Seasons Change And So Should Your Workouts

Now that summer’s over and we all have that back to school, back to our routine feeling, this is good time to rethink your exercise program. It’s easy to get stuck doing the same 5 mile loop, going to the same bootcamp class or following the same exercise DVD for months. And while these workouts may have been effective in the beginning, 2 months later, not so much. Longer than that, and you are probably wasting your time.

It’s time to shake things up. Not only is this better for your body and the results you want, but it’s better for your mind. You will feel excited and challenged. You will look forward to your workouts again and you will love feeling and seeing your body respond to the change.

It’s easy to overthink what changes to make so I’m here to make it easy for you.

If you run the same route or jog the same amount of time on the treadmill, consider:

Lifting weights. Full body circuits are best. Women, if you want to sculpt long, lean sexy muscles, then my trademarked Red Carpet Ready program is for you. For you guys, get back on the program with John Romaniello’s Final Phase Fat Loss (one of my FAVORITE WORKOUTS EVER!). Not only will you build eye-catching muscles but your running will most likely improve as well.

If you spend 5-6 days a week in the weight room, consider:

Switching back to 3 full body strength workouts and adding 1-2 days of yoga. Your best bet will be a vinyasa flow or power yoga class. This is less “om” and more yoga as an athletic event. You will feel better almost immediately, but give yourself at least 5 classes to get the hang of it. Consistent yoga will extend your athletic life.

If you’ve been doing the same DVD or magazine pullout, consider:

A group class experience the power of the pack. This is what I’ve done lately by adding Spinning and an occasional Crossfit class. When you join a group, you get caught up in the collective energy of it. Plus, once class starts, you’re not leaving until it’s over. No checking email or other distractions.

If you need to add some spice to your strength routines, you need a new piece of equipment. My favorites are:

The Ultimate Sandbag


GymBoss Timer


The Valslide

And here’s a video of Jamie Milnes, demonstrating some really awesome exercises for you to add in for a little extra “spice.”

However you are stuck, fall is the season of change. Pick one or two ideas from above and infuse your workouts with energy and fun. The results you get will be a bonus.

Have you recently made a change that made a difference? Be sure to share in the comment section below.

I Want My Bikini (Beach) Body Workout!

Hey! It’s Labor Day weekend so before you go hit the beach or that barbecue, make some time to get a quick workout in. This way, you can enjoy yourself, indulge (a little) and do it without the guilt!

This is a brand new workout inspired by my I Want My Bikini Body Express program. It’s fast and furious – just like I like it. So you can get in, get out, and have fun this weekend.

Give it a shot and let me know what you think.

Then make sure you stop back tomorrow for the Labor Day sale taking place over at Valslide.com. It’s only on for 3 days so don’t miss out!

Fight Beach Body Panic: The Do’s & Dont’s

Don’t go bikini shopping too soon.

Shopping for a new bathing suit can be a traumatic experience. It is not helped by the fact that stores have yet to figure out that they would sell a lot more suits if the lighting was softened and they invested in  better quality mirrors. Also, why aren’t the dressing rooms bigger? I would love if I could step back a little. It’s best to wait until you start seeing changes. When you start any one of my programs you’ll notice your shape changing quickly. Even if you aren’t fully embracing the diet but are using the Valslide, you’ll see your butt start to lift and toned muscles replacing the sagging muscles of your hips and thighs. Commit to my eating plan and watch you belly start to shrink in just days. 21 days after beginning would be the right time to go shopping.

Do take your before picture.

This is not so you can beat yourself up or feel bad about where you are. It is to gain awareness and confront reality. Remember, “The short term pain of accepting the truth is much better than the long term pain of believing an illusion.” -The Daily Love

Don’t do endless cardio.

This is simply a waste of time! If you do cardio, shorten the total time and make it more effective by doing intervals.

Do weight train.

The foundation of all my programs are the strength training circuits. Not only is this your best fitness bang for the buck in terms of weight loss and strength building but weight training will change the shape of your body faster than anything else.

Don’t starve yourself.

You will lose weight in the short term but you will be sacrificing muscles, which helps keep your metabolism high and frankly, just looks better. Girls, skinny fat or skinny soft is simply not sexy. Guys, skinny is not sexy on you either – we need some muscles to grab on to.

Do watch your portions.

You CAN eat too much of a good thing. For your protein, figure about 4 oz. (the size of your palm). Guys, your palm is a little bigger so you will be getting about 5-6 oz.  Veggies,  you can go to town on, but limit your starchy carbs to about the size of a small fist.

Don’t feel you need to workout for 3 hours a day to get results.

You are more likely to burn yourself out or get injured.

Do consider upping your intensity.

We all go on fitness auto pilot from time to time. Consider adding in cardio strength training circuits, advanced single leg exercises, challenging lifts and timed workouts. By the way, my new I Want My Bikini Body Express has them all!

Don’t eat sugar or white flour.

Just consider this off limits until you reach your goal weight. Once you’re there, you won’t miss them so much.

Do choose from a wide variety of lean proteins, vegetables and fruits.

We all fall into food ruts at times but you want to make sure you are getting some variety. For protein, consider salmon, halibut, shrimp, sea bass, cod, organic chicken, grass fed beef or buffalo and organic, free range eggs. Vegetables could be broccoli, asparagus, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, kale, celery, mushrooms, cabbage and so much more. Fruit: berries, apples, pears, plums, etc. Eating for a beach worthy body need not be boring. Experiment!!

