Treadmill Sequence

Try this fun sequence next time you’re on the treadmill to shake up your routine.  You’re going to need a set of dumbbells to get some upper body work in while you are walking. The upper body work won’t lead to a lot of strength gain but it will help to elevate your heart rate. The dumbbells should be light, 5-25 pounds depending on your strength.

Hold the dumbbells in your hands during the first part of the sequence.

Walk on the treadmill for 1 minute

                Speed 3MPH, Incline 3 degrees

The second minute you’ll perform alternating dumbbell curls

                Walk for 30 seconds with the dumbbells at your side

Then 1 minute of alternating overhead presses from the top

                Hold both dumbbells overhead as you alternate lowering and raising each arm

               Walk for 30 seconds

Then 1 minute of upright row (not alternating)

                With your palms facing your body, pull the dumbbells up to shoulder level. Leading the movement with your elbows. Your elbows should always be higher than the dumbbells.

                Walk for 30 seconds

Then 1 minute of alternating overhead triceps extensions

                Hold the dumbbells overhead in the same position as the overhead press. Alternate bending at one elbow and lowering the dumbbell behind your head, then extend back to the top.

                Walk for 30 seconds

 

Put the Dumbbells down

Now do 5 Intervals of 1 Minute of high Intensity and 30 seconds of rest.

Running

If you can run set the speed to 6MPH and leave the incline at 3 degrees. Run for 1 minute then step off to the side of the belt and rest for 30 seconds. Repeat 5 times.

Walking

If you can’t run, keep the speed at 3MPH and increase the incline to 6 degrees. Walk for 1 minute then step to the side of the belt and rest for 30 seconds. Repeat 5 times.

Cool Down

Walk for 2 minutes at 3MPH and an incline of 3 degrees

This entire Sequence will take 16.5  minutes.

Have fun and let me know what you think of this workout after you’ve done it. Leave your comments below.

 

First Annual Update

Welcome to the First Annual State of the HQ address! This is going to be fun. About a year ago, you elected me to lead you as “Your Fitness Tutor”. Ok, not really. I decided all by myself that I wanted to drop some fitness and nutrition knowledge on you.

So, how have we gotten to this day?

About 14 months ago, I decided that I wanted to build a website/business that would allow me to reach out and help more people (way more) than I was able to as a Personal Trainer. I did a little research and decided to build a blog website using wordpress. Based on what I read, this would be easy and allow me to make updates to my site quickly. Plus, according to wordpress, I’d be blogging in about 15 minutes.

Two months later, I launched Fitness Know How Headquarters (fireworks in the background). Now, two months is a lot longer than 15 minutes (remember I’m a fitness person not a computer person). Fitness Know How Headquarters is one year old this month.

I want to thank you for being a part of my first year and trusting me as a credible source of fitness and nutrition information (on that note, DON’T BUY A SHAKE WEIGHT, THEY DON’T WORK!).

But seriously, one year ago when I launched Fitness Know How Headquarters the site had:

1. A free give-away “10 Tips to Boost Your Metabolism.”
2. One featured post.
3. My Bio/Story.
4. A bunch of promises on what the site would become.

Now in all honesty, the site will never be finished. I’ll always be adding new information.

Today, Fitness Know How Headquarters is a much different place to visit online than it was just one year ago.

Here are just some of the changes:

1. There are now 8 featured posts.
2. There are now 60 pages to the site (though many are hidden, terms conditions, etc).
3. There are now 89 blog posts (that’s a lot of fitness 411)
4. There are 12 exercises and descriptions in the photo gallery.
5. There are also 12 exercise videos in the video gallery.
6. You can “like” the Fitness Know How Headquarters fan page on Facebook
7. You can follow me on Twitter or connect on Linkedin.

In addition to those changes, I’ve also developed 7 effective and unique programs

1. My FREE give-away “31 Days To A Much Improved You”, and as you’ll see when you sign up for it, it’s “So Much Free Info, It’s Crazy!”

2. I released my first ebook, Secrets Of A Personal Trainer. This book is for everyone who has gone to the gym and is honest enough with themselves to admit that they weren’t sure of what to do. Or, people who were positive that they knew what they were doing, yet didn’t reach their goals. “Secrets” will take all of the guess work out of what you should be doing. You’ll learn how to design workouts that are specific to your goals. After you read it and apply the info, you’ll reach your goals.

3. The STAX Nutrition System. Ok, I didn’t develop or create this program. But, my friend Chris Powell did, and it works. If you want to lose weight safely and effectively, STAX is the best way to do it. STAX focuses on three basic principles; eat whole and natural foods, eat proper portions, and eat your meals frequently. If you want to lose weight, you should start STAX.

4. Fitness Know How Headquarters’ Workout Of The Month Program. Every month you’ll get a completely different workout. When you change your workouts often, your body is forced to adapt. This means that you can expect incredible results. The workouts are unique. I guarantee that you won’t come across workouts like this anywhere else. Plus, it’s only $3.99-$7.99/month.

5. John Preston’s Weight Loss Coaching Program. This is a local program for people in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area. On this program, I’m your personal coach. I’ll teach you everything you’ll ever need to know to lose weight, reach your goals, and keep the weight off.

