The Turkey Burner Workout

Hi Everyone,
It's Thanksgiving today and most of us will be spending the day with our families being thankful for all we have.......

And most of us will also spend today overindulging in all the great foods that our families make....... so here is a great calorie burning workout to help counter the overeating.

1. 500 meter row
2. 50 burpees or dumbbell thruster jumps
3. 250 meter row
4. 50 single arm kettle bell swings (each arm)
5. 250 meter row
6. 50 box jumps (18- 24 inch box)
7. 250 meter row
8. 50 hanging knee ups
9. 250 meter row
10. 50 skydivers or prone cobras
11. 1000 meter row.

Have fun, and leave me comments with your best time to complete this workout.

Living life with No Regrets........ No Excuses.
Scott

Quick Tips fot Thanksgiving Day Success

Here are a couple of tips that my client Jim shared with me(and a few of my own) to help reduce the damage done by your Thanksgiving day meal.

Have a great Turkey Day and try to stay active.


1. Limit the gravy- Use a teaspoon instead of a ladle to serve the gravy.
2. Use smaller plates to help reduce portion size.
3. Bake pumpkin pies in small custard dishes without the crust.
4. Remove the skin from the turkey before serving.
5. Pack more vegetable in your stuffing, use less breading.
6. Don't serve any snacks or appetizers throughout the day.
7. Drink 16 oz of water before you begin eating.
8. Use fresh steamed green beans instead of green bean casserole.
9. Bake your turkey, don't fry it. Frying is very popular these days, but adds many calories and fat.
10. Eat a light and healthy breakfast and lunch(depending on what time you eat). Do this so you don't go into you Thanksgiving day meal starving!
11. Take a nice, long walk after dinner with your family and friends.

Living life with No Regrets............ No Excuses.
Scott

"Hey, Are you busy?"

Hey Everyone,
It is just about that time of year again where there is always to many things to do, and simply not enough time to do them.

I hear people tell me all the time that they don't have time to exercise, don't have to time to eat right, they don't have time for this or that..... I don't believe that! What I believe is that you did not make time to exercise, you didn't make time to eat right.

OK, off my soap box........ I have re-posted many articles in the past by Todd Durkin, and here is another great one that will help us stay focused and give us some great tips to make time for the things we Really need to do.

Remember, live life with No Regrets.........No Excuses!!!

Enjoy,
Scott


"Hey, Are You Busy?"

By Todd Durkin, MA, CSCS, Owner, Fitness Quest 10

I received an email the other day from a young trainer who asked what I do with my time between sessions. Interesting question. Typically, I look at my To Do List and ask myself, 'What's the best use of my time right now?' What do you do between things?

It seems like everyone near me is talking about being busy...Too busy. As a busy professional myself, I know what it's like to juggle many things on your plate. But then again, everyone I know is busy. So, whether it's your job, shuffling the kids to school or sports, or just trying to balance the daily demands of life, the million-dollar question is, are you busy doing the right things?

Just the other day, I heard someone comment on how we are surrounded by clocks. Think about it: We hang clocks everywhere and often wear one on our wrists (how many clocks did you have to change this weekend?). We are slaves to time. So it doesn't matter whether you know the time by your phone, PDA, cable box, microwave, heart rate monitor, watch or the movement of the sun, life isn't slowing down anytime soon. Those of us who are busy are going to stay busy. Here are a few suggestions to help make sure you're busy doing the right things:



· Game plan. Call this "Blue-sky" strategic planning time. Make sure you know where you're going. Otherwise, you will just be stuck in "busyness." Know where you want to be one year from now. Know where you want to be 90 days from now. Know where you want to be 30 days from now. Your daily decisions should all be influenced by the direction you have chosen for your future.



· Just say NO. By saying "NO" more to the things you don't want in your life, you are saying "YES" to the things you do want in your life. And that includes more free time, family time, exercise time, and relaxation time. Be a strategist - not an opportunist. If an opportunity fits within your strategy, say yes. If it's just an opportunity that will not help you live your purpose, say NO. Simplification feels oh-so-good.



· Win the Day. I say it all the time and I will say it again. Focus on the here and now. While the pressures of work, family, school, sports, etc. all add up, I get a lot of salvage (and sanity!) out of focusing on "Winning the Day." This keeps me focused on what I can control - not on what I can't.



· Stay Focused. I think people get scattered. They are checking email, and then a Facebook alert pops up. Then another important email pops and they hop back to that. Then the phone rings in the office, and they are texting someone at the same time they are in a phone conversation... Before you know it, you have three conversations going on and five files open on your desktop. Many ultra successful entrepreneurs say one of the key characteristics of extremely high performers is the ability to be "single-focused" on important projects. Remember the ABCs of time management? Focus on the As and forget the Cs until something changes and today's C becomes tomorrow's B or A. What's the best use of your time right now?



