Intensity and focus-Trainers need to apply these principles.

in·ten·si·ty 

Exceptionally great concentration, power, or force.

Have you ever seen someone at the gym lifting enormous amount of weight effortlessly? Or seen a spin class and everyone in there is gasping for their last breath? Who is working harder? Is the person who is strong pushing themselves beyond their ability? Have you gone through your routine and left the gym knowing that you could have pushed harder or more weight? Better yet, have you left a training session knowing that your trainer could have pushed you more?

I have seen trainers sitting down, looking at the clock, on their phone, clients sitting around waiting for their trainer, I have seen trainers talk to other people while in session and even offer assistance to someone else while their client is just left waiting to be commanded and pushed.

This is unacceptable

I can tell you that a client doesn’t want to waste their time or their money, they might like you but that will only last so long.  Do not underestimate their ability! If a client can dumbbell press 10 pound dumbbells for 10 reps, assist them to push 5 more out, their body will respond to this and grow the ability to do it on their own.  A 200 pound client who can do body weight squats can do the equivalent on a leg press, if they can lunge their body weight they can take that leg press up to 600 pounds! Yet I see trainers with their clients pushing the weight of the machine, their body is stronger than this and they will only burn the minimum amount of calories! Why would they want to burn the minimum? If their heart rate is accelerated during this exercise, keep them moving with calf presses or outer thigh kicks, benefit them with burning more calories per hour rather than giving them a chance to bring their heart rate back to resting! Accelerated heart rate means accelerated burned calories, means more weight and body fat loss.  It’s a simple win/win situation.  Your client is your canvas yet you allow it to stay blank, fill it with color and imagination, the positive reaction from your clients will overwhelm you! 

If a client doesn’t like to work out-which I have had my fair share-they still want the results! I guarantee you they will start to lighten up to your training style once they show the results, never stop believing in them as they have not given up hope in their trainer.  You have a responsibility, a duty and a success driven goal to accomplish with these clients, preach positive attitude to them, lift them above you and see what happens! What kind of impression are you showing with sitting down on the job? It shows that you don’t care.  What are they thinking if you are on your phone? It shows how important other people are.  If you are training other people on the clients dime then they will eventually get sick of you as a trainer and not waste their money! The end results is always the same-THEY WILL QUIT.

Trainers need to apply intensity to show the clients how to push 100% of their body, 100% of the time! If you train with a high level of intensity, the clients will react, show them how hard training will pay off, show them how hard they can push themselves, show them that if they are not completely worn out then you have failed as a trainer, show them that small goals are reachable and big goals are just a time frame away.  

fo·cus

A center of interest or activity

If you watch your client, ask questions to understand your client, interact with your client and follow up with your client you will know exactly where their path is going to lead them.  Pay attention to everything their body is telling you, listen to what they are saying with complete attention, follow through with their requests and needs.  You have to perceive what their next move is going to be.
  •  Focus on their muscle movement and contraction in order for the client to get the best workout possible. 
  • Focus on their heart rate, their strength levels and endurance.
  • Focus on their body language and facial expressions.
  • Focus on what they are telling you and know the difference on when they can push harder.

Without focus there is no interest in the clients goals.

Why did you become a trainer? The most common response is “to help people” so why lose track of that mindset? Do you only want to help those who are easy or are you up for a challenge? Do you only want to train clients who want to be helped? Think outside of the box, think outside of what you have been taught, think outside of what other people are telling you! 

Do you want to be known as an easy trainer or someone who gets results? 










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Why do we focus so much on the negative?

neg·a·tive

  • Harmful or bad : not wanted.
  • Thinking about the bad qualities of someone or something : thinking that a bad result will happen : not hopeful or optimistic.
  • Expressing dislike or disapproval.

I admit it, I have been negative in my life.  Everyone has.  We use excuses, life, fairness, work, situations etc as a reason for this behavior, but why? Why is it easier to complain, to try and put people down, to come up with a reason why the other person has success and we have not?  Life has its ups and downs but why do we jump at the chance to be negative? Is there a difference between a momentary negative reaction and being a negative person?

In the fitness world one of the biggest strengths is the negative, we focus on it, we strive to intensify it, our aim is to fail and push ourselves beyond what we believe is failure.  So why can we not put these same ideals into our own lives? Being negative has recently come to my attention as it is a result of a fear of failure, putting our own objections in front of us and when we put unsuccessful goals in front of us, we make up for it by trying to put down others who succeed.

On the positive…..

The bigger the goal, the higher the sense of accomplishment, the greater feeling of success!

On the negative…..

Not everyone can do what you do, no matter what it is or who you are, this I have realized.  We ALL have gifts, talents, success, intelligence and accomplishments! But yet, it is easier to bring someone down than to rise to their accomplishments….unfortunate but truthful, especially with the new age of social media and people free to express their own opinions.

As a society have we not expressed how wonderful we can be?  Have we not moved into an age where everyone is not put down for their age, race, sex, job or position in life? If not, then WHO in your life is like this? Better question, WHY are you allowing them in your life? OR are you the person that believes this? The truth is that we all are responsible for the negativity in our lives, we all choose to enhance it or eliminate it, we are all powerful and we are all strong! Its the belief in one self that will see us through the negativity.

