The Soreness

Wow! All though I'm not nearly as sore as I was when I first did the X, it's great to feel like I've been lifting again. Had Shoulders and Arms today down in the hotel workout center. This one at Marriott Courtyard has a little dumbbell set up to 30 pounds so I was able to get a great resistance workout in. As I mentioned in my last entry, it's definitely a challenge to match the intensity of the workout when you're not working out with Tony.

New Round Starts

As I type this I'm feeling that familiar sore feeling the day after starting P90X. I can honestly say though that after weeks almost finishing Insanity, I'm not nearly as sore as I was when I first attempted the X.

It was a challenge working out here at the hotel I'm staying at because the workout room did not have a chin up bar and there was not a convenient place to put my door adapter to simulate pullups with a band. Also, I currently don't have a portable DVD player (I plan to get one before my next business trip) and so I had do the Chest and Back routine strictly from the worksheet. Still a great workout but not quite the same as working out along with the DVD.

Tonight I was not able really get a good Plyo workout in. There really is no way to duplicate that workout without the DVD. I worked up a good sweat but it will be much more effective with Tony.

It's great to be back working out with resistance. After months of Insanity I must say I have lost some size in my upper body but I do feel much stronger cardio wise.

New Venture

I've been away from the blog for quite awhile but I've continued to workout using the Insanity program. I recently took a sales position where I will be on the road quite often so most of next year will be me documenting the trials and tribulations of diligent training using P90X on the road with occasional times at home. Stay tuned to see if I can pull it off. I leave tomorrow for Sacramento and I will be starting a new round of the X tomorrow or Saturday.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!

Coach Shloo

Don't Forget Swimming

The one thing I miss about not doing Triathlons for a couple of years now are the swim workouts. After reading this excerpt from a blog that I've pasted below, I'm getting the itch to swim again. Also, my core wasn't anywhere near as strong as it is now and a strong core is key with a nice efficient stroke. If you've ever used water to workout, you know how effective it can be, if you haven't, you should add it to your array of things you can do to work out your new body.

Consumer Reports Health.org
Kevin McCarthy, associate editor

Swimming is my exercise of choice, which apparently puts me in good company—it’s the second most popular workout in the country. And you know it’s a great workout. Lap swimming is about as effective as jogging at burning calories, building strength, and provides a similar aerobic workout. And it’s easier on the hips and knees, helping those with joint problems work out longer and with less stress.

But lap swimming isn’t the only way to get a good water workout. Walking, running, or lifting weights in a pool is a different kind of workout than on land—and it can be safer too, especially for those who may be frail, overweight, pregnant, or with back or joint problems. One of my colleagues and fellow blogger was required to take a water aerobics class in college. She wasn’t excited about it at first, but says she thoroughly enjoyed it, and lost nearly ten pounds in one semester.

Like some exercise machines, water provides a natural form of resistance—roughly ten times greater than air—forcing you to work harder to move through it, which burns calories faster while building strength and aerobic fitness. And because water surrounds you, it provides resistance in any direction you move. Straight leg lifts on land, for example, tone the muscles in your front thigh, but the same exercise in water has the added benefit of strengthening the hamstring when you push your leg back down.

Is Your Metabolism Slowing Down?

The older you get, the slower your metabolism gets. Obviously the higher your metabolism, the easier it is to lose weight. Here are some tips I found in an article to help get your metabolism going -- especially if you are getting older.

How To Fast Forward Your Metabolism
by Jimmy Warren

Ask anyone who is above the age of 40, and he or she will tell you that burning calories is a top priority. Metabolism is something, which a lot of people inherit. That being said, men have a naturally better metabolism system than women.

Some people may lose the calories faster than others. And in the whole deal, you will find age being a crucial factor. When you come to think of it, there are certain things you cannot do much about when you wish to burn calories. For example, can you do anything about your age or genetics?

Did you know that your body could burn 6 calories even while you are resting daily? May not sound like a lot at this point, but remember, you are burning calories for doing absolutely nothing.

The muscles in the body get all charged up after a bout of resistance training. Be sure to drink at least 8 glasses of water everyday. Water is considered to be very potent for metabolism.
Some studies have revealed that drinking 8 glasses of water has helped a lot of people keep track of their metabolic activities.

You should ideally drink a glass of water just before your meal or snack. You should also prefer eating fruits and vegetables, both of which are extremely rich in fluids. The more fluids you intake, the better it is for your metabolism.

People think that by eating less, they can lose weight. This may be true to a certain extent, but if you eat more of fruits and vegetables, which are full of fluids, you would find losing weight being an easy deal. The fluids intake to the body allows you to burn more calories.

Preferably eat meals in short spurts, like having a small meal once every 2 hours. In doing so, you will ensure that metabolism cycle in your body keeps running all the time. There is no better supplement than adding some spice to your food.

You may not be used to the spicy tingling, but one thing is for sure ” It is extremely healthy for the rate of metabolism. Eating some amount of spices in your diet will help you increase the rate of metabolism by 23%. Ideally speaking, any intake of pasta should be supplemented with some spices.

And here is a no-brainer for you ” If you wish to burn calories fast, take in a lot of proteins, as opposed to carbs or fats. Proteins will help you burn calories faster than these foods. Importantly, what you should do is spice up your pasta with some red flakes, if you really are a pasta fan.

Different foods and drinks do have some amount of impact on the rate of metabolism, but the impact is considerably less as compared to what you could do by exercising on a regular basis.
Regular exercise and a healthy diet can work wonders to keep the rate of metabolism at acceptable levels.

US warns dieters: Stop Hydroxycut use immediately

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — U.S. government health officials warned dieters and body builders Friday to immediately stop using Hydroxycut, a widely sold Canadian-made supplement linked to cases of serious liver damage and at least one death.

The Food and Drug Administration said the maker of the dietary supplement has agreed to recall 14 Hydroxycut products. Available in grocery stores and pharmacies, Hydroxycut is advertised as made from natural ingredients. At least 9 million packages were sold last year, the FDA said.

Dr. Linda Katz of the FDA's food and nutrition division said the agency has received 23 reports of liver problems, including the death of a 19-year-old boy living in the Southwest. The teenager died in 2007, and the death was reported to the FDA this March.

Other patients experienced symptoms ranging from jaundice, or yellowing of the skin, to liver failure. One received a transplant and another was placed on a list to await a new liver.
There was no immediate comment from the U.S. distributor of the diet pill, Iovate Health Sciences, headquartered near Buffalo, New York. Hydroxycut is used by people trying to shed pounds and by body builders to sharpen their muscles.

