Hello Everyone!

Welcome to week 7 of Steve’s Fat-Loss Challenge. Next week is when we do the final weigh-ins, so get ready for the fat-loss to top 50lbs total!

This week, I want to share a success story that’s close to my heart, let you hear from someone else who is also seeing great results, and answer some reader questions, including a cool video about the real-life application of the “all-over-strength” that kettlebell training provides.

First of all, there’s once client who’s success I value just a little bit higher… my Mom!

Since she joined the challenge in the first week of February, she has lost 6lbs of body-fat and is well on her way to her 10lb goal. She has been losing approximately one pound per week since we started and has also gained 1.5lbs of muscle. All of this happened with just simple lifestyle changes (taking the stairs and walking more) and healthy-eating (cut out most starchy carbs and sugars). Her regular kettlebell workouts started only last week, so I am expecting the rest to come off in about half the time. By the end of the 8-weeks she will definitely have surpassed her original goal!

I am very proud of her and will keep you all updated on her continued success : )

Next we have my 9am class client, Jules…

Here’s what she had to say in response to my last Fat-Loss Challenge email.

“Steve is correct – all of his advice and his irreverent yet motivating teaching style have already resulted in 6.5 pounds of weight loss and 1% decrease in body fat! And that’s just me! My husband has lost a few pounds himself, and 2% of body fat.

Being a social person, I couldn’t do it on my own. My husband and I have taken on the challenge together and combined with Steve’s classes three times a week, we are well on our way to meeting our fitness goals. At first I didn’t think we could work it around our schedule, but once you make it a priority, it’s amazing how you can fit it in.

Steve, thanks for “keeping it real” and helping us get fitter than we’ve been in decades!”

Find a partner to keep you motivated and consistent…

Jules and her husband, Rick have been both cleaning up their eating habits AND consistently attending my class 3 times per week, with the results speaking for themselves. If you are having a hard time keeping up a healthy eating plan and consistent exercise schedule, do what they did and find a workout partner to keep you honest!

Reader Q & A

Last week I promised to answer some questions I have received since starting the Fat-Loss Challenge in February. I’m going to answer some training-related questions as well, since the two go hand-in-hand.

Steve, what kind of results does full-body functional strength training produce, compared to the machine circuit I am currently doing at the gym?

Simply put, next time you go through the mostly-seated machine circuit, try to think of a real-life application that exactly mimics the movement you are doing while sitting in the machine. Having a hard time? Of course you are! We hardly ever lift and move things from a seated postion, nor do we lift and move things with only one muscle and/or joint. For the most part, machines were designed to make it cheaper for gyms to operate as it takes a lot of staff on hand to ensure all members are performing free-weight movements safely. Also, the repetitive strain caused by the same plane of movement over and over again (think factory-worker) takes a long time to manifest itself in an injury, whereas dropping a dumbell on your foot in an improperly supervised gym setting provides ammo for an instant lawsuit : )

Below, I have posted links to two videos to illustrate a realistic application of the Turkish Getup. This is a functional full-body move where you take a weight from a lying position to standing. The first video shows the actual exercise and the second, starring yours truly, shows a possible real-life application. An application particularly suited to those of us living in an earthquake zone!

In relation to fat-loss, full-body training burns way more calories!!! When you get off the machine and have to use your body to support the movement, it is obviously much more difficult and recruits many more muscles. More difficult + more effort + more attention paid to the lift = more energy expended. It is that simple!

Eugene Sandow built this lean and powerful physique with a clean diet & regular exercise, before they had even invented fat-burning pills and weight-training supplements!

Steve, I have a friend who starts on a course of fat-burning pills around April and by the beginning of June she is super-lean. She does not work out a lot the rest of the year but boy does she look good for the summer!

Having worked at a big gym for 5-years, I have a lot of experience with people on these fat-burners. Do they work? Of course they do! Anything that so drastically ramps up your metabolism, when combined with exercise, will speed up the results.

Eugene Sandow built this lean and powerful physique with a clean diet & regular exercise, before they had even invented fat-burning pills and weight-training supplements!

Speed being the operative word as you will feel like you just took some…

If the below side-effects do not trouble you and you wish to take an obviously health-defying shortcut, the choice is yours. For a life-long lasting trim and fit body, the moderate and healthy fat-loss option of consistent and healthy eating / exercise will work much better, and avoid these nasty possibilities:

• anxiety or nervousness
• irritability
• insomnia / restlessness
• hyperactivity
• high blood pressure
• tightness in the chest
• heart palpitations
• heart attack
• stroke
• congestive heart failure
• digestive tract problems
• vomiting, diarrhea,
• constipation
• stomach pain
• fever
• dry mouth
• headaches
• dizziness
• blurred vision
• profuse sweating
• hair loss
• menstrual cycle and sex drive disturbances
• urinary tract problems

That’s all for this week.

I wish all of you continued success in your quest for a summer-ready body that lasts all year!

For those of you in Vancouver who want some further help and motivation, click here for a listing of all my training options : )

Hello Everyone!

