To help stick with your training program here’s a great tip…

….Treat every workout as an appointment and put it in your daily schedule.

Don’t let anything except real emergencies come between you and your training.

And if you hear that little voice in your head trying to talk you out of exercising…

…STOP!

There’s always a thousand justifications you can make to put training off to another day, but deep down inside you know they’re just excuses.

Instead, think of how much energy your going to have and how great you’re going to look and feel.

Sit down and revise your goals.

Now… Imagine you’ve reached your goals and visualize the way that makes you feel.

The work you put in now will be worth it in the long run.

Train Hard!

Dan Clay
Dangerously Fit

                          

Write Down Your Goals!

Well its that time of year again when we start making new years resolutions.

If your anything like me you’ll be setting out your goals for 2010 so I thought I’d let you in on the process I use…

Step 1. Figure out your end goal and make it specific!

The first step is to know specifically what you want.

Your brain needs specifics to find a solution, so instead of saying “I want to lose weight”, change it to “I want to lose 10 kilos, tone my muscles and flatten my stomach.”

So what are your goals for 2010?

Grab a pen and paper and start writing them down.

Step 2. Figure out why it’s important to you.

You need to know why you want to reach your goals and why they’re important to you, new resolutions fade quickly and if you don’t have a clear reason ‘why’ you’ll quickly lose interest.

Again the key here is to be specific!

If you just say “I want to lose weight so I feel better”, this won’t keep you motivated for long.

Instead “I want to lose weight so I can fit back into my designer clothes, feel more confident at the beach, get compliments from my friends and feel more attractive” is far more powerful.

Know why you want to reach your goals, most people don’t train to reduce blood pressure or decrease the risk of diabetes… the majority of people want to look better, which is O.K but just know why your goals are important to you.

Step 3. Set yourself a timeframe.

Unless you set yourself an end date your goals have no ending and become pointless.

You’ll put training off to ‘another day’ and start eating clean ‘tomorrow’.

Setting a timeframe adds urgency and makes the goal real, your subconscious mind will begin figuring out ways to make your goals a reality.

Again be specific! Write down the exact date you want to reach you’re goals by.

Step 4. Figure out your plan.

Boot Camp At Bondi Beach December '09'

So you’ve figured out your end goal and set yourself a timeframe, now it’s time to set out a plan.

Write down a plan you’re going to follow and then stick to it, as the old saying goes ‘if you fail to plan you plan to fail.

Whether it’s joining a boot camp, hiring a personal trainer or simply following your own exercise regimen… have a plan.

Also have a plan B in case anything get’s in the way, if you have to stay late at work and miss a workout when and how will you make up for it?

Step 5. Consistently take action!

Everyday you need to take action.

Whether it’s training, eating clean, saying no to a glass of wine… every action you take will either take you one step closer or one step farther away from your end goal.

Step 6. Visualize.

Spend a couple of minutes everyday visualizing.

Visualize yourself having achieved your goal, imagine how it feels now you’ve succeeded.

Imagine how good will it make you feel?

Step 7. Read your goals everyday.

Now you’ve written down your goals it’s time to put them somewhere you’ll see everyday.

It’s easy to forget why you started out, re-reading your goals will keep you focused and remind you why it’s important you stick with the program.

And that’s all there is to it, follow this plan and make ’10’ your best year ever!

Wishing you the best of health.

Dan Clay
Dangerously Fit

P.S If you’re looking to get into shape quickly and have fun along the way then I highly recommend you try out our boot camp commencing January 11th.

Just visit…

http://bootcampsydney.com.au for more info.

                          

Instead today we’re going to go through the 3 WORST exercises you can perform in your workout, these exercises will at best do very little and at worst injure you.

The 3 Worst Exercises

1.) The Abs Machine

When you’re training the core it’s important to move the trunk through a variation of movements, i.e. rotation, static hold, extension, flexion, extension with rotation etc. Too many crunches can cause an imbalance between muscles which is bad for the spine and can cause neck and back pain.

The only thing worse than doing too many crunches is doing them in a machine that limits natural movement, these types of machines train your trunk in an unnatural extension to flexion motion while seated.