6. Fat 2 Fit 56 Day Makeover (live). This program is also for people in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area. This is a 56 day personal challenge. The goal of the program is to lose as much weight (body fat) as possible. This is a short term physical challenge where you’ll learn that you are stronger than you previously thought. You’ll amaze yourself at the things you’ll accomplish.

7. Fat 2 Fit 56 Day Makeover (online). This program is exactly the same as the “live” version, except it’s for people who don’t live in AZ. The only difference is that you’ll work out on your own, without supervision. Because of that, the price is lower.

Wow! It’s been quite a first year. As you can see, I’m very serious and committed to helping people improve the quality and length of their lives by sharing accurate fitness and nutrition information.

And, I’m just getting started. Here a few things that you can look forward to this upcoming year.

1. I’m revamping “31 Days To A Much Improved You” into a down-loadable ebook called “31 Days To Ultimate Health”. That way, you’ll have the information available to you at all times instead of having it get lost in the clutter of your inbox. But, I’m not stopping there. I’m creating additional free bonuses as part of the “31 Days To Ultimate Health” program. So, even if you’ve already signed up for 31 Days, you’ll want to be a part of this. Stay Tuned.

2. At least 3 more featured posts are coming your way.

3. If you live outside of the Phoenix/Scottsdale area, an online version of my Weight Loss Coaching Program is being developed.

4. Later this year, I plan to launch my Fitness Seminar Program. These seminars are very low cost events. At these seminars, you’ll learn why you should do certain exercises and how to perform them properly. The seminars will cover topics like: low back pain, nutrition, hotel and travel workouts, stability ball workouts and many more.

5. Soon to follow the Fitness Seminar Program will be simulcast webinars, so no matter where you live in the world, you’ll be able to attend.

6. Plus, there are some secret programs I’m not yet ready to reveal.

It’s been a busy year, but I love it. Sharing what I know with you and helping you to live a better life is my passion. It drives me. I wake up every morning (though not super early) ready to go.

With all of the stuff out there vying for your attention, I’m honored that you trust me and that you are a part of my program. Thank you. Until next year (ok, I’ll send you some more stuff before then)…

In Good Health,

John Preston
“Your Fitness Tutor”

10 Tips To Help You Get More Fit

Here are 10 simple tips that can help you to improve your fitness starting today

1. Know yourself – Want to stick to your exercise program? Choose a schedule that works for you. If you’re a morning person, heard for the gym first thing. All of your good intentions could be gone by the end of the day. If your not a morning person, don’t force yourself to the gym at dawn.

2. Have a ball – Exercise balls are one of the best trends for a good reason. They are versatile, can be used at home or the fitness center. They help to improve balance, stability and coordination. Plus they can be fun and relaxing. They are accessible and not threatening.

3. Hit the weights – There’s no substitute for strength training to improve your body’s ability and appearance. You may not see the scale move right away, but as you gain muscle mass and lose fat, you’ll notice that you look slimmer and leaner.

4. Cut yourself some slack – If you get discouraged about your fitness progress, think back to your first week. Give yourself credit for what you’ve accomplished already and for overcoming the biggest obstacle; getting started.

5. Beat the six-month barrier – Half of all people who join an exercise program drop out in the first 6 months. And half of those drop out before they even attempt a single workout. If you break the 6 month barrier, you’re likely to make exercise a lifelong habit.

6. Get it on Disc – Can’t make it to the gym? Have a stash of workout videos at home. You can work out at home any hour that you choose.

7. Do something different – Try an exercise activity that is very different form what you do at work. If your job is demanding and time-pressured, get outside and hike. If your job is task-oriented and full of details, you might like a cardio machine. Which allows you to zone out and concentrate on anything.

8. Split it up – Aim for 60 minutes of exercise a day, and break it up into 20-minute chucks to make it more doable.

9. Engage your brain – Lots of people give up exercise because it involves your body and leaves out the mind. Look for way to get fit that also ask you to learn something. Like belly dancing, ballet, hatha yoga or Tai Chi.

10. Believe in yourself – Numerous studies show that exercisers who believe in their abilities perform at a higher level, and are more likely to stick with a regular routine.

Biggest Loser Week 15

This weeks episode got off to a really interesting start.

The show started out at last weeks weigh-in. As soon as the weigh-in was over Allison announced to everyone that they’d all be going to New Zealand for two weeks. That was super cool, but what it really turned out to be was a big advertisement for New Zealand and Air New Zealand.

But it seemed to work because New Zealand is absolutely beautiful, and now I really want to go!!!

I will say this, the producers of the show are great at integrating marketing into every episode. In fact they are genius at it. They are probably rolling in cash!

Anyway back to the show. From an exercise and weight loss stand point this show wasn’t too interesting. The focus was on adventure, and over coming fear and obstacles. The human interest aspect of this show was great!

The first thing that everyone did was to jump off of the Sky Tower (Which is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere). It wasn’t really a bungee jump, it was more of a cabley, bungee, free space, really fast elevator type of jump.  Two interesting things happened during this part of the show.The first was that Rulon, Jay and Moses all exceeded the weight limit so they’d wouldn’t be able to do it. It was a reminder to each of them, of how much of a negative impact being obese can have on every aspect of your life. Start making your changes today!

