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Weight Training: “Were You Born For This”?

August 5, 2013 by Leave a Comment

 

Was I born for this? Not necessarily.

Was I born for this? Not necessarily.

While at the gym today I noticed a caption on the TV screen for what looked like a golf tournament advertisement that said “They were born for this”.  I was listening to music on my MP3 player and not actually watching TV so I don’t completely know what the advertisement was about.  I don’t watch TV at home so I still don’t really know what it was about.  It looked like it was about pro golf players.  I did an internet search and the hits confirmed it was about this years PGA tour.  That is all I know, I didn’t search any further.

Was I born for this?

It got me to thinking about what I spend a lot of time doing lately and the question for myself “Was I born for this?”

Sometimes it feels like yes everything in my life seems to have added up to this point. It feels like what I am doing is my purpose and that it makes an impact on others.

Yet when I think about my family, genetics, relatives, or even my identical twin, none of them have done what I have done regarding fitness (and yet I am also nothing special myself).

It reminds me of a book I read once called “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell.  The first two chapters of this book resonate with me on my experience.  The first chapter was about opportunity and coaching; I definitely missed the boat on that one for the first part of my life.  The second chapter “The 10,000-hour rule” explains why I seem to be good at knowing how to design my own diet and just do the productive workouts every day.  I’ve been doing both consistently for over 30 years.  I Just didn’t have good coaches or good tools until a few years ago.

With the Venus Factor I finally got the tools I needed to succeed

I now have John Barban, Brad Pilon, the Venus program, and Eat Stop Eat which all gave me the coaching and tools I needed to finally succeed in my fitness goals.

And then the skills I have developed during my 25 year career at Hewlett Packard seem to have set me up for doing various jobs recently for the Venus Factor.  I could not have planned it but it seems everything fell into place.  It reminds me of the Seneca quote that goes something like “Luck is when preparation and opportunity meet”.  Sometimes you don’t know what you are preparing for but your passion leads you somewhere.  Especially if you work hard at what you love and simply make the best of the situation at hand, even if it is not yet the work you are most passionate about.

“Were you born for this?” does not really apply to weight training.

Back to the gym:  It made me realize that the question “Were you born for this?” does not really apply to weight training.  We were all born for it and we can all use it to fit our own lifestyle.

It is especially necessary for women because lifting weights just 3 times a week on a consistent basis will ward off osteoporosis.  When I was 51 I got a DXA scan that showed my bone density was that of an athletic 30 year old woman.  That is a direct result of weight lifting.

Women can do the minimum (3 days a week) or take it to higher level conditioning and workout nearly every day.  That is the beauty of the Venus Factor program.  It is not a one size fits all program.

It is a program that women at all levels can participate in; as a beginner, as an advanced athlete, as someone who enjoys working out in the privacy of their own home, as someone who likes a public gym, as a stay at home mom, as a traveling executive, or from any walk of life.

Consistency is the key to being an Every Day Venus

John told this story that I think applies:

The other day I was sitting in a local coffee shop and a guy walked in that recognized. It took me a few moments to remember how I knew him.

Then it hit me, he was a subject in one of the exercise experiments I did when I was in graduate school.

Back when I was doing research in exercise and nutrition I was running an exercise study where I had to make people do a pretty intense workout for 90 minutes at about 70% VO2 max.

That might sound a little technical so let me explain what it means.

VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen your body and muscles can consume and use during exercise. Most people can only sustain their true max for a few moments until they have to back off or stop completely.

The best athletes in the world can stay there a bit longer, but it’s still very short lived. The point is nobody actually workouts out at VO2 max; this is just a way to measure how conditioned you are. It also has a genetic component. In other words some people just have a higher VO2 max even if they don’t work at it.

So in our study we set the intensity level of the workout to 70% VO2max. 70% VO2 is also known as ‘anaerobic threshold’ which is the intensity of cardio (running, cycling etc.) that feels like it’s almost becoming a sprint but not quite a job. In short, it’s right at the edge of what you can handle for long duration.

It’s hard!

Back to the coffee shop:  The guy who walked in had the highest VO2 max of any of our subjects and was in the best condition of anybody we studied.

He was about 6’4 225lbs, big, lean, muscular, and well-conditioned. He kind of reminded me of the Winklevoss twins from the movie ‘the social network’.

…that was then.

Now he looks like he is about 70lbs overweight, and I’ll bet he doesn’t have the endurance or muscular conditioning he did when he was younger.

If you asked me to bet on who I would guess would be in shape 15 years after that study, this is the guy I would have bet on. He had it all.

The point of this story is to explain to you that even the most genetically gifted people still have to work out regularly and pay some attention to their diet in order to maintain a great looking physique and top conditioning.

Nobody is going to lift the weights for you. Consistency from day to day, month to month and year to year is the key to being an Every Day Venus for life.

 

No one except my husband saw the potential in me early on

For me it was kind of the opposite of John’s story at the coffee shop.  People looked at me in the past and didn’t see any potential.  My husband Randy said he saw something special in me a long time ago.  He called me his “diamond in the rough”.  It’s nice to have someone who believes in you.

No one saw potential in me except my husband Randy who believed in me.

No one saw potential in me except my husband Randy who believed in me.