Dietary supplements aren't as tightly regulated by the government as medications. Manufacturers don't need to prove to the FDA that their products are safe and effective before they can sell them to consumers. But regulators monitor aftermarket reports for signs of trouble, and in recent years companies have been put under stricter requirements to alert the FDA when they learn of problems.

Katz said it has taken so long to get a handle on the Hydroxycut problem because the cases of liver damage were rare and the FDA has no authority to review supplements before they're marketed. "Part of the problem is that the FDA looks at dietary supplements from a post-market perspective, and an isolated incident is often difficult to follow," she said.
The FDA relies on voluntary reports to detect such problems, and many cases are never reported, officials acknowledge.

Health officials said they have been unable to determine which Hydroxycut ingredients are potentially toxic, partially because the formulation of the products has changed several times. A medical journal report last month raised questions about one ingredient, hydroxycitric acid, derived from a tropical fruit. The article said it could potentially damage the liver.

But I Don't Want to Bulk Up

I here this most often from woman that want to lose weight and feel that cardio alone will get them to their fitness goals. Woman fear lifting weights because they have this visual of getting super muscular. But consistent resistance training is a crucial segment of successful weight loss. I found this article that is technical but does a good job of explaining why weight training is so important when you want to lose weight.


Why Weight Training Leads to Fat Burning
kreatefitness.com

Integrating weight training into your regular exercise program can and does assist in fat burning and weight reduction for two significant reasons. The first reason being the muscle fiber type or types that are employed and the second reason is an explicit increase in metabolic rate.
Weight training, or as some refer to as strength or resistance training, should be consistently performed at a minimum of 3 times per week.

Although a skilled-personal trainer can prescribe a condition-appropriate program for you, as a rule of thumb it is recommended that a minimum of one set per exercise for each major muscle group be performed. Even more effective is the performance of several peak-intensive compound (multi-muscle) exercises. The major muscle groups are the chest,quadriceps, abdominals, hamstrings, low-back, upper back, biceps, triceps, neck and shoulders.
Each exercise should consist of about 8-20 repetitions, done in a slow, controlled manner, while emphasizing proper form and joint position. The resistance should fatigue the muscle group near the end of the set.

Simply put, the muscle fibers are the fundamental element of the muscle. The three types of muscle fibers are: slow twitch (slow oxidating (SO) or type I), fast twitch (Fast oxidative - glycolyme (FOG) or type IIA) and pure fast twitch (FT orType IIB). Slow twitch fibers get most of their energy from fat burning, a process that requires oxygen. This is also fueled by the fibers’ ample supply of blood vessels, glycogen, mitochondria (cellular furnaces where fat and nutrients are burned) and the blood fats inside of various related cells. The pure fast twitch fibers are dissimilar in that they contract rapidly and fatigue easier. These fibers get their energy from burning glycogen. There are fewer mitochondria in the cells that compose fast twitch fiber; therefore, these fibers burn less fat than slow twitch fibers.

Similarly yet distinctively, the fast twitch fibers do also contract rapidly, but sustain a greater level of endurance. This may be because they have more mitochondria than the pure fast twitch fibers, but less than the slow twitch fibers. By far the most remarkable benefit of peak or high intensity weight training (or extended duration aerobics) is that you can change pure fast twitch fibers into regular fast twitch oxidative fibers. This particular variety of high intensity weight training activity increases the amount of mitochondria in the fast twitch fibers to levels much higher than those found in the slow twitch fibers. And as you might have guessed, with more mitochondria present and employable in the muscle cells, more fat is burned. This is the key to weight management.

Your metabolism and the rate at which it functions represents the amount of energy you need on a daily basis to sustain your life functions. Even when lounging or sleeping, muscle tissue is very active and can require up to 45 calories per pound per day. Therefore, losing muscle (muscle atrophy) or more specifically not maintaining muscle results in a decline in your metabolic rate. Subsequently, with less muscle, your body requires less energy.
Food (nutrients) once used as energy is now stored as fat. A prudent, long term and consistent weight training program is the greatest contributor to avoiding a decrease in lean muscle mass and overall metabolic rate, as well as metabolic and body systems function diminution. Commencing a regular weight training program can and should take some effort. But no matter what your age or level of conditioning might be, weight training will fuel an abiding lifestyle and add longevity, functionality and vitality to your life.

The Cure for the Plateau

As I have mentioned before, I struggled with getting discouraged because I would hit walls and then stop working out. P90X has helped me to blast through those walls. By using diligent training and muscle confusion, I'm in the best shape of my life. Along those lines, I found this interesting article in Marine Corps Times talking about improving ones fitness for their annual fitness test. It eludes to the fact that many people find it hard to improve on their fitness levels once they are in shape. Mixing it up and training hard is the only way to break thru. People that are using P90X will find a couple of familiar techniques below that we use in our workout routines.

Fitness fix-ups
Be better at every event
By Chris Lawson - Staff writer

Knowing your personal limits is a good thing. Self-awareness, after all, is a gift. But when it comes to fitness, confusing realistic limits with potential possibilities can lead to selling yourself short. Nowhere is that more treacherous than your annual fitness test, where an incremental improvement on your score can mean the difference between a promotion or a better performance evaluation.

If you’ve settled into a routine where you’re only pumping out so many push-ups, crunches or pull-ups, or just can’t seem to improve your run time no matter how hard you try, stop sweating it. Most likely it’s not a lack of effort that’s to blame — it’s probably a misguided approach to training.

We asked fitness experts to help us help you pump up your scores. And that doesn’t mean simply doing more reps and sets of the events on your test. In this case, harder doesn’t equal smarter — it means doing collaborative exercises designed to improve your performance on those events.

The result: You can do more pull-ups and push-ups than you do now. You can run faster. You can knock out more crunches, sit-ups or curl-ups. The best part: You don’t have to become a PT freak to make it happen.

Here’s how:

Sit-ups, curl-ups & crunches
The sit-up — and all its modern variations designed to minimize damage to one’s back and spine — is an age-old strength-training exercise designed to toughen your abdominal muscles. It’s the ultimate gut check on any military fitness test. But your abs are just part of the total equation.
“You use two muscle groups when you perform a crunch or a sit-up — your abs and your hip flexors,” says fitness policy expert Navy Cmdr. Jacqueline Pollock at the Navy Annex in Arlington, Va. “For a lot of people, it’s their hip flexors that fatigue out on a fitness test, not their abs.” And that’s where the limitations set in.

Pollock says research shows your abs do about 30 percent of the lift in a sit-up, and your hip flexors do the rest. So while your abs help lift your shoulders off the ground, stronger hip flexors are what will help drive you to a better score.

