The Truth: Why Do People Get Sick?

Wow...

there have been so many people around us getting sick lately that I have to wonder what the hell is going on?!?!?

Let's talk about why people get sick.

Okay, pretty basic knowledge here. We all understand that for you to get sick there has to some sort of transfer of a virus or other micro-organism from someone or something to you. Right?

Most articles on how to avoid getting sick give you "brilliant" advice like 'wash your hands frequently' and 'avoid being around sick people' (yea right.... parents avoiding children who are sick... let me know how that works out for you!).

There seems to be something really fundamental missing from this advice. You see, your body has to actually invite the sickness-causing micro-organism in and act as a host.

You can either invite it in as a gracious host or you can slam the door in its face and say 'get the heck out of here"!

When your immune system is weak you are more susceptible to being a host site. When it is strong you are not.

It is just that SIMPLE!

Amazing how many people live high-stress lives, eat junk food, rarely get enough sleep and refuse to take high-quality supplements THEN complain when they get sick because they took precautions!

Beth and I don't get sick.

We lead pretty stressful lives (3 households, 2 businesses, seriously disruptive teenager, in contact with sick people often and rarely get more than 5-6 hours of sleep) yet we don't get sick.

Why not?

I believe it is because we take the right precautions and power up our immune systems. And one of the most important things we do is take care of our micro-nutritional needs with a daily dose of a high-powered whole foods supplement.

Not only do we not get sick but we also feel pretty dang good most of the time.

People say you don't realize the value of your health until you get sick. We'll do our best to pass on that lesson and just appreciate our good health.

By the way, we do wash our hands frequently too. Beth works out 6 days each week and me 3-4. But the power comes from a healthy immune system. Beth eats clean... me well I try!

Remember, sickness vs health is a DAILY decision.

Choose and prepare for health.

Fit Coach Phil

9/25 Boot Camp: Hill Run Lap Course with 5 Rock Hard Body Stations

Our Body Transformation Workout for Friday 9/25.

5-Minute Dynamic Group Warm-up

10 minute Core & Yoga Workout

35-Minute Non-Stop Lap Course with 5 Stations

Run lap course (includes the hill!)

Stop at each station along the way and complete 15 repetitions of exercise for that station.

Note: Set up for 3 people at each station. If there is no equipment skip to next available station.

Stations
1. Kettlebell High Pulls
2. Medicine Ball Slams
3. Equalizer Push-ups
4. Core Ball Knee-In Crunches
5. Hindu Squats


Equipment Needed:

2 x 12 kg Kettlebells
1 x 16 kg Kettlebells
3, 4 & 5 lb Medicine Balls
6, 8 & 10 lb Core Balls
3 x Mats (Crunch Station)
6 x Equalizers
3 x Frisbees (mark Squat Stations)

Hill Run & 2 Workout Stations

Our main Boot Camp workout for Monday 9/14.

Run a lap around Equalizers (includes hill).

Stop at Bench Station and perform 3 bodyweight exercises.

Move to Kettlebell Station and perform 2 Kettlebell Exercises.

Bench Station:
10 Bench Step-ups per leg
10 Elevated Push-ups
10 Triceps Bench Dips

Kettlebell Station:
10 Kettlebell Swings
10 Kettlebell Rows each arm

Continue with lap run OVER the hill and back to Bench Station.

Complete as many rounds as possible in the alloted time.

Equipment Needed:

4 Equalizers to mark course
Kettlebells (4 x 4 kg, 2 ea x 12kg & 16 kg, 1 x 20 kg)

5 x 1-Minutes Stations + Laps

Welcome Back Workout for Wednesday 9/09

Boot Camp Basics + Lap Run

Break into 2 ability groups

Group 1:

5 x 1-minute stations with running clock
Complete as many reps as possible
Each minute rotate to next station and start next exercise immediately

Stations:

1. Kettlebell Swings x 12 kg
2. Air Squats
3. Mummy Walks
4. Plyo Jumps (slap knees)
5. Push-ups

Group 2:

Run laps x 5 minutes

Rest for 60 seconds. Switch groups.

Complete 3 rounds of each group.

Note that each 5-minute lap run will be different.

Round 1: moderate run / jog / walk
Round 2: group Indian Run
Round 3: Sprint the shorter top and bottom lengths, jog / walk for the side lengths

FYI laps are run in large rectangular shape around the field.

See you at Boot Camp!

Philip & Beth
Beach Bodz Fitness

TV Commercial Workout

Most people waste a lot of time watching TV.