The slow weight creep started for me in my mid 30’s and continued into my late 40’s where at 5’1″ I peaked out at over 171 pounds.  I did not achieve my fitness goal until I was 50.  The Venus program took me beyond even my wildest dreams with fitness and changed my life completely.  I spent the first half of my life working hard but I was barely average.  My genetics did not look like anything special.

Two years after achieving my Venus goals I am still enjoying the Venus lifestyle

I am enjoying the Venus lifestyle. In the Caribbean two years ago, last summer in Las Vegas (green bikini), and last week in the locker room.

I am still enjoying the Venus lifestyle two years after achieving my Venus goals. In the Caribbean two years ago, last summer in Las Vegas (green bikini), and last week in the locker room.

 

So here I am two years after achieving my Venus fitness goals and still living the dream.  You do not have to “be born for this” and as John has coached us “you are not at the mercy of your genetic shape if you don’t want to be”:

 

In fact you could even say that most people are not genetically perfectly proportioned and that we all have some sort of genetic imbalance or asymetry to our predetermined muscle size that we need to work on.

The good news is that you are not at the mercy of your genetic shape if you don’t want to be.  You can always train yourself toward better overall proportions.

The concept of building a proportioned physique should be your goal if you’re working out to improve the look and shape of your body.

Working with your genetic strengths and weaknesses in mind will help you direct your effort towards the most efficient use of your time in the gym and get you to that proportioned physique in the shortest period of time.

For a look at what we consider the ideally proportioned physique have a look at some of the contest winners from the recent Adonis Index and Venus Index contests.

And you can do it too!

Speaking of contests:  Next Sunday August 11th is the last day of our current contest (VT8).  VT9 will start September 1st and end November 24th (just in time to enjoy the holiday season).

So remember, anyone can do it who decides and then puts the work in.  You don’t have to be “Born for this” like the PGA tour golf pro’s.  I look forward to meeting some new Venus girls in the contest interviews.

-Ro

Filed Under: change, fat loss, Uncategorized, weight loss, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Growing into Venus: Age and Training Age

July 19, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Upon listening to the recently released Uncensored Podcast- Fitness Trends 2013, I got to thinking about my specific age, training age, and my nutrition age. I have been at this for longer than a decade even though I found Venus a short year ago. Man, I have come a long way in a year.

Today we will discuss age and training age, next time we will look at the evolution of nutrition as you grow in your training.

LissbeforeVI

Age and training age

I just turned 29. I have been weight training on and off since I was 15- making my training age 10 years if I take out the periods that I was not doing anything. My training was certainly never for specific for a look before I found Venus. I would consider myself to be middle-to-younger within the age ranges of Venii. I enjoy Venus phase 3 training sessions 4 days per week at an hour or more. I also generally run for an hour 2 days per week. I take one rest day per week.

I doubt that when I am 59 this training schedule is going to work for me, or even when I am 39 or 49. Running will probably be too jarring on my joints; I might find biking or swimming more pleasant. Maybe my rest days will need to be more frequent. I might have some injuries that I need to work around, so I will be cognizant of that. I will probably do strength training for more days that I do now because I enjoy it.

When I was 19, my training schedule certainly did not look like this either. Firstly, I was not in this kind of condition. My cardio training sessions were shorter, and focused more on higher reps when I did weights. It was the only thing I knew to do, I was not yet versed in the how and why yet. Secondly, my training was not as consistent. I maybe made it to the gym 3 days per week, 2 of them were probably for cardio on a machine.

Tailor the program for you

My point is this- your age and training age matter when you are talking about your training schedule. There is no one size fits all.

  • If you are new to training, 3 days a week of Venus is probably more than enough.  You will start to get into a groove and work up to more time in the gym over time.
  • If you have been at it for 10 years, then you can go 5 or more days a week and lift and work in some cardio as needed. You know when too much is too much. Be careful not to push yourself to the point that you end up with an injury- this is how it happens!
  • Those who have been at it for twenty or more years can lift 6 days a week along with daily cardio if they wanted to. They know that they are not going to get the huge muscle and strength gains like they used to, it all about preserving at this point.

Some parting thoughts-

  1. Learn to listen to your body. Take a rest day when needed.
  2. Train in ways that you enjoy.  If you are dreading a work out, you need to re-evaluate.
  3. More just to do more is never good. Always approach training with the idea of doing the least amount to get the best result.

Dealer says, «a lot» and so the set. If the players are identical, then such cases, the dealer takes the open, three-card blackjack, so the player visually observes where, in the dealer compare their hand on the approaches, and hands of card the dealer must finish as they do not. blackjack online All of points right after the one card dealer will offer you a big probability that the deck is interested in. And relaying to the gambler’s and play 21 Caribbean, a glance at their hand on at all stay on blackjack. Sometimes, depending on what other gamblers have doesn’t matter, the.

Filed Under: Exercise, stress, Uncategorized, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

What To Do About Injuries

July 10, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Here’s the next episode of the UNCENSORED Podcasts Season 2.

Today’s topic:  What to do about injuries.

The key to staying active long term is to not get injured.

The key to staying active long term is to not get injured.

 

Today John and Brad will talk about the main philosophy of the Venus Factor Workout being to remain physically active most of your life.  It is to be able to weight train all your life without injury if possible.  On your menu of goals should be “Am I able to do this injury free?  Or at least with minimal injury?”

