I have noticed most people have the wrong motivation when it comes to working out. They typically just want to lose 20lbs or fit into a certain size of clothes. This is one of the main reasons so many people quit working out as soon
as they meet their goals (or fail to meet their unrealistic goals). While there is nothing wrong with setting short term goals, these short term goals shouldn't be your primary motivation for exercise.
Your primary reason to exercise should be to be healthy. If you are working towards that goal it will never end. Now you have a motivation that will drive you for your entire life. You can set small goals like lose 5lbs or gain 5lbs of muscle, whatever it might be, but those are just short term goals on your path to being healthy. Change the way you think and you can succeed!
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Chocolate Muscle Milk Product Review
Welcome to my first product review! I will be reviewing exercise equipment, protein powders and other supplements in future reviews.
For my first review I will be reviewing the protein powder Muscle Milk by CytoSport. I just tried this a few days ago for the first time after hearing positive statements from people I know.
Taste:
This product (I have only tried the chocolate) tastes great. This is 1 of the top 2 protein shakes I have ever had as far as taste goes. This is pretty important to me because if something tastes so bad you can't drink it, your not going to stick with it no matter how healthy it is. It does have a very slight artificial sweetener taste, it's almost unnoticeable most of the time. This product gets a 9.5 out of 10 on taste.
Protein (and vitamins & minerals):
This is why most people are drinking these shakes in the first place so it's an important category. Muscle Milk has 16 grams of protein per serving and is also loaded with about 15-20% of around 20 vitamins & minerals. This isn't the most protein I have ever seen in a shake (most have about 24 grams) but it does have the vitamins and minerals many other shakes do not have. I drink mine mixed with 1 cup of milk so I take in 24 grams of protein. You could also mix this with other ingredients if you wish, like a banana or peanut butter, whatever you like. It isn't necessary though, because as I said before, it tastes great. The serving size is 35 grams, only 16 grams of that is protein, meaning the rest is made up of other ingredients (carbs and fat but this has the good kind mostly-2 grams of fiber which is a carb, etc). This product gets a 8 out of 10 on protein.
Servings:
1 container has 25 servings. This breaks down less than $1 per serving. I eat 5 times a day so having 1 of my meals cost less than $1 (plus the cost of 1 cup of milk) is pretty nice. Usually with protein shakes, buying in bulk lowers the cost per serving but I bought a smaller container (1.93lbs) just to try it out and see if I liked it. It's also nice when a container has about a months supply, so even if you buy the smaller container you only have to buy it once a month. 8.5 out of 10
Artificial ingredients:
In our culture, unless you grow all of your own food, it's impossible to avoid artificial sweeteners and the like 100%. That said, I try to avoid them as much as possible. This product does have a few of them in it, namely acesulfame potassium and sucralose (splenda) but they are among the last ingredients listed, meaning they are the least out of everything in it. Unfortunately, 95% of protein shakes have at least some of these ingredients in them. 7 out of 10
So overall I like this product and I can actually drink it because it tastes wonderful. Mixing it with milk I get 24 grams of protein (you don't want to take in to much at a time anyway since you can only digest so much at once). For the price it's good. I would buy this product again but because I want to avoid artificial sweeteners I will rotate this in with other drinks from time to time instead of just always drinking it.
Overall Score: 8.4 out of 10
For my first review I will be reviewing the protein powder Muscle Milk by CytoSport. I just tried this a few days ago for the first time after hearing positive statements from people I know.
Taste:
This product (I have only tried the chocolate) tastes great. This is 1 of the top 2 protein shakes I have ever had as far as taste goes. This is pretty important to me because if something tastes so bad you can't drink it, your not going to stick with it no matter how healthy it is. It does have a very slight artificial sweetener taste, it's almost unnoticeable most of the time. This product gets a 9.5 out of 10 on taste.
Protein (and vitamins & minerals):
This is why most people are drinking these shakes in the first place so it's an important category. Muscle Milk has 16 grams of protein per serving and is also loaded with about 15-20% of around 20 vitamins & minerals. This isn't the most protein I have ever seen in a shake (most have about 24 grams) but it does have the vitamins and minerals many other shakes do not have. I drink mine mixed with 1 cup of milk so I take in 24 grams of protein. You could also mix this with other ingredients if you wish, like a banana or peanut butter, whatever you like. It isn't necessary though, because as I said before, it tastes great. The serving size is 35 grams, only 16 grams of that is protein, meaning the rest is made up of other ingredients (carbs and fat but this has the good kind mostly-2 grams of fiber which is a carb, etc). This product gets a 8 out of 10 on protein.
