This past weekend I had the opportunity to jump on a bus and go to Beantown. It was totally spur of the moment and I felt like I had a great time connecting with all of my Bostonian friends while I was up there. Many thanks to all who I had the chance to spend time with.
My buddy Angel and I take a serious picture while Greg Robins talks about powerlifting!
With this said, here are some things to read to start off your week:
There are many different “camps” of nutritional diets to follow, and John does a great job of detailing the differences and similarities between many of the “fad” diets prevalent today.
Spot reduction is the idea that if you perform a dedicated exercise, you will be able to reduce the fat that is visible in that muscle group. I think Jordan goes over the details in a very conversational tone that will allow anyone to understand the ideas surrounding this myth, so give it a quick read for that info.
This is a great post that details many sentiments that come along with strength training for women. If you or anyone you know has any issues with “getting too muscular”, this is definitely worth the read. As always,
I tend to hyperanalyze things. Hyper, in the sense that I have the tendency to extrapolate things out – not out of proportion, merely draw all the steps out in any given situation. This has its benefits – I can begin to tell you a few reasons why I don’t gamble in poker or blackjack, for example. It also has its negatives – as with any type of “overthinking”, there is the downward spiral of thinking that involves angst related worrying.
With this in mind, I tend to take the stance of taking action instead of going down that road of anxiety.
What if I miss my macros by 20g of protein? I missed my fasted cardio this morning because I overslept by 20 minutes. I can’t make up for it because I’m traveling and then I’ll be too tired from driving all day this week.
So, instead of worrying, I’d rather gather my losses, plan ahead to not make that same mistake, and move on.
With this in mind, I’m not a fan of excuses, complaining or general talk about “I coulda, shoulda, woulda…” I’ve always appreciated that to get results that matter, you need to put in some work. I’ve also always appreciated that in order to get great results you need to fall in love with the process of achieving greatness.
One thing I can understand is that not everyone is of the same mindset, and some of us do in fact use that “coulda/shoulda/woulda” talk. And I respect that, because everyone goes through different mental bouts or struggles.
However, once you go through whatever method of therapy you choose to go through, the question then remains – what is your next move? Sitting on a psychological problem and hemming and hawing won’t achieve any visceral results. Go see a therapist already. That is what they are there for – to talk with and figure things out. Or resolve your issue in person, whatever the issue is.
After you figure it out, you can now begin the process of achieving real results.
One question I ask myself almost daily is, “What is limiting you?”
For Howard Stark, his limitations in technology within his current time limited him from creating a new element – in which his son, Tony Starks, portrayed by Robert Downey Jr., later discovered with the help of his father’s work.
Superhero movie talk aside, there is something fascinating to me about making due with what your current resources currently have. Obviously optimal is the ideal mindset, but what will you do if you don’t have the resources for every little detail planned to the “T”?
Here is an off-the-cuff, no excuses list of things you can do for 30 minutes for the fitness-stressed individual.
What I included were a few logical rationale if anyone has any barriers towards these actions, along with the specific timeframes that these items would take me to perform. For others, it may take longer of course.
One of the missing points when comparing apples to apples is that sometimes the process for a result is misunderstood, or simply not hashed out. It is when a plan can be reverse engineered that a goal can be achieved.
I have a dream fantasy of appearing in a kung fu action flick. However, this would take years of practicing tricking, perhaps some type of martial arts (what a thought!), along with developing the network that would allow me to do so. I am on a different path, perhaps adjacent to, but not directly in line with me performing in a specific situation such as this.
However, fitness and health, for whatever reason, are thrown upon some pedestal with which it may be impossible to “achieve” such fitness. It does not have to be, and I outlined several bulletpoints that have rationale along with the process towards achieving success in “fitness”.
Foam rolling has several benefits towards improving range of motion, increasing ischemic blood flow to hypoxic tissue, and decreasing neurological tension in some muscle groups.
Positional breathing drills have several important implications, largely aiming to reduce sympathetic tone, and improving neurological positioning of muscles.
A dynamic warm-up can improve blood flow to specific muscle groups, improve neurological movement patterns, along with improving movement quality of mobility-deprived joints.
2. Perform KB Swings and Push-Ups in a ladder or circuit-like fashion. (Time = 10-20 minutes)
For a circuit: Perform 10 KB Swings, and then 10 push-ups. Rest for 60 seconds. Perform for 8 to 10 sets.
For a ladder: Perform 1 KB Swing, and 1 push-up. Rest for 60 seconds. After, perform 2 KB swings, and 2 push-ups. Rest for 60 seconds. Repeat to 10 KB Swings, 10 push-ups. When you reach 10/10, go back down the “ladder”.