Chances are I am probably not going to talk you out of your TV habit so let's instead use this time to get fit!

Make a list of 3-4 bodyweight exercises such as:

• Squats
• Push-ups
• Alternating Lunges
• Jumping Jacks
• Burpees (I dare you!)
• Crunches
• Mountain Climbers
• Squat Thrusts

Watch TV. Every time a commercial comes on complete one of the exercises on your list doing as many reps as you can for the entire commercial. When another commercial comes on move on to another exercise. If you reach the end of the list of your exercises start at the top of the list again and keep repeating.

Complete this for a 30-minute TV show if you are a beginner, a 60-minute TV show if you are intermediate and for a complete 90 minutes of TV time if you are an advanced exerciser.

The TV Commercial Workout also helps in another way. Sitting in front of the TV is the enemy of good eating habits. You are bombarded with food commercials, you are in close proximity to the food and you aren't expending much energy anyway.

Substituting a workout for binge eating habits can make a dramatic difference in how you look and feel after just a few weeks. Do this 3-4 times each week and you'll soon be finding yourself leaner and fitter without ever missing your favorite TV shows!

Fit Coach Phil

Beach Bodz Cone-to-Cone Workout Version 1

Here's a fun little workout we'll be doing on Wednesday 9/2.

Set up cones* about 10 yards apart

1st exercise (a) travel back-and-forth between cones (60 seconds) followed by the 2nd exercise (b) which is then done in place (30 seconds)

1a. Side Shuffles
1b. Squat Jumps

2a. Plank Walk w/ Hand-Crossover
2b. Push-ups

3a. Lateral Step Squats
3b. Creepy Crawlers

4a. Walking Lunges
4b. Butt-Ups

5a. Side Hops
5b. Sphinx Push-ups

6a. Bear Crawls
6b. Simulated Jump Rope

7a. Forward Hop
7b. Pike Press

Repeat for 3 complete circuits
1 minute break after each 7-exercise sequence

* Note: for our purposes ‘cones’ will be either our bright lime green Frisbees or Lebert Equalizers since I left the orange cones in PA last time up there!.

See you in Boot Camp!

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

Philip & Beth's Beach Cardio 8/29

People tell Beth and I all the time....

"it would be easy for me to stay in great shape like you guys if I worked out as much as you do".

Wow... just how much time do we spend working out?!?

Common mis-understaning here. We work out WAY LESS than most of our gym-going friends but we do train with a lot more INTENSITY. As a matter-of-fact we train the same way we do our Boot Camps... go 110% hard 3 times a week and just stay active the rest of the time.

On Saturday we stopped by Crabtree at 4:45 PM on Saturday on our way up to the condo thinking it closed at 6 PM. Turns out it closed at 5 PM. So we decided we would do just do cardio on the beach for 30 minutes or so.

Now for most of our friends it seems that 30 minutes of cardio is just that... 30 minutes of steady walking, running, biking, etc.

Here's what we did:

Spring 1 minute / Walk 1 minute x 6 = 12 minutes

Sprint 45 seconds / Walk 75 seconds x 6 = 12 minutes

Sprint 30 seconds / Walk 90 seconds x 6 = 12 minutes

Total workout time of 36 minutes. One serious fat-burning interval workout. On the beach. No equipment needed... I didn't even wear shoes.

So much better than going round and round on the treadmill at the gym for half an hour or more. Not only was this outdoors on the beach from an exercise physiology standpoint the benefits are so much more.

Remember, it is not how long you train it is how hard you train that gets you results.

Really, who wants to spend all of their time in the gym? We want to be fit so we can really LIVE outside of the gym!

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

Fat-Blasting Navy Seals Workout

Here's a great workout I picked up off the Navy Seals workout site and modified a bit.

Complete 5 rounds for time of:

10 burpees
20 box/bench jumps
30 lunges
40 push-ups
50 squats

(Source: navyseals.com forums)

Althought I spent 7 years as a US Army Ranger and did some seriously tough bodyweight training I have to admit that Navy Seals are probably the fittest guys I ever met.

You can absolutely get in the best shape of your life ~ lean, fit and ripped ~ without an expensive gym members!

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

5 Round Fitness Challenge for Time

Here's a great, simple bodyweight "Fitness Challenge"

Complete 5 Rounds for Time

50 Crunches
40 Air Squats
30 Staggered Hand Push-ups
20 Alternating Lunges
10 Regular Push-ups
Run 1 lap

The lap should be a few hundred meters to a 1/2 mile maximum. A 1/4 mile works nicely!