The solution: The V-up

This gut-buster gives added attention to the hip flexors in addition to strengthening the abs:
1. Lying flat on your back, stretch your arms overhead and keep your legs straight.
2. While inhaling deeply, raise your legs and arms together as high and as straight as you can, forming a “V” shape at the top. Come up like you’re doing a crunch.
3. Try to touch your hands to your feet.
4. Hold the position for as long as you can, at least for three counts.
5. Lower to the starting position. Repeat, doing a set of 10 to 25 V-ups.

Other options:
• The exercise ball crunch: While seated on a stable exercise ball, do three or four sets of 15 to 20 crunches/sit-ups, lifting your torso off the ball.

Pull-ups
Another good test of upper-body strength is the pull-up. The Marine Corps is the only service that uses the pull-up in fitness tests.
Like the push-up, taxing the muscles that do the heavy lifting is a surefire way to improve performance, says Bob Thomas, the lead fitness trainer for Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., and a former naval aviator. He also writes the Military Muscle column for OFFDuty.

His recommendation: Slow it down.

“Going super slow in training is a good way to see faster improvements,” Thomas says.

The solution: Super-slow pull-ups

Get in the pull-up position with your hands in a normal grip configuration and your body fully extended. Begin a slow, 10-second upward pull, keeping your body straight with little or no motion other than the vertical climb. Summit the bar with your chin and then begin a similar 10-second descent, returning to the starting position.

This slow-motion workout increases stress on your biceps, shoulders and triceps, Thomas says, boosting their endurance and capacity. It’s a slow burn with potentially big payoffs.
Female Marines do what’s called a flexed-arm hang, where they clutch the pull-up bar with both hands, placing their heads just above the bar. The longer they hold on, the higher their score. Thomas’ solution for improving that performance: “Drop the flex-armed hang in your training and do pull-ups — as many as you can.”

Other options:
• 7/21s: Do seven pull-ups from the full down position to halfway up. Then do seven pull-ups from halfway up to the full up position. Then do seven pull-ups from full down to full up.
• Change your grip: Go for wider grips to place extra stress on your muscles.

Timed run
If there’s one area that people need help, it’s here. But simply running longer distances when you train will not boost your speed. Instead, you need to train faster.
“We recommend doing sprints and going shorter distances,” says Stephen Van Camp, the assistant director and chief of doctrine at the U.S. Army Fitness School at Fort Jackson, S.C. “That will contribute more to overall speed than simply running longer distances.”
While longer distances will help improve overall endurance — and that’s important on these longer timed runs — it won’t shave time.
“You need to practice running faster to get faster,” Van Camp says.

The solution: 30-60 or 60-120 sprints
Sprint for 30 seconds, walk for 60 seconds — or, sprint for a minute and walk for two minutes. Repeat 10 times. Do this at least once a week.
Other options:
• Calculated training: Divide the length of your run into segments and have an elapsed time to hit each segment. Having such focus will allow you to target where you save time and boost speeds.
• Speed training: Run between 600 meters and a half-mile, but do it at a fast pace. You want to learn to develop “quick leg turnover,” Thomas says. Run that distance several times during your workout and equal or improve the time with each effort.
• Interval training: Run at a high intensity for two to three minutes, then cool down for one minute. Repeat. This can be done on a treadmill.

Day I Round IV

Even after four rounds of training this way, I still get sore. That's still amazing to me. Years of working out in the gym just created plateau after plateau.

I was pretty impressed also with my rep counts. I kind of had to tail off the last couple of weeks with P90X+ so I thought maybe I might be low on some of the reps but I was able to meet or break all of my goals today.

Starting up a New Round of P90X

Tomorrow will be the beginning of my fourth round of diligent training using the P90x products. I just cut short a round of P90x+ just because I feel I got some good core strength from it and I wanted to get back into more resistance training rather than the cardio based work outs of X+.

I'm still dealing with an elbow issue so I will not be able to do real pull ups but I am still able to get a great work out with the black band and the door attachment to simulate pull ups with out hurting my elbow at all.

It will be nice to get back on a schedule since I've taken the last week or so off. I think one of the greatest things that has happened from working out this way is that it is becoming a great habit. Before when I stopped working out, one or two months would fly by before I started to miss working out. Now, if one or two weeks goes by without doing something I begin to feel like something is missing. To get into great shape and maintain it, it has to be a lifestyle change and P90X has given me that.

Coming up on a Year

It just occurred to me today that it's coming up on a year since I started the P90X lifestyle. It was March of last year that I was house sitting for a good friend. He was attending the funeral for his father-in-law. He had died of the same cancer my father had died of almost 20 years prior.

I remember seeing the infomercial and thinking, I'm investing in my health right NOW. I had always been fit, but not REALLY fit. I still ate what I wanted and all though I wasn't fat, I was definitely starting to get soft. My only regret is that I didn't choose to do it sooner.

Yeah...I had seen the infomercial a few years before and thought it looked like something I would like but for whatever I didn't do it. But I sit here a year after investing in myself and I can honestly say that it has been the best investment I ever made. I'm so glad that I didn't find some other reason not to buy it.

Don't Neglect Your Stretching

Many of you have heard me on the thread to make sure you are taking that rest day to stretch. I truly believe it's so important to your overall success each round of whatever program you are doing. If you're using any of the Beach Body programs, you've already experienced stretching when you are about to work out and stretching when you're cooling down. There is a reason why we warm up a little (get the blood flowing) before we ever do any actual stretching.

I found this question and answer on a fitness blog that I thought you might find interesting.

Ask a Fitness Expert: The Great Stretching Debate
by Sarah Brown

Dear Sarah, I don't understand the debate about stretching. I used to stretch before a workout because when I am limber, I find it easier to run. Then I heard you aren't supposed to stretch before a workout as you could pull something when your body is "cold." How does this make any sense when there are workouts entirely focused on nothing but stretching? When should I stretch?
Many thanks,
Chris

Dear Chris,
While most fitness experts would agree that the best time to stretch is when your muscles are warm, there is stretching and then there is s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g.

In recent years, stretching has been credited on its own as a form of exercise to increase health and well-being. Also, people are encouraged to stretch at their desks and on long airplane rides. And keep in mind, animals stretch instinctively. Ever watch dogs or cats wake up from a nap? They stretch their legs and torso before setting themselves in motion.

Light active stretches are an essential part of the warm-up before your workout. Active stretching uses motion and momentum to extend the muscle. Examples of active stretches include joint rotations (i.e. ankles, wrists, shoulders, waist etc), arm swings, and leg swings to get the blood moving. This site has some suggestions on how to warm-up.

The kind of stretching that could hurt your muscles before you work out is passive stretching. Stretching cold muscles can result in microscopic tearing of the tissue, which makes it difficult for your muscles to generate the power necessary for the exercise ahead. Save the passive stretching for after your workout.