You’re far better off training your core through a range of movements using bodyweight or free weights.

2.) Back Machine

If the abs machine isn’t bad enough then meet the worlds most stupid machine ever invented – the back machine.

This machine is bad for you for many reasons;

Firstly it overloads the lower back without strengthening the butt and hamstrings which can lead to muscle imbalances and does nothing to stretch the hip area like squats and deadlifts do.

Secondly, just like the abs machine you’re seated moving the trunk through one plane of motion (front to back) which doesn’t help strengthen any of the smaller muscles (stabilizers).

Lastly, the way that most people perform this movement in such an out of control manner for speed just makes me want to vomit. It literally looks like they are trying to lie down for reps- is this the type of movement that we want to get really good at? Wait, don’t answer that;)

For a strong healthy back stick to the basics; deadlifts, step-ups, good mornings and hip extensions are much more effective.

3.) Elliptical Machine

To be honest, if you’re massively overweight and haven’t exercised for decades then this machine does have some value. But other than that it’s pretty useless.

It is a low impact alternative to running on a treadmill but you get very little range of motion and does not burn anywhere near the calories as it claims it does.

Also the elliptical machine isn’t a very good machine to use for interval training because it causes the knee to go into hyperextension – not good!

The only reason the elliptical machine is so popular is because it’s so easy – I’ve seen people read magazines while on these things – how hard can it be?

A far better option for your cardio training is interval training.

It’s proven to burn nine times more fat than steady state cardio and will get you fitter much quicker. If you’re a beginner or are excessively overweight use an exercise bike or use bodyweight i.e.
burpees, mountain climbers etc.

Train Hard!

Dan Clay
Dangerously Fit – Boot Camp Sydney

PS- What other exercises do you see people doing in the gym that make you cringe? What other exercises do you absolutely hate? What exercises have gotten you hurt in the past? Please share your personal experiences by posting a comment to this blog post, thanks!

                          

Below is a post from our Sydney boot camp instructor Emiliano Ballero.

Getting up at 6.00am might not be everyone’s idea of fun but the reward of living a healthy and active life without debilitating disease is more than WORTH IT.

Check out the article here…

You’re lying face down in the grass and someone is screaming at you to push that final press up.

You sweat, the muscles hurt and you may be thinking, “Sod this, why not go back home and crawl into bed?”

There are many answers to that of course. Working out gives you a chance to escape the kids for half an hour, regain the vigor of your loss youth or (and this seems very popular) the chance to “look good naked”.

Then there is your health. Being sick – long-term sick I mean – is an exhausting, unpleasant and miserable experience. That is obvious. It can destroy much of the joy in your life. Just getting about day-to-day when you have on-going heart problems or when you are dealing with cancer – think about what that would be like.

The health benefits of regular exercise (and the word “regular” is important here) have been known for a long time. Here is a list of the major ones:

And while this may be familiar to some of you, it’s also worth pointing out that regular exercise boosts self-confidence and helps prevent depression.

Obviously go and see your doctor if you’re concerned about any aspect of your health. If you have undiagnosed diabetes or serious depression then attempting 10 chin-ups is not going to help you. You need medical care.

But I do think that if a drug company could invent one drug that had all the health benefits listed above – it would have made billions.

Well we are saying there is a “drug” that can do all that. And unlike sticking a fistful of tablets down your throat in the morning, getting out and doing some training is a lot more fun – at least the way we do it!

Here’s a quick video of one of our Sydney boot camp workouts, check it out…

Wishing you the best of health

Emiliano
Sydney Personal Trainer & Boot Camp Instructor
Dangerously Fit Boot Camp

P.S Visit Boot Camp Sydney for more info.

                          

Recently we’ve incorporated boxing workouts into our Sydney boot camps and they’ve been a massive hit with everyone in the program.

Boxing is great for cardio fitness, self-defense, weight loss and will help tone the muscles in your upper body.

Studies show that a boxing workout uses both energy systems with 60% coming from the anaerobic system and 40% from the aerobic system.

