Raven433ME’s BodyBlog

Meal 1 ~ 6 Eggs (6 Whites/1 Yolk)(Small amount of agave nectar on eggs)
2 Morning Star Veggie Sausages
Vitamins/Minerals

Meal 2 ~ Protein Bar (20 grams protein/26 grams carbs)

Meal 3 ~ South Beach Living Crispy Meal Bar (19 grams protein/17 grams carbs) (Traveling & running errands today)

**Beachbody Men’s Strength & Muscle Formula Creatine (Post workout)**

Meal 4 ~
Large mixed salad topped with Low Fat Basalmic Dressing
Lean Hamburger Patty on 100% Whole Wheat Roll
slice of low fat cheese
2 small pieces of Corn on the Cobb

Meal 5 ~ Whey Protein Drink ( 20oz Water, 2 scoops Whey Protein)
Vitamins/Minerals

1/2 Gallon Water

(Coffee I use splenda)

Strength & Muscle Evolution (2 Weeks ~ 12 May – 25 May 2008)
Day 1 ~ 12 May 2008 ~ Legs & Back
Day 2 ~ Interval X Plus/AB Ripper X
Day 3 ~ Chest/Shoulders/Triceps
Day 4 ~ TMT Cardio/Lower body/Abs/Yoga Flex
Day 5 ~ Kettlebells/Max Pull-ups/Squats/Calf Raises
Day 6 ~ Yoga X/ABS/CORE PLUS
Day 7 ~  Karno Day  ~ Run

**One Goal…Get Better EVERY Day!**

Mike

**I worked a 12 hour Midnight shift ending this morning. This Food accountabilty starts with my meal before sleep and then the rest of the day. The morning after my last midnight shift I sleep for roughly two hours and then I am up all day.**

Meal 1 ~ Whey Protein Drink ( 20oz Water, 2 scoops Whey Protein) (5 AM)

**2 1/2 hours of sleep**

Meal 2 ~ 4 Eggs (4 Whites/1 Yolk)(Small amount of agave nectar on eggs)(1:00 PM)
1 Slice of Whole Wheat Toast topped with natural Peanut butter
Vitamins/Minerals

Meal 3 ~ Protein Bar (10grams protein/20 grams carbs)
15 Raw Almonds (3:00 PM)

Meal 4 ~ 1 Cup Kashi Cinnamon Harvest Cereal
1 Cup Light Vanilla Soy Milk
1 Slice of Whole Wheat Toast topped with natural Peanut butter
Fresh Strawberries/Blackberries topped with Sugar Free Cool Whip
Vitamins/Minerals

Meal 5 ~ Whey Protein Drink ( 20oz Water, 2 scoops Whey Protein)

1 Gallon Water

(Coffee I use splenda)

Strength & Muscle Evolution (2 Weeks ~ 12 May – 25 May 2008)
Day 1 ~ 12 May 2008 ~ Legs & Back
Day 2 ~ Interval X Plus
Day 3 ~ Kettlebells
Day 4 ~ Yoga X
Day 5 ~ Chest/Shoulders/Triceps
Day 6 ~ Plyometrics
Day 7 ~  Active Rest ~ Run

**One Goal…Get Better EVERY Day!**

Mike

In the unforgiving Animal Kingdom often the dominant Male (or even female) is known as the Alpha Male. He (She) is the leader, protector, and warrior.

In a Wolf Pack, the Alpha Male is a force to be reconed with. In Lion Prides, male lions don’t cross female Lions for a reason. In these terms it very important that you see yourself as the Alpha when it comes to your fitness program. There must be no backing down as you test the limits of your mental and physical strength.

You must have confidence and a little fear as well. Fear or apprehension of a brutal workout will raise your adrenalin levels. Realize that you are on the road to actualizing your true potential and nothing is going to get in the way of achieving your goals. You are the Alpha, a determined, disciplined, unstoppable force……….

Live Strong,

Mike

Hello all,

I’m getting pumped for Chest/Shoulder/Triceps/Ab Ripper X tonight and I was skimming my hardbound copy of "Gates of Fire" by Steven Pressfield. It is the novel of the same story as the movie "300". One of my favorite chapters is the very end of the first days hostilities between the Spartans and their Persian enemies. I will quote the final paragraph of the chapter:

Out front, where the enemy were falling back in wild disorder, the victors of the moment could see Polynikes, on his feet, alone, with his arms raised toward the fleeing foe. He wrenched his helmet from his skull, dripping with blood and sweat, and flung it in triumph upon the earth. "Not today you sons of %*@’s!" he bellowed at the foe in flight. "Not today!"