And second, Ken is deathly afraid of heights. He opted not to do it…until Bob (trainer Bob), shared with Ken, that he also was deathly afraid of heights. It took some coaxing but Bob finally convinced Ken to do it if Bob would do it. It was obvious that they both were truly afraid of heights. But you could see and feel how much more afraid Ken was. But he faced his fear and jumped. Ken faced his greatest fear and over came it.

Lesson learned! What ever it is you are afraid of, face it!! If you are overweight and you are afraid of who or what you’ll become if you lose the weight, figure it out, be honest with yourself, face it and change it.

Another interesting twist in the show was that Moses’ father went to school in Auckland, New Zealand. His father (one of about 10 kids) who is from Tonga was choosen by his parents as the only child they’d send off to school. It is that choice and his fathers education that resulted in Moses and his daughter, Kaylee who is also on the show, ending up living in the US. Now Moses has come full circle back to New Zealand. It really was very emotional and inspiring to watch.

I can’t imagine that the producers had the foresight to see this coming. I think they just lucked out, and it made for excellent television.

Like I said before the workouts were pretty basic. They worked out outside doing some typical boot camp style workouts.  They showed them going through one workout. The only thing that stood out was that Ken really called out Cara, the trainer. He didn’t think she had what it took to help the green team. He didn’t think that she was as good as Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels. They got into a major argument over it.

But I will say this Cara did what he asked, she changed up the workouts, from her typical boxing. She really got in his face and pushed him.

There was a team challenge. A 5k. They’ve already done this twice before on the show. Except this time instead of being on a treadmill, they’d actually have to run over a variety of terrain. They had to run on a dirt road, down a hill, in a stream, then climb up a tall and steep sand dune, then finish by running along the beach. The scenery was beautiful, but it did look really difficult.

The winning team would win a helicopter ride over (a part of) New Zealand, and then have lunch on an island. The Blue team of Olivia, Irene, and Moses won. In a show of super awesome sportsmanship and decency, Irene and Olivia decided to give up the helicopter ride so that Kaylee could go with her father. Remember Moses and Kaylees’ family have a history in Auckland, New Zealand. That decision restored my faith in humanity! OK, it wasn’t that dramatic, but it was a super nice thing to do….

After the last chance workout Cara pulled Ken aside and took him through a bonus workout. And she was really in his face an pushed him hard.

I was curious about what would happen at this weigh in, just because of the travel and all of the distractions.

At the weigh in the Blue team lost a total of 5 pounds, the Black team lost a total of 9 pounds, and the Green team lost a total of 10 pounds. Some people did seem to struggle with the travel, Moses (blue) lost zero pounds, Jay (black) gained 2 pounds, and Kaylee (green) gained 4 pounds. Kaylee decided a couple of weeks ago that she was ready to go home. Her results have been terrible since then so she could be right. But because her team did so good, and the black team did well too both Kaylee and Jay were safe.

So the Black and Green team would be voting someone off of the blue team. Irene is immune because she lost the most weight on the blue team. So it’d be either Olivia or Moses.

During the discussion over who to vote for, Olivia brought up the reasons she was on the show. She’d been married for 15 years and is 35 years old. She wanted to lose the weight so she can start a family. OK done deal, Moses is gone! Moses said he wanted and needed to stay on the show. But he has a wife and two children and his family brings him the greatest joy in the world. And he would never deny Olivia that opportunity. He asked that everyone vote him off.

And with the exception of Kaylee, his daughter, everyone did.

During this episode I started to wonder about this seasons outcome. Everyone who is left is losing an amazing amount of weight. They are all working hard. They all seem to be very nice people and have incredible reasons for being on the show. It’s hard to see any of them go at this point. Who is going to win this thing?

Here’s my prediction! Hannah will be this years Biggest Loser!!!

Here is my thinking. In her “interviews”, she seems to have figured out the process. She seems the most confident. She is fully engaged in every aspect of what it takes to lose weight. She already is the leanest, and she still continues to lose significant weight each week. She is a former college volleyball player, so she’s got a competitive edge. She is a very likable person.

That’s my pick. Make sure you leave your pick and your comments at the bottom of this post!

Now for the quotes of the show

“Now I’m one of those annoying people who always us the stairs, and it feels awesome.”
“I never want to look back”

“We’ve lived in a world of no and cant’s and now my life is going to be filled with yes’s and cans”

“It feels like a truly new life and it feels amazing”

“It’s not always about being first, it’s about finishing”

“You deserve everything”

“I will never allow my weight to hold be back in anything that I do”

“I’m free, I’m able to do what ever I chose to do”

 

Good stuff…see you next week!

Our Brand New Workout of the Month Program

Tired of the same boring workout routines, can’t seem to reach your goals, have you hit a plateau, or just never worked out before…?

If so, then Fitness Know Headquarters can help.

Fitness Know How Headquarters’ Workout of the Month Program will help you to get into amazing shape




When you follow a structured exercise program, you can expect incredible results. Our workouts are designed to shock your body with a brand new, fresh workout each and every month. When your body doesn’t know what to expect next, it’s forced to adapt. That means you’ll see change and that equals results.

You’ll feel more energy, drop unwanted body and belly fat, firm, tone and shape your body, tighten soft spots, and fit into your favorite clothes.

