As I am in Chicago’s Midway airport, I see a lot of people who should be my personal training clients. I also saw a guy who is a high level pro bodybuilder. So everyone has to travel right? But what I wanted to say, was if you want some good exercise, just fly standby on a busy day. I have probably walked 10 miles today in this freakin airport. It’s my own fault, but I look at it like this. Every time I don’t make a flight, they move you to the gate of the next flight. As I am writing this, I have had to move gates four times already. And none of them have been consecutively close to another one. This is a lot of walking. Add the fact that I have taken my laptop, TRX, and a couple big bottles of water along with me, and this is a slight workout! Although I REALLY want to start doing pushups and bench jumps off these uncomfortable chairs, I will take this walking thing as my fitness for the day. So next time you get annoyed with the standby stuff, just realize that as long as you are up and moving, you are basically working out!
Posts Tagged ‘Exercise’
Fitness in The Airport
Sunday, July 11th, 2010
Our Fitness News On The Horizon
Sunday, July 4th, 2010Good evening my fitness enthusiasts, those trying to lose weight, those trying to gain muscle, those trying to get ripped, and those that are somewhere in between all that. Just thought I would write you guys a quick note, telling you where we are at in the business of Tonycress.com Personal Training. Right now, we are taking on a lot of different, exciting projects, that will benefit not only us, but hopefully a host of other people trying to reach their own exercise goals.
We are still doing our amazing personal training programs and group fitness camps, but in addition to these, we are taking on two big projects. The first one, has been in my thoughts and actually you guys all came up with the content of it in a way. I will be writing a book, based on all your fitness questions i have received over the last few years. I am sure there will be plenty of questions that are left unanswered, but this is a chance to have many of the fitness, diet, and motivation questions people ask me on a day to day basis. This book will be of great benefit to the people who are looking to lose the last few pounds of stubborn fat, the elite athlete, and the person who is just starting out a fitness program. I’m excited about this adventure, and I’ll be looking to finish this up in the next two months.
The other big project we are getting involved in is a dvd project. This is very exciting, as it’s been one of my goals for a few years. I will blatantly say i am not a fan of the fitness infomercial dvd’s you see out right now for the general public, and we intend on changing the game:) The dvd’s right now, as far as I’m concerned, don’t focus on their main market. I can’t say too much about it, but we will be starting the production of this in the coming weeks, and hope to have the DVD program out by October.
This is all very exciting news for us at Tonycress.com I encourage you guys to check out the youtube videos, where you can learn simple tips and tricks to help your fitness go to new levels.
99 Problems, but Fitness Ain’t One! HIT ME!
Sunday, June 27th, 2010A couple of days ago on facebook, I asked a question. That question was this: “Do you work out? If not tell me why.” I got loads of responses on this topic. Now, most people who follow me, work out in some sort of capacity. Some people are looking for motivation to work out, and some people are workout studs and studettes. Yeah, I just made that word up. But I also said following the question, that I am curious to hear the reasons, and I think I can come up with solutions to their problems. Oh yeah, by the way, big thanks to Jay-Z for making that song so I could use it as a title for my blog. I can’t remember if “fitness” was the thing he said wasn’t one of his problems. Might have been something else. Anyway. I am going to suggest a few things to a few of the responses I received on facebook.
One of the first responses was probably one of the most misunderstood and difficult reasons for working out. A guy has been battling cancer, and hasn’t found a trainer who won’t ease him into the workouts. Although it’s a scary thing to come by, it’s going to be tough at first. He’s just got to keep looking for someone who can help him the way he wants to be helped. Working out can be VERY beneficial to people inflicted with cancer. There are countless stories about people beating cancer, by following great exercise programs, and a healthy diet. Obviously it isn’t going to be easy, but if you get with the right support group, exercise SHOULD be a part of your rehab.
Another big one was basically a complaint of no time. To me, i don’t want to offend anyone, but I don’t buy the “no time” excuse. If you have time to have fun, watch tv, go out at night, go to restaurants, concerts, WATCH athletic events, you are telling me you have time right there. You have kids, take them on bike rides if they are old enough. A dog, take your furry kid on a walk or jog. I know a guy who gets home from work around 7 or 8 pm, just in time to spend a few hours with his kids. He always uses it doing something interactive. It’s great for him, AND his children.
What if your little boy or girl is a baby? I think that’s almost easier. Unless you have severe attachment issues, you WILL NOT be holding that kid 24 hours a day. My brother has a baby. That baby has this thing called a cradle. He also has this thing called a swing. And a stroller. Point is. While that baby is in the cradle, what is stopping you from doing 5 pushups every few minutes? Or jumping jacks? Or take it up a notch and do mountain climbers. YOU. You are the only thing stopping you. Your energy put into exercise, will give you energy outside of exercise. You won’t feel exhausted all the time. Trust me!
There were also some “reasons” I would like to call, LAZINESS. A few people flat out admitted that. Well, here is my advice. Find a reason you shouldn’t be lazy. Whether you want to look good for the summer, or your health, or getting a boyfriend or girlfriend. Find a reason to work out. Barring injury, nothing bad can come out of it. As for the person who doesn’t like to get hot and sweaty, she lives in Las Vegas. It’s hot and sweaty here without working out. Might as well get some benefit out of being hot and sweaty.
