What should you take to get ripped fast? Have you ever dreamed of having ripped sexy abs? Abs so ripped that you could literally use them to grate a block of cheddar cheese! Do you wanna melt fat from your midsection and reveal a shredded six pack or an unbelievable 8-pack? Do you wanna have the best abs in the world and be admired by everyone? Do you wanna feel more confident and have more success with women? Do you wanna live in a penthouse and date super models? Then you need ripped abs!
But how? There are so many different pills and supplements to take and what about those dreaded side effects! How can you be sure what is safe, effective and proven to work? Who can you trust?
Look no further, I have an amazing secret to share with you!
TAKE THE STAIRS! Stop popping pills whilst taking the elevator or escalator. Go for long walks and take the STAIRS! They are proven to burn fat and have zero of those annoying harmful side effects.
Proper training and nutrition work every time. Supplement companies don't care about you! They will sell you sawdust and bellybutton lint in a capsule and tell you that it's an amazing scientific breakthrough formula to "melt fat" from all of your "problem areas." THESE COMPANIES ARE FULL OF BOLOGNA! and spend millions of dollars every year brainwashing the general public with glossy ads and overblown promises, and phony studies.
Train Right. Eat Right. Sleep Right Transform.
And please, for your own sake, read this tidbit from the FTC about some of the fraudulent supplement companies being fined for false advertising: http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2007/01/weightloss.shtm
Now CHECK OUT THE VIDEO!
SUBSCRIBE, Rate, Comment, Favorite, Share and Re-tweet.
Pull-ups are far and away the best exercise for your upper body because they force you to literally pull your own weight.
Pull-ups are a compound multi-joint exercise that develop physical fitness and functional strength. They protect and strengthen your shoulder girdle and build all the muscles of the back which boosts your metabolism.
To fully train and exhaust the latissimus dorsi, trapezius, and rhomboids it's imperative to train the back with wide grip pull-ups with the palms facing away from your body and also narrow grip pull-ups with your palms facing your body (narrow grip pull-ups are sometimes called "chins" or "chin-ups").
There is a strong correlation between the number of pull-ups a person can complete in single set and their overall health and fitness. This is because a person's max pull-ups are primarily a function of two factors, pulling strength & endurance and body weight. Obviously, a person with a healthy weight has a huge advantage over an overweight or obese person, they simply don't have to pull-up as much weight.
Furthermore, pull-ups serve to correct muscle imbalances and improve posture. Most people will naturally (or unnaturally) develop stronger "push muscles" in the upper body. Pull-ups obviously develop the "pull muscles" and therefore can help eliminate muscle imbalances and improve posture. In general, you should be able to perform approximately one third as many body weight pull-ups as body weight push-ups. Ergo, a man that can do a max-set of 30 body weight push-ups should be able to do roughly 10 body weight pull-ups.
However, all adult males 18-39 should be able to do roughly 20 body weight pull-ups. If you're a part of this demographic and can't do roughly 20 pull-ups, than for your own sake, you should make that your goal and start working towards it. You will need to BURN FAT (some people say "lose weight" but that term is far too general) and get stronger. As an added corollary you should be able to perform 50-60 push-ups, remember the 3:1 ration.
If you can far and away exceed 20 pull-ups (like 30+) then you probably need to BUILD MORE MUSCLE (some people would say "gain weight" but again that term is too generic). I recommend going to the gym, locating the squat rack and building bigger, stronger, more powerful legs.
Women, the body of goddess will naturally follow an increase in the number of pull-ups you can do. A woman that can do 10 pull-ups will have a lean, strong and sexy body. Unfortunately, some institutions like the United States Marine Corps, rob women of the opportunity to be tested on and improve their pull-ups. Instead they substitute the "Flexed-Arm Hang" which is a totally bogus non-exercise. Women, do pull-ups! Set a goal to do 10 pull-ups and 25-30 push-ups (remember the 3:1 ratio) and don't let anyone or anything stop you.
Q: WHAT IF I CAN'T DO A PULL-UP? HOW DO I GET BETTER? A: 1. BURN FAT, run, walk, play sports, shovel snow, go for a hike or bike ride and most importantly, EAT RIGHT! 2. GET STRONGER, you can work your way up to body weight pull-ups by having a spotter hold your feet while you perform "less than body weight pull-ups." You can also use a Lat-Pull-down machine to perform wide and narrow grip pull-downs to build strength.
-Chris Krueger
To totally transform your body and improve at everything, including pull-ups, You should get the TSC Heart of a Champion Training & Nutrition Program and start training and eating properly immediately, for your own sake.
TSCers, I've sorted some of the TSC vids into new Playlists, so that you can find the videos you need when you need them.
Check out the New Speed and Agility playlist!
Chris Krueger Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
TSCers, I understand some of you are having trouble navigating to this page. I'm working on this problem. And of course if you are reading this, then you already found a solution and I'm proud of you.
Best,
Chris Krueger Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Check out my new VLOG about Kim Kardashian and her new hocus pocus ab-gizmo/gimmick, the Ab-Rocket!
Best, Chris Krueger Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Hang Cleans are a great exercise to increase explosiveness. Check out this new TSC Video
Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Friday I went to the Happiest Place on Earth and saw hundreds of people suffering.
As I strolled through Disneyland, everywhere I turned there was another American suffering from morbid obesity. The park was teaming with men and women that were more than 100 lbs overweight and facing deadly serious health consequences, like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Besides the obvious health risks associated with morbid obesity there are also very serious emotional effects, like low (or no) self-esteem and depression. There was deep sadness etched on the faces of many park visitors as they labored from Fantasy Land to Tomorrow Land. I even saw one young man's checks turn red with embarrassment and frustration as he squeezed himself into one of Space Mountain's Rocket Ships.