Pumped yet? I’m ready to go workout!!!!!!!

Live Strong,

Mike

While I was at work I thought of something I want to share with all of you. As everyone knows, the Super Bowl was last night. The New York Giants are the World Champions. Obviously, Being a New England Patriots fan, I am disappointed. The more I thought about it, the more I think that there is allot that we can all learn from yesterday’s Super Bowl. Here are my thoughts.

Yesterday’s game was David vs. Goliath. The Undefeated vs. the “Not supposed to be there”. The possible “Best of all time” vs. the “Road Warriors”.
What happened? The underdog won. The Team that couldn’t be beat, lost. The Giants wanted it more. They played harder, didn’t make mistakes, and showed the heart of Champions. The result: THE NEW YORK GIANTS ~ 2007 WORLD CHAMPIONS.

How does this relate to all of us and our Fitness? We are all “David’s” and every one of us has our own personal “Goliath.” Your “Goliath” might be your Nutritional discipline. Your “Goliath” might be your weight and body fat that you have struggled with for years.

We all need to use the formula that the New York Giants used to defeat the Patriots:

1.) PREPARATION ~ Do your homework on your Nutrition. Plan and prepare you meals ahead of time. Take the appropriate supplements EVERY day. Drink your water. Get your sleep. Follow the program!
2.) TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOUR OPPORTUNITIES ~ Do not miss a scheduled workout. Do some extra exercise to enhance your fitness, depending on your current fitness goal. Don’t be timid, be bold! Be aggressive, go out and take advantage of EVERY opportunity!
3.) HAVE HEART ~ Make no mistake about the fact that you need to work hard. Achieving anything out of the ordinary should be hard, or its not worth achieving. What kind of satisfaction is there in getting something that is handed to you? How about the satisfaction that is to be found in achieving a goal that you have to claw, fight, strive, and suffer for?
4.) BELIEVE IN YOURSELF EVEN THOUGH NO ONE ELSE DOES ~ Never doubt for a second that you are going to achieve your goal. Strive each day to put yourself in a position to be successful. No matter the size of the mountain that you are climbing, KNOW, not hope, KNOW that you will one day stand on the peak. Never back down from your “Goliath”.

The Giants have earned the title of Champion until a new Champion is crowned at the next Super Bowl. The Patriots have all of the off season to think about a HUGE opportunity lost.

What feeling would you rather have in regards to your Health and Fitness?

Best,

Mike

Focus is an amazing tool in our quest for own superior Fitness.

How is your focus?

Can you block out everything when you workout and push as hard as you can or do you answer the phone and sometimes let your mind wander about whatever might be going on in your life at the time?

The ability to focus on the task at hand is MONUMENTAL in your ability to achieve your Fitness goals.

Shut off your cellphone, home phone, ect., just for the time you have alloted to workout. Think about nothing else but moving your Fitness forward!

How about your Nutritional Focus? Do you plan your meals or just eat on the fly? I don’t have to tell you which is more effective. The time to have laser focus on your nutrition is late in the day. That is when the “Carb Monster” can sneak into your house and jump on your back! Believe me I know! There is nothing worse than an entire day of super clean eating and then blowing it in 5 minutes right before bed time! 

Stay on task and push your fitness forward! When you concentrate on the task at hand and blend your workouts and nutrition into a focused Tsunami of forward progress you will be AMAZED at how quickly you reach your goals.

Everyone has a choice…what are you going to do today?

Best,

Mike

TAKE YOUR FITNESS PERSONALLY!

There is a mindset that moves you closer to your Fitness goals. Its a positive, aggressive mindset and we need to try and cultivate this mindset every day in regards to making progress towards our Fitness goals.

NEVER use the word CAN’T. If you think you will never achieve six pack abs or do 10 pull-ups, guess what? You never will! Focus and visualize your goals until you SEE them happening in your mind. Concentrate so hard on succeeding that you can actually FEEL what it will be like to achieve them. Then GO OUT AND MAKE IT HAPPEN! 

