Hey guys, just doing a sponsored review of this book. Hopefully, for some of you who may be on the fence about it, it gives you an idea of whats in the book. For those of you unaware of whats going on with it, hopefully you pick up a copy and get some great training knowledge from it.

I was fortunate enough to receive a copy of the new Special Strength Training Practical Manual for Coaches by Dr. Verkhoshansky recently. Yosef, the guy behind Ultimate Athlete Concepts, sent me a copy, and asked me to check it out. Ive got to say, I am impressed with the book. It is only 222 pages long, but contains a TON of good, RELEVANT training information. You can check out the table of contents with this link, just to get an idea of what the book covers.

http://www.verkhoshansky.com/Portals/0/Book/Special_Strength_Training.pdf

It also has a few appendices that coaches will find relevant. I was particularly interested in the one covering the Russian Throwers programs, as well as the one one warming up. Even covers some bodybuilding stuff.

As for some of the improvements in this volume versus the original? Dr. Verkhoshansky says it best in the introduction I linked above. Some others have mentioned a bit better translation from Russian to English, but I think I was mostly oblivious to it until someone pointed it out to me.

Should also note that like his, and many other Russian Coaches books and manuals, this is based in theory, and if you get it looking for something laid out for you set by set and rep by rep, you may not like it. it DOES include loading examples, but as an idea to supplement the training, not as a direct implementation of it.

This is definitely a good read, and has some very valuable training knowledge in it. I would highly recommend picking it up, and if you’re on the fence, well, you’re missing out if you don’t get it.

Hey guys, I know its been a while since I’ve updated the blog here. Its for a couple of reasons, and none of them are particularly good, in your opinion, I’ve been BUSY,but it is what it is. Since I last posted here, I have moved out of the Casa de Muerto into an apartment closer to work, started school, and I’m still trying to work full time (not happening right now) and get this divorce finalized. It sucks, but that’s how it goes sometimes. Im still trying to get my own training in, spend as much time as I can with my children, not blow off my girlfriend, and eat and get some sleep occasionally too. Pretty standard, but its a lot on my plate right now.

As for the new direction I’m taking the site, it is STILL going to be weight training oriented. That’s what I do. I’m just going to expand on it some, rant some, and talk about some different things. This helps serve two purposes. It will allow me to post more, which is good for both of us, and allows me to finally defeat this writers block that has been plaguing me as of late.

I guess you could call it a blog about being a man and doing man stuff. REAL man stuff, not that skinny jeans and emo hair bullshit you read about in lots of other blogs, websites, etc. I figure if nothing else, it will be entertaining to write, if not entertaining to read. You could call it lifestyle design, I guess, and it is, in a way, but at the same time, its so far removed from Timothy Ferriss and his brand of it that its not even the same thing. I use his name simply because his book, The 4-Hour Workweek, is where I read it first. Also, as an aside, if you haven’t picked it up, you should. Its an entertaining read, and gives some good insight into how to run your life. I’m a huge fan of it. I’ve heard through the grapevine that he isn’t a very pleasant person to deal with sometimes, but that’s neither here nor there. I didn’t buy the book to be his friend. Its along the same lines of me not caring how many chicks Tiger Woods plowed out, or how much test Barry Bonds took. I like them because they’re amazing at what they do, and Tim is a great author with some novel ideas and approaches to life.

However, now that you have listened to(read?) me ramble on, I would like to show my appreciation and leave you with this YouTube video. I’m sure you have seen it before, but, at the same time, I laugh my ass off every time I see it.

This article by Bob Youngs was originally posted at EliteFTS.com Reposted with permission.

