My Holiday Fitness Challenge to You
December 11, 2008
My Holiday Fitness Challenge to You
By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS Burn the Fat
Media reports say that most people gain between 5 and 10 pounds of body fat in the six weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas. According to research from the New England Journal of Medicine, the average amount is much more modest - just over a pound. However, even modest holiday weight gain may be cause for concern: A study by the National Institutes of Health found that this seasonal weight gain - even just a pound - is usually not lost after the holidays; it simply adds to the “weight creep” that sneaks up on us as we get older.
Whether the weight gain is a pound or ten pounds, did you ever ask yourself why does holiday weight gain happen at all?
Here are some common answers I’ve heard:
“I’m too busy over the holidays to work out as often as usual.” “I’m more stressed over the holidays, and the food is there, so I eat more.” “I have at least three parties to attend and then there’s Christmas and New Year’s, so it’s impossible to stay on a diet.” “No one can tell me not to enjoy myself over the holidays, so I’m just going to eat whatever I want.”
These answers all have a few things in common.
First, they assume that it’s an either/or proposition: You can either get in better shape or enjoy yourself, but not both. Stated in reverse: You can either deprive yourself of holiday enjoyments or gain weight, but it has to be one or the other. The truth is, “either/or thinking” is a very limiting form of thought.
Second, these are all excuses or rationalizations. “I’m too busy” for example, is always an excuse, because I have never known someone who was too busy to make time for his or her highest life priorities. The problem then, is not lack of time, but that most people do not make exercise or eating healthy a priority. We all have the same amount of time - 24 hours a day - but the way people prioritize the use of time is the difference between success and mediocrity. And remember, words mean little. Actions reveal a person’s true priorities.
Third, none of these are the real reasons most people gain weight over the holidays to begin with. The real reason is because an intention was never set for the opposite: To get in BETTER shape over the holidays.
Most people set a “goal” to get in worse shape over the holidays!
It’s not consciously set, of course, as few people would intentionally set out to gain fat. They simply do it by default. In their minds, they accept that it must be just about impossible to stay in shape with everything going on over the holiday season, so why bother?
Once the decision has been made, then the rationalizing (“rationing lies”) continues:
“Why should I deprive myself?” “Family is more important” “Worrying about diet and exercise during the holidays is neurotic” “I don’t care if I gain a few pounds, I’m going to enjoy myself anyway” “It’s only these two or three weeks that I let myself go wild” “I’ll start the first week in January and lose the weight then.”
As a result of this “negative goal-setting,” they expect to work out less, eat more and gain a few pounds, and they don’t seem to even consider alternatives.
But what would happen if you set an intention and a goal to get in better shape between now and New Years’s Day?
What would happen if you decided that it was not an all or nothing proposition and that you could enjoy the holidays and all it has to offer and get in better shape at the same time?
And what if you decided that your health and your body were the highest priorities in your life, because you realized that can’t enjoy anything else in life, including family or holidays, if you don’t have your health?
Here’s what would happen: You would get in better shape!
I’m not all that different from you just because I’m a bodybuilder and a fitness professional. I have many of the same problems, concerns and struggles as you do. Although today I always get in better shape between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, that’s a result of a conscious choice, a close examination of my old belief systems and a lot of action. For me, it all started about six years ago.
For most of my adult life, I wasn’t much of a traveller and I didn’t enjoy flying or staying in hotels. I had a belief that if I traveled, my workouts and nutrition would suffer. After all, “it would be hard to stick with my usual bodybuilding diet, and I wouldn’t have access to my usual gyms.” Because of these reasons (excuses), I never did much travel back in those days.
Then I was forced to take some trips for business reasons. Predictably enough, my nutrition and workouts suffered while I was spending time in airplanes and in hotels. With my experience having confirmed my beliefs, I re-affirmed to myself, “See, traveling is nothing but a pain. You just can’t stay on a diet and training program when you’re out of town.”
After several more trips, I noticed that something very negative happened: I surrendered. I had resigned myself to “not bother” while I was on the road. I let my expectations create my reality.
