Totaltraining’s BodyBlog

Without a doubt, every workout in the gym would not be complete without someone, who knows you are trainer, stopping you and asking you a question about diet, supplementing, exercises, ect, ect! First thing to get out of the way, a good trainer WILL stop his own workout to help you with any simple questions that you may have. The key word in all that was ’simple,’ by the way. Not simple-easy, but simple-quick. If you think your question is going to take more that 2 minutes to ask and answer, then perhaps a later time would be more appropriate. Second thing is to discuss was today’s question was that I got during my workout.
 I was in the gm doing a full body quick superset type workout, due to the limited time I had, and I was approached by a Dad and his son. The Dad I had known for about a year or so, and the son I had just met today. He was 13 years old and his dad was wondering if his son was too young to be lifting weights. He is currently involved in football and soccer, and was starting to get into weightlifting. Now, this is not your everyday question, for sure! Not too many times have I been asked about 13 year olds beginning a weight training routine.
My advice to this father and son was simple, partially due to the shortness of time I had, but mostly due to the fact that that question is really quite simple, I believe. The human body continues to grow and develop until your late teens, and even into your early-mid twenties. Weightlifting can due a lot of damage to a young boy at 13. Overloading his bones with to much weight could be detrimental to his development, especially his spine. My advice to him and his son was to start slow and see how his body takes to it. 13 is an ok age to starting lifting small weights as long as proper form and technique is utilized. Damage to the body at that stage in life can turn into a long lasting ailment. Be sure to steer clear of spine loading exercises such as the squat.
Also, something good to be mindful of is your son or daughters drive to supplement their workout routine with protein, or any other powders or pills. The best supplements for a growing young kid is a wholesome meal. If you want to aid their workouts with the timing of their meals, that’s ok, but do not under any circumstance be letting them use dietary supplements to aid their workouts. Not only are their bones and joints growing, but their internal organs are as well. The last thing you want to mess with is their hormones and throw those out of wack! They are already all over the place, no need to add insult to injury.
So, that is my take on young kids wanting to start weightlifting. Just make sure they stick to a large rep count, about 12-15, and a lower set count, no more that 4 per exercise. And if you would like to, have a wholesome meal ready for them when they get home. Something that is full of lean protein and good carbs.
If you have any questions about training your youngster, or any about your training routine; feel free to e-mail me with anything you may be wondering!
 
Till next time,
Dave Latimer, AFAA CPT.
www.totalbodytoning.net
 

Ringing in the new year means one of two things for most people: either it is the realization that over the last year you have completely failed at committing yourself to your prior resolution, or it can be the reflection upon how well you have done over the last year at succussfully achieving your resolution.

 Either way… it is what it is! If you have seemed to have fallen in the unsuccessful category, see what it is that made you fail. Reflect on the past year. By realizing how it is we failed, we have the ability to learn, and change. Realize these mistakes, and put them towards this years resolution. You can make the same resolution poeple, trust me, it’s not illegal! Come back mentally stronger by admitting your flaws. Take a picture of yourself, write a self-contract, ect., but whatever it may be that you need to do to motivate yourself, DO IT.

For those of you that have succeeded at achieving the last years goal, good job, but you aren’t home free either. The only thing that achieving last years resolution does for you is realizing that now you have to set the bar higher. Sometimes goals are just supposed to be set, but not quite reached. I congradulate all of you who succeeded this year, but you under estimated yourself. I say set goals that are seemingly impossible. Don’t tell yourself to be realistic, the only thing realistic does for you is throw you into the classification of "Average." If you’re happy there, good! Stay! That makes one last person for the rest of us to beat out!

Being the best is for the Alpha’s only! Are you an Alpha male/female? If you think you are, you better start training like it, becuase there are plenty others out there who think they are too.

It’s a new year! Have fun, keep strong, stay motivated, and be the best you can be!

Total Body Training

David Latimer, AFAA CPT.