Passive stretching extends the muscle in a held position for 30 seconds to 2 minutes after your workout and/or in between exercises. Passive stretching is the key to recovery of the muscle tissues that have been held under a continuous load.

Both active and passive stretching are forms of physical exercise that elongate the muscles.

The benefits include:
Increased physical efficiency and performance
Decreased susceptibility of injury
Increased muscle resiliency, coordination and power
Increased blood flow to the joint structures, and improved circulation
Improved posture and muscle balance
Enhanced nerve/muscle impulse coordination and velocity
Increased joint lubrication
Reduced physical stress

Improved mobility helps you to perform everyday tasks such as bending over and picking up a bag of groceries. Stretching feels good, and it sends you body a signal to relax. Don't we all need a little more of that?

Sarah

Looking For Single Xers to Star In the next P90X Infomercial

If you don't come to the Single Xers thread, this was posted yesterday. Get your story in if you would like to make it in the new P90X Infomercial. I think it would be really great if we could get one or two people in it.

It’s time again for a NEW P90X INFOMERCIAL! Ned Farr our producer of the P90X infomercial is going to be back hard at work putting together a sequel to P90X. I’m going to need the help of all the coaches to spread the word on this one!!! If you or a friend have had results with P90X and you have kept track of your transformation (progress photos, measurements, etc) please contact me ASAP! I’m going to need you to send all your photos to successpictures@productpartners.com, and if you can also type up a 1 page summary of how P90X positively affected your life as well. You can email your both your story and your photos to the same email box noted above. Alternatively you can email me at jscaturro@beachbody.com with any questions you may have.

Joseph ScaturroSuccess Stories
SpecialistBeachbody/Product Partners
jscaturro@beachbody.com

Study: Obesity Can Trim 10 Years Off Life

We all know that obesity can take away precious years off your life but here is pretty amazing evidence that shows how serious it is. What we are doing for ourselves and our families by training diligently is so important. If you are reading this and you are not on some type of workout program, it's time to make a change.

From the Associated Press March 17th 2009

Being obese can take years off your life and in some cases may be as dangerous as smoking, a new study says. British researchers at the University of Oxford analyzed 57 studies mostly in Europe and North America, following nearly one million people for an average of 10 to 15 years. During that time, about 100,000 of those people died.

The studies used Body Mass Index (BMI), a measurement that divides a person's weight in kilograms by their height squared in meters to determine obesity. Researchers found that death rates were lowest in people who had a BMI of 23 to 24, on the high side of the normal range.
Health officials generally define overweight people as those with a BMI from 25 to 29, and obese people as those with a BMI above 30.

The study was published online Wednesday in the medical journal, Lancet. It was paid for by Britain's Medical Research Council, the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK and others.

"If you are heading towards obesity, it may be a good idea to lose weight," said Sir Richard Peto, the study's main statistician and a professor at Oxford University.
Peto and colleagues found that people who were moderately fat, with a BMI from 30 to 35, lost about three years of life. People who were morbidly fat — those with a BMI above 40 — lost about 10 years off their expected lifespan, similar to the effect of lifelong smoking.

Moderately obese people were 50 percent more likely to die prematurely than normal-weight people, said Gary Whitlock, the Oxford University epidemiologist who led the study.
He said that obese people were also two thirds more likely to die of a heart attack or stroke, and up to four times more likely to die of diabetes, kidney or liver problems. They were one sixth more likely to die of cancer.

"This really emphasizes the importance of weight gain," said Dr. Arne Astrup, a professor of nutrition at the University of Copenhagen who was not linked to the Lancet study. "Even a small increase in your BMI is enough to increase your risks for cardiovascular disease and cancer."
Previous studies have found that death rates increase both above and below a normal BMI score, and that people who are moderately overweight live longer than underweight or normal-weight people.

Other experts said that because the papers used in the study mostly started between 1975 and 1985, their conclusions were not as relevant today.

Astrup worried that rising obesity rates may reverse the steep drops in heart disease seen in the West.

"Obesity is the new dark horse for public health officials," he said. "People need to be aware of the risks they're taking when they gain weight."

Inspirational Stories

Occasionally I'm going to take the chance to share stories from my coachees. I feel that the more stories I can share, the more people I can inspire. I realize that some people are inspired by different people. Some people might not be able to relate to my story since I've been an athlete my entire life. Although they may look to me for guidance, my story might not resonate with them and inspire them to stay diligent. So I requested that my coachees send me their stories so that I can share them with everyone.

So I want to thank Heather for stepping up to be the first person to share her story. Her story does resonate with me since she has cancer prevalent in her family. Cancer is also a big factor in my family's medical history and it's one of the reasons I train as hard as I do.

If you feel comfortable with it, I would love for you to send me your story so that I might share it here to inspire other people to keep with us on this fitness journey.


Thanks again Heather for sharing and keep up the great work!!


I've been overweight my whole childhood (I got up to 198 lbs.), but lost weight the summer between sophomore & junior year of high school (down to 145 lbs.). As I've gotten older, the weight pretty much has stayed off, with some slight fluctuations. My goal was to be the healthiest I've ever been when I turned 30, & I am healthy & strong now! However, I'm not setting a time frame on my body being where I want it- just trying to get there by this summer, so I'm on the X to get me there. My mom passed away from Pancreatic Cancer Dec. 9, 2008, My grandpa died from bone cancer in 2004, & my mom's sister had uterine cancer in her 20's, but is now cancer free thank God. So, cancer has hit my mom's side of the family hard. My dad's side of the family battles heart disease & diabetes. I refuse to let any of those things happen to me. That's why I'm on this journey.

A Request from Tony Horton

Tony Horton asked to pass this along:

Good News
By Tony Horton

So I'm watching the News with Brian Williams last night and at the end of the broadcast Mr. Williams mentions that with all the bad news lately the NBC Nightly News is looking for more Good News stories. There are tens thousands of good news stories in Facebook and here in the BeachBody message boards, so I think it's time we all team up and let Brain and the rest of the country know what's going on. Go to the link below and tell your good news story. Collectively we can help more people get fit and healthy and certainly make a dent in the bad news.

http://dailynightly.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/03/04/1820270.aspx

Please copy and paste this note and spread the good news!

Peace,Tony

I know getting fit is hard. I think sometimes people think it's easy for me since I've always been pretty fit due to the fact I grew up playing soccer and have been an athlete all my life. The fact is, I too have gone thru long spells where I didn't work out. It hurts to get back into shape. I know how hard it is for me when I haven't worked out for 3-6 months or even a year. I can't even imagine the pain people must go thru when they are overweight or haven't worked out for years much less the people that have never worked out.