So you can see why professional boxers are so fit, but you don’t need to be Muhammad Ali to enjoy the benefits of boxing.

Sure, if you want to take up boxing as a competitive sport I would definitely recommend you see a professional boxing coach for 1-1 training.

But if you just want to get fit, lose weight and blow off some steam then boxing fitness is safe and lots of fun.

Most boxing fitness classes will combine regular boxing drills with bodyweight strength exercises and running to enhance your strength, stamina and overall fitness.

Also, during a boxing fitness workout your heart rate can elevate up to 80-90% of it’s maximum which will raise your metabolism and put your body into fat burning mode.

Boxing training will bring about a huge number of positive results, so if your bored of plodding away on a treadmill and fancy a change, feel free to contact me for a free trial session at… dan@bootcampsydney.com

We currently have boxing classes at Rushcutters Bay, Bondi Beach, Centennial Park (Queens Park) and will soon have classes in the CBD (Domain) and Coogee Beach.

Train Hard!

Dan Clay
Dangerously Fit

                          

There simple…

…but effective!

Top 2 Fitness Tips

Perform Total Body workouts
You can do these using a 5 station circuit, we often use these types of circuits at our Sydney boot camps.

This way you get to work the upper body, lower body and core all in one circuit. The way we program the circuits is an upper body pull (i.e. row, chin up), lower body push (i.e. squat/lunge)
upper body push (i.e. press ups, shoulder press), core movement (i.e. plank, rusina twist), lower body pull (kettlebell swings, deadlifts).

Perform each exercise for between 50-60 seconds and have a 10-15 second rest between each station.

High Intensity Carido
Interval training (HIIT)has been scientifically proven to burn nine time more fat than regular steady state cardio and keeps the metabolism elevated for up to 48 hours after your workout.

Perform interval training after strength training or on non-strength training days at least 3 x per week.

Depending on your fitness level alternate between 10-20 seconds of maximal effort, followed by 10-20 seconds of rest. Repeat these intervals for 10 times with a 90 second rest, then perform a 2nd set. The type of cardio can vary but at our Sydney boot camps we like to use bodyweight exercises i.e. burpees, mountain climbers etc or good old fashioned sprinting and hill training.

Top 2 Diet Tips

Eat at regular intervals
You should look to eat your first meal as soon as you wake in the morning and then every 2-4 hours after to starve fat and feed the muscle. By suppyling your body with regular fuel you will keep your metabolism high and will stop your body from going in to fat storage mode.

Think fiber first
When consuming carbs Eat as many green veggies as you like to keep your belly full between meals. For optimum fat burning try to cut out starchy carbs such as bread, rice and pasta, the only time you can break this rule is immediately after your workout.

Use these 4 health and fitness tips and you can’t go wrong!

Train Hard!

Dan Clay
Dangerously Fit

                          

It doesn’t matter how hard you train – you CANNOT out train a poor diet and I believe diet is about 80% of weight loss.

The following nutrition guidelines have produced some life-changing results for our personal training and boot camp clients all over Sydney.

If you follow our nutrition plan and exercise program CAREFULLY you can expect to lose 1kg per week.

Nutrition Tip 1. Eat at regular intervals

Your first meal of the day should be right after you wake up in the morning and then every 2-4 hours thereafter for a total of 6 small meals per day. This is the foundation of any weight loss program as it feeds the muscle with the nutrients it needs and prevents the body from going into starvation mode which will slow down your metabolism and fat burning.

You should try to consume 3 staple meals per day – breakfast, lunch and dinner, and 3 snacks (mid-morning, mid-afternoon and before bed).

Nutrition Tip 2. Eat carbs that are high in fiber

Remember to focus on the quality of the carbohydrate first, then on the quantity. All carbs (except dairy) should contain at least 3 grams of fiber per serving with less than 10 grams of sugar per serving.

Use the following 5 step carbohydrate reduction process to begin eliminating bad carbs…

Step1. Replace all white carbs with whole grains and all refined sugars with natural sugars i.e. fruit and honey. This will keep your blood sugar levels stable which is key to maintaining high energy levels and burning fat.