Beginners start with 1/2 the reps or just do 3 rounds.

Enjoy!

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

No Such Thing as the Fat-Burning Zone

Why do we focus on High-Intensity Interval Cardio and Energy System Development so much in Boot Camp?

Why aren't we big fans of long, slow "fat-burning zone" cardio?

Because HIIT and ESD training work so much better for fat loss! We'll leave that other cardio stuff for people who still use body-part isolation routines.

Here's a great article I recenly came across explaining the futility of training in the mythical fat-burning cardio zone.

The "fat-burning zone" is another one of those urban legends of fitness. Legend has it, a certain level of exercise results in a larger number of calories burned being derived from fat. This does not mean that stored body fat is the selective source. It only describes the relative percentage of utilization of three substrates: fat, carbohydrate and protein.

Truth: The fat burning zone actually describes the percentage of calories burned that are derived from fat as an energy source. Do you know when you are burning the most calories from fat? Sorry, but the highest percentage of fat utilization is at rest. The more intense the exercise becomes, the more carbohydrate is used as a source.

Losing weight is about the number of calories burned, not the number of those calories that come from fat as a source. If the fat-burning zone idea actually worked, we could get extremely lean by simply sitting still.

Let's use a mathematical example: Let's assume that we have two identical exercisers who are going to exercise for 20 minutes. Exerciser #1 is doing a slow walk to stay in the "fat-burning zone." Exerciser #2 is running hard for the whole 20 minutes.

To keep the example simple, we will assume that exerciser #1 will derive 40 percent of his or her calories from fat. Exerciser #2 will move out of the fat-burning zone and only derive 20 percent of his or her calories from fat.

Exerciser #1 will walk at three miles per hour and will cover one mile in twenty minutes. This will result in a caloric expenditure of 100 calories, with 40 calories coming from fat.

Exerciser #2 will run at 7.5 miles per hour and will cover 2.5 miles in twenty minutes. This will result in a caloric expenditure of 250 calories with 50 calories coming from fat.

The exerciser in the "fat-burning zone" burned fewer calories and fewer calories from fat in the same amount of time, while the exerciser working harder with disregard for the fat-burning zone burned 2.5 times as many calories and 10 more calories from fat.

Now, if we use the calculation of one pound of body fat equaling 3500 calories, the math gets crazy after one year. Let's assume that these exercisers followed the same program for one year and exercised three times a week, exerciser #1 would burn 300 calories a week or 15,600 calories per year. This would result in a fat loss of about 4.5 pounds. Exerciser #2 would burn 39,000 calories and lose 11 lbs by getting out of the old fat burning zone.

Stop worrying about burning fat and start worrying about burning calories by training harder, smarter and more often.

Michael Boyle is one of the world’s leading experts in the area of performance enhancement.

Note: Michael is one of the trainers at Athlete's Performance in Arizona founded and owned by Mark Verstegen. I have been using Mark's programs with my clients and Boot Campers for years and am a big fan.

Train to excel at the sport of life!

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

Bell Pepper Tuna Bowl Recipe

Here's another great recipe from our favorite Nutritional Guru... Jayson Hunter. I love this one!

;-) Coach Phil

This is something you would see in Rachael Ray’s 30 minute cookbook or on one of Rachael Ray’s tv shows.

It is simple, quick and tastes delicious.

I have to give credit to Beth Rea for providing me with this recipe and it is a great lunch when I am in a hurry and don’t have much time to eat.

Mix tuna packed in water as you like it:

Lite mayo
Any spices you likerelishcilantro
Slice red (or yellow, orange, green) bell pepper in half and remove seeds.

Put tuna mixture into bell pepper and enjoy a light, easy, healthy meal.

Now I didn’t put quantities in this recipe because everyone likes their tuna salad mixed differently. I suggest you start with 2 cans of tuna packed in water and then mix 1 Tbsp of lite mayo and 1 Tbsp of relish with the tuna.

Then continue to add small amounts of each until it becomes the consistency you desire.

Then add a small amount of cliantro and taste. Continue to add cliantro until it meets your taste levels. You can do the same with any other spices that you like to add to tuna dishes.

Just remember to start with small amounts and then taste because too much of any one spice could ruin the entire meal.

Yours in good health,

Jayson Hunter RD
CSCS
America’s Trusted Weight Loss Expert

PS Check out Jayson's "Carb Rotation Diet" if you want to torch some serious body-fat. There is a specific plan for Women and one for Men.

