Believe it or not, there are some people that get frustrated hearing me talk about fitness, nutrition, etc, or reading my blog or Facebook statuses about it.  They don’t like the talk about exercise.  They think it’s “obsessive.”

And they are probably some of the ones who need it the most!

Listen, I’ll be honest:  If I had to choose between exercise and not exercise and still get to where I want to go, I’d choose no exercise.  It takes time.  It takes sweat.  It’s not always easy.  It’s hard waking up at 5:15 or 5:30 or earlier every morning to make sure I do what I need to do.  And it’s even harder when I’m injured or slightly sick and having to modify or work through things.

Do you think I want to give up things that taste awesome?  I MISS CHEESECAKE!

I love all of that stuff.  I love sleeping until just enough time to get ready for work, getting my job done, and then sitting on my butt watching TV snacking.  I love all of that.

But….I hate how I feel.  I hate looking fat and bloated.  I hate feeling like I’m not building any strength.  I hate not having the same level of energy I have when I exercise.  I hate feeling less accomplished.

More than that, I hate the horrible example I set for my kids if I do not take care of myself.

You see, talking about exercise is more than just me trying to run my Beachbody business.  It is something I’m ingraining in myself.  It’s something that I constantly have to motivate myself to do, and being accountable and talking about it online is just one way of going about it.  I know by doing this, I’ll do the work.  I’ll set the example.  My kids will learn good eating habits, the importance of exercise, etc.

They won’t grow up lazy and obese.  They’ll want to play.  They’ll want to be active.  Why?  Because they see their mom and dad being active.

I’m sorry I want to be around a long time for my kids.  I want to be there to walk all three of my girls down the alter.  I want to avoid type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and all the other nasty stuff that comes with being overweight and obese.

Sure, I want to look good, but this goes way beyond that.

So I don’t apologize for my lifestyle, or talking about it online.  If you don’t like it, feel free to not follow my statuses.  But do me one favor first:  Put on a bathing suit and look at yourself in the mirror.  Go ahead….do it.  Do you like what you see?  Do you want to change?  I’m not saying you have to be a muscled out male model, or a Victoria Secret Angel….but do you REALLY like what you see?

You see, I didn’t.  I still don’t.  I want to look better.  But more than the aesthetics, I know that living this lifestyle is something I need to do for my family as much as it is for me.

No, I don’t apologize for my lifestyle, or posting it.  Why?  Because if keeping me accountable helps just one person change their life, then I’ve done my job.  If doing this keeps my kids healthy, then I’ve done my job.

What example are you setting for your kids?

So no, I don’t apologize.  Don’t like it?  Don’t read it.  But don’t complain about the way you look and feel, either.

This week is a recovery week, which means lots of Yoga, Core Syngerstics, a day of stretching, etc.  And, at the same time, I’m fighting a bicep tendon issue in my left arm as well as shoulders still not being 100%.  So I had a choice to make:

Do I do the P90X recovery week as prescribed, or do I rest/rehab this week?

I chose rest and rehab.  Those routines will always be there for me to do.  But my shoulders and biceps need rest.  They need a chance to not be strained for a bit and get the therapy a chance to kick back in.  So, for 2 weeks (not 1), I’m concentrating on PT three days a week, a day of extra cardio, a day where I will stretch, and then not much else.  I want to focus on recovery.  I want to feel better.  And I’ll watch my calories and primal eating that much more closely these two weeks.

I still plan on measuring this week and will probably choose to measure next week as well.

The point of this post?  This is a “listen to your body” moment.  I could have pushed through, and I could have hurt myself.  Instead, I’m taking it easy for 2 weeks, re-evaluate then, and make the right decision.

First, let me stress that you should always listen to your doctor or physical therapist.  They know best.  If you want to continue to train with P90X, ask them about it first, and then follow any modifications they may have.

