Archive for the ‘Commitment’ Category

Much of what we do is automatic – it has to be because we can only remain vigilant for so long.

Research at the University of Pennsylvania used Magnetic Resonance Imaging to look at brain activity during sustained attention and found that, over time, our ability to maintain focus, recognize important events and make decisions declines.  Simply put: we’re limited as to how long we can concentrate.

Likewise, self-control is like a muscle – it can be exhausted, it requires rest to return to full strength, and can even grow stronger with exercise.  Our ability to concentrate is an important part of self-control, and it is also limited.  The take-home message is to be conscious of our limited ability to maintain vigilance; plan ahead, create a structured program we can follow fairly easily, and allow ourselves time away from temptation by limiting the choices we have available.

No need to try white-knuckling it all the time – your brain is working against you.  In time, our new plan will become as automatic as the old one.

I recently read a brilliant post from one of our Team True Alpha members, Matt Weik, about what it really means to be “True Alpha”. His post influenced me to write a bit more about what it takes to bring out the best within a person.  

It made me realize just how much of a revelation it is when a person first recognizes how they’ve long been asleep at the wheel of life. It’s easy for anyone to fall into a rut and take on a rather lackluster existence, by simply going through the motions…Not just in the gym, but in all aspects of our lives.

You can refer to this as laziness or complacency or perhaps even ignornace. Whatever it is, all I know, is that when a person finally begins to understand how much more powerful we are when we “wake up” and begin to call upon our greater potential, it’s then when we truly begin to live…it’s then when we begin to see many more positive outcomes from our efforts.

In terms of resistance training, think about how Read the rest of this entry »

So you think you’re ALPHA?  Really?  You think you have what it takes?  Can you commit to the lifestyle?  After all, this is no 9-5 gig.  No, sir.  This is your LIFE.  No one is going to put a healthy lifestyle on a silver platter for you so you can sit there and do nothing to achieve the health and physique you have always wanted–no, you’re going to take it.  You’re going to learn it, you’re going to understand it, you’re going to live it!  THIS is what is going to set YOU apart from everyone else.  Everyone wants that “ideal” body, but no one wants to put in the work to get it.  But you do! 

Being  a personal trainer, I’ve had my share of clients who simply paid me to be their “buddy” so to speak.  They didn’t care why they are there.  They didn’t care what I had them do.  They didn’t care to UNDERSTAND why I had them doing things.  It boggles my mind that someone can pay and go through life not knowing why they are doing something.  But again, YOU are different.  You have come to this website…  You have read the book.  YOU are looking for the knowledge of how to make a difference and take charge of your life.  Be a TRUE ALPHA!  Well you came to the right place.

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Over the last two years, many of us have been going through rather tough times. The media tells us that things are getting better and I believe whole heartedly that things will, but this is yet to be seen and is ultimately out of our control. This is all the more reason why is is vital that we each gain as much contol over our lives as we possibly can. The last few words in that last sentence are the key words;… Read the rest of this entry »

Just over a year ago, I began training a 38 year old male client who weighed in at 310 pounds. When I met him in person, I could see that he was hungry to make positive changes in his life. He had gotten to a point in his life, where he was clearly not happy about the way he looked and felt.

This was obviously having a major impact on both his personal life and his career. Although I saw his desire to change, I still wasn’t sure that he would have the ability to truly buy in to the Alpha Male Challenge program. I pull no punches and I expect my clients to give me their all. I wasn’t sure that he could give that to me.

Well, we began the program and as I expected, it was slow going for the first week. He had been sedentary for a while and I certainly didn’t want to rush into things, as I didn’t want to do any physical harm to my client by rushing the process.
 
We started off and again, as I expected, he was quite weak in all areas; cardiovascularly, power, strength, muscular endurance & for me the worse of all, confidence. It also didn’t help that he had gotten so far away from the high school athlete that he once was, that he could not even imagine himself ever being in good shape again.

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Are the sexes equal across the board?

Scientific American: Men Suppress Food Cravings Better Than Women

What adversity have you over come on your own journey to weight balance, better fitness or in even getting support from those around you for clean healthy fun living?

We all know that habits come from doing the same routine repeatedly – but new research suggests that it takes 66 days for us humans to turn something into a habit (Lally 2009). That includes everything from drinking more water, quitting smokes and adding exercise into your daily routine.

So just think about this: if we hop on the New Year’s bandwagon – and hold up our end until March 7th – the resolution is likely to stick. The tricky part is planning those first 66 days – and we all know it takes planning to stick with our exercise, nutrition and overall lifestyle resolutions.

Here’s your challenge from the True Alpha Team: pick something small to work on — wake-up and make a list of what you’re thankful for; add an egg/protein to your breakfast; add 15 min of exercise throughout the day; try a new lifting routine; call your family more than you do now…. If we start today (April 22) and go through Sunday June 20th – we’ll be a stronger True Alpha.

“For me life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer.”

Arnold Schwarzenegger