Gym Characters: From Arnold Schwarznegger to Paris Hilton

I've been going to different gyms throughout my career, yet I've always noticed the same types of characters that frequent the place. Some make you laugh some make you cringe, here's my attempt at stereotyping these interesting characters:

The Steroid Monkey: This guy is huge, a behemoth with shoulder caps the size of your head. He carries around a milk jug full of water, but his strength doesn't match his physique. He spends 40% of the time at the urinal, 40% mingling with the trainers and 20% working out.

Miss Beautiful: She's single, beautiful and ready to mingle. This girl has several memberships at different gyms because she's already in great shape and is just there to flirt with the boys. All eyes are on her when she's there and she flaunts it flawlessly.

The Strong Man: He's big, brawny and bear-like. He could pop off your head if he squeezed you hard enough and consumes 5000 calories a day to support his physique. You'll hear his screams and grunts from across the gym and you'll never hog his machine because he would hurt you.

Teenyboppers: They come and go as a flock and are there to outdo one another. Trying to learn the ropes of training but they're egos always get in the way. They use more weight then they can handle, don't understand proper form and nearly kill themselves trying and have the scars to prove it.

Healthy Recipes: Garlic Chicken Quinoa with Arugula

Here's a slight twist on my favourite garlic chicken quinoa recipe, I top it with some arugula to add some color and flavour.  For those that haven't tried arugula, it's really big in Europe and is just starting to invade our kitchens.  It has a nice aromatic and nutty flavour in the texture of a leafy vegetable.  The first time I had it was in Berlin in 2007 and I fell in love with it, now it's finally available here for a reasonable price.

I love quinoa, see my superfood article to understand why

Ingredients:
Salt/Pepper
6 chicken thighs
6 garlic cloves
3 cups arugula
1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken broth

Press garlic cloves and mix with chicken and pepper in a bowl
Allow to marinate for 2 hours in the fridge

Pour a teaspoon of oil into pan and heat until oil is hot
Add chicken mixture and stir-fry until chicken is cooked

Poor quinoa into pot with 2 cups of chicken broth
Bring to a boil for 2 minutes, then turn to low and let simmer for 10-15 minutes
Salt to desired taste
Mix chicken into mixture and let simmer for 2 minutes
Allow to cool, top with arugula and serve

Healthy Fast Food: Opa Souvlaki

There is such thing as healthy fast food believe it or not.  Most restaurants have healthier options that you can choose from.  I had a rushed dinner at Opa today and this was what I had.  See my healthy fast food article for more details.

It was actually called the low carb plate and it was delicious.  Basically it was just their classic greek salad with a chicken skewer.  No processed carbs, low in fat and mighty tasty.  How can you go wrong? 

P.S.  I like to add some jalapenos to the salad for some added kick!  Spicy foods can moderately increase metabolism (I personally think it's from the sweating)

Training Tips: Bootcamp Cardio Workout

This workout is meant to test your muscular endurance. Try to not stop in between exercises and run to each machine quickly. It's time to get firm and feel the burn!

20 Bench Presses

20 Squats

20 Lat Pulldowns

20 Shoulder Presses

5 minutes on treadmill

 

5 minutes on rowing machine

Repeat this entire set 4 times, each set should take ~15 minutes.

Note: anyone engaging in exercise for the first time should first consult a physician. Also, to ensure good form please consult with an experienced professional or personal trainer. As well, please use a spotter as an additional safety factor. Always warm up before workouts and stretch after workouts

Chiropractor Cracker Review

I have this nagging injury that has been bothering me on and off for the past couple of months in my lower back.  A friend of mine swore by his chiropactor who he claimed was the only person that was able to heal his injury after months of other attempts.  I was quite convinced, so I decided to give his chiropractor a chance.

I've never seen a chiropractor and was somewhat scared of letting somebody manhandle my body like a fat kid with a pretzel.  In a nutshell, this was my experience:

First off they sat me in a room and ran a machine up and down my back to check for temperature differentials in my muscles
After the technician was done I sat in that same room, shirtless, for about half an hour by myself staring at the computer screen of my back scan until the screen saver came on, which forced me to play with my Iphone to stay entertained
In walks the doctor and he sticks his fingers into my lower back and tells me my hips are uneven, I figured that was the case because sometimes I felt one leg being longer then the other
I lie on the massage table and he feels me out some more while scribbling in my chart
I then get sent into another room where I'm told to lie down on a contraption that kind of looked like a reclined dentists chair
Tells me to lie on my back and he looms over me like a butcher ready to work a piece of meat
He contorts my arms into a self-hugging position and crack!  That was one of the scariest moments of my life hearing my back crack like that, it could probably be heard in the waiting room. 
Tells me to lie on my side and he pushes into my body and crack again.
Flip over, another crack
Then he grabs my skull twists it like he was going to pop it off and then double cracks
And it's finally over, ten full cracks later and my appointment is done

He tried to explain to me what he did after the session, but I was in too much shock to hear his words.  This was one of the most awkward things I've ever done to my body.  I thought my massuese could instill fear in me, but this guy took the cake.