Each month you’ll receive a brand new workout. And, every workout is different. You’ll get exercises and workouts that focus on muscle endurance, balance, stability, core training, flexibility, muscle development, abdominal training, coordination and functional movements, and increased strength.

You’re going to look and feel AWESOME!

Each exercise for every workout comes with a photo example and a detailed description. Here’s an example of what you’ll get:


BOSU Squat

Start Position

Finish Position

This is a great exercise because the squat helps to strengthen all the major muscles of the lower body, and the BOSU is excellent for providing an unstable surface.

BOSU is short for “Both Sides Up”. This piece of equipment is designed to be used with either side up (or down, depending on how you want to look at it). The BOSU is essentially 1/2 of a stability ball with a solid, flat base.

For this exercise you want to place the BOSU upside down (the ball side down/and flat base up). You want to stand on the BOSU with your feet about shoulder width apart and your toes pointing straight forward.

Start Position – The easiest way to get on the BOSU is to place one foot on the base near the edge. If you look at the BOSU as a clock, place your foot in either the 3 or 9 o’clock position (depending on which foot you choose to place first). Slowly place all of your weight on that foot until the edge of the BOSU is touching the ground. Then carefully place your other foot on the opposite side of the BOSU. Slowly transfer your weight toward the foot you placed on the BOSU second, until you are standing with even weight on each foot.

NOTE: The BOSU can be extremely unstable until you learn how stand on it properly. The good news is the learning curve is steep, so you’ll figure it out quickly. If you have difficulty standing on the BOSU, don’t attempt to perform the squat. Instead the exercise for you is to simply stand on the BOSU until you establish balance, stability and confidence. Once you do then add the Squat.

As you lower yourself to the finish position there are several things you should focus on to perform a squat correctly. One your hips (butt) should begin the decent toward the ground by moving backwards. Imagine that there is a chair behind you. If you lower your hips straight down you will never find the chair with your butt. Second you should counter balance your hips moving backwards by leaning forward at the waist (if you don’t you’ll fall backwards). Third your knees should stay over your feet. It’s OK if they move forward a little but they should not move in front of your toes. And your chest should remain upright facing forward (not toward the ground).

You should inhale as you lower your body.

Finish Position – The goal at the finish position is to lower your body until your thighs are parallel with the ground.
As you stand up and return to the start position, you should exhale. Your knees, hips, and back should all return to the start position simultaneously.
Perform 2 sets of this exercise with a tempo of 1/1/1


In addition, you’ll also get a FREE workout workbook to track your progress during the month.

You don’t have to bust your budget to get fit!

You’ll get all of this for only $3.99 per month!!

Get Started Today!

More Variety, Less Boredom and Burnout. It’s the Right Exercise Program for You!

Affordable Personal Training:
We provide all the benefits of a personal trainer without the expensive price! While most personal trainers charge at least $50 for just one hour, our comprehensive, highly effective exercise programs are affordable enough for even novices to try out.

An exercise program is more successful if it includes variety and continually challenges the body to work hard. Fitness Know Headquarters’ Workout of the Month program utilizes this concept. Our online workouts include loads of variety and frequent changes to keep your mind from burning out and your body from adapting and hitting a plateau, which can cause you to stop losing weight and/or gaining muscle.

Get ready for not only a new body but a new life! Whether it’s losing weight, toning up, building muscle, increasing stamina, improving balance or flexibility, Fitness Know Headquarters’ Workout of the Month will help you reach your fitness goals through expert instruction. And, we’ll help you learn how to stay that way for life.

Let us be your personal, one-on-one fitness consultant. As we guide you on the fitness path, we’ll help you avoid common exercise mistakes that just waste your time, and we’ll teach you techniques that will get you the fitness results you’ve always wanted.

Only $3.99/Month

Workout of the month terms, cancellation and refund policy

Biggest Loser 2011 Week 13

I have to say that at first this episode seemed like a real let down.

That’s probably because last weeks show was so good. But as I continue to think about it, there are some really good lessons that can be learned from this weeks show.

To start off Kaylee wanted to speak with the group. She felt bad because she decided that she was ready to go home last week. She sabotaged her results so her team would lose the weigh-in and everyone would vote to send her home. Except the red team lost and Justin was voted off.

She said that she was sorry, and that she had learned her lesson.  She claims that she learned from experience that if you don’t put your best effort into something, you might not get the results that you want. (Lesson #1 from the show).

Although I agree with her big time, it really didn’t effect the show. If she had worked hard and lost weight, the red team would have lost by a larger margin and Justin still would have been voted off of the show.

Kaylee also learned that you have to complete your journey (Lesson #2 from the show).

Then everyone met Allison in the gym. She showed them a video from the day they were selected. It was very emotional, there was a lot of crying. I have to admit it is pretty amazing to see how much everyone had changed in just 12 weeks! Incredible!!!

So Allison mentioned that the show started with 11 teams. She asked them if anyone ever wondered what happened to the 12th team. Then she surprised everyone by bringing the 12 team (the last team to not be selected for the show) back. It was an interesting twist.