  • Did you know that an act of kindness releases serotonin? 
  • Did you know that laughter burns calories? 
I challenge everyone reading this to accept the people in your life as those who accomplish and learn from them, I challenge you to stand up for yourself if you are in a negative situation, I challenge you to overcome your own feelings of negativity and start treating yourself as a success, I challenge you to not fear the unexpected, the failure and the objections in your life and most of all I challenge you to find a way to overcome it! 
I challenge all of you to smile through the storm, to get back on the horse and hit life back harder than you’ve been hit!
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Junk food? Fast food? What positive comes out of eating this?

Over the years I have often asked people why they eat fast food-taste, convenience, price, comfort, kids enjoy the toys and meals, treating themselves etc so I wanted to break these down into groups and explore some different options.

Taste: Food additives are added to most fast food to preserve the food and enhance the taste, MSG is in ALL fast food and the reason why it should be avoided is because our sensory mechanism that tells us that we are full, is literally disengaged with this additive.  Additives are ADDICTIVE, how many of you have said to yourself “Monday I will start my plan, but this weekend I will eat every bad food in sight to get it out of my system?” You literally are setting yourself up for failure, start now, wait a week before adding a cheat, patience is a gift that we all have, sometimes unwilling to adventure.

Convenience:  Time yourself on how long it takes to leave your house, go to the restaurant, wait in line, pick up the food and then go home to eat.  I have blogged about how long it takes to prepare food fast and enjoy home cooked meals, I guarantee you will have a meal in less time.  Not to mention gas prices and wear and tear on your vehicle!

Price: An average meal at a fast food restaurant costs $7 where as a home cooked meal is around $3, a family of 4 is $30 where a home cooked family meal is $12.  The truth behind cost is how much you spend at the store while buying product, you forget how many meals you can make and it seems like you are spending more per meal.  Do your own math, a nutrition plan always comes out cheaper.  If taste-convenience-price are your main factors there are now stores that sell ready made meals for people who are into their health or even ship to your house! My Fit foods and personal trainer food are a couple that I advise you look into.

Comfort:  There are so many options out there to have half cheat meals or dress up a cheat meal into something that will benefit the body.  With technology in foods and options to trigger comfort why not go with a healthier alternative and enjoy your body better than indulging? There are protein cookies, protein pancakes, protein brownies, protein pudding, turkey burgers, sweet potato fries that you can make, low sodium and sugar ketchup, there are ways to make fried chicken out of egg whites and wheat germ to name a few, be creative with your selections!!

Kids enjoy the toys and meals:  Do I have to get harsh on this? I worked at a fast food restaurant during the beanie baby craze, it was in my teens so please don’t judge ha ha and I can tell you the parents went freaking nuts over these items! These toys cost less than a dollar at a regular store, do we need to fill a child’s room with random toys and fill their stomach with addictive chemicals and processed food in order for them to obtain a gift that will be thrown away in a year? Most stores now have its own child friendly items for you to purchase at a reasonable price while you shop for your food, it seems to me that its a win/win situation.

Treating:  I have left this for last, depending on the person I have taken quite a different attitude to overcome this objection.  Some, treating is a reward for effort and working hard in counting calories, a break from constantly being strict on their meal plans, treating is a reward sometimes for losing a certain amount of weight or body fat.  To me, this doesn’t make sense, BUT I have to understand that everyone is individual and IF it keeps the client on a program I have not problem with it, remember that a cheat meal per week is not only open, its necessary! The only problem is, a treat is often misused…some treat themselves everyday, or do not understand what a treat really is, some don’t treat once a week, often several times, some do not stick to the original plan and leave holes in the plan and then treat themselves on top of it, some mix treats with cheat meals and bad nutrition, some overly cheat without doing what is necessary during the week to build muscle and reduce body fat.  So, if you can be honest with yourself, you will be successful, if you do not follow a plan do not treat yourself, keep motivated, keep pushing and win the war!

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What’s YOUR excuse?

What’s your excuse?
No Excuses is a phrase used commonly in the industry to pull us from the valleys or plateaus, which are common, and bring a better mentality or focus so we give 100% to our workout. No excuses means that you do not give in to lack of equipment, lack of energy, lack of experience, lack of money, lack of time, lack of options or lack of motivation.  No excuses means that the following factors will not hold you back; Age, posterior deviations, sex, injury, height, weight, knowledge or fear.

Fitspiration is common with people who workout, it is extremely common with women who are now empowering themselves with their workouts, leaving the treadmills behind and getting into the weight rooms, focusing on building lean muscle instead of just elongating their muscles and winning the battle of the bulge, lifting heavy weight and not fearing “bulking”.  Women are now starting to attack their workouts, become more focused and not let any obstacles get in their way.  I have seen time after time that women will not let any objection stand in their way of their goals and it is enlightening to see this change in the industry.  Instead of skimming foods, eating salads, starving themselves to lose weight, women are now eating proper foods, learning what nutrition does to their bodies and eating right which always brings a smile to my face.  There is no more fear of being starving, no more lack of nutrients, there’s a deep learning that the right amount of macros will fuel their body, fuel their workouts, fuel their life and overall I have found that women are starting to take control!