In present day America there are numerous factors all working to fatten us up, but there is hope and the opportunity to change.
Let's look at the real reasons why Americans are fatter today than ever before.
a) Food Tastes too Good: Think about the term "Artificial Flavor." It means a flavor that nature can't even produce! Before artificial flavors very few people were obese. You simply wouldn't want to eat enough of anything to get obese. b) Greater Caloric Density of Foods: Processed foods from the Gordita Supreme to the Big Mac are packed with calories! Consider this, one Big Mac has as many calories as 135 strawberries!
c) Natural Instinct: Compounding the fact that today's unnatural foods taste unnaturally good and are unnaturally high in calories is the fact that over eating is a natural human instinct! Through advances in modern agriculture Western civilization has created a regular and well-stocked food supply. There is food available everywhere all the time, most grocery stores are open 24 hours and T-Bell is open 'til 1 am or later for fourthmeal, just in case you have a hankering for something that is melty, spicy, crunchy or grilled (and also unnaturally good tasting and high in calories). Thousands of years ago, before the rise of agriculture humans had to hunt or gather their food and depending on the season had no way of knowing when they would have their next opportunity to eat, thus over-eating became a natural human instinct. d) Sedentary Life Styles: My Father grew up working outdoors on a farm and in his teen years got a job with a cement company. His life required constant activity and physical fitness. Today I can earn a living, connect with friends, make purchases, and search for information without moving a muscle (except for those involved with pointing and clicking). Even worse, I can do all these activities while eating a Gordita Supreme.
e) Genetics: WRONG! Genetics are NOT THE REASON YOU ARE FAT! Or anyone else for that matter! Your genotypes have survived since the dawn of mankind and they are exceptional! Think about it, before we invented causes A, B, C, & D was anybody in your family fat? Were your grandparents fat? Great grandparents? No! No! No! Were any of your ancestors fat even 300 years ago? Probably not... unless they were extremely wealthy members of a land owning aristocracy! You're genetics are wonderful, they make you, you! But it is your responsibility to be your best and to make the most of them, to enjoy your life to the fullest.
If you are overweight or unsatisfied with your health or physical fitness you have the power to change, to Transform. You can re-make your body and your life on your terms. You can look and feel the way you want to! Of course it takes some effort and dedication, but you have everything to gain.
I will send you TSC Heart of a Champion Training & Nutrition Program for FREE. It has all the information that you need to re-make your body and your life. All you need to do is DECIDE that you must transform and then get started with the TSC HEART OF A CHAMPION Training & Nutrition Program.
Best, Chris Krueger Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
So many Americans are awash in self-loathing, self-doubt and self-pity. The source of the problem is SELF-ESTEEM, our appraisal of our own self-worth. The TSC program can anchor your life and be the catalyst you need to Transform. TSC transformations are more than skin deep, they improve your ability to love yourself and others.
Recently I was introduced to a young women (about 26) at a dinner party. She had heard about TSC and told me that she wanted to "lose weight." I talked with her outside for a half hour and discovered that there was a lot more going on than just a desire to "lose weight."
She had struggled with school and had low self-esteem. She turned to street drugs to make herself feel better, thus developing a serious meth addiction. Then strung-out and feeling like a loser her family helped her to kick meth, but she replaced her drug problem with a drinking problem.
The drinking problem compounded her underlying self-esteem issues because she gained 60 lbs of fat through her excessive alcohol consumption and additional over eating. This of course led to more drinking and over eating as part of a vicious cycle.
I stood in the yard speaking with her, peeling back the layers of the onion and helping her understand the root cause of her problems. It was her self-image that needed fixing, not a meth addiction, drinking problem or weight problem. Her problem was SELF-ESTEEM.
Drugs, drinking and over eating are all temporary-feeling-changers. They help individuals cope with the way things are, instead of helping them CHANGE THE WAY THINGS ARE. Addicts use drugs to feel high, Alcoholics drink to forget their problems, Obese people eat to momentarily revel in the taste of the foods they lust for instead of dealing with the real issues. Everyone is susceptible to the perils of drugs, drinking and over eating, even the rich and famous! Comedians John Belushi, Chris Farley both died tragically at just 33 years old before they could transform their lives.The great thing about making a TSC Transformation is that it CHANGES THE WAY THINGS ARE. Creating a fit and healthy body develops lasting feelings of confidence, empowerment and self-worth that stay with you! A TSC Transformation changes you inside and out. It uses the enthusiasm cycle (the opposite of a viscous cycle) to spur you on to more success and ever greater achievements!
I wrote down my email address for the young women and gave her a hug. Now it's up to her. Everyone can transform and TSC can help you get there. TSC is like a lighthouse, we can guide you to safety in stormy weather or you can crash your ship on the rocks, but the choice is yours, you can steer your vessel is whichever direction you choose. Transform now, get the TSC HEART OF A CHAMPION Training & Nutrition Program. Best, -Chris Krueger Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/ My Twitter: http://twitter.com/TSuperChallenge
TSCers, we have a new Saturday workout; The TSC 300 Challenge. It’s a quantitative fitness test that allows you to measure your progress as you improve your health and fitness. The TSC 300 Challenge is a 3-part physical fitness test that was adopted from the same standards that are used to evaluate Army Rangers, Navy Seals and Force Recon Marines.
The test is made up of three basic exercises, pull-ups, push-ups and a three-mile run. Each section of the TSC 300 Challenge is worth a maximum of 100 points. To max the test a TSCer must score 100 points in all three categories. To score 300 you will have to develop balance, coordination, strength and endurance.