Fitness SPRINTervals-Las Vegas Workout
Sunday, June 6th, 2010Las Vegas is hot. No doubt about it. I finished my workout today, on the track at a nearby high school, and I could not stop sweating. That heat was just right for this personal trainer though. I did a few backwards runs, and some 100 meter sprints, and you wouldn’t believe what you can accomplish on a fat burning level with sprints. When I want to lose fat, this is what I incorporate. I’m not going to say your situation allows you to go to the nearest high school track and do sprints. For all I know, you could live in Alaska, where it’s too cold, or you just don’t want to deal with the 100 degree heat here. maybe you don’t have access to a track because where you live, all high schools are behind security bars, I just don’t know. Anyway. You can still do these sprint intervals wherever it is you may be. If you have a bike, or a treadmill, or nothing at all, you can still do this kind of exercise. What this is, is basically an all out effort for a short period of time. Let’s say you have no exercise equipment at all. What you can do, is do as many jumping jacks as you can in 30 seconds. Now these, aren’t regular jumping jacks. These are quick, intense, pushing in, pulling out jumping jacks. you should average more than one per second. This could be your exercise for 15 minutes. Spend 30 seconds doing the j.j’s, then 1:30 resting. Do another 30, and continue the trend for all 15 minutes. Trust me, if you do this right, you’ll be tired. So, to finish this up, you can do interval sprints anywhere. But to make it effective, it’s the effort you put out on the sprints that are going to make all the difference.
Fitness Isn’t Just a Body Thing
Sunday, May 16th, 2010I went on a bike ride today. I think it did me more good than just burning a few calories. I didn’t take an ipod. Ididn’t have a heart rate monitor on. I definitely didn’t have my cell phone on me. I just decided to ride through some of Las Vegas. Just me and my bike. Just me and my bike y’all. If you know that Biggie song, the previous sentence is funny. But here’s the deal. I was riding my bike, for the fitness aspect of it, yes. I do need to up my cardio a bit. But what I found, wasn’t that it was the fitness aspect of it I needed most. It was the mind clearing aspect of it. See, without my ipod, or cell phone or technology, I was able to actually think. I was able to enjoy my surroundings, and just ride. A few minutes into the bike ride, I didn’t care how many calories i was burning or how intense this workout was going to be. I just decided, that I wanted to ride my bike. So the lesson to be learned in this whole thing, is sometimes, you have to just do some things, that aren’t for fitness benefits. Just get out there and move. It reminded me that certain activities help you stay sane. Certain exercises free your mind. This is just as important as getting your six pack, or losing those last few pounds of body fat. So go back to your childhood, and do something fun. Not just for fitness or exercise, but because you want to. You’ll notice that you’ll get some great benefits physically, and you’ll be more apt to stick with it, if it’s some kind of release for you.
The Fitness Game- Don’t Cheat
Saturday, May 8th, 2010So, we have you finally workin’ on your fitness. You have decided to make a change. You start eating right, working out, and paying attention to your physical well being. Awesome! Congratulations! I promise you this is a decision you won’t regret. I want to talk to you specifically about the working out part today. I see a lot of things go on, while I am with my personal training clients, or with my fitness campers, or in the gym in general. These things are both good and bad. Yes, you are on the right track, getting in your workout, spending time in the gym or in group exercise classes. But the thing I see in adults, when they take on these things, is that they lose that drive from competition. I will take my fitness camp for an example. Now, the people in fitness camp work hard, there is NO doubt about that. But what I see, when we partner up, or we do team races, is that some people “cheat”, or slack off. Let’s say you are doing partner leg throws. Now, your partner doesn’t want to make you mad, so they only throw your legs at a moderate level. If this were me, I’d beg for a little more effort. Either they are afraid when it’s their turn, you are going to throw their legs with too much force, or they don’t want to hurt you. I think both are cop out excuses. You are there for a reason. To get a benefit out of this workout. By doing this, you are cheating both yourself, and your partner. Aren’t you there to put forth a maximum effort, and to get results from this whole fitness thing? If you just go through the motions, what reward will you get? A garbage one. If you try your hardest every workout, those gains are going to come that much quicker, and you will be even MORE thrilled that you decided to take this journey! The same can be said in the gym. If you push yourself, get a few more reps in with the weights, go another mile on that treadmill, you will REAP the rewards and benefits. Your body is an amazing machine, and you need to realize just what potential it holds. Don’t go for “good enough”. Go for “amazing”!
Your Fitness. What is it Worth?
Tuesday, May 4th, 2010There are plenty of fitness infomercials on tv right now. I can flip through the channels at any given time and see commercials for the newest craze. A weight you just “shake”. A program promising amazing results in 90 days. Another fitness program claiming you’d have to be “insane” to not do it. Obviously, a lot of these advertisements work, so it tells me one thing. People do care about their health. The fact that people are buying these products says they do want to put in some effort, even if these are the “quick fixes”. Once the product is purchased, who really knows how much use one will get out of it. But that brings up another question in my mind. How much is your fitness worth to you? I don’t know that you could put a monetary value on it, but let’s just look at it a couple different ways. Living in Las Vegas, the nightclub scene is tops. There are places that charge $22 for one drink! And guess what. People buy them. Now, normally, you don’t have just one drink, so let’s say you have three. With a tip, we can say that’s about $75 right? No big deal, you were out drinking. Now let’s turn this into fitness and exercise. One, you just spent some money on things that are taking you away from your fitness goals, and two, that money could have been spent on something taking you towards those very same goals. So now, is it not worth it to pay the extra few dollars to buy organic? Is three drinks really worth one personal training session? I’m going to end this here, but take a look at your goals, and figure out what is worth what to you.
A Fitness Model Six Pack- It’s Not Genetics
Saturday, April 24th, 2010So, 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.
Personal Training-Working Out Your Mind
Monday, April 19th, 2010When 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.
Las Vegas Personal Training- Your Goals.
Tuesday, April 13th, 2010Las 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!
