Time to step up!!

So this last week has been quite busy with training, meal prep, rest and getting ready to go back to work, and I head off for 2 months to commence a work related course. It's still over a week away before I go but I have found myself already starting to pack and see how I can arrange my suitcase so I can fit most of my supplements, food and gym/training related items rather then things I should be worrying about taking :)

Not to mention now I am part of Team FlexR6 and am going to be stepping on stage to compete in my first novice comp in only 5 weeks time. So there are so many added stresses right now and starting next week a huge change to my training and nutrition program once my great trainer sends me the final product on Friday!

This has been a huge ambition for me and to see it all start taking place is a huge realization that you can do anything you put your mind to, at this stage I am only going to be competing in fitness and physique categories as there is not enough time to prep for the actual body building division, and with the added pressure of me on my military psychology course it would be to much to take on all at once.

I never thought I would see the day I would be on stage wanting to show my body off. I'll take a few steps back and talk about when I was younger, all my teenage years I was a big kid, the heaviest I tipped the scales at was 120+kg, but now to be able to comfortably sit at 84kg for me was an amazing achievement.

It all comes down to you and the dedication you put in to achieve the goals you have, I couldn't be happier that I took this lifestyle on all those years ago, nothing now feels like a chore, it's all just second nature. There is nothing wrong with wanting to see yourself succeed and better yourself not only physically but mentally! There is nothing tougher then pushing through some of those unbearable gym sessions, or sprinting up hills to get that burn and feel your heart trying to burst out your chest. But every time you finish something you set out to achieve or do something you NEVER thought you could do, you leave a little it prouder and stronger and from there you can only keep going up!

I'll keep you all posted with how my comp preparation is going and chuck in some photos along the way, remember to push yourself a little further each time and never give up, because one day you may find yourself doing something you never thought you would do in a million years!!

It's all about the pump!!! :) 

Get it done!!

I know everyone operates in their own ways, have their own ideas and systems in place to get stuff done.
Some need more time then others to get motivated to get out of bed, some enjoy pressing the snooze button 3 times before they get up, some are up before the alarm, we all have our own process and I respect this.

But excuses will never be a sufficient reason to justify not doing something you either said you would, or something you keep putting off! And by excuses I don't mean legit reasons, as bizarre as some may sound.

So this is going to be a little rant about motivation. Some require a lot whether it be from friends and family, or simply having a picture of the physique they wish to aspire to hanging up on the wall. Whatever you need put these means in place so you don't flunk out at the first hurdle! No one ever said achieving goals is easy, it is anything but a walk in the park. So if you spend all your time flicking through instagram pictures and fitness sites and motivational pictures wishing for what they have then you are never going to get there. Remember those people were once in your shoes wanting to achieve goals and they succeeded and now they are the ones sending out the positive motivation for others to get it done. Whether you see them as attention seeking, or all the selfies and gym pictures aren't necessary then you are approaching the whole thing with the wrong attitude!

Without rambling on to much about it I'll make it simple, the only reason you will fail will come down to YOU, not anyone else no matter how convincingly you can tell people the story of how you were going to do this and how you wanted to do that, end of the day the only reason you didn't will be YOU! So get on the right page, make a list, put up pictures, midnight phone calls to friends for reassurance -  do whatever you have to do to get on track and have a system in place so that if you do hit a hurdle it won't mean the end to your success.

Get it done and reap the rewards of your hard work!! :)

HIIT it Hard!! Benefits of Interval training!

This is just to give a bit of insight into HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) regime and how it may benefit you!

HIIT is for everyone, someone doing a cutting phase for a comp, during a bulking phase to minimize gaining to much body fat and people looking to gain aerobic and anaerobic endurance.

Firstly you might what to know what HIIT actually is. HIIT is a training program in which moderate levels of intensity and alternated with high intensity intervals. It can be applied across a broad range of areas from running exercises through to weight and body weight related exercises. It is considered to be more effective then steady state cardio as the higher intensity intervals increase both the aerobic and anaerobic systems in turn burning more fat the usual!

During a structured HIIT period you will notice two thing, accelerated fat loss and increased aerobic endurance, HIIT will deliver noticeable results in a shorter period of time, hence why is has gained huge popularity in the fitness and bodybuilding community since it was introduced. Just like with any exercise and nutrition program you can't guarantee results as it comes down to the individual, but after only an 8 week HIIT cycle those around you will notice a significant change in you if you stick to your guns. And you will be performing to a higher standard to those around you.