You can find it at...

http://tinyurl.com/kve2jt

Drop 10 Fitness Challenge

For Wednesday we have an Individual Fitness Challenge planned ~ one of our Beach Bodz Drop 10's. This is also a great workout you can do on your own right at home.

Group Warm-up ~ 5 minutes

Group Core Workout ~ 5 minutes

Drop 10 Fitness Challenge

Complete the following workout individually as quickly as possible. Concentrate on good form on all of the exercises. You MUST complete all of the reps for one exercise BEFORE moving on to the next. For example, most of you cannot do 50 Kneeling Push-ups (yet!) so do 10, rest, do 10 rest, until you hit 50 reps. Then move on to the Squat Jumps. Your goal is to finish as quickly as possible. Your time will be recorded. There is a 30 minute MAXIMUM time limit. If you do not complete the entire workout in under 30 minutes then we will log how much you completed in the 30 minutes. In a few weeks we'll do this again and see how much you have improved.

Here's our Drop 10 Workout (hint: you can probably figure out why we call it a "Drop 10".

Drop 10 Fitness Challenge

Round 1:
50 Push-ups or Kneeling Push-ups
40 Squat Jumps
30 Crunches
20 Butt-ups
10 Squat Thrusts
Run 1 lap

Round 2:
40 Push-ups or Kneeling Push-ups
30 Squat Jumps
20 Crunches
10 Butt-ups
00 Squat Thrusts
Run 1 lap

Round 3:
30 Push-ups or Kneeling Push-ups
20 Squat Jumps
10 Crunches
00 Butt-ups
Run 1 lap

Round 4:
20 Push-ups or Kneeling Push-ups
10 Squat Jumps
00 Crunches
Run 1 lap

Round 5:
10 Push-ups or Kneeling Push-ups
Run 1 lap

Enjoy!

Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

Impromptu Heavy Bag Workout 8/17

Stuck in Pennsylvania.

Coverage of the World Track & Field Championships just ended for the day and its only 3 PM.

Beth went on a run before we head to our gym for a workout this evening.

I thought about taking a nap.

But having just been inspired by watching coverage of Usain Bolt's World Record 100M and due to the fact that I gassed out big-time last I sparred in Muay Thai I decided to do a quick impromptu workout.

I dragged a heavy bag out of the garage at our townhome and into the backyard. Tossed it down on the lawn and after a brief warm-up I completed 5 rounds for time of the following:

12 Burpees (chest to bag with push-up and 6" jump)
12 Bag Jumps (jump over the the bag)
12 Push-ups with hands on the bag
12 Squats with right leg elevated on the bag
12 squats with left lef elevated on the bag
12 Crunches on the bag
Sprint 100 M
Jog back 100M

5 total rounds of this going about 80% in the 90 degree heat took me 19:09.63. However I was smoked at the end. You don't need either a gym membership, fancy equipment nor hours of time invested to do workouts that will get you lean, ripped and super-fit. Use what ya got and just kick your own ass a few times each week. That's the key.

Not exactly my best effort(usually around 14 :30 to 15:30 for this workout) but then again now that I have had a recovery shake and a turkey sandwich it's off to visit Snap Fitness ~ Greensburg for kettlebell and ab work!

Train smarter baby!

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

Interval Training Routines from Ross

Ross Enamait ~ Fitness Trainer

I train with 2 distinct purposes ~ first, to improve my Muay Thai fighting skills and second, like everyone else to be lean and ripped. The very best way to accomplish both of these is through interval training.

Being a CrossFit Certified Level 1 Trainer and a CrossFit Run Endurance Trainer I use a lot of CrossFit workouts for my own conditioning. But I also use a lot of stuff from Ross Boxing. Ross Enamait is a world-class conditioning coach who trains fighters and like me, believes in keeping training plans simple yet productive.

Here are a couple of workouts he created back in 2003 that have become favorites of mine as well as his thoughts on interval training. Here's Ross...

Traditional interval training consists of intense running followed by a period of active rest (ex. jogging or walking). Common distances include 200, 400, 600 and 800 meters. The active rest period typically ranges from 30 to 90 seconds depending on interval distance and the athlete’s condition. The Interval Challenge (below) differs from the traditional interval training protocol.

The workout integrates interval running with a variety of bodyweight calisthenics. There are no defined rest periods between intervals. The athlete attempts to complete the circuit as fast as possible. Rest comes on an as needed basis. When performing The Interval Challenge, the athlete must complete four continuous circuits. This brief conditioning routine is extremely demanding (physically and mentally).

