vince_andrich’s BodyBlog

By Vince Andrich

If I hadn’t made me
I would’ve been made somehow
if I hadn’t assembled myself
I’d have fallen apart by now

Incubus, Title Song to the CD Make Yourself

I have no doubt that regular readers of inspiring articles and blogs on bodybuilding.com seek to break out of the norm and become something special. Nevertheless, no matter how many victories you have had in the game of life, or kudos for a job well done, there is a deep secret that lies inside each of us. The secret is this; we are all prone to harbor self-doubt or low self-esteem to varying degrees.

In fact, just two days ago I watched an Oscar winning actress state that although she has many successes; the failures or misses are her most memorable. When I heard this, I immediately wanted to write about the topic, because I knew that when we’re too hard on ourselves, our willingness to try new things, learn and live life to the fullest comes to a grinding halt.

The Seeds of Self-Doubt

According to many researchers, low-self esteem is a common barrier that once recognized as a learned pattern of behavior, is much easier to minimize. Now, just stop and think about it, we spend most of our young impressionable years learning not to think or speak too highly of our selves or we are labeled a braggart. Then as we enter peer influenced social environments. such as throughout school, we must seek approval to make sure we are good enough. You know the deal, be popular, cool and hip, because the alternative is a painful lack of self-worth or esteem.

Over time, people with chronic low self-esteem often sabotage their own success and happiness because they do not think they are worthy of anything good. In essence, they’ve become conditioned to doubt themselves.

Where Does Self-Esteem Come From?

Our self-esteem develops and evolves throughout our lives, as we build an image of ourselves through our experiences with different people and activities. Experiences during our childhood play a significant role in the shaping of our basic self-esteem. For example, as we progress from toddlers to young adults our successes (and failures), and how others treated us, begin to shape our inner self. The most influential people shaping our basic self-esteem are the members of our immediate family, by teachers, coaches, and our friends (peer group).

Distorted Faces of Low Self-Esteem

According to researchers at the University of Texas at Austin, most of us have an image of what low self-esteem looks like, but it is not always so easy to recognize. Here are three common faces that low self-esteem may wear:

• The Impostor: acts happy and successful, but is really terrified of failure. This person lives with the constant fear that she or he will be “found out.” Not surprising is the fact that this person needs continuous successes to maintain the mask of positive self-esteem, which may lead to problems with perfectionism, procrastination, competition, and burn out.
• The Rebel: acts like the opinions or good will of others - especially people who are important or powerful - don’t matter. The rebel lives with constant anger about not feeling €˜good enough’. This same person continuously needs to prove that others’ judgments and criticisms don’t hurt, which may lead to problems like blaming others excessively, breaking rules or laws, or fighting authority.
• The Loser: acts helpless and unable to cope with the world and waits for someone to come to the rescue. This same person may use self-pity or indifference as a shield against fear of taking responsibility for changing his or her life. The loser also looks constantly to others for guidance, which can lead to such problems as lacking assertivenes, under-achievement, and excessive reliance on others in relationships.

Do you get the message?

Your self-esteem is your judgment. It is NOT the people around you, not your Parents or your Employers, but ONE HUNDRED PERCENT YOURS.

So all the excuses about what has happened in the past, and all the actions of other people, have nothing to do with your self worth.

Therefore, the simple route to raising your self-valuation is to make a new decision. That decision is to find new information on which to base your self-esteem.

Better still, base your self-valuation on a new understanding within yourself. The understanding that you do not have to do what others think is cool or hip in order to be worthy. You are the ultimate judge of your worth, and the key that unlocks the door to happiness is to pursue the avenues that make you feel good about yourself. By focusing on these areas, no matter how perfect you are, or well you do, the journey has enough meaning to propel your self worth to new heights.

To Make Yourself, You Must Think for Yourself

As the lyrics from the song above reveal, if you don’t assemble yourself, you’ll fall apart. And if you want to Make Yourself you will need to begin thinking for yourself, which is likely one of the hardest things to do, but the ONLY way to gain back any lost self-esteem. Read on and you easily see the benefits of thinking for yourself.

The great artist Rembrandt did not paint the same world as Picasso, and, in general, no world-class artist became a “classic” by doing what somebody else had already done, or even what everybody else in his/her own era did. The great businessman Henry Ford did not get rich copying Fulton’s steamboat; he made a car so cheap that anybody could afford. Finally, Howard Hughes produced movies that nobody else would have dared to attempt, but he was not deterred by his peers, and then went on to revolutionize the airline industry.

We all need to conscious of what breaks down our self-esteem, and how we can breakthrough barriers by focusing on what WE truly want, and only judge ourselves against our best individual effort.

We live in a world where a multitude of very powerful forces have worked upon us, from birth, through school, to work, many times attempting to suppress our individuality, our creativity and, above all, our curiosity. In short, these forces can destroy everything that encourages us to think for ourselves.