I have now been staring at my computer screen for 30 minutes. I know what I want to say, I just don’t know how to say it. I’m not very good at self promotion and I’m trying to write an article that promotes my book. I guess I should start at the beginning. Dave Tate encouraged me to write a book about my fight with leukemia. About half way through, I thought the book was terrible and wanted to just stop. Dave said to keep going and if nothing else I could just give it to my friends and family as a kind of thank you. So, I finished the book. I poured my heart and soul into it and I’m very proud of the finished product. But, I still wasn’t sure if it was any good. So, I figured I would send it to my close friends and family as Dave had originally proposed and see how it was received. I sent out this email along with the book after the second edit:

Dear Family and Friends,

I just got back from doing something I thought I would never do. I just walked 10 miles. I had set the goal for myself and went out and did it. I’m not going to lie, it flat out sucked, but I did it. I am going to attach an early copy of the book I have written. I looked back and on this date last year I was in a coma. Only three days earlier they had read me my Last Rights. What a difference a year can make.

I want you all to know that the letter to my family and friends at the end is about all of you. You have all touched my life in a way that has helped shape who I am. You are all a part of my family. I am here to write this today because you believed in me. So, please enjoy the book and let me know what you think. We still probably have another month or so before the final version is ready for sale.

As far as the update, life is good. No, life is great. As you will see from the book it took me a long time to get to a point where I was at peace with everything I went through. I am currently spending a lot of time getting into good physical shape. I should start taking my Six Sigma Black Belt Management class next month. Michele is doing well. She is working as the Vice President of Default Servicing at Bank United. She has been very busy with work, but I am very proud of how much responsibility she is taking on. Christopher is doing well. He made the Honor Roll to end the school year. He is currently going to Summer Camp at his Elementary School and loving it. He is very much his Father’s son and has the stubborn streak to prove it. But, he is a great kid and we are getting to spend a lot of time together.

I hope this finds all of you doing well. I look forward to the next time we get to see each other.

Cover of the new book from Bob Youngs

It didn’t take long for me to start getting responses back. I knew everyone would probably tell me it was good. Who among your friends and family would tell you a book about fighting leukemia and winning sucks? But, the responses I received blew me away. I received very lengthy emails about how the book had caused them to look hard at their own lives and re-think what really is important to them. I thought the book might actually be okay at this point. Here are some of the messages I received. I’ll leave them as anonymous quotes:

* “Very powerful mate! This will help a lot of people.”
* “I just finished reading your book and I must tell you I don’t think I have ever read anything like it in my life. I really respect the way you let it all out and have such respect for yourself and your feelings for others.”
* “Your book made me realize that I can’t change people and that I need to change my perspective on things. We spend so much time wasting quality time on dumb shit that before you know it time is up.”
* “I had tears in my eyes during 3/4 of your book.”
* “The book was extremely thought provoking. Not just because it was you, but because it was a man like me. It brought many messages home, made me think.”

But, I still wasn’t sure if the book would have an appeal to people who didn’t really know me. So, I had to go out on a limb and have some people who were not close to me read it. I sent it to some people who had written books of their own and asked for their opinion. Here is some of the response I received:

* “I am very blessed to have been sent a copy of your book. I devoured it in one (long) sitting last night.”
* “Wow. Incredible. I’ve never met you and I’ve never spoken with you. But now I feel like I know you and your incredible fiancée: to open your hearts and souls and spill those innermost thoughts is a hell of a helpful thing for the rest of us. Thanks for the kick in the gut about acting upon the important things in life – friends, family and making a difference.”
* “Your book really opened my eyes to what is important in life!”
* “I had to keep reminding myself that you live in the end. What an incredible story.”

So, I thought I might actually have a book that people would enjoy. More importantly I was discovering that the book was really causing people to look at their own lives. I was then asked to play in a company poker game by a friend of mine who owns a Military supply company (www.buysourceone.com). The majority of the employees are either former military or law enforcement personnel. We got on the subject of my book and many of them wanted to read the book. I figured it would be another good chance to get some feedback. Here are some of the responses I received:

* “I very quickly developed a lump in my throat. My God what resolve!!”
* “Your strength and attitude are incredible.”
* “It’s very rare that a book moves me like yours did. Job well done!”
* “Once I got started, I just couldn’t put the book down.”