The Interval Challenge Complete four circuits consisting of the following:

12 Burpees
24 Pushups
36 Bodyweight Squats
400-Meter Run

The Interval Challenge Part II

You can incorporate variety into the challenge by reducing the interval distance from 400-meters to 200-meters. The workout below requires six complete circuits. The 200-meter intervals should be performed at near-sprint speeds.

Complete six circuits consisting of the following:

6 Burpees
12 Pushups
24 Bodyweight Squats
200-Meter Run

When attempting these routines, be prepared for a mental challenge. Force yourself to complete the routines as fast as possible. You will develop an indomitable will, while building unstoppable endurance. You can perform 2 to 3 "challenges" per week (depending on your remaining workload). Do not perform either routine on consecutive days.

Try these workouts ONLY if you want to improve your anaerobic conditioning as well as your aerobic conditioning AND want to be lean, fit and ripped. They are metabolic monsters that I love to torture myself with regularly.

A twist is I will see just how many "challenges" I can complete in 20 minutes rather than do the set number of circuits. The following week I'll try to get a little more done in 20 minutes.

I guarantee if you add these to your routine once each week you will get much more ripped than the folks wasting time ~ and money ~ at the gym. They work equally well for both guys and gals. Best of all... NO GYM is needed.

Fit Coach Phil
Beach Bodz Fitness

Card Deck Workout

Here's one of our "Beach Bodz Card Deck" Workouts. The group will be doing this one on Monday August 17th at our 6 AM Boot Camp....

Bring Yoga mat / large towel and water

Start with a Group Warm-up followed by some light stretching.

Group will form a large circle WITH their Yoga mats in front of them. We will then proceed to run through a deck of cards. Rest for 2 minutes after each round is completed with a full deck.

For 2-9 multiply x 10 seconds. That is how long you will be doing the exercise.
For all face cards the exercise will be done for 60 seconds.
Jokers are run cards.

When a Joker is pulled the whole group runs a down and back lap. Run is by ability group. Beginners – run half of the field length and back. Intermediate and advanced - run a full lap down and back. Everyone back to the circle after the run.

Round 1

Spades = Crunches *
Clubs = Burpees
Diamonds = 6” Jump Squats
Hearts = Push-ups

Round 2

Spades = Alternating Step Lunges
Clubs = Spider-Mans
Diamonds = Alternating Step Squats
Hearts = Butt-Ups

Round 3

Spades = Lying Hip Raises
Clubs = Staggered Hand Push-ups
Diamonds = Knees-to-Elbows Crunches
Hearts = Run in Place Butt Kicks

* We'll substitute the Front Plank with Alternating Knee Touch in place of all Crunches for 2nd and 3rd trimester gals.

Why Avoid Foods Labeled "Fat-Free"?

Many people looking to lose weight end up choosing fat free cookies, cakes, and ice-cream.

This is a mistake because often the number 1 ingredient in these foods is sugar.Sugar is often the #1 culprit in someone failing to lose the weight they desire.

Sugar actually inhibits fat release. Here is how:

When you put a simple sugar into your body, whether it is a fat free cookie or a soft drink, all of the sugar quickly gets absorbed into the bloodstream.

That leads to a state of elevated blood sugar.

In healthy individuals, the pancreas releases the hormone insulin which transports the sugar out of the bloodstream to be stored in the muscles and liver.

The pancreas also manufactures the hormone glucagon. As the pancreas increases production of insulin (from eating simple sugars) it decreases the production of glucagon.

Why is this relevant? Well glucagon releases fat. So when you eat a simple sugar, you cannot produce glucagon and your fat is locked in, unable to be released.

Remember, eat 4-6 small meals each day consisting of quality complex carbs, fibrous carbs and lean quality protein while avoiding simple sugars and overly-processed carbs.

This is the KEY to dropping the excess body fat and keeping it off! We suggest you give EFA Icon a try if you want to burn fat, be healthy and regulate blood sugar levels! This super-pill is a combination of the highest-quality essential fatty acids available PLUS powerful anti-oxidants.

Learn more here....

http://fit8343.getprograde.com/essential-fatty-acid.html

"Roll the Dice" Boot Camp Workout

Here is a simple way you can put more fun into your training plan: try "Roll the Dice" Boot Camp Workouts.

These can be done indoors or outdoors, with other people or alone and can even be done with no equipment.

Your options are limitless!

Take 6 pieces of paper and write down a different exercise on each along with the number of repetitions you want to do. Keep the reps in the moderate range as you will be moving pretty much continuously for 10-15 minutes.

