What's In My Grocery Bags?

Here's a quick video I shot when I just got back from the store. I wanted to show you a few of the things I like to buy for the week and hopefully give you some ideas for healthier options and what to pick up when you go shopping.

Don't Listen To The Losers!? The 5 Common Mistakes People Make Who Regain Weight & The Proven Strategies To Avoid It

So what do I mean by don't listen to the losers?

We are in a fast paced society and when it comes to weight loss, it can never happen fast enough. When you hear about someone who lost 30 lbs. in 30 days, you think they are amazing and you want to emulate everything they did to get the same results. 

Now that is an exaggerated weight loss but what about the person who dropped 30 lbs. in 12 weeks. That's a more realistic number and a very healthy amount of time to lose weight and in fact we've had numerous boot campers do just that. 


But a lot of times what happens with fast weight loss is that the weight comes right back on 6 months down the road if you don't pay attention. 


So don't always assume that the person who lost a ton of weight in a short period of time has all the answers and you should model after them entirely. 


The people you need to be searching for and modeling your actions after are the ones who have lost the weight and kept it off for a period of 1 year or more, ideally 3-5 years! They have learned to make health and fitness a part of who they are and it's a lifestyle now, not just a short term goal. 


In the video below I am speaking to a group of the Wealth For My Health contestants about this very topic and how to avoid gaining all your weight back after you've reached your weight loss goal. 

Wealth For My Health Trainer Mike Bevard Talks About Maintaining Results- Lincoln, NE from Mike Bevard on Vimeo.
(Please be patient as it may take a minute for the video to load)

For more information on the Wealth For My Health Challenge and to learn how to register for the next challenge that starts in August, click HERE. 

Registration deadline is August 23rd. 

A Lesson Learned....

I just received this email the other night from one of our valued members:

“ A co-worker decided to try another bootcamp/fitboxing class. A lot of red flags came up. An uncertified instructor, one level for all & a push to do back to back classes. I cautioned her to be careful and hoped she would change her mind and come to a Capital City Boot Camp. Today when she came to work, on crutches, the message was clear. She was pushed to do back to back classes at an intensity too high for her fitness level.

While x-raying her leg, shock ran though my mind. This was not just a sprained knee and ankle! It was a twisted fracture of her fibula.  Surgery is almost warranted and injury to the knee is
still to be determined. A warning to all, not all boot camps are the same or safe! Don't put your body in the hands of just anyone. Mike, feel free to pass this on. It may be a while before this nurse can exercise again, but my goal is to have her attend a class with a real professional instructor in a safe environment.

Thanks for pushing me to the limit, being aware of my weaknesses, and using your knowledge to provide correct and efficient exercises.”

-Raquel :)

Now after I read this I was upset and this is just another example of what’s wrong with the majority of the “boot camps” out there.

Most of the boot camps out there are just glorified aerobics classes trying to do cookie cutter workouts with the main goal of just getting you TIRED! Anybody can make you do hundreds of pushups and situps and make you tired…that’s not how it should be done.

And most of the boot camp instructors want to get tons of people in each workout to make lots of money and they just hire an “aerobics” instructor instead of a certified fitness professional to teach the class. That’s a recipe for injury like you’ve read above. 

A proper boot camp should provide an orientation before you even step foot into the workouts to properly indentify your fitness level and address any concerns you might have with certain exercises.

A proper boot camp should be more like a personal training session tailored to each individual in the group with proper exercise progressions and regressions for each fitness level.

The instructor should be constantly correcting technique and monitoring you instead of participating in the class like an aerobics instructor.

They should provide a proper movement preparation phase like foam rolling and band activation stretching and then go through a proper group warm-up to get the body ready for the workout and a proper cool-down phase to prevent unwanted injuries.

The bad thing about the name “boot camp” is that it’s associated with large group classes that go through a random arrangement of exercises that do nothing but wear you out. There is no scientific training program in place because they change the workouts everyday for so called “muscle confusion”. This makes it hard for the client to learn the proper technique and form for the exercises and they can never build up the skill to do it properly which eventually leads them to get injured and never wanting to be involved with a boot camp again.

There needs to be a scientific training program developed by a certified fitness professional that get results, but more important, keeps you safe.

Now if you want all the bells and whistles that some of the other boot camps have out there and risk not getting results or worse yet, getting injured….then you have the freedom to choose that type of program. But if you want a boot camp that’s more like a group personal training session designed by a professional to keep you safe and get results, then contact us.

Be sure to do your research and know what you’re getting yourself into.

Get after it!

Mike

PS- If you want to be a part of the best and most safe fitness boot camp in Lincoln, we have our next orientation this Saturday, July 17th at 10am and we begin a new session of camp on Monday, July 19^th. Contact us at 402-910-0743 to schedule your phone consultation.

The Method Behind The Madness

We have a great month of new bootcamp workouts locked and loaded for you!

As you know, we spend an inordinate amount of time researching and testing exercise variations and workout templates to best ensure that we bring the cream of the fitness crop your way each and every month.

Lots of other bootcamps simply seek to just beat you down and get you tired with no rhyme or reason behind what they do. This results in limited results and lot of unwanted injuries.

However, everything we do at Capital City Boot Camp is based on sound exercise science and battle-tested, in the trenches real world experience.

I have always felt that it's important to know why you're doing what you're doing when it comes to fitness because it helps reinforce the implementation of the necessary habits to get into the best shape of your life.

So I just wanted to take the time to briefly explain the method behind the madness of the incredible, cutting-edge Continuous 20-Minute Workouts that we are doing this month.

What is it and how do you do it?

Continuous 20-Minutes is a density training bootcamp-style workout where the goal is to perform the same amount of work in less time and/or more work in the same amount of time or less.

Each workout consists of a 4-exercise circuit that works your entire body. Every 2 minutes you will perform 10 reps of each exercise (5 reps/side for unilateral movements) in the circuit as fast as you can with perfect form and technique.

The goal is to complete each circuit within 60-90 seconds and then you rest for the remaining time left in each 2-minute round. In other words, the faster your complete each round the more rest you get and visa versa.

You will perform 10 total rounds for an INSANE 20-minute metabolic workout.

If your completion time is 60 seconds or less then you need to INCREASE the intensity of your workout by increasing loads and/or using more advanced exercise variations

If your completion time is longer than 90 seconds then you need to DECREASE the intensity of your workout by decreasing loads and/or using easier exercise variations

Why does it work?