Now comes the hard part for me. The book will be available as an e-book on EFS. I’m still not sure how it will be received. I think there is something in there for everyone. I was very lucky to get some of my good friends to help me with the project. Alwyn Cosgrove and Dave Tate both wrote Forwards for the book. They stood next to me during the whole time I was fighting leukemia and never wavered in their support of me. To say their Forwards are moving is an understatement. I have also included three Appendices at the end that cover a lot of powerlifting and training info. I hope you enjoy the book as much as those who have read it so far.

Get Bob’s book at EliteFTS.com

Hey guys, just wanted to give those of you who still read my blog here a bit of an update on whats been going on the last few weeks, and believe me, there has been a TON of stuff happening.

First thing, and this is a basis for a lot of the other stuff Ive got going on, but my stress levels are through the roof right now, and I’m forgetting shit that I shouldn’t as a result. This blog for example. I havent posted much of anything here in a while. Im working on that, and working to improve that stuff Ive been fucking up is fixed now however, so its no longer an issue worth discussing. Stress levels are still high, but apparently, thats how its going to be for a while. Shit happens.

I’m going to be doing the SPF ProAm in August Rawdog. I know this goes against everything that I believe in as a man, and as a lifter, but with all of the other things I have going, I honestly don’t have the time, energy, or mental capacity to try to jack with gear and fit it into training. I love it to death, but, like so many other things right now, it’s going to be easier for me to just go into the meet with as little distraction as possible. RAWDOG all the way, with the most bad ass singlet you’ve ever seen. I will however, continue to refer to raw lifting as gay, and refuse to put it into all caps. Just because I’m doing it doesn’t mean I have respect for it. To you rawdog guys reading this, keep the sand out of your panties. Its a fucking JOKE.

Had, what was, in my opinion, a HUGE hiccup at the gym that has now been straightened out. Maybe it wasn’t as big as I had imagined, but for a couple of weeks, I was under the impression that we were done as a barbell club. Being as that was where my income was completely based from, you can imagine the shit and stress that this too caused. When it rains it pours.

I decided to take a new job, and will be moving to Columbus, Ohio in the next week or two. Its a little faster than I had wanted it to be, but at this point, I really don’t care. Its going to be totally worth it. I’m actually leaving again tomorrow so that I can be there bright and early Monday morning, and not have been up 4 hours before hand. Got some admin type stuff to do at the new job.

As for an actual training update, the Pro Am is slightly less than 15 weeks away. I will be breaking into the accumulation block this week, and run a 14 week meet cycle, still using the Block Periodization stuff I used last time. Outside of what I managed to do to fuck it up, I feel it worked incredibly well for me. Going to be doing a lot of work with my diet stuff too. My appetite, as many can verify, has been in the toilet as of late, and Ive got some plans to work on that. My diet has also been pretty sub par compared to where it normally is, so Im planning on fixing that, and trying to actually lift as a 275. I think if I can get within 10lbs, i will definitely do it. Weight is hovering around 290-295 depending on if Ive eaten that day or not. I’ve had some days where Ive only eaten once or twice. This is completely unacceptable. You cant stay in Rhodestown on 1500 calories a day. Just ask Vincent.

from semiprofessional.wordpress.com

The Angry Coach and his driver picked me up in typical New York fashion, that being that they were 40 minutes late. Wasn’t too bad, as I got to see some real big city type stiff. Not really, but I did see a gang of Asian dudes motherfukc an old man who was working at airport security a half dozen times, and some NYPD officers get loud with some cabby, who, from the looks of him, didn’t understand a word they had to say. The highlight was probably the cabby who just repeatedly yelled the word “douchebag “out his window, over and over, for a good 2 minutes. Doesn’t sound like much, but say the word douchebag out loud. Doesn’t take long. Now do it for 2 minutes, only stopping to reload your lungs for the next verbal assault. NOW you see how entertaining it was to behold. He eventually let off, and I honestly never did see whom the hell he was yelling at. Fortunately, after Bob and his driver picked me up, the rest of the night was pretty uneventful.