Step2. Limit all 100% whole grain starch and natural sugar consumption
to within 1-2 hours post-workout or immediately upon waking for breakfast. Your body best handles these types of carbs at these times without excessive risk of this energy being stored as fat.

Step3. Replace all starches and sugars with fruit and veg. Fruit and veg are the most nutrient dense carbs and are loaded with all types of nutrients, antioxidants, minerals, fiber and other photochemical’s making them an essential component of any sensible eating plan.

Step4. Decrease the amount of fruit and increase the amount of veggies (except corn, peas, carrots and potato) to limit the amount of natural sugar (fructose) that will prevent your body from maximally using stored body fat for fuel. Eat plenty of dark green veggies like green beans, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, dark leafy lettuce etc.

These types of veggies are the most figure friendly foods and you can consume as much of these as you like.

Step5. Use strategic carb and calorie cycling to take your body to next level (my clients and I have had great success with this but it is beyond the scope of this article).

Nutrition Tip 3. Take the right supplements

Not all supplements are equal and like everything you get what you pay for. The best type of multivitamin supplements are whole food based – meaning they originate from real food and not coal or tar as many synthetic vitamins do. These types of supplements are little more expensive but are definitely worth it.

The right type of multivitamin will ensure your body functions optimally even if you fail to eat 8-12 servings of fruit and veg a day.

You should also be taking a high quality essential fatty acid or fish oil supplement. Omega-3 fats found in fish oil are scientifically proven to increase metabolism and generate increased fat burning, besides having a host of other benefits like preventing cancer, reducing inflammation and joint pain, enhancing skin and hair quality, etc.

Well, those are my 3 nutrition tips you can instantly begin implementing. Keep your diet simple and clean and you’ll look your best in no time.

Let me know how you go.

Dan Clay
Dangerously fit

                          

A few years ago I used to think goal setting was just fancy talk people in seminars would talk about, but after reading books such as Psycho-Cybernetics, Leading The Field and Think And grow Rich I began using some of their techniques – and within a short amount of time my life began to change for the better.

If you don’t have clearly defined goals you have nothing for your subconscious mind to work towards. And as Earl Nightingale put it…

“A person without a goal is like a ship without a rudder!”

Your subconscious mind doesn’t know the difference between reality and fiction, so you can actually trick your subconscious mind into doing anything that you feed it, borrowing another quote from Earl Nightingale (I’m bit of a fan)…

“You will become what you THINK about!”

If you keep thinking about walking around looking toned and lean, guess what? This will become reality.

But…

Thinking is only a part of the process because you still need to take action!

However if you keep focusing on your end goal you’ll be thinking less about getting up at 5.30am to go to boot camp and find it easier to NOT cave into the temptation of eating junk food.

Instead you’ll have more focus on the end goal – and how good it will feel once you get there.

And once you do get there it will be well worth the effort!

Right now get a pen and paper and write down your goals, add a timeframe you’d like to achieve them by, now put it somewhere you will see everyday like on your desk or fridge.

By subconsciously seeing your goals everyday you’ll be feeding your subconscious mind with something to work towards, and when you have clearly defined goals anything can happen.

Till next time!

Dan Clay.
Dangerously Fit

P.S Here’s another post I did a while back on a similar topic…

http://dangerouslyfitpersonaltraining.com/blog/fat-loss-diet-or-exercise/

                          

Do you have a plan?

Have you been keeping track of your progress?

Are you doing something everyday to bring you closer to your goals?

How close are you to achieving your new year’s resolutions?

If your goal is to lose 12 kilos this year have you already lost 2?

Time goes fast so don’t waste it, if your goal is to get into shape don’t procrastinate – start TODAY.

It doesn’t matter if you’re behind, work a little harder and make up for it.

Often people who fail to reach their goals are unsuccessful because they do not outline their expectations, establish appropriate timeframes and evaluate the results of past programs.

Try using this 4 step V.P.I.C training model;
1.Visualize – Have a vision of exactly what it is you’re trying to accomplish.

2.Plan – How you will get there, what you need to get there, what could prevent you from getting there.