3. Perform positional breathing drills, jump rope, and then deadlift. (Time = 30 minutes)
Breathing Drills = 5 Minutes (to get into a better position)
Jump Rope = 3-5 Minutes (to work up a sweat)
Deadlift (or insert large compound movement) = 20 minutes
Work up to a heavy set, or do multiple sets at a lower percentage of 1RM.
Psychological/Mental List of Things to Do
1. Examine your triggers and learn why you may be destroying your fitness oriented efforts. (Time = 1-30+ minutes)
Reflecting introspectively why you behave the way you do can be a bit foreign to those not used to thinking like this, so let me walk you through the process.
First, identify negative habit. (My habit is over-eating carbs at night.)
Next, identify why habit may exist. (Perhaps I am bored, need to appease my oral fixation while watching TV, reading too much and want a mental break, or am simply hungry.)
Provide solutions to curb negative habit. (Get rid of carbs from surroundings, put a timeline on reading to prevent staying up later than necessary, or find a more satiety-oriented food that will help curb appetite – such as increasing protein sources.)
2. Go for a walk around your neighborhood. (Time = 5-30+minutes)
Instead of looking at your phone/laptop as soon as you wake up, put your phone on airplane mode when you wake up, and take a walk.
The arbitrary act of walking is not the end goal, rather it is the means with which to increase blood flow throughout the circulatory system globally.
Also, nature is beautiful. Look around once in a while, hear the birds sing, and smell some fresh air.
3. Delete numbers, defriend/delete Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/etc. (Time = 5-30 minutes, depending on amount of contacts; or 10 seconds to delete your social media apps)
Reduce your digital footprint in order to declutter your necessity to cling to “things”, your “identity”, and decrease your need for social media triggers.
If you don’t have Facebook/Twitter/Instagram on your phone, you won’t use it, check it, and won’t have anything to worry about. It’ll be like pre-2005 all over again.
4. Turn your phone off, and ask your significant other how they are doing. (Time = 5 seconds to turn phone off, 5 seconds to ask your family/friend/significant other how they are doing)
Care about those who surround you immediately. Often the “now” is lost for fear of missing out, fear of loss, anxiety, etc.
If you don’t have a phone to check on others, what will you identify with?
See Fight Club anachronism,
“You are not your phone/job/car/physique.”
5. Text or call your family/friend/significant other and tell them “I love you.” (Time = 5 seconds to text, 5 seconds to 30+ minutes to wait for response; although that isn’t the point.)
See above.
6. Read a book/download podcasts that will mentally stimulate and/or challenge your current thought process. (Time = 5 to 30+minutes, depending on length of podcast/book, and you can pick up where you left off relatively easy.)
Your thoughts shape how you act.
If you don’t have any thoughts, how will you act?
Nutritional List of Things to Do
1. Learn how to cook. (Time = 5-30+minutes, although for minimum effective doseage, it is fairly simple to pick up this skill. For further enhancement of “cooking” for flavor, style, and other items, it is a lifelong skill.)
Foster an attitude of independence, and take responsibility for what is entering your body nutritionally.
Food is energy.
If you can’t cook, do you know the source of your energy?
2. Cook chicken/beef/[insert protein source]. Throw some veggies in a pan and boil for a few minutes. (Time = Approximately 30 Minutes)
Chicken takes 5 minutes to prep, 20-25 minutes to bake, and 5 minutes to chop up and put in a Tupperware for later.
Boiling veggies simultaneously while you bake your chicken will allow you to save time.
3. Identify what foods are negative triggers (that you have in your immediate surrounding or that you enjoy) towards binging, and make a physical note of them (or gather them). (Time = 5-30 minutes)
4. Raid your fridge, pantry, and under your bed for everything that is a negative trigger that will cause you to go down a downward spiral from a healthy eating point of view. (Time = 30+ minutes)
Getting rid of triggers is a crucial habit that many do not identify with regards to improving habits.
Recovering alcoholics generally do not bode well being surrounded by alcohol.
Should you surround yourself with negative triggers if you are attempting to curb a habit of overeating?
5. Make smoothies consisting of fruits, protein powder, and/or greens. (Time = 10-20 minutes)
Instead of wholly getting rid of negative habits, only to have other habits rear their head in its place, replace the negative habit with a positive habit.
Identify a well intentioned protein source, greens supplement, and locally grown fruit/veggies.
Recovery List of Things to Use/Buy
1. Buy a sleep mask to block out light. (Time = < 5 minutes)
By blocking out light, you are reducing your visual input that is interpreted via your brain, which in essence should reduce your sympathetic tone.
“Red or amber light doesn’t appear to wreck melatonin and sleep as much as blue or white light.” ~Anthony Mychal
Hopefully these are some helpful tips to get you going towards a healthier lifestyle.
Notice that there is no motivational video here to get you started in the morning. To me, those may serve as mental masturbation videos that do nothing but to get you fired up – but do nothing to give you an actionable plan towards achieving real results.