We left the Angry Coach’s place pretty early Thursday morning. That’s a total lie; it’s his Moms place. She let us stay as Bob has an approximately 46 square foot apartment in the city that he can hardly sleep in by himself. Freddy Francisco, his driver, picked us up, and we were on our way to AthElite, http://www.athelitetraining.com/ Ben Tonon and Dave Cavalluzzos gym located in Hawthorne, New Jersey. Thanks to the apparent lack of any sort of legal requirement, such as a license, to drive in NYC, the 30 mile drive took approximately 2 hours and cost us just under 600 dollars in tolls.

We managed to beat the photographer and his assistant there, which was surprising, at least to me. I’m never on time to much of anything. It took them a while to get set up, and once they did, it was time to get busy. Or so I thought. Being my first day working as a professional fitness model, I had no idea what to expect. Was pretty cool though, the photographer was kind enough to explain anything I had questions about what the hell was going on. It was pretty apparent to everyone there I really had no idea.

I really had no idea how long it would take, or the amount of time it would take getting the “right” picture. I tried to make sure that he got me from my good side, but, as anyone who has met me will tell you, I don’t have a good side. They’re all awful. It sounds way better if you say it though. At least in my own head it did.
I honestly was surprised to find out how long some of the stuff takes. I was under the impression that I was just going to be training, and that he would be taking pictures as I went along. Once again, WRONG. I did get to warmup, and do everything I needed to do, but then, I found out how they get the sweet pictures they have in the magazines. They’re fake. Not fake in the sense that the stuff isn’t being done, but they’re kind of “posed,” if you will. I did however refuse, on more than one occasion, to go all Matt Kroczalewski and open my mouth as wide as I can, as if a 225lb squat is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Sorry Matt. It’s not that hard. Not for me!

The Angry Coach made sure to blow me enough shit while we were there to keep it entertaining as well. I thought that, as a Senior Editor of a Major National Magazine, that he would be all business and get pissy at me for acting like a retard the whole time, but he didn’t. Which was probably a good thing. I might have felt bad if I had to kick his ass at his own photoshoot. I’m kidding.

Did a little bit of training while I was there too; I’m so much more than a pretty face. Actually ended up squatting and doing some rack pulls, and a little benching, so that the Angry Coach could see how a man lifts. Its unfortunate that I didn’t have the flip, as I had to do something that I literally hadn’t done in years, and will probably NEVER< EVER, do again. Walk out a squat with a 7-foot Olympic bar. I gave fair warning to Rob that it was going to be one of the most disgusting things he had ever seen in a weightroom, bar none, and I didn’t disappoint. Was literally an hours worth of footage for Team Awful, and not one second of it was caught on tape. Dammit. Such a waste. It was so bad; the photographers’ assistant actually asked Rob if it was safe. He has been lifting for 7 months or so, if I remember correctly. How is that for Awesome? As far as the squatting, I don’t remember what I worked up to, but I know it wasn’t a whole lot. Maybe like 800 or so. Maybe a touch less.

Since my back was, and still is, a bit jacked up we did some rack pulls versus pulls from the floor. Surprisingly these went well. I really had no idea how my back would react, but other than being a bit stiff, it gave me no problems. It was kind of funny here, as the photographer, Mat, wanted me to do the Kroc faces. I told him the weights weren’t enough to do it, and I didn’t really know how to make faces. So we put some more weight on the bar. This happened 3 times. He got the shot he wanted, and I hit 675 for a double.

After the deadlifting, we were pretty much finished. Did some more different stuff, but nothing related to lifting. He got some pretty cool shots though. Apparently I do have the ability to look EXTREMELY creepy if need be. As if I didn’t know I had a sweet stalker stare anyway.

Probably one of the coolest parts of the day came after the pictures were almost done. Ben called Rob, and asked him if he thought I would be interested in speaking to the Bergen Catholic High School football team. For those of you who aren’t aware, Bergen Catholic has some ridiculous athletes on their team. Ever hear of a guy named Brian Cushing? He played for Ben and Dave for 4 years before making his way to USC and the Houston Texans. I’m sure the fact that Ben himself played for the Philadelphia Eagles had something to do with that as well. Im still convinced you cant coach something you have no idea how to do yourself. As a frame of reference, they played Don Bosco Prep within a touchdown last year. Don Bosco was the Number One high school team in the country last year. These dudes can play some football. Was great to get to talk to them Took about 20 minutes and talked to them about my story, and the importance of focusing on today, as you have no idea what will happen tomorrow. I think they enjoyed it, as they all paid attention. You know how kids are. If they don’t care, they don’t listen.

