Maintenance with Venus Veteran Carly

Carly Venus Before and After

Carly has been using Venus systems for over 3 years.  She did a phenomenal job with her initial transformation and her continued results display the hard work she puts in. Her transformation stretches out further than a 12 week period though, she has lost FORTY pounds using Venus!

Carly Venus Before and After Side

Carly before starting Venus in 2013 and after VT14, unbelievable!

Here is what Carly had to say in her own words:

Before children, I never worked out. I never counted calories. I didn’t have to work hard to keep my figure. I was young then too and now I’m older. All my factors have changed so I need to change my habits in order to keep the figure I desire. I am thirty two years old. I have two children. My son is six years old and my daughter is three years old. I found Venus in June 2013, two months after I had my daughter. I had a lot of weight to lose. I was ready to hit the gym to lose my baby weight.  Liss Graham was teaching Venus at my local gym so I decided to join her class. By April 2014, I hit my weight loss goal. I had dropped FORTY-FIVE pounds! I was in my measurement goals with the nutrition calculator. But once I hit that goal, I already had another goal in mind. TONING!! I kept using Venus from April 2014 to May 2015 but I felt like I was just in the motion and not really learning or thinking about how to better myself. I felt like I was in limbo. For me, it has been hard to build muscle. I didn’t know what I was doing. I felt stronger every time I lifted and I was getting sore but I couldn’t grow. I wasn’t pushing myself to the level I could have gone. Even though, I was very successful with weight loss, I felt like I didn’t know how to maintain my weight and I didn’t know how to tone the muscles. For me it was like, “Well, I lost all this weight but now what?” I felt uneducated on how to maintain my weight and build muscle at the same time. To reach this goal and to get motivated again, I decided to join a contest. I felt like I truly started TONING when VT14 started. When I joined the VT14 my mission was to tone up every muscle from head to toe. I added more days of lifting. I went to the gym six days of the week instead of the recommended three. I watched my intake more. I researched more by listening to podcasts and reading fitness articles. I started following fitness guru’s on Instagram and facebook. I dedicated more time to reading and understanding the VENUS program. Sometimes I even worked out twice a day. I took advice from other Venus expertise. Liss Graham came for visits at my gym and I learned from her every time. She’s an AMAZING coach by the way! I took professional pictures every 6 weeks to help push me along. I had some vacations during the contest and I didn’t want it to derail me. I used myfitnesspal and held myself accountable for every meal. I was dedicated to making progress. Twelve weeks later, I felt like I had the body of my dreams. I know what to do now to keep my transformation. I can see my growth with photos. I know how to keep toning my body without being lost in the process. Venus has educated me on how to be healthy and fit for life. Venus has helped me reach my weight loss goal and my toning goal. Venus has given me the body that I craved. Before children, I weighted one hundred and seventeen pounds. I weigh less now and have way more muscle. I look way better after kids then I ever did before kids. I have been very successful with Venus and have hit many goals. I didn’t know anything about fitness before Venus. I think everyone should watch the how to videos and learn how to eat right and learn what a simple carb is versus a complex carb. I literally didn’t know anything! The biggest change for me is making trips to the grocery store. I know not to just look at the pretty labels on the boxes that are misleading to shoppers. I know how to read ingredients and what to look for in them. I read the nutrition label, which I used to ignore. Venus has changed my life and for the better. I eat clean now. I have the confidence and education it takes to make Venus a lifestyle and not a fad. I’ve done it for three years and I plan on doing it for the rest of my life. It is too good of a program to ever stop doing.

Carly Venus Before and After Back

Carly’s Metrics

Weight Height Waist Shoulders Hips
June 2013 150 lb 63 in 33.5 in 41.5 in 42.5 in
February 2016 113 lb 63 in 26.8 in 36.0 in 36 in
Deltas -37 lb 0 in -6.7 in -5.5 in -6.5 in

 

Carly and Venus Friends

Carly (right) with Venus veteran and friend Julie (left)

Carly is a beautiful Venus! Nothing can stop her now!

