Making a Summer Fitness Routine Stick

5 Surreal Steps to Make a Fitness Routine 

Physical activity can reduce your risk of chronic disease, improve your balance and coordination, help you lose weight - even improve your sleep habits and self-esteem.

Some fitness routines are started due to medical reasons; others start to obtain the lost balance

For whatever reason you have to start a fitness routine, there are some easy steps to get you started:

Assess Your Fitness Level: 
Benchmarks measure progress. Set Goals 
Record your beginning heart rate in a resting state  
Time yourself in walking one mile
Record the number of pushups you can do
And a few stats: your waist circumference and body mass

Develop a Fitness Plan: 
Consider your goals
Decide on the frequency and duration you can maintain
Choose balanced and varying activities
Guess on the recovery time you may need.  You may find you need more at first if you are starting a brand new routine, but then you may decide you can do more; push and motivate yourself to be your best!
Most importantly, don't forget to right your plan down

Pick the Right Materials and Equipment: 
Having the right shoes and investing in equipment that you are enjoy can maximize your experience.

Practice the Fitness Plan and Stay on Point:
Start slow and build gradually. Break things up in 15 minute intervals throughout the day if its easier. And don't overdo it. If you are feeling shortness of breath, nausea, dizziness or pain, you are probably pushing yourself too hard.

Monitor your Progress and Adjust: 
Reassess your fitness level six weeks after you start and then every three to six months. You may notice that you need to increase the amount of time you exercise in order to continue improving.

Most importantly, never give up!  We are available to help you stay accountable, focused, and motivated.  There is always something that we can discuss; a nutritional or exercise improvement we can reshape, mold, and develop to get the plan working again for you.

Zeke Samples, IFA, CSN, CPR, IDEA

NPC Physique Competitior

Surreal Body Solutions, LLC

803.322.7649

www.SurrealBodySolutions.com 

& contributing health and exercise author

Personal Training | Nutrition | Supplements | Motivation

6 Healthy Tips for Eating at the Summer Cookouts

Cookouts, family gatherings, and Summer holidays are for celebrating; they are meant to be enjoyed, and you don’t have to sacrifice your hard work in the gym, your health, or your hard earned beach body every time you attend one!

These 6 BBQ "Surreal Survival Tips" are small tricks saving you hundreds of calories and keep your health and fitness goals on the focused track. 

Why sacrifice a good time when you can just upgrade your healthy lifestyle?

6 Healthy Eating Tips For Your Next Summer Cookout

1. Use small plates

Research clearly shows that people who choose smaller plates and utensils eat less without even noticing it. The difference can be as substantial as 50% fewer calories consumed, yet everyone reports the same level of fullness and satisfaction. Try borrowing a plate from the kids table or the dessert tray.

2. Eat slowly and mindfully

People who eat more slowly eat fewer calories over the course of a meal. BBQs (get-togethers) are a perfect opportunity to pace yourself as you mix and mingle with friends and family. The more you’re chatting, the less you’re eating. But don't use the free-time/chat-time as a way to slam down tons of alcohol.

3. Eat healthiest foods first

If you are eating slowly and off small plates, you may as well fill up on the healthiest stuff first. Salads are a great place to start because watery vegetables slow digestion and have very few calories. Try to choose something with oil and protein as well, because these will help you feel full sooner.

4. Skip the chips, crackers and bread

Refined carbohydrates are the worst things you can eat because they offer little satisfaction, loads of calories and dangerous insulin spikes. BBQs are filled with wonderful food, so do yourself a favor and save your calories for the really good stuff.

You don’t have to eat your burger without a bun, but pass on the pointless chips and other snacks that lure you when you’re not thinking. If you’re feeling bored, grab a Frisbee instead.

5. Keep dessert small

The difference between a large slice of cake and a smaller slice of cake can literally be hundreds of calories. And to reiterate, sugar and refined carbohydrates are the most dangerous foods. You don’t have to pass on dessert completely, but keep your portion sizes in check for this course.

6. Think before you drink

There is a place for alcohol in a healthy lifestyle, but making smart choices can be the difference between losing or gaining weight (not to mention your self-control). One sugary margarita can have 600-800 calories. That means 3 margaritas is more food than you should be consuming in an entire day. Is that really worth it? Stick with wine or beer, drink plenty of water and remember to pace yourself.

Enjoy yourself but just be the best you can be.  Be mindful of how you can improve your lifestyle; when you are faced with nutritional cross roads, you will have the arsenal you need to make headway on the path to your success!

Zeke Samples, IFA, CSN, CPR, IDEA

NPC Physique Competitior

Surreal Body Solutions, LLC

803.322.7649

www.SurrealBodySolutions.com 

& contributing health and exercise author

Personal Training | Nutrition | Supplements | Motivation

Exercises for the Home in today's blog: Spring is here; Summer is coming!