Summary
The beauty of searching for new ways to exercise, and maintain a healthy high performance diet, is that no matter how perfect your body becomes, the journey to attain better health, lose body fat and gain lean muscle has enough meaning to propel your self-worth to a higher level.

I know you care enough about yourself to build a better, healthier body, or you wouldn’t be reading this. So, take this to the bank; you already have more self-worth than 99.9999 percent of the population.

Train Hard,

Vince

                Suggested reading;

http://www.amazon.com/Pathways-Bliss-Mythology-Personal-Transforma
tion/dp/1577314719/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b/103-4375356-9194203?ie=UTF8

By Vince Andrich

I have a true love of bodybuilding. That said, the goals I have for my own body are usually shunned by the “bigger is better” fans of bodybuilding and many devoted trainees. Moreover, the majority of people new to weight training do not believe they can re-shape their body and therefore do not understand my concepts.

Then again, it’s not my place to pass judgment on what your fitness goals should or should not be as this is most definitely a personal thing. You see I believe that the ultimate goal for putting in endless hours of training and avoiding junk food is to gain ownership of a body that does not automatically insinuate drug use or turn off the majority of the population. In simple terms my physique goals are to create a body that is pleasing to the eye, while at the same time inspires others to ask “what type of workouts do you do to look like that” versus “how much weight can you bench press”.

In my mind a bodybuilder has tools, which are dumbbells, barbells or weights and in the hands of a sculptor the objective becomes where to put more muscle for a fluid, symmetrical body shape. I call this concept Cosmetic Bodybuilding (admittedly a term coined years ago by the original Iron Guru Vince Gironda) and if your’e interested in working out to get a better body, and not a bigger or skinnier one then this blogg is for you.

The concept of “Cosmetic Bodybuilding” is defined as a fusion of postmodern bodybuilding techniques and purposely thought out strategies that allow you to re-design the gifts nature has given you.

Beyond Nip/Tuck

One of my favorite shows these days is about cosmetic surgery: Nip/Tuck. Fittingly, the most compelling line in the show each week is when the main doctors ask “what don’t you like about yourself”. In essence, that line is what this Cosmetic Bodybuilding is all about. Assessing what you don’t like about your body and finally having the means to alter it.

If you think you have to live with a bone structure flaw such as a wide waist or small and narrow shoulders, and want to make serious aesthetic changes, you will need to forget your pre conceived limitations and adhere to the revolutionary skill and technique of creating an illusion. The concept of illusion as it relates to your body structure is actually very simple and easy to see, once your eyes are trained to see the difference.

What Don’t You Like About Yourself?
Ask yourself, what is your ideal physique, and shoot me a note, because I’d like to know. In any case, stay tuned, in future bloggs we’ll discuss training methods that allow you to hide and improve on your muscular shape and structural weaknesses to attain the body you really want.

Killer New Fat Loss Compounds

By Vince Andrich

Wouldn’t it be nice if science had THE PILL that made bodyfat merely melt away? Sounds great right? Don’t misunderstand me, I am a big fan of science, but I hope the magic pill NEVER comes. The reason is, if hard work, dedication and persistence are taken out of the equation, all the benefits we have as bodybuilding artists will amount to ZERO. I don’t know about you, but I like the fact that what I do with my hobby of diet and exercise makes me different than the €˜normal’ people on the street. So, I am not a fan of getting a FREE ride, but I do appreciate it when science brings us new compounds that will help us build leaner more attractive bodies.

Accelerating Your Fat Loss €˜Investment’

Even if the fat loss miracle PILL never arrives, science is making great strides in uncovering the variables associated with fat gain and loss. One of my good friends Peter Miller at Integrity Nutraceuticals turned me on to two such ingredients that look like KILLER fat loss compounds. Believe me when I tell you, Pete Miller has the science down COLD, so I think both of these compounds are definitely worth looking at (product developers go here www.integritynut.com).

“An analysis of the history of technology shows that technological change is exponential, contrary to the common-sense “intuitive linear view. So we won’t experience 100 years of progress in the 21st century€”it will be more like 20,000 years of progress…at today’s rate … Artificial Intelligence Expert Ray Kurzweil

Razberi-K …Radical Fat Burning Swiss Army Knife
The first interesting compound is called Razberi-K, also known as 4-(4-hydroxyphenyl) butan-2-one, which is a ketone unique to red raspberry. Raspberries contain many bioactive constituents beneficial for health. One particular constituent, 4-(4-hydroxyphenyl) butan-2-one appears to have the potential to decrease body fat.  In a recent study, mice were fed a high fat diet to induce obesity while treated groups were also fed an additional 1 or 2% raspberry ketone. The treated groups gained less body fat than the control groups.