Some people are genetically more durable, more athletic, and have a special kind of connection between mind and body.  Most of us are not gifted the way pro athletes are.  The key to being able to stay physically active long term is to 1) not get injured, and 2) learn to manage injuries properly.

Be careful not to let your goals get hijacked by younger or genetically gifted trainers.  Your age and your “training age” come into play for what is right for you.  Just because a young or gifted trainer knows something well and is (or was) good at something does not mean it’s good for you.   You have to consider whether or not it’s right for you given your age,”training age”, and genetic abilities.

John will tell you about what to do to work around an injury and how to avoid over use injuries.  A big part of the Venus Factor design is to avoid over use injuries by constantly changing up the routines.  John said that working out and making progress for even one year injury free is a pretty big win.  This makes me feel pretty good because I’m 52 and have done Venus Workouts for almost 3 years now injury free.  I’ve never had to stop due to injury even though I workout nearly every day.  I’d say that says a lot for the design of the Venus program.

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Filed Under: Podcast, Sage Advice, Uncensored Podcasts S02, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

How Liss’s Data Saves the Day

May 10, 2013 by 3 Comments

MP900315415numbers

Knowledge is power.

I even apply that philosophy to my fitness and nutrition goals.

Since embarking on VI last year, I have kept meticulous records which have literally saved me from backsliding or giving up. They serve as a record void of emotion where I can study trends and data mine.

VI blog

Liss after 1 year of VI and still going strong. Photo by {forever} Grace Photography

The most recent example of when my records came into play was to answer a question that John Barban posed in the community- “Do you have any problematic foods- specifically foods that bloat you or any you have trouble with?” I randomly bloat 3.5-5.0 lbs overnight at times, and I wondered if I could trace it back to any particular food.

So out came the records.

  • First, I identified each day in the past 4 months that I had a huge weight spike (3.5 lbs+).
  • Then, I went back and looked at specifically-
    • what foods that I ate on those days,
    • how many calories I ate, as well as
    • daily macro-nutrients
    • and sodium intakes.
  • What I found was that it was not a particular food but a carbohydrate or sodium spike (compared to my normal intake) that would cause this massive bloating. I would have never known this unless I had my records to refer back to.

What Data is Worth Keeping?

I now have data in 3 major places- a physical notebook, Sparkpeople.com, and a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Some data is quite useful while other pieces are only useful on occasion. I prefer to have more than enough data, because I like to know that it is there to refer back to when I need it and it is not like you can go back and take it. I think of my data collection as my “lab notebook” in the experiment of me.

What data is kept where?

2013-05-01 14.32.53

My metrics notebook

1. Physical notebook

  • Date (and fasting hours, if any)
  • Weight
  • Calorie count
  • Exercise (and caloric burn estimate)
  • Fasted weekly metric- shoulder, right bicep, ribcage, waist, navel, hips, right thigh, right calf, (sometimes neck)
  • Weekly weight average
  • Weekly calorie total
  • Weekly exercise burn total
  • Weekly average of daily macro-nutrient totals (carbohydrates, protein, fat)
Sparkpeople logo

Sparkpeople.com is an easy place to keep food and exercise logs

2. Sparkpeople

Sparkpeople log

 

Sparkpeople Exercise

An exercise log at Sparkpeople.com

  • Daily food log by date (calories, macronutrients)
  • Weight
  • Exercise
April Metrics

An example of one of Liss’ many Excel spreadsheets

3. Excel spreadsheet

  • Date range
  • Weekly avg weight
  • Weekly fasted weight and metrics
  • Weekly calorie total
  • Weekly exercise burn
  • Weekly deficit
  • Weekly hours fasted
  • Weekly avg of daily protein intake
  • Some tabs with charts of weight and metrics over time, such as caliper data
Caliper Data

Caliper data in Excel

Why repeat data in multiple locations?

For example, my weight is entered in multiple  locations- my notebook and Sparkpeople. Why do I repeat some data in multiple locations? Since Sparkpeople is online, and I live in the middle of nowhere, sometimes internet accessibility (even on my smart phone) is limited. I can easily write my daily weigh in on my notebook where ever I am. But by putting my weight into Sparkpeople, it is easy to export the data into Excel to graph it when I need it. Sparkpeople  and Excel also serve as a backup in case my notebook is lost or destroyed.

I enter my weekly data and averages into Excel to easily pick out trends and patterns that become obvious when numbers are in a neat line. Again, graphing and analyzing trend lines  is easier to do in Excel. As you look at data over time, you realize what is the most efficient way for you to keep up with your data. These are some ways that work for me.

Ways that I use data daily:

I add up my calorie totals to see if I am on track to meet my total calorie goal for the week. I can recalculate daily calorie goals if needed or throw in a fast day if the week is looking like it might be going sideways.

Weekly:

I like to use the data that I collect to keep on track with my current goals. My current goals are:

1. Live at VI metrics

2. Eat an adequate amount of protein so that muscle growth is not inhibited

As a by product of goal 1, I have underlying goals that I need to meet in order to be in a caloric deficit to lose enough fat/ build enough muscle to be at VI, in an everyday unfasted state. These goals include-

3. Get a minimum of 3 VI workouts in per week

4. Eat a maximum of 8,000 calories a week (This is a deficit for me)

5. Fast for a minimum of 24 hours (helps with meeting goal 4 and seeing exactly where my body is each week without water/food “noise”)

6. Get in 2 hours of cardio per week

So by putting my weekly weight average, fasted metrics, calorie total for the week, daily protein average, and exercise totals on a spreadsheet- I can see if I met my weekly goals to make sure that I am on track. These things are just a reflection of my underlying goals. Again- the things that I track are a reflection of my goals. This also keeps me from getting my goals hijacked, and helps me focus on things that matter instead of noise. If I am going the wrong direction (away from my goals), it becomes blatantly apparent. Trends become very apparent at this point when you see weeks sitting side by side.