"Training Density" describes the amount of work completed in a certain period of time. ‘

'Work" describes total training volume which is the number of reps you perform for each exercise times the loads/exercise variation used to do so.

The more work you complete in the same amount of time the greater the calorie burn and the greater the muscular demand resulting in improved fat loss and lean muscle gain.

To take training density to the next level, seek to complete MORE work in the SAME amount of time or LESS.

Since you must perform 10 reps of each exercise in the 4-exercise circuit, this can be accomplished by either increasing the load used or by using a more advanced exercise variation where applicable from week to week.

In other words:

10 reps for each exercise in the circuit X

4 total exercise within each circuit X

10 total rounds =

400 total reps in 20 minutes

For example, if you used a 10 lb dumbbell for all exercises within the circuit, that means you would have performed 4,000 lbs of work in 20 minutes- Not too shabby! :)

However, if you progressed to using a 15 lb dumbbell for all exercises within the circuit by the end of the phase that would mean you performed 6,000 lbs of work in 20 minutes- That's 2,000 lbs more than you did in your first workout!

Now the only way your body could meet this increased workload is by boosting lean body mass eliminating unwanted body fat. Plus, since your heart rate will be elevated throughout the entire workout, your overall conditioning will go through the roof this phase!

This progressive overload is the key to making your body change. Simply seek to gradually move from Level I to II to III over the course of this month to best ensure you get the most out of your workouts.

Sneak Peak at Capital City Boot Camp Workouts of the Month:

Below is an outline of our workouts of the month.

We will be using a 3-workout rotation with 48-hours between bootcamp workouts for optimal muscle growth and recovery.

Continuous 20 Minutes Density Training

3 Equipment-Based Workouts

	Equipment-Based Workout A	Equipment-Based Workout B	Equipment-Based Workout C
Interval Protocol	Continuous 20-Minutes	Continuous 20-Minutes	Continuous 20-Minutes
Exercise Selection and Order	Four-Exercise Circuit with 1 Dumbbell (DB): 1- Vertical Jumps Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 2- Spiderman Push-ups Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 3- DB Rotational 1-Leg Deadlift Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 4- DB Alternating Reverse Lunge + Overhead Chop Variation- 10 reps (5/side)	Four-Exercise Circuit with 2 Dumbbells (DB): 1- Skater Jumps Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 2- Scorpion Push-ups Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 3- DB Split Stance Bent-Over Row Variation- Underhand Grip- 10 reps (5/side) 4- DB Lateral Touchdown Lunge + Curl Variation- 10 reps (5/side)	Four-Exercise Circuit with 1 Dumbbell (DB): 1- Rotational Burpee Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 2- Superman Push-ups Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 3- DB Braced Core Squat Variation- 10 reps (5/side) 4- DB 1-Arm Snatch Variation- 10 reps (5/side)

As always, we will be powering our bootcamp workouts with WORKOUT MUSE

The music will tell you exactly what to do so we trainers can do what we do best- coach, supervise, and motivate you to the best results-producing workouts of your life!

Get After It! 

Mike

Death, Taxes and a HUGE Boot Camp Discount For YOU!

To quote the great Ben Franklin "Of two things you can be certain: Death and Taxes"

Yes, it's that time of the year again and today is Tax Day...and for some that equals dread over a big bill due to Uncle Sam. For others, it means a windfall of cash in the form of a tax refund check.

So as I wrapped up my taxes and I got a not so nice surprise... I'm gonna have to write a great big check and send it off to the IRS.

I should have seen this coming.

My training biz has been doing really well for it's first year in business but this just caught me off guard a bit.

In any case, I need to bring in some cash quickly to pay this bill.

So bottom line....I'm gonna give you a HUGE discount on my boot camps and save you a ton of your hard earned moolah!

Here's the deal....

You get 50% OFF on a one year paid in full membership to Capital City Boot Camps!!

Call it an "IRS sale" if you will.

You get the following boot camp training packages on sale...

-HARDCORE 5x Week Package for ONLY $1,314 (normally $2,628/yr)

-RAPID RESULTS 3x Week Package for ONLY $714 (normally $1,428/yr)

-BUSY PERSON 2x Week Package for ONLY $474 (normally $948/yr)

-EXPRESS FITNESS 1x Week Package for ONLY $234 (normally $468/yr)

Click here to get your discount ----> http://www.capitalcitybootcamps.com/Specials.html

This is a great opportunity for you to take advantage of so you can put your focus on training hard and getting results for the next 12 months!

THIS OFFER EXPIRES April 30th, 2010.

.....this is a one time deal and you will NEVER see our prices this low again.
http://www.capitalcitybootcamps.com/Specials.html

Disclaimer- Due to the large reduction in price, there is NO REFUND after the purchase of your 12 month paid in full membership if you do not hold up your bargain and complete your full 12 months of training due to moving, time conflicts, travel, etc.. The 12 months must be completed in a consecutive manner and MAY NOT be broken up into smaller 3 or 6 month increments to be used at your convenience.

Shout Out To A Few Elite Campers!!

“Fat loss is an all-out war. Give it 28 days — only 28 days. Attack it with all you have. It’s not a lifestyle choice; it’s a battle. Lose fat and then get back into moderation. There’s another one for you: moderation. Revelation says it best: ‘You are lukewarm and I shall spit you out.’ Moderation is for sissies.”— Dan John, legend

 Now there's a great quote for the kind of mentality you need to have to lose fat, change your body and keep it that way for life.

I just wanted to give a shout out to a few boot campers who have done an outstanding job these past few months and deserve some credit for their results! :)


 Shea Timmerman- Shea started the camp about a month ago and so far has lost 4.5 inches and 2 dress sizes and has cleaned up her eating and attends our 9am/7:30pm boot camp and 6:30pm FitBoxing classes at least 3-4 times per week.

  Christine Keating- Christine has been in the camp for about two months and participated in the Mosier-Timperly Weight Loss Challenge and tied for 5th place out of 84 people!! She lost 19 scale pounds and 5.1%. So that means she lost over 15 lbs of body fat! Way to go ;) Christine attends the 5:45am boot camp 3 times per week.

  Trent Maly- Dr. Maly is my personal chiropractor at MT Chiro and has been attending the 5:45am camp for close to a year now. His office just finished their weight loss challenge last week and he ended up being the winner by dropping 15 lbs and 6.5% body fat in three months! Plus he just won a gift card to Scheels during our Weekend Core Challenge where he held a front plank for 11:11 and actually broke the overall record of 7:37 set by Lyndsey Gardner. BUT he did have to battle for it as Ashley Deisler also broke the record and set a new female record of 10:15!