How does Razberi-K work?

In laymen terms, Razberi-K appears to have at least two beneficial effects for losing bodyfat namely, decreasing absorption of dietary fat and increasing norepinephrine-induced lipolysis (see http://blog.bodybuilding.com/vince_andrich/2006/10/12/neuro-chemical-diet-warfare/). Importantly, research suggests that in the reduction of absorption of dietary fat, the inhibition of trioleoylglycerol hydrolysis plays a major role. Further research advocates that enhancing lipolysis may augment glycerol release, increasing the translocation of hormone sensitive lipase (HSL) in fat cells, and increasing brown adipose tissue, known to increases thermogensis and oxidation of body fat.
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Application and Serving Size
Razberi-K is appropriate in a product for weight management. It can be administered in a capsule, tablet, powder or liquid. The recommended serving is 100 mgs twice daily.
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Look for products with the Integrity Nutraceuticals Trademarks, to be sure you’re getting the real deal!

iFAS50…Putting the Brakes on Fat Storage
Another very interesting fat loss compound is called iFAS50. According to the R & D staff at Integrity Nutraceuticals, this novel ingredient is comprised of three potent Fatty Acid Synthase (FAS) inhibitors: Green Tea, Tuber Fleeceflower and Parasitic Loranthus. Processed uniquely, the herbs in iFAS50 are blended and then extracted together. This method promotes synergy and provides a consistent and even distribution of the herbs. Research suggests that Green Tea, Tuber Fleeceflower and Parasitic Loranthus are among the most potent inhibitors of FAS.

What the Science Says about iFAS50
As you might already know, Fatty Acid Synthase is a multienzyme process resulting in the synthesis of fatty acids. Regulators of FAS are insulin and glucose; hence by prolonged consumption of high-carbohydrate or fat-free diets, FAS synthesis increases. Fatty acids once produced are esterified and stored in fat cells as an oily substance called triacylglycerol. The process of FAS is mediated by the enzyme acetyl-CoA caboxylase (ACC). Glucagon, an important hormone produced by the alpha cells of the Islets of Langerhans, is known to interfere with ACC thus inhibiting FAS.

The bottom line is that when FAS is inhibited, the body’s ability to store fat is greatly reduced, making iFAS50 an excellent fat loss tool. In addition, inhibiting FAS also exerts numerous indirect properties particularly on hypothalamic neurons. FAS inhibition results in a significant reduction of feeding behavior according to studies. The last benefit is extremely interesting to me since I believe the next generation of fat loss products MUST take into consideration feeding behavior (see my blog, (see http://blog.bodybuilding.com/vince_andrich/2006/10/12/neuro-chemical-diet-warfare/).
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Application and Serving Size
iFAS503 is appropriate in a product for weight management. It can be administered in a capsule, tablet, powder or liquid. A serving of 250 mgs twice daily is suggested.

Again, look for products with the Integrity Nutraceuticals Trademarks; to be sure you’re getting the real deal!

You can reach Integrity Nutraceuticals direct by calling 941.342.0007 or via email at: sales@integritynut.com

Nutrition and Supplement Strategies that Go BEYOND the €˜Perpetual PUMP’ for True Muscle Growth and Cellular Recovery

PART ONE

By Vince Andrich

You want the ability to get a “perpetual pump in any body part you train, every single time you walk into the gym, right? You are in pursuit of the almighty PUMP because you truly believe it holds the key to building more muscle size and strength, correct? You also believe that the magnitude of the pump you get in the gym is an indication that you’re on your way to less bodyfat and more defined muscles, true? Now, what if I said you were right and that the PUMP really was a reliable gauge of your bodybuilding progress? Well it is, but there seems to be a misunderstanding of sorts. You see, if you’ve been following this line of thinking €” that pump equals growth €” you must realize that the traditional mechanisms for accessing a perpetual pump, pale in comparison to a startling new breakthrough in bodybuilding chemistry. Don’t get me wrong, you will still learn about an integrated system that will allow you to attain a maximum pump, but you’ll discover that there is definitely more. This approach represents an entirely new way to look at the mechanisms for bodybuilding success €” one where the benefits are noticeable and, most importantly, permanent.

The Breakthrough is Not For Everyone
The techniques outlined in this article are not intended for everyone, although anyone can benefit. What I mean is simply this: you need to €˜come clean’ and be honest about your bodybuilding goals and how YOU plan to achieve them. Let me explain more. If you are on a sophisticated regimen of bodybuilding pharmaceuticals like growth hormone, testosterone, insulin and the like, your ability to get a pump in the gym should be simple. If this is your approach to bodybuilding, then the rest of this article is of no relevance to you. I am not an expert on bodybuilding drugs, but I do know enough to say that whenever I am working with an athlete who is ON, my traditional nutritional recommendations are not necessarily applicable. This is why my focus is to work with athletes who’s hormone levels are not off €” or all over €” the charts, and therefore do not undergo severe fluctuations. However, even if you choose to go to the “dark side and use bodybuilding drugs, which I do not suggest, you can’t stay on them long term. Eventually, if you want to have your health and a great body too, you’ll be seeking out “legal bodybuilding chemistry, like the information in this article.