But I've witnessed the human body do amazing things when it's trained diligently and fueled correctly. The problem with this is that it HURTS! Humans are really good at shying away from pain. What's funny though is that people will shy away from acute pain but dwell in the long lasting dull pain of not working out. If we can just get ourselves to fight thru the hour of pain a day, the 24 hours a day of pain that we deal with when don't work out, starts to go away.

Believe me...I know it's tough. It sucks sometimes. It hurts but the results are priceless. Tony blogged today and said it well. I'm going to leave you with his words. Keep Working!!

Here's The Thing
By Tony Horton

Life with exercise creates a completely different journey than a life without it. Making the time for exercise means that you're setting an intention to have a great life. Life without exercise means you're setting an intention to miss out on a better life. The quality of your life improves with exercise and it will get worse without it. Period! Your weight loss is a minute piece to the overall health and fitness puzzle. Every time you exercise you improve your fitness, healthy and quality of life. You always feel good afterward and you allow your mind and body to become less vulnerable to illness and injury. Every day you decide NOT to exercise your health, fitness and quality of life diminishes. You become more vulnerable to illness and injury and the energy and enthusiasm (feeling good) for a better life is not there. This is true for everyone. No exceptions.

Make a plan, stick to the plan and do it... forever!

How Do You Train?

So I was speaking with one of my cousins yesterday and she was saying that she was substituting running for some of the P90X workouts. She felt because she sweat more when she ran that it was a better workout to lose weight. I told her that she probably was just not bringing it hard enough when she was doing the routines because I felt this type of training is so much more effective when you're trying to get fit and subsequently lose weight.

I found a pretty interesting article that I think makes this point and really drives home why so many of us have gotten such great results with P90X and the diligent type training we get from the BeachBody products.

The Truth About Cardio Training

Steady pace endurance cardio training is a widely recommended mainstream method for prevention of heart disease or weight loss. How often have we heard the medical establishment and certain health professionals encourage us to perform 30 minutes of steady pace cardio, 3-4 times per week, maintaining the heart rate at a moderate level? Before accepting this notion, it is worth considering recent scientific research that indicates that endurance cardio work may not be as effective as it is sometimes perceived to be.

First of all, consider that our physiology, like that of most animals is optimized to perform physical activity in bursts of exertion followed by recovery. In other words, a stop-then-go series of activities as opposed to endurance orientated physical activities. Most sports (with the exception of endurance running, cycling or swimming) are based on physical variability in the movements, and short bursts of exertion followed by a recovery period.

Recent research is pointing out that this physical variability is one of the critical aspects to consider in your training, especially if you are seeking to achieve a lean body. Consider it this way, a sprinter who engages in short burst then recovery training possesses a lean, muscular, and powerful physique. Contrast this body type with that of a marathon runner, still very lean, but almost emaciated.

Also, consider the benefits that physical variability has as an internal effect within our body. Scientist have found that variable cyclic training is linked to increased production of anti-oxidants. This is combined with an anti-inflammatory response and a more efficient nitric oxide response, leading to better cardiovascular fitness. In regards to reducing body fat, cyclic training is also highly beneficial due to the fact that it induces an increased metabolic rate.

This is important when you realize that excessive steady endurance exercise (sometimes defined as greater than 60 minutes per session most days of the week) increases the production of free radicals in the body. It can also lead to degenerated joints, reduced immune function, and most alarmingly - muscle wasting. Not really recommended if you are seeking great body tone.
When you undertake endurance training, you are only training the heart at one specific heart rate range. This doesn’t help the heart respond to various every day stress. Variable cyclic training on the other hand teaches the heart to firstly respond to, and then recover from, a variety of demands. When you train the heart to rapidly increase and then rapidly decrease, it will be less likely to fail when you need it. This is vitally important as stress can cause your blood pressure and heart rate to increase rapidly.

Variable cyclic training involves a recovery period in between bursts of exertion. This recovery period is vitally important for the body to develop a healthy response to an exercise stimuli. This is an aspect you don’t get in steady state endurance training.

What’s the best form of cyclic training?
Well, most competitive sports are naturally comprised of highly variable stop-and-go motion. Here’s some examples:
* Football
* Sprinting
* Basketball
* Soccer
* Tennis
* Weight training
* High intensity interval training (this is where you vary between high and low intensity intervals on cardio equipment)

To summarize, the potential benefits of variable cyclic training compared to endurance training are as follows:
* Improved cardiovascular health
* Better body tone
* Anti-oxidant production
* Improved immune function
* Reduces joint wear and tear and muscle wasting
* Increased residual metabolic rate
* Increased capacity for the heart to handle stress

It's Easier Than You Think But Don't Drive Yourself Nuts

Even for someone like me that didn't have a lot of weight to lose, it was amazing to me how big a part nutrition does play in getting fit. I truly realize now how hard it actually is to get great results if you're not eating clean. I took the first round of P90X and really did not take the nutrition part of the program seriously. I had convinced myself that I was not going to be one of those fanatical people "counting calories" but after my first round, I got pretty descent results. It was then, I realized that I could really take this to the next level.

Finding out about http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ made a HUGE difference because that made it so much easier. (check out the video tutorial on how to set this up) Even though I am more focused on what I eat, I'm not driving myself nuts with every little detail. That's why it was refreshing to find this answer that Tony posted to a question he got about a certain diet percentage. Now to be fair, I'm pretty sure Tony has a personal chef now and so he never has to worry about counting calories but I'm pretty sure the years before he made it huge, he probably ate this way.

So my point is, you can get serious about the nutrition without going over board. You don't want to replace the stress you are relieving by working out with a the stress of getting the diet "perfect".

2. What do you think of the 40/30/30 nutrition program? Submitted by "RustyEMT"

Tony's Answer:

Rusty,
I'm not a nutritionist so I can only give you a laymen's interpretation for why the 40/30/30 eating program works for some people. I've never been one to closely count calories or monitor portions of my food. I'm very old school that way. I find that focus on these kinds of numbers unnecessarily complicates life and can lead to too much time spent on things that make my eating experiences less enjoyable. I'm not saying that the 40/30/30 eating plan is a waist of time by any means. Some people like breaking things down in categories that way. They also enjoy measuring every inch of their body and jumping on the scale 5 times a day. That's just not me.
I was reading this month's Nutrition Action Healthletter and the title article is called, "How To Get A Gut." This brilliantly simple article explained how we make ourselves fat. There are 8 things many of us do every day that lead to poor health and weight gain. There was very little mention of calories or percentages or popular diet philosophies. It talked about changing to a healthy lifestyle. More healthy foods, less junk/empty calorie food, and adding physical activity. Period. Lack of physical movement was first on the list. A combination of cardiovascular exercise and resistance training. Funny, I've heard that somewhere before.