 These are just a few of many others in the camp who have taken it up a notch the last few months and decided to fight the fat loss battle with everything they have.
 
Great job everybody and keep going strong!
 
Get after it!
Mike
 

Please feel free to leave a comment below to congratulate your fellow boot campers and show your support!

Burn Fat With This Six-Pack of Beer!

Here's a common question I get a lot of times when I talk to people about losing fat and changing their eating habits.

" So how many beers can I have?" or " Can I still drink wine?"

Well this week in our boot camps we are having a nutrition challenge of NO ALCOHOL for the next 7 days. For some this may be easy, but for others this will be a challenge.

If you are serious about losing fat and shrinking your waist line, then you need to seriously limit how much alcohol you consume.

Why? According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, alcohol is fat-sparing, meaning the body burns alcohol first before it burns fat for fuel. Drinking alcohol stops the body from burning fat as energy just as skipping meals and not getting enough rest does. Not only does alcohol shut down fat burning but it also causes the body to make even more bodyfat.

Plus drinking alcohol increases the desire to eat more high-calorie foods which is the worst thing you can do when the fat burning process is shut down. So your body just stores more fat and makes it harder to get rid of.

A glass of regular beer or wine supplies more than 100 calories. Reduce calories by choosing light beers, limiting the amount or switching to non-alcoholic beers and wines. Regular beer and wine are lower in calories than mixed drinks, such as martinis and margaritas.
Here is a little breakdown of calories in alcohol from www.livestrong.com

Calories in Beer
A 12-ounce bottle of regular beer delivers 153 calories, while its light beer counterpart is only 103 calories, according to the United States Department of Agriculture's National Nutrient Database. Beer companies have been trying to cut calories, and Budweiser has stolen the show. Calling it "the lightest beer in the world," Budweiser offers BUD Select 55, a light beer that delivers only 55 calories for a 12-ounce bottle.

Calories in Wine
A five-ounce glass of red or white table wine is 121 to 125 calories. Dessert wines are higher. A 3.5-ounce glass of dry dessert wine is 157 calories, and a sweet dessert wine is 165 calories. Note that a 5-ounce glass of non-alcoholic wine is only 10 calories!!

Bottomless Cup
Waiters and friends like to refill that wine glass or toss you another beer. Calories add up fast. Two 5-ounce glasses of wine totals 242 to 250 calories, and three glasses total 363 to 375 calories. Two regular beers are 306 calories, and three are 459 calories.

Beer and Wine Compared with Hard Liquor
A 1.5-ounce shot of vodka, rum, gin or whiskey is 97 calories. One shot full of hard liquor served on the rocks is less calories than a glass of regular beer or wine. Mixers can add many more calories. One apple martini is 235 calories, according to Calorie King. One large margarita is 325 calories, according to The Daily Plate.

So what if still want to drink alcohol and lose your love handles?

Well if you're looking to get drunk and wasted, then I'm afraid there's no solution for you....but if you just like the taste of beer and want to have a couple with your cheat day meal, then maybe there's one beer that can help you satisfy that craving and still keep that fat burning furnace running on high.

Try O'Doul's. Yes...I know it's non-alcoholic. Get over it ;)

It has everything beer has and it tastes really similar to regular domestic beers.  Plus it also contains zero crap carbs like High Fructose Corn Syrup. Eventhough it does says non-alcoholic, it still contains a trace of alcohol in it. But it takes 10 O'Doul beers to equal the alcohol amount of 1 regular beer! You can also get non-alcoholic wine with only 10 calories per 5 oz glass.

So if your serious about losing fat and getting in shape, then try our Boot Camp Challenge Week of NO ALCOHOL for next 7 days and post your comments on how you're doing below.

But here's the bottom line, alcohol and a leaner, stronger body just doesn't mix.

Get After It!
Mike

Why Am I Not Losing Fat On My Weight Loss Diet!?

Maybe this question is going through your head right now.


You find that you workout all the time and kick some serious butt in the gym.


You say that you eat healthy most of the time and that nutrition isn't the problem.


But have you really looked at what you consider "healthy" eating.... maybe you're not eating as healthy as you think.


Check out this great video by my friend and fitness professional Scott Colby aka The Abs Expert. If you want more information from Scott, check out his website and get 20 FREE Abs Training Videos http://www.theabsexpert.com/


Watch the video below:

What are your thoughts on this topic? What things do you have that you thought were healthy but actually fall into the unhealthy category?

Should Your Kids Know How To Cook??

I ran across this video about Jamie Oliver a few weeks ago and then I saw his premier of Food Revolution on TV last week.

I think this video and what Jamie's trying to do really opens parent's eyes to what types of food the school system is feeding their kids. It also shows the importance of teaching your kids how to eat healthy and cook food.

I think one of the biggest reasons our nation has become so overweight and obese is because of the lack of knowledge about how to cook and that's just being passed down to the younger generation and has led to the dramatic rise in childhood obesity.

Before the 1970's, most families still valued cooking meals at home and sitting down together at the kitchen table. After the 70's, this became less of an occurance and it's rare today for families to sit down and have meals together. Nobody wants to spend the time to prepare the food as a family. Instead, families are eating more prepackaged, processed and fast food that comes in a can or box. So as a consequence, people don't know how to cook and it's really becoming a problem.

And the food that kids are getting in the school system for breakfast and lunch is all "fake" packaged food washed down with a nice carton of sugar loaded milk. And I'm not bashing the schools because they are working hard and doing what they are told by the government. But it always seems to be about the cheapest and the fastest way to do things. We need to have higher standards.

So do you think we should be concerned by this here in Lincoln?  

Check out this video!

So what do you think about this topic, not having kids myself I'm curious what your thoughts are?

Lincoln Bootcamp Fun Fat Burning Finisher

The 5:45am Lincoln boot camp crew doing our mat push relay finisher to top off an intense workout. The boot campers try to push the mat for as many rounds as possible during a two minute period.

Check out the Lincoln Boot Camp Fun Fat Burning Finisher

If you want to be a part of the best coed fitness boot camp in the Lincoln area and have a ton of fun, then call 402-910-0743 for your FREE 1 WEEK PASS!!

One of the Most Inspirational Videos I've Ever Seen!!

It's easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life and get lost in the daily routine. With fitness, it's easy to get caught up with losing weight and battling the scale.