In closing, I just want to take a second and say thanks to The Angry Coach, Rob Fitzgerald, for the hospitality, and more so, the opportunity to make this happen. Thanks to Ben and Dave for letting us use the gym, and letting me talk to their team while they were in the middle of a training session. I really appreciate all of it.

Here is the video and writeup from my meet earlier this month. It went pretty well all things considered. I only went 3 for 9 on my attempts, but managed to hit a new PR in the bench, and the deadlift, as well as moving my total up 30lbs to 1820. Not happy with how it went, but it happens. Hope you guys like the video, it is pretty self depreciating, that’s for sure!

Me pulling a 700 pound deadlift

I knew that we were supposed to get a ton of snow, but the forecast for Indiana was also calling for ice and sleet. Rather than try to make the drive over to Columbus in all of that crap, I left Muncie Thursday night and drove to Wendler’s. That was about the most uneventful thing to happen all weekend. However, Friday morning I realized I had made a good choice.

I woke up around 9 AM and started to head over to the meet venue, which was at the Courtyard Marriott. Danny has all of his meets there. It started snowing a bit on the way, but it wasn’t bad. The drive was about 20 minutes from London. I made weight – at 302 even – and spent about an hour bullshitting with some guys in the lobby. The weather was quite a bit different when I left the hotel that afternoon. My car was covered in snow. Roads had also digressed to the point that I thought I was going to die – more than once – and the same drive that took me 20 minutes an hour ago took almost 50 minutes on the way back!

The ride in Saturday morning was even worse. Jim, Leigh An and myself took an hour and fifteen minutes to get there in Jim’s monster truck. No worries though, I was ready to go.

I was lifting in the third flight. I felt strong, and planned to open at 890 pounds in the squat. It’s not a huge weight, but honestly something that I feel I could handle on my worst day…no matter what. It turned out to be a good call, as it would be the only squat I got in. Warm-ups went great, everything felt light and solid on my back. I was excited.

Warm-ups:

Bar x 10

135 x 5

225 x 5

315 x 3

405 x 1 added belt and briefs after

500 x 1

600 x 1 added suit after

700 x 1

800 x 1

I went up and took the opener – 890 pounds was good, three whites. Took 1000 on the second. I took it out strong, it went down easy, made it about halfway up and…started losing it forward. It stalled out, and they grabbed it – no lift. The third lift was similar. I took it out strong, sat back, and continued to do so until I realized I was going to fall over backwards, and told them to take it. I would rather miss a lift than dump a grand on someone because I’m an asshole. I’d like to say thanks to the 500 guys Danny had spotting. Although I missed two out of three, I wasn’t even close to being injured. I wish I had some sort of excuse as to why I missed, but in reality, I just sucked. The strength was there and then some, but I just didn’t have it. I just sucked.

Bench press was the same for me. One and done. I did set a 30 pound PR, hitting 230. Could I do more than I open with? Absolutely. There’s a reason I didn’t though. For me, as a lifter, it doesn’t make any sense to have spotters and loaders rip the bar down from 800 to 250 so I can take a second attempt. Meets take a long time anyway, and if I can do my part to shorten it up, that’s what I’ll do. I’m still going to end up getting beat by 500-600 pounds plus in the bench anyway, so what does it really matter?

I was impressed with the guys in the bench-only flight. There were about 20 guys in the bench-only flight, and they literally had 35 missed attempts IN A ROW. That has to be some sort of record. I wish more bench-only guys were like Vincent Dizenzo or Joey Smith and actually opened with weights that they could handle. Instead, they just get a gangster shirt and are only strong enough to lock out what is coincidentally the lightest weight they get to touch. I don’t know if there were 20 misses in any flight where they do all three lifts. Mike Maxwell was on the mic, and he let them know what he thought too. It was pretty funny, and definitely ran over into the powerlifters benching.