The second thing on the list was EAT LESS! Duh! You can't eat like you did when you were young, unless you are fit and strong. Thirdly, stop eating crap. Cookies, cakes, pies, doughnuts, croissants are crap. Don't eat it. Number 4 is calories from beverages. Frappuccinos, soda pop (even diet soda) do not satiate. Healthy, high-fiber food that absorbs water makes you less hungry later. Beverages that contain empty calories trick you into eating more. Yikes! Number 5 is eating out. You have no idea how a chef in a restaurant prepares your food. Butter, oil, salt, etc... The unhealthy choices at the local deli are far worse then the stuff you make at home. Find healthy dinning establishments or stick to the veggies when eating in unfamiliar territory.
Six is Trans Fat. Thank the Lord that Trans Fat is be banned in some big cities around the country. The problem is that it's still buried in pastries, pie crusts, biscuits and frozen pizza. Studies have shown that even diets low in calories but high in trans fat cause excess weight gain. Turns out that this nasty stuff interrupts normal fat storage and the body's ability to burn fat. Seven on the list is not so much about lack of restraint or willpower but something called "disinhibited" eating. If it's there or offered you eat it. You subconsciously or consciously for that matter surround yourself with bad food. You bring it home from the grocery store, eat it at parties when you show up hungry and continue to eat at restaurants that don't have any healthy alternatives. Number eight is lack of sleep. The fact is that when you sleep less you want to eat more. Turns out that sweets and simple carbs in particular are what people with less than 6 hours a night crave the most.

You ask about 40/30/30 and you get this. Now you understand what works for me and thousands of other people in this community who just followed these common sense rules. I honestly believe that it's as simple as a constant mix of different kinds of exercise combined with healthy food choices. This is what makes for a happy productive life. Isn't that the most important thing anyway?

The Key is the Core

When I first started working out with P90X, I went after it hard thinking I could handle it since I had been an athlete all of my life. One thing that I never really put much work into though was my core. Five weeks in, my lower back was really hurting, so much so that I had to quit for a little over a month. I started over and slowly worked my way back into the program. I haven't experienced any lower back pain since and I attribute a large portion of that to a much stronger core. I definitely feel more durable and I think that is so important as we all get older. I truly believe now that the key to longevity is a strong core coupled with flexibility. So any little thing we can do to strengthen our core is going to be beneficial for a more active life in our later years.

I found this installment on Tony Horton's blog that I was quite interested in because it seems like a very simple thing to do and I thought you might find it helpful as well.

A Simple Tip to Improve Lower Back & Core Strength

If you experience stiffness and tightness in your lower back on a regular basis, for no apparent reason – adopting a simple habit could help ease that by improving your lower back and core strength:

Whenever you walk, focus on your ab and glut muscles and keep them strong. You don’t have to put a lot of energy into this and constantly flex your behind and abdominal areas while you go about your business; the key is to consciously use your glueteal and abdominal muscles whenever you stand, walk, jog, and run.

If you do this correctly, your gait will feel strong and purposeful, and you should be more aware of the muscles that surround your hip and lower back areas.
What makes this habit helpful for people who experience chronic, intermittent lower back pain? It lightens the load on your joints. Your ligaments wrap tightly against the joints in your pelvis and lower back and your muscles are right over them. The main purpose of the ligaments is to keep your joints stable, preventing dislocations and keeping your muscles strong eases the tension on the ligaments.

Over time, the muscles and ligaments that surround your lower back and pelvic regions can become weak. As your muscles become weak, your ligaments have to work even harder to keep your joints stable. Since muscles and ligaments tend to get weak together, your ligaments under extra stress can become injured, typically producing intermittent joint problems. Injury leads to pain and inflammation, which leads to less physical activity, which produces further weakening of the muscles and ligaments. See how that works?

Injured ligaments can heal and strengthen over time, but in some cases, the involved joints may never fully recover. So, if you’ve recently started your program and you’re having a hard time with lower back pain, don’t let it stop you. Training your muscles to be active and strong while you go about your daily activities can be an extremely effective way of strengthening your lower back and core – and help you bring it harder, sooner. Your muscles have much greater capacity to be strengthened and reconditioned than your ligaments do, so by consciously using your abdominal and gluteal muscles every time you stand, walk, jog, or run, you provide significant support to your lower back and pelvic regions and keep your joints happy.

When it comes to bending your trunk forward and backward, your abdominal and lower back muscles perform opposite actions; your abdominal muscles flex (curl forward) your trunk, while your lower back muscles extend (bend back) your trunk. Your nervous system is designed to allow both your abs and lower back muscles to perform with the least amount of opposing strain. This nervous system mechanism is called reciprocal inhibition.

When you keep your abs strong while you walk, your nervous system tells the muscles of your lower back to relax to some degree. And when you keep your gluts strong as you walk, your hip flexors receive a steady signal from your nervous system to relax and lengthen.
Having strong abs, strong gluts, and relaxed and lengthened lower back muscles and hip flexors are the four main requirements for a strong and healthy lower back and core.
So, there you have it. Just be conscious of your ab and glut muscles when you’re moving around, going about your business and you’ll strengthen your lower back and core, which will help you feel better, fight aches and pains, and be able to bring even harder. Simple. Try it.

P90X Better Than Steroids?

This was written by Steve Edwards and I actually got it off Tony Horton's blog. For those of you that don't know, Tony Horton is the trainer that runs the P90X training program. He just recently turned 50 and is in immaculate shape.

P90X Better Than Steroids?

by Steve Edwards

The X is gettin' some serious love lately. My dad calls the other night and says he watching a show in the Giants and two pitchers, Zito and Wilson, are doing 90X. Tony calls me the other day to get my opinion on something because NBC is coming over to film a segment on Wii and wants the X perspective. He calls me again, a couple of days later from a plane on his way to do more X interviews and says, "Dude, you see the Grammys last night?" I hadn't but Cheryl Crow gave us a huge shout out from the red carpet.Then, yesterday, I get this from Tony:On WFAN, (biggest sports radio station in NYC) the host was talking this morning about A-Rod and said something to the effect of "his body was never that chiseled, not like he had a P90X body or anything".

This, for those of you not privy to the national news, is a reaction to Alex Rodriguez admitting that he'd been doing steroids. In reality, steroids don't make muscle, they just increase your body's ability to build muscle. But in a world where we see advertisements to "build muscle without steroids" as if the public thinks it's impossible, it's nice to get a little validity for our system. Anyone can have an X body. All it takes is a little structure and a lot of hard work.

