Archive for April, 2010

Workout Music- Get Ya Pumped!

Monday, April 26th, 2010

As I was standing around finishing my workout the other day, listening to Kesha and Miley Cyrus, I thought about something. Maybe if I listened to music that was actually good, my workouts would even be better than they are now. I myself, am a fan of music like John Legend, and Anthony Hamilton, Brian McKnight and Musiq. Some of you are probably like, “who?”. Anyway, I like to listen to love songs when I work out. Don’t know why. But on to my point. If I listened to music that would get me all hyper, my lifts would probably be stronger, and my workout would probably be better. So here are a few things to consider when choosing music to work out to.
1. Make the songs upbeat. Anything with energy, will most likely transfer some energy to you. Think, Black Eyed Peas.
2. Make them angry songs. Any song that hits hard, will fire up your emotions, and you will temporarily be stronger. Eminem’s Lose Yourself is good for this.
3. Make the songs motivational. Eye of The Tiger. Enough said.
4. Have the songs be songs you like. It sucks when you make a playlist, only to come to a song that come on you just wanna skip. Enjoy every song you put on your playlist, so you don’t have to break up the workout to find ones you do.

There you have it. Some rules to go by when you want to make a workout playlist. Now, back to Tik Tok and Party in The USA!

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A Fitness Model Six Pack- It’s Not Genetics

Saturday, April 24th, 2010

So, you want a six pack. I think everyone does. Not everyone has one though. I am in a show in Las Vegas where every guy takes their clothes off at some point. You would think every guy would then, have shredded abs. That’s not the case. Well, you think not everyone can get a six pack because they are not genetic freaks? You are dead wrong my friend. This is a simple issue of mind over matter. Think about it. Every person, unless they are born with abnormal circumstances, has abdominal muscles. Depending on how active you have been growing up, either they show or they don’t. Another thing that also factors in on this is your diet. Have you been eating vegetables and lean proteins all your life, or did you grow up on Mickey D’s and Mike and Ikes? That also plays a role. Now, we are forming a base, of why you do, or do not have a washboard stomach. Look at yourself now. What was the last thing you ate? Was it helping you get a six pack, or hurting your chances? Now, when was the last time you had a workout? Was that workout intense? Did it have high energy? Were you dripping sweat by the end of it? Are you starting to get the picture me and Leonardo da Vinci are painting for you? If you aren’t doing the right things for your abs, your abs aren’t gonna show up on game day, or, as we call it here, pool season. If you are all grown up, and you ate like crap as a kid, you still have hope. You can turn your nutrition around, start making solid food choices, and work out regularly, and HARD. Just going through the motions will not bring a change to your body. Watch one episode of Biggest Loser. These people are perfect examples of how hard you need to work. It’s tough, but with the right work ethic, anyone can have a six pack.

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Personal Training-Working Out Your Mind

Monday, April 19th, 2010

When you work out, do you think about anything in particular?  If you get personal training, are you thinking about the exercises you are doing, or is your mind wandering?  Do you feel the muscles that are called upon for each exercises, or do you just go through the motions, until the desired number of repetitions are completed.  A lot of your gains in fitness have to do with your mind, connecting to your muscles.  If you don’t think about your six pack working, how do you know it is?  If you don’t feel your hamstrings tighten in a curl, are you really getting the most out of that workout.  You have to know the feeling of using muscles.  So what i suggest to you is this.  Do a yoga class, or start doing more balance exercises.  It’s amazing how you might feel when everything you do is on one leg.  All of a sudden, muscles throughout your foot, around your knee, and hip, are activated.  Muscles you didn’t know could get tired, get tired.  In yoga, you have to learn balance as well.  Learning how to contract the right muscles, will give you bigger gains in the weight room, and will also keep you away from injuries.  So, go meditate already.

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Las Vegas Personal Training- Your Goals.