There is a lot of inspiration from Maria, if taken the right way.  There are always pros and cons and I will go over both;

  • Maria works two jobs and has three kids.
  • Maria takes care of a disabled Veteran husband.
  • Maria utilizes her time by working out while her kids play.
  • Maria is on schedule, waking up at 6 am to plan her day.
  • Maria works out 6 days a week, usually for about an hour mixing her cardio and weight training.
  • Maria plans her meals, understands what macro nutrients and micro nutrients do to her body.
  • Maria did not put on excessive amounts of weight while pregnant.
  • Maria has battled obesity in the past.
  • Maria does not watch TV, play on her cell phone or let any outside influence clutter her life.

Sounds easy and inspiring right? I can easily understand how defensive some can be, I will go over the other side;

  • With working 2 jobs, taking care of 3 kids, is she adequately spending enough time to teach, communicate, show appropriate manners, discipline, encouragement, or even know much about their lives?
  • Her husband might be disabled but with him home it certainly makes for an easy sitter while Maria takes her life into perspective.
  • While her kids play, if she is busy working out, who is watching them? Who is making sure they are safe? Three boys, we all know there’s possible injury.
  • Do we have the luxury of waking at 6 am? Some are on rotating schedules, work schedules, life restraints, I know of plenty that have to wake at 4 in the morning and make a mad dash to get to work.
  • Not all have the ability to workout 6 days a week for an hour at a time, or the luxury of a gym to do so, there are plenty of life expectancies that will not allow that.
  • Most overweight individuals the problem is food, addiction, understanding and education.  I have spent so much time talking to clients about where to start, what to do, what foods do what, motivation, expression, depression, all these issues come into play and seem so overwhelming when starting a program.
  • I can safely say I have no idea what a woman deals with when it comes to pregnancy, I can also say that anyone who has gone through it is stronger than I.  This subject is closed for 9 months in my opinion, I will say that you have a life after to learn eating habits and change from there.
  • People like their shows, it is a way of taking the stress out of their lives, I have heard so many say that watching TV is harmless and entertaining, which I agree completely.
I believe that this picture brought just as much positive as it did negative, it brought controversy, it might have originated to inspire but it has evolved into much more.  The gifted versus the struggling, the great genetics versus the workers, the did versus the doing, the accomplished versus the quitters, the overcome versus the excuses.
Will you look like Maria? Maybe, maybe not.  Will I look like Arnold Schwarzenegger? Definitely NOT, but I take his teachings to better myself, to achieve what I never thought possible and Maria intended to do the same thing.  Whether you want to look like Maria or not, take the teachings and lifestyle that she did in order to improve yourself instead of choosing to give up.  If you take 60% of what she did into your own life you have still improved yourself, you have bettered yourself, you have changed yourself physically and ultimately you will feel better.  If you take 0% of what she did and still believe that you are better in your own life then take that into perspective, don’t take the time to be negative towards someone who you don’t know, be positive in your own world and ignore those who believe they are doing something that you are not.  It all comes down to how you feel about YOU.

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Failure versus quitting

Has anyone seen this before? Does it motivate you?  

How about this quote?
“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”

Definition of FAILURE:  Omission of occurrence or performance; specifically :  a failing to perform a duty or expected action

Definition of QUIT:  
1. to stop, cease, or discontinue: 
2. to depart from; leave (a place or person): 
3. to give up or resign; let go; relinquish: 

I believe in reaching 2 different levels, 100% of what you believe is your capability and 100% of what your capability really is.  

What does the two mean to me? 

Once you quit, you haven’t reached 100% of what you believe is your capability.
Failure is when you have reached 100% of what you never thought your capability would ever be! 

There is a further definition and that is called Muscular Failure-In weight training, training to failure is repeating an exercise (such as the bench press) to the point of momentary muscular failure, i.e. the point where a repetition fails due to inadequate muscular strength.

Again, what does this mean to me?

Muscular failure means to push yourself beyond the comfort level, your threshold, your natural given endurance, giving what you believe is 100% of your mind and body to accomplish your goals! Every single time that a client gives themselves their complete focus their body will always follow, they will beat every small goal they have set upon themselves and a stronger physique will follow.  It means that you can not successfully contract the muscle, break form or move the desired weight to its full extension.

Failure is not reaching your potential, failure is thinking today’s workout will ruin tomorrows activities, failure is allowing the 23 other hours in your day to affect the 1 hour dedicated to your body, failure is not planning, failure is wasting the time and energy.

Quitting means that  you let all failure affect you.  If you quit, you lose focus, you lose strength, endurance, a positive mindset, you lose your mental capacity to reach 100%, your original goals seem worthless, your long term goals are unaccomplished  your nutrition doesn’t mean as much as it did before, so you miss meals, eat the wrong types of food, skip workouts, become sedentary and lose perspective of what got you in the gym in the first place.

Failure is not an option? Neither is quitting!

If you QUIT yesterday I challenge you to FAIL today, therefore SUCCESS will meet you tomorrow.

Change-Motivate-Influence





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