Note: Jon Congdon (our President) sent this and I think it's a nice addition:
Everything you see about P90X that might appear to be PR is "organic" -- meaning that we don't pay for PR, and don't hire celebrities or athletes to do it, or talk about it. It's advertised on TV, in magazines sometimes, and more and more on the Internet, but we don't do PR. If Cheryl Crow, or Usher, or an MLB, NHL or NFL athlete buy it, they buy it just like everyone else and either because they saw the infomercial or a friend told them. That's what's so amazing about the P90X phenomenon of late.

What's the Deal with P90X?

More and more, people are starting to notice that I'm doing something because of the results I'm getting. And more and more, I'm hearing the question, "What's the deal with this P90X thing you're doing?" I explain to them that it's an extreme and diligent workout regimine that uses "Muscle Confusion" so that you don't plateau. I want to thank DarkSiren for posting this on her blog because this is a great look at how P90X and P90X+ came about.


Xamining the X
By Steve Edwards

With the arrival of P90X®+, many of you might be wondering how we could
improve upon the "most extreme home fitness system ever." The simple answer is, there's always new training, new techniques, and a new way to look at things to take them (and you) to the next level. P90X is the step from fitness to extreme fitness. The Plus takes it to yet another level. Our focus was to give you more options to maximize your fitness experience. P90X+ is not trying to top the X but to enhance its efficiency for those who have reached the peak. Let's take a brief look at the science behind P90X and why you'll want to add X+ to your home fitness arsenal.

The History: What's Next?

P90X wouldn't have come about if not for the success of Power 90® and Slim in 6®. Designed around our principles of Slim Training® and Sectional Progression™, we marketed these to combat the rising obesity epidemic at the entry level. Both of these programs could be done by just about anyone, whether an ex-college athlete or a couch potato who'd never exercised a day in their life. As our database grew and the number of Success Stories mounted, we were besieged with the obvious question, "What's next?"

But P90X didn't come about overnight. We knew we were creating a market for a highly advanced home fitness program, but we wanted to make sure that it would be perfect, or at least darn close to it. As we kicked around concepts and ideas, we developed a few simpler graduate programs, such as Power Half Hour® and Slim Series®, as well as broadened our appeal to the entry-level client with the addition of Yoga Booty Ballet®, Kathy Smith's Project: YOU™, Turbo Jam®, and Hip Hop Abs®. Our long-term vision was to bring in clientele from all walks of life. Then, once committed to our healthy lifestyle, we would provide the means to take them to the ultimate level.

The Periodizational Approach

Periodizational training is training in specific blocks in order to achieve a goal. While the standard in athletic training for decades, it hadn't been applied to home fitness except at its most basic level. In our initial meetings on how to construct P90X, a periodizational approach was the first concept that we all easily agreed upon.

Our challenge was then how to come up with a program targeting overall fitness for every individual. When you train for a sport, your goals are pretty clear. With general fitness, targets can be across the board. Instead of focusing on body sculpting, the X approach would be overall body fitness and performance. We wanted to achieve increases in strength, speed, power, flexibility, aerobic efficiency, and mind and body awareness—a tall order for a 12-week program. But we knew that if we could pull if off, body sculpting would naturally follow.

Muscle Confusion

Athletes train in blocks. These are phases of increased intensity with a recovery period between each block. As you move through the phases of each block, you alter what you do in order to keep the stimulus to the stressed energy system high. The more fit you are, the quicker the body adapts and the more often you need to move into the next phase or block. We call this process of altering your exercises Muscle Confusion. In reality, it's total-body energy system confusion because you're doing the same thing to your aerobic system, your anaerobic system, your lung capacity, and so on. But that was too long an explanation, so we settled on Muscle Confusion.

The reason athletes train this way is that when you begin an exercise, your body goes through a period of time when it adapts to the new movements. Once it's adapted (learned how to do the movements efficiently), you get to a mastery phase where your muscles (and all stressed systems) respond to training and make enormous fitness gains. This period is short because your body is always trying to become more efficient. The more efficient, or better, you become at something, the less it affects you, so naturally, your results will then level off. This is called a plateau.

Once you hit a plateau it's time to reshuffle the deck and begin another block. A targeted recovery phase enables your body to heal its microtrauma and grow stronger for the upcoming block. This way, each subsequent block can be slightly more intense than the one previously completed. Using calculated training blocks, your results curve will continually point skyward.


Periodizational Dieting

Luckily, we'd had a lot of experience with our members and Success Stories that gave us a solid idea on how to craft that ultimate training diet. Similar to that way your body adapts to exercise, it also changes and adapts to different nutritional strategies. The P90X diet is based around how we've gotten the most overall success with all of our members.

Essentially, this is done in three phases. First, we limit carbohydrate consumption. Among other things, this teaches the individual the role the carbs play in their diet. When reduced, the body is forced to look for energy from sources other than blood sugar. Since stored fat (and some muscle) doesn't fuel the body as efficiently as glycogen (or blood sugar), this phase not only teaches the body to use its fat more efficiently for energy but teaches the individual how to feel the way carbohydrates fuel their body. Subsequent phases add more carbs to facilitate harder training until, ultimately, the relationship of food as fuel is well understood.


The Ultimate 12-Week Transformation

With this combination of diet and exercise, we were able to achieve incredible results in human performance over a 12-week program. And because of the variety of workouts we created, P90X could be retooled to target various goals and could be used over and over again.

So Why the Plus?

No matter how good a program is, you don't want to do the same routines forever. You can, and it would work, but it's more efficient using the modalities described above if you continually find ways to force new adaptations on both your mind and body. When we then analyzed the fitness gains achieved during a cycle of P90X, we knew that we could actually increase the intensity per minute and continue to provide fitness gains to X graduates, in even less time!

There's a rule in both diet and fitness (that seems particularly unfair to de-conditioned folks) that allows you to do less to maintain—or even improve—your fitness than what it took to get in shape in the first place. It's why a piece of cake does little to an athlete, whose raging metabolism can put the empty calories to work, but will go right to a sedentary person's thighs. A well-trained person can also push their body harder and tax their energy systems quicker than their less-fit brethren. When sprinter Michael Johnson was training for his Olympic double (he won both the 200 and 400 meters and set world records), the public was surprised to hear that he finished the bulk of his training in less than an hour. But for ultimate performance, efficiency is far more important than time. The Plus follows this model—combining difficult moves in a symbiotic fashion in order to maximize your workout time for ultimate results. The new question begs, are you ready for the Plus?