Nitric Oxide Boosters and the Rise of the Almighty PUMP
The popular trend in bodybuilding supplementation these days is the use of Nitric Oxide (NO) boosters as a method for increasing your “pump while weight training. The use of nitric oxide supplements (NO is the acronym, for nitric oxide), has gained quite a following since they initially hit the bodybuilding scene around four years ago. I won’t go into the exact mechanisms associated with boosting nitric oxide, but the principle benefit appears to be vasodilatation. By improving vasodilatation, an athlete would experience increased blood flow from dilated blood vessels. As time goes on, more performance supplement companies are marketing various formulas as nitric oxide boosters, thereby dramatically increasing the popularity of the category.

The highly anticipated benefits associated with increasing nitric oxide levels were initially driven by multiple marketing campaigns and by at least one popular book. Many of the marketing claims for nitric oxide products became very similar to those of creatine. For example, fuller muscles, tighter pumps, gains in power and strength, and increased cell volume. As a result, these products were €˜granted’ nearly the same credibility as creatine, when it first hit the market. The hype for the nitric oxide products gave birth to what is now almost indistinguishable from the creatine category, and in fact, many of the most popular formulas include creatine as a major active ingredient.

I have no doubt that the most significant reason these products are in demand is because they are endorsed as a means for promoting massive pumps in the gym, increasing lean mass, enhancing fast twitch muscle, quicker recovery and improving strength, but the purpose of this article is not to dispute or justify these claims. Whether or not nitric oxide supplement claims hold up to the acid test of real-world training is an entirely different subject, so I’ll save it for another time.

What is The Pump?
In bodybuilding circles, the sensation of tight congestion, or swelling, of your muscles with blood during your weight training session is €˜The Pump’. Now, a weight trainer with any experience knows that if you lift a heavy enough weight, and don’t rest too long between sets, your working muscles will become swollen with blood. In scientific jargon, this is referred to as reactive hyperemia because it involves an increase in blood flow (i.e., hyperemia) in response (i.e., reactive) to the exercise stimulus.

Triggering the Osmotic Anabolic Signaling System
So, what’s the big deal with striving to attain what popular bodybuilding jargon refers to as a Super Pump? To be blunt, The Pump is the manifestation of many physique-altering benefits that are not visible to the eye. Ironically, what seems like such a foolishly vain aspect of bodybuilding to the uninformed is, in fact, an excellent means for judging your nutritional status, current anabolic/catabolic condition and measure of training recovery.

In essence, it appears that the magnitude of the PUMP you get in the gym can be traced back to multiple factors associated with muscle growth and recovery, and are intimately related to an intricate cellular swelling mechanism that modern scientific literature calls Osmotic Anabolic Signaling  (OAS). This phenomenon is at the heart of building new muscle year round, and retaining lean mass in the face of hypo-caloric dieting. To maximize this system requires attention to several “puzzle pieces, of which nutrition tops the charts.

Diet and Muscle Cell Dynamics
When you are well fed, i.e., carbohydrates are not restricted, your ability to get a pump should be pretty easy, even if your diet is not optimal. However, it has become increasing popular for weight trainers to follow a diet that carefully considers carbohydrate intake. The modern bodybuilding diet usually allows for 40-50% of your daily calories to come from carbohydrates. This number may increase for athletes who weight train for sports, which make it necessary for additional daily energy calories to be burned beyond those needed for the gym. Typically, carb intake is under strict control when an athlete wants to avoid gaining fat (this could be all year round), or must lose excess bodyfat for a wide range of goals including contest prep. For example, consuming less than 100 grams of carbohydrates is the standard level for a “low-carb day. If this level seems low, it is, but keep in mind these diets usually remove carbohydrate calories and make up the remainder of the daily calorie allotment from increases in protein and/or fat. The best low-carb diets put an emphasis on protein intake due to its ability to promote additional calorie wasting.

The underlying problem with excessive restriction of carbohydrate is that when training intensity is high (and of course intensity is key to keeping or increasing muscle size much less the PUMP), even 200 grams of carbohydrates per day for larger athletes is tremendously meager. Research has shown that a high-protein diet coupled with low-carbohydrate intake creates a metabolic environment called acidosis, which is not conducive to high intensity weight training , . In addition, weight training intensely while simultaneously reducing carbohydrates dramatically depletes stored energy in muscle (glycogen), and therefore we know that low-carb dieting cannot be followed for weeks on end.

