Bullet Points

If you have been reading about how to improve your health and fitness for any length of time some of the quickies I am writing out today are somewhere along the "duh" end of the knowledge continuum. Move on quickly.

There is a lot of good useful information out there, however unless you get it before it gets tossed into the commerce grist you will not get very much out of it. Good information, like Tabata style training, gets dumbed down or altered for the purposes of convenience and salability diminishing it's value, substantially.

So here is a quick list of basic things to have in your mental editor when you read about the next new product or training style, or as you start to put your own programs together.

* You lose FAT by creating a caloric deficit- Caloric deficit simply means using more calories than you take in. Burning more than you eat. For better or worse it's largely about the math. Don't get TOO caught up in the math.

* Train the way you are going to play - If you want to train for a sport, define the movement needs and design around that. If you are trying to get healthier define what your issues are and train to mitigate them. If you are trying to get fitter, define what fit means to you and look at the building blocks that will get you there. This is sometimes called Reverse Engineering.

* Big moves do more than small moves. The more muscles you move the more calories you burn. Multi joint big moves more reflect real life.

* Something is always better than nothing.

* Warm up and cool down ARE AS IMPORTANT as the workout.

* Warm up and cool down ARE AS IMPORTANT as the workout.

* Treat your training like a Dr. appointment. It's that important.

* Treat your training as a chance to play again. Find opportunities to nurture the playful.

That should do for now. Read, Think, Digest. Get back to me on it's usefulness

All the best,
Steve

Forest for the trees Part I

Been there done that?

Ever notice that when you have a sore tooth your tongue won't leave the spot alone. Keeps returning to it even though you already know it's there and sore?

Then throughout the day it becomes the background of everything you do and think.  Good news is a little less good.  Bad news a little worse, etc etc. The day takes a little more out of you.  You know what I mean, we have all been there.

So what does this mean to me?

Think about that and think about what that means insofar as counting calories. In you are constantly thinking about calories and food values, where will you mind be?  Where will you attention be turned.  What will be the color of you mood as a result of this?

        Something to think about as we move about in the real world

The Long List Use it or lose it

      "Use it or lose it"

It's a common enough refrain.  We hear it in the gym often enough, and even in "The real world"

It's pretty obvious on first blush.  Don't use your legs, they get weaker, weak enough and you can't walk.  Same for any body part you care to name.

I would like all of you (especially you who are standing in the back) to take just a few minutes so ask yourself where else could you apply that phrase.  In the gym and out.

If you have read my previous post you already have one answer, now I challenge you to take that axiom beyond it's normal bounds.  Actually the ability to "think outside the box" is an example of this.  The less we do it the less we are able to do it, conversely the more we challenge our mental status quo the more skilled we get at it.

Alright, the gauntlet is thrown,  I want to know what YOU came up with.