, but women can also be more sensitive to low carb as their body's are programmed to maintain body fat for reproduction.

These aren’t knocks but rather points to consider when developing a training program for the female athlete.

TRAINING THE FEMALE ATHLETE PART 3/4

PSYCHOLOGY


As a personal trainer I have trained females for over 10 years and I probably like to train dedicated females the best as their potential for improvement and growth is off the scale!


Over my years of personal training, this is what I have found and see if any of these ring a bell:

- Females require more intensity with their training because as alluded to earlier they are already blessed with pretty good natural endurance

- Females love, love, love positive enforcement

- Women athletes require a lot of stability based work at the “core” to learn how to safely control the high forces that go their bodies during footy training and games

- Females almost always underestimate their strength and where it can get to

- Females might not do much free weight training simply because they just might not know how to

- Women athletes will tend to not increase training load until instructed to do so

- Females often train “too fast” so will need rest periods reinforced constantly

- More is not better, better is better

- Females don’t sweat as much

- Females will be more successful with multiple rep personal bests rather single rep (do 3 rep max over 1 rep max)