Early morning workout!

So many mornings I wake up with every intention of going to the gym only to pull the blanket over my head and fall back asleep,  it is mornings like today when I simply woke up and decide I'm going.  These mornings always make me feel so much better and lead to productive workouts. Today I really didn't have a plan, just motivation.  Arriving at the gym at 4:50am only to find one lone soldier battling away in the corner, the empty weight racks loomed over me, the cardio machines screamed and  my relaxed and rested muscles taunted me like a school yard bully.  "where have you been?", "whats your excuse this time?" they cried.  Today there are no excuses, only time to punish those rested muscles.  Being that its been a while since I trained my chest it became the chosen victim. So a quick warm up on the elliptical got my heart pumping and my shoulders warm from the repetitions.  A big problem I have always had in the gym is weight envy...watching that other individual rep out with a weight I'm not ready for.  After a couple weeks of rest, warm ups and stretching the opportunity arises to give heavier weights a shot.  This morning was no exception, my current goal is 100lbs each arm for dumbbell presses, for the last two months I have been pushing toward that goal, paying close attention to my back and shoulder workouts in conjunction with my chest training.  My typical training partner for chest is my neighbor Chad and he is gifted in the upper body training area.  Unfortunately our schedules don't always work together and we taunt each other constantly about going to the gym. Chad is great at pushing me to be better and his knowledge and strength is a great inspiration to me on our typical Saturday morning routines. We had made gains but the last weeks found me run down and sore.  Today was my chance to jump up a few pounds and push out some reps for that mental picture.  My weapons were chosen and I proceeded to finish a great set with 15lbs more than I would normally do.  It was a fantastic feeling knowing that I am only a fraction away from my initial goal.  The rest of my workout went very similar, deciding to just focus on chest today and not spend too much time wearing my body down again.  My two muscle group workouts have been stretching into the hour and half area and its time to get that closer to fourty five minutes to an hour. It was unusual not using my typical pre workout of Muscle prime or my BCAA from allmax aminocore as I'm attempting to clean out my body over the next few weeks with lots of water, natural cleanse and high quality and nutritious foods, but if I feel this good without my typical supplementing its going to be awesome when we reunite.  Have a great day everyone!!! get that workout in and lets work together toward our Heavy Agenda.

4:45am

4:45 am and my wife just left for work, I've got 3 hours until I leave for work.  The last few weeks have been a little challenging for gym time.   Can't let that stop me or bring me down.    It isn't about how many days you miss, its about how many to go.  Our food and water intake is the most important ingredient in the recipe for health. Even when I don't work out, keeping a solid balanced diet makes me feel better.  For purposes of a permanent change the word diet has been forced from my daily vocabulary and replaced with "life style change".  Seems so simple, but so effective in making it a permanent part of your life.  Let's face it, if the goal is to get healthy and feel better why would we want to stop doing what works? We may lighten the physical load or modify our diet, if everything is fresh fun and works with your schedule don't ever stop.  When life gets in the way and you miss a few days just jump back on and go again.  Hope this stormy week leaves everyone happy, healthy and dry.  Tell hurricane sandy to go away and let's get crackin on a great healthy lifestyle.  We will face this Heavy Agenda together, everyones goals may vary but its all for similar reasons.  

The flush.....

Started my day with a sea salt flush..  Two teaspoons to one liter of filtered water...  Laid on my right side for half an hour around 6:30am and let it work..    It works........  It only took about fourty five minutes for the effects.  Let me tell you, don't do this without minimum an hour and half time before you have to leave.  From research I have done and forums I have read they highly suggest not doing this for more than a week.  I do not know if I could do it for more than a few days..  Spent the day feeling awesome no ill effects.  normal breakfast and dinner today since my wife was home.  Just a little disclaimer, everyones response to a salt water flush is different.  A consultation with a physician and a complete physical is highly recommended.  Some people cannot process the salt water properly. The point of the salt is to duplicate your bodies sodium balance, your intestines don't absorb the sodium and water instead passing it through.  If the standard balance doesn't work for some their body can absorb it and have a dramatic shift in electrolyte levels, blood pressure and kidney function.  Be very careful with this, and I don't recommend doing it without professional guidance.  It seems easy and natural until you try. If your bodies first response is rejecting the water or gagging, it may very well be a natural response telling you no. 