727-415-1056

totalbodytoning@hotmail.com

www.totalbodytoning.net

You can’t fight it, the holidays are here, so let the eating begin. The holidays for most of us is either going to go one of two ways: you can take advantage of the calories and time your eating around your workouts to put on solid muscle, or you can take all the work you have been doing in the gym the last few months, or more, and flush it down the drain. The choice is yours! But, here are a few tips that I have come up with that just may help you out this season.

1. The holiday season is wonderful for those of us in the bulking stage. If you are anything like me, you see that holiday spread of food and break it down into carbs, protiens, and good calories. This is a great time of year for those looking to pack on a few extra punds to do just that. So, if your in a bulking stage, don’t hold back! One thing you may want to do though is time the meal properly. Try and get in a good workout of a large muscle group about 1 hour prior to digging into a plate of good calories. This will ensure your muscles soak up that nutrition and put it to work, rather than store it as fat.

2. There is always leftovers, so take the time to package up a few small meals so that they are ready to warm up for you. Ensure that each meal contains each of the main muscle building groups.  Make sure there is a protein (turkey), a carb (stuffing, roll, rice, ect.), and a good source of vitamins (green beans, brocolli, peas, ect.).

3. Let people know that eating properly is important to you, or let people know that you are working towards competing. Don’t be affraid to let people know, no matter what shape you’re in, your goals. Not only should they respect you, they will help you in being accountable for what you eat. A little accountabilty from others will aid you in staying honest with yourself.

4. Ask yourself this, how bad do you want it? This is a great time of year to test out your motivation to your own goals! How bad do you want to reach those goals? Is having a slice of that pie really worth doing an extra hour of cardio to attempt to burn it off? You make the decision. Stay motivated, and stick to your guns by passing that slice of pie onto another family member, or rival workout partner! They’ll love that!

5. Plan, plan, plan! Write down a plan for this holiday season. There is no better way to make sure things get done then writing them down. Schedule your workouts now! Schedule them for the rest of the year. Reflect your workout schedule against your family, work, and friend schedule. If things are planned in the middle of you normal workout time, plan now ahead of time. Be sure to get in a morning workout if you know that working out later in the day is going to be impossible. Plus, working out in the morning is a great way to get that metabolism jump started into burning calories for the rest of the day.

6. As always, try and fill that stomach with something small about an hour before you are scheduled to have a big dinner. This will prevent you from over stuffing yourself when the big dinner comes around. If there is nothing to eat ahead of time, fill up on that high quality H20! Water is a great way to keep calories low, while filling up some stomach space.

 These tools are easy to implement, the hardest thing to do is just to do it! Don’t let this holiday ruin your years progress. Remember, some of your goals were to simply look good at these holiday parties, so don’t dissapoint yourself! Also, that New Years resolution is not an excuse to cheat with just a few weeks left. Starting healthy January 1st is a crap excuse to eating bad now! If you can’t do it now, you won’t ever be able to do it. Save that resolution for something better. Promise yourself to travel, give more to the poor, save more money, anything! But the time to be healthy is now! You want that six pack? Well, packing in a your ‘"last" handfull of cookies, slice of pie, or scoop of mashed potatoes and gravy, won’t put you any closer to that goal, just closer to moving the big weight one notch to the right on that gym scale!

David Latimer, AFAA CPT.

www.TotalBodyToning.net

Personal training is great for beginners. Especially those who are somewhat intimidated by the gym. A trainer can be there to show you proper technique, control, stretching, and push you during cardio sessions. To someone new to a gym, this can be a great help. But the one thing about trainers, is that we tend to be pricey for the majority of people (ranging from $40-$100+ per HOUR!), especially in today’s society. There is hope though! This internet age has breeded a whole new form of training, called Online Training. Online trainers have become a huge help for many who cannot afford one on one training in the gym. I live in Tampa, Florida, but I have several clients I train, that I have never even seen, and that are all over the country. We set up weekly phone meetings with each other, I e-mail them daily workouts and nutritional guidelines, we track bi-weekly progress, and all for a small, fraction of the cost of personal training (usually $20-$100 per MONTH!). Many people find this a great way to train. If you are self-motivated, you may want to look into it. Hope this helps out those who are in this sort of pickle.
David Latimer, AFAA CPT.