The goal of the TSC 300 Challenge is to motivate you to make consistent improvement and to quantify the progress that you make. By pushing yourself to improve your score on The 300 Challenge you will enjoy the simultaneous benefit of making a staggering TRANSFORMATION as you burn fat and build lean muscle.
The Events
Pull-ups: Complete as many “dead-hang” pull-ups as possible. This means fully extending your arms at the bottom of the pull-up and bringing your chin even with the top of the bar to complete one repetition.
Push-ups: Complete as many TSC Push-ups as possible. Keep your body straight and use a full range of motion. Your upper arms should be parallel to the ground at the bottom of your push-up. At the top of your push-up your elbows should be locked or very close to the locked position. You may pause briefly during your set, but you must maintain proper push-up position, this will really test your core-strength as well.
The 3-Mile Run: Run three miles as fast as you can! I recommend setting up a 1.5-mile course and performing 2 laps. Also try to run on grass if possible, this will reduce the impact on your joints.
The Scoring
For Men: Pull-ups: Each rep is worth 5 points and the max score is 20 pull-ups for 100 points. Push-ups: Each rep is worth 2 points and the max score is 50 push-ups for 100 pts. The Run: 18:00 minutes or less scores 100 points. Subtract 1 point from 100 for every ten-second increment above 18 minutes.
For Women: Pull-ups: Each rep is worth 10 points and the max score is 10 pull-ups for 100 points. Push-ups: Each rep is worth 4 points and the max score is 25 push-ups for 100 pts. The Run: 21:00 minutes or less scores 100 points. Subtract 1 point from 100 for every ten-second increment above 21:00 minutes.
The Purpose of The TSC 300 Challenge is to give you a benchmark for you to improve upon every week. You should strive to improve your score 5-10 points or more every week. For more information on The 300 Challenge check out this YouTube video:
SCORING EXAMPLES John does 11 pull-ups, 29 push-ups and runs the 3-mile in 24:04, his score is 176. Bryan does 0 pull-ups, 2 push-ups and runs the 3-mile in 32:50, his score is 15. Jane does 7 pull-ups, 22 push-ups and runs the 3-mile in 23:09, her score is 245.
Best, CK. Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Last week Beau Jacobson died, 2 months shy of his 24th Birthday.
I played college football with Beau at a small school in the Pacific Northwest. He was a great friend, a great teammate and an incredible man.
Beau lived life to the fullest and his death is a bewildering tragedy. Beau was a man of character. He was honest, kind and caring. His good nature always brought smiles to those around him. He worked hard and expressed unwavering loyalty to his friends and teammates. He was immensely fun to be around, although he never tried to be funny, he just was fun.
Although Beau's death is a tremendous loss for everyone that had the great pleasure and blessing of knowing him, hopefully we can enrich our world by applying the lessons that Beau taught us.
One lesson I learned from Beau, was that regardless of circumstance we must always defend the less fortunate. Beau had the courage to stick up for the little guy in every situation. Beau spread unlimited kindness during his short life. He knew that we should all have character, not act like one.
Beau also showed us the power being true to oneself. Beau did what was right, without concern for what was popular. He also loved new challenges and adventures. He would spend his summers fighting forest fires and after he graduated, he moved to Fiji to live life on his terms, doing what he loved and enjoying the heck out of it.
Diligence and perseverance characterized Beau's athletic career at the University of Puget Sound. He made the most of his athletic abilities by training and improving himself every year. As a freshman he saw playing time, but did not receive any all conference honors. As a sophomore he earned an honorable mention, as junior he was name Second Team All-Conference. Finally, in Beau's senior year he as named First Team All NWC for his excellent play as a defensive tackle.
Beau had a wonderful sense of optimism and good cheer. He had the incredible ability to brighten your day with just a smile and laugh. His positive energy always lifted the spirits of everyone around him.
Beau lived life to the fullest, shortly after graduating from college he moved to Fiji where he enjoyed tropical weather, free diving and spear fishing. He was a man's man and a guy whom I was proud to call a friend. Beau really savored life. He lived more 24 years than most people do in 84 years. I will always admire him.
Beau taught us a lot by the way he lived his life. His death although tragic teaches us a powerful lesson about keeping things in perspective. The day I learned of Beau's passing I marveled at the juxtaposition of my friends facebook statuses. Almost all of my college friends had statuses that reflected the tragic loss of a cherished friend. Sandwiched directly in between two of the Remembering Beau statuses was one by a college cheerleader (she goes to school in another state and never had the great fortune of meeting Beau) her status read, "L!$@ is studying at the library. FML (FML is short for F#@* My Life).
I was stunned. I'd spent the better part of the afternoon editing a tribute video of Beau while wiping intermittent tears and here was a person that was studying at a nice, warm, quiet library, learning new things and enriching her life and deemed such an experience worthy of anFML. Unbelievable. Far to often we as Americans get so wrapped up in ourselves and our own self-indulgent pettiness that we become totally unaware of what real loss, hardship and pain are. We think of things in terms of what we have to do instead of what we get do.
I'm determined to apply the wonderful lessons that Beau's beautiful life so clearly illustrated. We should all do our part to live up to Beau's standards, now that he is gone there are some rather large shoes to fill.
Every person is unique, important and valuable. We should all recognize this fact and do our best to treat every person with care and respect.
Think about it, Do you consider yourself to be unique? important? valuable? Do you want to be treated with care and respect? Of course!
Does is stand to reason that all other people think of themselves as unique, important and valuable? Does is stand to reason that they would want to be treated with care and respect? Of course!
Let's delve further into our uniqueness, importance and value.
