Hope you’re having a super summer!
For you folks on this side of the border, Happy Canada Day! …and to my wife, Happy Birthday!
I told her she is that important that our whole country celebrates her birthday;-)
We are in Quispamsis, New Brunswick right now on vacation. It might have a funny name but it’s a beautiful place just outside the main center of St.John. It’ so nice we are actually looking at some of the real estate here;-)
We are staying at my wife’s sisters and Matea is having a ball and was quite the travelling trooper during the drive here.
A lot of people seem to worry about what to do with their healthy living routine when they go on vacation.
So I took the time out of my vacation to share with you 3 tips that I have used over the years to have a guilt-free vacation this summer while not erasing all of your hard work in the gym and in the kitchen
this winter.
1. Forget Food & Fitness
Personally this is the option I prefer, but it might not be for everybody. Once a year I allow myself to break free from healthy eating and exercise for up to 2 week for our summer vacation. I basically eat whatever I want when I am hungry and drink whatever I want whenever I am thirsty. Any other intermittent breaks during the year last only a few days or are for unexpected events. Eating REAL food and doing efficient exercise 90% of the time allows me to do this and actually get stronger and leaner year after year. Yeah, you might put on a couple pounds of water as you won’t really gain any fat in 2 weeks but that will leave you even more motivated to get back on track when you get back. So earn this time and enjoy it!
2. Daily Dining
Pick one meal or snack during the day that you will enjoy the most depending on your planned activities for the day and have it guilt-free.
Brunch breakfast with the family, ice cream at the park or wining and dining in the evening. You don’t have to make it pure junk everyday, take the opportunity to try fresh local recipes wherever you are staying. I just had the local Lobster with Thai Noodles and it was amazing! With your activity levels not as high as normal one large meal and small healthy snacks of nuts and fruit during the rest of the day will keep your hunger and calories on track and you on the move without craving the next meal.
3. Relish the Routine
If you feel the guilt from straying from your Dad Fitness workouts are worst than the food itself then stick with it. Living the Dad Fitness lifestyle is super simple to maintain anyway by eating real food most of the time and having a “treat” meal once a week along with 3 short weekly workouts. Sprints on the beach or bodyweight workouts at the park are great ways to add spice into your workouts while combining, family, fitness and fun.
Because those things are something we don’t want a vacation from…
Happy Canada Day!
It’s been a little while since my last blog post because things have been pretty crazy in my life lately. So I hope to make it up to you today by exercising your most important muscle, your BRAIN…
It all started a few months ago when one of the closest people in my life passed away from a battle with the big C…yes CANCER. Basically this man was like a grandfather to me all my life even though he wasn’t an official grandfather by blood.
Even though he was in his 70′s when he passed it still doesn’t soften the blow any easier, especially since this was the FIRST time in my life I lost someone that close to me and at 31 years old, the first funeral I ever attended.
Here is a very personal message that I am sharing that I wrote and got done on a plaque for him and his wife back in 99.
Semone and Tommy
When I look back over the 21 years of my life, there are certain events, experiences and people who will forever be apart of me as a person.
Not only have I been fortunate enough to have two loving parents throughout my life, I have also been blessed by the love of two extraordinary people, “Semone & Tommy”.
You two have shaped my life and molded my character more than anyone will ever realize. From as far back as I can remember you have been there to pick me up when I fell, you have taken me into your home and cared for me like a child of your own, you have embraced me with the unconditional love that is as strong as any family.
Semone, from the loving kitchen that you have prepared your many meals from, to your immense generosity, you will forever have a place in my heart and soul.
Tommy, other’s may refer to you as Tom, but to me you will always be known as “Tommy”. From the many trips we have taken together, to your wisdom and patience, our journeys together have taught me lessons and values that I will carry with me all my life.
As we approach a new year as well as a new millennium. I look back at the past and more importantly look forward to the future with thanks that I have two people that will always have a special place in my heart.
Semone and Tommy…
With Sincere Love and Thanks,
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Sean Barker
1999
…Then just a few days ago we lost another close family friend to cancer who was my next door neighbor growing up for 30 years. He even emceed our wedding reception. Even more disheartening, he was only 59 years old and was diagnosed with cancer only two short months after retirement!
Worried about the big “C”? Well you should be! Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide.
So here are the 3 Best Ways To Prevent Cancer.
