Small Steps Lead to BIG GAINS

Forgive Yourself to Better Health

wallyj — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 20:58:34 +0000

Learning To Forgive Yourself and Move On

This newsletter is difficult for me to write, it is personal and on some levels embarrassing, but this is why I am compelled to write it. I am going to bare my soul, and it hurts, but I am doing this for myself and in hopes that I reach at least some of you, because WE ALL GO THROUGH THIS ON SOME LEVEL. You see this letter is not about the newest workout routine or power protein, it is about falling down and getting up… knowing you may fall down again. It is human and real. Please read it, share it with friends and share your thoughts afterward.

You see we all talk about the key ingredients to fitness or weight loss as being proper hydration, rest, good nutrition(5 to 6 times per day), resistance training and heart rate training(cardio). Some go beyond this and surely there are other important factors, but in general, the 5 areas above, when done correctly and consistently will lead to better health and wellness, whether your goal is weight-loss, muscle gain or some combination(body transformation).

About 3 or 4 years ago I embarked on a journey to reclaim my health after many failed attempts alone in the gym, or on a treadmill in my office I decided to go down the road with a trainer. My trainer was more than a “gym buddy” or a quasi-therapist to listen to me rant while I sweat, he slowly progressed me from a diabetic lump into an athlete and taught me how to learn to live a healthful lifestyle on my own, without the hand-holding of a trainer. By any measurement I had completely transformed my body into a 42 year old with 18 pct body fat and a VO2max close to 50, which at my age is impressive. I had become stronger than I ever was, even stronger than my late teens and early twenties while still active and in the gym. I was on a constant endorphin high. My doctor could not believe I was not on medication because all signs of diabetes were gone, cholesterol was at 124 with an amazing ratio of high to low… I was unstoppable and hell bent on becoming stronger, faster, more flexible and even began to think i should train for an Ironman event or possibly get into mixed martial arts. I’ll give props to Gary Schulman now, and thank him for the serious effort he gave to me. Thank You!

What happened next was a slow spiral, almost imperceptible at first, but it had begun nonetheless. I had a number of factors that distracted me from keeping my wellness routine, some of them personal, some business related and some of it was just plain over-training. I will not go into details of my personal issues because we all have something going on in our lives that becomes “the excuse”… you all know what your excuse, or excuses are. In the beginning it was that I needed a break from training, I had gone so far, so fast and I was so high on life that I just kept going, and then I injured my right elbow and bicep badly during a sparring session… I could not even hold a cup of water with my right arm for 2 weeks, or start my car with my right hand! This led to about 3 weeks of fear and depression that I would not be able to maintain my routine combined with the beginnings of some business and personal problems I thought I was doomed. I figured I was able to use the machines at the gym to work around my injury as I slowly rehabbed my right arm back, and for a few months this actually worked… why?… because I went extra hard on the rest of my body and did cardio twice a day. In the end, I made my burnout even worse. But other things were lurking behind the scenes.

The burnout leads to a form of depression. The body rebels. I was frequently tired, angry, and worse of all, BEGAN TO FEEL GUILTY FOR THE WAY I WAS FEELING! Soon this led to slowly going off my strict nutrition routine and not working so hard at the gym and finally skipping the gym often. This is why I say the weakest muscle in the body is the 6 inches between your ears! I know the brain is not a muscle, but although it has amazing powers to push you to new heights, when you DON’T FORGIVE YOURSELF AND MOVE ON it will take you into that downward spiral.

The downward spiral can be many things… emotional eating, drinking, smoking, drastic diet change, depression, less sleep, and on and on.

So HERE IS MY TRUTH. I DID A BACKSLIDE. I GAINED 20 POUNDS IN A YEAR AFTER 3 AMAZINGLY HEALTHY YEARS. MOST OF THE WEIGHT GAIN IS SURELY FAT. I USED EVERY EXCUSE, BUT ESSENTIALLY THEY WERE LIES TO MYSELF. I HAVE LESS STAMINA, LESS STRENGTH AND I FEEL EXHAUSTED SOMETIMES. I KNOW PEOPLE SEE IT AND IT IS AT TIMES EMBARRASSING TO ME. AND NOW……………

I FORGIVE MYSELF!!!!

I want everyone out there feeling guilty over missing a sessions, or eating a greasy cheeseburger to immediately forgive themselves and know that in that moment YOU GET YOUR SECOND CHANCE… you start again. There will be many times over our lives we need to forgive ourselves, and many small battles will be lost, but even more battles will be won. LIFE IS NOT A STRAIGHT LINE… neither is our JOURNEY of WELLNESS. Now I look at the rest of my journey in a more practical way. I will not be the full time gym rat, because I have work and children and friends in my life and they deserve me just as much as I deserve them. I will congratulate myself for a job well done in the gym, just as I will forgive myself when I need to.

I would like to finish up here by thanking anyone who reads this, for you are my witness that I am HUMAN. Please check in and remind me sometimes via email… because I may forget soemtimes. I promise to do the same for you through this email/newsletter.

Whether you know me personally or just through this email, let’s stick together and encourage each other.. you know.. “IT TAKES A VILLAGE” sort of idea.