Also notice that there is no running listed as a form of “exercise”.
Along with my death, I’m fearful that I won’t live a fulfilled and purposeful life.
At some point in the near future (since time is relative), I’m going to die.
I don’t look at the fact that I’m going to die as a fearful item, but rather a fact of life.
“When exactly?” That is the real question.
So in typical fashion, I Googled these search terms, and got these results.
Average Lifespan of a Male in United States (Male 77.4 Years) – Source Wikipedia
Average Lifespan in Philippines (Male 69.5 Years) – Source = Wikipedia
Average Life Expectancy in Philippines (Male 69.26 Years) – Source = IndexMundi.com
While I wasn’t raised in the Philippines, I believe my biological origins and culture has a large influence on how I was raised mentally via influenced traditions, foods which shape my health, among other items that can shape my future such as behavior, habits, and so on.
All I know is I can compare apples to apples and say that the average male lives longer in the United States than in the Philippines. Now whether that is due to health coverage, better preventative measures, or just generally being in a safer environment (living in the suburbs can generally be regarded as safe, as opposed to me living in the middle of north Philadelphia, aka Temple University), is up in the air.
If I average the 3 results, I come up with 72 years of age.
If I start with what I got (Male, Filipino), I end with 69 years of age.
If I look at the difference with the average Filipino life expectancy, along with the United States average male life expectancy, there is a 8 year buffer zone.
Did I gain 8 years of life by being raised in the United States?
I’m not sure. Who can tell?
If I take the average (72 years of age) and take the outlier of 8 years out (77 year old male in the U.S.), I have a 4 to 8 year buffer zone to play with at the end of my “expected” lifespan (69 +/- 4 to 8 years).
This is opposed to Monaco, the number one in life expectancy with 85 years of age on average, or an extra 13 years if you add it to my average expected lifespan.
On top of this, if I take into account my “healthy” lifestyle habits, and relatively low risk taking lifestyle (straight edge, I don’t do drugs, I generally don’t seek to drive fast cars, I don’t smoke, so on and so forth), I think I can tack a few years onto my life.
Why am I focusing on how much time I have left to live?
Today is my 26th birthday.
If I have 72 some odd years left to live, I have approximately 46 more years to live.
I’ve lived over a third of my life already.
That’s a minuscule drop in the bucket in the time that the Earth has been circling this sun.
And even more frighteningly and agnostically, does it even matter?
So, that is the quantitative aspect involved with living.
What about quality of life?
Am I happy?
I think this is the number one question that almost everyone my age (or, essentially everyone at any age ever) is thinking about. There have been numerous TED Talks on happiness, decision making, along with finding the secrets of happiness.
The lesson I want to leave you with from these data is that our longings and our worries are both to some degree overblown, because we have within us the capacity to manufacture the very commodity we are constantly chasing when we choose experience. ~Dan Gilbert
Now, take into account the 46 years I have left to live, give or take a few years, let’s round up to 50 more years of life to live.
The next step is to analyze how I want to live those next 50 years.
Do I find a greater purpose?
Do I seek hedonism and seek to please my pre-frontal cortex at all times of the day and night?
Source: The Art of Manliness
Without going on anymore than I have already gone on, I believe I have already determined my answer for myself, and while uncomfortable for others to synthesize and realize, I’m more than fully capable of accepting the fullness of what I’m about to say.
I don’t think I need to chase “happy” in order to live a full life.
Let me explain.
James Altucher, entrepreneur and hedge fund manager, had this to say about the word “happy” on The Tim Ferriss Show recently,
Happy is a bad word because happy is related to the word “happenstance” which is some outcome, outside of yourself. I prefer to become and peaceful even, rather than happy.
There will be ups, there will be downs.
Those ups will be awesome. Those downs will be pretty terrible.
But as long as I have a higher and more specific purpose, then it is more likely that I will be able to lead a more fulfilled tomorrow, on top of a more fulfilled 50 some odd years of life I have left to live (hypothetically).
What is your purpose then?
Let me preface this statement by saying I was not prompted by any individual who questioned me. This is me being a “Devil’s Advocate”.
My higher purpose at this point is to help others live their own lives.
The platform I have chosen to do so involves health.
The specific vehicle I am driving within this platform involves sports performance, fitness, and overall well being (health).
Within this context, I can utilize several creative, and yet different avenues:
Well, in more ways than one, my life experiences have driven me to understand that I am just a physical vessel that is placed on this temporary physical world, and if I can help others along their journey in this world, then I’ll do it.
In the past I’ve said “yes” to multiple professional and personal opportunities, “no” to many similar chances, and on a mental level, I’ve come to the conclusion that my time is better served helping others.
If I can help ease your psychological worries, I’ll do my best at attempting that.
