Boot Camper in the Spotlight

Do You Know Joe?

At first glance Joe Hirschman is just an average guy. But there's a lot more than meets-the-eye with Joe. He joined Body Basics Boot Camps last January and has been a regular ever since. From day one Joe understood what boot camp is all about. He is always the first one to arrive at 6am and starts his own warm up whether it be running a lap or doing light calisthenics. I imagine Joe's a self-starter in all that he does.

Like many men his age, Joe had let his diet and exercise take a back seat so-to-speak to his work and family. It happens to the best of us Joe! I wouldn't be here today if I didn't have my own story to tell.

But unlike many people, Joe decided to change his life, and man is he is on a roll! Below is Joe's story in his own words. As you read Joe's narrative, imagine what you would challenge yourself with. What makes Joe so special? Well, in two worda, "Joe does", and that makes him our boot camper in the spot light.

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Joe's Story

As a prefix to this story, I realized at this point in my life I want and need to challenge myself. Most people reach a point and everything becomes routine or work-related, but they are unchallenged on a personal level. Last September I took on 3 distinct and new challenges.

In no particular order:

1. To perform 35,000 pushups in one year.
2. To start exercising on a regular basis and drop 20lbs.
3. To learn a second language.

I started doing 25 pushups each morning and night. Soon after a co-worker told me I inspired him to do 75 a day. Doing this many push ups a day would really add up and I decided I would do 100-a-day for an entire year or 35,000 pushups. One hundred a day would be a bigger challenge and just seemed so much more impressive.

Forty-five weeks later, I have now done over 32,000 pushups and I am now shooting for 36,000 to 37,000 total pushups for the year.

This takes determination and a some effort. In addition I train four days-a-week at 6am. I have greatly improved my diet and I am in better shape than I have been in for quite a few years. Our 6am workouts with Larry Wasserman at bodybasicsbootcamps.com are an even bigger challenge with bigger results. Not only am I reaching new goals, but I am taking better care of myself.

My third goal is also a work in progress. I have been taking Greek lessons for the last 6 months. I am able to read and write in Greek which even impresses me! I have a decent vocabulary but stringing together more than a simple sentence and conjugating verbs is very complex.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. My message to you is to ask you to challenge yourself. Every day we are challenged professionally and invest a huge amount of time in our family lives, but we don’t create personal challenges since we are so busy at home and at work. There is much more time than we realize. Turn off your TV and turn that time into something more productive. You just might amaze yourself.

- Joe Hirschman

What's Really Stopping You From Getting In Shape?

Last night I received an email from someone who informed me that he may join boot camp, but he has to check his schedule with his employer. I wrote him back with this message,"Good luck, hope it works out".

I was angry at myself for letting him off the hook so easily because this person just "doesn't get it". He doesn't understand that boot camp is a metaphor for life. Nothing ever seems to fit into my schedule in a way that is perfect. It seems that no matter what I plan, no matter how far in advance, something comes up that throws a monkey wrench into the works.

In the end we are left with having to make a choice. We can move forward as planned and deal with the inconveniences (or consequences), or change our plans to accommodate an easier plane of existence, i.e., less stress and greater peace of mind.

Well, I've lived long enough to be able to look you straight in the face and tell you that "option B" will get you nowhere. If you are willing to give in to whatever will keep you from your dreams and goals then you will never accomplish anything in life worth while.

If you are the type of person who always changes course the minute things get tough, so that you'll have a more comfortable life then you also need to evaluate what it is you are asking for. Take health and having a lean muscular body for example. Do you think the people that look amazing have lifestyles that allow them the ease and flexibility to go to the gym everyday? Do you think that none of them have marriages, kids, or careers?

Take a good look in the mirror and ask yourself, "What is it that I really want?" What ever it is, if you want it bad enough, you'll do whatever it takes to get it. And if you don't, then either you don't want it bad enough, or your "fear" of success and thus lack of confidence is running the show behind the scenes.

If you desire to be fit, there are tasks you must do every day and that require focus, diligence, and the tenacity to handle life's unpredictable events. Unfexpected chaos is around the corner all day long. Sometimes its a business meeting that could keep you at work for an hour longer than you planned. So, do you skip your "after work" training session altogether, or do you just go an hour later? Depends on how bad you want the end result, right?

So back to my young man who clearly hasn't learned this lesson yet. He doesn't know what he really wants, or he doesn't want it bad enough.

T. Harv Eker has a great saying. "How you do anything is how you do everything". Think about your life. Where do you put the majority of your focus? What events occupy your time the most? Are you out of balance? Maybe it's time to shift your priorities a bit.

Changing the way we do things is often the hardest thing to do for some people. You have to really want to make change in your life. You have to be very emotionally distressed by your circumstances to effect great change. It always comes with a price. You must also be willing to make the necessary sacrifices and that means being uncomfortable to a large degree.

In the end having a lean muscular body or achieving anything for that matter boils down to three things. They are: knowing what you want, having powerful reasons 'Why" you must achieve it, and then be willing to be uncomfortable until you suceed.

Press on!
Larry

Boot Campers in the Spotlight

I think it's important to recognize people's strengths and character. One of the things I love about being a Coach is helping people discover their "inner strength".

But some people have their own brand of character that drives them. I want to share these moments with all of my readers and celebrate these individuals. They are many in number, but from time to time some stand out for the little things they do. Mostof the time they don't even recognize their own strengths. I'm not talking about how many burpees or pushups they can do, but their strength in determination and drive to change their health and ultimately their lives.