 

Carly Venus Class June 2015

Carly, Coach Liss, and Venus friends at the Moore County YMCA

Carly Venus Class July 2015

Listen to Carly’s interview with Liss below, or download it for later:

What is Venus Coaching and who is it for?

Venus Index Coaches

Your Venus Index Coaching Team

 

I have answered a few questions lately regarding Venus coaching and how it differs from our Venus Immersion.

 

Immersion

Venus Immersion is comparable to a “do it yourself” home project. You know it will take you a bit longer than a contractor but it will save money and you will learn the basics along the way.  The other benefit is that you have access to Venus training programming much longer than a 12 week period along with access to all the uncensored podcasts.

 

Coaching

Venus coaching is comparable to hiring a contractor for your home project. You want an expert so it gets done right the first time or maybe you have a special case.  Other reasons may be that you have no background knowledge in fitness or your time is valuable so you want to cut to the chase. A coach will get your background and prescribe a nutrition and training regimen based on your needs.

 

All the coaches do things a little differently based on their personalities. You can request any one of the coaches and if we have space we will accommodate your request.   We all touch base with clients weekly and take client biweekly progress reports. Based on that, a coach will modify programming for the client.  Clients can email their coach at any time with questions or concerns. I like to talk to my clients face to face so we Skype if the client desires, some of the other coaches do as well.

 

If you think Immersion might be right for you, there is more information here –  http://products.venusindex.com/#immersion

 

If you think coaching might be for you, there is more info here – http://clients.venusindex.com/premium-one-on-one-coaching

 

Either way you go, you are investing in your health and priorities which is a win.

 

X- Coach Liss

What About Gut Bacteria and Weight Loss? Uncensored Podcast

Kimberley is one of our many veteran "Every Day Venus" women who maintain the lifestyle ongoing.  Much of her success comes from eating healthy for her own personal health issues and paying attention to the reactions in her own body and how specific foods make her feel.

Kimberley is one of our many veteran “Every Day Venus” women who maintain the Venus lifestyle . Much of her success comes from eating healthy for her own personal health issues.   She pays attention to the reactions in her own body and how specific foods make her feel.

 

First of all, Merry Christmas to all of you who celebrate this holiday today!  For you this is a day of feast and celebration meant for you to enjoy with your family and friends, so ENJOY!  If you have weight loss goals just have fun today and get back on track with your normal routine as soon as you can after the holiday.

 

What about gut bacteria and weight loss?

John and Brad have been researching this subject and found:

  • The classic nutrition model:  Feed the machine, done.
  • The new model:  Feed the machine that feeds or feed the micro machines that feed you -you being the macro machine.

Most of us know that probiotics are good for you and make you feel better. Antibiotics can kill good bacteria and probiotics help build the good bacteria back up.

Within your intestines there 10 times as many bacteria cells as your body cells.  This is a very big part of your body, so it makes sense that this is important.

In order to appreciate the importance of the bacteria it is crucial to know they are a fundamental part of your body.  They influence hormones, how you feel, and are very much a part of who you are. 

Recent research pointed out that obese vs lean people have very different bacteria population within their bodies.

The bacterium changes your ability to metabolize certain foods. 

Right now John and Brad are spending some time to find out if there is a better way to use this information to help you lose weight more successfully.  They have found that there seems to be a link to this and those who have been the most successful at using the Venus system.

Kimberley has been very successful at maintaining her Venus shape.  She eats very healthy according to her own needs and health issues and is an expert at paying attention to how specific foods make her feel.

I have a rotating list of 1000 friends on My Fitness Pal (because that is their limit), some of who watch what I eat. I quite often get the question “Hey, if what you eat doesn’t matter for weight loss why do you eat so healthy?”

My answer has always been because it makes me feel good and perform well at the gym.  It also helps me sleep better and perform all of my daily responsibilities and maintain a cheerful outlook on life.  I take all of these things into account with everything I do regarding health and fitness.  At 53 years old now I am constantly thinking about my long term health and having the best quality of life for as long as I can.