Spring is officially here and Summer is right around the corner! In this season of renewal, it's time to step up and take control of what matters most: Your Health!

Are you tired of feeling tired? Why spend another day wishing you had more energy to do the things that matter most?

I want to talk about 3 exercise pieces of equipment that you could add to the home that are affordable. Then touch on 5 exercises that you can perform with the resistance bands.  
Exercises in the home. You need just a few basic, very affordable items and accountability to perform the exercises below, each day. Each workout will get you in ether shape and put you in tune with your muscles and heart. Listed below are 3 equipment items I use with my clients; the exercises below that list, focus on movements using the third item, resistance bands.

Kettlebells: The kettle bell is a popular piece of workout gear; it's use stems back into ancient history. It is similar to a dumbbell because it comes in several different weights and is used for strength training. It looks like a bowling ball with a handle on the top of it; the handle allows for a larger variety of exercises while maintaining a stable grip. Mastery of the kettle bell calls for strength from the individual, but a safe move for a beginner is a two-handed swing, which works the entire body.

Medicine Ball: A medicine ball is another vital piece of outdoor gym gear to own. It looks like a kickball but is usually filled with sand to use as a weight. Not the same as a 'slam-ball' used in cross fit.  Medicine balls have a basketball-like exterior and come in several different weights, and you can use it for many different exercises. My favorite exercise to use with the medicine ball are medicine ball squats. The extra weight, when holding the ball, truly helps you to get more out of your normal everyday squat!  Raising the ball overhead at the end of each squat adds a shoulder press to the movement.  So versatile.

Resistance Bands: These are lightweight banded tubes, which are attached on both sides with handled grips. These are perfect additions to the home gym in so many ways; one major reason is because you can carry them anywhere. You can stash them inside your luggage when you travel, or ladies, your purse! Take them to a class you have at the gym; use them on breaks at work.. They are relatively inexpensive and on average cost around $15.

Resistance Band Exercises:

Upper Back Exercise:
Attach the bands to a stable location, preferably a few inches off the ground (the lowest spindle on a staircase). Lying on your Back, start the body posture low enough/far enough away to feel tension when arms are fully extended overhead before performing the first repetition.
Pull handles of cable attachment to your shoulders while squeezing your upper back when handles are by the tips of your shoulders. Hold this position for 2 seconds, while focusing on the contraction of the Back.

- Perform 3 Sets of 15-25 repetitions (rep range depends on the tightness of band/intensity of the exercise movement)


Standing Chest Press:

Attach the bands to a stable location, best at chest height. Standing with your Back facing what you attached the bands to, place each handle in a hand (grab the handles so that they are underneath the hands, not over the top).
With arms 90°, one foot forward, and one foot behind, extend the arms out and right before they are fully extended, bring the hands together to meet in the middle. Return to the starting point where arms were at 90° to begin the second repetition. If you need to increase your intensity, step out further to increase the tension of the band/bands that you are holding.

- Perform 3 Sets of 15-25 repetitions (rep range depends on the tightness of band/intensity of the exercise movement)


Standing Biceps Curl:
Place the band under one foot, holding a handle in each hand. Keeping elbows still by the rib cage, raise your hands from your side/hips to chest level, keeping the elbows stable during the raise. To increase tension, add another band, or the second foot.

- Perform 3 Sets of 15-25 repetitions (rep range depends on the tightness of band/intensity of the exercise movement)


Standing Side Lateral Raise (Shoulders):

Place the band under one or two feet, holding a handle in each hand. Elevate your hands to your side, stopping at the horizontal/shoulder height position, extending arms mostly straight, but keeping elbows slightly bent and slightly above wrists when you reach horizontal. Don't let the hands be above the elbows. (This form will give you the best shoulder isolation).

- Perform 3 Sets of 15-25 repetitions (rep range depends on the tightness of band/intensity of the exercise movement)


Lying Upper Abdominal Crunches (Core):

On the ground, keep the handles by the temples of your head. To gain the correct resistance from the beginning of the first crunch, you will need to slide away from the point of where the bands were hooked. Keep hands attached to head, elbows in, as you bend your upper body forward, flat feet on ground, knees bent. Bend upper torso just from the rib cage, (the lower back should not elevate), only the shoulder blades leave the ground. Exhale at the top of the contraction; hold for a brief 2 seconds. Repeat. 