Deadlift went well for me, and was the only real hiccup at the meet. Danny had said they were going to combine the last two flights, so everyone started warming up, then about 10 minutes later, they decided to keep it at three flights. I had just pulled my third warm-up, so no damage was done.

Warm-ups:

225 x 1

315 x 1

405 x 1

225 x 1

315 x 1

405 x 1

500 x 1

600 x 1

My opener was 700. I pulled it easy for a 20 pound PR. I really thought that this meet was going to be the one I was actually close to my capabilities in the deadlift. Nope. Took 735 on a second, which would have given me a 60 pound PR and the biggest pull in our gym. Hips rocketed out of the bottom for a huge miss. I guess it does take technique to pull sumo. I took 735 on my third and pulled it conventional. It went up pretty quick to (what I thought) was lockout. Got the down signal, and set it down. I looked at the lights, two reds. Apparently I re-bent my knees. Damn you John Bott! I haven’t completed or gotten white lights on a third deadlift at any meet John judges. I think he hates me. Ha! Sounds better than what is true – that I just suck.

I didn’t have the day I wanted, going 890 – miss – miss – 230 – pass – pass – 700 – miss – miss…for three of nine and a total of 1820. However, I did set two PR’s and a total PR. So, I can’t really argue with that. I know some things I need to work on and get fixed, so it’s back to the drawing board to get shit right.

Hey guys, Sorry for the long ass delay and not letting anyone know shit about who won. I have been having major computer troubles for the last few weeks, and was dealing with VERY spotty internet connections and availability here at home. My 6 year old HP was just no longer showing me the love. Got a shiny new MacBook now though, and am about 98% caught up. Hopefully i will get ahold of you guys tomorrow or Friday. Im really sorry.

Jason

Logo of the Indianapolis Colts

Lots of good stuff coming up this week. Can you guess what I am excited for? If you guessed Superbowl Sunday, you’re absolutely right. hahaha. I kind of gave it away though, but Im sure that someone out there had absolutely no idea. However…

Got a TON of big things going on this week. got a bunch of awesome clients to train this week, as usual, and also have a ton of first timers coming to the gym to check things out. Really looking forward to getting them in the doors, as I’ve spoken to them, and they have some lofty goals. Im really ready to get after it and get them to where they want to be! Big Swole and Alva are also training for a meet in March, so I will be helping them out a ton with their training.

I actually have a meet this weekend I am really excited about. I am doing the Lexen ProAm in Columbus, Ohio Saturday. Im excited, as meets are always a good time to meet up with old friends, see huge weights lifted, and meet other lifters. Danny Dague always puts on a great lifter focused meet, and I feel extremely ready for this one. I really believe that i will finally squat 1000lbs. I hate to make predictions, but it is definitely there if I have a good day. If any of you are going to be in the area, or are interested in checking it out, let me know and i will get you the meet info.

Make sure you check out our newsletter too if you haven’t already. Going to be lots of great content coming out in the next few weeks that is going to be for our newsletter subscribers only! Don’t worry, Im not that guy who sells your information with anyone, and I’m not going to spam you with a ton of emails every month.

I am also HOPING to make some big changes to the site this week. The personal training side of things are the priority here now, but i do manage to mix in some of my personal stuff. Hopefully by the end of the week i will have everything transferred to the new personal training domain name, and this will become my personal blog to talk training, and other sweet stuff. Not that I mind discussing personal training, i just feel that its more fair to both my clients and my regular readers if there was a separation. If it doesnt go this week, it will definitely happen next week.