Fortunately, most athletes realize that it is best to utilize carb depletion/cycling regimens rather than attempt to stay on reduced carbs for the entire length of their diet. That is, they follow a few days of low-carb eating (usually 2-3) and then allow themselves a day or so of “normalized feeding to drive the replenishment of glycogen so that training intensity can be maintained. The other benefit associated with this diet format is that the athlete enjoys maximum fat burning on low-carb days, and then when carbs are reintroduced in greater amounts, insulin is allowed to help maintain the desired anabolic state. Further, boosting carb intake at this point offers a mechanism to reinvigorate natural thyroid production €” often reduced when on low-carb diets €” for improved metabolic function.

Moreover, a consideration of importance, beyond the aspect of performance, is the anabolic effect of insulin secretion on muscle protein synthesis. Moderate carbohydrate intake at each meal should stimulate the proper insulin levels needed for maximum muscle protein synthesis. Over time depressed insulin secretion may halt any additional muscular progress.  Therefore, my approach to feeding for most of the year is to systematically eat a little less carbs than I need and more protein than I can use. This concept is fully explained in a booklet called ‘No Mistakes’ - The Nutrition Guide to Building Your Best Body Ever. I wrote this guide with my colleague Rob Thoburn, who is an absolute bodybuilding genius and now works for the forward-thinking sports nutrition company BSN.

Nutritional Clues Related to €˜OAS’
I’ve mentioned relative dietary concepts because at the end of the day, your nutritional status will ultimately become the €˜core’ to engaging OAS, and the PUMP you get in the gym. How much does nutrition have to do with OAS? Have you every wondered why your muscles are flat some days and on others full?  As you recall the muscle contains stored carbohydrates. Guess what?  For every carbohydrate gram you store an additional 2.7 grams of water!  Whenever you consume plenty of carbs, your muscle cells become saturated with them, and each carb pulls nearly 3 grams of water into a virtual anabolic Jacuzzi! Therefore, your muscles fill up like a balloon!  You can always tell how anabolic your nutrition is by how full your muscle cells are. As we touched on previously, when you are on a reduced-carb diet, your muscle cells become flat and your skin is loose, and doesn’t look very tight. The initial stages of this are common while dieting, because the athlete is simply low on carbohydrate stores in their muscle cells. However, in speaking with many advanced athletes if your muscle cells are left high and dry for too long, with nothing to hold water inside the cell, you will eventually chew up your hard-earned muscle.

So, this raises the question: Can you get a super pump in the gym while carb intake is low? In my opinion, the answer is no, probably not.
Keep in mind the pump is relative, and is can only be judged against your personal experience. But you will get a better pump when your carb intake allows for stored glycogen in your muscles to be roughly 50% of capacity, and your water intake is adequate. As a reference, adequate fluid intake for a 200-lb athlete is about 1-gallon of water, or 12, 8-ounce glasses. When it comes to gauging your stored muscle glycogen levels, then best assessment is the mirror, which we will discuss in detail in the next section.

Go Here for
PART TWO

http://blog.bodybuilding.com/vince_andrich/2006/10/25/osmotic-anabolic-signaling-part-ii/

I keep a membership at several different fitness centers or gyms if you will, all of which are part of national chains.  Like many, I do this out of convenience, also because locally owned and operated gyms are becoming increasingly more difficult to find. Nonetheless, for the most part I have found all of the facilities at the chain gyms to be more than sufficient to get a great workout. Keep in mind, I have been weight training for over twenty-five years, so it is much easier for me to get what I need out of almost any gym environment.  For sure, I can get a “workout, but I am concerned with the current atmosphere that has become common in commercial gyms everywhere. When I stop and take time to look around, it is easy for me to see that the elements that gave me years of physical and mental sanctuary are gone. From my perspective, it seems that opposing forces of social interaction and inner peace that can play such a big part in your quest to get a better body, have been replaced by rows of cold soulless exercise paraphernalia. As a result, the participants come to do their workout as if it is another job, mindlessly going through the motions. Yes, the proliferation of fitness centers has undoubtedly made it possible for more people to access the tools necessary for change, but in the process, the mystery, art and inspiration needed for a truly remarkable experience has been lost. In my opinion, the gym as a place of refuge from the problems of everyday life is now just another location to stunt your creativity and “blend in.

Why Lasting Body Transformation is €˜Spiritual’ NOT Mechanical

It wasn’t long ago that gyms were defined by their members’ collective personality. A place for individuality and community, gyms provided the cultural seeds for personal growth that went far beyond building your body. For years, I never really knew why it was so easy for me to get pleasure out of going to the gym. I now realize that my view of going to the gym is much different from people today. My memories of belonging and individual expression are the foundation for the feelings of extreme pleasure that I have whenever I think about going to the gym.