Periodically:

I will graph my avg weekly calorie intake (or weekly calorie deficit which includes workouts) and compare it to my weight loss over time. This gives me a more personalized look at what weekly calorie/workout totals that I lose best at- both mentally and physically. It also gives me an idea of what type of deficit is sustainable for me because it is easy to see calorie spikes. If you are  in maintenance mode, you can also see if your weight or metrics are trending up or down and make necessary adjustments to even it out. After all, calorie intake is highly individualized- nobody but you has your specific needs.

Another helpful periodic check is body fat levels, DXA data is the gold standard but I also keep up with caliper data on a tab in my Excel spreadsheet. This keeps this metric data in one convenient place so I do not have to chase down paper reports.

Keeping Emotion in Check

Sometimes after a big weekend, it is hard for me to get on that scale Monday morning and see the damage. But I need the data. It is just data, after all. (It also serves as my reality check, but that is beside the point!) This is part of the overall change that has taken place in my life with VI- it is a lifestyle now. I keep at it, all the time. It is a part of how I live now.

Five years ago, I would have freaked out after I got the scale that morning and threw in the towel for a few weeks- starting another vicious cycle of weight gain. But now, after seeing so many particularly high Monday mornings, I have finally realized that I just need to get back on the horse and hit my nutrition and workout goals all week. I am usually fine by Thursday at the latest. This is just one personal pattern that I have found, which makes getting on the scale Monday morning not as bad anymore.  Knowledge is power.

Why Record Data? A Summary

  • While it looks like some work on the front end, keeping good nutrition and fitness records can actually make reaching your goals easier.
  • It helps focus on your goals, and block out “goal hijacking noise”
  • It also takes the emotion out of the equation, and forces you to look at the logical aspects of the numbers.
  • It also helps keep me accountable, and has become a habit which helps me identify if I am potentially backsliding.

So in the end the data helped me solve the problem regarding bloating with sodium and carbohydrates.  It also helps me set personalized calorie needs each week. Data collection might be something for you to consider if you are trying to solve a problem.  It might even help you stay on track with your goals.

-Liss

 

Filed Under: calories, cardio, Diet, Exercise, Uncategorized, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

What Are Weight Gain And Muscle Gain Escalators?

March 20, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Here’s the next episode of the UNCENSORED Podcasts Season 2.

Today’s topic:  Weight gain and muscle gain escalators

Muscle gain and fat loss are two separate concepts

Muscle gain and fat loss are two separate concepts

In order to get to your ideal golden ratio and stay there you have two things you must do:

1. Build muscle mass which gives you you’re golden shape

2. Reduce bodfyat to a level to show your muscle and shape

This requires two kinds of effort that should be viewed as separate things.

Muscle Building Effort

Building muscle is an obvious effort that requires you to move your body. It’s something that builds momentum and you can see it and feel it in the gym and every time you workout.

In order to push past your genetic set point of muscle you must follow a well designed workout program consistently. Even when you’ve achieved an impressive amount of muscle you must continue to workout to avoid losing that muscle.

Fat Loss Effort

Losing body fat requires a different kind of effort. It’s not a physical effort you put in the gym, it doesn’t require hours of cardio. The real effort that you must exert to burn fat is self control over your diet and eating habits. This is a daily effort that seems to start as soon as you wake up and doesn’t stop until you fall asleep each day. Most people who have successfully cut body fat and got in great shape will attest that dieting to burn fat is a much greater effort than working out to build muscle.

These two styles of effort should be viewed as separate things.

In today’s podcast we will use an analogy of the weight gain and fat gain escalators to explain how you should be viewing the process of gaining muscle and losing fat.

You’ll learn how getting to the muscle size and body fat levels you desire is one thing, and how staying there is another.

John

 

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Filed Under: Bodyfat, cardio, Exercise, fat loss, Uncategorized, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

The Creation of a Masterpiece: The Venus

February 15, 2013 by 3 Comments

Re-framing Fitness

One thing that eluded me throughout my fitness history was a concept that could have saved me from the beginning. You see most people go to the gym to work off their “eating failures.”  If I could have re-framed what the gym was about, it could have saved me years in getting to the body of my dreams.

venus_goddess_black_236832_l

You choose your statue’s look

Carve and Sculpt at the Gym

The gym is to build muscle and sculpt your body. Period.

I compare it to the carving of a statue. Without weight lifting, you are a blank piece of marble, just another stone in the quarry, nothing unusual.  The beautiful statues that are preserved in museums and studied by scholars the world over all have a sculptor who took time to carefully carve each muscle, getting each angle just right.

The artists used the Golden Ratio which is exactly what John Barban designed into the Venus Index Ideal for goal setting metrics.

This is what weight lifting can do for you- build each muscle until your physique is just right. You can even take down a prominent muscle group if you need to. The end result is a beautiful, well-sculpted body that is pleasing to the human eye.