Tuesday, April 13th, 2010

Las Vegas and the rest of the country, ask yourself this question.  Are you where you want to be right now?  It’s April, and the months are warming up.  Is this where you expected your fitness level to be at, right now?  Have you lost that bodyfat that you planned on doing in January?  What have your workouts been like?  Are you following your nutrition the way you had planned?  Ok.  That’s about 15 questions, not one.  Who’s counting though?  Anyway.  If you are exactly where you planned to be, good job!  It takes a lot of dedication and determination to reach the fitness and exercise goals some people come up with.  You are prime examples of what you can do when you put the knowledge and desire to work for yourself.  Keep doing what you are doing.  For those of you, who still think you have some work to do, you still have time.  You can decide, today, that you are going to start changing things.  The way you eat.  What your workout is like.  Little things, like deciding to eat at least two solid vegetables today, is a huge start.  Might not seem like much, but it sets the wheels in motion.  Deciding to go to the gym today.  That is another great start.  Why keep waiting, when your results are waiting for you to go get them?  Just wanted to give you guys some things to think about.  Just spend five minutes, mapping out how you can get to those fitness goals you have, or any goals for that matter.  Ask yourself why you haven’t reached them, and how you can change the things you do to get to them.  Have a great day folks!

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Las Vegas Personal Training- Eat For Your Workout

Saturday, April 10th, 2010

Las Vegas, and well, all other areas for that matter, is a little clueless when it comes time to choose what to eat while you are getting your fitness on. Everyone knows they need protein, but how much is too much? When do you need to have it? Should I have whey, or soy, or other sources? (Don’t let your dirty minds get a hold of you here.). Well, the answer to those questions, is YES. Doesn’t seem like a good enough answer to you? That’s ok for this personal trainer. Let’s just look at it this way. We know protein helps build muscle. Without it, we wouldn’t have a six pack, or biceps or legs for that matter. So for the general public, getting a few servings a day of different lean sources would be beneficial. And why not get a variety of sources. Have some fish here, some chicken there, a protein shake up high, and you are on track to making some major body changes. But if you couple that protein, with some good carbohydrates, and some quality fat, yes, you heard me, fat, we are on our way to a sexy, muscular MACHINE. Your body will not work over time with just protein. You need a combo of fats, proteins and carbohydrates to get functioning properly. So, after your workout, have some sort of combo like, believe it or not, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It has protein in the peanut butter, great fats in the peanut butter as well, and some quick carbs in the bread and jelly. All of which you need right after the workout. So take that tip and run with it. Don’t over indulge on those sandwiches though. Limit yourself to a few a week. Keep up with the complex carbs from veggies, lean protein from chicken, fish, and eggs, and get your fats from sources like olive oil and nut butters. This has been a public service announcement from your friends at Tony Cress Personal Training:)

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Las Vegas Personal Training- Welcome To The Show

Sunday, April 4th, 2010

Las Vegas, watch out.  There is a new personal trainer at TonyCress.com, and her name is Emily Bussey.  She was a former client of mine, who posessed the drive, intelligence and knowledge to follow fitness as a career.  Every time she would come to fitness camp, she would dominate the workout, and I would see her in Las Vegas Athletic Club, working her tail off, trying new exercises.  I knew she would be a perfect fit for what we here at TonyCress.com want to accomplish with our clients and our personal training.  Emily is a former college athlete, playing volleyball at Adams State.  She has battled after finishing her college career, to become, what I think, is close to the ideal female physique.  She knows what it takes to get in shape, and I feel that she can be successful in helping others attain that goal as well.  I also needed the opinion of the opposite sex for a lot of my programming, and I think Emily is the perfect fit.  Right now, she is taking on new clients, to help them reach their health goals, and she teaches our Monday Fitness Camp.  If you are interested in working with Emily, feel free to give me a call, or email me, and let me know.  702-489-7587 or tony@tonycress.com .  Emily is a great addition to our team, and I know she will be able to help you out!  Oh yeah, if you wanna look at a funny challenge between us, you can check it out on youtube  here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkWf1tSEO58

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Las Vegas Personal Training- Got Any Tips?

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

Hello my personal training fans.  Just sitting here in Las Vegas, thinking about a few things.  What is it with guys in the gym or fitness center?  Why must the majority of them pretend to be the most genius people out there when it comes to women’s workout knowledge.  One of my clients inspired me to write about this.  So, let’s say you are a guy, in the gym, and you see a girl who is getting her exercise on.  I’ll tell you right now, don’t go hit on her.  But you wanna talk to her.  Don’t.  Oh snap.  You walk up to her, and you say, “Hey, can i show you how to really do that exercise?”  I slap my head in disbelief.  Seriously?  Did you just do that?  Come on man.  At least wait until she’s done with her workout.  She’s in better shape than you, and she knows more than you do most likely.  Anyway.  Just had to rant.  Have a good day kids:)

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