The Men of Exercise RX.

I would like to dedicate this post to the men of Exercise RX. For those of you who may not be aware, this is the New England Senior League Hockey team that I currently signed a long term deal with for the winter. Right now I believe we are 9-4 in league play. Last night we had a huge 10-5 win over the Griffs that turned out to be a real confidence builder. We are so hot right now that as long as we "just show up and lace up the skates" we are almost guaranteed victory (Tilli).

In thinking of a way to tie this back into health and fitness, it really wasn't too hard. If you take a look around the locker room, as a squad, we really are not a "beacon" of physical health. This is a team full of ex-Hockey east, NESCAC, and ECAC hockey guys who have gotten pretty out of shape since the glory days (sorry boys). If I had to guess, I would say that this specific population is so used to structure in their training programs in the way of practice and team lifts, that when released into the wild they walk around the gym aimlessly without a plan. Because of my man love for everyone on the team, I am going to put together a small program that should get you on the right track.

When thinking about a program for this population, there are some important things to consider:

1. Most guys have some left over nagging injuries from years of abuse.

2. Most guys have good jobs where they spend the better part of the day sitting down at a desk.

3. Most guys could use some tweaking in their diet.

4. Most guys are interested or should be interested in some fat loss.

So here is what I am thinking:

Monday: I know you guys had a monster night Saturday where you had 12-15 beers at the local watering hole (chances are, so did I), so we need to get some work done here.

Go to the gym, get a good warmup in, and perform the following.

1. Stationary reverse lunge with 25 lb DBs in hand (3 reps each leg)

2. Pullups any grip you like (use the assisted machine if need be) (perform 3 reps)

3. seated russian twists with medicine ball or light plate (5 reps each side)

taking as little rest as possible complete 8 sets.

Tuesday: We usually have a game on Tuesday Nights, so as long as you don't eat like an idiot, this will be enough of a workout.

Wednesday: Go to the gym and perform the following.

1. Pushups (5 reps)

2. Dumbell Row (5 reps each arm)

3. Side planks (30 seconds each side)

taking as little rest as possible perform 8 sets.

Thursday: Get back in the gym.

1. Standing DB overhead press (5 reps)

2. Pullups (different grip than Monday) (5 reps)

3. Step Ups on a bench (bodyweight only, 5 reps each side)

taking as little rest as possible, perform 8 reps

Friday, Saturday, or Sunday

Jump on a bike or a treadmill and do some intervals. 30 seconds of work followed by 60 seconds at a recovery pace for 10 reps.

So boys, there you have it. These workouts will take 30 minutes to perform (maybe less) and will be a hell of a lot harder than what you usually do at the gym.

Anyone else who may be following along, these workouts will work for you too. If you want a more individual approach I would be happy to help. My online coaching offering is $49 dollars per month (mandatory 3 month commitment) for personalized diet and training plans.

Let's Get After it,

TSull

PS. You can youtube most of these exercises for a video demonstration.

Lead from the front...

Any leader worth anything knows that you have to lead from the front. You can't hide behind words and inaction. This entry will be about how I plan to set an example for my clients. I really hate it when I hear someone giving advice or sharing some insight on a subject that they have no business advising on. Some examples:

1. Fat Personal Trainers. Trainers who have their clients performing things that they couldn't do if their life depended on it. For this reason alone, I make sure I can perform the tasks I am asking of my clients and athletes at a high level.

2. Business Consultants who have never been in business for themselves. Why would I listen to a guy tell me how to run my business when he gets a guaranteed paycheck from a corporation every two weeks? I want advice form a guy who once was eating Ramen Noodles, sleeping in a shitty apartment, driving a 93 Corolla, and now is eating at Abe and Louie's, owning a condo downtown, and driving a beautiful sled because he built his business to support his lifestyle.

3. John Clayton. This guy is an NFL analyst (see picture above) whose opinion comes highly regarded from sports fans everywhere. I mean this guy is an authority on a sport played by the world's greatest athletes? Look at him.

Where am I going with all of this?

Well this holiday season I would guess that I probably put on 8 or 10 pounds of body fat by eating and drinking pretty much exactly what I wanted, when I wanted. Did I have fun? You bet I did. But now it is time for me to dial it back in and get really lean again. Here is how I plan on doing it, and how you should plan as well.