Uniqueness - Each of us has a unique genetic code contained in our DNA and made different decisions and had unique life experiences that have shaped us. At this moment and every moment you are totally unique, it's impossible to be un-unique.
Importance - This is your life. This is your only chance to be the unique person that you are on this earth, forever. Make it count.
Value - You are the only person in the history of the world with your exact blend of talents and abilities. You can contribute to the world in your own special way that nobody else can. You can help, heal, comfort, love, teach, care and create in a way that is totally your own.
A few months ago, I toured the Getty Center for the first time. The Getty is basically LA's version of the Louvre. It has some of the most incredible art works ever created. My jaw dropped when I entered a room filled with paintings by the masters of impressionism and post impressionism; Masterpieces by Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, and Cezanne lined the walls. The crowning piece in the collection is Vincent van Gogh's Irises. It's a one of a kind masterpiece worth well over $100 million.The value of the artwork in the room is mind-boggling. There's easily over a Billion dollars worth of Art just hanging there, in that one room! Visitors from all over the globe crowded around the various masterpieces. Excited for the mere opportunity to glimpse them in real life.
I smiled as I stood in the room, realizing an incredible paradox. People from all over the world were standing in awe, viewing some of the greatest masterpieces of all time. But think of the value of the people! The people in the room are all one of a kind! The people are all masterpieces! The people move and breathe and think and live! The artwork in all it's glory, is refined to hanging on a wall.
If van Gogh's Irises is worth well over $100 Million than each and every person in that room with me at the Getty must be PRICELESS.
People are all masterpieces and they should be treated as such! We should treat everyone like the unique, important and valuable masterpiece that they are!
We must strive to treat others with respect! To treat all people the way we want to be treated. We are all masterpieces.
We are all imbued with our own unique potential. Each individual can contribute to the world in their own special way. It is up to each of us to maximize our gifts for a life well lived. Certainly my genetic code limits me; I'll never be as tall as Shaquille O'Neal or jump as high as LeBron James or swim as fast as Michael Phelps or match the brain power of Stephen Hawking. I can only be my best and you can only be your best.
We should evaluate ourselves, by comparing our current reality to our full potential. The difference is the progress yet to be made. Not only should we aspire to improve our health and fitness and live up to our physical potential, but we should also strive to improve ourselves along our entire spectrum of humanity. We should push ourselves to love more, care more, be more selfless, more disciplined, more honorable, more courageous, more committed, more reliable, more patient, more humble and more helpful.
To develop a great physique it is paramount to develop strength of character. The work of building a healthy, fit and beautiful body requires fortitude. I will be the first to admit that I act foolishly and immature at times, but I'm constantly striving to improve; to be more mature and more thoughtful, to hold myself to a standard that is in alignment with my deepest values and most tightly held beliefs.
Often times we find ourselves bogged down by the need to compare ourselves to others. This is utterly pointless. I can only be my best and you can only be your best. Real victory in life is living up to your potential. Comparing myself to someone else doesn't make me any better, it only wastes time. This past season I was named "Defenceman of the Year" in my hockey league. Sure, it's wonderful to be acknowledged by my peers, but I was more satisfied knowing that I played with maximum effort every game all season.
I love competition and I firmly believe the spirit of competition can push and motivate us to be our best. Whether we win or lose on the scoreboard is irrelevant. If I were to race Michael Phelps in a pool, the smart money would be on him, but if I pushed myself and swam my best race and set a new personal record I would feel successful and victorious. We should be constantly striving to smash through our previous bests. This is what transformation is all about, being our best and constantly improving.
Also, if you really think about your true potential, the person you could be if you dedicated your life to constantly improving yourself in all aspects of your humanity, think about how amazing you could be....
Think of how loving you could be, Think of how caring you could be, Think of how selfless you could be, Think of how disciplined you could be, Think of how honorable you could be, Think of how courageous you could be, Think of how committed you could be, Think of how reliable you could be, Think of how patient you could be, Think of how humble you could be, Think of how helpful you could be.
Think of what your best really is.
Take action and be your best. Live your life to the fullest. Align your thoughts, words, and actions with your core beliefs. Measure your success based on the difference between your potential and your reality.
Be all that you can be, for yourself and for others. Remember, you are a unique individual, nobody else on Earth has the potential to contribute to the world in the special way that you are capable.
Best, Chris Krueger
This morning a very spiritual TSCer in NYC sent me this quote. I believe it's entirely fitting to conclude this article, "God's gift to us is who we are when we are born. Our Gift to God is who we are when we die."
The Bonus Program offers you the opportunity to go above and beyond the Heart of a Champion Program. It allows you to set the bar higher and achieve a more miraculous transformation.
The Bonus Program is not extra credit; TSCers have the responsibility to themselves to complete all of the Heart of a Champion workouts. The Bonus is for TSCers that want to take their transformations to the next level and smash through their goals.
Best of all, the Bonus is fun! As you advance on the POWER-10 Challenge, your body will become more healthy, fit and athletic. The Bonus is simply putting your body to good use and enjoying physical activity.