What about you?  Do you think about what you eat and how it makes you feel and your ability to perform for all that you do every day?

I wish everyone a happy holiday and New Year!

-Ro

 

To hear more about what John and Brad have to say about gut bacteria and how it effects weight loss click on the link below.

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Understanding Research Claims with Dr. Julie Conquer

Here’s the next episode of the UNCENSORED Podcasts Season 3.

What about supplement claims? If you are reading an article that sounds too good to be true - it probably is too good to be true.

What about supplement claims?
If you are reading an article that sounds too good to be true
– it probably is too good to be true.

Today’s Topic:  Understanding research claims for supplements

Today John speaks with Dr. Julie Conquer

Dr. Conquer’s Educational background:

University of Toronto
PhD, Molecular Pathology
1990 – 1994

University of Guelph
MSc, Nutritional Sciences
1988 – 1990

University of Waterloo
BSc, Biology
1983 – 1987

Dr. Conquer has 10 years of experience on clinical trials on dietary supplements.  Now she is working on putting the research together.

What you will learn in the podcast:

  • What is the structure of research claims?
  • What is really supporting the research claims?
  • What is a review compared to a systematic review?
  • What is a clinical trial?
  • What are clinical good practice trials?
  • What is double blind?
  • What are the standards for double blind?
  • What is pre-trial disclosure?
  • What are the recent improvements in quality in clinical trials?
  • What is the Jadad scale?
  • What is randomization?
  • What is required for randomization?
  • What about weight loss studies?
  • How do the behaviors of people in the study effect the outcome?
  • What about people who drop out of a study?
  • Is safety an end point in studies?
  • What is the difference between the media stories vs. the actual studies?
  • Why is the gap between media stories and the actual studies so great?
  • Why we should never just look at just the latest study?
  • Should you rely on mainstream media for the truth about clinical trials?
  • Why you should look at only at the results section in the study.
  • Are there some places where people can find the truth about supplement studies?
  • What is peer review?

If you are reading an article that sounds too good to be true – it probably is too good to be true.

The National Standards Supplement Database is available for immersion customers as a service we provide to help fill the gap.  It is updated regularly. It is available in your Venus Cockpit.

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Questions and Answers on the Venus Factor 12 week Fat Loss Program

Today John and I got together to discuss the most common questions that have come up in the Venus Community Forum regarding the Venus Factor 12 week Fat Loss Program.

In the audio podcast John answers how all the pieces of of the 12 week fat loss program work and fit together.

In the audio podcast John answers how all the pieces of of the 12 week fat loss program work and fit together.

John answers these questions and more:

  • How many calories?
  • How much protein?
  • How to structure the workouts?
  • What to do about injuries?
  • What do the minimum numbers in the Venus Factor Virtual Nutritionist mean?
  • What is the Tracker?
  • How will the Venus Factor workout effect my female shape?
  • Why is a strict meal plan not spelled out for me?

Download the audio file below:

 

Muscle Is Forever

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

Today’s topic:  Muscle is Forever

 

Muscle is forever!

Muscle is forever!

The term “building muscle” is the most common term we hear when referring to an increase in muscle size. This however is not the most accurate way of imagining how a muscle actually increases it’s size. A better way to think of it is inflating and deflating a balloon, and increasing the ‘rubber’ of the balloon.

From there it gets a little more complex with the incorporation of muscle specific stem cells called “satellite cells”.

In todays podcast we review the claims of an interesting self experiment done by Nate Green who gained 20lbs of lean mass in only 28 days. We determine that it’s more correct to say that he actually ‘re-inflated’ the same 20lbs of muscle mass he used to have…and that it’s perfectly normal to expect to do this for anyone who has previously been 20lbs larger.

Fact is that once you’ve built the muscle you can always get it back even after years of taking time off. And it comes back FAST!

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Are We Natural Cyborgs?