1. I will be eliminating starchy carbs altogether except at breakfast.

2. I will drink a gallon of water everday.

3. I will lift heavy weights 4 times per week to preserve the mucle mass I have built.

4. I will add 3 sessions of high intensity cardio during the week.

5. I will make sure my carbs come in the form of a variety of fruit and veggies.

6. I will make sure I consume a lean protein at every meal.

7. I will eat 6 meals per day.

8. I will take a break from my diet every Sunday.

I realize that not eveyone has the luxury of owning a gym and spending most of your time there, but I do believe you could implement a lot of the changes I am making and see some serious progress.

By March 31st, I plan on being 190 lbs of twisted steel. Where do you plan on being?

Let me help you get there.

Lets Get After It,

TS

tssullivanjr@gmail.com

781 831 3901

New Years Resolutions

During this time of year, it has become increasingly popular to come up with extravagant "resolutions" to accomplish during the upcoming New Year. Resolutions have probably been around as long as humans have used the current calendar system. Who can resist the urge? It makes perfect sense, with a brand new year coming up many people look at it as a fresh start or a brand new opportunity to attain a goal they have in their mind. So what do I think about New Years Resolutions?

I think waiting until New Years to declare a goal that has any personal value to you is retarded. If its worth doing at all, why not just set out on your goal now? Let's look at some common resolutions.

1. Lose weight

2. Read more books

3. Sell more products

4. Make more money

5. Exercise more

6. Eat better

Can we all agree that these are the most common ones we hear? I would be willing to bet you a month's pay that Harry McGuillicutty who tells you he plans to lose 20 pounds this year will have a different resolution for 2010; to lose 30 pounds. Same goes for the other ones. Why not put them on a dart board and throw a few darts and go with whichever one they land on?

Don't misunderstand me, however. I am HUGE into goal setting and achieving. I just think to wait until New Years is a mentally weak thing to do. It is just following the masses, who are usually wrong anyway. It is taking the easy way out.

If you must set a resolution, below is a way to do it MUCH more effectively.

Actions

1. Open up Microsft Powerpoint immediately.

2. Save this new slide deck as "JohnSmith2009Goals.ppt"

3. Create three slides. At the top of one slide, write "2009 Career Goals". Slides 2 and 3 become "2009 personal goals". I think you will need two slides for personal goals, because in my mind "personal" canvases a whole variety of things.

4. On slide one, set 3 career goals. If you write "make more money", go ahead and throw yourself out a window. If that is your goal, write "make 125,000 in 2009" and then go ahead and write underneath that exactly how you plan to do so. BE SPECIFIC or don't bother.

5. For your personal slides, write whatever goals you want to accomplish outside of work. BE SPECIFIC. A few of my personal goals are "Drive a brand new, black, Dodge Ram pickup truck by March 1st". Another is to Visit Mexico before next summer to surf for 7 days, sleep in a tent, and go fishing with locals. They need to be specific and measurable and bonus points if you attach a date because it will give you a sense of urgency.

6. Let's tackle a health and fitness goal. "Lose Weight" may as well be "F*ck Off". Lose Weight doesn't mean anything, you could just cut your hair, wear lighter clothing and have a bowel movement. Guess what, you have just lost weight. A better goal is to "Be at 10 percent body fat, with visible abs, by April 1st, 2009". From here you can now make a plan to go about getting to 10 percent bodyfat.

7. Print this slide deck out and hang it on the fridge, keep one in your gym bag, email it to a close friend, put one in the office, and anywhere else you are bound to be slapped in the face by it everyday. Email it to me if you want and I will check with you periodically to see if you are on track.

Summary

1. Don't wait. Start Now.

2. Be as specific as you possibly can.

3. Put it in public places to help you be accountable. Give a copy to a friend to help you and ask for theirs.

4. If "10 percent body fat with visible abs is in your future, let me put your plan together for you, and train you a couple of times per week. I can guarantee I will help you reach your goals.

5. Aim high, miss high. If you say earn 150k this year, and only earn 138k but last year made 70k, chalk that up in the win column.

Happy New Year.