Here we are at the 3/4 point of the 8-Week Challenge and we have an awesome total of 43lbs lost so far! Way to go, people!

Sorry there was no email last week! I tweaked my back and have been limiting my sitting-at-the-computer time to short-duration tasks only.

Now the pull in my lower-back has almost totally healed and it is time to get back at helping you to lose fat!

A crucial point…

We have now reached a crucial point in the 8-Week Challenge. This is the time when we may start to rest on our laurels and decide we can backslide a bit on the eating and exercise plans. In fact, this is the time when we should double our efforts and ensure we DO NOT give in to temptation, saying this is “good enough” and “I’ll relax now and lose the rest later”. Remember, we committed to a full 8-weeks at the start of this journey to increased-energy and a better-looking body!

2-months is the key…

The three-month period is a very important one as studies have shown it takes 8-12 weeks to form a new habit. Of course, 8-weeks will not magically change the course of your entire life as that takes continued dedication. The kind of dedication you get from getting clear about your reasons for change, like when you made your two lists in Week 1! Now might be a good time to review those lists and get re-invigorated!!!

A roadblock may come up…

For those of you who may be getting back into regular exercise for the first time in a number of years, there may be another problem… You may get injured! Now, if you exercise with a focus first and foremost on proper form, this is much less likely to happen. Of course, proper form must be learned first and so I would recommend you see a Personal Trainer to make sure you are doing everything right. Those 3 or 4 sessions will be worth their weight in gold as you safely progress to better and better results using safe and effective technique. Online videos teaching proper form are helpful but there is no comparison to having a professional correct your form!

Hurting my back last week gave me the opportunity to practice what I preach and not just stop working out but look for other things I could do to stay active and continue to work towards my goals. My current goal is to pass the RKC Snatch Test at my March 25th recertification. I have to be able to snatch a 53lb kettlebell overhead 100 times in 5-minutes, as well as perform all of the required kettlebell movements flawlessly in a number of tough workouts over a 10-hour day. Taking 7-days off training was just not in the cards for me. What could I do? I was unable to do any ballistic exercises like Swings and Snatches as my back was too sore and would be re-aggravated. Well, with my knowledge as a Trainer, I figured I could still work the non-ballistic lifting patterns with very light weights and get my hard-cardio sprints in on the exercise bike. The sprints are very important as my respiratory system must be used to the lung-burning effort of the 5-minute Snatch test.

On the importance of “active-recovery”…

Continuing the other lifts with light weights allowed me to engage in “active-recovery”, getting much needed blood flow to the pulled muscles, thus speeding healing. I also worked out the trigger spots in my back-muscles with some self-massage, using a softball against the wall. The result was that my back was ready to resume heavier training within 6-days and my respiratory system is even more ready for the demands of the Snatch Test.

All in the mind…

I also managed to keep up a positive mental outlook as was still able to make progress despite my injury. This was the most important part, as the mind, once on a negative path will tend to stay there, hampering any further progress. Before you know it, you wake up and are back where you started!

I cannot stress enough the importance of finding ways to continue towards your goals, even when you are faced with a setback of some sort. Unless you are really badly injured, there are a myriad of ways you can shift your focus and continue on. As long as your “diversion plan” does not negatively affect the healing process, it will instead serve to keep you on track and mentally still in the game!

If your mind is not in it, there is NO WAY you will reach your goals. That is the simple fact of the matter…

Over the past 6-weeks, I have provided you with Motivational, Eating and Exercise tools, which when implemented will guarantee you fat-loss. For the next 6-weeks, we are going to work on honing these tools to get EVEN BETTER results!

Time to rest the back. I’ll talk to you next week!

PS: Next week I’ll be posting answers to some of the many fat-loss and exercise questions I have received.

–
Steve McMinn, RKC / CK-FMS – Trainer
778 898 4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca

Here we are, almost one-month into the Fat-Loss challenge and we have an awesome 32lbs of fat lost so far! Next week, there is a larger batch of two-week weigh-ins, so expect that number to climb even higher!

First of all, I would like to say a big CONGRATULATIONS to all my clients and readers who have taken action on their health and fitness, followed my simple advice, and are now even closer to looking and feeling they way they want to!

It is not easy to change life-long habits, especially as in the case of diet and exercise a lot of these habits have long-standing emotional ties. It was for this reason that my first fat-loss email dealt with getting clear on exactly what it was that was stopping your from getting the functional, energetic and toned body you all so richly deserve. If you HAVE NOT taken action, and improving your health, fitness and body-image are important, I urge you to read my first email again. You all have an unbelievable internal power just waiting to be released, a power that can transform this and any other element of your life you may not be totally satisfied with. The key is to take action and honestly ask yourself if your current state of mind is going to make those desires change into reality!

Who is your hero?

Who is your hero?

Model your life after those who have already been successful…

As a little kick-start, do some research into one of your personal heroes and find out what it was that they did to overcome their own obstacles, rise to the challenge, and make a huge impact on their own AND many other people’s lives.

