Fit 4 Fall Body Transformation Winners

25 10 2009

EXL_RGBWe just recently finished our Fit 4 Fall Body Transformation Contest.  A no holds barred contest comparing total percent body fat lost and visual changes when comparing before and after pics.  It was just a 7 week program but both our winner lost 4% body fat.  I’ve never seen such a dichotomy with winners.  In the men’s division Kelly Wilkinson lost close to 20 lbs with over 17 lbs being body fat.  He did lose 2.5 lbs of muscle, but I’ll gladly trade  2.5 lbs of muscle for 17 pounds of fat  any day.  In two boot camp phases Kelly has lost 69 lbs.  Way to go Teek!!  In the Women’s division Angela Oakeson also lost 4% body fat.  She started in the teens with her percent body fat which is considered lean already.  Losing 4% is quite remarkable, she also lost 2 inches in her waist.  Both win a free month of EXL Fitness Boot Camp.

Other winners losing between 2-4% body fat include Lynnette Wolf, Jacci Miller, Jeff Rust, Steve Washburn honorable mention goes to Debra Durfey.  Each winning massages provided by Joan Mower and Monica Nardone and spa packages provided by Evolution Day Spa and Pampering Plus Mini Spa.  Free day climbing packages at Momentum Indoor Climbing Gym were also awarded.

We have just begun our Push Yourself Boot Camp phase.  This is a performance transformation contest testing push ups.  Awards for most improved and most push ups overall will be given out.  If push ups are the bane of your existence or you would like to improve your push up strength follow the push up program I posted last winter.

Now for our nutrition tip #5 sponsored by Precision Nutrition.

Tip #5
The 10% Factor
by Dr. John Berardi

If some people eat one food not on their plan, their failure to be perfect sets in motion a psychological chain of events that leads to frustration and the inability to get right back on the plan. The all-or-nothing mentality sets in and BAM, they’re back to nothing. But it doesn’t have to be this way. 100% nutritional discipline is never required for optimal progress. The difference, in results, between 90% adherence to your nutrition program and 100% adherence is negligible. So allow yourself the extra 10% wiggle room. This will allow you the freedom to eat a few extra things not on your menu without the guilt and subsequent crash.

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I am a firm believer in the 10% rule.  Not only does it allow you to eat some foods not on your nutrition plan, but it gives you a mental break.  Often times when we mess up on our nutrition program it sets in motion a cascade of feeling and emotions that can sabotage our progress.  Now, ideally I prefer you to plan your 10% meals, but life happens.  When it does, accept the nutritional breakdown and get back on the program.  Do not let it escalate into a whole day or weekend of nutritional weakness.  To put the 10% rule into perspective, I eat 6 times a day 7 days a week so 42 meals a week.  That allows me 4 meals a week to not follow the rules.  That does allow me some breathing room, but by no means is it easy.  That still means that 38 times in a week I followed the nutrition plan eating ample amounts of lean protein, a wide variety of vegetables and healthy fats at every meal.

I can already hear you out there, “Wow, 4 cheat meals a week!!!”

Let me clarify something here.  All 10% meals are NOT “cheat meals”.  And all “cheat meals” are NOT 10% meals.  Confused?  Let’s start by defining a “cheat meal”.  A cheat meal is an unplanned breakdown from your nutrition program.  A 10% meal is a planned wavering from the nutrition plan.  This can include an overindulgence of your favorite food…like hot dogs.

That's a lot of mystery meat

That's a lot of mystery meat

Or it can be just a small wavering from the plan.  Not all 10% meals are full on orgies of processed foods and refined carb gluttony.  A 10% meal can be eating long grain wild rice in a meal that usually mandates no starchy carbs.

Here’s a real life example.  The basic nutrition plan I teach has 10 rules or habits lovingly referred to as the “10 Habits of Highly Lean Eaters” or the “Healthy 10″ for short.  One of the rules is only eating starchy carbs (breads, pasta, rice, corn, potatoes, oatmeal) only within 1-2 hours after exercise.  Now I usually workout first thing in the morning, but there are days that my workout falls in the middle of the day.  I will occasionally plan a 10% meal on those days and have steel-cut oatmeal for breakfast.  Is that a cheat meal?  No.  Is it unhealthy?  No.  Am I following the program?  No and yes.  No, in the sense that I didn’t follow the aforementioned rule and ate carbs outside the workout window, but yes because it was a planned 10% meal, one of the 4 I have planned in a week.  I’m not saying I never eat pizza or I get veggies with every meal.  I am saying that I plan my 10% meals so i can enjoy other healthy foods like steel-cut oats or enjoy some not so healthy foods like pizza.  When life happens and I don’t plan accordingly  and I skip veggies in a meal or skip a meal altogether or while watching the game at a friend’s house I inadvertently eat half a pizza, then that is a cheat meal, unplanned and potentially triggering a landslide of guilt and regret leading to further mayhem and anarchy.  Hopefully, when I have a cheat meal it’s at a point in the week in which I haven’t used up all my 10% meals and my cheat meal will constitute a 10% meal and my quest for ideal body composition will not be squelched.