Did i mention that I was excited to see the Colts in the Superbowl? Its nuts. I’m painfully excited for it. Im sure that you might not be a Colts fan, especially if you live in New York, but I want you to be excited this week too. That is why I am offering 12 WEEKS OF FREE ONLINE TRAINING to 3 readers here. There is a slight catch, but its not bad. If you’re interested, you have to do 2 things. Really only 2 things, but the third would be greatly appreciated! First thing is leave a comment in the comments section that says “I’m interested.” Then I need you to send an email to jason@jasonpegg.com and explain, in as many words as you feel is necessary, why I should pick you. It doesn’t have to be long by any means. You never know, a simple “I want to be awesome” might suffice. HAHA A chance to win $225 worth of programming from me for 5 minutes of your time. GET AFTER IT!

I will pick the winner on Friday, and let you know by email at halftime of the game if you have won! you will also get a post about you here with your name and your goals, unless you just want to keep it a secret. Up to you.

Like I said, leave me a comment, shoot me an email, and root for the Colts!

BSU Cardinal Logo

Training for me was deloading. Didn’t squat one rep or pull at all. Just some restoration stuff. Good to go. I feel like a million bucks, which is good this close to the meet. Maybe a little bloated, but you will have that sometimes. hahahaha

I also started working at Ball State University with the women’s volleyball team. This is in addition to the personal training im doing Definitely keeps me busy in the gym! This is an awesome opportunity for me, and I am hoping to make the most of it. They train like beasts, and, surprisingly to me, are pretty strong. They are on a pretty basic program, nothing crazy. I will post updates here and there about some of the stuff that we do in the weightroom to get them ready for the spring season. It starts in about 8 weeks.

Thats about it from this end. I plan on getting back on it this week, assuming this computer holds up. I thought it had died yesterday, but a little time off and some Army style motiviation seemed to fix it for now. So that’s good news. More to come this week! Honest!

Well, you could say that the New Year really starts tomorrow. With the first day of the year falling on a Friday, and then a lazy weekend, a lot of people have probably decided to push their resolutions “start date” back to Monday the 4th. This isnt the case for all of you, but ma be for some of you. Some of you have decided to hire a personal trainer, as you’re not sure where to start with your weightloss. Others are starting alone. Either way you decide, there are some simple things that you can do that will definitely help with your weight and fat loss goals, personal trainer or not.

1. Don’t jump right into a strict diet!
Unless, of course, you don’t really want to do it. From my own personal experiences, both with myself, and my personal training clients, diving headlong into a restrictive diet program is by far the worst thing you can do. Start with making small changes to your diet, eliminating junk, and adding in more protein and tons of water. This is HUGE, and will take you a long way towards the body you really want.

2. Don’t try to do everything at once.
This should really go without saying, but you aren’t going to be able to lose 30 pounds of fat, gain 20 pounds of muscle, get in shape to run a marathon, and win a bodybuilding contest all at the same time. These pursuits, while all being worthwhile, require VERY different training programs, and unfortunately when it comes to your body, more is usually not better. that being said, you can add muscle while losing fat and getting in better shape, but to have extreme goals for all of these different pursuits means that you are going to have to pick a goal, bust your ass to get to it, and then refocus on the next goal.

3. Don’t be afraid to look for help.
This one holds especially true for changing your body and your life from where you are at now, to where you want to be. Fortunately now, in the information age, tips, tricks, and plans to reach your specific goals are literally only a few keystrokes and mouse clicks away. The only problem is that there is SO MUCH information out there. Contrary to that however, people are all reachable now, and you do have the ability to contact them. How many will reply is up in the air, but those with solid info will have no problem laying t=it all out there. really what it boils down to is, if you decide to go it without a personal trainer, make sure that you are doing your research.

4. TAKE ACTION NOW
Of the 4 points here, this is the most important, and why I saved it for last. You can do as much as you would like researching, planning your diet, plotting your new training program, and talking about how you’re going to lose weight, get fit, and look like you did 10 years ago. However, all of the planning, talking, and thinking will get you NO WHERE unless you take massive action. This is probably the step that most have trouble with. They have the best intentions in the world, but wont take action towards their goals. I could go on forever about this, but there are literally hundreds of books dedicated to this one subject. My question to you is will this be the year you take action? Will you decide this that now is the time to invest your time, energy, and money into yourself, and not your things? Will you make 2010 your best year yet?