Personally, I choose Muhammad Ali : )

My second fat-loss email dealt with the importance of journaling your exercise and food intake. So often, we think we are eating well and exercising regularly but when we get to writing it down, realize we are not doing as well as we thought. Just the act of recording these things makes us more consistent. I know that as soon as I started keeping an exercise journal (and making it public for all my clients to see), my workout consistency dramatically improved, as did my results. The same goes for keeping a food journal. You will be surprised how much better you are at staying on track with your eating plan when you know everything that goes into your stomach must be recorded by the end of the day! The act of writing things down has been proven time and time again to vastly increase compliance in anything you are trying to improve. The scientific studies do not lie!

I also talked about the importance of body-fat testing to get an accurate measurement of the effectiveness your eating and exercise plans are having. I’ll be available again next Saturday for body composition measurements and will send an email in the middle of next week with the times and location.

It is almost Spring! Soon we will be able to exercise outdoors more often!

In last week’s email, I gave you a simple (not easy!) workout plan that can be done three times a week and in only about 25-30 minutes. The plan contained only bodyweight exercises so could be done by anyone, anywhere and at any time. The timed rounds are great for fat-loss as you are forced to continually add more work into the 5-minute rounds, thus being easily able to track your progress and improvements. For those of you who have access to weights, or go to a gym, the same template can be applied. Doing these type of workouts with external resistance will vastly increase your fat-burning and strength-building potential as your body will have to work even harder. I must stress though that the exercise MUST ALWAYS be done with a focus on proper form as adding external resistance (weights) will stress the body more than the bodyweight exercises.

To add weights, use this simple substitution method:

• Exercise 1: Leg Exercise eg Barbell Squat,
  Dumbell Lunge / Stepup, KBell Swing etc
• Exercise 2: Upper-Body Push or Pull
  eg Dumbell Overhead Press, Dumbell Rows etc
• Exercise 3: Explosive Full-Body
  eg Kettlebell Snatch, Dumbell Thruster etc

Putting it all together…

Now that you have been able to review the past 3-weeks of fat-burning, strength-building and confidence-improving information, I urge you to take action and try to incorporate just some of it into your daily life. My only wish is that all my clients and readers get the absolute most out of their lives now and into the future. This is my job, but also my passion! Every day, I get to see people improve, and when improvement stops, we figure out why, take a new approach, and soon see results come again. I hope I can help all of you to do the same!

For anyone in Vancouver who wants a little extra help and motivation, here’s a list of all my group class times and locations. I’m focusing a little harder on fat-burning for the next few months to prepare everyone’s body for summer : )

Kettlebell Challenge Classes:

Classes designed to develop your strength, improve your conditioning, accelerate fat-loss and prevent injury through a solid understanding of basic movement patterns. We use the highly effective kettlebell, bodyweight and other assorted tools. Real Fitness kettlebell training works for people of all fitness levels. Workouts are time-based, so you work at your own ever-improving pace. Everything you learn here can be done anywhere and with minimal equipment.

• 6:15 AM: Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings at Kitsilano Fitness World
  $225 / 4-Weeks (50-minute class)
• 12:00 PM: Monday, Wednesday and Friday lunchtimes at Kinesiologists.ca
  $120 / 4-Weeks (30-minute class)
• 6:30 PM: Thursday evenings at I Love Health Store
  $80 / 4-Weeks (50-minute class)
• 7:00 PM: Monday evenings at Kinesiologists.ca
  $80 / 4-Weeks (50-minute class)

Start on any day!
Completing the Intro Workshop is required before attending classes.

Real Fitness Class:

A late-morning class designed for parents who have just dropped the kids at school and those who work from home and find 6:15am a little early for exercise. Similar in format to the Kettlebell Challenge classes, with a bit more calisthenics and running as we train in a big park (training moves indoors for the winter).

• 9:00 AM: Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings at 2510 W 21st Ave
  $225 / 4-Weeks (50-minute class)

Start on any day.
Completing the Intro Workshop is required before attending classes.

Click here for Introducing The Kettlebell Workshop times and dates.

Until next week, I wish you all the best in your journey to a life of strength, health and happiness!

*Also, please feel free to email me with any health and fitness questions you may have. I’ll be adding the best and most important ones to my future emails.

–
Steve McMinn, RKC / CK-FMS – Trainer
778 898 4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca

By Week 3, we have a total of 25lbs fat lost! There has been a very small muscle mass drop as well, but that is to be expected as the diets get adjusted.

I am very pleased with the results everyone has been getting and will be available again today (Saturday) for anyone who wishes their bodyfat to be measured. As I am holding an Introductory Kettlebell Workshop at Steve Nash Fitness World ( 3:00pm, 201-2150 W Broadway), feel free to come by between 4:30 and 5:00. I’ll be right at the Front Desk. It was nice to see some of you for last week’s weigh-in, and I’ll see you again next week for your first two-week follow-up. Location TBA.