Overall, I didn't enjoy the session, it was an eye opener to me that people allow this to be done to their bodies.  I guess I'm going to have to wait and see if it actually works, but I'm dreading my next appointment. 

Anybody else out there willing to share their experience?  Next time I should do my research before I barge into a clinic looking for the cure!

What Not Do: Fitness Tip of the Week

This has happened to me before, but I don't think it was from a machine.

Healthy Recipes: Tomato Quinoa with Dill and Smoked Salmon

I kind of cheated for this meal in that I bought a nice chunk of smoked marinated salmon, it was my treat for the week, but still high in protein low in fat.  As I always say, you always have options when it comes to eating healthy.

I love quinoa, see my superfood article to understand why

Ingredients:
1 cup of quinoa
1 cup of chicken broth
1 large tomato
1 piece of salmon (500 grams)
1 Teaspoon of dill weed
Salt/Pepper
2 lemon slices

Quinoa:
Pour quinoa and chicken broth into a pot
Bring to a boil for two minutes at high heat
Chop up tomatoes into cubes and add to pot
Turn to low heat and let mixture simmer for 10 minutes
Fluff with a fork and serve

Salmon:
Lightly oil a large piece of tin foil
Place smoked salmon in foil and place a piece of lemon on top
Place plain salmon on foil and add dill, salt, pepper to top of salmon
Add one slice of lemon
Wrap up salmon in the foil and place in oven
Bake at 350F for 25 minutes or until cooked to your liking
Plate and serve

Two Weeks Into Your New Year Resolutions

It's been two weeks since most of us have made our weight loss new year resolutions.  I'm curious to see if you've been able to keep them up, as it's the dedication that will help you meet your fitness goals.  If you break weight loss down to the basics, it comes down to just two main components. 

Eating:  Your eating is the key to the fight, so fuel your body with lean healthy whole foods.  Or if you choose to look at it from a calories perspective, try calories in versus calories out.  If you don't know how many calories you should be consuming just to maintain your weight.  Check out this website: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm .  Although nothing is 100% accurate, it's a good starting point to figuring out what your maintenance level for calorie consumption should be at.

Exercise:  You don't have to spend hours of time at the gym, but you should be doing activities that will burn off the excess calories you have consumed.  It can be as simple as taking a walk around the neighbourhood for an hour each night.  Just try doing some sort of activity every couple of days, daily would be ideal, but we all know how busy our schedules can get.

Weight loss isn't rocket science, if you're able to stick to it, you should see the results that you desire.  The new year has just begun and you've committed yourself to this resolution.  Let's not make it a fad, let's make it a new way of living.

I'd love to hear how you are doing with things, so feel free to message me with your progress or problems!

Colin
Info@FitNutBlog.com

Training Tips: Workout For A Firm Butt

Being Asian, I don't have much of a bum, so I have to work really hard to turn that flat piece of real estate into a couple of peaks.  Here's a good workout to give you more of a booty shelf.


Wide Stance Squats - stand with your feet a few inches more then shoulder width apart

 

Close Stance Squats - stand with your feet close together

Lunges

Leg Press 

Workout Program:

15 Wide Stance Squats

30 second rest

15 Close Stance Squats
30 second rest
15 Lunges on each Leg
30 second rest
15 Leg Presses
30 second rest

Repeat this set 3 times

Note: anyone engaging in exercise for the first time should first consult a physician.  Also, to ensure good form please consult with an experienced professional or personal trainer. As well, please use a spotter as an additional safety factor.  Always warm up before workouts and stretch after workouts.