This week's Member in the Spotlight is a two way tie. On the left is Mary Grace Suitovsky and on the right is Rosanne Lemongello. This is Mary Grace's first week of boot camp and she came to two classes in one day on Friday!

On her very first day this week, MaryGrace was a bit timid and held back. It appeared that she was not sure that she had made the right decision about joining boot camp. But look at her now, just a few days later swinging a dumbbell into a wood chop. That's just awesome MG!

But not to be outdone is Roseanne Lemongello who came to Friday night boot camp direct from work. She didn't have time to go home and change her clothes. She is pictured here swinging a kettlebell in her bare feet as she couldn't maintain a stable stance in her shoes. Look at the photo, she's actually barefoot and wearing her work clothes. Wow! Can you say determination?

Way to go ladies. You rock! Keep up the great work!

8 Reasons To Drink More Water

You hear it all the time, "Drink more water". But not many people drink "enough" water daily. In pursuing simple ways to improve your health, drinking more water would be at the top of the list.

There are many different advantages to drinking more water throughout the day, all of them equally important. I would like to stress to you that we as a population NEVER get enough water during the day. Look at the graphic above and review the 12 facts.

Those of us that make a point of drinking more water than the rest usually lose that excess water while exercising, be it running or biking, swimming, etc.

To become properly hydrated the average person needs to drink more than 60 ounces of water a day. You are probably thinking that if you drank that much water you would go to the bathroom 35 times a day and would never get anything done. There is some truth to the humor.

The first week or so of drinking that much water you will go to the bathroom much more frequently, but your body is also processing a lot more toxins and waste out of the body that it couldn't before. After about a week of living in the bathroom, your gradients will balance out and you will be back to your normal bathroom routine while still drinking the increased amount of water.

Here's 8 Facts to Also Consider

#1 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. (Likely applies to half the world population)

#2 In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is mistaken for hunger.

#3 Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as 3%.

#4 One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study.

#5 Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.

#6 Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.

#7 A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

#8 Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%., and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.

Are you drinking the amount of water you should drink every day?

Patriotism and Overeating

Overeating is as American as apple pie, especially on holidays. I don't know what it is about our culture, but every time I go to someone's home for a picnic, not only are people shoveling huge portions into their snouts, but there's more food left over than was consumed. There must be some kind of cultural imperative where if you run out of food, or if someone leaves a party hungry, you'll be shunned from the community. It's crazy! What is it with our obsession with food? Are we scared that we might run out? The way we're "consuming", we might!

Just because there is copious amounts of food being served doesn't mean you have to pull out all of the stops and eat everything in sight. I have a system that I use on holidays and I want to share it with you so that when Father's Day and the 4th of July roll in, you can empower yourself to enjoy the day and not over indulge. Hell, nothing is worse than the feeling of having a volleyball stuffed into your gut from eating too much food.

Isagenix to the Rescue

Here's what I do. I went to a barbecue on Sunday. I knew I was going and I had an Isagenix IsaLean shake for breakfast, several snacks of apples and almonds, couple of bottle of water in between. Isagenix Isalean shakes are not only healthy beyond description, but they are very satisfying so that you can easily go for hours without being hungry. I find them to not only be a staple in my diet so that I never miss a meal, but they are the perfect pre-party food.

The party was called for 5pm, so I had a second IsaLean shake at 4pm so I would not be hungry when I arrived. This way I could sample a few appetizers and not feel like I had to park myself next to the chips and dip like a pit bull.

The appetizers were in a word...appetizing! I had three little pieces of focaccia bread with a tomato-herb spread on it. Then I had three tortilla "scooper chips" filled with 6-layer dip. Meanwhile, I'm drinking water like a thirsty camel. The cooked food was grilled burgers, chicken, and hot dogs. So far so good. Now I have also skipped on the alcohol, but that's easy for me as I don't drink anyway. But if you want to make a dynamic impact on your health, I recommend you skip the alcohol due to the extra calories associated with it.

I started with a hamburger that my son decided he didn't like. I got it with a few bites missing so it was actually 2/3 of a burger (4-5oz). I took it out of the bun and ate it like it just came off the grill. Then I had a piece of grilled chicken (about 3oz) and 3/4 cup of what my wife calls "NJ garbage salad". The salad has bow tie pasta, lettuce, tomatoes, a balsamic dressing and crispy chinese noodles sprinkled on top. About a half hour later I had a grilled hot dog with mustard on a hot dog bun. For dessert I had a slice of watermelon and a 'sliver' of chocolate peanut butter pie.

I was not hungry, and truthfully, I did not over eat. In actuality this meal was the perfect opportunity to let my body know that the food gates were not closed and that there is no need to slow down metabolism.

The food choices I made may not have ben the healthiest selections, but that's okay too. Every now and then your body can handle a few extra calories and foods that are not exactly "health food". And that's the message I want you to understand. If you pay attention to what you are eating 90% of the time, you can splurge 10% of the time. So please don't beat yourself up if you "over ate" a little on Memorial Day.

But now that the holiday and the weekend is over, get back to your routine and stay the course. If you continue to cheat on Tuesday you'll soon regret it as you begin to watch the bathroom scale numbers go up.

I'd like to get some feed back from you! So please make the time to "dish" and share your story about how and what you ate this weekend. Also, please let me know how you felt too! Come on, don't be shy, add a comment below.