The agenda continues..

After the trials and tribulations of p90x and a couple months in the gym, I find myself at the doorway of my weightloss goal, but the hallway is much longer than I expected.  I haven't been as precise in my food preparations, work has been extremely stressful leading to a few beers being consumed and after being so stress free for six months the tension is returning.  Wednesday of this week I made the decision to stop all supplements and do a flush/ cleanse to just start a detox of everything bad in my system.  If only there was something for my brain and nerves... After working so hard it is a comfort that my weight continues to drop due to a much more balanced diet and still exercising.   It was fairly easy over the last half a year to find the time, the one thing I didn't factor in enough of is rest. With eleven hour days five days a week and attempting to work on a few car projects at my own shop I think my body finally gave me the middle finger. So for the last few weeks I have gone to the gym less, ate less and slept more, all in an attempt to replenish energy and try to reduce this knotlike tension. 

My heavy agenda ...

In April of 2012 while sitting in a dentist chair I was doing a Google search of the Dental office to see if I could leave a review.   During that search I found out my dentist was involved in the NPC Fitness Model competitions.  After talking with her for several minutes regarding her workouts and the competing I went home to do some research.  I became enthralled with the whole community of Physique, Fitness and Bikini Models.  They are all inspirational individuals like Christopher Villa that work hard both at their careers and preparing for competition.  Reflecting on my own situation, the ring of embarrassing fat around my middle, high blood pressure, skyrocketing weight and lack of energy....  Deeply disturbed by my so often used excuse "lack of time" immediately I went to work to find out what could be done to correct this situation.  You see, that excuse was no longer relevant, my dentist runs her own office, is involved with several charitable programs and travels around the U.S. competing, all while maintaining a fantastic level of fitness.   My first stop on this train ride was with a friend Jason Patterson.  Jason is a team BeachBody coach and a successful graduate of P90x, Insanity and other programs. He changed his life and health dramatically and is an unbelievable motivator.  I purchased the P90x program and consulted with him and others, building my goals, home gym and nutritional guidelines around the p90x program.  The first month I spent eating cleaner, quit smoking, quit drinking beer and drinking more water. Once my confidence and dedication was in place it was time to start the program.  In May of 2012 the real work began and the first p90x DVD went in.  It was sweat, pain and complete respect for what others had accomplished before me.  After the first month I had dropped from 245 to 230.  My energy level was way beyond what I expected, my cigarette and beer cravings were zero. I was sleeping through the night with no crazy dreams.  My days were spent working hard and eating healthy, my nights sweating for an hour or more, eating a healthy dinner and bedtime.  After the second month I was down another 10 lbs. Phase three began and I was getting to be a little run down and sore.  The recovery days and weeks were helping but my body was still not used to the major punishment that BeachBody fully warns you about.  After the second week I was at my limit, but proud of my accomplishment I weighed 215 lbs, eating clean everyday and ready for a completely new lifestyle.  My blood pressure had settled at a healthy level, my cholesterol was in a healthy area for the first time in 4 years.  My new favorite part of any given day is when someone who hasn't seen me for months says "you are disappearing" it makes my day..  There is still a lot of work left, my initial goals have been met, but now the new ones have been set.  For the last month building muscle and adding more clean calories has been a priority, this program will continue until November when my calories will be lowered and cardio will be a primary focus.  The Heavy Agenda I had in the beginning has been conquered and transformed into an Agenda to build and shape this body into something always desired.  Hopefully my Heavy Agenda can inspire you to be healthy and give it a try.  There is no acceptable excuse for being heavy, something can be changed, you just need to find the right motivation. The successful stories from all over the world are constantly shared on the Internet, but you need to look within yourself and at those you love for true inspiration.  Being around for many more years and finding the happiness associated with health and wellness will certainly motivate you in the right direction!!!