Planning out in advance your 10% meals gives you something to look forward to, helping you to stay firm in resisting nutritional temptation.  But, even if you have already maxed  out your 10% meals for the week and you falter and have another cheat meal.  All is not lost.  You still have made some great nutritional decisions earlier in the week.  Your fat loss goal may be delayed a little, but you have learned something about yourself.  Use what you have learned and apply it next week.  Figure out your emotional weaknesses and faulty nutritional planning and remedy them.  It may take a few weeks to figure out solutions, but the solutions will serve you better.

Not all nutritional breakdowns are remedied by just being stronger willed.  If one of your friends just had a miserable break up with their boy/girl friend don’t offer to take them to Coldstone Creamery and console their grief while downing a big ol’ fatty sundae.

How bout take your friend out for a friendly arm-wrestling competition instead of ice cream...LOL

How bout take your friend out for a friendly arm-wrestling competition instead of ice cream...LOL. My money's on the brunette.

Go for a walk or hike and talk it over.  We often times use food to “ease” our emotional hardships.  When in reality it furthers our dysfunctional, emotional connection with unhealthy eating habits.  Break the cycle!!  Either choose a healthier fare and foster an emotional connection to healthier food or choose another healthy, non-food alternate to help ease the emotional pain.

Likewise, don’t sabotage yourself by going to your friend’s house to watch the game on an empty stomach.  Which is like inviting a recovering alcoholic to a wine tasting.  Avoid the gaucherie of someone asking, “Who ate all the pizza?”  as you’re polishing off the last bite.  Be smart, don’t put yourself in situations that compromises your self-discipline.

Coincidentally the 10% rule also applies to exercise!

Stay Fit

Mat “the trainer”

PS- Please add a comment on the Fit 4 Fall Contest winners and/or your feelings on the 10% rule and emotional eating.

PPS- Pass this post on to anyone looking to improve their health, energy and physique.

PPPS- Word of the Day: gaucherie (goh-shuh-ree) noun.  1.  lack of social grace, sensitivity, or acuteness; awkwardness; crudeness; tastelessness.

Mat Gover BS, CSCS and Pam Gover CPT are Orem fitness boot camp instructors, personal trainers, and real world fat loss experts. They also own EXL Fitness & Performance, a personal and group training studio.   To book Mat to speak at your Utah Valley company, club, or organization please contact him by email at matgover@mac.com or by phone at (801) 836.7185. For a free one-week trial to his Orem boot camp to experience the best personal training in Utah Valley please call Mat or drop by the gym (1623 N State St, Orem right next to Costa Vida).


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Categories : Boot Camp, Competition, Nutrition

Top 10 Reasons NOT to Join a Commercial Gym

24 02 2009

exl_rgb15I remember the days when I used to exclusively workout at a big commercial gym. I used to think it was absolutely necessary to be in a gym to get results- that a good workout required you to be in a health club with all the equipment. Today I find myself at the best point of my life, from both a business and fitness standpoint, and I haven’t stepped foot in a commercial gym for almost 2 years now. After some thought, I wrote down what I felt were the top 10 reasons NOT    to join the big gym chains:

 

1.)    No Accountability/ No Customer Service:  Once you sign the gym contract they could care less if you actually use it.  In fact, they don’t want you to use it.  If every member used the gym it would be way too crowded.  The big gyms count on most their membership not using their passes.  And they sure don’t go out of their way to make your fitness experience enjoyable.

 

2.)    The Sheep Mentality: Everybody is doing the same thing. Most men and women are just sheep- slaves to all of the misinformation provided in the form of sensational fitness magazines and infomercials. People just go to the gym and do whatever everybody else is doing.

 

3.)    Needless Waiting Time for Equipment or Space: I remember when I used to workout at a gym.   I would spend an average of 15-20 minutes per workout waiting on a piece of equipment or a certain space of the gym to complete my daily routine. Build your own gym at home, or train at a EXL Fitness & Performance to maximize your time spent working out and optimize your results.