There are three levels to the Bonus Program. a. Foundational Health and Fitness b. Above and Beyond c. The Champions Circle
RECOMMENDED BONUS ACTIVITIES Baseball/Softball, Horseback Riding, Snow Shoveling Basketball, Ice Hockey, Stair Master/Elliptical Bowling, Ice Skating, Surfing Build a Snowman and go Sledding, Marital Arts, Swimming Construction, Mountain Biking, Tag/Capture the flag Cross-fit, Paintball, Tennis Cycling/Spinning, Rafting, Volleyball Dancing, Roller Skating/In-line Skating, Wakeboarding Flag/Touch Football, Skateboarding, Walking Gymnastics, Skiing, Wii Fit Hiking, Snowboarding, Yoga
THE HEART OF A CHAMPION BONUS PROGRAM LEVELS
Level 1: Foundational Health and Fitness: TSCers perform all the prescribed workouts in the Traning-10 program and strive to consistently improve their performance. They adhere to the principles and rules of the Nurtrition-10 program and make stunning transformations. Level 2:Above and Beyond: TSCers meet all of the Level 1 requirements and perform Bonus activities on 3-4 different days during the week in order to make astounding Transformations. Level 3: The Champions Circle: TSCers join The Champions Circle when they commit to meeting all of the Level 1 requirements and perform bonus activities 5 or more days during the week. Champions Circle TSCers perform bonus activities joyously and feel blessed to have the opportunity and ability to use their bodies in so many fun and dynamic ways.
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You should enjoy each bonus activity for 30 minutes or more. Please note that you must accomplish bonus activities on different days of the week to count towards Levels 2 and 3. For instance, if you wake up at dawn on a Saturday go surfing at Huntington Beach for a few hours and then meet some friends and play beach volleyball for two more hours and then decide to go in-line skating to Newport Beach and back, you will have enjoyed a wonderful day at the beach, but this will only count as 1 day toward Levels 2-3. Alternatively, you could take 45-minute walks every evening Monday thru Friday and join the Champion’s Circle. The Bonus Program is really about enjoying your body and physical activity. You should play at the beach or play in the snow or train for a black belt or go for peaceful walks in the evening. Find activities that you enjoy and do them! Join The Champions Circle.
Many gyms today market themselves as state of the art. They possess row after row of sleek and sophisticated machines, that are neatly ordered and sometimes even color coded.
The reason for this... MARKETING! It's much easier for the salesperson to sell you a gym membership by touring you through row after row of sleek and futuristic looking machines. They'll probably even demonstrate one of these amazing novelties and ask you to give it a try for yourself.
You'll sit in their machine, and they will select a very easy weight and have you perform a few reps. Then they'll tell you how you just have to follow a simple color coding or numbering system to get in great shape and... presto, you're be back at the sales desk signing a membership contract. The Rise of the Machines was predicated by the need for gyms to sell memberships. They changed the basic paradigm for what a gym really is. They made it into a showroom to tour clients.
A gym should really be a workshop for craftsmen (and craftswomen) to build healthy, functional and beautiful bodies. This kind of a workshop only requires a few pieces of equipment, a pull-up bar, an adjustable bench, a set of dumbbells and some other assorted free weights (barbells/squat rack). That's it. Basically, what you need is the BASICS (big surprise).
But this would be a tough sell for the Fitness Consultant (i.e. Salesperson) at your local chain gym. A sales tour that took you past a rack of dumbbells and a row of benches and squat racks would not be nearly as persuasive as a stroll through the gleaming machine showroom.
People were getting into great shape way before The Rise of the Machines, how do you think they did this? Answer: FREE WEIGHTS.
Your body and all human bodies are designed to lift and move objects against the force of gravity, they are designed to move "free weights."
The body is also hardwired for survival. We have a programed fight or flight response. Under stress our bodies trigger the sympathetic nervous system and begin pumping adrenaline into the bloodstream. From my personal experience, I find that using free weights does a much better job of activating the body's survival response and releasing endorphins that create a natural high. I simply do not see people getting that jazzed or high on life while using machines, usually the people on machines look really bored and boredom leads to the 3 most common exercises in any gym. Check out this article to find out what they are: http://transformationsuperchallenge.blogspot.com/2008/10/post-up-and-park-bench.html
I'd like to coin a new term for machine exercises, I think they should be called "Forced Weights" because machines force you to use a specific and often unnatural range of motion. They force you to fit the exercise instead of vice versa.
Free Weights allow for a natural range of motion. Using dumbbells allows you to perform exercise like the chest press and shoulder press in natural arcs, unlike machines which force you to press the weight in a straight line. Using Free Weights develops balance and coordination as you are responsible for guiding the weight through the complete range of motion. Furthermore, Free Weight exercises fit you! Since the weights move freely through your range of motion your body is able to align itself naturally with proper form and posture.
TSCers, Let FREEDOM RING! Training with Free Weights fosters balance, coordination, core strength, and creates fit, healthy and beautiful bodies. Get in the gym and make it happen.
Best, Chris Krueger
ONE SMALL CAVEAT: Occasionally, machines makes sense, like if you are working with a physical therapist to rehabilitate an injury. However, if you are an able-bodied person use FREE WEIGHTS!
To transform our bodies we must train with total focus. BUT WHERE DO WE FOCUS?
On the weight? The mirror? Our Form? The music? The surroundings?
ANSWER: in the Muscle.
Training with weights is a wonderful and life-affirming activity. You push yourself to your limits. You test yourself and what you're capable of; both mentally and physically. You experience sensations in your body that make you feel alive, you feel the pump as oxygen rich blood rushes into your muscles as they squeeze and extend and the burn from lactic acid building up as your muscles fatigue. This is where you need to focus. Put your mind in the muscle.
The weights we use are simply tools for self improvement. Hammers don't build homes, carpenters do. Weights don't build a healthy body, you do. This is why it's important to select weights that challenge you, that push you to your mental and physical limits. They take you to a place where you feel the pump and the burn. But don't focus on the weight...
Focus on the Muscle. Focus on feeling all the sensations as you SQUEEZE and EXTEND your muscles. Of course this causes the weight to move up and down, but your focus needs to be on squeezing your muscles tightly and then carefully extending them.
In the gym we reach a point of perceived failure. The point at which we feel that another rep is impossible and out of the question. This is only a test, I guarantee that this initial perception is a false barrier and merely a mental construct. You must decide to push further and achieve greater. I promise, if you believe it, you can achieve it.