Showcase your Work with Calories

Your calorie intake is akin to a sheet that covers the statue. It does not matter how much sculpting and time you have put into your statue, you cannot see the details beneath a sheet.  So until you get your intake in check and start bringing down your body fat percentages, that physique is going to be hidden underneath the covering.  As your body fat percentages come down, details will slowly start to show through the covering- collar bones, then bicep muscles, some veins, abs, etc.

Calories are King

Let me re-emphasize that you cannot out train a bad diet. A friend of mine once jokingly said that it takes her 30 hard minutes on a treadmill to burn 300 calories and about 30 seconds to inhale 300 calories of chips.

Do not mix the two:

  • the gym is for sculpting
  • the food is for showcasing the work.

Brad Pilon calls this “Fat Loss Divide and Conquer”

We do not work out to burn calories here at Venus Index, we workout to build our best bodies.   Once I sorted this out I found my success.

Liss found her Golden Ratio Venus Ideal by using the Venus Index goal setting metrics

Liss found her Golden Ratio Venus Ideal by using the Venus Index goal setting metrics

At some point close to the Venus Index Ideal, women usually find a happy medium where they have their best shape.  The “best shape” can be highly individual and is a level that fits your lifestyle; it is different for each person.

This is when your best attributes are showcased, and your calorie intake does not feel restricted.

That is what living at Venus Index should feel like- an everyday Venus.

-Liss

 

Filed Under: Bodyfat, calories, cardio, Muscle Growth, Uncategorized, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Transform Your Mind And Your Body By Keeping It Simple

February 4, 2013 by 3 Comments

Today John talks to Deanne Hernandez who placed first in the 6th Venus Index Transformation Contest.

Check out her transformation pictures from the 12 Week Contest:

deanna-hernandez-befores

Deanne before the contest

Deanne Hernandez - 1st Place - After Photos

Deanne Hernandez – 1st Place – After Photos

At the beginning of the contest Deanne did the Venus Index Workout but tried to eat gluten free because it sounded like a good thing to do.  Like many of us she was eating a certain way for no particular reason other than it seems to be the latest fad.  She realized she could not lose weight because she was still eating too many calories.  Her weight stayed the same during the first eight weeks of the contest.  She did not take her diet and calories seriously enough.  Then she got really motivated and kicked into gear, got motivated, got her correct mindset, took a good look at her calories, and ended up with some amazing results. You can change the way you look.  Deanne also decided to get involved in the Venus Index Community Forum and that helped her a lot.  She didn’t realize how much support and information was available there.  She highly recommends others to get involved there to help with your success.

Stay Motivated

Deanne realized that the process was mostly about mindset.  Like most of us have also learned she found she needed mindset techniques like cause and effect; “If I do this than what?”, and “You either do it you don’t.”  She decided she needed the contest with the end date to help keep her motivated.  She said the contest was the best thing she ever did for herself.  She realizes now that what she learned how to do during the contest is something she can do for the rest of her life.

Deanne loved listening to the previous contest winner interviews and loved to imagine herself looking like the pictures of Alisha.  Not only did the process transform her body but it transformed her mind.  She had spent most of her life with a poor image of herself and a lot of negative self talk.  The process she used during the contest and listening to Olya’s interview helped her stop the negative self talk.  She started treating her workouts and diet as gifts to her body.  She now treats herself with kindness and respect.

Knowledge Is Power

Deanne learned that managing the correct amount of calories, Eat Stop Eat, and eating foods you like were the keys to successful weight loss for her.  She learned the truth about calories from the Venus Index manuals and from the Venus Index community.  Deanne learned that the process was simple but not easy.  She decided to keep it simple and tune out all of the conflicting information that comes from the diet and fitness industry.

Keep It Simple

Deanne really liked April’s interview and the plan for doing the VI workout lifting weights three days a week.  Even though more advanced weight lifters can do the workout more days per week the three days per week kept it simple for her.  She decided she would do something every day.  Mostly she paid attention to her activity level for the day and tried to make sure she was taking 10,000 steps.  She walked while she listened to the Venus Index podcasts and that made it fun and enjoyable for her.  She decided that if she did not feel like exercising she would just do it anyway, even if she decided to make the workout easier or lift lighter.  Even on the days she decided to do an easier workout she found that once she got going she felt like pushing herself hard and it felt good.  She found that by doing this she learned to be consistent.

Deanne_After

Look what being consistent and motivated did for Deanne. She looks fabulous.

Links from the interview:

  • Eat Stop Eat – Diet Lifestyle protocol designed to help you to lose fat and regain freedom in your food choices
  • Original Venus Index Workout – Workout program for women that’s responsible for the most amazing transformations online
  • Venus Index Community – Friendliest and most supportive women’s only fitness community on the Internet

Advice from Deanne:

  • Don’t wait, Do something NOW.
  • Keep it simple
  • Figure out how many calories you need and go from there
  • Join a transformation contest
  • It is mostly about mindset
  • Set a goal with a date
  • Even if you don’t feel like it do an easy exercise
  • Exercise as a gift to your body
  • The process is simple, but not easy

Read what Deanne wrote about her experience with Venus Index:

I vaguely remember reading somewhere that the difference between success and failure was education. That idea now makes perfect sense after completing VT6. My failure in weight loss was completely due to my lack of education about the way the human body works. I was an overweight child, and my fittest years being in early college when I was the most active. After college, my weight crept on me and I went through …Continue reading here

Listen to Deanne’s interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Filed Under: Contest, Interview, Podcast, transformation, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Nutrition & Training Triage: Optimal vs. Practical vs. Ideal

January 9, 2013 by 1 Comment

Here’s the next episode of the UNCENSORED Podcasts Season 2.