Everyone had the same reaction that I did. That this might be a little unfair. They were much bigger and would have an advantage losing weight for the next few weeks. But there was another twist. The 12th team, Vance and Leanne, were told on selection day that they were the 12th team. They were also told that they’d have an opportunity to get back on the show. Now for the twist…

They’ve been losing weight on thier own for the past twelve weeks. If they had lost more than the contestant with the lowest percentage of weight loss, they’d be on the show. Kaylee had lost the lowest so far; 25.23%

Vance weighed 379lbs. To get on the show he needed to lose 95lbs. He lost 30 and didn’t make the show. Leanne, Vance’s mom, weighed 315lbs. and would need to lose 79lbs. to get on to the show. She lost 45lbs., and also would not be on the show.

All of the contestants, were very supportive, and gracious. It was nice to see. Here’s the thing, both Vance and Leanne were happy that they had begun their journeys, but they both acknowledged how difficult it was to do on their own. They both spoke of how much temptation there is and how difficult it can be to change habits.

As exciting, motivational, and inspiring as it is to watch the contestants on The Biggest Loser lose weight as rapidly as they do; it is far more realistic to lose weight at the pace that Vance and Leanne have (Lesson #3 from the show)

Now be honest with yourself. If you were to lose 45lbs. in the next 12 weeks, wouldn’t you be Ecstatic!!!

Next up was a “Pop” challenge. For this challenge each team had to work with a partner to balance small balls on a board. Carry the board across a field without dropping the balls. Then let the balls fall through a hole in the middle, into a basket. The first team to get 10 balls into their basket would win. The last team would lose. The two teams in the middle really got nothing…

The winning team (the green team), won a 1 minute advantage in the next challenge. That’s a pretty good prize.

The losing team (the red team), would have to spend a week off of the ranch. OK that doesn’t sound good. That’s a HUGE disadvantage!

Here’s the deal with the red team. They got a $1000 budget for the week. They could select things like groceries, biggest loser food, a chef, a trainer, gym membership, massages, phone calls to family, meals at restaurants.

They Chose

Groceries $300

Gym/X@ $300

Phone Calls $200

Massages $100

Restaurant $50

$50 left over…

 

They didn’t chose to work with a trainer. Brett was shocked, but he handled it well. He spent some time writing out their workouts for the week, then they were on their way.

Losing a challenge should be a punishment. Instead they sent Jen and Courtney off to an absolutely beautiful house in Ojai Ca. They had food, a gym membership, restaurant meal. They were loving it.

Now for the challenge (which they brought the red team back for). The Biggest Loser crew put 5000 colored eggs on a hilly field. Each team had to find 600 eggs that match their team color and fill up the egg crates that also match their team color. There was also a golden egg that had a prize in it for the person who found it. Remember the green team had a 1 minute advantage.

And for the prizes?

The first team to finish would win tickets to the world premier to the movie Hop.

All of the teams that finish would get to go to a special advances screening of Hop.

 

The whole challenge was just a big promotion for a movie. I can’t believe that they got any of these adults to even care about this challenge. None of it had anything to do with the outcome of the show, except for the golden egg. Just find the golden egg and forget the stupid challenge.

Turns out Olivia found the golden egg, and who really cares who won the challenge?

So what was the prize? Turns out it might not actually be a prize at all. As long as Olivia’s team (the blue team) didn’t lose the challenge, Olivia would have the only vote to eliminate a person from the show. Yes, she was a little disappointed, but it was a good twist.

Now for the weigh in

The blue team lost 14 lbs.

Then the green team lost 18lbs. So Olivia still didn’t have the only vote.

Then the black team lost only 11lbs. Everyone on the green and blue team were now safe and Olivia would be voting someone off. Here sister Hannah is on the black team. Therefore Olivia would either vote for Rulon or Jay. In a masterful display of gamesmanship Hannah, who knew her sister wouldn’t vote for her, sabotaged her results and lost zero pounds. This will really set her up to have a big weight loss week next week and ensure another week on the show.

The only way that Olivia wouldn’t vote for either Rulon or Jay would be if the red team lost the weigh-in. Remember there are only two people on the red team, if they lose the weigh-in the person who loses least amount of weight would be eliminated without a vote. The red team, if you recall is the team that spent the week off of the ranch, getting massages, going to restaurants and calling home. They needed to lose a total of 6 pounds.

Courtney when first and lost 2 pounds. As long a Jen loses 4 or more pounds, then Olivia will get to vote.

Jen lost Zero pounds. And She is Eliminated.

When giving the choice to “pay” for proper training, food etc. Jen was tempted by restaurants, massages and phone calls (Courtney wanted to hire the trainer, but Jen talked her out of it). The choices that you make will impact your results every time (Lesson #4 from the show).

Jen deserved to be eliminated. She made the wrong choices!

Now for the quotes of the week.

“My shape, shapes my life”

“All that is important, is that I’ve started this journey”

“You started out on this journey….finish it”

“You need to realize that there are temptations around every single corner”

“I can conquer anything in this life”

“Nothing in my life is holding me back”

“The possibilities for me are endless”

 

See you next week…

Biggest Loser Week 11

This week’s show was very interesting.

To start things off the black and red teams were merged into one team. The blue team. The blue team had a common goal, lose more total weight than the previous week. The twelve remaining contestants lost 64 pounds the week before. If the blue team worked together to lose 65 or more pounds, then no one would be eliminated from the show.

My first thought was that this would be next to impossible. Last week the red team followed a miserable weigh in (during the two weeks spent at home), with incredible results. The thing about weight loss is that is often comes in stages. If you have a great week it’s not uncommon to not quite lose as much the next week.