Servings:
1 container has 25 servings. This breaks down less than $1 per serving. I eat 5 times a day so having 1 of my meals cost less than $1 (plus the cost of 1 cup of milk) is pretty nice. Usually with protein shakes, buying in bulk lowers the cost per serving but I bought a smaller container (1.93lbs) just to try it out and see if I liked it. It's also nice when a container has about a months supply, so even if you buy the smaller container you only have to buy it once a month. 8.5 out of 10
Artificial ingredients:
In our culture, unless you grow all of your own food, it's impossible to avoid artificial sweeteners and the like 100%. That said, I try to avoid them as much as possible. This product does have a few of them in it, namely acesulfame potassium and sucralose (splenda) but they are among the last ingredients listed, meaning they are the least out of everything in it. Unfortunately, 95% of protein shakes have at least some of these ingredients in them. 7 out of 10
So overall I like this product and I can actually drink it because it tastes wonderful. Mixing it with milk I get 24 grams of protein (you don't want to take in to much at a time anyway since you can only digest so much at once). For the price it's good. I would buy this product again but because I want to avoid artificial sweeteners I will rotate this in with other drinks from time to time instead of just always drinking it.
Overall Score: 8.4 out of 10
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Tabata training for MMA
If you haven't read my blog about the Tabata method, read this first:
http://www.shaolindo.blogspot.com/2012/06/arc-bobs-against-god.html
For MMA you can work Ground & Pound on a heavy bag laying flat on the ground. Move around to different positions and use the same 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off method as before. You can do up to 4 rounds of this. You might want to sit in different positions in order to work your strikes from various situations you could be in during an MMA match or self-defense situation.
An example of a round would look like this:
1. Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
2. Half-Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
3. Side Control 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
4. Scarfhold 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
5. Mount position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
6. Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
7. Half-Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
8. Side Control 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
End of round 1, take 1 minute break then start round 2.
Training like this can also help you if you have a chance to flurry on an opponent who has been dropped in order to end the match in devastating fashion.
http://www.shaolindo.blogspot.com/2012/06/arc-bobs-against-god.html
For MMA you can work Ground & Pound on a heavy bag laying flat on the ground. Move around to different positions and use the same 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off method as before. You can do up to 4 rounds of this. You might want to sit in different positions in order to work your strikes from various situations you could be in during an MMA match or self-defense situation.
An example of a round would look like this:
1. Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
2. Half-Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
3. Side Control 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
4. Scarfhold 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
5. Mount position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
6. Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
7. Half-Guard position 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
8. Side Control 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
End of round 1, take 1 minute break then start round 2.
Training like this can also help you if you have a chance to flurry on an opponent who has been dropped in order to end the match in devastating fashion.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Change up your Workout
Have you stopped progressing? Here is something you can work in from time to time to mix things up. Lift weights slowly. Even if you are doing the same routine as normal this will make it much more difficult. For example, if you are doing a shoulder press, take about 5 seconds to press it all the way up and another 5 seconds to go back to your starting position.
Use a weight you can handle comfortably. Mixing things up from time to time will not only help you to keep progressing but also keeps things from getting boring. Doing this with every exercise will increase your workout time so you may also just want to select one exercise each workout to do slowly, instead of all of them.
Use a weight you can handle comfortably. Mixing things up from time to time will not only help you to keep progressing but also keeps things from getting boring. Doing this with every exercise will increase your workout time so you may also just want to select one exercise each workout to do slowly, instead of all of them.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Weight loss tip
Don't radically change your diet or jump on some kind of fad diet. Simply change 1 meal a day to a healthier choice or a slightly smaller portion. AFTER you get used to that and work it into your life, you can change another meal to a healthier choice.
People generally make these huge changes that are impossible to maintain and end up falling off the wagon over and over again. It doesn't work so don't waste your time on a flawed game plan. Make small changes over time.