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

Today’s topic:  Are We Natural Cyborgs?

Are We Natural Cyborgs?

Are We Natural Cyborgs?

Are We Natural Cyborgs?

Diet and fitness marketing tends to refer to what is ‘natural’. Many diets promote a way of eating that is ‘natural’ and the way we evolved to eat.

But are we natural beings anymore?

It’s not uncommon for people to have many artificial, prosthetic or unnatural ‘parts’ to their body.

We can have surgically reconstructed joints, bones, eyes, ears (hearing aids), artificial hearts, mesh plating (stents), balloons, sensors (pacemakers), artificial valves, and many other artificial parts to replace or enhance our ‘naturally’ failing parts.

We also have drugs that mimic or replace the functioning of ‘natural’ systems of the body that just aren’t working well anymore.

It then becomes a question of what is natural. Does it even make sense to strive for what is ‘natural’ with our diet and fitness if our bodies are becoming less natural themselves.

In this new era of modern medicine and devices you could argue that we’re becoming ‘natural cyborgs’.


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The Hierarchy of Diet and Fitness needs; Redefining the Fitness Pyramid

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

Today’s topic:  The Hierarchy of Diet and Fitness needs; Redefining the Fitness Pyramid

Don't stress about what you can't control.  Change what you can.

Don’t stress about what you can’t control. Change what you can.

John and Brad discuss how to look at your health and fitness needs.  Nutrition, supplements, ability to lose fat, ability to gain muscle, and ability to train are all interrelated.  It all works together.  Small things effect other things and then can escalate to hinder your goals.

Your own pyramid is unique.  Your own inhibitors can be anywhere on your pyramid.  Certain things are foundational:

  • Keeping stress under control
  • Awake and sleep cycles
  • Fat loss, if needed
  • Effort in the gym
  • Ability to sleep
  • Amount to eat (not too much, not too little)
  • Injury
  • Ability to recover from workouts
  • Finding a good time to workout

People with sleep and stress out of control typically have trouble sticking with a diet and fitness program.

Each person is unique.  Sometimes supplements or nutrition can address specific inhibitors.

The main thing is don’t worry or stress about things you have no control over.  Change the things you can.  Small things effect other things and then can escalate into bigger problems that hinder your goals.

I hope you enjoy listening to the discussion as much as I did.

-Ro

 

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Phi-Life Series: The Real Story Behind Supplement Packaging

Today we bring you the first of many podcasts from our phi-life series.

Today’s topic: Supplement Packaging

What do you think is the most important thing in supplement development?

If your answer was ingredients, you would be incorrect.

Do you think supplement packing is not important? Do you think that you make your buying decision only based on the ingredients? You might be surprised…

When developing a new product, the supplement developers actually work backwards from packaging.

In reality the package is what will sell the product, not the ingredient. The ingredients are pretty much the same across all the products, so that’s not what sets a specific supplement apart or even what will make you choose one for purchase.

One can hardly imagine how complex the process of just “creating the package” really is.

It’s not only the color of the supplement that matters. It’s the questions of whether you put the ingredients into capsule or powder form? If so, do those contents belong in a  bottle or package?

Packaging is the first impression a customer will have with a product.

The next step of the process is figuring out what to say, what font to use, what colors to use, what fitness model to endorse the product with what particular claim and much more.

You simply cannot sell a supplement without the right package and claim, because that’s what drives sales.

Everything must fit together, the claim has to fit the cover and everything has to be in-sync from a buyer’s perspective.

Packaging is utmost importance for a supplement company. In today’s podcast you will  discover just how much it matters and what really goes into packaging   design.

This is not to tell you that supplements are evil and should be avoided at all costs., Quite the opposite, certain supplements can help you with your fitness goals. However, understanding whats goes behind the scenes will help you pick the supplements you really need and avoid spending money on products that are useless to you, but may look very appealing at first.

Today you have a chance to get inside the heads of previous supplement developers – John Barban and Brad Pilon.