- Perform 5 Sets of 20-25 repetitions

Zeke Samples, IFA, CSN, CPR, IDEA

NPC Physique Competitior

Surreal Body Solutions, LLC

803.322.7649

www.SurrealBodySolutions.com 

& contributing health and exercise author

Personal Training | Nutrition | Supplements | Motivation

Goodnight Wishes: 7 Healthy Sleep Habits

- Set a conducive sleep environment by making the bedroom cool, dark, comfortable and quiet. 
- No TV in the bedroom ! The "glow" from electronics passes to the part of the brain that controls several sleep activities; delaying the production of the sleep-inducing hormone, melatonin. (WebMD Magazine) 

- Stay away from sleep-stealing stimulants such as caffeine or nicotine.

- Exercise regularly

- Cool your body temperature. People tend to fall asleep as their body temperature falls.  This is one reason why it is harder to sleep when you are hot or sweating. 

- Don't force yourself to sleep - if you cannot sleep within 15-20 minutes, consider engaging in sedentary activity until you fall asleep. 

- Go to bed and get up at the same time every day, even on the weekends.*

* This is traditionally the hardest to do because it is common to want to sleep in on days we don't work. However, if we are doing something active in the morning, use this as a time to do the activity and take a short nap in the afternoon.  Getting up at the same time will also help you with your fitness goals.  You won't end up skipping or missing a meal and your metabolism will show you the difference on the scale. 

Sleep is an important factor in performing your best at work, in workouts, for your immune system to be strong and healthy, and to support your exercise goals.  Learn to budget your time so that your meal preparation is completed for a few days time; this will free up more time for you to get done the things you need to do, not miss proper nutrition, settling on restaurants, and also give you the motivation and energy to feel overall better!  

If you have a personal trainer, hire him to design a program that helps you stay accountable to meal preparation and time management.  If your trainer 'looks the part', chances are they LIVE the part, too.

Zeke Samples, IFA, CSN, CPR, IDEA

Surreal Body Solutions, LLC

803.322.7649

www.SurrealBodySolutions.com 

& contributing health and exercise author

Personal Training | Nutrition | Supplements | Motivation

3 Common Exercises to AVOID in the Gym

All of the following exercises can yield both exercise and tone for the body, depending on gender, diet, and exercise flow/routine.

SQUATS:

Starting with the so-called "King of All Exercises" we begin with squats.  Squats are a great exercise to tone the legs, or grow muscle.  Promoting full-body benefits, the legs incorporate heavy lung capacity and energy, thus burning more calories that, let's say a dumbbell curl or a chest press.  This fact leads many not to want to perform them.  "The lactic acid burn is too much pain", or "the upper body is more important", or my favorite "I will train legs on my own, but I want you to train my upper body."  These statements mentally block the individual from the best results in the gym because of the neglect or the half-hearted efforts of the workout.   It's a good fundamental exercise for some, if kept in check. The problem is that too few people keep them in check, and many people just aren't built for them.  Consider the position: A weighted bar on the lumbar region of the spine, in addition to the stress on the knees (if the knees bend out over the placement of the toes).

Along with the bench press and the deadlift, the squat is one lift in which guys really pile on the plates for low reps. The bottom line is if you're always going heavy, eventually there will be a straw that breaks the camel's or, in this case, the bodybuilder's back. You can cover all needs by performing alternative exercises such as the lunge, 45º leg press, hack squats, or vertical leg press.

HEAVY BARBELL CURLS:

Straight bars put too much pressure on inner elbows. If you have elbow pain, chances are it's from a straight bar. Using a straight bar to perform curls forces you into an un-natural position. Consider the position: If you stand talking to someone, your knuckles or palms aren't naturally facing forward, but instead at your sides with your palms facing each other, and the natural position for a curl is for the thumbs to come up higher than the pinkies, which a cambered bar resembles greatly.  Dumbbell preacher curls are an excellent exercise. Dumbbell preachers both restrict your movement (by bracing your arms against a bench) and provide for more freedom, as you can rotate your wrists.

BEHIND-THE-NECK SHOULDER PRESS (Free Weight Bar):

Overall, pressing behind the neck is an un-natural position.  Consider the position: With free weights, the bar can lose balance and hyper extend your shoulders too far backward.  Too heavy of a weight, and you use the neck to press the weights back up, which isn't safe. Instead of these, I recommend military (front) presses or dumbbell presses, both of which work deltoids much more safely.  Additionally, never lower the weight below chin level, instead keep your arms bent at 90º. You'll notice this is about as far as you can go without your shoulders dropping. All that's happening between your chin and your chest is an upper-pec movement and a whole lot of potential damage. I usually perform military presses on a Smith machine, which lets me roll my palms back and find a more natural position. Dumbbells allow for greater freedom of motion.  

A great alteration: "Arnold Presses": -Starting with my palms facing each other and twisting my wrists on the way up so my palms face forward. 