But sometimes you just need to take a step back, take a deep breath and realize the important things in life otherwise it will just pass you by. I once got some advice that you need to "slow down to speed up". Life comes at you fast and with fitness, there's more and more information out there about the latest diet craze or revolutionary ab machine. So when it comes to reaching your goals, when you're having trouble planning your meals or your workouts and when you're getting really stressed out about things, that's when you need to take a step back, calm down and get re-focused on the things that are most important....and that speeds up your results.

So for example, with nutrition, think about the biggest things you can do to get the biggest results and don't worry so much about every little thing.

Some big bang for your buck things would be eating breakfast every single day, small frequent clean meals every 3-4 hrs, lean protein at every meal to boost metabolism, half your body weight in ounces of water each day, green veggies at every meal, and cutting out processed carbs, pop and alcohol.

I know you're busy and are going through life a mile a minute but sometimes you just need to relax and enjoy the ride! :) I know I'm guilty of this as well and it's something I'm trying to work on.

So lets slow things down and please take a moment out of your busy day to watch this AMAZING video that inspires me every single time I watch it. It's a reminder to me to appreciate the journey of life and that what you believe you can achieve! It's also an amazing story about the power of love and the human spirit!



Please leave your comments below letting me know your thoughts and how this story inspired and touched your life like it did mine!

Get after it!
Mike

My Beach Body Pump Workout

With the winter coming to a close and the smell of spring finally in the air, it's time we get busy with this great beach body workout so we can have some fun in the sun!

So grab your weights, towel and water bottle and lace up your shoes so you can get ready to workout with me during this full beach body pump workout hosted by my friend BJ Gaddour and Workout Muse in the first ever LIVE "Crank It With BJ" event that I did on Saturday!

This workout was a killer and you can see and hear me along with BJ suffer throughout this 30-15 six exercise circuit. Just a quick warning, this is a raw and uncensored video, so you may want some ear muffs around the 4th circuit in a couple spots! ;)

The main workout takes about 35-40 minutes and then I finish with some stretching. I also show you a little foam rolling routine I do after my workouts that really help to relieve sore and tight muscles and keep your body healthy and speed up recovery.

Killer Beach Body PUMP Workout:

Beach Body Full Workout from Mike Bevard on Vimeo.

Here's the workout for you to follow along with courtesy of Workout Muse:

Circuit#1- Bodyweight
(Repeat this circuit for entire workout if you don't have equipment)
1- Speed/Jump Squat
2- T-Push-up
3- Prisoner Split Squat (L)
4- Prisoner Split Squat (R)
5- Hip Extension (L)
6- Hip Extension (R)

Circuit#2- Kettlebell
(Substitute dumbbells if you don't have a kettlebell)
1- Swings
2- 1-Arm Squat to Press (L)
3- 1-Arm Squat to Press (R)
4- Bent-Over Rows
5- SLDL (L)
6- SLDL (R)

Circuit#3- Band
(Substitute dumbbells if you don't have bands)
1- Squat to Overhead Press
2- High Pull
3- Push-up
4- Bent-Over Rows
5- Squat to Chest Presses
6- Bicep Curls

Circuit#4- TRX
1- Suspended Squat Jumps
2- Suspended Rows
3- Suspended Push-ups or regular pushups
4- Suspended Biceps Curls or DB curls
5- Suspended Triceps Extensions or DB Skull Crushers
6- Suspended Single Leg Squat

Circuit#5- Arms and Abs Blaster
1- 1-Arm DB Curl to Press (L)
2- 1-Arm DB Curl to Press (R)
3- KB X-Body Mountain Climber
4-6: Repeat 1-3

FINISHER- Run in Place for the final 90-seconds of active recovery to make that body change!!

If you made it through the workout, post your comments below and let me know what you thought!

Get After it!!
Mike

Healthy Eating On The Go- Runza

So if you're like me and constantly on the go during the day, you probably don't have much time to cook a healthy meal in the middle of your day. So you turn to fast food as your next alternative...and yes, restaurants are still fast food :)

Obviously fast food is not the ideal choice for getting lean and sexy, but we don't live in an ideal world. The facts are that people are busy and convenience will always trump anything else when it comes to eating.

So here's the dilemma. How are you supposed to stay on your healthy diet and go out to eat at the same time?

Well you can for the most part and not feel guilty about it. As long as you stick to the basics and make the healthiest choices possible, you will still be on track to a healthy and fit body.

In this video I went to Runza for a quick lunch.

Here is a typical order at Runza
1/4 lb. Legend Supreme- 770 calories, 37g fat, 46g protein, 32g carbs
Large Fries- 630 calories, 35g fat, 7g protein, 70g carbs
Medium Pepsi- 230 calories, 74g carbs

So let's do the nutritional math....
This one meal equals-
1630 calories!
72 grams of fat!
53 grams of protein
176 grams of carbs

Now considering the average person needs to consume 2000 calories, this one meal takes care of 80% of your caloric needs!

Now see what other options you have available to you:




Now here's what I got:
Deluxe Chicken Sandwich (Grilled)- 380 calories, 12g fat, 29g protein, 40g carbs
Side Salad- 30 calories, 1g fat, 2g protein, 4g carbs
Iced Tea (medium)- 0 calories, 0 fat,protein,carbs

Grand Total- 410 calories, 13g fat, 31g protein, 44g carbs

Here's the link to Runza's nutrition info:
http://www.runza.com/resources/all/files/69938/_fn/Nutritional+Poster.pdf?disposition=inline

Be aware of what you're putting into your body and make the healthy choice.

Get after it!
Mike

Larry The Cable Guy Helps Boot Camper Tiffany Verzal and Family!

A lot of times you hear about celebrities and how they bought a new mansion for $25 million or bought a couple new sports cars to add to their collection or how they blew a half a million dollars to throw themselves a birthday party.

But then there are the rare few..

The ones who realize that with great fortune comes great power...the power to change lives and make a difference in the world.

Click the link below to watch a great video on this exciting event and christmas blessing for the Verzal family that will be able to help countless families in the future!

Click The Link Below:
Larry The Cable Guy Donates Money for Alexis Verzal Rehab Center

Just yesterday, Larry The Cable Guy (Dan Whitney) proved that he is one of the rare few.

He announced Monday his charitable organization, the Git-R-Done Foundation, will donate $1.2 million to develop a new 14-bed children’s rehabilitation center within the Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital. The new facility will be named “The Alexis Verzal Children’s Rehabilitation Hospital at Madonna” in honor of the 13-month-old Texas girl who suffered a brain injury in 2008.