People generally make these huge changes that are impossible to maintain and end up falling off the wagon over and over again. It doesn't work so don't waste your time on a flawed game plan. Make small changes over time.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Tabata Training for Boxing/Kickboxing
If you haven't already read my blog about Tabata training, read this first: http://www.shaolindo.blogspot.com/2012/06/arc-bobs-against-god.html
Now that you have read that and understand how it works, here are some ideas you can use to mix up your boxing/kickboxing workouts.
Using the same 20 seconds on, 10 seconds of rest set up as before, hit your heavy bag, focus mitts or shadow box with weights (or without) as hard and fast as you can (while being safe). And once again do this for 8 sets to make up 1 round. Because you are working for effort, not technique, just throw lots of straight punches for 20 seconds or throw lots of low roundhouse kicks. You are looking for intensity in this, not 100% perfect form. Of course this is only for experienced martial artists, if you do not know how to throw a proper punch or kick, do not try this.
Depending on your level of cardio, you can do up to 4 rounds.
Example:
Round 1:
1. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
2. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
3. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
4. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
5. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
6. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
7. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
8. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
Rest 1 minute
Round 2: (repeat round 1)
etc.
Let me know how it goes!
Now that you have read that and understand how it works, here are some ideas you can use to mix up your boxing/kickboxing workouts.
Using the same 20 seconds on, 10 seconds of rest set up as before, hit your heavy bag, focus mitts or shadow box with weights (or without) as hard and fast as you can (while being safe). And once again do this for 8 sets to make up 1 round. Because you are working for effort, not technique, just throw lots of straight punches for 20 seconds or throw lots of low roundhouse kicks. You are looking for intensity in this, not 100% perfect form. Of course this is only for experienced martial artists, if you do not know how to throw a proper punch or kick, do not try this.
Depending on your level of cardio, you can do up to 4 rounds.
Example:
Round 1:
1. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
2. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
3. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
4. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
5. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
6. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
7. 20 seconds of straight punches, 10 seconds of rest
8. 20 seconds of low roundhouse kicks, 10 seconds of rest
Rest 1 minute
Round 2: (repeat round 1)
etc.
Let me know how it goes!
Thursday, June 21, 2012
The Power of Front Kicks, Part 1
I'm a big fan of mixed martial arts, and with the exception of a
handful of fighters, almost no one uses kicks very effectively. Just
watch some fights from Jon Jones, Anderson Silva, or Lyoto Machida and
you will see the advantage of being able to kick and keep distance when
all your opponent can do is punch. Covering the wide range of kicks
would be a huge task so I am going to focus solely on front kicks in
this post.
Front kicks can be used both defensively and offensively.
For defensive purposes you will want to utilize the front push kick seen commonly in Muay Thai fights. The vast majority of people in MMA or on the street will come straight forward and only attack using punches. This is perfect for implementing the front push kick. You simply want to lift your knee straight up and push him away with your lead foot (use the entire surface of your foot and push using your hips). This will not only stop him dead in his tracks (keeping him out of punching range) but will frustrate him because he can never get close to you. If you are a ground fighter you can use this kick to knock your foe into a wall, car, cage. etc. so you can close the distance and tie him up, to work for the takedown.
The rear front kick is an offensive weapon. It is thrown by lifting your heel back to your butt and thrusting the ball of your foot out like a cannonball. This kick can be used to not only knock your opponent's wind out, but drop him as well. He won't be able to take to many of these types of kicks and stay on his feet.
Both of these kicks can be used to set up other techniques.
I would recommend watching some of those fighters I mention at the beginning to see how they set a kick up and if they used it in a combination. If you are more flexible you can even use the front kick to the face to KO your opponent (generally done with your rear foot). To see that in action watch Anderson Silva's fight with Vitor Belfort or Lyoto Machida's fight with Randy Couture. It's always good to have more techniques in your arsenal, especially one most people can't defend and keeps you at a safe distance from their punches. Both versions of the front kick do just that.
Front kicks can be used both defensively and offensively.
For defensive purposes you will want to utilize the front push kick seen commonly in Muay Thai fights. The vast majority of people in MMA or on the street will come straight forward and only attack using punches. This is perfect for implementing the front push kick. You simply want to lift your knee straight up and push him away with your lead foot (use the entire surface of your foot and push using your hips). This will not only stop him dead in his tracks (keeping him out of punching range) but will frustrate him because he can never get close to you. If you are a ground fighter you can use this kick to knock your foe into a wall, car, cage. etc. so you can close the distance and tie him up, to work for the takedown.