1. Don’t Smoke
Both of my friends died of lung cancer, one smoked. I think the verdict is out on this one…
2. Eat Healthy and Exercise
Try to eat natural plants and animals and lift heavy stuff…
3. Get a Yearly Medical
Know your family history and get screened…
…Coping with all this unfortunate news has really been stressful enough the last few months but then last week I came down with the stomach flu and this weekend our 22 month old daughter comes down with a tough ear and chest infection. Nothing serious, just means even less sleep than I was already getting on top of working shiftwork and running a fitness business.
But I am responsible for taking my health in my hands and as a busy dad and husband I am constantly trying to juggle all the balls life throws my way and I believe “lifting” can save my life and YOURS.
Besides the obvious physical fitness and health benefits of weight lifting like looking better and feeling better I believe it helps keep one of the biggest known killers for men from catching up with you…STRESS
It’s unrealistic to think you can eliminate all stress but you can MANAGE it by being consistent with your workouts and healthy eating especially when dealing with life’s curveballs.
The point of this blog post was not to get you down but to wake you up and throw a bucket of cold water into the face of your life.
Lately, despite dealing with some difficult times I have been having some of my best workouts ever! Just this Sunday in the gym I squatted a personal best of 315 lbs for 4 strong reps!
In times like this my Dad Fitness workouts are not only a temporary escape from the sometimes harsh realm of reality but a wake up call to tell me I am strong, healthy and ALIVE.
I like the honesty of the iron…because the weights don’t lie and 200lbs will ALWAYS be 200lbs.
So eating healthy and exercising consistently might not guarantee that I be alive to see 100 but it will guarantee that I FEEL alive…
I would really like to know how lifting helps you so let me know what you think by leaving a comment below…
You won’t believe what I am going to do tomorrow…
I am competing in my FIRST strongman contest!
No, I am not 8 foot 2, 450lbs, and my name isn’t Mariusz Pudzianowski
…try saying that name 3 times fast!
But I thought it would be fun to take on a new challenge and I believe that these “strongman” type movements are the future of fitness because they challenge your body the way it was meant to move in real life by pushing and pulling heavy awkward objects.
That’s why big professional athletes to lean ripped celebrities train this way because it carries over to real life movements AND it get’s you lean and muscular faster than any other type of workout!
Somebody have a flat?
Tire Flipping
Truck Pulling
Log Press
Farmer’s Walk
Cinder Block Lift
Finding out about this only a few days ago I haven’t had time to train for these lifts specifically.
So here is a quick workout video of me training to be the “World’s Strongest Dad”.
I will try and get some pics and video of the event so you guys can see me lying on the pavement in pain and making a fool out of myself…
Wish me luck!
I have been staying in Toronto the last few days attending business meetings.
I don’t travel all that much but I gotta say I really have been missing my wife and my baby daughter.
So today I have a special guest post for you from one of the top fitness professionals in the industry and who is also a fit dad over 40.
The Grudge 3 movie full The Top 10 Things You Must Do To Have A Great Workout – EVERY Workout
By Charles Staley, B.Sc, MSS
Director, Staley Training Systems
The basic idea of a good warm-up is to walk that fine line between preparing yourself adequately for the intense work to come, without fatiguing yourself in the process.
From my observations, however, few people seem to manage this, either performing far too little work, or doing so much that their warm-up becomes a workout in itself. I conceptualize the perfect warm-up as a 5- stage event, as follows:
Engage Brain Before Putting Body in Gear: The Mental Warm-up
The experienced athlete has been thinking about the impending workout all week. He’s rehearsed the workout dozens of times in his mind, and is already aware of the possible problems he might encounter (such as dealing with rush hour in the gym or a nagging hamstring pull that might kick up during the workout).
A novice trainee, on the other hand, can be identified by the fact that he doesn’t even know what he will do until he gets to the gym (and maybe not even then!). Since novices typically get novice-level results, I urge you to explore visualization and autogenic training, both of which are established methods of maximizing physical performance both in training and in competition.
Some people learn these techniques on their own, others need instruction. Either way, USE them!
- If you’ll be training early in the morning, and/or if it’s cold out, beef up the warm-up process commensurately.
- Training in dry climates requires a more thorough warm-up than training in humid surrounds.
- Older trainees generally profit from more extensive warm-ups.
- If you are otherwise healthy but have “creaky” joints, err on the side of being too extensive with your warm-up. After all, the goal of being able to train takes precedence over the fact that you might fatigue yourself slightly with an extensive warm-up.
- The closer you venture toward 1RM in your workout, the more extensive your warm-up should be. In other words, do a more thorough warm-up for 5×5 than you would for 3×12.
- You can accelerate your warm-up through passive means such as a hot bath or shower. Although active means are superior to passive, often, a combination of the two leads to great results.