If I can help ease your physical worries and provide you the best platform with which to perform, I’ll do my best at building that foundation for you.
Who do you think you are?
I’m not an angel. I have faults. I am prone to the human condition of feelings, desires, and wants. But my desires will take a tertiary priority to the needs of those who enlist my help either through professional hiring, or personal relationships.
How will you and how have you used your time?
I don’t think I need extended vacations in order to “unwind”. The idea of an external source providing a sense of comfort and mental relaxation is secondary to an internal source of relief that I can find through flexing my internal locus of control.
I am attempting to finish up pre-reqs for Physical Therapy school, but I am doubtful as to the necessity for higher education in order to fulfill my specific purpose that I’ve outlined here.
I rarely sleep a full 8 hours, and when I do it is a cause of forced sleep because I need to catch up on it from the weekday.
I coach athletes, work with general population folks, read on how I can improve their lives, along with writing and programming for multiple clients online, abroad, and on multiple platforms.
So what now?
I somehow always end up deeply reflecting whenever my birthday comes around, as it signifies a thought process of, “Wow, one year has passed. What have I learned in this time? What can I improve upon?”
1. Time is literally of the essence.
If I take into account how much time I have left on this planet, then I can reverse engineer the life that I want to lead and live.
If you can choose who you spend your time with, and who you surround yourself with, then that will be a great determining factor for how much potential you have to live your life and live your purpose.
2. Develop a model that will bring about success towards your life purpose.
I’m jealous of those who have directed their life purpose towards being happy by any means necessary.
Jealous, because it is very easy to be happy.
Cancel all of my appointments tomorrow, and give me an Xbox controller, some pizza, soda, and copies of Halos 1 through 4 with 15 friends.
Accomplishing something and living a life of purpose, on the other hand, is relatively difficult.
Develop a model that will bring about success. Risk versus reward, is the process worth the outcome? These are valuable to think about
3. Magnification of an issue is what usually leads to confusion, arguments, and generally speaking, conflict.
What are you really discussing?
Most of the time it is minutia.
Pick your battles, and move on. Some things are worth fighting for – some dying for.
Others are not worth your time.
4. Find a mentor, and visceralize what makes him or her tick.
I’ve done this pretty successfully, if I can say so with some degree of confidence.
Eric Cressey is a phenom of a mentor when it comes to blending business acumen and the fitness and strength and conditioning industry.
Kevin Neeld is a role model that any leader and strength coach should aspire to be.
And of course, apart from explicit lessons that I take away from the above mentors, I also believe in the idea of implicit or implied mentors from reading, listening (podcasts), observing, and absorbing information from others as well. It is a multi-faceted experience to always improve and adjust my current model of approaching life.
If my current models of “mentor” don’t live up to my expectations, I’m not bound to that idealized version. I can let go.
However, in order to get to where you want to go, you need to step outside of your comfort zone.
From here, find someone who has done what you want to do, and more or less copy what makes them successful at their given craft.
Then do your own thing afterwards.
5. Choose your words carefully.
“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits.
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.”
~Mahatma Gandhi
As a coach, I found that after having a limited amount of time with a large group of athletes, I don’t necessarily have as much time as I’d like to have catching up and B.S.ing with him or her like I normally would if I were to talk with them one on one, as if I were in a personal training mentality.
I had to choose my words even more carefully than before. I don’t necessarily have the luxury of utilizing a story to tell someone how to move better. I had to be clear, distinct, almost military-like with my cuing and commands.
And then after they understand, rapport building can be developed upon.
So if I take that approach of watching my words outside of the context of my professional life, I can begin to see how my words affect how people view me, understand me, and how they react to what I am saying.
Words have power.
6. Develop a system to mentally enhance my creativity and productivity.
In the past couple days, it has been evident to me that I spend entirely too much time looking at my phone.
So, simple solution for me was to turn my phone on “Airplane” mode whenever I don’t need it.
This limits me from checking it since I’m not connected.
Also, I have started using this one app for my Mac called “Self Control”. There are other apps very similar, but it simply restricts access to websites for a specific amount of time. My “triggers” that I’ve been aiming to curb involve hopping online and immediately checking Facebook, my email, Twitter, and my phone.
If I wake up to a phone that is in Airplane mode, and a laptop that has Self Control, and since I don’t even watch TV to begin with, I am free to think and create for myself and my projects.
With that said, since Facebook and my phone are the epitome of birthday “updates”, I’m sure you can imagine what I’m going to do next.
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If anything, hopefully this provides you more insight as to how my mind has changed, adapted, and improved in the last year. Perhaps this is simply a list for me to look back on when I turn 27 next year.
While I wasn’t raised in the Philippines, I believe my biological origins and culture has a large influence on how I was raised mentally via influenced traditions, foods which shape my health, among other items that can shape my future such as behavior, habits, and so on.