But I didn’t let it go on for long. As soon as I became aware of what was happening, I decided that I wouldn’t tolerate it, so I challenged myself and my previous limiting beliefs. I asked myself, “Why the heck not? Why let myself backslide? Why even settle for maintaining? Why not challenge myself to improve while I’m traveling?” The answer:
There was no reason, there were only excuses.
From that day forward, I set a challenge for myself: To come back from every trip or vacation in better shape than when I left. Of course there were exceptions, as when I went on a vacation for total R & R. But I never let travel get in my way again…
I prepared food that I would eat on the planes so airline food was never an excuse… I only chose hotels that had kitchens, so I could cook my own food… I went food shopping immediately after check-in…
And I actually found myself training harder than usual!
No matter where I was training - it could even be some “dungeon” of a gym in the middle of nowhere - it didn’t matter because my mind was focused on improving and looking better when I came home than when I left. I had a goal!
What do you think happened? It’s not hard to guess: I always came home in better shape than when I left.
Since then, my “travel challenge” has become somewhat of a ritual in my life. When I’m away from my “home-base” it becomes a “fitness road trip.” I search the Internet or yellow pages or ask locals to help me find the most hard-core gym nearby wherever I will be staying. When I get there, I train every bit as hard as if I had a competition just weeks away. I look forward to it now.
In fact, this experience is what led me to my “holiday fitness challenge.”
Like many people, I travel over the holidays, so I’m automatically in “travel challenge” mode at thanksgiving, Christmastime and New Year’s. But with the additional temptations and busyness that the holidays bring on top of the usual travel stresses, I saw fit to declare a new challenge: “The Holiday Challenge.” The difference was that for my “holiday challenge,” I pledged to not only to return home in better shape than when I left, but to enjoy the holidays to the fullest at the same time.
People who think I “deprive” myself to look the way I do would be shocked: I eat some damn good food over the holidays including Pie at Thanksgiving and my mom’s famous red and green Jell-0 Christmas cake. Then on New Year’s I’m usually toasting champagne and having a blast with friends or family. The difference is, every other meal stays right on schedule and I work out hard and consistently over the holidays; I don’t let everything fall apart just because ‘tis the season.’ In fact, I work out HARDER over the holidays!
The idea that you can either enjoy the holidays or stay in shape - but not both - is damaging and limiting. It hurts your social life, your emotional life and your physical life. Life is not an either or proposition; it’s a matter of balance. Success does not mean going to extremes. Success can be a simple matter of re-examining your beliefs, rearranging your priorities, setting goals, changing the questions you ask yourself, re-evaluating your expectations and acting in accordance with all of the above.
Your expectations will become your reality.
What are you expecting this holiday season? Are you expecting to be in better shape after holiday parties, celebrations, banquets, dinners, and desserts? If not, then why not? What’s preventing you from enjoying all of the above and still getting in better shape? Do you have a limiting belief which dictates that it’s one or the other? Could it be that you never set a goal, intention or expectation to do it? Could it be that you’re rationalizing or making excuses? If so, then I challenge you to change it this year.
I CHALLENGE YOU TO BE IN BETTER SHAPE ON JANUARY 1st THAN YOU ARE TODAY! I CHALLENGE YOU TO BE FITTER, HEALTHIER, LEANER AND MORE MUSCULAR!
There’s less than a month until the end of the year. Why not see how much you can improve your physique over the holidays, without depriving yourself of any holiday enjoyments or festivities? Just step up your expectations. Step up your standards. Step up your nutrition. Step up your training. Step up your action. Step up to the “holiday fitness challenge” the minute you finish reading this, and then just see what happens!
Eat right, train hard, and expect success,
Tom Venuto CSCS, NSCA-CPT Fat Loss Coach
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Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder, certified personal trainer and freelance fitness writer. Tom is the author of “Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle,” which teaches you how to get lean without drugs or supplements using secrets of the world’s best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and increase your metabolism by visiting: Burn the Fat
Tags: Total Fitness Newsletter, exercise, fitness, fitness challenge, holiday fitness tips, holiday weight gain, lose weight, weight loss, workout
Back To School Workout: Prevent Freshman 15 Pound Weight Gain
September 22, 2008
Calling all College Girls who don’t want to gain a pound freshman year. Don’t go crazy, just do these exercises in your dorm (gym not required).