Here is what I have discovered is best:

Push-ups:  Doing these from plank is okay if you can do them pain free.  But, if you are having shoulder issues, you probably are not pain free doing these.  Here’s my suggestion:  Do them from your knees.  Focus on form.  Bring your shoulder blades together, keep your body tight and straight, and only go through a pain free range of motion.

As you get stronger, incorporate medicine balls and do not go as deep.  Instead, focus on form and keeping stable.

Pull-ups:  If shoulders are bothering you, do the pull-ups to a 90 degree angle with the upper and lower arm, but never go past that until released from your doctor or therapist.  Make sure to use an assist too.  I personally use the pull-up assist Beachbody sells and it works great for this.

Bicep Curls:  You wouldn’t think that bicep work could cause shoulder issues, but if you are dealing with impingement in the front of the shoulder you may notice that bicep work causes inflammation, tenderness in the upper arm and up by the collar bone (just below it, near the shoulder actually).  You can still do curls, but you may want to lighten your load.

Triceps:  Do these through a pain free range of motion, and may want to consider less weight.

Shoulders: Overhead/Military Presses/Deep Swimmers Press – Be careful here!  If you are impinging, these will not feel good.  Talk to your doctor/therapist before attempting these.

Upright Rows – Usually pretty safe if you are in a strengthening phase of rehab.  Again, focus on pain free range of motion.

Shoulder Flys – Pain free range of motion only.  When doing straight arm shoulder flys do not go directly out to your side.  Instead bring the weights in a bit.  It puts less stress on the shoulder, will cause less injury, but still works the same muscle groups.

Back work (Lawnmowers, back flys, etc):  I have not had too much discomfort with these.  My therapist did like the idea of me working these muscle groups.  If you can do these without pain, do it.

More than anything (and read this in your best Tony Horton-esque voice):  Modify, modify, modify if you need to!  Listen to your body and do the right thing.

For starters, I’m taking 2 recovery weeks.  Yes, that’s right….two.  I think it is best for my shoulders that I take a bit longer to rehab them in recovery.  Phase 2 can be brutal.  The shoulders are feeling okay minus the left bicep tendon (deep discomfort here).  I think two weeks of just doing PT and swapping in P90X2′s Recovery and Mobility will do me a lot of good.

Then I’ll hit phase 2, recovered, and hopefully stronger.

For my diet, I ran across an article from Mark’s Daily Apple forums about the effect of low/no carb breakfast with heavier carb suppers.  The results were greater weight loss, better leptin levels, better sleep, etc.  So I have started making that shift for the next 2 weeks and see how it goes.

That’s all for today.  Plyo rocked…my world again.  This routine never gets easier!

Which is counter-productive to the Primal Blueprint diet.

Instead of a 50/30/20 protein/carb/fat ration, I’m aiming for something that looks like 50/35/15 fat/protein/carb ratio.

And ideally, I’d rather be 55/30/15.

So in calculating what I’ve been doing while doing P90X, I’ve learned that I’m a bit low on carbs (need to be around 70-80g more often), okay on protein, and okay on fat.

Except there is one problem:  I’m not eating enough!  When I add things up, if I get to 1800 calories a day, I’m having a good day.  Now, I”m only eating 3 times a day.  I eat when I’m hungry, and eat until I’m full.  But now I’m wondering if I need to eat more often, maybe a nighttime snack (I get full at supper, but feel a bit hungry before bed sometimes).

For instance, tonight I had a pork chop, good amount of veggies, and some sweet potato/bacon hash (yes, the potato was cooked in bacon grease).  I was full after I ate.  Nearly 2 hours later, I’m almost feeling hungry.  I’m drinking water to see if it just thirst.

Right now I feel great with my exercise and my energy during the day.  I’m rarely tired after I wake up.  I only get tired around bedtime.  So energy isn’t the issue.

I measure on Saturday.  Depending on what I measure, I will probably increase my eating (i.e. my fat and protein) for the next 2 weeks.  And see what happens.  I’m going to gun for carbs in then 70-80g range (I see lots of tubers in my future).