Imagine that you are the point of perceived failure, but suddenly everyone in the gym stopped what they were doing and started shouting and encouraging you to get one more rep. At this point you would summon the strength and fortitude to complete at least one and probably many more reps. You're perceived barrier was totally fictitious, it was a mental block. You can always override mental blocks and take your body to your true physical limitations. To do this you must pour your heart out and give your true 100%.
I will be the first to admit that often times I let the mental block shut me down. I hold back. I surrender. I reach a point of perceived failure and decide to quit instead of summoning the courage to persevere. I'll attempt to justify it to myself, "I'm already in good shape." "My ____ is fine." "It's just not my day." "I don't feel very strong right now." "I'll hit _____ hard next week." No matter how many excuses I can think of, I can't get that set or that workout back. It's gone for good, and I am the one that missed out, I'm the one that quit.
This situation reminds me that I need to do my best right now! We can only live in the present moment and it is up to us to be our best here and now! You can learn from the past and plan for the future but you can only live NOW. When you give anything less than your best, you are letting yourself down. Always strive to be your best right now.
Of course their are hiccups and disappointments along the way, but they should not be dwelled upon. Learn from past and move on. Flush your mistakes and get back to the present.
I started this article planning on discussing "mind in the muscle and focus" for weight training and ended discussing life in much broader terms. I believe the reason for this is because training and physical transformation is one of the best metaphors for life. In life we hopefully all aim to improve and progress, to be our best today and even better tomorrow. This directly parallels physical transformations. We all want change, but not just a generic change in any direction. We desire change for the better, we want Progress. Think if the Butterfly changed into a Caterpillar, that would be a monumental disappointment.Progress, Progress, Progress is our call of duty. For all the TSCers that have swayed from the path of health and fitness you can reclaim and recommit yourselves to your goals right now. Flush the mistakes, and get on track.
It has become chic to eschew the isolation training of arms. Some fitness hipsters believe, isolated movements like biceps curls, triceps extensions and raises that focus on the posterior deltoids (the "rear delt") have fallen out of fashion. Many arguments against these exercises are entirely pretentious.
As TSCers we train for health and fitness. We want to feel good, look good, and be good. Therefore the POWER-10 program uses exercises that develop symmetry, balance, and proportion. The goal is to sculpt an aesthetically pleasing physique that enhances our ability to enjoy life or stated another way, the goal is form and function. As humans we are always attracted to the fusion of form and function, example: Lambo's and Ferrari's, beautiful cars, excellent performance.Isolated movements like the biceps curl, triceps extension, and rear delt raise are essential to developing form and function.
These exercises also have added benefits beyond making you look better. The "isolation" movements in the TSC program will test your balance and core strength. Keep it mind almost all TSC exercises are done with free weights! (The exception is lat-pulldowns, which we only use until we are able to build enough strength to do pull-ups).
When TSCers perform exercises like the standing alternating pronated curls, they must balance themselves as they curl dumbbells through a free range of motion. This is entirely different from sitting in a machine and moving a lever through a forced range of motion.
Also the TSC "isolation" exercises develop grip strength which is essential to improving your ability to perform compound movements, like the dumbbell row. How can you lift a weight that you can't hold? It's impossible, therefore exercises like hammer curls actually make you better at compound lifts.
Grip strength is an example of a limiting factor, the factor that prevents you from performing another rep of a certain exercise. Another example of a limiting factor is triceps strength when doing chest presses. Often times we will get to a sticking point when performing chest presses, on what becomes our final rep we are often able to lift the weight off our chest, but our triceps lack the strength to straighten the arms. Thus your triceps strength is really your limiting factor. Ergo, additional triceps development will allow you to train your chest better. The same is true with dumbbell rows and the rear delts, in many people the posterior deltoids are actually atrophied and severely limit the ability to row anything from a dumbbell to a canoe.
Furthermore, all additional lean body mass serves to raise metabolism! So even slight additional hypertrophy in the biceps, triceps and posterior deltoids will increase your metabolism. Plus exercising these muscles will allow you to burn additional calories using what I call after burn, the calories that your body burns repairing the muscle tissue that you damaged during your workout.
In addition to the functionality of training your biceps, triceps and rear-deltoids in isolation, there is the tremendous aesthetic benefit to your physique. Well muscled arms on men and toned arms on women look much better then weak or flabby arms. Also the biggest benefit of isolation training is probably seen in the rear deltoids. Small and atrophied read delts cause the shoulders to appear slumped forward and have a shape like a "D." Ideally we we want to achieve shoulders with an "O" shape. This symmetry and proportionality will have a dramatic effect on your posture. Hypertrophied posterior deltoids along with a strong back help us to walk taller and more confidently. Also ladies, more shapely shoulders look better in every thing and well trained rear delts will really pay off in a summer sun dress.
Finally, the isolation training of the biceps, triceps and rear deltoids that is being ignored by many fitness hipsters, is really really FUN! Its a joy to do these exercises, I love training rear delts, triceps and especially biceps! Curls are a great exercise to close the week. The pure joy of that last set of curls is wonderful.
Expect to set goals, follow the program and achieve incredible results in 10-weeks. Then continue to pursue your goals and set new ones. You may be able to burn up to 50 lbs of fat and build 5 lbs of muscle in just 10 weeks, it's up to you. Strive for constant and consistent improvement.
The program works every time that it's applied, but you have to apply it!
Fear and Pride are two extremely powerful sources of motivation.
FEAR Motivation literally scares you into action! It often comes after a check-up, when your doctor tells you about your unsafe blood pressure, adult on-set diabetes or other obesity related health issues. The Fear motivates you away from your current condition.