Breathe deep, be positive, FORGIVE YOURSELF AND MOVE ON!!!!

read at my pubisher page: http://community.icontact.com/p/bfit247/newsletters/bfit247/posts/forgive-yourself-to-better-health-corrected

I am Sick of the TrashTalk from PaintedGrrl

wallyj — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 05:59:21 +0000

OK.. so you all know about the BATTLE of the SEXES SMACKDOWN… but what I cannot believe is the amount of trash-talking crap coming out of PaintedGrrl.

I mean, I put up THE BUCKLE, and she put up NOTHING..only a bunch of empty words.

So I decided enough is enough.

WHEN I WIN…

I WANT…..

PAintedGrrl to SHINE MY BUCKLE while I am wearing it.

PAINTEDGRRL… if you are so confident… you should quickly accept… otherwise the world will know your true colors.

cast your vote or make a comment at our blogs or the thread here

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/photo/showphoto.php?photo=1211463&ppuser=2563091

BUCKLE & “D”, Bringing BUCKLE back in Kissimmee Florida

wallyj — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 05:50:17 +0000

So I am winding through the ORlando area with my kids… and of course wherever i go..so goes the BUCKLE. So I walk into a Blockbuster Video to pick soemthing up for the boys and as I am paying the dude says…”Hey man, I like your BUCKLE”. I thanked the young man and then looked to my family and said..”you hear what my man “D” just said? HE SAID NICE BUCKLE!”

Long story short, I explain to “D” about the BUCKLE tour, BodySpace, www.bFit247.com and such and he says let’s take a picture. Here it is… you know what "D"?…. dang nice BUCKLE yourself.

This ain’t the end of the story…and I believe things happen for a reason… just then "D" says, "I am down over 200 pounds". So I of course shake his hand, give him the lowdown on the BUCKLE and tell him to post up his story…

Now , I ask you, what are the odds that the BUCKLE walks into a video store in a strange town and has this thing unfold? There are no odds… it was meant to happen..because the BUCKLE is on a mission… I am delivering a message… so listen up.

Have a nice day.

Can PaintedGrrl beat The BUCKLE? The Battle of the Sexes IS ON!

wallyj — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 18:00:40 +0000

Not since September 20, 1973 , when Bobby Riggs Played Billy Jean King has there been such an epic battle of the sexes.

The BUCKLE threw down the challenge to PaintedGrrl at Gold’s gym in Lynchburg, VA on October 30, 2007. PaintedGrrl immediately accepted and witnesses said she needed to be restrained after the photo shoot of the face-off pictured here.

The challenge is for the largest drop in Body Fat % over 8 weeks. Both PaintedGrrl and BUCKLE are using the same undisclosed Fat Burner, and the winner will get…. THE BUCKLE!

When asked why he put up such a valuable prize for this Battle of the Sexes, BUCKLE responded, ” I am so confident in the outcome of this SMACKDOWN that I could have offered up all my BUCKLES and my home… I mean come on….she’s a Grrl”. This is where PaintedGrrl needed to be restrained.

Once PaintedGrrl was calmed by her trainer NicoleD she was quoted as saying, “I’m gonna bitch slap this dumb-ass”.

This battle is sure to have BodySpacers tuning in and taking sides over the next few weeks.

Cast your vote here on who will win the bodyfat battle of the sexes. Or better yet…someone start a thread.. because I don’t do the thread thing.

BUCKLE reveals his training secret to the WORLD!

wallyj — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 21:00:02 +0000

So I figured i would give my trainer Gary Schulman props here. I started working with GAry 2.5 years ago and we went from trainer/client to friends. GAry has worked with me to craft a multi year game plan that has progressed to to where I am today and i must thank him for that. Gary also publishes his newsletter through my www.bFit247.com sites newsletter campaign.

Gary is 47 years old and in damned good shape.. look at those abs..and he just ate an ice-cream sundae! Gary specializes in weight loss, private & group instruction (on and off-site training). Anyway, we agree on most things and share the same vision for fitness and how to deliver to the people that need it.

So PROPS to GARY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!

The Cowboy Code of Honor

wallyj — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 19:27:06 +0000

I was reminded this morning by a question from another member here.. she asked if I was a cowboy. I have this hanging on my wall in the office..it is probably in the background of some of my pics. Probably not a bad set of rules to stick to…. I WOULD ONLY ADD that a BUCKLE should be worn. please print and hang this code somewhere you’ll see it often.

COWBOY CODE OF HONOR (GENE AUTRY’S version)

A cowboy never takes unfair advantage — even of an enemy.

A cowboy never betrays a trust. He never goes back on his word.

A cowboy always tells the truth.

A cowboy is kind and gentle to small children, old folks, and animals.

A cowboy is free from racial and religious intolerance’s

A cowboy is always helpful when someone is in trouble.

A cowboy is always a good worker.

A cowboy respects womanhood, his parents and his nation’s laws.

A cowboy is clean about his person in thought, word, and deed.

A Cowboy is a Patriot.