Zeke Samples, IFA, CSN, CPR, IDEA

Surreal Body Solutions, LLC

803.322.7649

www.SurrealBodySolutions.com 

& contributing health and exercise author

Personal Training | Nutrition | Supplements | Motivation

Kettlebell vs. Dumbbell: Which do you prefer?

Do you have an opinion?  

Out of the various clients; male an female that I posed the question, the answer relayed was interesting.  Some noted the various fatigue differences between the Kettlebell and Dumbbell, while others formed their opinions based on the variances in difficulty. 

Facts:

-> The kettlebell does in fact work your core muscles more and the exercises are designed to get your heart rate and breathing elevated. 

-> Barbells are more suited to targeting one specific muscle group.  The kettlebell, by design, changes its center of gravity as you move, causing you to adjust and adapt more than you would using the barbell. 

-> Stronger grip because of the design of the kettlebell. The handle on the kettlebell is on the top rather than in the center of the weight. This means that your hands gain strength as you work with them.

-> The kettlebell workout style is often at a faster pace; styled based on aerobic exercises. This style burns more fat than a regular barbell workout.  You can incorporate quick barbell movements, but you will not get quite the workout (heart rate and breathing elevation) that you would using the kettlebell.

-> The dumbbell is more stationary and much easier to control.

-> The dumbbell is very good for targeting specific muscle groups

-> The dumbbell is not designed to be aerobic. I am not stating they cannot be used during aerobic exercise, I am stating that the nature of the barbell is not aerobic. 

In conclusion, the decision on whether to use a dumbbell or a kettlebell in the next workout could be a summation of your goals.  What are you trying to achieve?  Balance and control? Dumbbells.  Core requirement 100% of the time and grip/wrist strength? Kettlebells.

My clients can be of any age and level.  I have to take an account of their goals, their concerns and limitations such as balance. Concerns with the wrist? Osteoporosis?  The accomplishments will still come, injuries can be worked around; that is where a great trainer and client accountability coexist.  The workout can always be adapted to the clients ability while maintaining safety as the #1 priority. 

Whether you choose a dumbbell or kettlebell, Enjoy Your Next Workout !!

Zeke Samples, IFA, CSN, CPR, IDEA

Surreal Body Solutions, LLC

803.322.7649

www.SurrealBodySolutions.com 

& contributing health and exercise author

Personal Training | Nutrition | Supplements | Motivation

GOALS: Are a Marathon, Not a Sprint

Forget about the scale, forget about comparing yourself to the person next to you, forget about all things that you could be doing instead of being at the gym. This is your time to work on you inside and out and regain the confidence that you used to have, to do things you never thought possible. 

If you work consistently towards making small positive steps on your nutrition and your fitness; you will always be making forward momentum towards reaching your goals. Action doesn't necessarily mean the fulfillment of dreams; it is somewhere that you LEARN.

Ask Yourself The Following Questions

Assess what Emotion you Project from your Self-Assesment

- Is your Mind in the right place to Succeed?

- Do you believe you can overcome the variables in your mind that are current 'road blocks'?

- Once these variables are overcome, will you be happy with that condition or status?

- Do you believe you can be taught to strengthen your mind enough to believe you can achieve?

- Replace the word negative with the word toxic. Now that your 'negative' thoughts are perceived as  toxic thoughts, do you have a more burning desire to eliminate the poison?

Take 2 Minutes to Give Me 7 Positve Words that You are Going to Use to Succeed:

__________          __________          __________          __________          __________

__________          __________

Now, I will give you 15 Words and Words of Wisdom: 

- Will-Power
- Attitude
- Controlling the Choices You Make
- Positive 
- Healthy Arrogance (Deciding that you are better than the choices of the past; with a healthy attitude, your head is held high because you feel and know that you are moving forward)
- Self-Belief (Rely on the ability you have had in your past; the ability that created positive moments within your life that you keep within your mind)
- Adaptation (When you don't know how to see the future, you need to set Goals so that, in time, the future will be written in alignment with your deep desires and awareness)
- Accountability (For yourself or under the guidance of another), Accountability creates a better 'YOU'. Take Responsibility
- Make Moves to Position Yourself Strategically (I think of a game of Chess; it is a visual that helps me)
- Determined
- Forget How Much it Hurts and Try Again
- Victorious
- Worrying is a Waste of Time; It Doesn't Change Anything.  It Messes with Your Mind and Steals Your Happiness
- Many of your Obstacles...are Obstacle Illusions...
- Fortunate

Now, CAN YOU FEEL IT??

In Health, 

Zeke Samples - IFA, - IDEA

Surrealbody@gmail.com