And lets see what happens.

I was not sure what to expect with this.  The only pre-workout anythings I’ve ever taken before were a banana (or some fat/carb/protein mix of food) and some pills made by Body Fortress that were to boost nitrous oxide for your workout.

So taking a drinkable pre-workout supplement was something new to me.

I’ve heard a lot of people using things like Jackd3, NOXplode, and similar type drinks, but have always been a bit leary of putting stuff like that into my body for several reasons:

1.  How would I feel while it was working through me:  Jittery, nauseated, wired, etc.

2.  How would I feel after it wore off (i.e. would I crash).

3.  Would I like the taste?

4.  Cost

I know a lot of people take BCAA’s either before or after a workout and that seems to work for them.  So when this came out, I knew I wanted to try it being all natural and good for you, but just a bit…nervous to try it.

So here’s my experience with it:

First day I used it was a Legs and Back day.  I did not feel jittery.  I did not feel all jacked up on Mountain Dew either.  I did feel a bit more awake (which is good for early morning workouts) but did not feel like I was going to bounce off the walls either.  During the workout I never felt depleted.  Again, this is something good for someone working through a Primal style ketogenic diet.  More than anything, I felt good after the workout.  I got extra reps in.  I got to push harder.

And yes, I felt it the next day!

Second time was Kenpo.  I cut the serving in half (one scoop instead of two) and it worked well.  In fact, I was able to skip all the breaks in this one and just workout straight through the routine.

Next was a Chest and Back day.  Again, felt energized.  I had more energy, could push harder (maybe not a good idea with my bicep tendon inflamed, but that’s a different story), more reps, etc.  Did not feel wiped out after the workout.

Plyo Day.  Here is where I thought it would get it’s real test.  The amount of energy I had sustained throughout this workout was amazing!  Even better is my heart rate stayed in controlled ranges the entire time.  I ended up burning just shy of 700 calories skipping the bonus round.  And I felt good after the workout.

Today, final day before this review, was Shoulders and Arms.  Same thing:  Great energy, good endurance (even after waking up earlier, getting to bed slightly later, etc).

The taste?  It’s not the best, but its not bad.  It comes in a Lemon Lime flavor.  It taste a bit tart and has that slight stevia aftertaste, but it manageable for me.  I usually just chug it anyways!

The most amazing thing is no crash.  No jitters.  Just sustained energy.

20 calories, 5g carbs with 4 of it being sugar.  Nothing too alarming there.

So there you have it.  I definitely suggest it as a pre-workout supplement to try.  It is affordable and it works!  I cannot wait until I can fully do P90X and give it a whirl…can you say soreness city?!

To help towards the end, I pulled out my medicine balls to work stability and gave myself a bit more of an incline from my knees.  This actually helped relieve the pressure on my shoulders.

I did take Beachbody’s Energy and Endurance pre-workout drink this morning.  I’ll be writing a full review of it later this week.

I’m tracking what all I eat on my diet for the next few days.  My main concern is getting enough calorie and carbs.  Not that I’m eating a lot of carbs, but I want to keep in that 50-100 range the best I can.  Today, I just barely squeaked in.

My macros for today look like this:

Calories:  1608 (-392 from my goal)
Carbs:  53g (within range)
Fat:  100g
Protein:  145g (within range, possibly a tad high)

So I need to get calories up around 400 without increasing carbs.  Carbs were okay (would be a bit higher and be okay) and fat can go higher, protein was near where it needed to be.

As far as Primal eating, here are my thoughts on the first three weeks:

1.  I should have detoxed some before I started.  I spent part of November and most of December eating tons of sweets.  Yummy, tasty sweets yes, but when you make a change to a low carb lifestyle (i.e. Primal), the first few days can be/will be pretty rough.