3.Implement – Begin training, schedule training sessions and think of them as appointments.

4.Close – Review last program, what went right – what didn’t, what can be improved? Begin planning and implementing next program.

There’s nothing you can do about the past 2 months – they’re gone forever, but unless you start today before you know it we’ll be in 2010.

Train Hard!

Dan Clay

                          

But for many people it doesn’t matter how many crunches or sit-ups we do it never seems to happen. If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me the following question:

“Everyday I do hundreds of sit ups and crunches but I still have fat around my midsection. How come?

Well before I reveal the 6 pack system, first I’m going to debunk some very important myths regarding how to get 6 pack abs.

Myth 1. You must lose weight to see your abs.

This is not entirely true, the focus should be on fat loss rather than weight loss.

The reason?

Your body consists of fat mass and lean body mass (muscle, bone, water, organs etc). The key is to minimize your fat mass and increase your lean body mass to ramp up your metabolism, a body that starves fat and builds muscle like clockwork.

So if you lose 8 kilos of scale weight but lose some lean muscle in the process you will slow down your metabolism, decrease performance and lose muscle tone.

However…

If you lose 8 kilos on the scale but keep your lean muscle you increase your performance, increase muscle tone and lose mostly body fat.

The scale has far too many variables to account for that lead to frequent fluctuations such as hydration levels, sodium intake, and for women the menstrual cycle. I firmly believe one should NOT keep a scale at their home- it is such an anchor, particularly for women. Get off the scale and get over the numbers. The true goal is fat loss, not weight loss. Focus on clothing size reduction, digital before and after pictures, and of course the mirror for the most accurate progress tracking.

Myth 2- Doing lot’s of abs training will burn stomach fat

Spot reduction doesn’t work. You can’t train a region of the body and expect to lose body fat in that area. Nearly everyone you see does crunches but only a few people will do total body workouts so why isn’t more people walking around with flat stomachs and fat arms, legs etc. Spot reduction doesn’t work!

Everybody loses fat in a genetically pre-determined way when you create a calorie deficit through proper dietary habits and the correct training methods. So the best way to train is to focus your training around burning as many calories as possible by training your whole body every workout and not just your abs. Big exercises that work more than one muscle at a time like push ups, chin ups, squats, lunges etc burn far more calories than working one muscle at a time like crunches and sit ups. So make sure you focus your training around these big movements and only do specific abs work to supplement the rest of your training.

Myth 3- Sit ups and crunches are the N0.1 exercise for abs

The scientific term for your six-pack muscles are your rectus abdominis. For years now, we have been conditioned to think that the best way to work your rectus abdominis is by doing endless crunches and sit-ups since these trunk flexion exercises make the muscles you want to see in the mirror “burn.” However, the true function of the rectus abdominis is to prevent hyperextension, not to flex forward over and over again. Anytime you brace your abs (think slight crunch before you get punched in the gut) and pull your navel into your spine you effectively stabilize your spine into a safe, neutral position. And the moment you relax your abs and lose that braced abs position, your back will begin to hyperextend putting you at greater risk for injury.

So, we focus on stabilization exercises in all three planes of movement (saggital- front to back, frontal- side to side, and transverse- rotational) by using pillar exercise variations (also know as planks). Besides training the true “anti-extension” function of your superficial ab muscles, these bridging/stabilization exercises also activate the key transverse abdominus muscles, or your deep abdominal stabilizers, that wrap around your spine and support your internal organs. Strengthening these inner ab muscles is the key to optimal posture and performance in addition to injury prevention, yet another benefit to performing pillars over primitive crunches and sit-ups that often cause unwanted neck and back pain.

Myth 4- Long bouts of cardio will burn fat and reveal your abs

Real world case studies and scientific studies prove that aerobic training for fat loss alone isn’t the most efficient way to train. Whole body resistance training is the best way to train for fat loss. Furthermore HIIT (interval training) has been scientifically proven to burn nine times more body fat than ordinary exercise. At our boot camps we combine resistance training and interval training to combine the best of both worlds.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for part 2 of The Six Pack Abs System.

Till then.

Dan Clay