 

4.)    Sickness and Disease: Beyond catching the common cold, there are some other real serious bugs that have been spreading at gyms like wildfire including the recent merca staph infection epidemic.

 

5.)    Annoying People: For most people going to the gym, it isn’t about getting results, it’s about socializing.

 

6.)    Expensive Contracts: In order to get a decent rate you have to commit to 3 years.  3 years of going to a gym and doing the same workouts and exercises that everybody else does (see #3) with minimal results.  Train with a professional and learn how to maximize your workouts.

 

7.)    Useless Equipment: Machines are overrated- I haven’t used a machine in years. They don’t allow your body to train the way it was designed to move and function and they cause many overuse injuries. If you want to be lean, tight, and muscular, all you need is your body weight, some bands, and a few free weight options like dumbbells, barbells or medicine balls to get the job done.  You can even use this same equipment at home or on the road.

 

8.)    Lack of Open Training Space: Money hungry club owners focus on all the frills by filling the training floor up with overpriced, oversized machines that take up all of the prime real estate. All you need is space- space to move freely and explore your own body’s capabilities.

 

9.)    Crippling Dependence: Gyms force you to create a dependence on them. At EXL Fitness & Performance you learn how to move your body and train with minimum equipment.  So, show yourself that you can get results without the gym. I promise you that the best workouts of your life are waiting for you at home or in new places like a park, your garage, hotel room, etc. This spring we’re moving the boot camps outside. Step outside of the box! 

 

10.)   Bad Trainers: When you go to the typical gym for personal training, you enter a factory. They are trying to get you in and out. They don’t care if your reach your goals nor do they have the desire to build lasting relationships with you. They just need to hit their quota- you are just another number for them.

 

Since opening my own training studio my eyes have been opened to the quality of workout options available to my clients as well as the power of group training.  I once thought one-on-one training was ideal, now  with more space and freedom to do my own thing I see the power of group training, higher energy, more motivation and a better price break all make for a win-win situation.

 

Stay Fit

Mat “the trainer”


 

Mat Gover BS, CSCS and Pam Gover CPT are Orem fitness boot camp instructors, personal trainers, and real world fat loss experts. They also the own EXL Fitness & Performance, a personal and group training studio.   To book Mat to speak at your Utah Valley company, club, or organization please contact him by email at matgover@mac.com or by phone at (801) 836.7185. For a free one-week trial to his Orem boot camp to experience the best personal training in Utah Valley please visit EXL Fitness & Performance.


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Categories : Training

The Healthy 10 Meal Plan

5 02 2009

exl_rgb12Typically around the beginning of the year, I get people I haven’t heard from in a long time calling me up wanting to get going again in the gym.  Which is great.  It’s great to catch up with old friends and it’s great to help assist them with their New Year’s resolutions, and exercise is typically one of the most common resolutions.  I feel it is an honor that they are asking for my help.

So they come in the gym for a quick fitness profile to evaluate their strength, flexibility, posture, balance and overall fitness level (most of them feel like I have them do the exercises so I can have a good laugh, but it is really for me to learn the strengths and weaknesses of my clients so I can construct a proper exercise plan for them).  After the exercise portion of the profile I usually discuss goals with them.  And no matter what fitness level they are (fitness model to computer programmer) everybody wants to lose some weight.  I usually have to educate them on the difference between weight loss and fat loss, and the importance of a proper nutrition plan.  

Studies show that even when following a properly designed and executed exercise program, fat loss results are minimal compared to an exercise program coupled with a well rounded nutrition program.  In fact, without nutrition the results from the studies show minimal improvement over the control group that didn’t even  exercise or eat better.  I tell you this not to discourage you, but rather to emphasis the importance of proper nutrition.  