www.TotalBodyToning.net

I have a lot of clients, especially those female ones, who when I first meet them are terrified of the weight room. Why is this? Are we guys so intimidating? Trust me, if you came in there we would respect you even more! Plus not to mention the greatly added benefit of actually moving off the machines and putting some dumbells in those hands. Don’t get me wrong, machines are an excellent tool, especially for those with injuries who need that restricted and controlled motion. They also do a great job for putting on some lean muscle, but when in comparison to working the same muscle group, but adding a dumbell or barbell into the mix, the machines get blown away. If you ladies want to see some real results, get off the machines, and tell those guys to move the hell over becuase you need room to work!

There are very few things that set the sexes apart. Aside from the abvious anatomical differences, our hormones are the really only difference. I hear it all the time, "I don’t want to lift weights becuase I am affraid to get big." Are you kidding me? There is now way, and no how that’s going to happen. The hormone testosterone is limiter in you body that allows you to pack on muscle mass. Sorry women, you don’t have even a tenth of the tesosterone that us men do! So, that "affraid to get big" excuse, can be forgotten about and never used again.

I suppose the only real downside to lifting those dumbells, is the wear and tear your hands take. Calluses are very common occurance with us guys. Rough hands and stong grips just sort of come with the territory for us weightlifting men, but it doesn’t have to be for you. Simply wear a good pair of weight gloves and problem solved. I sware it!

Now, for the most important reason for you women to hit the weights, are you ready? The final reason is to do something that you really have no control over, and that is stop, and even reverse, the effects of bone loss. Thats right, you are cursed from birth in this realm, but fortunatly for you, lifting dumbells is the perfect prescription, and the only real prescription you’ll  need if you start early enough. By lifting weights you actually provide your body with the ability to use calcium more efficiently. Thus, strong, healthier bones for life.

So, start now! Don’t delay another day with this disease stopping change to your routine. Preventing and reversing osteoperosis is possible reguardless of what anyone says. If you need assistance in how to properly lift wieghts, your local gym employees and trainers are happy to assist you and show you a few things i’m sure. If not, let me know! I will be happy to shoot you a few techniques and tips that will drasctically better your next workout.

 Till next time!

David Latimer, AFAA CPT.

www.TotalBodyToning.net

1. Strive to be the very best version of you possible—regardless of your genetic limitations. We have what we have. Our job is to make the most out of what we’ve been given. Appreciate what you do have and don’t get overly concerned with what you don’t.

2. You should always expect the best from your efforts—but don’t get discouraged if you don’t see the results you want as soon as you want. Be patient. Be persistent.

3. You must open your mind to new and different strategies if you want to produce better results than what you are currently getting. If you do what you’ve always done in the past, you’ll produce the same results.

4. If you choose to train without steroids or other drugs, that’s awesome. Focus on how you can be the most productive with your efforts while taking that route. Don’t waste your time talking or thinking about how much easier of a time people who use drugs to assist them with their development have compared to you. You don’t need that distraction.

5. Spend your time talking with those people who have earned good physiques, demonstrate admirable work ethics, and exude positive attitudes. Do everything you can to avoid people with negative attitudes.

6. Focus on your training while you are in the gym to produce the best results. Don’t use the time between sets to let your mind wander or engage in conversations that will distract you.

7. Set a time limit for your workout. Your weight training sessions should last no longer than one hour. More isn’t better—not when it comes to bodybuilding and training.

8. Create a series of action steps that you can do every day to get you closer to the body you ultimately want. Allow yourself to be happy every step of your journey rather than waiting until the ultimate goal is finally achieved.

9.Appreciate the progress you are making. Taking the time to assess your training and eating habits on a weekly basis can help you maintain the right perspective.

10. Give your workout and nutritional programs enough time to properly determine their effectiveness. Let the power of momentum work for you. Don’t keep switching from one plan to another without giving each one the time and effort they need to produce results.

David Latimer, AFAA CPT.

 www.TotalBodyToning.net

Thanks Skip, you’re the man!