Here is an example of a bodyweight routine:

1. Push Ups x 20 reps

2. Dips x 20 reps

3. Step-Ups x 20 reps

4. Squat thrusts x 15 reps

5. Squats x 30 reps

6. Alternating Lunges x 20 reps

Give each exercise a number 1 thru 6.

Perform 50 jumping jacks. Then take a pair of dice and roll them. Whatever 2 numbers come up, you have to perform the corresponding exercises.

After you do the 2 exercises, go back to the 50 jumping jacks and roll the dice again.

Do 2 rounds of 10-15 minutes each with a 2 minute break in-between for a killer at-home workout.

You may also choose to do this with weighted exercises like we often do.

Here is one I have previously done with Kettlebells only...

1. Kettlebell Swings x 15

2. Kettlebell High Pulls x 20

3. Kettlebesll Push-Press x 15

4. Kettlebell Row x 10 each side

5. Kettlebell Squats x 25

6. Kettlebell Thrusters x 15

Upper Body Postural Correction

If you sit all day - or for a good portion of the day - and are starting to feel your shoulders get rounded forward try doing Scarecrows a couple of times throughout the day.

To do Scarecrows (aka Wall Slides) stand with your feet about 6" away from a wall. Lean back so your upper back is against the wall Put your hands in the 'goal post' position with a 90 degree bend at the elbow.

Reach up overhead by extending the arm and keep the EVERYTHING flush against the wall. Your upper back, shoulders and arms should be in contact with the wall at all times.

Do 15-20 of these a few times each day and you will start to notice a difference in your posture after just a few days.

The Damn-Near Perfect Exercise

Okay first let me state that there is NO such thing as a perfect exercise.

But let's just have some fun and play around with this. If I had to choose one overall exercise for toning and chiseling the entire body what would it be?

Hands-down it would be the Push-up. Here's some of my criteria.

No equipment is needed

The perfect exercise should be something you can do anywhere and anytime. Yet you can still incorporate a lot of variety by changing hand position, adding a Plyometric element by clapping or pushing off the floor, doing some traveling push-ups, one-arm variations, one-leg variations... there are countless variations.

Builds strength, endurance AND stamina

Because it uses body weight as resistance, a push-up is considered a strength-building exercise and improves muscle tone and bone density while reducing the risk of osteoporosis.

You can work up to high repetitions building more endurance. You can knock out 5, rest, knock out 5 more and so on to keep the heart rate up and add a cardio aspect.

Or you can do one of my fave workouts...

1. Sprint 100 meters
2. Do 25 Push-Ups
3. Jog back
4. Do 10 Jumping Squats
5. Repeat for X amount of reps or time.

Try this for just 10 minutes!

It's a GREAT core conditioning and postural correction exercise

The primary muscles used during a push-up are the chest, front shoulder and triceps muscles. However, because the push-up requires you to hold your body in a stable, horizontal position against gravity, you also engage your neck, core, hips and legs with each repetition.

Most people sit down for most of the day. That means the Glutes and Quads are in a stretched position which weakens them and the core is relaxed. The Hip Flexors and Hamstrings are in a shortened position all day which leads to movement pattern ~ gait ~ issues down the road as well as being responsible for the majority of lower back issues in my opinion.

When you do a proper Push-Up you are counter-balancing all of these. The Quads, Glutes and Core should be held in an activated position while the Hip Flexors and Hamstrings stretched. So not only are you getting a rocking upper body you are toning your core and leg muscles.

Want even more core benefit? Lift one leg 6 inches off the ground for a few reps and then repeat with the other leg 6 inches off the ground.

How effective are Push-ups? EVERY time we go to a gym to train people always make some sort of comment on how great Beth looks and compliment her muscle tone. People always ask me how much I bench. But neither of us ever do Bench Presses and we wouldn't be caught dead on a Seated Chest Press Machine (what a ****ing waste of time!).

But we do ALOT of Push-Ups. Beth often does 60 (yes I said 60!) with her feet on a Stability Ball. I've listed another of my simple but highly-effective Upper Body Chiseling Routines below. Do this just once a week ~ guys and gals ~ and you'll have great looking chest, arms, shoulders.

Want to get in shape fast?

Drop and give me 20!!!!


My 30-Minute Upper Body Blaster

Don't let this fool you... it is a very effective workout!

Beginners - 5 reps each round
Intermediate - 1o reps each round
Advanced - 15 reps each round

Get a clock with a second hand or use a timer.