You know who determines your Fitness success? You do! No one else! Not your Wife/Husband, children, Family, NO ONE BUT YOU!! Don’t blame anyone but yourself if you eat something that sets you back. YOU control your Fitness destiny!

One of the greatest motivators in the world is proving someone wrong that doubts you. It happens everyday. “You will never have a six pack.” “You can’t eat like that for the rest of your life.” EVERYONE has someone like this in their life. It might be a co-worker, a best friend or the person that is most important to you in the world. Internalize that doubt and turn it into FIRE !

Use that negative energy as fuel for your workouts, nutrition, and supplementation.
Who cares if you get funny looks or comments because you brought your supplements and a protein bar to a Family gathering. When the Office is having a pizza party and you are drinking extra water and eating chicken breast and brown rice, look at them and smile. They are taking time off their lives, and you are adding to yours!

Take the attitude that NO MATTER WHAT, you will not quit on yourself. U.S. Navy Seals cultivate this attitude. It doesn’t matter how difficult the task, they are going to accomplish it.
We need to do the same. How difficult is eating clean all day? How difficult is working out HARD for 50 minutes? ITS AS DIFFICULT AS YOU MAKE IT IN YOUR OWN MIND!

Would you rather eat clean all day and reap the Fitness benefits or weakly eat a “Little something” that ruins your entire days nutrition in less than 2 minutes?

Am I saying NEVER eat treats? Of course not! 
The difference is in the choice. If we choose to
have a treat because we EARNED one from a TON of hard work, that is fine because we made that choice. When you give in to eating a slice of cake or “just a couple of cookies” on impulse just before bed time, that is where you have an issue.

Get “ANGRY” folks. There is nothing wrong with using properly channeled anger to push your Fitness forward. Just before I climbed the 25 foot rope at Santa Monica Beach Beach with Tony Horton, he said “Mike, get angry and GO!”
The anger needs to be controlled and focused. When you can let it loose in your training in a focused manner, you have an energy that can be described! Its like you drank a Keg of expresso!  Its an amazing feeling and near magical things can happen when you let it loose! Its happened to me, and I’ve seen Tami use it too.

Is Plyo on the schedule for your workout? Get ANGRY! Think to yourself “Ok PLYO, its you and me today! I’m not backing down from you! Give me your best shot because you are going to get mine!” Conquer your workout! Don’t be apprehensive or think, “Wow, this is going to hurt.” Attack your workout! CHEST & BACK? Tell yourself “Is this the toughest workout you could come up with Tony? I OWN this workout and I’m going to use it as a tool to MAKE ME BETTER….TODAY!”

Have a confident swagger in regards to your Fitness and nutrition. Tony looks at meals as an athletic event. Its inspiring to see. He makes proper choices and then eats ALLOT of the foods that push his Fitness forward. Same with his workouts. He aggressively pushes as hard as he can. He fights self doubt, insecurity, and fear with every rep. Do the same!

Its all a choice Team. You can use some positive, motivating ANGER and push your Fitness forward or you can be someone on their “6th Round of the X” that looks like they still need to complete their first. Which is it going to be? 
One goal…get better EVERY day!

Mike

**This Nutritional Accountability will take into account that I am starting 12 hour midnight shifts tonight**

NUTRITIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY ~ 03 May 2008

Meal 1 (0730 am) ~
4 Eggs (4 Whites/1 Yolk)2 Morning Star Veggie Sausage Patties(Small amount of agave nectar on eggs/sausage)
1 Slice 100% Whole Wheat Toast topped with Natural Peanut Butter
1 sliced Banana
Vitamins/Minerals

Meal 2 (10:00 am) ~ Protein Bar  (20 grams protein/30 grams carbs)
Handful of Raw Almonds
Vitamins/Minerals

Meal 3 (12:30 pm) ~ Mixed Veggie Salad with Chicken breast chunks and topped with Newman’s Own Virgin Olive Oil/Vinegar Low Cal Dressing

Meal 4 (3:00 pm) ~ 1 cup Kashi Heart To Heart Honey Toasted Cereal topped with 1 cup Light Vanilla Soy Milk
Banana