Tiffany Verzal, mother of Alexis, has been a member of Capital City Boot Camps since October and you can find her sweating and working hard with the 5:45am crew :)

Her and her husband Brandon moved to Lincoln from Texas this past year to bring Alexis closer to the Madonna Rehab Center and give her the best care in the nation.

Also, be sure to watch a brief clip of the documentary that Tiffany and Brandon Verzal, owners of V2 Content, made of their daughter's journey dealing with a traumatic brain injury as well as documenting the journey of other TBI patients.

Get After It!

Mike

Snow Day Fat Blasting Workouts!

Well it's official...it's WINTER here in Nebraska! Lincoln's first major snow storm is upon us and all the kids are going to enjoy a nice snow day today due to the schools closing.

Since you probably won't be going to a stuffy gym to workout in this weather, I have designed a couple of snow day fat blasting cardio workouts for you to do at home.

You've probably heard that slow and steady wins the race. But the cardiovascular key to fat burning is to use interval cardio workouts that alternate high-intensity levels with lower-intensity effort. That formula keeps your body burning calories long after you've stopped working out.

Workout 1-

Equipment Workout:
If you have a bike/treadmill/rowing machine/elliptical at home

Interval Variation: Pyramid
This pyramid structure allows you to start with short bursts of speed, and then you'll peak at the longest surge of energy in the middle of your workout before coming back down.
3 - 5 minutes warmup
30 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
45 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
60 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
90 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
60 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
45 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
30 seconds high intensity
3 - 5 minutes cooldown

Workout 2-

Body Weight Cardio Workout:
Boot Camp Warm-Up (5 min)-
1. Reverse Lunges
2. Lateral Lunges
3. Single Leg Toe Touches
4. Front Pillar Hold
5. Windmills

COUNTDOWN Workout-
Alternate between the three exercises without resting. For your first round, do 10 repetitions of each exercise. For your second round, do 9 reps. Then do 8 reps for your third round, and so on. Go as low as you can, or until you reach zero.
1. Squat Jumps
2. Burpees aka: Squat Thrusts
3. Mt. Climbers (count the left knee for your reps)

Finisher: (3 min)
1. High Knee Sprints in Place- 30s
2. Bicycle Crunches- 30s
3. High Knee Sprints- 30s
4. Flutter Kicks-30s
5. High Knee Sprints-30s
6. V-Ups-30s

Cooldown-3-5 min

Have fun and be safe in this winter weather!

Get After It!

Mike

Busy Lincoln Mom Shares How She Lost 39lbs and 6 Dress Sizes!

Guest post was written by Shelly Jackson who is our Boot Camper of the Month for October!

It has been said that in order to make significant change, you have to first find your bottom. While I don't know if that is true for everyone, I can definitely see places and times in my life that it has been true. For me, the most significant - or maybe just the most recent - is weight loss.

Over the past couple of years, a busy job, a sick child, a limited amount of time and other, more mundane issues have taken precedence over fitness. I knew it was happening, but I honestly didn't see the situation for what it truly was. Although in my mind I knew I was gaining weight and not taking care of myself, I didn't think it was THAT significant. It sounds ridiculous now to say that out loud, but as humans I guess we have an unlimited capacity to lie to ourselves. Gaining the weight, and letting my body get out of shape, happened gradually over a period of time. Finding my own personal bottom though, that came rather suddenly.

One day I was working, reading something on my computer screen. I noticed something in my peripheral vision, near the bottom, that was really bothering me. I kept looking around trying to figure out what I was seeing, when it hit me. Like a ton of bricks. Or maybe like a ton of fatty food. It was my FACE. I could see my face, in my lower peripheral vision, when looking strait ahead at the computer screen. For me, this was so disturbing it was the absolute rock bottom of personal fitness, and I had to make a change. Funnily enough though, I messed around for another nine months, losing a little weight, gaining some back, joining one program, quitting that one, looking for another one, etc. I was getting results, but not very quickly and not necessarily very lasting. I got discouraged, and kind of started to believe that achieving the results I wanted was very unlikely to ever happen.

In order to get real results, and see significant changes, I needed to figure out the reasons I gained the weight, the reasons I was losing it, and take responsibility for both of these things. Figuring out the reasons you gained a significant amount of weight is a personal journey that I can't comment on. The reasons are as different as humans, and can only be deciphered by the person who owns them. Figuring out how to lose it though - that part is actually pretty easy, once you get serious about putting in the work.

For me, it was a numbers game. I think there are really four steps to this particular numbers game, and I think if we are really honest with ourselves the steps are both easy and manageable. The four steps are:

1.Know how many calories you burn
2.Know how many calories you eat
3.Keep track of your progress
4.Do the work

Know how many calories you burn - I used Hy-Vee for this step. I'm a numbers person, and I needed to know the numbers. As in, number of calories I was burning each day, before exercise. I knew that weight loss was, to a certain degree, a mathematical equation. Calories in - calories out = weight loss (or gain). Karen Hollis, the dietician at the new Hy-Vee on O Street, gave me a simple 20 minute test that told me exactly how many calories my body was burning each day on its own (more scientifically referred to as Basal Metabolic Rate).

Know how many calories you eat - I used a pretty simple program that cost less than $30 for this step. It is called Weight by Date, and it installs on both your PC and your Smart phone. You record what your goals are and what you've eaten, the program tells you what you're doing right, what you're doing wrong, and if you're making progress. It also has really good graphs, which appeals to my number loving heart. There are a million ways to keep track of your eating, but for me I needed it to be very specific and measurable and this program was perfect.

Keep track of your progress - See above. In addition to the tracking provided by the food journal program I am using, I also weigh myself every day and take pictures at the start of
every boot camp. I know some people say you aren't supposed to weigh yourself every day, but I say it works for me. We're all different, and I think to a certain degree everyone has to figure out which small tips and tricks work best for them.

Do the work - And this is really the crux of the issue. If you really want to change, in anything, you have to do the work. The funny part for me was, once I found the right place, I wanted to do the work more than anything. It didn't feel like a chore anymore, and I actually started to look forward to it. Thanks Mike! Prior to joining Capital City Boot Camps, I had tried out another Lincoln boot camp. It wasn't a good fit for me, and I didn't have good results. In fact, I gained some weight while going there.

Joining Capital City Boot Camps truly changed my perspective. For me, the encouragement, camaraderie and supportive environment were what I needed. Combined with the interval training and nutrition information, I found all the tools I needed to be successful, motivated and able to take control of my health and my weight.