Today’s topic: Nutrition & Training Triage: Optimal vs. Practical vs. Ideal

 

iStock_000016528694Small

When it comes to nutrition & training advice, how do you sort and prioritize what’s best for you?

The medical term known as triage, means the determination of priorities for action in an emergency. However, this word is from a french origin and is also defined as the “action of assorting according to quality.”

Both of these definitions are applicable to John Barban’s & Brad Pilon’s discussion on defining what is optimal, practical, or at best Ideal.

With the rise of obesity it’s safe to say that an emergency is on our hands when it comes to our health and we must take action.  But what nutrition & training advice should we follow to attain optimal results?

The ever growing amount of new supplements coming to market only makes this task more daunting. From nutritional strategies consisting of: macro/micro nutrients, slow/fast proteins, and the highly controversial thoughts on meal timing, a person could become easily overwhelmed.

Things aren’t much better on the training side of the house as we are faced with a myriad of factors to take into account. Ranging from: Workout Intensity, Volume, length of actual workouts, and the rest/recovery period.

Why all these things may be optimal, are they ideal or even practical?

Today’s podcast will strive to analyze the ever moving target  known as optimal and provide you with ideal advice to build muscle within your lifestyle.

Panel of judges

In today’s UNCENSORED training, you will also discover:

  • Who you really are comparing yourself to
  • How to prevent goal hi-jacking when someone else’s optimal advice is presented to you
  • How Drugs and Genetics skew the curve of optimal
  • How to debunk a fitness claim  giving optimal device
  • Where Top Level Strength & Conditioning coaches get their training advice from
  • How research papers and marketing claims justify their nutrition & training advice to appear optimal for the masses
  • If optimal nutrition & training actually exists and what that actually looks like
  • Whether Hollywood has an influence on what is considered optimum
  • How to manage your ideal training schedule
  • How to focus on your specific results

 

 

Filed Under: Exercise, Muscle Growth, Podcast, Sage Advice, Shape, Uncensored Podcasts S02, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Your Fitness Goals in the New Year, How Bad Do You Want It?

January 4, 2013 by Leave a Comment

What Is Your Motivation?

As we move into the New Year you might be starting to work on new resolutions or goals.  Will you be one who completes your goals this year?  How bad do you want it?  There is pain and sacrifice to achieve it, but there could be pain if you don’t achieve it.  Recently someone in the Venus Index Community posted this article “What is your Motivation?” and I was intrigued by the author’s use of pain motivation and his figurative “Alpo” as the pain.

I read this right around the US Thanksgiving holiday.   I was actually a bit frustrated on the holiday due to several weeks of social eating events and my jeans no longer fit comfortably.  Rather than have a meltdown I took a deep breath and decided I would not ruin the holiday with my precious husband Randy.  I would come up with a plan to fix the problem the next day.  The following day I decided to take a picture of the several pair of jeans that didn’t fit and place them on the refrigerator and pantry doors.  I also included a smiley face and the words “pain motivation”.  The picture reminded me of how awful I felt when the pants didn’t fit.

Be Kind to Yourself Right Where You Are, Right Now

As I was pondering this I had a thought about struggles and victories; cycles continue, struggle, victory, struggle, and victory. Self-worth issues don’t magically go away when you reach your fitness ideal. The best time to treat your body as the temple of beautiful treasures is right now, while continuing the lifelong seasons of reaching new goals.

Randy kind of frowned at me when I put up the picture in the kitchen because it was negative.  Not only that but he thought I looked perfect the way I was.   I was probably still somewhere around 12% body fat.  Since I tend to be hard on myself I have to be careful with the concept of pain motivation.  Many of my girlfriends tell me they must be careful with this concept as well because of a history of eating disorders that stem from issues of self-worth.  I’ve never had eating disorders or emotional eating issues but like many women I struggle with body image issues.  I have to remember that the images of fitness models in fitness magazines are Photoshopped.

I had to remind myself that even though I wanted to achieve a mini goal of fat loss that I was also okay right where I was.  I was healthy, I looked fit, no one saw the little extra bit of fat except me.  It was up to me to make the choice how far I wanted to take it.  Randy, knowing my personal history, warned me with his frown that he’d better not see me beating myself up over this mini goal.

Be Flexible, It’s Okay to Switch It Up

It only took a few weeks to achieve the goal of fitting into the jeans so I switched my motivator to a more positive pleasure motivator (the photo below with the quote “Nothing tastes as good as FIT feels”).  I still remember how I felt the day of this photo shoot and how ecstatic I was when I saw how the pictures turned out.  I decided to make my own (first ever) motivational poster and use it for myself to continue on with my mini goal.  So far it’s working for me.

I switched to a positive pleasure motivator.

I switched to a positive pleasure motivator.