Feeling Stronger

I've only been at the X+ for a week and it's filled with all new moves that I feel completely uncoordinated all over again. But I did notice today with Abs/Core Plus that I am already able to do moves more controlled then I could last week. In addition I purchased some Abs straps which really helped to feel like I was doing the whole workout today. Last week I had to modify due to an elbow thing I've been dealing with. I was really able to focus and get that core burn today which obviously was a great feeling.

Accountability Pic
Abs/Core Plus
Discus Throwers

The P90X+ Journey Begins

The main thing I've learned from training with P90X is that you have to constantly be switching it up if you want to get results. I was the classic gym rat that would be diligent for 3-4 months and then hit a wall. The X has smashed thru all that but anything you do can cause you to plateau if you do it to consistently without variety. So after 2 rounds of P90X, I knew I needed something new to break thru and surpass the results I've achieved so far. I actually purchased P90X+ when I bought P90X back in early part of 2008. But those DVDs have actually not even been touched until now. I wanted at least 2 full rounds of the X before I moved up to X+.

I started on Monday and I love the whole idea of completely switching it up from the original X. I've heard some (guys mostly) say that they don't like the + because it's more cardio based. That's true but it's definitely a very intense system that works at creating true muscle strength, not just mass.

The X is more traditionally based where you pick a weight to do 8-10 reps to build size. But in X+, you pick a weight that you can do a move for 30 seconds, or 60 seconds, maybe even 90 seconds. There are some moves with no weights that you do for 2 minutes. So it's not working to failure with a particular weight, it's working hard for a certain amount of time with the last 15 seconds being tough. If it's too easy you bump it up next time.

Because these are all new moves, the first 3 sessions have been more about getting the moves down. Still, I'm completely drench when I've finished. I totally see this as a fluid way of training, constantly changing and adapting. What's also interesting about X+ is that the classic X resistance training comes in the recovery week, where it was set up the other way around in the X.

If you are doing P90X now, I would highly recommend doing at least 2 rounds of it before attempting P90X+. There are some serious core moves that if you have not adequately strengthened your core, you could really hurt your back. There are some things I've done already that I KNOW there is no way I could have done even after my first round of the X. Some of my favorite moves so far - O Crunch Push-Ups (see acct pic below). Hindu Pike Push-Ups - 1/2 Dervish (got to engage your core!!) - Scorpion Plank - 360 Chataranga Run - Banana Mason. Keep an eye out for Acct pics to come with some of these moves to give you something to look forward to.

The Word is Spreading about P90X

So last night I get a call from my sister and she was watching the red carpet show for the Grammy's. She says, "I just saw Sheryl Crow saying she's doing P90X!" Now the X isn't some magic bullet that only the stars can afford. It's just good old fashion hard work and eating clean. I always thought that if I could just afford a personal trainer, I could have a cut movie star body but of course that is incredibly expensive. But P90X can be that personal trainer for you. I can honestly say, it's the best investment I have ever made in myself.

Single Xers Workout Group

You can check out in the video tutorial section how to get set up in WOWY and then also join the Single Xers workout group so you know instantly when you're working out with other single Xers.

Are You Kidding Me?

Here is just another reason why what we are doing is so important. You are inspiring people to change how they live. Keep pushing play!!

From foxnews.com

Obesity can be "caught" as easily as a common cold from other people's coughs, sneezes and dirty hands, scientists are set to declare today.
The condition has been linked to a highly-infectious virus which causes sniffles and sore throats.
Professor Nikhil Dhurandhar said the virus, known as AD-36, infects the lungs then whisks around the body, forcing fat cells to multiply and also causing sore throats.
"When this virus goes to fat tissue it replicates, making more copies of itself and in the process increases the number of new fat cells, which may explain why the fat tissue expands and why people get fat when they are infected with this virus," Dhurandhar said.
In one test, a third of obese people had the rare and highly contagious virus compared to just 11 percent of thinner people. Weight gain can last three months until the body has built up resistance to the bug.
New research supports earlier theories from studies on weight gain; evidence in tests on mice and chickens shows the bug could cause overweight people to gain weight.
"People could be fat for reasons other than viral infections, so it’s pointless for fat people to try to avoid infection," said Dhurandhar.
The study also reveals research claiming dieters always feel hungry because humans have a "natural body weight" and they will always suffer hunger pangs.

It's up to us!

I'm sure many of you just recently saw that report that states that there are more people in America now that are classified as obese then there are people that are just merely overweight.

• 34% of Americans are obese
• 32.7% of Americans are overweight
• just under 6% of Americans are "extremely or morbidly" obese

That means only around 27% of Americans are considered to be in a healthy weight range. That is staggering when you think about it. To add fuel to the fire, experts are now saying that with the onset of financially hard times, it is only going to get worse.

It's a vicious cycle. If a person is depressed about the finances, they are more likely to engage in "emotional" eating. When the finances get tight, people turn to cheaper food which is usually not good for them. They gain weight which causes more depression which leads to more eating. So enough of the gloom and doom.

What can we do?

The easy answer to that is "Keep Pushing Play!" As we continue to look healthier, people notice. People will ask you what your doing and then you can share what you've done for yourself. Many of you reading this are coaches and some of you plan to be a coach in the future, but even if you never become a coach, you can change people's lives by changing your own and sharing what you've learned.

Another thing we can do is share what diligent training has done for us. I get asked all the time by coaches, "How do I approach someone about BB?" Remember this: Nobody wants to hear that they "need" something. Ask yourself how you would feel if a good friend or family member came to you and said, "I've got this great new workout and you need it!" All I do is share what it has done for me and let the person discover the value for themselves. For instance, I sat down with my sister and told her I wanted to show her something. I took her to the Single Xers thread and showed her my progress pictures and progress pictures of some of the women in the thread. I never really said anything and then she asked me, "Okay, how do I do that?"

Look around you. There are people everywhere that want what we have. Whether you're a coach or not, you can help people by continuing to push play and sharing what you've learned. More and more it's obvious that it's up to us!

Blog Launch

With the popularity of the Single Xers thread, it has became apparent to me that I needed a place where I could post information where people can come to make their transition into diligent training easier. I realize that when new people come to the thread, they are a little overwhelmed by it all. The thread moves at lightning speed at times, and maybe people might feel intimidated to ask questions even though we try to make them feel as comfortable as possible.

I'll be working on some video tutorials that will help people with some of the things that can be a little confusing at first. For instance, new people will ask, "What's Wowy and how do I sign up for it?" I'm sure some people have not even bothered to ask thinking it was a stupid question. So those will be the types of questions people can get answered here.

So check back periodically for new vids but I'll also be announcing them on the thread.

I just want to thank my coach Barbie for her awesome support and I also wanted to thank everyone that has made the SXer thread such a wonderful place for people to hang out. It truly is turning into a family and I'm grateful to have met you all.