· Create the right To Do List. I am about to head to Toronto, Canada for a two-day retreat with Robin Sharma. Robin is the best-selling author of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari and The Leader Without a Title. I have been in Robin's coaching program for about a year now and he has taught me how to perfect my To Do List. I've worked hard to organize my time this year and it has resulted in much higher productivity. I now have a "Big 5" for my life, for my year, for the week, and for each day. Each day, I know exactly which 5 things must be done to create a winning day. I don't go home until they've been completed.



Here is a favorite little story to bring the point home. I recently found this in the book, Exploiting Chaos: 150 Ways to Spark Innovation During Times of Change.



A young man once approached J.P. Morgan with a proposition: "Sir, I hold in my hand a guaranteed formula for success, which I will gladly sell to you for $25,000."



Always curious, J.P. Morgan replied, "I do not know what is in the envelope, however, if you show me and I like it, I give you my word as a gentleman that I will pay you what you ask."



The man agreed, handing J.P. Morgan the envelope.



When J.P. examined the note, he reached for his checkbook and paid the man the agreed-upon sum of $25,000. In one of his presentations, Tom Peters revealed the advice written on that piece of paper:



1. Every morning, write a list of the things that need to be done that day.



2. DO THEM!



Sound advice my friend. And while I prefer to do my daily 'To Do' List the night before, you get the idea of the importance of taking ACTION on the most important things on your list FIRST. Accept that you will be busy, but stay focused on what's most important. First, give priority to your workouts and eating right. This will help fight the stress and anxiety associated with the many other items you must complete. That's great advice as we continue to march toward the holiday season and year-end. For now, permit yourself to be imperfect, slow down, and enjoy this wonderful time of the year. And if you continue to find yourself busy: Be busy doing the right things!



Peace and love,


Todd

Todd Durkin, MA, CSCS, is an internationally recognized performance coach, personal trainer and massage therapist who motivates, educates and inspires people worldwide. He is the owner of Fitness Quest 10 in San Diego, CA, where his wonderful team of 35 focuses on personal training, massage therapy, Pilates, yoga, sports performance training and nutrition to help transform the bodies, minds and spirits of a broad clientele. Todd trains dozens of NFL and MLB athletes, including 2010 Super Bowl XLIV Champion and MVP Drew Brees. He is the head of the Under Armour Performance Training Council and is a featured presenter on the Perform Better educational circuit. He is a two-time Trainer of the Year (IDEA & ACE). Additionally, Todd provides motivational talks and programs to companies and conferences worldwide.

Men's Health recently named his gym, Fitness Quest 10, one of the Top 10 Gyms in the US. Todd has appeared on 60 Minutes, ESPN, NFL Network and has been featured in Sports Illustrated, USA Today, Business Week, Prevention, ESPN the Magazine, Men's Health, Men's Fitness, Men's Journal, Stack Magazine, Self, Shape, Fitness, the NY Times and Washington Post. Todd has authored 35 DVDs on strength and conditioning, functional fitness, massage/bodywork and business/personal growth.

His new book, The IMPACT! Body Plan debuted in September 2010 and is a 10 Week program designed to create world-class fitness and life performance. You can sign up for Todd's FREE award-winning Ezine newsletter, the TD TIMES, at www.FitnessQuest10.com or www.ToddDurkin.com.

30 min Halloween Circuit

Happy almost Halloween everyone,
Halloween is right around the corner! For some reason it is one of my favorite holidays?

Keep you training on schedule and get in the Halloween spirit by completing this Halloween themed circuit.

This is a 50 seconds work, 10 seconds rest, 5 exercise circuit (50-10-5). I used a Halloween themed track for Workout Muse, but you can use any interval timer set to 50 seconds work, 10 seconds rest.

I also used some "Halloween" implements, but I will list alternative is parenthesis in case your gym does not have all the fun things that we have at Gainesville Health and Fitness.

1. Heavy Chain (dumbbell) Thruster
2. Kettle Bell (dumbbell) Renegade Rows
3. Cable Torso Rotations (change side at 25 second mark)
4. Pumpkin (medicine ball) Diagonal Wood chops (change sides at 25 second mark)
5. Body weight "plyo" Lunges

Take 1 min. rest after completing the circuit, then repeat for a total of 5 rounds. This workout should take about 30 minutes to complete.

Enjoy, and Happy Halloween.

Living Life with No Regrets............ No Excuses....
Scott

Quick Tip- Are you truly training your back??