When you do a cardio session at the same pace the whole time your body operates in what we call a steady state, all this means is your body adjusts itself to the speed or workload you are operating at and tries to conserve as much energy (calories) as possible. You avoid this by doing interval training as the body can then not adapt and conserve any energy.

This is what an effective HIIT 8-week program would consist of, and incorporates a weight training program as well. This level of intensity would decrease levels of body fat significantly which a structured nutrition plan.

General Warm-up/Flexibility Routine

• Touch Toes - 15 Reps (Touch toes quickly, come right back up and repeat)
• Lunges - 10 reps/leg
• Side Lunges - 10 reps each direction
• Butt Kicks - 25 yards
• High Knees - 25 yards
• Arm Circles - 20 reps
• Trunk Twists - 20 reps
• Side Bends - 20 reps

WEEKS 1-2

• Monday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Tuesday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Brisk Walk, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 7 More Times (8 Minutes Total)
• Wednesday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Thursday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Brisk Walk, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 7 More Times (8 Minutes Total)
• Friday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Saturday and Sunday - Rest

WEEKS 3-4

• Monday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Tuesday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Brisk Walk, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 9 More Times (10 Minutes Total)
• Wednesday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Thursday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Brisk Walk, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 9 More Times (10 Minutes Total)
• Friday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Saturday and Sunday - Rest

WEEKS 5-6

• Monday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Tuesday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Jog, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 11 More Times (12 Minutes Total)
• Wednesday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Thursday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Jog, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 11 More Times (12 Minutes Total)
• Friday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Saturday and Sunday - Rest

WEEKS 7-8

• Monday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Tuesday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Jog, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 14 More Times (15 Minutes Total)
• Wednesday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Thursday - PM HIIT Workout
  30 Seconds Jog, 30 Seconds Sprint, Repeat 14 More Times (15 Minutes Total)
• Friday - AM Full Body Weight Training
• Saturday and Sunday - Rest
• Notes: Brisk walk and jog are at 65-75% of your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR)
  Sprint is at 90-95% of your MHR

Hope you take something away from this and know that cardio doesn't have to be the boring chore that a lot of people see it as, if you can think of fun ways to mix it up then you will want to keep doing it and get the results you are after!!! Enjoy!!

And remember.............It's all about the PUMP!!!

Workout by - TUnit @bodyspace

Lifting till the grave!

Today my day started at 5:30 am, I got up and had my usual 1 cup of oats, 1 cup of egg whites and a whole egg. Scrambled it all up and shoved it down my throat, washing it down with a strong black coffee.

I prepacked my car the night before with all the signage, the 'lift it' singlets and shirts, a big bowl of snacks and a lot of water, in anticipation of a very hot day. Only 2 days before the markets were on I was informed I had been booked in and a spot allocated for me, which is good news but with stock levels low and being given short notice to get everything ready all I could do was give it a go!

I was set up and ready to go, people were everywhere even though a lot of stall holders were still away due to the holiday period, and the demographic at these certain markets were older people hitting up the local fruit vendors and trying to barter a bargain at bric'a'brac stalls. My stall had no shade and to my luck once it hit 8 am the sun was over the only spot in the car park where the shade sails didn't cover and it beaming down right on me! Lets just say lucky I was wearing a black shirt otherwise I would be frightening people walking past by the copious amounts of sweat coming out of me. All in all I had a good time, a few friends came by and I sold a bit of stock, but the highlight of my morning there occurred around 9:30 am.