Get cracking on that portion-control from the last email! My Mom has been following the Zone Diet and today posted a 2lb fat-loss even though she has had a cold and been unable to work out for the past 8-days!!!

There is no 12:30pm workshop at Kinesiologists.ca today, as I plan on getting out and enjoying the sunshine!

Now, for this week I give you a simple, not easy, workout program that can be done anywhere and with absolutely no equipment!

First, you must learn the exercises. Watch the below videos and practice the proper form and technique. Once you have watched and tried all 10, you’ll have done your first workout!

• Lunges or Step Ups
• Pushups
• Mountain Climbers

• Squats
• Table Tops
• Burpee/Squat Thrust (jump into the position as taught in the Pushup video)

• Lunge w/Knee High
• Moving Plank
• Jumping-Jack Squats (push your butt back and keep the knees behind the toes, easier version – step out to squat or regular jumping jacks)

The workout program itself is divided into three 5-minute rounds with 3-minutes of rest in between. To get the program as a PDF file, CLICK HERE. The joint-loosening exercises can be found HERE.

How to do it:

The program is set up for 4-weeks and can be repeated once the 4-weeks are over.
It is a 3-day per week program, so can be done for example, Mon, Wed and Fri.
1-Round is the completion of all three exercises for the prescribed number of repetitions.
For the Lunge exercises, reps listed are per-leg.
Record extra reps in the boxes beside the exercises.
By the end of the 4-weeks, your Light Day numbers should be close to the first Heavy Day.

Remember: Proper form is ALL IMPORTANT. Your number one priority is to prevent injury. NEVER sacrifice form for reps. The reps will come, given time.

If you have any questions about the workout, email me at steve@fit4real.ca.

Next week:

I’ll show you how to insert other exercises into this workout template, and we’ll review all the info presented thus far, to make sure you are all on the right track.

Have a great day and ENJOY THE SUN!!!

–
Steve McMinn, RKC – Trainer
778 898 4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca

Here we are in week two, and I’m happy to say we have a total of 16lbs of body-fat lost, with everyone’s muscle mass either increasing or maintaining previous levels!

*Expect to see that number climb next week as a few more clients and class-members hit their first two-week weigh in date.

My fat-loss blackboard is showing down arrows for all but one person. It is important to remember that sometimes a bit of a backslide can happen, but when it does we must figure out why and then take steps to solve it. In this case, it was a bit of “anxious eating”. My suggestion? Make sure to have healthy snacks available and keep the unhealthy ones right out of the house!

Even though I am a slender dude genetically, my sweet tooth and love of starchy carb snacks (chips, pretzels, donuts) means that in order to maintain a healthy body I just do not have such things in the house. When my only choices are carrots, apples and other fruits and veg, I eat and enjoy them just as much, plus my energy levels stay even and my digestive system thanks me!

Do I cheat sometimes? Of course! After all, I’m only human : )

Now, let’s get to this week’s topics…

First of all, I want to get you started on tracking your food intake, exercise and fat-loss. This will be done via my online Fitness Tracker. The Tracker, pictured below is a simple and easy way to record a food-journal, your exercise sessions and your weight / body-fat percentage. Food journaling is a very effective way to change your eating habits as you are less likely to make a bad choice if you know it must be written down later : ) The only thing you need to do is be VERY honest! Remember, we are looking to identify bad habits so they can be replaced by better ones!

All you have to do to get an free account is email me at steve@fit4real.ca

Now, how do you measure your body fat?

The easiest and most accurate way (apart from the expensive test you can do at the UBC sports lab) is to hop on a bio-impedance scale. If you are a member at Steve Nash Fitness World, all clubs have one that can be used free by members. For those of you not in Vancouver or not members at a gym, click here for a simple online calculator that can give you a rough idea.

I also happen to have a bio-impedance scale and will be available this Saturday the 12th and next Saturday the 19th to measure you for free. Just come to Kinesiologists.ca at #101-2025 West Broadway @ Maple between 2:00pm and 2:45pm. Future weigh-in dates will be announced in a couple weeks.

For the Fat-Loss Challenge, I perform a weigh-in every two weeks to ensure progress is being made, and if not, adjustments can be quickly implemented!

Bio-impedance scale.

Why not just use a regular scale to measure weight-loss?

A good question!

A regular scale just tells you how much total weight you have lost and does not differentiate between fat-loss and lean-muscle loss! In order to make sure the way you are eating and exercising is losing you the right kind of weight ie body-fat, a scale that measures both must be used. Lean mass, or muscle, absolutely must be maintained or increased as it is this tissue that controls our resting metabolism (how much fat we burn while at rest). For example, eating too many carbs and not enough protein while training for strength and fat-loss will actually decrease your fat burning potential. Exactly the opposite of what we want to achieve!

Also, imagine if you lost 5lbs of fat and at the same time gained 3lbs of muscle. A regular scale will show only a 2lb weight loss and you may be discouraged as you feel you worked really hard and are not getting any results.