I suppose if I were to start exercising today, I too might think of it as just another place to punch the clock, hindering my progress and weakening the positive influence exercise has in my life. It is difficult for me to explain, but the more mechanical knowledge that becomes hardwired into our consciousness, in the realm of body transformation, the more we must find the courage to listen to our unconscious mind to inspire us to continue our quest. In the end, I believe lasting body transformation is a journey where numerical formulas and logic can de-motivate the most able-bodied individual. Simply put, the most rewarding things in life penetrate the spirit; relationships, music, art and creative freedom, the most unrewarding are mechanical, like many mindless tasks.

Understand your potential for body transformation has no boundaries; allow each step of your journey to become a perfect experience:

So When Did The Gym Experience Change?
I personally witnessed the biggest change in gym life with the introduction of Nautilus weight training machines, and the “express workout phenomenon that started in the early 1980’s. While I have no problem with Nautilus machines per se, or a fast paced workout, I do believe the concepts that were popularized when this equipment was marketed, cut into the very soul of gym life. Like most things, the modernized approach to training during the Nautilus gym era took the endeavor from spiritual to mechanical.

The Necessary Evils of Mechanical Body Transformation
Above all else, I truly believe in understanding the fundamentals of training and nutrition. That said, a certain amount of mechanical knowledge is necessary to gain a grasp on the fundamentals. The truth is, when it comes to understanding how to map out your body transformation plan or any workout thereafter, you will need to set some basic guidelines or €˜mechanics’, that will provide a roadmap for your program. The mechanics of fundamentals involve how to perform individual exercises, sets, reps and proper weight selection, and of course, the numbers associated with your nutrition program. I am not trying to downplay these basics, however I do not believe that they need to be something you dwell on all the time. The fundamentals are a tool, not a hindrance, and so they need only to be reviewed periodically to adjust different facets of your program. As time goes on you’ll notice that by becoming more instinctive in your training, you begin to enjoy the process and this allows you to access higher levels of performance.

You’ll be training in the moment, not outside, looking backwards or forward.

On the other hand, I like to use the Nautilus gym era as an example of how the gym experience can become overly mechanical. I know this company can’t take all the blame, however some of the basic principles set forth during this era, are easily traced back to a demise of cultural body transformation and the rise of mass marketed gym chains. The list of Nautilus principles below, with my remarks clearly points this out.

1. Train to all out muscular failure or don’t train. Talk about mechanical, what is the mental cost associated with do or die training principles? In essence, this belief means that nothing less than shear all out effort can be associated with your training. If you’ve ever tried using this to motivate you to go to the gym each day, let me state for the record, it doesn’t work. You begin to resent the gym, because no one can pull a peak performance on demand, not to mention every workout. Peak performances come from the unconscious state top athletes call the ZONE. Mechanical programs make training in the ZONE nearly impossible.
2. Do the exercises in pre-determined succession. While this might be good for a specific goal, it is by no means the way to stay motivated year after year. Again, the result is boredom and resentment, because the program becomes like a rigid ball and chain.
3. Progress ONLY comes from lifting heavier weights. This concept is a half-truth. Yes, getting stronger will bring about gains in new muscle size. However, strength is dependant on many factors, including order of exercises, rep range, rest between sets and the time it
takes to complete a single set or rep.

Getting the Best out of a Commercial Gym
I have a simple analogy for getting the most out of training at a commercial gym. To me it is like driving a car for the experience, not to be confused with driving to get from point A, to point B. Once you get the fundamentals of driving a car down, you can begin to drive with a certain feel for the road. The first order of business is to remember that each drive (or workout) should be a new and exciting experience. No rules are set in stone, but here are some tips:

• You can start with an €˜exercise map’, but when the gym is crowded you need to be flexible and creative (don’t stand around).
• When you veer off your map, you should pick exercises like choosing an open lane on the highway. That means go for whatever exercise is available that allows you to hit the target muscle.
• Once you begin to exhaust a muscle group it is counterproductive to wait around for a specific exercise.
• Once you begin training a target muscle group, the primary goal is to keep it on the run (doing WORK).
• Your flow from exercise to exercise becomes your workout tempo.
• Your training tempo is the €˜heartbeat’ of your workout.
• Maintaining tempo throughout your workout will enhance your mental focus for maximum results.
• A focused tempo forces you to avoid the exercises that require you to wait too long (like a traffic jam), and you immediately look for alternate exercises (routes) that will unlock your intuitive thought that creates YOUR unique experience.
• You push your muscles like an engine; gently pushing to devour more open road yet holding back ever so slightly because you know you will drive again.
• This is not a do or die race, it is a time to communicate with your senses, to experience the rush, and feeling each ridge in the road (your muscles contracting).
• Done correctly, each workout will become a new driving experience, even if you travel on the exact same road another day.