The typical American diet consists of highly processed, empty calorie foods that can be prepared very quickly.  If “we are what we eat” then we are all fast, cheap and easy.  Unlike other cultures (Asian, European) we Americans place little value in preparing and enjoying a healthy diet.  Our common argument is that, “we don’t have time.”  In the last post (Anti-Crunch Six Pack Abs) I posted the “Healthy 10″ which are healthy eating habits of highly healthy people.  At first glance, the habits are a little overwhelming.  One of the common coaching comments I give my nutrition clients is that you have to become that guy/girl.  You know the one that prepares their meals and is known for being a healthy eater.  It’s a commitment, just like any serious commitment (marriage, family, work, church).  It seams overwhelming at first because it’s never been a priority before, it’s always been an after thought.  Like grabbing a bagel and sugar filled yogurt as we head out the door to work. Instead of waking up a little earlier and preparing a good breakfast and if we’re going to be out of the house for more than 2-4 hours, preparing other meals to bring with us.  Don’t rely on grabbing a healthy meal at a restaurant, and for sure not at a convenience store.  Rule #8 states “Plan out your nutrition and prepare your food”.  That means think about your week in advance, plan out your meals, put together a grocery list, go shopping once a week.  If you know you’ll be going out to eat, chose a restaurant that will have healthier options.  If you don’t know any, do some research, check website, make some phone calls to find a restaurant that caters to healthier diets.  If there aren’t any entrees on the menu that comply with the “Healthy 10″, ask if they can prepare a chicken breast with veggies.  Most sit down restaurants will prepare a meal to your request…you just have to ask.  Don’t sabotage your nutrition by making a poor restaurant choice.  

And for you husbands out there that put the shopping and cooking responsibility solely on your wives…take some accountability for yourself.  What happens when your wife is sick or out of town for a week, what will you do?  Default to the yogurt and bagel breakfast?  Help with the weekly menu.  Cook up some meals.  You may find that taking part in this responsibility is actually fun and rewarding.  I actually enjoy the time I spend with my wife, Pam, in the kitchen.  Plus it helps me eat healthier when I take an active role in the process.  Try it, I think you’ll like it.

Anyway, here is a typical meal plan that I follow.  First realize that this plan works for me an active, 190 pound man.  Most women should half all the amounts that are listed.  Another point is that what works for me may not work for you.  That is why I teach nutrition re-education programs.  We establish a baseline with the “Healthy 10″ then tweak the diet to get individual results.  It’s a process.  Try a meal plan for a couple of weeks, test results, then make adjustments according to the results.  This is the only true way to find what works for you.  So here’s a typical nutrition day in Mat “the trainer’s” world.

  1. 4:45 AM  Mixed Berry Super Shake: 3 tbsp mixed nuts, 4 tbsp ground flax seed (both sources of healthy fat), 1/3 cup low-fat plain yogurt, 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (both lean sources of protein), 1 tbsp Greens+ (green/vegetable supplement so I comply with rule #3 “Eat veggies and or fruit with every meal”), blended all together with some ice and water.
  2. 7:30 AM Mexican Frittata: 1 cup egg whites with 1 omega 3 egg (protein), various vegetable including bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, broccoli, spinach, and tomatoes), pumpkin seeds, 2 fish oil capsules (healthy fat), and low fat white cheddar cheese,  2 cups green tea. Coincidentally during this hour I prepare most my other meals for the day and pack them in Tupperware.
  3. 11:00 AM 8oz of salmon with cayenne pepper and sesame seeds (great source of protein and healthy fat), 8 asparagus stalks
  4. 2:00 PM 8 oz chicken breast with curry seasoning, fresh veggies (bell peppers, carrots, radishes, snap peas), hummus, 2 fish oil capsules.
  5. 5:00 PM 2 Boca Burgers (veggie burgers with 18 gr protein/patty), spinach salad (2 cups raw spinach, carrots, mushrooms, tomatoes topped with 2 tbsp flax oil and balsamic vinegar)
  6. 8:30 PM  Mixed Nut and Flax Super Shake: 4 tbsp ground flax seed, 1 tbsp vanilla protein powder, 1/3 cup low fat cottage cheese, hand full mixed nuts (all blended together with ice and water), 2 cups of water with Greens+, 1 fish oil capsule

There ya go.  Now, you can follow this plan if you like.  Tweak it to meet your needs.  But realize, eventually you need to take the time to educate yourself on how to create your own meal plan.  I learned long ago when someone would ask me to make them a meal plan that 90% of the time they wouldn’t even follow it.  Whether it didn’t satisfy their palate, or they were just plain lazy most the time it ended up in a pile of papers on their desk or counter never to be looked at again.  And the other 10% of the time they would follow it for a week or 2 then it was back to their old habits.  As the saying goes, “You can give a man fish for a day, or teach him to fish and he eats for a lifetime.” 

If your interested in nutrition re-education contact me and let the education process begin;-))

 

Stay Fit

 

Mat “the trainer”

(801) 836.7185
EXL Fitness & Performance
a personal and group training studio

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Categories : Nutrition


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