We have the technology to see what is really going on, so let’s use it!!!

This client was clear on why she needed to make a change. 5 years later, the weight is still off!

Last week, I had you make two lists in order to address the most important fat-loss strategy… the motivation to actually do it!

I hope you made those lists!

Without being clear on exactly why
you REALLY NEED to make a change, a real and lasting change is seldom made. Get a little disturbed! List #1 is there to make you realize the amazing possibilities, thus offsetting the current and future concerns of list #2!

The key to 80% of your weight loss success…

Now that you know where, when and why to get your body-fat measured, plus have written or re-read your lists, let me touch on the second most important aspect of fat-loss… what you eat!

This is where we have the most difficulty… but in the end, the best successes!

Now, there are a lot of diets out there, many good, many not-so-good and many just downright dangerous! In the end it usually comes down to a safe and informed personal choice on how and when you like to eat.

This being said, one thing we can all do is learn simple portion-control. A great way to learn this is through The Zone Diet, with a focus on eating good quality foods. The Zone Diet gets you away from the starchy carbs and into eating more fruits and vegetables. It also has you increasing your protein intake, thus helping you to build that lean mass needed for a faster metabolism. For those with kidney issues, consult your doctor for what an appropriate protein percentage would be for you.

Furthermore, The Zone Diet will teach you how to eat more good fats, essential for the health of your heart!

I have found two excellent articles to get you going on a healthy, fat-burning diet.
Thanks to Crossfit Impulse in Alabama for the well-written articles!

I urge you to take 10-minutes and read both articles. They will lay out all you need to know to start eating for health, strength and fat-loss. I’m not kidding! Like I have said before, the information is out there…

• Article #1 – Basic Nutrition
  What to eat and why.
• Article #2 – The Zone Diet Explained
  Figure out how much you should eat and when (portion control).

Your biggest challenge will be discarding the starchy and highly processed carbs. Trust me, fruits and vegetables will taste AMAZING if you give yourself the time to adjust!

Next Week:

I’ll give you a simple (not easy) set of exercises and a program to follow.
All exercises can be done at home and with no equipment!

I guarantee you’ll lose fat AND get stronger… as long as you follow the program!

Now, write or re-read your lists from last week, read this week’s articles and make your next trip to the grocery store the first step in your 3-month, 24-plus pound body-fat loss!

I look forward to seeing some of you over the next few Saturdays : )

–
Steve McMinn, RKC – Trainer
778 898 4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca

Yes, that’s right. I am going to spend the next 8 weeks helping anyone that wants to lose fat. For free.

On February 1st, all of my fat-loss clients and class-members started on an 8-week fat-loss challenge. I had actually started the challenge with three clients, two-weeks prior, so by the 1st we already had a total of 12 lbs fat lost and 7 lbs muscle gained.

That’s an average per-person of 4 lbs fat-lost and 2.3 lbs muscle gained!

Right at the safe and sustainable fat-loss figure of 2 lbs per week. Now, this does not mean you can’t lose more than that per week. The most successful of the three lost a total of 5.5 lbs of fat in the two weeks!

How did they do it? By eating good, nutritious food and exercising at a moderate level of intensity with a session or two of safe higher-intensity exercise per week.

It really is that simple.

But wait, there was one more important factor in their fat loss. Probably the most important one…

They were motivated to do it!

Without the action-taking will to be successful in any endeavour, we cannot possibly accomplish it. It is 2011, and anyone with an internet connection can learn how to lose fat and get the nice-looking and high-performing body they have always wanted. The information is out there but many of us can’t find the motivation to actually use it!!!

This is where I hope to help you the most. Without a real and burning desire to make a change, all of the information in the world won’t make it happen.

How many of us have some diet and motivation books on our shelves? How many of us have workout equipment that’s become a clothes hanger? How many of us wanted to look amazing last summer, and the summer before that?
You are not alone…

I can tell you that at one time I could have answered positively to all of those questions. I had motivational tapes that I’d listened to once or twice and then never again. I had a pullup bar that my Mom would dry clothes on. I hid my skinny body under baggy clothes for many summers, wishing I had done something about it in January when I had the idea to start working out.

What finally made me change was getting really upset that I had all these goals and aspirations, and the tools to make them real, but no really powerful desire to make them happen. I eventually managed to work myself into such an agitated state that change HAD to happen. I finally followed the motivating advice that had been sitting on my bookshelf all those years, started weight-training consistently and, while I am nowhere near perfect, my life is 100x better because of it!

So, in this, the first of many weekly Fat-Loss Challenge emails, I am going to ask you to do one simple yet very effective exercise. Before we even begin to talk about how to modify your existing eating-plan and I give you workouts you can do at home, let’s get you MOTIVATED. Because without having real and compelling reasons to take action, all the free information in the world will continue to be of no use to you!
A simple exercise to kickstart your 8-weeks on the fun and rewarding fat-loss train:

1. Make a list of the ways your life will be better if you take action and are possibly 16+ pounds lighter by the beginning of April.
2. Make a list of what will happen, or how you will feel if you DON’T take action.