PRIDE Motivation compels you to act based on your self-worth. It often begins with a long look in the mirror and the thought "I'm better than this and I expect more from myself." Pride motivates you towards your goals.
Both are powerful sources of motivation, but I believe PRIDE motivation is more useful and longer lasting.
Fear motivation will only inspire you enough to avoid health risks, but it will never motivate you to be your best. Also Fear motivation dissipates as soon as you are out of the "danger zone" however, Pride motivation can compel you to new heights as you pursue excellence.
I encourage you to take pride in your health and fitness, to always do your best and to TRANSFORM NOW!
Get The TSC HEART OF A CHAMPION Training & Nutrition Program and Make it Happen!
This morning I was blessed to wake up in America! Sure the economy is slow, the stock market is tumbling and we are firmly planted in the midst of a recession. But is it really that bad? Or are we actually blessed beyond measure?In Sudan, women and children sleep in fear. There is GENOCIDE in Darfur happening right now! Men are conscripted into the military and forced to rape children and murder innocent women. Villages are burned to the ground and families are scattered into the desert without food or water.
You are blessed. You are blessed. You are blessed.
Please count your blessing and make the most of them. Love more! Care more! Be patient. Be humble and be your best!
I'm blessed in so many ways and I hope that you are too. I have the ability to read and write. I have a family that loves me and great friends that truly care. I'm blessed to live in a nation where Freedom rings!
Think of how blessed you are! You're reading this on the Internet! Worldwide, roughly 1 in 5 people are illiterate! And less than 23% have regular access to the Internet! If you are reading this, you are blessed.
In America, we often get so bogged down being negative. We look at everything we don'thave and become unhappy. Start looking and what you do have and REJOICE. Everyday you wake up in AMERICA is a blessing. Make it count. Make it your masterpiece! Do something that really matters.
Find a way to help others. It's easy, you can go for a walk and smile at every person you see. Smiles are contagious and they bring instant happiness. You can brighten the lives of others just by smiling!
If you need a reason to smile, think about how blessed you truly are!
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Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Everyday I receive dozens of emails from all over the world. Most of them include the line, "I need to lose weight."
Two things are wrong with this statement:
a) it uses the word lose. From now on wanting to lose should be a thing of the past. TSC Transformations are about being in control and winning! The words lose and losing should be eliminated from your vocabulary. Instead use the word BURN!
b) it uses the word weight. The word weight doesn't convey whether you want to lose muscle, fat, bone, or possibly a kidney. Given that bones, kidneys and muscle are extremely important to your transformation, it's probably best to specify that you want to BURN FAT!
However the statement "I want to burn fat" is simply an unrequited desire.
You need to turn this into a real goal, by giving it a timeline and quantifying it.
First of all, you should know that it's entirely possible and actually quite easy to burn off 1.5-2.5 lbs of fat per week. In fact if you're obese and you want to really challenge yourself it's entirely possible to burn 30 pounds of fat in the first 30 days of the TSC program.
To set your FAT BURN GOAL, you should select a healthy weight for your height (use the BMI chart) and subtract this number from your current weight to get your FAT BURN GOAL.
EXAMPLE: My friend David started the challenge at 6'3" and 317 pounds. He used the BMI chart to pick 192 lbs (a healthy weight for his height) as his goal weight. To get his Fat Burn goal he does the following equation.
317 - 192 = 125 = David's personal FAT BURN GOAL.
Then to get his timeline, David chooses an amount of fat that he will attempt to burn per week. He could easily burn 1.5-2.5 lbs of fat per week, but Dave is particularly hardworking and ambitious. He decides that he will burn 5+ pounds of fat per week. He then calculates the number of weeks it will take him to achieve his goal.
125 pounds / 5 pounds per week = 25 weeks to achieve his goal.
David looks at his calender and circles Today's date and flips forward and circles the date 25 weeks in the future and writes "192 pounds!" He circles it several times, underlines it, and draws huge arrows pointing to his goal. Now he has a literal date with destiny.
Along the way David will track his progress by weighing himself every Sunday and writing his new weight on the calender.
As mentioned previously, David is particularly ambitious and has set even more goals for himself:
David's Goal List: Weigh 192 pounds. Perform 10+ consecutive wide-grip pull-ups. Perform 30+consecutive push-ups. Run the mile in 7:30 or less.
David also puts these goals on a timeline and tracks his progress on the calender. He even makes copies of his goal list and posts them around his house; on the fridge, the mirror in his bathroom, on the microwave, next to the front door and he even makes a wallet-sized list that he takes with him everywhere.
His goals are 25 week in his future, but he starts feeling better, happier, more optimistic and in control immediately. You can too! Get The TSC HEART OF A CHAMPION Training & Nutrition Program and Make it Happen!
TSCers: Make it Happen! Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Best, CK.
PS: If you read this article and said, "heck yeah, that sounds great, I'll sign up for a marathon and start training as a distance runner," PLEASE DON'T! If you need a laundry list of reasons why this is a bad idea, please email me.
In director David Lean's epic film, The Bridge on the River Kwai, British POW's are forced to build a bridge for their Japanese captors during WWII. In the film the British soldiers are faced with very unpleasant conditions at their POW camp. They are slaves to the Japanese, but they refuse to see themselves as such. They maintain their dignity by taking pride in their craftsmanship of the bridge. They literally whistle while they work. They see themselves as soldiers making the best of their situation, rather than slaves suffering at the hands of their enemy.