How Bad Do You Want It

The author talks about moving from a state of “Coulda Shoulda Woulda” to a state of “Must” and that reminded me of when I reached my peak of weight gain in 2009.  My weight topped out at over 170lbs.  Something had to change.  I couldn’t possibly do more fitness so I had to change something else.  I had to change my mental mindset and I decided to simply eat less and cut my portion sizes in half.  As I made progress losing weight I constantly used a symbol in my mind of door #1 and door #2.  Door #1 represented achieving the fitness level I had always wanted.  Door #2 represented everything else, every excuse, and simply staying where I was or worse.

The vision of what was behind door #2 was so painful to me that I felt I had no choice.  I must take door #1 which meant continuing to eat at a calorie deficit.  It didn’t mean I had to deprive myself of food; I simply had to eat the right amount to achieve my goal.  This is the beauty of the Anything Goes Diet, Eat Stop Eat, and the Venus Index principles.  Every day when I wanted to eat more than I needed I simply told myself I could have more tomorrow (door #1).

I realized that I used the pain and pleasure motivators all along; door #1 was painful to go through at times but pleasure was on the other side, and door #2 was more pleasurable to go through but pain was on the other side.  Which did I want?  I chose door #1 just about every day for two years.

This dress was my motivator and my reward for achieving my goal.

This dress was my motivator and my reward for achieving my goal.

I had posted up a catalog picture in the kitchen of a swim dress from an athletic clothing company because I wanted to purchase and wear the dress someday.  The picture was a symbol of my door #1 and I kept it posted in the kitchen for about a year.  I achieved that goal and purchased the dress and wore it to the Caribbean last Christmas.  It was my motivator and my reward.

Positive Motivators Worked for Shannon As Well

My friend Shannon who is a busy working mom and wife struggled all her life with weight fluctuations up and down.   She said the tools that finally helped her nail down her success were the Reverse Taper Diet, the Anything Goes Diet, and the Venus Index Workout metric goals using the “Golden Ratio“.

For motivation Shannon said this:

       My past experiences taught me about several components to successful weight loss:  estimating my daily calories so I can be sure I am in a deficit, following an exercise program that I enjoy, taking measurements to track my progress, and working towards a set of daily goals. 

     The process isn’t all that exciting, but the outcome is!  I have been using a planner and stickers to track several daily goals since before my baby was born, including a sleep goal, a calorie deficit goal, a step goal, and a workout goal.  I get a sticker for hitting each of these daily goals, and I find that the number of goals I hit in a week is strongly correlated with weight loss (or maintenance) success. 

     It’s a simple system, and I can easily see the little wins as they pile up.   I like to think about these daily goals as little gifts I am giving to myself every day that have both short term and long term positive effects.

Shannon’s results motivated her husband to start the Adonis Index program.  I would say positive motivation worked very well for her indeed:

Positive motivators worked for Shannon

Positive motivators worked for Shannon

Experiment and Find What Works for YOU

Motivation is different for each person.  You must first define what you want and set your goal.   Then find what motivates you.  Be flexible and if something isn’t working try something else.  Make sure it’s fun and really does motivate you.  Be kind to yourself at all times.  You can change and adjust your plan any time you want.  That is the beauty of experimentation.  You don’t have to stay stuck in a plan that is not working, causes you anxiety, or ends up being destructive to your self-worth or self-image.  We all make mistakes sometimes and learn from them.

  • Set goals
  • Experiment
  • Find what motivates you
  • Make it fun
  • Be kind to yourself
  • Make it a daily routine
  • Track progress
  • Get support
  • Give yourself rewards
  • Be flexible

It is the Yew Year, 2013.  What are your goals?  How bad do you want it? Make it happen.

Ro

 

Filed Under: Bodyfat, calories, Diet, Exercise, fat loss, Food, Health, Metabolism, psychology, Shape, Uncategorized, weight loss, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Stop Wasting Your Time: How Women Shortchange Themselves at the Gym

August 31, 2012 by 5 Comments

Anyone who has spent any amount of time in gyms over the years has seen the same patterns repeated over and over again.

I’ve been training since the Nixon administration and I’ve seen  every diet/exercise craze, new fad and latest greatest equipment/program that has rolled down the pike since the 70’s.

I’ve even tried a few of them too.

The natural human proclivity for novelty makes us all suckers for the next new thing.

What really works to produce results seems to be a mystery to many women, even though they crowd the gym in droves.

Escape the Average Treadmill Physique

Because there are so many choices and so many people marketing their various programs/diets/workouts like religious cults, it leads to confusion for the average woman.

The bigger  problem is that most women  have no clue what they want out of their workouts and are scared to venture into the  free weight area of the gym. They listen to conventional  fitness wisdom peddled by the media and spend endless hours at the gym plodding away at steppers, treadmills and bikes.

They crowd in the studios doing zumba, pilates, yoga, bootcamp and all kinds of other “fun” activities. They think this will produce “visible results”.

Occasionally, they may see some random improvement.  I  plead guilty to falling into this trap in the past. Cardio has it’s place and purpose from a point of  health but endless cardio does not equal weight loss and a better body.

Next time you are at the gym take a look at  the women and men slogging away on the stairmaster or bikes and ask yourself if they have a body you would want.

Chances are the answer is no.

Big Fat Lie: “I Have these Arms from Lifting Itty Bitty Girly Weights”

Another thing I’ve seen at the gym is women piddling around the weight machines with no real purpose or program. Paraphrasing Martin Berkhan, this is a bad case of Fart-around-itis  (the original term is not appropriate for family publications).