Conclusion
It is not likely that local gyms that are more personal will rule the exercise world anytime soon. However, by exercising your mental and physical body when you go to the gym, the experience will certainly be much more rewarding and eventually an activity in which YOU thrive.
The next paragraph can be printed, cut out and kept in your gym bag
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The Gym Is My Personal Arena
My gym is the arena where my mental and physical quests and adventures take place. This arena is where exercise allows me to ignore the minutia and insanities of the world. This arena is a parallel universe where my mental and physical being leaves the mechanical world, and I get in touch with my unconscious dreams. I practice my art in this arena to get closer to my inner sense of possibilities and further from the heavy world of facts and probabilities.

Train hard,

Vince

 By Vince Andrich

I’ve been on the road quite a bit and so frequent visits to the airport knick knack shops are the norm. Since I am in THE business, I always take a look at the current issues of popular fitness magazines. Now, unless I am imagining it, nearly every big budget magazine takes a crack at a fitness theme every 3-months or so. Rags for women like Vogue (the Shape Issue), Allure (Look Younger Now), Fitness (De-Jelly Your Belly) sure exploit the idea of getting a better body, yet deliver everything you want to know about fitness that won’t help you one bit. No doubt, the programs are easy, so you feel good, and of course the magazines look great on your coffee table. That is, if you need that kind of validation from your friends. If so, you might want to rethink you reasons for getting a better body, and if you’re still serious read on….

Much like the popular women’s magazines, for Men we have such fashionable staples like GQ, Esquire, Men’s Vogue, and even Maxim who feature UFC fighters, WWE Stars and other athletes on their covers, in an attempt to grab a slice of the wanna bee male exercise consumer set. Nice ploy to grab more readers, and although the men’s fashion rags don’t try this as often as their female counterparts, they stiill can’t resist trying to make a guy who is looking for a new watch do broomstick twists.

Some of the magazine’s in question are on the bubble, as in not so bad. In this category, we have high gloss magazines like Men’s Health, Best Life, Self and Shape vying for the ever so fickle fringe exercisers. Don’t get me wrong, the not so bad magazines have some decent information, but compared to the big promises they make on their covers (like Lose Your Gut in Two Weeks), they fall extremely short. Once again, the big fitness promise’s combined with targeting the, “never gonna stick to types”, is a ploy big budget magazines use to ask for more mainstream ad dollars for clothing and cologne. In my experience, these magazines are only for people who want to amuse themselves with the idea of following a real exercise program that gets results.

So whats my point? Well if you’re looking to get into better shape, let me give you a few clues as to which magazines might be good for you. First you need to do a little test. That is, for each magazine you’re thumbing through, count the amount of ad pages for NON-FITNESS related products. These items include cosmetics, clothes, shoes, booze, beer, cigars, cologne and watches, to name a few. Then go over to an enthusiast magazine, like Surfer, for duh, Surfers, or Hot Rod Magazine for Speed Freaks and count the ads for products NOT specific to Surfers or Speed Freaks.  Get the point? Sure you do. The point is, if you’re serious about a particular interest, the best place to get information is the same place the most fanatical consumers in every industry do. Here’s a hint, they don’t read magazines about their favorite subject that is clouded by products they can read about in a dozen other titles.

For getting in shape the fanatics still go for Muscle and Fitness, FLEX, Oxygen, Fitness Rx, Ironman, REPS and Muscular Development. Now, if youre more advanced you’re out here on the web getting your advice from real people who have the SAME goals as you do. The moral of the story is; big advertisers (NON-Fitness related) will never spend much money in the real serious fitness magazines.

On the other hand, you can bet the serious fitness information will never be found in a magazine that cares more about living the good life than working nard to get a better body. One more reason, you should subscribe to my BodyBlog! You can bet on it, the information that can help you understand how to finally get healthy and fit will be found right here…

Vince

So you’re ready to take your physique to an entirely new level and make believers of your family, friends and even some enemies. To make this happen, you know you can’t keep doing the same old things, over and over and expect a different result, as that would be insanity. You need to be creative, insightful and diligent. You need to unleash what I call, your "body transformation genius." Now, don’t misunderstand, what I’m telling you is that even if you’re not a certified genius, you can use the same strategies as Beethoven and Einstein, to harness the power of your creative mind, to better develop your health and fitness future and build your dream body.

The following eight strategies push you to think productively, rather than reproductively, in order to arrive at solutions to your health and fitness goals. These strategies are common to the thinking styles of creative geniuses in science, art, and industry throughout history. Now, let’s get started.

1. Look at problems in many different ways
In other words, find new perspectives that no one else has taken (or no one else has publicized!)

Note This: Leonardo da Vinci believed, that to gain knowledge about the form of a problem, you begin by learning how to restructure it in many different ways. He realized that the first way he looked at a problem was often too biased. By reconstructing the problem, you will find new solutions and break down personal barriers.