That isn't to say it is always easy to find the time to fit it all in, but it is possible. It has sometimes been a struggle to find time to keep up with the exercise outside of boot camp. It has required a certain amount of changes in the life of my child and some of my friends as well; like it or not, they often get to do the exercise with me. There are only a certain number of hours in the day, and you have to choose what your priorities are. Also, sometimes you have to get creative to fit it all in. (Fun fact - doing jumping jacks during commercial breaks (instead of fast forwarding through them) burns about 300 calories an hour.) If you want to change though - if you REALLY want to change - it's possible to fit it all in.

Additionally, and I think this is the real advantage of Capital City Boot Camps for me, once you start to see results it becomes much easier to keep working on it and find ways to fit it all in. The program Mike is offering is designed in a way that brings quick results. I lost 39.5 lbs in the first four months of boot camp. That's 1/3 lb. per day. Seeing results this quickly makes it much easier to be excited about it at 5:45 am :)

To anyone considering the program, I would say this - give it a month. For me, it felt really hard the first week. The second week was better. By the fourth week, I had lost a noticeable amount of weight, and I was excited to keep going. Now, I feel like a lifelong convert. That isn't to say I have all the answers. I religiously count calories, yet occasionally can't seem to resist the temptation to eat junk. I don't think it's probably OK to use up all of your daily calories on cake, and eat nothing else. What I do know is that I've found a place that I can work on it, and the tools to be successful, and that feels like a great start. The fact that I've been able to do it with such a great group of people has been the (calorie free) icing on the proverbial cake.

Prograde Nutrition's HUGE Back-To-School Sale

Summer is over.

We’re all back from vacation.

The kids are back in school.

And people everywhere are ramping their fitness program back up because Thanksgiving is right around the corner.

To make those fitness efforts easier than ever my buddies over at Prograde Nutrition are having an enormous sale. This week only you can get 10% off ALL of their powerful products. Yes, the very same ones I use and have been telling you about.

All the details, including the EXACT time it expires this Friday, can be found right here:

Back-To-School Sale

Get after it!

Mike

PS - By the way, Prograde Nutrition's products are notoriously delicious. You definitely want to take advantage of this BIG sale in a BIG way.

7 Father's Day Fat Fighting Tips

Father’s Day is a time for celebrating what our father’s have sacrificed to allow us to lead the lives of our dreams. But as we celebrate how much our father's mean to us, it also makes us realize how much we want our father's to be around for a long time and living strong and healthy lives.

Look, I'm not trying to bash on the dads out there, especially on their special day, but someone has to say something already.

Our father’s are now in the worst shape of their lives, many suffering from a very scary condition called Metabolic Syndrome X.

This guy has pretty good balance!

One of the main indicators of someone who has metabolic disorder is abdominal obesity, as clearly demonstrated in the picture above. The scary part is that many dads out there look just like this!

Please read below for an excellent description of Metabolic Syndrome from http://www.medicinenet.com/:

What is metabolic syndrome?
An association between certain metabolic disorders and cardiovascular disease has been known since the 1940s. In the 1980s this association became more clearly defined and the term metabolic syndrome (also known as syndrome X or the dysmetabolic syndrome) was coined to designate a cluster of metabolic risk factors that come together in a single individual.

In more current times, the term metabolic syndrome is found throughout medical literature and in the lay press as well. There are slight differences in the criteria of diagnosis - depending on which authority is quoted. Regardless, the concept of a clustering of risks factors leading to cardiovascular disease is well accepted.

The main features of metabolic syndrome include insulin resistance, hypertension (high blood pressure), cholesterol abnormalities, and an increased risk for clotting. Patients are most often overweight or obese.

Insulin resistance refers to the diminished ability of cells to respond to the action of insulin in promoting the transport of the sugar glucose, from blood into muscles and other tissues.

How is metabolic syndrome defined?
The definition of metabolic syndrome depends on which group of experts is doing the defining.

Based on the guidelines from the 2001 National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel (ATP III), any three of the following traits in the same individual meet the criteria for the metabolic syndrome:

1. Abdominal obesity: a waist circumference over 102 cm (40 in) in men and over 88 cm (35 inches) in women.
2. Serum triglycerides 150 mg/dl or above.
3. HDL cholesterol 40mg/dl or lower in men and 50mg/dl or lower in women.
4. Blood pressure of 130/85 or more.
5. Fasting blood glucose of 110 mg/dl or above. (Some groups say 100mg/dl)

The World Health Organization (WHO) has slightly different criteria for the metabolic syndrome:

1. High insulin levels, an elevated fasting blood glucose or an elevated post meal glucose alone with at least 2 of the following criteria:
2. Abdominal obesity as defined by a waist to hip ratio of greater than 0.9, a body mass index of at least 30 kg/m2 or a waist measurement over 37 inches.
3. Cholesterol panel showing a triglyceride level of at least 150 mg/dl or an HDL cholesterol lower than 35 mg/dl.
4. Blood pressure of 140/90 or above (or on treatment for high blood pressure).

And though Metabolic Syndrome affects more women than men, there is certainly no shortage of men 40 years and older who have that “deadly beer gut” that literally makes them a ticking time bomb for a slew of serious medical conditions.

But there is good news amongst this frightening reality: The most common cause of metabolic disorder is of course a vicious combination of a lack of exercise and poor diet.

See below for the top 7 Father's Day Fat Fighting tips to help save our father’s lives:

1.) Lay off the Brewskis

It’s no wonder why our dads have more of a keg for a gut than a six-pack. See below for the best way I know of explaining how alcohol can destroy your body composition:

How Alcohol Makes You Fat
-Alcohol first passes through the esophagus as it travels to your stomach.
-From there, 20% of the alcohol is absorbed immediately by your bloodstream.
-The remaining alcohol travels to your intestines and is absorbed from there.
-The alcohol in your bloodstream then travels directly to your liver. It is here that
the body breaks the alcohol down, something that is absolutely essential since
alcohol is toxic to the body.
-Alcohol brakes down into acetate and acetaldehyde which IMMEDIATELY
signals to your body to stop burning fat. Even worse, another waste product of
alcohol, acetyl CoA, actually starts to make more body fat.

If you booze, you WON’T lose fat!