Going back to school doesn’t mean, gaining weight.
* Chair push-ups x 10-15 reps
* 1-leg squats to chair x 12 reps on each leg
* Chair dips x 10-15 reps
Tags: Free Workout Routines, burn fat, cardio, exercise, fitness, Full Body Workout Routine, lose fat, lose weight, total body workout, workout
The Best Calorie Burning Total Body Workout Routine!
September 22, 2008
Stephen Cabral, fitness expert, gives youtube a free workout video that will burn 500 calories fast! For the best exercise and work out videos visit diet.com/video.
Tags: Free Workout Routines, build muscle, burn fat, exercise, fitness, Full Body Workout Routine, lose belly fat, lose fat, six pack abs, Total Body Workout Routine, workout
Total Bodyweight Workout
August 30, 2008
Personal trainer Stephen Cabral takes Sarah through a total body work out that uses no equipment, just body weight. Build muscle and tone up. No gym required. This exercise video can be done anywhere.
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Rev Your Metabolism: Burn fat fast!
June 26, 2008
Hi everyone,
Here is another great workout that I came accross. This is from http://www.self.com/
Learn how to burn more fat, even while you are sitting on the couch!
The workout
These multitasking moves, designed by Kira Stokes, an instructor at Reebok Sports Club/NY in New York City, will create sleek, sexy curves and accelerate your metabolism. How? By building lean muscle, which burns about three times as many calories as fat. Twice-a-week strength sessions, in fact, can rev your engine so dramatically that your body will automatically zap up to 150 extra calories every day, even when you’re sitting on the couch. That can really add up!
You’ll need A pair of 5- to 8-pound dumbbells, a resistance band or piece of tubing tied into a loop and a stability ball
Try it Do two sets of 15 reps of each toner twice a week, giving your body a day to recover between strength sessions.
Include cardio Also do 40 minutes of heart-pumping activity three days a week. It will be challenging, but it’s the ideal dose to deliver a postexercise metabolism boost, a study in Obesity notes. Your body’s calorie-burning furnace will remain fired up for 24 to 48 hours after you swap your sneaks for sandals, says study author Gary Hunter, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, adding, “You can burn 150 bonus calories a day.” Coupled with our toners, that’s 300 calories daily that are gone, poof, history, in addition to the tons you’ll torch doing the routine.
Click Here to Read the Rest of the Article
Click Here to View the Video
Tags: Fitness Tips and News, burn fat, exercise, fitness, increase metabolism, lose weight, metabolism, workout
Jillian Michaels: Beach Boot Camp
March 6, 2008
This full set of exercises from Jillian Michaels, of ‘The Biggest Loser,’ will shape your body for the summer. Tell me a little bit about your philosophy.
You are going to have to work out.
Jillian Michaels: Workouts
Sexiest You (Paperback)
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Tags: Jillian Michaels, diet, exercise, fitness, making the cut, The Biggest Loser, workout
Strut Your Stuff: 7 Moves for Runway Legs
February 24, 2008
It is not too soon to start thinking about showing off your legs. We are at the end of February and spring and summer will be here before you know it. More clothes will come off and I don’t want you to go into shock because you did not work on those legs!
I found a great article by Jeanette Jenkins over at the Fit List: Workout Tips for Celebrity Trainers over at MSNBC. Here is part of what she had to say:
Ever wonder how supermodels like Gisele Bundchen, Heidi Klum and Naomi Campbell keep their legs looking runway-ready? Of course, there is no denying they have great genes. But they also work at those gorgeous gams. When they have a runway show coming up, such as the ones this month in Milan and Rio, they call on a trainer to get their legs looking fierce and fabulous!
To help you get your own pair of runway legs, incorporate some of the following lower-body exercises and activities into your workout regimen. For the best results, try using two to three different methods of training each week so your muscles are constantly challenged.