While I was texting on my phone trying to convince someone to bring me a coffee an elderly gentleman walked up to the tables, using his walking stick as a pointer he placed it on a shirt directly on the logo and said "what does 'Lift it' mean" I initially thought to myself that this wasn't going to go well as he won't know what i'm going on about....so I went on to tell him that 'Lift it' refers to lifting weights, and the gym culture that is present these days is quite large and it's a lifestyle etc etc... and halfway through he appeared somewhat distracted and was looking back and forth and partially listening. So I paused and just sort of smiled at him with a stupid grin on my face. "I'll tell you about lifting" he said. Once he engaged eye contact with me after about 10 seconds of silence, he went on to tell me about a trip up to the Gulf where his 4wd got stuck in the mud and he couldn't use a jack as it would just sink into the mud, so he told his wife he was going to lift the back end out and to drive on and keeping giving it some till she was out, all this happened while she was yelling at him telling him he is to old for that now......but he said in the end he got it out, was covered in mud and it shut his wife up. I'm not sure how long ago this took place but I thought good on him! I told him that's pretty impressive but he immediately cut me off, paused, looked around again then resumed speaking telling me he was lifting all his life and was a national weight lifter, power lifter and how important it was for him and he emphasized how he lifted with correct technique for all those years and never blew out his back and why he is still able to walk around and be physically active these days considering how old he was. I was just nodding and smiling the whole time knowing I wouldn't get a word in and just to let him keep going, he wrapped it up by saying "I can't lift anymore, but when I could, boy could I lift." Again he looked around paced a few steps to the left, turned back around, gave me a smile and he was gone.

All this went down while he was wearing jeans, a long sleeve black shirt and a thick black vest while being in direct sunlight in 35 degree Celsius weather and merrily swinging and pointing his walking stick throughout the conversation.

At the time I didn't think to much of it, but after a while of just sitting there thinking, I realized this guy spent a large part of his life doing something he enjoyed, and now even though unable to do it he was still imparting his joy and knowledge and still wanting to express how it impacted his life, to think that there would have nearly been a 50 year age difference we were still able to relate to something on the same level which is pretty amazing to me.

 So just remember if you're doing something you enjoy keep doing it, don't let others tell you otherwise and you never know what impact it might have on someone down the track. :)

Pecs that POP!!

So tomorrow is Monday.......or as I call it 'International Chest Day' so for that exact reason, I train chest on Sundays or in fact any other day that isn't Monday!!

In doing this I get to watch a large number of people go nuts and blast chest on every piece of equipment in the gym every Monday, and I use this time to observe. There are a few common mistakes most people make, and I am in no way saying this in a way to make it sound like people don't know what they are doing, but more so to indicate some easily avoidable issues which will lead to a more productive chest workout and avoiding injury.

Firstly one that gets everyone is excessive shoulder rotation. As easy as a chest press may seem to preform if done incorrectly it will take emphasis away from putting the correct muscle under tension and stress, and end up smashing your shoulder girdle as you push up rolling your shoulders over to re-rack the weight. So when getting on the bench, bench press, incline, decline machine one of the first things you should be doing when getting into position is retracting you shoulder blades and nearly trying to pinch them together as you settle your back onto the bench, and keeping them in this position throughout the entire movement of the press.

Next, upper chest.....yes, in case you didn't know your pectorals are broken into 2 sections! And when you see someone with great overall chest development (or catch me flexing in the mirror) you can see the separation in between the 2 with a nice deep crevice dividing the muscle. So with this said do not exclude exercises such as incline bench press, incline dumbbell press and incline flyes from your workout, they all have their place.

The best upper chest in the business!

The next common problem is partial reps.....I don't know what people think when doing partial reps, you don't do the full range of motion then you are obviously not going to engage the muscle you are trying to train. So to keep it simple lower the weight to your chest then all the way up and once at lockout give you elbows a little squeeze together to really flex and pump the chest full.

Also another handy tip is to incorporate pyramid sets and drop sets during your chest workout, we are not all power lifters so there is no need to load up the bar to try and get one rep out that has the potential to crush your throat when your spotter can't even help you when the bar is loaded to the brim! So, drop the weight after your final set, and throw in a double or a triple drop set to challenge yourself, and at the end when you are struggling to lift the 10kg dumbbells above your head just remember you will be getting more blood and nutrients delivered to that muscle group then the guy rubbing his shoulder after is attempt at 'the world record' bench press! :)

Lastly I just want to reiterate the fact to not neglect a thorough warm up and stretching routine. You are only going to cheat yourself if you walk into the gym and start on the 40kg dumbbells, all you are doing is open the door wide open for a nice pec tear or shoulder injury. It will help your training, keep your muscles warm throughout and reduce the risk of injury. I could write 100 different stretches and make you waste your time reading it all but instead do a quick search on line as they all tell you the same thing and find something that works for you!

And remember, it's all about the pump!! :)