TS

tssullivanjr@gmail.com

781 831 3901

Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas everybody, I hope you are spending the next few days relaxing with family and friends. I know I will. Couple things:

1. I am having a big group workout tomorrow at 10am at the gym. If you are interested, get in touch with me. PS. It is free.

2. As far as the holidays go, do not try to diet through the holidays. Eat and drink whatever you want, try to get a few training sessions in, and then dial it up come January 2nd. I heard a line the other day that goes, "Don't eat well from Christmas to New Years, eat well from New Years to Christmas."

3. I will update the blog in the next couple of days with my thoughts on New Years resolutions.


Have a great day,

TS

5 Things to Change Today: For the girls...

After a couple of requests this weekend, I have decided to write a post for the women who follow the blog. I will lay out a couple of things that women do poorly (not all women, but most), and then some solutions.

1. Not eating enough protein. Almost all of the women I have worked with are way to low in their consumption of protein.

2. Too much steady state cardio. Steady state cardio is the type where you hop on an elliptical, or stair stepper and go at the same pace for 15 minutes or longer.

3. Not doing any weight lifting and being afraid that weights will make you big and bulky.

4. Eating way too few calories.

5. Having the wrong goals.

Solutions:

1. Pretty easy fix. Start eating more protein. A few easy ways to do this would be to eat eggs in the morning, and then make sure to have some lean protein at every meal. Chicken, fish, meat, turkey, etc are all good choices. If you still are too low, think about a protein shake once or twice per day. This will not make you fat or big.

2. If you must do all of the cardio you currently do, you have to change it to intervals. Try an interval where you exert some serious effort for 30 seconds, then you slow the pace to a recovery pace for 1 minute. Repeat for 6-8 times and you have just performed a much more beneficial cardio session.

3. Weight lifting will not make you big. People don't put on muscle by accident. Think about how stupid that sounds, woops I got too big. Plus most of you wouldn't work hard enough to put on serious muscle. Weight lifting will however burn a ton of calories and make you look much harder. If you don't know how have someone show you the basics like squats, pullups, pushups, presses, etc.

4. If you are currently training hard, you probably aren't eating enough calories. A perfect recipe for looking like you have an eating disorder would be to do a ton of muscle wasting, steady state cardio, and then eat nothing but salad. You want to preserve your lean muscle, this is the stuff that makes you look attractive in the first place.

5. If you are skinny to begin with, you shouldn't be trying to lose weight. You should try to build some lean muscle, you will look way better. If you are trying to add some lean muscle, you should make sure your training program is correctly structured to help you reach your goals.

If you need help, drop me a line at tssullivanjr@gmail.com

Do your workouts look like this?

Its 5:30 pm after a long day at the office and you drag yourself over to the gym to get a "workout" in. You walk in the gym, do a few side bends, static hamstring stretches, and you are ready to go. If you are a guy, you head over to the bench do 2-3 warmup sets and then 1 or 2 more difficult sets with the same weight you have used since high school. Maybe you head over to the seated shoulder press machine and bang out three sets. Then you walk over to the bike and pedal at level 2 for 20 minutes (which is usually 15 minutes, you just tell everyone 20 minutes). If you are a girl, you head straight for the elliptical with US Weekly and go for 20 minutes on a machine that makes you look foolish. Guess what folks. Your workouts suck.

Solutions:

1. First off, don't call it "working out". What the hell does that even mean? Call it training. This changes your mindset completely and makes it feel like you are working out with a purpose.

2. So what is your purpose in going in to the gym three times per week? Come up with a specific goal and a specific timeline for reaching it. Otherwise you are wasting your time.

3. Do things no one else does. Look around the office, not one person there could do 10 strict pullups. You hardly ever see anyone doing them. So make it your goal to work up to 10 pullups, you will be thanked with a muscular back and shoulders. Also learn how to squat properly, deadlift, press, dip, and do real pushups. No one does them or does them correctly except for the people who have great physiques. That should tell you something.

4. Have a plan and keep a log.

5. If you need help with a program, ask me. tssullivanjr@gmail.com

The Eagle Has Landed

Congratulations to Eddie O'Connor who has been accepted early decision to Bowdoin College and will play for the Polar Bears next winter. Eddie trained at Sullivan Training Systems this summer and fall in preparation for his final year at Noble and Greenough in Dedham. Ed put in loads of hard work this offseason and the results were excellent.