I occasionally see women in the free weights area doing a few sets of flies, presses or rows with 5 & 10 lb weights. Occasionally,  I will see a  woman lifting  heavier weights. Usually a college athlete.  It’s so uncommon, I take notice.

Woman Lifting Heavy

Do you want to get in shape? You have to lift heavy, period.

Which brings me to my big question.

Why do women shortchange themselves in the gym?

Why are so few lifting weights that can actually give them results and a body that people would envy?

There are a lot of cultural issues that come in to play here.

I suspect that most women are afraid to go beyond their comfort zone and have preconceived ideas about weight training and femininity. I also think that women have no clue how strong they really can get and lack the self confidence to find out.

Have a Clear Measurable Goal

So we get to the heart of the problem.

Ask yourself this question: What is my goal?

If it not something that is clear and measurable you will be wasting your time.

Things like  “getting in shape” getting “fit” or losing a few pounds seem like goals, but they are really pretty nebulous and hard to define. It’s like people saying they want to be healthier. The definitions of “health”  being “in shape” or being more “toned” are varied and subjective.

Even losing  scale weight,  while measurable does not always yield a more attractive  body.

Many women are in a “normal” BMI range, yet over fat and under muscled. Losing 10 lbs will not really help if you do not work on increasing or maintaining muscle mass.

If you have small underdeveloped muscles and you  lose 10 or 15 lbs you will  be smaller but still look soft and undefined. Muscle creates shape.

That’s what separates “hot” from NOT.

Do What Produces the Best Results for the Time You Put In

This is where women shortchange themselves and fail.

They do endless cardio and fitness classes thinking that it will “tone” them and make them look “hot”. They go and do  a couple of  light sets on weight machines. Or they pick up some 5 or 10 lb dumbbells and do some kind of weight training without a clue of what they are doing and  are clearly NOT challenging themselves in anyway at all.

Result is: no noticeable results!

Challenge Yourself and Use Heavier Weights

pudgy stockton pressing overhead

Look, Ma: Big Weights & No Bulking.
Great Results: Old School Style.

Big news flash: Women will not get big and bulky using heavier weights. You do not have a Y chromosome and lots of circulating testosterone, so you will not build huge muscles. Not now, not ever.

The women and men you see in bodybuilder magazines and competitions use  anabolic steroids and lots of other drugs you’ve never heard of to look the way they do. Lifting heavier weights will NOT make you look like that.

“But I get bulky if I lift something bigger than a  pink barbie bell” you cry.

Reality check: bulk is fat.

That blanket of adipose that covers your  scrawny little muscles is the source of the “bulk”. Lose the fat  and there is no “ bulk”. Losing fat is a question of  appropriate caloric intake for your height. You need a lot fewer calories than you think. If you are not losing fat you are eating too much.

Yes, I know, not what you want to hear.

Apparently most of people I see in public are not eating less. Which explains the expanding pant sizes and need for bigger hospital gurneys.

Define your goals.

Let’s face it, unless you are a competitive athlete,  your goal  is probably to  look better in a bathing suit. Your definition of better. If you need to lose fat, you will have to control your calories and eat less. Doing an hour of stair stepper and then drinking a 600 calorie juice smoothie will not lead to fat loss unless you are 6’4”.

Use cardio to condition your  cardiovascular system, not to burn excess calories. The actual caloric burn from most exercise is rather modest. Not the 900 calories the stairstepper/treadmill/ machine thingie says. Those are fantasy numbers.

Lift heavier weights.

Preferably  free weights, not machines.

You will build muscle by repeatedly creating strong contraction against greater resistance.

So use enough weight to create that required resistance.

At the minimum you need to lift at a threshold of 40-50% of your one rep max on any given exercise. This will vary but chances are if you have not gotten good results in the past with weight training you are not lifting enough weight.  3 sets of 10 reps with 5 or 10 lbs will not produce any results unless you just stepped out of a prison camp or famine or you are 90 years old and in a walker.

You  also need  a good program that gives proven physique results.

Venus Index is designed to give you a balanced symmetrical shape that is  universally attractive and healthy looking. It works for all figure types because it is based on the  universal proportion found in nature   (fibonacci’s number). Every woman wants to have a balanced hour glass shape. That is considered attractive in all cultures and throughout history.

It is a prime indicator of youth, health and vitality.

Even if you are not 18 years old, you can have a great body at any age if you do the necessary work in the gym.

If you are over 40, 50 or even 60, a youthful, lean strong body makes you younger and healthier.  And another news flash: It does not require hours a day in the gym or on a treadmill.

Working out longer is not necessarily better. You can do marathons and spin classes ‘til hell freezes over and not look good in a swimsuit.

More is NOT always better. Better is better.

Lifting ‘til you puke or working out ’til you drop does not equal great results.

Targeted programs give real results with no photoshopping needed. Just real results for real women with busy lives who are willing to do the work.

The Cliff Notes:

  1. Have a clear measurable workout  goal
  2. Consider what gives the best results for the time put in. More is not better. Better is better.
  3. Challenge yourself with heavier weights
  4. Choose a good program that will give real results. Venus Index fits that bill.

 

Filed Under: Bodyfat, cardio, change, Exercise, fat loss, Health, Shape, transformation, Uncategorized, weight loss, Weight training Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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