Deals of the Day

Christmas has just passed and I just got my visa bill...OUCH!  It's time to start saving some money and being frugal again.  Here are some awesome deals for the Calgary area:

Dinner for 4 by a Certified Personal Chef

$15 for $36 Worth of Pub Fare and Drinks at The Darby Arms

30 Hot Yoga Classes at Tri-Yoga for $30

$35 for a 60 Minute Massage of Your Choice of Relaxation, Deep Tissue or Therapeutic, Plus 3 Ten Minute Whole Body Vibration Body Slimming Sessions at Eden Wellness and Vibration ($150 Value)

What Not To Do: Fitness Tip of the Week

He's got the flexibility aspect of training down

Drink Water for Health

Water:  the source of life.  Without it, the earth would not exist, nor would the beautiful creatures that inhabit it.  Two-thirds of our bodies are composed of it and we can't live without it for more then a few days.  Yet most of us don't drink enough of it.  Here are some reasons why H2O is the way to go:

• Water is essentially free, unless you like to buy bottled water
• It's got zero calories, so you can drink as much as you want
• Keeps you hydrated and quenches your thirst
• Ensures your body fnctions at optimal efficiency
• Essentially keeps you alive

So the next time you're in the company kitchen, opt for some crisp, clean water instead of that can of pop in the fridge.

Quinoa Recipes: Garlic Chicken Quinoa

Ingredients:
4 cloves of garlic
Salt/Pepper
4 chicken cutlets (I prefer dark meat)
1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken broth
Handful of arugula

Marinate the chicken:
Crush garlic
Cut chicken into bite size pieces
Mix salt/pepper, garlic and chicken in a bowl and let marinate overnight

Cook the quinoa:
Pour quinoa into pot with chicken broth
Bring to a boil for 2 minutes
Set to simmer for 10 minutes
Fluff quinoa with a fork

Cook and mix it all together:
Heat up oil in a pan
Add chicken pieces and pan fry until cooked
Add quinoa to pan and mix together
Top with arugula and serve

Pyramid Training Workout Routine

The pyramid workout is where you perform exercises to the point of muscular fatigue.  In other words, you go until you can't go any more by constantly decreasing the weight.  Here's a complete body workout routine that should leave you sore for days. 

Each exercise will be done in four non-stop sets, the only time you stop is to swap the weight.  Perform your sets with the following weight and intensity:

Set 1: Maximum weight 6 repetitions
Set 2: 75% of maximum weight 10 repetitions
Set 3: 50% of maximum weight 15 repetitions
Set 4: 25% of maximum weight 25 repetitions

Here are the exercises for this workout: 

Shoulder Press

Squats

Lat Pulldowns

Bench Press

The Importance of Bed and Breakfast

We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  But many of us choose to ignore this fact and skip out on food in the mornings.  Skipping brekky can be a vicious cycle and can actually compound weight issues.

When you sleep you're actually starving your body so your body's natural response is to fight back by storing fat.  Since the average person sleeps eight hours a night, it's important to eat breakfast so you don't prolong the starvation.     

Here’s a conversation that your brain has with your stomach when this happens:

Brain:  I need food

Stomach:  Sorry bud, I’m still empty, you’re out of luck

Brain (talking to itself):  If Stomach keeps doing this to me, I’m going to die!  I’ll have to start storing as much as I can as fat rations to survive this famine. I’m not going down without a fight you evil prick! 

Stomach:  Grumble grumble

So prevent your brain from hashing out this evil plan and start eating breakfast everyday.  Afterall, the word breakfast is derived from Breaking the Fast.

Healthy Tips: New Years Resolutions

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday filled with friends family and wonderful food.  Now that 2011 has arrived most of you have probably made a few resolutions and I bet quite a few of them are related to health and weight loss.  Hopefully I've inspired you reach your health and fitness goals and here's my top ten tips to help you stick to your healthy resolution:

1. Food Diary - keep track of things that you're eating just to give you an idea of how many actual calories you are consuming daily
2. Exercise Diary - similar to a food diary, it keeps track of your training regimine to make sure you're constanly making progress with your training.  Whether it's running for an extra five minutes each day or lifting five more pounds every week.
3. Portion Control - focus on portions no bigger then a deck of standard playing cards
4. Sleep - make sure to get a good's night rest every night, it's recommended adults sleep for at least 8 hours a night
5. Water - drink lots of H20, the recommended daily intake is 8-10 glasses a day, so start guzzling
6. Vices - try to keep your vices to once a week.  We all have them, but let's try to hold off on the sweets, alcohol and junk food until the weekend.
7. Remind yourself - most of us spend most of our time at our jobs, so it's important that even during busy working days, we stay on track with our goals.  Keep a reminder that's always visible such as a poster, picture or inspiration at your workspace
8. Support network - surround yourself with those who have similar goals as yourself.  There really is power in numbers and this support group can help motivate and push you towards your goal
9. Schedule - stick to a  regular training schedule that is flexible and challenging
10. Smile - try to keep on smiling as it naturally improves your mood, and if you're in a better mood, you're more likely going to eat the right thing or force yourself to do some exercise