By doing this you should come up with some compelling reasons to make that change you have always wanted to make. You will also have a bunch of perhaps scary reasons to make that same change. Both lists will end up serving as a real motivation, believe me!

Be honest and don’t hold back. You don’t need to show this to anyone. Just read it at least once a day until my next email. Then, you will be ready to really take action!
Next Week:

I’ll tell you how to get a free account on my Fitness-Tracker so you can record your fat-loss progress over the 8 weeks. In the following weekly emails, I’ll post a running total of fat lost. I will also let you know when and where I’ll be available for those in Vancouver who wish to have their body-fat measured. For the rest of my readers, I’ll recommend some alternatives : )

Get your thinking caps on, get excited by your #1 list, get a little freaked-out by your #2 list and remember that you can do almost anything you put your mind to!

We are what we think.
All that we are arises from our thoughts.
With our thoughts, we make our world. -The Buddha

–
Steve McMinn, RKC – Trainer
778 898 4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca

Welcome to the Summer 2010 Real Fitness Newsletter!

Wakil enjoys the summer sun.

I think we can all now agree that summer is finally here in Vancouver : )

I trust you have all found the time to enjoy these glorious sunny days (past few excepted). For my Ontario and Eastward readers, I hope the crazy humidity has not been too much to bear. I remember it well and am glad we can be cool in the shade here in Van-City.

Just two things to address in this Summer edition of the Real Fitness Newsletter. After which, I implore you to go outside and have fun!

The first is that my rates are increasing. This is happening in the wake of a new advanced certification and the higher-level skills picked up over the past year. All of which will shortly be explained, along with a great offer allowing you to still train at last-year’s rates!

Then, I’m going to talk about some landmark recent studies that show time spent sitting, whether at home or at work, actually works to reduce your life-expectancy! The old advice of an hour a day of exercise does not even come close to helping! Worry not though, there is a simple (not easy!) answer.

Alright, lets get started…
***

David after just two months focusing solely on performance and movement-safety. I would certainly say there was an improvement in his appearance! New higher rates come with better and FASTER results!

As a trainer, I am always on a quest to discover the most time & energy efficient ways to improve the whole of the human body and mind. My path to fitness started in the Martial Arts and has always been focused on useable physical ability rather than training only for appearance. What I soon discovered is that for the most part, with increased strength and stamina comes a whole new healthy & powerful looking body.

Who wants to be “all show and no go” anyways!?!

Last year, I became a Certified Russian Kettlebell Challenge Instructor under Pavel Tsatsouline and the RKC Organization. The RKC is the gold-standard of kettlebell certifications and requires you to pass an intense physical test as well as prove the ability to safely and correctly teach the system to others.

Since then, I have learned privately from Master RKC Kenneth Jay, attended his Viking Warrior Conditioning workshop (VWC was used in a recent study to prove kettlebell training’s phenomenal calorie-burn), learned advanced abdominal and bodyweight training directly from Pavel Tsatsouline himself, and in May of this year I attended the 4-day RKC’s-only Certified Kettlebell Functional Movement Specialist workshop and certification.

This latest CKFMS certification has given me the same advanced movement screening and corrective tools used by teams in the NFL, NHL, Major League Baseball and the NCAA. Not just for prolonging the performance and careers of high-level athletes, the FMS system is also used by fire departments, The US Secret Service and the Military to ensure their people remain injury-free and resilient for whatever dangers they may face in the field.

The latest and most-effective system for performance and injury-prevention now gets passed along to my clients and class participants!

You won't need a time-machine to take advantage of my previous rates! Special Offer: Train at Last Year's Rates

My current clients get to stay at the old rates for an additional two-months. I would like to make an almost-as-good offer to everyone else. For my Vancouver readers, friends and former clients, the old rate of $75/session is still on the table for the next two-weeks. I will allow purchase of up to 24-sessions, but they must be used within 6-months time.

In two-weeks (August 30th), my per session rate goes up to $90.

Schedule a free consult to talk about training options by
CLICKING HERE or calling 778.898.4649

Click here to read rave reviews from my awesome clients!
***

Sitting too much will shorten your life!
Proven by Science!

For those of you who keep up on health matters, you already know this to be true. These studies on sitting have been in the paper, on TV and all over the internet for the past couple months.

In short, the studies have proven the more time you sit, the higher your risk for every kind of disease known to man!

A quote from researcher Dr. Alpa Patel, Ph.D:

“Prolonged time spent sitting, independent of physical activity, has been shown to have important metabolic consequences, and may influence things like triglycerides, high density lipoprotein, cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, resting blood pressure, and leptin, which are biomarkers of obesity and cardiovascular and other chronic diseases.”

The old advice of one hour per day of activity being enough has been tossed out in favour of more frequent activity designed to keep your body out of the “sitting zone”.

The studies show that our bodies go into a different state when we sit for long periods of time. In this state, our immune system and metabolism decrease, setting up a perfect situation for disease to develop more easily.