During the POWER-10 Challenge it is your duty to yourself to make the best of your situation. TSCers train 6 mornings per week (for 20-30 minutes). It's your choice to either slave through your training or to figuratively "whistle while you work." Choose to view yourself as an empowered individual in the process of an inspiring transformation. Take pride in crafting a fit, healthy, wonderful body and in making the best of your situation, remember, it's not where you start, but rather where you finish that counts.
Make Today Count! Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
Best, CK.
Note: The Bridge on the River Kwai won the Oscar for Best Picture (1957)
Yesterday, President Barack Obama signed the $787 Billion Stimulus Plan into law. The Stimulus Bill is intended to grow and strengthen the economy and increase American confidence. Will it work? I sure hope so!
One thing is certain, TSC offers it's own stimulus plan, The Heart of a Champion Training & Nutrition Program and it works every time it's applied! It gives all Americans access to a proven plan of growth, strength, and increased confidence.
A recession is an ideal time to begin The Heart of a Champion Program. The Program is a great value and will probably be the wisest investment you ever make. The nutrition program will save you money on your food expenses and gaining access to the proper exercise equipment should cost you less than a dollar a day.
The HOC program gets results! It uses the same proven principles and basic exercises that have always crafted fit and healthy bodies.When transforming your body and life it's not where you start that matters, it's where you Finish! TSC will show you the proven path to great results.
Everyone dreams of having a fit healthy body and feeling happier and more confident. What most of us don't realize is that a wonderful body and feelings of success and empowerment are entirely within our grasp. As a matter of fact you can accomplish all of this, while exercising less than 30 minutes a day, saving money on food and spending less than a dollar a day to gain access to essential training equipment.
After signing the Stimulus Bill, President Obama declared that, "We have begun the essential work of keeping the American dream alive in our time."
Begin the essential work of making your American Dream a reality. Transform your body now and change your life forever. Get the TSC Heart of a Champion Program and Make it Happen! http://www.tscheartofachampionprogram.com/
I want you to know that you are not alone. Every morning TSCers from all over the globe rise, shine and transform. There are TSCers living the Heart of a Champion Training & Nutrition Program everyday all over the world.
Thanks to the power of the Internet we have been able to spread the positive life affirming messages of TSC all over the globe. Everyday TSCers on 6 of the world's 7 continents (so far we have no known TSCers in Antarctica) use our proven principles to craft wonderful healthy bodies.
TSC is now a global community and success stories are pouring in from all over the world.
-Brian, a father and business owner in Southern California is down two belt loops after just 2 weeks on the program.
-My friend Dave called yesterday and shared that he had burned enough fat and gained enough muscle to lower his Body Fat by 5% in his first 10 days on the Program! That's a phenomenal improvement.
-Dan in Michigan emailed me a few days ago to let me know that he had burned off 14 pounds of Fat in less than 2 weeks!
-In Hawai'i another TSCer reports that he's "getting shredded!"
-In Mississippi one dedicated TSCers burned up 6 pounds of body fat in his first week on the program and reports that he can "already feel the transformation momentum," beginning.
-Women are also experiencing great success using the proven principles of the TSC program. In California, a mother/daughter team has burned through 16 pounds of body fat in just 4 weeks. Both report that they are feeling better and loving the results.
We are part of a global community, we are all connected. When I wake-up and drive to the gym on Mondays I'm amazed to think that all the TSCers in Europe have already done their morning training and are probably about ready to head home from work or they're fully immersed in a bonus program activity. Literally, the Sun never sets on the TSC community.
Keep up the great work TSCers! Please continue to spread the life affirming messages of TSC. Refer your friends and family to the TSC blog. Tell them to get The TSC HEART OF A CHAMPION Training & Nutrition Program when they are ready to join our world wide transformation community and Make it Happen!
Besides being phenomenal athletes Phelps and A-Rod have something else in common, they're both human.
A-Rod is a great ballplayer and Phelps swims like a merman, but what qualifies either of these men to be worshiped as heroes? Our culture perpetually lifts ordinary men to "hero status" because they have a singular extraordinary talent.
Charles Barkley had it right when he said, "I am not a role model... Parents should be role models." Let's face the fact that celebrity idols are really in the business of selling sneakers, fragrances, sugary breakfast cereals, Happy Meals, soda pop, extreme energy drinks, expensive watches, designer t-shirts, books, fancy cell phones, satellite TV, credit cards, video games, and the list goes on and on and on.
Everyone is human. Being in a commercial or on a cereal box doesn't make you a hero. It makes you a pitchman.
We should admire real heroic acts. Acts that require courage, valor, fortitude and the will for self-sacrifice. We need to understand that the real heroes are ordinary people, that act heroically, when they are called to do so.
Capt. Chesley "Sulley" Sullenberger III is recognized as a hero for the Miracle on the Hudson a courageous water-landing that spared New York City a major tragedy and saved the lives of 155 passengers. Rosa Parks is recognized for her heroic act of civil disobedience which sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Heroes abound, think of all the FDNY firefighters that rushed into the twin towers to save innocent people on 9/11. A staggering 343 firefighters laid down their lives that day.
Remember, real heroes are real people just like you and me. They act with courage, valor, fortitude and the will for self-sacrifice when they are called to do so.
On the other hand, celebrity idols are pitchmen that try to sell name-brand merchandise to a nation of rabid consumers.
We are all ordinary people, we are all human. In fact it is our humanity that allows us to be great. Our humanity demands that we feel pain, fear and anger, but it gives us the opportunity to transcend these feelings as well. Our humanity gives us all the opportunity to be heroes.
WARNING: THIS POST IS PARTIALLY SATIRICAL
Stop popping pills whilst taking the elevator or escalator. Go for long walks and take the STAIRS! They are proven to burn fat and have zero of those annoying harmful side effects.