Try This: Not enough time to train, then take a new perspective that says. it will be most beneficial for you to ONLY workout 30 minutes per session. Make your workouts a race against the clock to improve intensity and new gains will be yours in no time.

2. Visualize!

Note This: When Einstein thought through a problem, he always found it necessary to formulate his subject in as many different ways as possible, including using diagrams. He visualized solutions, and believed that words and numbers as such did not play a significant role in his thinking process.

Try This: When looking for ways to improve a specific body part, draw your physique and then make notes about how you train each muscle area. Is your focus and concentration the same for your weak bodyparts, as it is for your strong ones? One sure fire way to re-focus your efforts on your weaknesses is this; if a bodypart is too small train it with weights 3 times per week. If a bodypart is too large, (or fat) train it only every two weeks. This method allows your body to build your weak body parts up, while systematically causing your larger body parts to shrink. Of course, diet and overall metabolic rate is necessary to burn off the extra fat, but in combination, this method allows you to put maximum energy against the most difficult areas to build.

3. Produce!

Not surprising, but one of the most distinguishing characteristics of genius is productivity.

Note This: Thomas Edison held 1,093 patents. He guaranteed productivity by giving himself and his assistants idea quotas. In a study of 2,036 scientists throughout history, Dean Keith Simonton of the University of California at Davis found that the most respected scientists produced not only great works, but also many “bad” ones. They weren’t afraid to fail, or to produce mediocre in order to arrive at excellence.

Try This: Don’t expect a perfect workout every single time. On days you feel less energetic, you can allow yourself a “cruising”  workout, with a focus on form and deep contractions. This will serve as an active rest, and the lack of pressure to perform may actually help you find new ways to connect to your muscles like never before.

4. Make novel combinations!
Combine, and recombine, ideas, images, and thoughts into different combinations no matter how incongruent or unusual.

Note This: The laws of heredity on which the basis for the modern science of genetics came from the Austrian monk Grego Mendel, who combined mathematics and biology to create a new science.

Try This: Start each training session with a different bodypart. This means you don’t always have to do compound movements before single joint exercises and vice versa. You can also do high reps, for multi-muscle teamwork exercises like the bench press or squat and low reps, for machine lifts like leg extensions. Other variations are, foot and hand positions and rest between sets. Mix it up, you may just find your perfect recipe for a great workout almost any time.

5. Form relationships; make connections between dissimilar subjects.

Note This: Da Vinci forced a relationship between the sound of a bell and a stone hitting water. This enabled him to make the connection that sound travels in waves. Samuel Morse invented relay stations for telegraphic signals when observing relay stations for horses.

Try This: When doing individual exercises, focus on the area of the muscle where most of the tension or burn is being developed. This way you can make better exercise choices when targeting specific areas of each muscle. In addition, like in strategy #4, make mental notes of small changes in hand, feet and height positions when doing specific movements. You are a sculptor and you must understand how each tool (the weights) are best used to alter your physique.

6. Think in opposites.

Note This: Physicist Niels Bohr believed that if you held opposites together, then you suspend your thought, and your mind moves to a new level. His ability to imagine light as both a particle and a wave led to his conception of the principle of complementarity. Suspending thought (logic) may allow your mind to create a new form.

Try This: You’ll see dramatic changes if you’ve been eating a high protein low carb diet, then switch to the exact opposite for 1-2 days. Also, if you’re used to dieting and feeling hungry, try to eat one meal every 48 - hours that completely fills your stomach, or until you can’t eat another bite. The trick here is to eat water rich steamed veggies, small amounts of brown rice, loads of greens and fiber. Top this off with ample amounts of fresh water and your body will be tricked into thinking it gets to eat until it pops, thus breaking the chains of deprivation that wreak havoc on your ability to mentally handle dieting.

7. Prepare yourself for chance.

Note This: Whenever we attempt to do something and fail, we end up doing something else. That is the first principle of creative accident. Failure can be productive only if we do not focus on it as an unproductive result. Instead: analyze the process, its components, and how you can change them to arrive at other results. Do not ask the question “Why have I failed?”, but rather “What have I done?”

Try This: Keep an exercise, nutrition and supplement journal, and use it to note how your body feels when eating certain foods, the time of day you eat, train and how much rest you get between workouts. Be sure to note even slight changes in your workout system and how your body responds mentally and physically. This journal is your personal roadmap to success.

8. Think metaphorically.

Note This: Aristotle considered metaphor a sign of genius, and believed that the individual who had the capacity to perceive resemblances between two separate areas of existence and link them together was a person of special gifts.

Try This: Go through the strategies above and make new links to fitness related issues in each of the sections. This way you’ll be taking proven concepts and metaphorically linking them to your fitness goals.

Vince