Don’t do endless crunches.

The reality is, you don’t have a 6 pack or even a 2 pack because you have excess body fat covering them. You get rid of the fat most effectively through proper diet and strength training circuits. If you want to get your core stronger, then there are better ways to do this than crunches.

Do, do the Valslide Body Saw.

This exercise was first introduced to me a year ago by my friend Michael Boyle and it’s still one of my favorites. When this gets too easy, try it in a full push up position.

Don’t train without a plan.

I see so many people coming to the gym week after week and simply not getting results. They wander from machine to machine without a clear plan or idea of what they’re doing. It is no surprise that they aren’t getting results.

Do follow a plan and  chart your progress.

Whether you are following John Romaniello’s Final Phase Fat Loss or starting my brand new I Want My Bikini Body Express, record your progress and continue to push yourself. You will love looking back and seeing how far you’ve come. Remember weight is not the only measurement. Is it much more fun to see how many more push ups you can do, or how much faster you can complete a circuit. So write it down!

Share your favorite do or don’t in the comments section below…

10 Reasons Why You’re NOT Beach Body Ready

1. You don’t make it a priority. Getting fit is not about having more time but rather deciding that it’s important to you. More important than 30 minutes of sleep. More important than TV or Facebook. More important than endlessly checking email or Twitter. When you make exercise and healthy eating a MUST and not a should, you will get fit.

2. You thought you could start on Monday. It’s Friday. Why start your diet now? Better to have 1 or 2 last hurrahs this weekend. Drinks and greasy appetizers after work on Friday, pizza and a movie on Saturday. Who starts a diet on Sunday? You have to finish off the last of the bad stuff in the house so you can start fresh on Monday. Meanwhile, you probably just gained 2 more pounds. What if you start right now? Drink a big glass of water. Resolve to make a healthy choice at your very next meal, and then do it. The bowl of Skittles at your colleagues desk – ignore it. Get a friend to meet you for a workout Friday evening instead of happy hour. You could try a yoga or spinning class. If you have to meet your friend, it guarantees you will show up. Remember, you are one meal away from someone who eats healthy and you are one workout away from being someone who makes fitness a priority.

3. You leave your nutrition to chance. Please do not assume that wherever you are, where ever you go, healthy food will be an option. The easiest way to beat this is to bring your food with you. Pack your lunch and don’t forget snacks. Carry water with you, always. If you know you are meeting someone for a meal, check the restaurants in the area ahead of time. Look at their menus online. Decide what you will order ahead of time so you don’t get overwhelmed when you get there or swayed by what everyone else is ordering.

4. You are only doing cardio until you lose weight. This one kills me – for heaven’s sake, get your butt in the weight room!! You will get results much faster and look WAY better if you are doing strength training. If you strength train in a circuit like I suggest in my Red Carpet Ready or my soon to be released I Want My Bikini Body Express program, you will feel like you had an intense cardio workout. Of course to really lose weight, you MUST be eating clean but you know that. Eating clean, along with my strength training circuits will give you the body you long for.

5. You’ve been doing the same routine for 6 months. Just because you lost 10 pounds doing Zumba, The Biggest Loser workout DVD of my super effective I Want My Bikini Body program, doesn’t mean it will continue to work for you. So to keep getting the best results, change your program, every 6 to 8 weeks.

6. You’re trying to crunch your way to better abs. First of all, crunches are not going to burn the fat covering your abs, so you need to clean up your diet and do full body strength workouts and interval style cardio, like in my I Want My Bikini Body Express. Second, you need to upgrade your ab exercises. If you’ve mastered the plank, then it’s time to move on to The Valslide Body Saw, Valslide 1 Arm Slide, Stability Ball Roll Aways, Valligators and Witches Cauldron. You’re abs will love it. You can thank me later.

7. You give up too soon. I know you want your beach body yesterday, but you must persevere and you must be consistent. Enough with the “I’ll workout 3 hours a day and eat less than 1,000 calories”. You cannot sustain that. That doesn’t mean that sometimes you don’t lighten things up occasionally or do a detox, but if you are tired of starting over, stop quitting! I don’t think 3-hour workouts make sense if you’re not a pro athlete so let’s look at something more sustainable, and then sustain it!

8. You don’t know how OR are too tired to cook. You do not need to be a master chef to cook clean. Make an effort to learn a few basic recipes and keep staples on hand. With a little practice and a stocked pantry you can have a healthy dinner on the table faster than the pizza delivery guy can make it to your door.

9. You stay up watching Leno, Conan or Jimmy. Sleep is often the missing ingredient in a weight loss program. I know I asked you to get up earlier to workout but if you are consistently sleep deprived, you will not lose weight. In fact, you may gain weight. So, turn off the TV, computer, etc. Darken the room and get to sleep, ideally before 11. If you are in your 20′s and can sleep later and can’t miss a night out, so be it. Just get your 8 hours – it really truly is important!

10. You give your power away – you tell yourself you can’t do it before you’ve really tried. I assure you, you can lose weight, you can get strong, and you can be fit. Get your best body now. What are you waiting for?

My programs work. So do some other programs. The best ones have some things in common. Here’s your 10-step guide:
1. Decide
2. Commit
3. Focus
4. Eat Clean
5. Lift Weights – circuits are best
6. Do interval style cardio
7. Sleep – 8 hours a day
8. Drink more water. More than that!
9. Don’t quit
10. Believe in you. You need to believe too.