Wing Tsun Kungfu is fun AND will help prolong your life in a number of ways : )

The solution is simple (not easy!)

Spend more time moving throughout the day, so your body does not have the time to settle into the sitting zone!

This can be accomplished in many ways. For me, I have an already active job, but when at home on the computer I often get up and do parts of my kungfu forms, practice footwork or lift a heavy weight for single reps. For those without such “hobbies”, I recommend learning how to properly squat, lunge, and do pushups. A good trainer could show you how to do these in a few sessions, allowing you to not only practice good, solid movement patterns but also stay out of the sitting zone, giving you the best chance to live as long as possible!

Now that Science has proven this to be true, ignoring this FACT means you are okay with a vastly increased risk of a shorter, lower-quality life.

Sounds a bit harsh, but only because I care!
***

Now, get off your chairs, get outside, and MOVE!!!

Steve McMinn, RKC – Trainer
778 898 4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca

Hello Everyone, and welcome to my first Spring 2010 Newsletter!

The last Real Fitness Newsletter came to you in the Fall of 2009 and included the story of Irv and his triumphant return to fitness, ideas on maximizing your physical potential via recovery management, and an invitation to learn a devastatingly effective self-defence system.

Like a bulb that has laid dormant all winter, the Real Fitness Newsletter bursts forth from the fertile spring soil of health and fitness, now with a new look to go along with the redesigned www.fit4real.ca! One of my goals this year is to add a lot more training resources to the Physical Education section. Currently, all of the best online video-tutorials for the 6 Basic Hardstyle Kettlebell Lifts, as well as follow-along posture improvement exercises can be found in the How-To Videos.

Stay tuned for more articles and videos. If there is something health and fitness related you would like to see explained, let me know!

Bryce and Me right after Canada won Gold!

So far, 2010 has been a great year, especially since we had the Winter Olympics right here in Vancouver! Most definitely a fairytale ending with Sidney Crosby scoring that goal in overtime, just as the sun came out in the city! Did we even have a winter this year!?! Seems I was able to play a lot of Frisbee Golf…

Now that Spring is upon us, may I suggest you get your body strong and moving well for Summer? If you live in Vancouver, there are 3 Kettlebell Challenge or Real Fitness

Classes to choose from:
Mon, Wed, Fri at 6:15am and 9:00am
Thursdays at 5:30pm

The goal of all classes is to teach, first and foremost, proper & safe body-movement and alignment. With such a solid and injury-preventing foundation you will then move on to ever higher levels of strength and endurance. The Russian Kettlebell System can then be applied to any and all training styles, making each safer and adding measurable increases in performance.

To participate in classes, you must attend an Introducing The Kettlebell workshop to learn the basics. The next workshops are on Saturday April 3rd and Saturday April 10th, 1pm at Steve Nash / Fitness World Kits. If you cannot attend on Saturdays, let me know and we can schedule a small group or 1on1 workshop at the same price.

Click on the book to learn more about VWC!

With kettlebells in mind, let me tell you what’s in this newsletter!

Included first is an article from my Real Fitness Blog on the latest research proving what we already knew from experience; Kettlebells burn significantly more body-fat than most other forms of exercise. Only activities like bicycle-racing and running at a 6-minute mile pace come close to the kettlebell calorie burn! The research was conducted by the American Council on Exercise, and used Master RKC Kenneth Jay’s Viking Warrior Conditioning (at left) protocols as the basis for the testing.

Next, I’ll show you how easy it can be to work out at home, even if you have limited space. There’s also a short-video showing my home workout space in action.

Finally, I introduce you to a Physical Culture book published in 1905. This book is by one of the all-time great strongmen and most of the information still holds up today. In fact, what these guys knew at the turn of the century is finally being proven true by exercise science! As this book is now in the public-domain, I have included a link to download it as a pdf file.
Now, let’s get to it!
***
Proven by Science… Kettlebell Snatches burn more calories than almost any other form of sport or exercise!

Those who train with kettlebells know they are one of the top tools for fat-burning. Now, a study by the American Council on Exercise proves the anecdotal evidence to be true.

Click here to read the complete article from the Jan/Feb 2010 issue of ACE

Yoanna Snideman, RKC

FitnessMatters.
Please refrain from studying the exercise examples too closely and instead see an RKC Certified Instructor who will teach you a much safer and more powerful way to perform them.

The ACE study shows that kettlebell snatches done Viking Warrior Conditioning style burn an amazing 404 calories in only 20-minutes (1212cal/hour)! The VWC protocol used in the study was developed by Master RKC Kenneth Jay and in this case involves 15sec of Snatches at a fast pace, followed by 15sec of Rest for up to 40mins straight.

Do you cycle at racing speeds?

Do you cycle at racing speeds?