The rear front kick is an offensive weapon. It is thrown by lifting your heel back to your butt and thrusting the ball of your foot out like a cannonball. This kick can be used to not only knock your opponent's wind out, but drop him as well. He won't be able to take to many of these types of kicks and stay on his feet.
Both of these kicks can be used to set up other techniques.
I would recommend watching some of those fighters I mention at the beginning to see how they set a kick up and if they used it in a combination. If you are more flexible you can even use the front kick to the face to KO your opponent (generally done with your rear foot). To see that in action watch Anderson Silva's fight with Vitor Belfort or Lyoto Machida's fight with Randy Couture. It's always good to have more techniques in your arsenal, especially one most people can't defend and keeps you at a safe distance from their punches. Both versions of the front kick do just that.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
The Tabata Method
If you are tired of wasting endless hours running on a treadmill or any other type of boring cardiovascular training I would highly suggest the Tabata method.
The Tabata method is named after its creator, Dr. Tabata, for the purpose of training Japanese Olympic athletes. This method of exercise not only burns fat and increases your VO2max, it also helps your body produce more growth hormone (essentially the hormone that makes you young). The bodies production of growth hormone drops like a rock starting at 30, making this type of exercise that much more important.
Here is the real kicker; not only is the Tabata method better for you than traditional cardio training, it takes less time! Tabata is all about intensity, not time. Just do a 3-5 minute warm up and you are ready to go.
You can use any type of exercise for Tabata training you want really (sprinting, kettlebells, etc.). As an example I am going to use sprinting. For 20 seconds you are going to run a sprint, then follow that with 10 seconds of rest. Repeat that 7 more times and you are finished with 1 Tabata round. It may not sound like much, but trust me, 4 minutes of Tabata training is HARD.
You might eventually want to work your way up to 4 Tabata rounds (the only difference in doing more rounds is after each round is over you take a 1 minute break before starting a new round. You can do this type of training between 3-5 times a week depending on your goals and what you are training for (everyday Joe or a serious athlete).
Example of multiple rounds:
Round 1:
1. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
2. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
3. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
4. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
5. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
6. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
7. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
8. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
End of round 1, take 1 minute break then start round 2.
*As a beginner you may not even be able to do the 8 sprints required for round 1. That's okay, just do what you can depending on your fitness level. Start with just 2 sets of sprints, instead of 8 and build from there. And again, instead of doing sprints you can substitute anything you want. Do 20 seconds of push ups or squats or you can even mix them and alternate each of your 8 intervals.
The Tabata method is named after its creator, Dr. Tabata, for the purpose of training Japanese Olympic athletes. This method of exercise not only burns fat and increases your VO2max, it also helps your body produce more growth hormone (essentially the hormone that makes you young). The bodies production of growth hormone drops like a rock starting at 30, making this type of exercise that much more important.
Here is the real kicker; not only is the Tabata method better for you than traditional cardio training, it takes less time! Tabata is all about intensity, not time. Just do a 3-5 minute warm up and you are ready to go.
You can use any type of exercise for Tabata training you want really (sprinting, kettlebells, etc.). As an example I am going to use sprinting. For 20 seconds you are going to run a sprint, then follow that with 10 seconds of rest. Repeat that 7 more times and you are finished with 1 Tabata round. It may not sound like much, but trust me, 4 minutes of Tabata training is HARD.
You might eventually want to work your way up to 4 Tabata rounds (the only difference in doing more rounds is after each round is over you take a 1 minute break before starting a new round. You can do this type of training between 3-5 times a week depending on your goals and what you are training for (everyday Joe or a serious athlete).
Example of multiple rounds:
Round 1:
1. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
2. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
3. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
4. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
5. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
6. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
7. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
8. Sprint 20 seconds, 10 seconds of rest
End of round 1, take 1 minute break then start round 2.
*As a beginner you may not even be able to do the 8 sprints required for round 1. That's okay, just do what you can depending on your fitness level. Start with just 2 sets of sprints, instead of 8 and build from there. And again, instead of doing sprints you can substitute anything you want. Do 20 seconds of push ups or squats or you can even mix them and alternate each of your 8 intervals.
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