At the top of EVERY minute for 30 minutes do 1 round of Push-ups. For example, if you are a beginner then do 5 Push-ups as the top of every minute and rest for the remainder. Kneeling push-ups are acceptable for beginners.

Start this with reps. Next week do it again with 6 reps each time. The following week... you get the idea. Keep this up and do it once each week and you will reap some serious benefits!

Crunchy Roased Broccoli

Here is a recipe that was brought to me by one of our Boot Campers that she uses in her healthy eating plans. She says she can’t take credit for it, but she loves it and her kids do too!

1 head broccoli
2 Tbsp flaxseed, ground
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
3 Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp ground pepper

Preheat oven to 450F.

Cut broccoli into 1 inch chunks and soak in bowl of water for 5 minutes. Drain water from bowl and add all other ingredients to mix thoroughly. Place on baking sheet and cook in oven for 10-12 minutes.

Serve.

Enjoy!

Fit Coach Phil

Meet Fit Coach Beth

50-40-30-20-10 Fitness Challenge

My favorite kick-ass workouts are either CrossFit Workout's of the Day (WOD's) or my own CrossFit-inspired routines that I develop on my own.

I have just one major criteria for designing my own workouts: they have to absolutely push me to my personal limit. The best way to do this is through timed fitness challenges. Here's my timed fitness challenge I developed as my personal WOD for July 20th.

Complete 50-40-30-20-10 reps (that's 150 total) for time of:

1. Push-ups
2. Kettebell Swings w/ 20 kg
3. Push-Press w/ 2 x 25 lbs
4. Squats w/ 2 x 35 kgs

This will be my first time doing this particular workout. I backed off on the weights some as I have 90 minutes of Muay Thai training in the evening but left them challenging enough that I won't be able to complete 50 non-stop reps on the first set other than push-ups.

I start with 50 reps of each exercise, then 40 reps, then 30 reps... down to 10 reps of each for the last set. I start my stopwatch with the very 1st rep and leave a running clock until the last rep. Next time I do this workout I'll try to beat my time from the previous one. Just me, my workout and the stopwatch with some kick-ass motivational music. Should be fun!

I'll post my time after I complete the workout tomorrow.

I encourage you to try this method by developing a few timed workouts of your own. You can create them using bodyweight workouts and any rep count you want.

I also like counting down 15, 14, 13 --> 1 (120 reps total) or 20 --> 1 (210 reps total).

Check back here often for new workouts I've posted or visit http://www.beachbodz.com/ to get on my updates list.

Fit Coach Phil

Update 7/21

What I ACTUALLY did...

After Muay Thai and being in the sun at the beach all day I modified the workout a bit and did the following:

40-30-20-10 (total = 100 reps of each)

Jumping Jacks
Push-ups (hands on dumbbells)
Kettebell Swings w/ 20 kg
Push-Press w/ 2 x 30 lb dumbbells
Squats w/ 2 x 35 lb Kettlebells

Total time: 20:40

This is a bit slow. This workout should have taken me about 18 minutes but as I said I was fairly whooped going into it and it kicked my butt!

Stand Up... Get 40% Better Results

I'll never understand why most people prefer to go to the gym and sit down while doing most of their workout. After all, don't we spend enough time sitting on our asses?

Here's a great way to get MUCH better results without increasing the amount of time you spend training: stand up!

Statistics show you actually burn 40% more calories when you work out standing up as opposed to sitting down. So rather than sit down to do your Shoulder Presses or Curls do them standing up. Replace Leg Extenstions, Leg Curls and Leg Presses with Squats and Lunges.

Standing up also forces you to activate your core and squeeze your glutes (all those muscles that have been dormant while you have been seated all day!). Before you start moving any weight tighten up both your core and your butt muscles. Not dramatically... just enough to create some tension and activate the muscles while you are standing.

Do this and you will not only burn more calories but you will also improve your posture.

And for those who spend a lot of time seated while working it's a really good idea to stand up periodically, focus on standing tall while drawing in the abs and tightening the glutes. Hold for 15-30 seconds, relax and repeat. Your back will thank you later in life!

Want better results? Stand up... tighten up!

Hip Hikes ~ a Functional Glute Exercise

Most people sit way too much. This leads to tight hip flexors and hamstrings as well as weak glutes and core muscles which of course leads to lower back problems. To strengthen your glute muscles (who doesn't want to lift and shape the buttocks a bit?!?!) try Hip Hikes. Do 3-4 sets of 15-20 reps per day for each side to tone the glutes. Your hamstrings will really appreciate the extra help from your newly-activated glutes which will also take a lot of pressure off of the lower back. It's a win / win / win from one simple exercise

Oh yeah, your squats and lunges will also improve!