The cool thing about this episode was to see how quickly the blue team accepted their common goal. The red and black teams had spent the last 5-6 weeks really battling each other. I thought there might be some tension, but there wasn’t. They got right to work!

The four trainers; Jillian Michaels, Bob Harper, Brett Hoebel and Cara Castronova all seem quite shocked by the merger of the two teams. I don’t know if they really keep the trainers in the dark about the challenges and twists or not, but if they don’t the trainers are also excellent actors. Bob and Jillian took the men and Cara and Brett took the women. In essence the trainers took the team members that they hadn’t had a chance to train yet.

Soon after the teams merged each person met again with Dr H. (Dr. Huizenga), for their mid-point check up. He reassessed them and showed their improvements by using The Biggest Loser “real age” program. This was yet another cross promotion. But it was really awesome to see how much each person really improved their health in just 10 week.

This show puts so much emphasis on weight loss that it’s easy to lose sight of the true benefits 0f exercise and proper nutrition; Good Health, Decreased Risk of Chronic Diseases, Improved Quality of Life and an Extended Life Expectancy!!!!

In the middle of the show they brought in Curtis Stone and Lorana Garcia. I think they are from the new show America’s Next Great Restaurant. This was obviously a chance for NBC to cross promote the show. Anyway the blue team was divided up into 6 teams of 2 (one person each from the former red and black teams).

Each team had 30 minutes to create a dish. The two guest chefs would vote on the best one based on calories, taste, and presentation. The winning team would win The Biggest Loser meal plan from the time they were eliminated from the show until the finale. This was yet another cross promotion. But the food they made looked great, and was healthy and nutritious. So it was cool to watch.

Olivia and Moses Won!

Before the weigh in there was one team challenge. The entire team had to pull a rope (think of the type of rope that is used to tie ships to the docks), out of the dirt. At the end of the rope were questions that they had to answer. If they got it correct they’d continue in one direction (presumably the shorter route), and if they got it wrong they’d go in another direction. Each time the got the correct answer two more teammates would help pulling the rope.

They had 90 minutes to complete the challenge. If they finished in time then the team would get a 5 pound advantage at the weigh in. They were very motivated to win this challenge.

Now this sounds really easy, but they buried the rope really deep in the dirt. They had to dig and pull. Even Rulon Gardner (who won a gold medal at wrestling and has been training hard for the last 10 weeks), could hardly pull the rope out of the dirt.  Long story short, they completed the challenge with only 15 seconds to spare and won the 5 pound advantage.

At the weigh in it seemed like they edited the order that each person wieghed in, to create the most drama. It is TV after all. Each person needed to lose an average of 5 pounds to prevent anyone from being eliminated.

After the first four people they were 3 pounds behind the pace.

After the next three people they were 4 pounds ahead of the pace.

Three people after that they were only up 1 pound with two people to go. They could do it!!!

But Marci didn’t lose any weight and Kaylee actually gained 2 pounds, So someone would be eliminated.

They had to vote for one of the bottom two; Marci or Kaylee.

Marci who had lobbied to be voted off the last two weeks, asked everyone to vote her off. There are two reasons she seemed like the best person to eliminate. She now weighs 162 pounds, and is at her goal weight. She is the mother of another contestant, Courtney, who still needs to lose more weight. Plus Marci has become a mother figure to a lot of the younger people on the show.

Everyone except one person honored Marci’s request (not including Moses, who wouldn’t vote off his own daughter, Kaylee). So Marci is gone!!!

Now for the quotes of the week:

“Nothing is more important than you”

“One step, one day, one choice at a time, and you will get there”

“I’m fully happy and fully confident and I’m proud of myself”

“The most important thing you can take care of is you”

“These small victories are everything to me”

“Parents set an example for their children”

“I just want my life back so bad”

See you next week!!!

Biggest Loser 2011 Week 10

OK this week there was a little hiccup on my prediction that Bob and Jillian’s team would continue to crush Brett and Cara’s team.

But there is an important weight loss lesson to be learned from this!

Weight loss isn’t a linear process. There are often bumps in the road and plateaus. Think of weight loss as at flight of stairs. You’ll continue to work your way downs the stairs toward your weight loss goal. So you should expect that you’ll have weeks when you experience the weight loss you’re hoping for. Other weeks the scale won’t move. These plateaus are part of the process, part of the journey. Your body is adapting to the changes and will respond by losing more weight.

I should have seen this coming.

In the previous episode the contestants went back home for two weeks. The red team struggled with environmental and emotional issues that caused the weight gain in the first place, and they struggled with the weight loss. While the black team did not seem to have the same struggles, and they rocked the weigh in.

So the black team was primed to have a “plateau” type week. While the red team was in position to show some really significant losses on the scale. In fact what they had done back at home is a little trick that I’ve used for years to help people bust through plateaus, EAT MORE!

Eating more really shocks the body, it helps to reset your metabolism. It’s typical for the body to adapt very quickly to dietary changes, lose some weight, then stop. By eating more calories your metabolism increases, then when you go back to “healthy” eating, so you start to lose weight.

So I gave away part of the ending. The red team won the weigh in.