BUCKLE Cardio today

wallyj — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 21:59:56 +0000

changed up my cardio a little today because my trainer and I got a little bored of what we were doing… here ya go.

warm up

jump rope - 1 minute

left/right combo punches on the bag - 1 minute

jump rope - 1 minute

right roundhouse kick - 1minute

left roundhouse kick - 1 minute

jump rope - 1 minute

left/right/left, right roundhouse kick 1 minute

jump rope - 1 minute

right/left/right, left roundhouse kick - 1 minute

jump rope - 1 minute

Burpee into pushup into right/left right combo, left roundhouse kick 10 reps

Jump Rope 1 minute

burpee into pushup into left/righ/left combo, right roundhouse kick 10 reps

jump rope - 1 minute

5 minutes of plyometric abs work with medicine ball

Try to minimize rest between steps.. only to grab a little water or if you cannot breath. It is a fairly intense 25 minute workout, definitely gets anaerobic during the burpee movements..30 including warmup

BUCKLE is Cooking it up again! Oatmeal/ProteinPlus Pancakes Kids LOVE ‘em

wallyj — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 19:05:11 +0000

OK, many people ask me what to eat for breakfast. When I respond I almost always eat egg whites or oatmeal I get the eye roll and a response that goes something like, “I HATE egg whites” or ” I cannot eat oatmeal”…when I ask why they cannot eat oatmeal the response comes back, “because I HATE OATMEAL”. I just kid, sort of, but the truth is these are important staple foods anyone truly interested in fitness and health should use. I believe people need to make a serious effort in working these foods into their diets. The reality is that , in the beginning, it may be difficult for people to start making the right nutritional adjustments… in fact, it is difficult because it is a learning process that takes time. So I decided to experiment with some new ideas and I came up with this recipe. The good news is it tasted REALLY good, to my wife, myself and most importantly my little one who loves sugar and spice and everything nice. Once it passed the KIDS test I figured I should pass it along to our bFit247.com subscribers and members.

In the recipe I use instant oatmeal because in the morning most of use are in a hurry (this could be a dessert also), and I prefer Kashi Go-lean as it has a higher protein value and flax seeds in it already, for the Omega-3 fatty acids. If you have another variety of oatmeal you can add flax seeds or oil.

OATMEAL-PROTEIN PANCAKES (made 4 medium pancakes)

1 Package Instant oatmeal

1 scoop Vanilla Protein(your choice)… I guess you could use chocolate if you prefer

2 tbls flax seeds or oil

2 tbls FiberSure ( I added this because most people do not get enough fiber and this product is great…blends right in and has no flavor)

3 tbls raisins

3-4 egg whites.

Cook the oatmeal as per the package Instructions. Then add in all the other ingredients except egg whites. Add the egg whites until it is the proper consitency for a batter. In a hot skillet ( I sprayed Canola oil for non stick) drop the batter and cook approx. 2 minuets per side. The oats are cooked already and egg whites cook quickly so watch carefully.

We enjoyed these with nothing else.. not even sugar free syrup.

You get your fiber, your protein and your carbs… NOW THERE IS SOMETHING NEW FOR BREAKFAST OTHER THAN EGG WHITES OR OATMEAL…sort of!

To email bFit247.com about this

article click HERE or just leave

me a comment!

BUCKLE hitting 300! fitnfirm with the assist

wallyj — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 07:00:25 +0000

the BUCKLE will promplty launch the BUCKLE 40o campaign as soon as the wheat berries are done cooking

THANK YOU FITnFIRM!!!

BUCKLE is cooking Wheat Berries here

wallyj — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 19:00:55 +0000

Ok.. so I was on the road for a LONG TRIP and you get to think alot on the road. I also had people asking me what I eat in general, but mostly concerned with breakfast. I can eat egg whites and oatmeal until the cows come home(speaking of cows…I can eat steak until they come home also), most people roll their eyes a bit and say something like, “I HATE egg whites”, or “I cannot eat oatmeal becaue I HATE IT”. I guess maybe I felt the same way at one point, but no more. So I decide to play around with some other breakfast ideas. Boiling up some wheat berries here and my plan is to try them in a few things. Maybe a wheatberry/fruited salad for breakfast, or I’ll try adding them to my oatmeal/protein pancakes. I’ll put the recipe and nutition info in the www.bFit247.com food database and community library once I fine tune it.

Good news is my little Billy just scarfed down the oatmeal/protein pancake fortified with fiber, flax and raisins.. absolutely amazing because he’s been eating tons of BAD breakfast and I hope this points him into a new direction. If it passes the kid test you know it’ll pass the adult test!

cooking wheat berries is easy and you do not need to soak overnight

2 cups red wheat berries (has more protein than the blonde variety)

7 cups water

optional- 1 tsp salt(i left it out)

bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cover. cooks in 1 to 1.5 hours, water is absorbed. you can store in fridge..maybe a week.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per 1/2 cup: 151 calories; 1 g fat (0 g sat, 0 g mono); 0 mg cholesterol; 29 g carbohydrate; 6 g protein; 4 g fiber; 263 mg sodium; 0 mg potassium.

Add me to your friend list please during the "BUCKLE 300" campaign!

All the Best!