- On exercises where your own bodyweight is the minimal load possible (chins, dips, etc.), first warm up with similar exercises that allow lesser loads (e.g., lat pulldowns and decline bench presses), and then proceed to the target exercise, using multiple sets of 1 rep. As soon as the next set of 1 does not feel any easier than the set before it, you’re ready to proceed to your work sets.
- If you are executing exercises for antagonistic muscle groups “back to back” (such as training seated rows with triceps extensions), do your warm-up sets for these exercises in the same pattern that you’ll use for the work sets.
- If you’ve done it right, your middle work set(s) will feel the easiest. For example, when performing 5×8, the 3rd set should feel the best, and sets 4 and 5 should feel progressively more difficult. If your last sets feel the best, it indicates that your warm-up was not thorough enough. If your first work sets are easiest, you may have warmed-up too much.
On to the Heavy Metal…
If you’ve followed my suggestions, you should now feel warm, strong, loose, and enthusiastic about training hard. It’s kind of amazing, isn’t it? Fifteen minutes ago you could barely tolerate the thought of a hard workout; now you’re looking forward to it!
About The Author
Charles Staley…world-class strength/performance coach…his colleagues call him an iconoclast, a visionary, a rule-breaker. His clients call him “The Secret Weapon” for his ability to see what other coaches miss. Charles calls himself a “geek” who struggled in Phys Ed throughout school. Whatever you call him, Charles’ methods are ahead of their time and quickly produce serious results.
Click here to visit Charles’ site and grab your 5 FREE videos that will show you how to literally FORCE your body to build muscle, lose fat and gain strength with “Escalating Density Training,” Charles’ revolutionary, time-saving approach to lifting that focuses on performance NOT pain.
Sean Barker, CPT
Learn the “The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly” in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com
Despite suffering from some pain in my right shoulder I still managed to get to the gym today.
With my wife working I dropped Matea off to my moms for an hour. She loves to have her visit and with my Dad Fitness workouts only being an hour, 3 times a week it isn’t a big hassle.
My right shoulder has been acting up the last few days. I haven’t had any shoulder pain in a long time. I don’t remember doing anything specific. I just think it soon maybe time for a week off from the gym.
I usually try to take a recovery week off from the gym every 8-10 weeks just to give my mind and body a little rest from a couple months of hard training.
You can still do some light bodyweight workouts and stay active during your week off from weight training, just stay away from intense workouts.
I also find this a great time to try some different activities during my would-be workout time or even catch up on some reading as well as plan my next phase of Dad Fitness Workouts.
Today I started a new set of workouts and plan on doing them for the next 3 weeks if my shoulder don’t get any worse.
Day 1 is Max Effort Upper Body
Day 2 is Max Effort Lower Body
Day 3 is High Rep Day Upper Body
Here was my workout for today. I was able to do these exercises without much discomfort.
Max Effort Upper Body
Barbell Floor Press, 1 max set of 3-5 reps
Decline DB Press, 4 sets of 6-10 reps
Chest Supported Barbell Row, 4 sets of 10-15 reps
Bent Over Lateral Raise, 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Cable Crunch, 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Here is a fitting article for today’s post.
Get Some R&R- Rest and Recovery
By Sean Barker,CPT
It happens to us all every now and then, even the most passionate of trainers. We reach a point in our workout when we lack motivation to train, eat right and we feel tired or come down with the flu.
These are usually the symptoms of over training or lack of recovery. But it is not always solely based on “over training”. It’s usually a combination of a lot of things. This is mostly based on the “Training Triangle”. Training, Nutrition, Recovery.
You’re probably training too much, too often. Not getting enough of the proper nutrients your bodies needs to recover from hard training. Then recovery is short changed by the lack of the first two. Also, doing the same routine for a long period of time will make you mentally stale as well as physically. Most experts agree that you should change your workout routines after every 4-8 weeks. Then you should also take an entire week off from hard training every 8-10 weeks.
When this happens it’s time for change. Usually this means taking some time off from the gym. You will need more than a couple days; usually a week or two is needed. This will give your mind and body time away from the gym to regroup. After a week or two away you will be anxious to get back into the gym and hit it hard for another couple months. But, before you do you should change up your workout program. Whether it’s exercises, or the days of the week, this will keep you mentally fresh to attack your training.
So when your body starts to tell you it wants a break from your weightlifting workout, listen to it!
It’s the only body you will ever get…
Someone likes her R&RSean Barker, CPT
Learn the “The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly” in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com
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