Here’s what happened in the show to get to that point. Both teams had to pick a captain for the week. The captain would have to make decisions for the team during the week. Kind of an interesting idea. The red team selected Justin, he seems to be the natural leader, but I don’t really see why. But it was an obvious choice for the team.

The black team chose Marci, who is the only parent left on the black team from the original “couples”. She seems to have adopted the rest of the girls on the black team and has become sort of a mother figure, so that was an obvious choice.

They had to make 3 choices for the team.

1. Select only two people from each team to work with the trainers (everyone else is on their own)

2. Pick one person to prepare all of the food for the week

3. Select the order that people would enter the challenge for the week

Here’s how it went. Both captains seemed to make really good, rational choices. The red team was all in with every decision that Justin made. There was a little drama on the black team. One lady that was selected for the workout took it as an insult that she needed the extra help. Marci also selected her own daughter to sit out the challenge, and she didn’t take that well.

Both the cooks did great but they discovered how difficult it was to have responsibility and still find time to workout – WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD!

Turns out that Marci made a good choice, as the black team won the challenge. The challenge was a sort of mud pit relay, which didn’t have any real consequence on the out come of the show. But the winning team won $6000, and money is always great!

So for this episode there were no real big twists. It was pretty straight forward. The team that loses the weigh in would have to vote off a team member. As you already know the red team won.

Marci had already made it clear that she would sacrifice for the “daughters” on the team, and it was clear that she would be voted off.

BUT HERE IS THE TWIST FOR THE WEEK

Marci lost the most weight for the black team, she had earned immunity. They couldn’t vote for her. No one saw that coming. Even Marci admitted that she never considered that as a possibility. And for good reason, Marci is the lightest person on the entire show. She only weighs 167lbs. and she dropped 5 lbs. to get to 162 lbs. Plus she’s 49 and everyone else on her team is mid-20s to mid-30s.

SIDE NOTE: No more excuses for middle age women who weigh under 170 pounds to not reach their weight loss goals.

Marci is ROCKING IT!

So they voted off Sarah, who happened to switch teams last episode to avoid being voted off by the red team.

Now for the quotes of the week.

1.” The only person that is going to stand in your way is you”

2. “I have to fix what’s broken”

3. “Your journey is to take care of yourself”

4. “I cant quit, no matter how hard it gets, no matter how many times I get knocked down”

5. “I forgot to take care of me”

See you next week!

Biggest Loser 2011 Week 9

OK, I’m a little late getting this post out but here it is….just in time for Week 10’s episode.

Remember when I made my first  post about The Biggest Loser (it was only a couple weeks ago). I said that I hadn’t watched the show since the first season. That was because the contestants kept voting off the people who were losing the most weight. WELL HERE WE GO AGAIN!

Before you tune me out because you think I’m going to rant; don’t, I’m not!

Here’s what I know…whether you have 5 or 500 pounds to lose, you can find inspiration in the success of others. And I’m going to focus on that success and inspiration, because that’s what makes The Biggest Loser good! (I might rant a little too).

In this weeks episode everyone went back home for two weeks. I was really excited about this episode because “home” is where YOU live. And if you’re going to succeed at reaching your weight loss goals, you’re going to have to figure out how to do it where you live.

I believe that it’s pretty easy for everyone to lose weight on The Biggest Loser’s compound. They are in a controlled environment, they have guidance 24 hours a day. All they have to do is workout and eat healthy food. There is little to no temptation at the ranch.

 I was most interested in seeing how everyone would handle being back in the comforts of their own homes (the place where all the weight gain occurred originally). I wanted to see how effective the lessons learned at the ranch would carry over to real life situations. Honestly I expected most of them to struggle.

From what we could see in the show, everyone made really good choices and didn’t give in to opportunities to sabotage their own success. I was impressed. I didn’t expect that the show or the trainers were really preparing the contestants for the real world. I feel like the show’s number one priority is to show huge and rapid decreases in weight each week. Not to prepare them for long term success…

When they returned to The Biggest Loser compound, everyone would compete in a 5K race. The order that each person finished would determine the order that they could each select which trainers they wanted to work with.

This turned out to be a HUGE deal. Remember I started watching the show again during the middle of this season, so I missed the main drama. But it goes something like this. Aurther (who is a member of the black team) worked out some sort of swap of teammates. And this move didn’t sit with the red team (who all have a weird reality show pact). The assumption was that  the lady that he sent from the black team to the red team (so he and his father could move to the black team) would use her vote to move back to the black team.

So he had to avoid coming in last to avoid being sent back to the red team. Here is Arthur’s delimma. He weighs 406 pounds. At his peak he weighed over 650 pound. The chance of him coming in last was very high. I’ll tell you what happens in the next post…..

JUST KIDDING!

As expected Arther came in last and got sent back to the red team. His only hope to stay on the show was to lose the most weight at the weigh-in and earn immunity.

Everyone on the black team rocked the weigh-in. They each lost between 10-14 pounds (over a two week period, when they were home). I was impressed for two reasons. One,  obviously Bob and Gillian (and/or the behind the scene trainers/staff) are teaching this team how to be successful in the real world. Two, the black team is mainly women (who tend to lose weight slower than men) and are all much smaller (have less total weight to lose), than the red team.