She recommends: Ballet, Call-me-the-’B'-word-today-but-love-me-tomorrow-lunges!, Uphill hiking,Yoga, Strength-training, Pilates, a Spinning.
Click Here to Read the entire Post
Video Clip:
Top 10 Diets Exercise Videos #7: Butt
Exercises-Tone Up! Best of!
In the Top 10 Diets Exercise Videos is the best best butt exercises. Tone up and get a firm sexy backside. Of course results will be much more noticeable when combined with a regular cardio workout.
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Jillian Michaels: Motivation
February 24, 2008
Hi I’m Jillian Michaels for America Takes it Off-Choose your Resolution. A big challenge in anyone’s fitness regiment is motivation. Ultimately motivation has to come from within. Make a list of all the reasons that you want to get healthy and be in shape, it’s this list that’s going to define your wellness goals. Be specific, and realistic when setting goals for yourself. In other words, if you’ve never workout out before, don’t expect to run a marathon right off the bat. Rather, schedule 30 walks 5 days a week, and work your way up to a 10 minute mile. Also, take responsibility. The choices that you make determine your destiny. Get out of victim mode. You have the ability to choose your actions in any situation, good or bad, to make the outcome, ultimately in your favor. By getting empowered and regaining control of your life, your goals will become reality in no time.
Jillian Michaels: Now let Jillian Help You Lose Weight Online
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Jillian Michaels: Cut the Carbs for that Special Event
February 16, 2008
Are you resolved to slim down this year? I’m Jillian Michaels from American Takes it off. Choose your resolution. So you’ve got a huge party to go to. You want to look your absolute best. Here’s a tip for you. Cut the carbs. Not permanently. Just 2 days before your special event. I want you to avoid grains like bread, pasta, rice, cereal. Especially sugar. Even fruit sugar. These type of carbs hold water weight, and they’ll make you look bloated, which is exactly what we do not want. If you can avoid the carbs, you’ll look stunning and and feel fabulous at your big party.
Tags: Jillian Michaels, carbs, fitness, lose weight, The Biggest Loser, Weight Loss, workout
Cardio-Interval Training
February 7, 2008
Top 10 Turbulence Training Videos of 2007
#8 - Turbulence Training-Interval Training
Hopefully this video answers a lot of your questions about the right type of “cardio” for fat loss.
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Interval TrainingThis is Craig Ballantyne from TurbulenceTraining and TTmembers. I wanted to take this time to explain the interval training for fat loss portion of the program. Because it is very important for fat loss, but it is also a little bit complicated for people that have not done interval training before.
Now generally I recomment that people use the bike for interval training. A stationary bike is nice and easy because you can transition between hard and easy exercise quite simply. And also you don’t have worry about falling off a treadmill. You don’t have to worry about advanced sprinting. You’ll need to actually warm up for sprinting. With a bike it’s very simple. It allows you to do a lot of work, by increasing the resistance, and taking it off quite easily. Let me show you an example using the treadmill for interval training.
What I like people to do is to do interval training right after their bodywieght circuit. If you aren’t fit enough, you can do interval training, or cardio training on off days instead. We do interval training 3 days per week. So it fits in nicely right after the strength training cricuits, or other bodyweight workouts that you do later on in the phase. If you want to do it on other days, that is fine as well. But make sure you take full day of rest each week. So we are going to do a couple of the interval workouts from the preparation phase in this next segment. Click on the above video to watch the entire Interval Training for Fat Loss Video.
About the Author
Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for
Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training fatloss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men’s Fitness and Maximum Fitnessmagazines, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat,gain muscle , and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week. Here’s to 2008 being your best year ever. If there is anything I can do to help you out, don’t hesitate to ask. Thanks so much for your support!2008 is going to be a heck of a year,Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS Author, Turbulence Training
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Tags: Cardio, bodyweight exercises, cardio, Craig Ballantyne, fat loss, Interval Training, men’s fitness, TT Bodyweight 500, Turbulence Training, workout
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