You will also learn and discover:

  • What colors entice you to buy
  • The reason some supplements are on the market (not all supplement are backed by clinical studies)
  • The exact steps that take place before the supplement is put on the shelf
  • [For supplement developers] How to make an impression on your customers and stand out in competition
  • How package size correlates with the magnitude of promised results
  • How supplements can get away with outrageous claims
  • How your thought process as a customer affects package development
  • If it matters whether the supplement cover looks pretty or not

Listen to the podcast here:

What Supplements Should You Take to Help You Achieve Your Health & Fitness Goals?

Here’s the second part of this month’s UNCENSORED Podcasts Season 2.

The topic?

Supplements.

Here’s what you discovered in the first part (link to the 1st part here):

  • What a supplement is, how the industry got started, and what it has evolved into
  • What is the definition of supplements in various countries and why it matters
  • How important supplements are
  • What’s the lifecycle of a supplement product
  • How the process of putting new supplements on the market works
  • How come government regulators have no control of what’s on the market
  • What ingredients are added into supplements are useless and serve just as marketing

“Will These Supplements Help Me?”

Often times guys on the Internet and in our community ask us “What supplements should I take?” or “Will this supplement help me?”.

Should you take those? Are they worth the money? How will you track the results? Or will you just go by the “feeling”?

The issue is that it’s impossible to answer those type of questions.

If you want an accurate answer that can actually help you (not the generic crap found on the web) with your fitness goals, you need to get clear on what is it you really want and what do you expect out of the supplements.

Another thing that will determine what supplements to use and how much of it we will recommend you taking is your budget, how much money can you spend on supplements? 50 bucks? Or 1000 bucks? That’s a pretty big difference. Somebody who is a sponsored athlete or works in a supplement lab will have different options than a college student.

For example a question “Will this product give me the body I want?”or “Can this product do what I want it to do?” is way better and gets to the point of what you really expect from it.

But even those two questions aren’t perfect, when you start thinking about it, you’ll soon find out that it’s not that easy to figure out the right question (after you listen to the podcast, try to come up with a good one and share it in the community so others can comment on it).

This is just one way of looking at it, another way would be to take a different approach and actually set your goals first and then try to match the right product to that desired outcome.

However, in this case you will find a pretty nasty barrier.

And that’s the fact that supplements contain a lot of ingredient that will have absolutely zero effect on your body.

When you look into each product you will see a bunch of stuff you have never heard about, but almost always there will be one big ingredient that’s usually responsible for all the results. In many cases it will be creatine, or caffeine, depends on the supplement.

Why is that?

Well, the top selling supplements are exactly the same as ten years ago and they will most likely be same as the best selling supplements ten years from now.

There is just a couple of items that are packaged in a thousand different ways.

The product isn’t what’s different, they are roughly the same, it’s the marketing around it that makes all the difference.

Supplement companies fight a difficult challenge and that’s pointing out the ingredient.

Nobody gets excited about plain Creatine monohydrate anymore, simply because it’s been around a while. So, they have to sell some “enhanced version” of creatine to pump up the sales.

It has nothing to do with finding some new amazing and proven ingredient that nobody has ever heard about and adding it to the current product, it’s just a simple desire to sell more products.

Today John Barban and Brad Pilon will reveal more information about the supplement industry and also coach you on how to ask the right question and how to find supplements that will help you with:

a) Building Muscle

b) Losing Fat

c) Improving Health

d) Boosting Energy

In today’s UNCENSORED training, you will also discover:
  • How to approach weight loss supplements and what do they really help with (hint: they are not burning your belly fat)
  • What are the realistic expectations for using the supplements that are on the market
  • What supplements companies are should be trustworthy (bigger or smaller? Why??)
  • How the Natural Standards Database (you have access to it in the immersion account through cockpit) can help you pick supplements
  • Step by step how to intelligently choose and test supplements
  • What side effects really are and how it applies to you when you take supplements (or drugs)
  • Pilon’s sneaky techniques he used to sell supplements in the past

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