So the red team had to lose an average of 17 pounds to win the weigh-in and avoid voting off a teammate.  The red team sucked! Ken and Moses only lost 5 pounds each, and they are 291 and 322 pounds respectively. Kaylee did worse, she only lost 1 pound. This is over a two week period. It’s obvious the producers of the show left their struggles while at home out of the show to surprise us (and it worked).

I think that Cara and Brett are being totally out classed by Gillian Michaels and Bob Harper. The black team seems to dominate the weigh-in every single week. They are making two big mistakes. One, they mainly do boxing, kickboxing, martial arts type workouts. Those workouts are designed to make boxers, kick boxers, and martial artists perform better at their disciplines. And while they are difficult workouts they are neither fitness or weight loss workouts. And two, they obviously are not preparing the people on their team to succeed on their own once the show is complete.

So it appeared that Arthur had one last hope….lose the most weight. His new teammate on the red team Rulon Gardner lost 17 pounds (the most of anyone during the two week period). So if Arthur lost 18 or more pounds, he’d be immune from elimination. For the sake of TV drama, of course he was the last to weigh-in.

Arther lost 16 pounds and he was voted off by his team.

Now for the rant!

Arthur used to weight 650 pounds, he now weighs  390 pounds. He is the heaviest contestant ever on The Biggest Loser. This is a matter of life and death for this man. He needs to be on this show. He needs the help. Both he and Rulon lost well over 100 pounds in 10 weeks. They are the biggest losers. Plus on a show where your team can avoid having to vote each other off by winning the weigh-in, you want the people who consistently lose the most weight (i.e. Arther).

Instead of voting off, not totally committed, easily distracted, dead weight contestants (Ken, Moses, and Kaylee), they vote off Arther, because of a team pact? What idiots! OK, here’s my prediction for the rest of  the season…

The black team (with trainers Bob and Gillian) are going to continue to crush the red team week-in and week-out until only Rulon is left!

Now that rant wasn’t too bad. I want you to find inspiration in the success of the contestants on The Biggest Loser. To help here are this weeks quotes…

“I don’t want to die, I want to live and be healthy”

“I get a choice, and that’s the ultimate”

“I deserve a rest, don’t I” (actually on the nutrition program I recommend you get a cheat day/meal once a week)

“Saying no is in turn saying yes to myself”

Remember I love your comments….leave them below! Thanks.

Enjoy, see you next week!

Biggest Loser 2011 Week 8

OK this is my second post on NBC’s show The Biggest Loser. But I’m a quick study so I think I’m pretty much up to speed.

The big deal this week is that two, not one person, will be eliminated from the show! Here’s the deal. One person would be eliminated the regular way. The team that lost the weigh in would have to vote someone off. But a second person would also be eliminated from the show. That would be the person who lost the least amount of weight. The Biggest Loser people called this “falling below the red line”.

No were talking! This is the show I’ve been waiting for. It make so much sense to me that the person who performs the worst should be eliminated. But there were two things that resulted from this, one annoyed me and the other really kind of pissed me off!

The first thing that annoyed me (and it might have annoyed you too), was the “red line”. It seems obvious that no one wanted to get voted off, so the trainers used “the red line” for motivation throughout the week. The end result was that for about 45 minutes the trainers on the show seemed incapable of saying any thing other than, “there’s a red line this week” or “don’t fall below the red line” or “are you going to fall below the red line?” and the succinct “red line”.  Anyway they all said “red line” more times in 45 minutes that you would think would be humanly possible. It was distracting and annoying.

Now for what pissed me off!

Disclaimer: I don’t have children.

Clearly the “red line” was intended to motivate the contestants to put forth their best effort that week to avoid elimination. And that is exactly what I thought was going to happen. But it didn’t. If you remember from my post last week, this season is The Biggest Loser, couples. Most of the couple are parent/children. It turns out that three of the parents sabotaged their own success to ensure that their child would remain on the show.

It was emotional and somewhat inspiring to see parents sacrifice for their children, I’m sure it is instinctive behavior for all parents. (Remember my disclaimer), But it totally pissed me off!

There are several reasons why.

In this episode, not putting forth your best effort was rewarded, and that should never be the case.

If you don’t take care of yourself, you are not going to be capable of caring for others. Sure, in the short run you’ll be able to care for your kids, but once your health fails you, you’ll no longer be able to care for anyone.

The reason that the children(on this show they are all adult children) in the show are overweight, is because they followed the example of their parents. The parents need to change their behavior, lose weight, and improve their health every bit as much as their children.

Nothing will have a more positive effect on others than leading by example. Putting forth less than your best effort is a horrible example!

The good news is that two of the three parents that sabotaged their results are off the show, as they deserve to be.

Now for the quotes of the week (actually paraphrases, I tweaked them a little so they make sense and are a little more motivational).

“You can do whatever you want to do, the key is you have to want to do it”

“You’ve got control of right now”

“Get out of your own way and accept that you can do it”

“You health is worth fighting for”

“Regardless of what’s in front of you, give everything you’ve got”

“You are not in this battle alone”

“I want to be happy”

Even though I was a little disappointed on some aspects of the show, it does provide for some great quotes. The next episode the contestants go home and are back in the real world again. I’m really looking forward to next weeks episode, because the “real world” is where you live. We’ll see how they do.

See you next week.

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