What Does this Mean?
-Your body can only effectively process 0.5 to 1 ounce of alcohol per hour
-How much damage? A 12-ounce beer contains about 0.6 ounces of alcohol. If
you consumed 5 of these, your body would be inhibited from fat burning for up to
6 hours. This is aside from the fact that your body will actually be storing fat
during these 6 hours! The more you drink, the longer your body is inhibited from
burning fat in addition to a greater fat build up from excess acetyl CoA. As you
can see, one day of binge drinking can set you back days if not a full week when
it comes to fat loss!
-What’s the worst-case scenario? Mixing alcohol with sugary beverages
promotes even further fat gain due to the resulting insulin surge that triggers fat
storage (e.g. regular beer or cocktails mixed with regular soda and/or fruit juice)

The Bottom Line
If you want to be lean, you must minimize ALCOHOL consumption!
If you must drink:
a.) Choose wine or hard liquor and “light” beer
b.) Limit alcohol consumption to 1-2 days per week with a 1-2 drink per day max

References:
Campbell and Volek, “TNT Diet: Targeted Nutrition Tactics”

2.) Quit being such a pansy and work your lower body

Most dads just want to do the typical meathead workout that emphasizes the upper body only. If you are going for the Johnny Bravo look where you have a built upper body but chicken legs for wheels, then keep doing what you’re doing.

However, it is important to note that strong, muscular legs are the key to torching your gut. After all, the majority of your body’s muscle mass, and thus metabolism, is contained within your lower body.

Not working your legs is like going to a gun fight without a gun, and here’s why:

a.) Training your whole body (legs included) not only helps you burn more calories each workout, it also maximally depletes your body’s glycogen stores (the sugar in your muscles) to allow for more total body fat burning
b.) The more lean muscle mass you have in your lower body the more calories your body will be burning 24-7-365 outside of your workouts
c.) Whenever you work your legs you generate the largest increases in natural anabolic hormone levels which translates into more total body muscle and less ugly, unwanted body fat.

So if you want better abs, you better start using those legs!

This can be easily accomplished with 3 total body workouts per week that train your upper body, lower body, and core within the same workout.

3.) How about doing something other than bench presses and curls!?

Look- I get why guys don’t want to train their legs. Unless you are wearing a speedo, no one is going to see them! So there is simply not as much motivation to put the time and effort into your lower body as there is for your upper body which is always on full display at the beach or poolside.

Nothing beats a little chest and bi’s baby!

However, if you are trying to develop a really nice upper body, you need to start venturing outside the realm of bench presses and curls. Don’t forget, you do have muscles on the backside of your body too!

In fact, your lats are the biggest muscles in your upper body and when developed they really help promote that V-shaped torso that both makes your waist look smaller and your wife happy ;)

Bruce Lee- The Lat Master Himself

Start doing at least the same amount of pulling as pushing (if not more) unless you want to end up like the Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Quasimodo did way too many bench presses and curls… not too sexy!

Lastly, only do isolation movements like bicep curls if you have extra time after your main workout. Compound movements like rows and pull-ups work your biceps just as hard and since they allow for the use of heavier loads, they also provide a better growth stimulus to maximize results in minimal time.

4.) Don’t eat like those idiots from NutriSystem

Here’s my take on how the idea of NutriSystem got started:

“Hey, I’ve got an idea for an incredible product and marketing campaign:

Let’s gather a group of genetically gifted former pro athletes that have them pack on some pounds since ending their playing days. We’ll have them all get their asses kicked by top personal trainers while following a restricted calorie diet so we lean them out real nicely.

But then we lie to the overweight male coach potato consumer and tell them that they got these results from eating the same exact food they are currently eating- you know, pizza, lasagna, brownies, ice cream, etc. Except we’ll make the meals the size of a dime so they can still technically eat what they want and lose weight at the same time.

To make it even better, we’ll pre-package all of their meals for them to buy from us so these lazy bastards don’t have to do anything besides nuke it up and eat it!

We’ll make millions! Brilliant!!"

Laces Out Dan!

Well, that’s exactly what has happened- thousands of sports-loving, ESPN-watching dads have been swindled to buy into this gimmick that you can eat whatever you want and still lose weight without exercise- because Dan Marino did it!

Look- if you honestly think you can keep eating the same foods that got you that gut in the first place, then I’m not sure how much more I can help you. And yes, there is portion control within the system, but to me it’s a like a big pile of crap vs. a small pile of crap… IT’S STILL CRAP!

5.) Accept the fact that you probably need some professional fitness advice

What you don’t know will hurt you, but what you think you know will KILL you!

Seek out a fitness expert to get life-changing results!

Dads- quit being so stubborn and macho. It doesn’t make you any less of a man to hire a personal trainer or join a boot camp because your wife and her lady friends do it.

In reality, your wife (and women in general) are simply smarter than you because they effectively outsource their fitness needs to an expert whereby you try to re-invent the wheel on your own with little to no results.

If you want to lose your gut, follow the lead of the ladies ;)

6.) Make the time for a 5-minute warm-up

You simply can’t afford to NOT warm-up. It’s like pushing the pedal to the medal in the dead of winter in your frozen car- things just don’t work right and you’re not going anywhere.

A cold body, like a cold car, doesn’t run on all cylinders

It only takes about 3-5 minutes to lengthen your muscles and lubricate your joints to best prevent injury and ready your body for a more effective workout, so DO NOT skip the warm-up!

Below is a great 5-minute body weight warm-up for you to do before your workout:

Alternate between 50 s of work and 10 seconds of rest for each exercise in the following warm-up circuit:
1- Stationary Running
2- Jumping Jacks
3- Lunge, Reach and Twist (left leg)
4- Lunge, Reach and Twist (right leg)
5- Front Pillar Hold

7.) The “no pain-no gain” attitude will leave you a bitter, crippled, and grumpy old man

The “no pain, no gain” methodology is quite possible the most abused practice in fitness. Pain is a good thing as long as it’s the right type of pain as outlined below:

When exercise BURNS YOUR MUSCLES that’s a good pain- this means you are pushing past your comfort zone to inspire change, working with intensity to torch calories and build muscle, and burning sugar so your body can burn fat for hours and hours after your workout.

When exercise HURTS YOUR JOINTS that’s a bad pain- it means you are quickly wearing down the structural integrity of your joints and will soon be unable to do anything without pain or stiffness. This is most often caused by a combination of using too heavy of loads, poor exercise form and technique, strength imbalances, and lack of mobility and/or flexibility- more reason to heed Tip#5 and seek professional help!

I have worked with too many dads who have beaten their bodies down and nothing’s more depressing than a dad who can’t play with his kids or participate in recreational activities with his buddies.