2.  This is by far the best tasting diet I’ve been on.  Let’s face it:  Grains are not really all that tasty.  In order for them to have real flavor you add fat or you add carbs.  So why not just cut out the grains and add more fats?  That’s the mental approach I’ve taken with this.  Now…there are some things I miss:  Garlic bread, for instance (tonight we had Italian, I had spaghetti squash noodles instead of pasta).  But, the things I miss about the bread are the butter, the garlic, and the cheese.  Pizza too.  I have not had a hamburger either, although I think I’d do fine without the bun there.  Just being real here…

3.  I still notice myself short and grumpy, even 3 weeks in.  It’s not nearly as bad as I expected, but I still notice it.

4.  I don’t think I take in enough carbs, even trying to hang in the 50-100g range for fat loss.  So I’m going to start tracking everything I eat, including measuring it out.  It’s going to suck doing it, but at least I’ll know where I am.

5.  I weigh myself more often than what I ever suggest others to do.  I usually tell people to throw away the scale initially and focus on inches.  I weigh myself daily.  I don’t really care a lot about the number, but I do use it to help me track salt as well as a guide on whether to review what I am doing or not.  With that said, I’ve only lost a little over 11 pounds, but I can notice a big difference in my clothes already.

6.  I’ve learned a lot about nutrition.  Not just “eat this, not that” type nutrition, but really the nuts and bolts of micro-nutrients as well as the real purpose behind the macros.  I knew a lot already, and now I just know more.

7.  This is a long haul diet.  I could see this being something where for some people, possibly myself included, it could take 2-3 months to really see the effects physically, even if I am feeling great.

So what is the plan for the next 3 weeks?

For starters, keep my dairy intake low.  I’m limiting myself for the next little bit to butter only.  After 3 more weeks, I’m going to add dairy back in just to see if I notice a difference or not.  And by dairy, I mean just a bit of cheese, maybe some sour cream here and there.

Also, the Super Bowl is coming up.  So my goal is to plan Primal friendly foods for the big game (I’m thinking buffalo wings, maybe some cream cheese and sausage dip with sweet potato chips, and meatballs with a better primal bbq sauce.

Since I’m back into a full P90X routine, the goal is to focus on form, and rehab weights instead of all out muscle blast (although I know part of why I am having some of my problems, which I’ll be focusing on in therapy).

I’ll take another set of partial measurements next week and then a full set after the official phase 1 4 weeks of P90X.  I was already down over an inch in waistline in the first 2 weeks, and my goal is to drop another inch or so by the end of this phase.

Because the truth is, taking shortcuts or ignoring your health is expensive too.  One cost you your money, and one can cost you your life.

Go to the grocery store.  Look at fresh veggies, organic products, “health food” items (although I caution on things that say “All Natural”) and the such and you’ll notice that they cost more than their counterparts.  Or stroll into the inner isles and you’ll notice that a box of sugar loaded cereal is much cheaper than healthier alternatives.

Or compare vitamins or supplements at a general store versus a specialty company and you’ll notice a price difference.

The best in health cost money.  Period.

Take Shakeology for an example.  It is the best of nutrition:  The highest quality whey protein (and soon a vegan version is coming), highest quality ingredients from around the world, no artificial, chemically laden ingredeints like vanilla, sucralose, or the dreaded “artificial” flavorings noted on the ingredients label.  Yet people complain about the price.

Or, even better, competitor companies will come out and say “Ours is cheaper”, “serves the same purpose”, “less is more”, etc.  But the bottom line is, Shakeology cost as much as it does because of the quality.  Sure, Beachbody could put together a less expensive shake (and they have a meal replacement shake that cost less than most competitors from years earlier), but it would lack the overall health value that Shakeology has.  Instead, these other shakes use artificial sweeteners or straight sugars/fructose that can harm fat loss by spiking insulin levels.  Defeats the purpose, huh?

So I don’t apologize for the price.  The product works.  It’s high quality.  It’s low on the glycemic index (lower than most fruit).  Yes, it cost $120/month (but you can get it free).  Sure, that seems like a lot.  For many, it is.

But it’s a choice:  A choice between excellent health and taking a shortcut.