Hi Everyone,
As I watch people training around the gym one of the exercises that I most frequently see done wrong is the row and every variation of the row. What I usually see is a very ugly bicep exercise that never truly touches the muscles of your back.

So, next time you train your back follow these basic form principles:
1. "Sit up tall". Keep your chest up and pull your shoulder blades(scapula) back. You must retract or pull back your shoulder blades to properly work the muscles of the back (lats, and rhomboids). All to often I watch people "hunching" forward, rounding their shoulders and then pull the weight to their chest without actually moving their shoulder blades. All this is doing is working your biceps while promoting poor posture.
2. Don't "hike" your shoulders. It is important to keep your shoulder blades down and back while performing the row. It is very common for people to be very dominant in their upper traps, which will make them hike their shoulders up towards their ears as they row. The result of this form error is usually a tight and sore neck from over working your upper traps.
3. Don't sway. Another common form error I witness is people gaining excess momentum from swaying their entire upper torso while they perform the row. This is usually the result of the weight being to heavy. This motion will indeed work the upper back effectively as long as the previously mentioned principles are met, however, you are also working the lower back under a very heavy load which can also lead to unnecessary soreness and possible injury.

Next time you train your back be sure that you follow these basic form principles and you will "Truly be training your back!"


Living life with No regrets...... No excuses.....
Scott

Quick Tip- Low Fat Saute

Hi Everyone,
Everyone that knows me knows that I love to eat! Truth be told it is one of the main reasons that I exercise so frequently. But, at the same time eating the right foods at the right time is vitally important to your success within your fitness plan. I enjoy a lot of variety in my eating habits and sauteing meats and vegetables is a very popular way to prepare foods. Unfortunately it can also be a very high fat way to prepare foods.

Follow the steps below to eliminate the fats used in traditional sautes by substituting flavorful liquids in place of butter, margarine, or oil. Instead try using chicken or vegetable stock, dry sherry, red or white wine, fruit juice, vinegar, or soy sauce.

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of the above liquids in a saute pan over medium heat.
2. When the liquid begins to steam, and ingredients ans stir.
3. Continue to saute, stirring frequently, until the liquid in the pan evaporates. Then add 2 more tablespoons of the liquid, stirring to scrape up the glaze at the bottom of the pan.
4. Continue to cook, adding liquid as necessary, until done.

Now, enjoy a lower-fat, and healthier meal!!

Living life with no Regrets...........NO excuses
Scott

A New Flight Plan to Make Your Fitness Routine Soar

Back to School, Back to the gym. A New Flight Plan to Make Your Fitness Routine Soar


It’s that time of year again. School, work, sports practices, weekend sporting events, family time……. You name it and this time of year everything kicks in full swing. How does one find time to do things that our body needs to keep going, like exercising and eating properly? There is just no time to go to the gym and cook healthy meals between taking the kids to and from school, going to work, taking them to practices, etc. Does this sound familiar?

I hear the above “turbulence” on a daily basis. So let’s try to make this transition back into school as smooth as possible by following these simple ideas.

Our first step is to sit back and breathe for a moment. The first couple weeks of school are hectic, crazy, and confusing. Let your schedule fall into place then start the next step, which is to plan ahead and prioritize. Planning ahead and prioritizing are vital steps to having a successful fitness routine. We need to not only plan specifically when we can exercise, but also what we are going to eat throughout the day. Every night you should plan exactly what you will be eating on the following day. What healthy snacks will you take with you to work? What will you be eating for lunch? These are vitally important to eating healthy consistently. When you don’t plan ahead and prepare your meals and snacks it is very easy to stop for a fast, convenient, fatty processed meal. This may also require taking some time on a Sunday to do your grocery shopping so that you can free up some time during the week for family time.

Planning when you will be exercising is your next step. And maybe more importantly, planning what you will be doing when you get to the gym. All to often fitness professionals see people wandering around the gym looking for what they should do next. This is a major time waster that can be simply eliminated by having your exercise routine planned when you come to the gym. There is no reason to spend 1 ½ to 2 hours in the gym, especially if you are wasting a lot of that time trying to figure out your next exercise. If you need help with planning an exercise routine you have many options at your finger tips, from personal trainers to social network sites.

Having a training partner is the next recommendation. Some of us don’t always have that self motivation to go to the gym consistently. Having a training partner makes you accountable to them as well as your self. We all need a little “push” at some point, and your training partner is there for you as much as you are there for them.

Remember, everything worth achieving requires work, consistency and patience. Where you are on day three of your exercise program is meaningless. What matters is where you are on day three hundred and, further, day three thousand.

Live with No Regrets, No Excuses!
Scott