Do yourself and your family a favor and stop being such a meathead when it comes to exercise.

Exercise doesn’t have to hurt to get results and nobody wants another grumpy AND injured old man ;)

Happy Father’s Day! I love you Dad. You mean everything to me ;)

Get After It

Mike

7 Worst Exercises Ever Part 1

Previously, I’ve shared my best exercises for rapid fat loss and muscle gain, featuring a host of multi-joint, compound movements for your upper body (e.g. push-ups, pull-ups, rows, dips, etc.), lower body (squats, deadlifts, lunges, etc.), and core (pillar holds and rotational core exercises).

These “multi-muscle” exercises provide the biggest bang for your buck during your workouts to generate maximum results in minimal time. Even better are total body exercises like a deadlift to curl to press or a squat thrust variation that takes the meaning of a whole body workout to a new level.

But, I think today I'm gonna switch it up a bit and focus on the WORST exercises you can add to your workout routine.

Now back when I was in high school and college, I fell into the trap of making these following exercises the main focus of my workouts. But with gaining more knowledge and experience over the years, I wouldn’t be caught dead doing these exercises anymore.

These movements deliver shoddy results and flat our hurt people- they are movements that have far greater risk than reward. So please DO NOT make these exercises the main focus of your workouts!

So without further ado, here is Part 1 of a two part series for:

The 7 Worst Exercises of All Time

1.) Abs Machine

Everybody wants to get six pack abs. The problem is that most people do excessive crunches to try and get that washboard midsection. Crunches and sit-ups only promote excessive flexion of the lumbar spine and tend to cause neck and back pain. This should never be the sole focus of your core work.

What’s worse than crunches or sit-ups? Doing a similar movement with added weight in a machine that only trains your body in an unnatural front to back motion in a seated position!

Yes, abs machines, like crunches and sit-ups, do make your feel your abdominal muscles, but there are far better ways to accomplish this without the high risk of short and long-term injury to your spine.

Remember, the true purpose of your core is stabilization, both static and dynamic- to be able to maintain a neutral, straight-line position from your hips to your shoulders in all 3 planes of movement (front to back, side to side, and rotational) no matter what the external stimulus may be.

21 Century Training Upgrade: For rock hard, athletic abs focus on pillar stabilization exercises like front, side, and back pillars. Also, focus on ground based rotational core work like chop variations and upper body torso twists.

2.) Back Extension Machine

Well, if I HATE the abs machine, how do you think I’m going to feel about the back machine? I mean this is just such a stupid exercise for so many reasons.

First of all, people already use too much “back” on most movements because of tight hips and inactive/weak glutes. Thus, I prefer to focus more on hip extension movements that strengthen your butt rather than continually overloading the spinal erectors.

Plus, adding in corrective stretching for the hip flexor complex, the hip rotators, and the hamstring complex that opens up your hips and alleviates excessive spinal flexion and compressions is literally exactly what the doctor ordered.

Second of all, just like the abs machine, this bootleg exercise trains your body in one plane of movement in a fixed path and as a results doesn’t work your key stabilizer muscles.

Lastly, the way that most people perform this movement in such a spastic out of control manner for speed just makes me want to vomit.

21 Century Training Upgrade: For a strong, stable back focus on deadlift, good morning, and hip extensions variations while simultaneously focusing on the corrective stretching and self-massage of the Lumbo-Pelvic-Hip (LPH) complex.

A superman, or airplane, as it is sometimes called, is also a great exercise to improve spinal erector endurance while simultaneously improving scapular strength and stability.

3.) Leg Extension Machine

I think this guy needs tan a little more before he works out:)

This exercise is usually the staple of most people's leg day workouts. I used to be guilty of performing this exercise thinking this was the best way to get stronger legs. I'd often jack the weight up to 180-200lbs trying to crank out as many reps as I could.

My hands would be grasping onto those handles under the seat and holding on for dear life to try and keep my butt from coming up off the seat while I extended my legs out. How stupid was I!!

Here’s the bottom line with this exercise- it will wreak havoc on your knees! The excessive compressions on your patella will without a doubt results in the brake down of articular cartilage which will in turn results in a bunch of arthroscopic knee surgeries to remove loose bodies and eventually full blown crippling arthritis. Avoid this machine like cancer!

21 Century Training Upgrade: For strong, stable knees, focus on both knee-dominant (lunge, step-up, and single-leg squat variations) AND hip-dominant single-leg exercises (single-leg hip extension, deadlift, and good morning variations) to prevent strength imbalances between limbs AND to prevent strength imbalances between your front and back thighs and your inner and outer thighs.

4.) Elliptical Machine

Look- if you are really, really overweight and haven’t exercised in over a decade, then I think an elliptical has some use. But, other than that, I think it’s relatively useless.

Yes, it is a low-impact alternative to running on a treadmill, but there is very little range of motion during the movement and does not burn nearly as many calories as the machine claims it does.

Furthermore, the elliptical is not a good machine to do intervals on because it promotes excessive hyperextension of the knee. This can easily result in injury at high levels of speed and resistance.

Think about it- what’s the first machine people who are new to cardio exercise jump on? The elliptical! Why? Because it’s so friggin’ easy!

Don't try and convince yourself that the elliptical is a good option because you have bum knees. This is what will help your knees. If you are overweight, then lose some weight. Perform a ton of corrective stretching and self-massage on your front/inner/outer hips and thighs to improve your tissue health, and work on hip and ankle mobility to take pressure off of your knees so that you can get back to running pain-free.

At the end of the day, you can read a dang magazine like this guy while on an elliptical....So how much benefit do you really think you will get from this overpriced waste of space?

21 Century Training Upgrade: For optimal results during your cardio training, you must focus on intervals. They burn 9 times more body fat than steady state aerobics and also result in greater improvements in overall conditioning than long, slow, boring cardio.

If you are overweight/de-conditioned and/or have joint issues, the best place to start an interval training program is on a spin bike, or better yet, an Airdyne Bike which has both upper and lower body attachments to make it more of a total body conditioning experience.

Another awesome form of full body cardio is the rowing machine. Perform intervals on the rowing maching and I'll guarantee you'll be dripping after 20 minutes.

If you need to rock your cardio equipment-free and/or at home or on the road, use body weight based exercises like jumping jacks, stationary running, split jumps, burpees, mountain climbers, etc..

Stay tuned for Part 2 next week...

Get after it!

Mike

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