People say the same thing about P90X.  Sure, you could do things cheaper, but P90X is proven.  Or you can go to a gym, which sounds cheap each month, but add it up over a year and you’ll spend on average $800 without a personal trainer.

Or…you could just do what works, what is proven to work, follow the system, and get results.

What about organic meats and veggies?  They cost a LOT more.

But they are all about health.  Sure, you can supplement and not consume them and be in good health.  Eating organic is about taking your health to that next level:  Keeping chemicals and GMO ingredients out of your body and putting more nutrients in.

Let’s consider the alternative though:  Bad health.

Have you been to the doctor recently?  Last time I went, with insurance, it was $77.  That was for a one time checkup for a sinus infection that was lingering.  Prescription cost another $15.  That’s $92, and I was not even that sick!

Now imagine having diabetes.  Imagine having heart disease.  Imagine not having insurance to cover all of that.

My wife had kidney stones after having all three of our children.  After our middle child, she had to have two surgeries to break up these stones.  Our insurance was billed around $20,000 on these two, minimally evasive surgeries.  Even with our insurance we spent $400/surgery.

Think about heart surgery.  I don’t know the exact figures but most of those are well over $50,000.  That does not include the hospital bill for staying in the hospital for days/weeks for recovery.

Or think about worst case scenario:  You ignore your health, do not eat right, do not exercise, make the excuse that it cost too much or takes too much time, and then you die.  You’ve now left your loved ones behind to deal with you not being there.  Or you teach your kids bad habits and they develop diseases that make them sick.  Just think about it.

Sure, worst case scenarios…and not meant to be a scare tactic, but it’s reality.  People die everyday because the continued to make poor choices over their lifetime;.

Spending $120/month for Shakeology, maybe an extra $100-$200 on better quality foods, and $120 for an exercise routine seems cheap now, huh?

So it is all of our choice:  Do we take the shortcuts, or are we willing to spend a bit extra each month to have better health?  You decide.

To me, this is much more than just a “money making opportunity” or “an opportunity of a lifetime” or whatever the latest cliche that many people use to promote their home business.

This is a mission…

The entire focus of Beachbody is to help people live healthy and fulfilling lives.  It’s not just to sell some products that are cheap, cheaply made, not really that healthy for you, in an attempt to make a few bucks.  There are plenty of companies out there that do just that.

No, Beachbody ensures quality.  They make sure that what they put to market is the best for your body and for your health.  If you look over the ingredients for Shakeology, for instance, you will not see any artificial sweeteners, no unnatural flavorings, etc.  Why?  Because those things are not healthy.  Period.

Beyond the health aspect, it is a company that has taught me a lot.

-  That personal development is as important as physical development.

-  That my comfort zone isn’t always that comfortable.

-  That there are people out there who are willing to celebrate your success.

-  That people really want people to achieve dreams.

Sure, I’ve seen this with other companies, and had some really close friends (and many I am still close with), but these guys mean it.  They get that your success is more than just selling products:  It’s truly helping others change their lives for the better (and I’m not talking by recruiting either).

I’ve had the chance to meet some incredible people through this business.  I’ve had the chance to meet Tony Horton (truly a genuinely nice guy).  I’ve met some people who are incredibly fit.

I’ve traveled to Los Angeles, somewhere I’ve never been.  And now I want to go back and check it out more again sometime.

This year I’ll get to spend 4 nights in Las Vegas!

I’m pushing to earn a trip to Disney World next year.

But more than anything, I’ve become a better person.  From both fitness and reading my personal development, I’ve grown as an individual.  I’ve learned to find ways to reach out to those who need help.

And….I’ve earned weekly paychecks for doing this, too.

If you’ve ever wondered what this is all about, check this out.  Call me sometime.  Drop me an email.  Anyone who knows me will tell you I’m not high pressure (in fact, I think I’m shy, but my wife disagrees).  We’ll talk, we’ll discuss, and then we’ll see if this is a good fit for you.