Here are other examples of exercises that come close to this phenominal calorie burn (at least 800cal/hr for a 155lb person) :

Running, 10 mph (6 min mile) – 1126cal/hr
Running, 9 mph (6.5 min mile) – 1056cal/hr
Running, stairs, up – 1056cal/hr
Skating, ice, speed, competitive – 1056cal/hr
Skiing, cross-country, uphill, max effort – 1161cal/hr
Squash – 844cal/hr
Bicycling, >20mph, racing – 1126cal/hr
Bicycling, 16-19mph, very fast, racing – 844cal/hr
Bicycling, stationary, very vigorous effort – 880cal/hr
Boxing, in ring, general – 844cal/hr
Handball, general – 844cal/hr
Jai alai – 844cal/hr
Rope jumping, fast – 844cal/hr
Rowing, stationary, very vigorous effort – 844cal/hr

As you can see, all very fast-paced and high-intensity sports or activities! The VWC protocol allows for equal Work/Rest intervals, making it possible to keep working at a high-intensity for the duration of the workout.

Now, take a look at calories per hour for some of the more common forms of exercise:

Don't the kettlebell Snatches just look cooler too!?!

Aerobics, high impact – 493cal/hr
Aerobics, general – 422cal/hr
Basketball, game – 563cal/hr
Basketball, nongame, general – 422cal/hr
Bicycling, 12-13.9mph, moderate effort – 563cal/hr
Calisthenics (pushups, sit-ups), vigorous effort – 563cal/hr
Calisthenics, home, light/moderate effort – 317cal/hr
Frisbee, ultimate – 246cal/hr
Hiking, cross country – 422cal/hr
Jogging, general – 493cal/hr
Race walking – 453cal/hr
Rowing, stationary, moderate effort – 598cal/hr
Skiing, downhill, moderate effort – 422cal/hr
Snow shoeing – 563cal/hr
Swimming laps, freestyle, light/moderate effort – 563cal/hr
Tennis, singles – 563cal/hr
Weight lifting or body building, vigorous effort – 422cal/hr

The numbers tell the tale. Kettlebell Snatches rule!

See an RKC Instructor to get your form dialed-in and then get started, as Kenneth says “Like a Viking”!

Click here to order your very own copy of Viking Warrior Conditioning.

I could not have passed my RKC Certification Snatch Test without it!

Effective workouts at home, even if you are challenged for space…

As you can see in the video, even in a smaller space, like an apartment, it is easy to set up an unobtrusive yet very useful and effective workout space. The floor gets protection from kettlebells, and the girlfriend is happy the place does not resemble a gym : )

Ask any trainer or fitness enthusiast what the #1 key to getting results is. I’ll bet almost all of them would say “workout-consistency”. It is pretty logical that if you don’t put in consistent work, you will not generally get any kind of good result. This applies to most things in life, and especially forming and maintaining fitness!

Here’s where the ability to work out at home comes in. Time is the enemy of fitness in that it can take up quite a bit of it getting to the gym on a regular basis. There’s the drive there, finding parking, getting changed, doing the workout (possibly having to wait for weights, a bench or cardio-machine), stretching, and then the drive home. Usually around 60-90 minutes plus for most of us.

What if you just don’t have an hour to spare in your busy day? Most days, you really should have time to devote an hour to your physical health, but if not, what to do?

Well, working out at home removes the drive and search for parking. You can wear whatever you want, even your underwear! The workout time is the only constant and can be shortened to as little as 10 mins if you are doing an interval-style program (proven to burn more fat than steady-state cardio)! Heck, you don’t even need a babysitter as can work out with the kids in the room. What a great example to set!

Also, your workout consistency will increase, along with the results of your intelligently-planned program. There’s an old saying: “The worst-planned and put-together workout, done consistently, will yield far better results than the most properly-planned and scientifically sound workout done sporadically!”

Say it. Hear yourself saying it. Live it. Be better!

***The best interval-timer out there is the GYMBOSS. It is super-cheap at only $20. I use it for all my interval training. Click here to buy one!
***

You do not want a bearhug from this dude!

A fantastic Physical Culture book that stands the test of time!

George “The Russian Lion” Hackenschmidt (20 July 1878 – 19 February 1968) ,was a famous turn-of-the-century strongman and wrestler. He invented the Bearhug and the Hack-Squat and wrote a whole bunch of great books on wrestling and physical culture.

One of his most famous books was The Way To Live, first published in 1905, this book lays out George’s philosophy on life and training, proper & healthful eating habits, the importance of restful sleep, and includes an exercise guide with training schedule. The book finishes with the entertaining story of his life as a strongman, wrestler and physical culturist.

As you can see, the topics covered in this book are much the same as we see in the most up to date and modern fitness & health research and publications.

You can read the book online HERE, and download the pdf version HERE.

Recommended reading:
Chapter 2: Why Should We Be Strong?
Chapter 4: Physical Perfection And Strength
Chapter 5: Nutrition
Chapter 6: Rest and Wholesome Sleep
Chapter 7: Training
Until next time…

Steve McMinn, RKC
778.898.4649
steve@fit4real.ca
www.fit4real.ca