Exercise Description: Hip Hikes

Classification: Glutes (Bodyweight)

Instructions:

1. Start by lying face down with your legs straight.
2. Slowly raise one leg keeping it straight using just your glute muscles.
3. Return to the starting position and repeat for the desired repetitions.
4. Repeat with the other leg.

Drop 10 Fitness Challenges

One of my favorite ways to work out is to do Performance-Based Workouts. If you want your body to become lean, fit and toned you need to give it a reason to change. The best way? Teach it to do FUNCTIONAL work in less time. You either strive to improve the amount of work you do in a set amount of time, or you try to do more work in a pre-determined time set.

Let's take a look at a couple of Drop 10 Fitness Workouts, both of which address the first method above of doing a set workout and striving to do it in less time each attempt.

The Drop 10 works like this: You'll start out with 5 different exercises comprising of 50, 40, 30, 20 and 10 reps. Each round the bottom exercise drops off and the rest go down 10 reps - hence the name "Drop 10".

You HAVE to do ALL the reps of each exercise before moving on to the next one AND complete the entire round you are in before moving to the next round.

Here's a Bodyweight-Only Drop 10 Fitness Challenge you can do anywhere anytime...

Round 1

50 Jumping Jacks

40 Push-ups

30 Jump Squats

20 Mountain Climbers

10 Jump Squats

Round 2

40 Jumping Jacks

30 Push-ups

20 Jump Squats

10 Mountain Climbers

Round 3

30 Jumping Jacks

20 Push-ups

10 Jump Squats

Round 4

20 Jumping Jacks

10 Push-ups

Round 5

10 Jumping Jacks

Start a timer when you start your first round and don't stop it until you have completed the ENTIRE workout. Record your time. In a week or so do it again and try to go through it faster. Remember though, good form counts.

Here's one of FAVORITE Drop 10's - my personal Kettlebell Hell Drop 10 Challenge.

Grab a Kettlebell. I use a 20 KG one for this workout. Then complete...

Round 1

50 Push-ups

40 Kettlebell Swings

30 Kettlebell Squats (15 with Kbell in each hand)

20 Kettlebell High Pulls

10 Burpees

Round 2

40 Push-ups

30 Kettlebell Swings

20 Kettlebell Squats (1o with Kbell in each hand)

10 Kettlebell High Pulls

Rounds 3, 4 and 5 continue to drop 10 until all the last round of 10 Push-ups.

Feel free to choose any 5 exercises you like - even in the gym - and complete your own Drop 10 Fitness Challenges. They're tough but you'll love the results!

Fit Coach Phil

Meet Fit Coach Phil

Allow me a quick minute to introduce myself.

My name is Philip and I am a full-time Fitness Professional. I'm a former US Army Ranger and got my first taste of the fitness business when Uncle Sam sent me to Army Master Fitness School in 1987. Back then it was all about Nautilus and 'one set to failure' in the gym followed by long bouts of cardio.

Not much has changed it seems except that now people in the gym do 3 sets followed by cardio!

I know a thing or two about fitness. I hold several Personal Training Certifications (ISSA, NCCPT, NASM) and am a Fitness Faculty Instructor for the National Council for Certified Personal Trainers.

A few of my many other professional certifications include CrossFit Level 1 Trainer, CrossFit Run Endurace Fitness Therapist (ISSA), Lifestyle Fitness Coach (Spencer Institute), Life Strategies Coach (Spencer Institute), Certified Self-Defense Trainer (Boxing Fitness Institute) and Fitness Nutritionist (NCCPT).

Over the past 2+ decades I have held every fitness position there is: Personal Trainer, PT Manager, Fitness Director, Membership Sales Director, IHSRA Consultant, Fitness Faculty Member and now Gym Owner. Beth and I are the principals owners of Snap Fitness in Greensburg, PA. If you are in the area stop in and meet our co-owner and manager - Spesh Robinson - and he'll give you a tour of the cleanest gym you will ever visit!

I personally train using CrossFit, P90X, Muay Thai and Yogaw workouts. I feel great for a guy my age - 45 and I still generally kick the young kids butts when I train!

I enjoy surfing, paddleboarding, canoeing, cycling, running, hiking and spending time outdoors. My personal mantra is "true success is helping others live the life they desire and deserve." I should add that I believe it is better when done in board shorts and flip flops!

Life's a Beach... Have Fun. Be Fit!

Fit Coach Phil