**Serving of Men’s Strength & Health Formula Creatine (After Workout)**

Meal 5 (5:00 pm) ~ 4 Dropped Eggs on 2 slices 100% Whole Wheat Toast

Meal 6 (8:00 pm) ~ Chicken Scampi (Chicken Breast cooked in extra virgin olive oil served over 100% Whole Wheat Pasta)
Large serving of corn

Meal 7 (11:00 pm) ~ Protein Bar  (20 grams protein/30 grams carbs)
Banana

Meal 8 (4 May 2008 - 0200 am) ~ 1 slice 100% Whole Wheat Bread topped with natural Peanut Butter
25 Raw Almonds

Meal 9 (0445 am) ~  Whey Protein Drink ( 20oz Water, 2 scoops Whey Protein)

(5) 16 oz glasses of water during the day
1 Gallon Water (overnight)

(Coffee throughout the day!  I use splenda)

Strength & Muscle Evolution (2 Weeks ~ 21 April – 4 May 2008)
Day 1 ~ 28 April 2008 ~ Shoulders & Arms (PM)
Day 2 ~ Kempo Cardio Plus/ AB Ripper X
Day 3 ~ Chest & Back
Day 4 ~Interval X Plus
Day 5 ~ Kettlebells
Day 6 ~ Yoga X (First 45 minutes)
Day 7 ~  Run

**One Goal…Get Better EVERY Day!**

Mike

“The Art of Suffering”

In regards to your current workout intensity you have to take a long hard look at your own workouts. Allot of people might “think” they are working as hard as they can, but really aren’t. First off there are some keys to very high workout intensity that everyone should follow:

1.) Are you struggling to complete the required amount of reps during each set? If your goal is 8-10 or 12-15 you should barely reach the rep goal you have set for yourself, always using perfect form. NEVER sacrifice perfect form for more weight or reps, you are setting yourself up for an injury.

2.) Because P90X workouts are 50 minutes or better, people find themselves holding back to pace themselves for the entire workout. This is a mistake. You should go for it right from your first rep. (On my CHEST/BACK workout the other night I started off with 45 perfect pushups and 18 front pullups. When the next set came around my numbers started to drop, which is perfect. I think I got 40 pushups and 15 pullups. This is natural and going to happen. Come the end of the workout I was lucky to get 10 pushups and 7 pullups! Obviously you are strongest at the beginning of your workout, that is when you should really go for it, take advantage of being fresh and get the most reps you can.

3.) Are you willing to suffer in your fitness efforts. Is there a point in your workouts where you wonder if you are going to be able to finish. If not, you are not working hard enough. Seriously look at how hard you are working out because your progress towards your fitness goals is DIRECTLY related to workout intensity. Are you willing to do what it takes?
Learn to "suffer"…….

Live Strong,

Mike

PAY ATTENTION TO THE “LITTLE THINGS”

It’s the “Little Things” that make a real difference in life. When you pay attention to these “little things” on a consistent basis, BIG things happen.

With your wife or husband, do what needs to be done, without being asked. Be considerate. Think of their point of view often.

With your children, take a second out of your busy life to make them feel special. If your little one comes over to you with a special book and you are busy at the computer or watching a TV Show, take a second to read the book. Listen carefully to what they have to say.

In your Fitness the “little things” can earn you some INCREDIBLE results. What are some “little things” in regards to your Fitness?

1.) Drink water ALL day long
2.) Watch your intake of “Dry” carbohydrates after 4:00 pm.
3.) Use supplements that enhance your results and move you forward towards your specific Fitness goal.
4.) Stretch your body EVERY day. Flexibility, especially in your back, enhances and extends your Fitness life.
5.) Plan your nutrition in advance. Don’t wait until its time to eat to plan a meal. You will make much better choices if you plan ahead instead of eating “on the fly”.
6.) Cardiovascular and Strength Training are equally important. Don’t ever favor one over the other.
7.) Use your Fitness in the real world. Get out and run, play a sport. Use your muscles and fitness to enjoy life to the fullest. What fun is having a fit, healthy body if you only exercise it in your living room!
8.) Have a VERY specific Fitness goal in mind and realize that small steps are the key to achieving your goal. Small steps are “Little Things”.

How many “Little Things” can you incorporate into your daily life?

Live stronger EVERY day!

Best,

Mike