A Standing Ovation

I wanted to share a simple lesson I learned yesterday at a middle school honors band concert.  Sidebar: Despite all my athletic prowess, I am a band dad.

There were three bands, one for each grade and it was the 8th grade band director that did something that caught my attention.  The previous two bands stood up after their final of 5 pieces, took a bow and sat back down.  With each of the previous bands the audience stood and celebrated these fine young people.

But the director of the 8th grade band did something different.  After the very first piece he had the entire band stand.  As they stood, the polite applause grew to an ovation.

Then the band sat back down, played their next piece and exact same thing.  The band rose and as they rose so did the ovation.

While not an entirely new phenomena I took something away for you and me.  Each time the band rose, so did the applause.  With the rising applause so did the confidence of the band.  With rising confidence came a better performance by these young musicians.  And by the end of the 5 musical selections a standing ovation was in order!

I realize as we workout, run, exercise, eat healthy and make good choices that there is not an audience of proud parents and grandparents standing there cheering you on to eat your broccoli or finish your burpees.  But what if we imagined there was.  What if at the end of that sweaty push up filled workout when we pulled our hotself of mess off the floor we heard applause?  What if as you finished that last 100 yards of a run in weather that the mailman even refuses to deliver in you raised your hands as if finishing the Boston Marathon in front of thousands of people?  Maybe they are not there, but what if you imagined them there.  In your head heard them cheering you on.

What I have learned in my short time with my own fitness and helping others is that the body is ready to give more, it is our minds that get in the way.  The applause even if just imaginary frees you up to push past the mental barrier that is truly far short of your limits.

It is a thankless job getting healthy and fit, but one that should be celebrated.  Even if your audience in imaginary, I honestly believe the principle holds true.  That with each time your hear the applause your confidence grows.  Each time your confidence grows you perform better.  And with better performance comes better results.

So for you, here is your STANDING OVATION!!!

Focus T25 Review

Beachbody, the world leader in home fitness, took it to a whole new level!  As a Insanity grad, I was anxious to try Shaun T's new program Focus T25.  While I loved, loved Insanity, that second month of workouts lasting up to an hour were physically demanding and tough to always squeeze into life.

So what excited me most about Focus T25 is that workouts were just 25 minutes, 5 days a week.  Fridays on the calendar are double workout days.  You can, if desired, move the second workout to Saturday and take just one rest day, instead of 2.  Included and to be used on the rest days is a 25 minute stretch video which will improve flexibility and stretching.

Now admittedly, I was a skeptic that just 25 minutes would deliver the results, but I know Beachbody does everything with excellence and would not put out a product that did not deliver the results.  And Focus T25 DID JUST THAT!

Here are my 10 week before and after photos.  I lost around 6 pounds but the proof is in the pudding, my body was totally transformed. I finally saw some abs show up.  My arms no longer looked like spaghetti and my overall shape was better than when I was 16 years old. In full disclosure, I was running on Sundays as well.  The weather was just too nice not to run.  

Why do I love it?  25 minutes, 5 days a week and results like this!  What's not to love?

The first 5 weeks is the ALPHA phase.  This is a building phase.  Workouts build on themselves, no equipment required and the bonus is the modifier.  A modifier is a person demonstrating a lower impact way to do the exercise and still get great results.  I saw a lot of fat loss during this first 5 weeks. 

The second phase is BETA.  BETA builds on ALPHA.  Some of the same exercises are carried over, now with increased intensity. Additionally, this phase will require some equipment either the resistance band included or dumbbells.  What I saw in this phase was increase muscle building, especially in the upper body.  

Here are the workouts included:

Your FOCUS T25 program includes:

ALPHA Cycle 25-Minute Workouts:

• Cardio. 25 minutes of calorie-burning, sweat-drenching cardio.
• Speed 1.0. Ignite your quickness. Burn the fat. Fast-paced for fast results.
• Total Body Circuit. Focus on strength and resistance—without lifting a single weight.
• Ab Intervals. Cardio and ab intervals that shred the fat from your midsection.
• Lower Focus. Focus on your lower-body muscles—the key to burning fat and kicking up your metabolism.

BETA Cycle 25-Minute Workouts:

• Core Cardio. Get your sweat on! This progressive cardio-core workout is about you getting shredded fast.
• Speed 2.0. Rev it up with Shaun's calorie-scorching, core-focused speed drills.
• Rip't Circuit. Cardio … upper body … legs … abs ... repeat! This is how you get ripped in 25 minutes.
• Dynamic Core. You'll go from vertical to horizontal and back again in this dynamic, crazy core routine.
• Upper Focus. Shaun will help you develop the upper body of your dreams. All you have to do is FOCUS.

Plus T25 Nutrition guide:

Meals are quick and easy to fix with just 5 ingredients in most meals!

Beachbody has an upgrade third phase called GAMMA.  GAMMA steps up the game one more level for increased results! 

This is perfect workout for everyone, even those just starting out on their health and fitness journey.  When put together with Shakeology you will get the results you desire!  

Are you ready to focus?

Les Mills Combat Review

Beachbody unveiled their second program from world renowned fitness trainer Les Mills -- Les Mills Combat.  Combat is an mixed-martial arts style home based fitness program that packs a punch!

Let me just get this out of the way, probably one of my favorite aspects of the program where the Aussie and New Zealand accents of the trainers Dan and Rach.  Okay, I said it!  

Now to the program.  The base kit came with 7 different workouts.  Five of them were primarily cardio based fighting workouts.  The workouts pull from several different areas of the world of martial arts including Muay Tai, kickboxing, karate, tae kwan do and traditional American boxing.  The mix of moves target your arms, shoulders, legs and core all the while peaking out your heart rate.  

In addition to the 5 fighting workouts, there are two HIIT (high intensity interval training) workouts.  These work a blend of upper and lower body areas.  As well as targeting that core.  With these workouts, you will need a dumbbells, a weight plate or a resistance band could be used as well.  

What makes this program a great choice for any fitness level is the use of a modifier.  With every workout is one member of the cast reducing the impact of the moves but still maximizing the results you are going to get.  While not an incredibly difficult program, there is lots of challenge and delivers on the results.  

The calendar of the program is 10 weeks long (63 days) with a 6 day/1 rest day schedule.  The calendar is also modifiable for different fitness levels mixing in a longer workout for those looking to maximize their results.  Workouts range from 30 to 60 minutes.  There are also a couple upgrades that will include additional workouts and weighted gloves for increase results.  

Here is list of the workouts:

• LES MILLS COMBAT: THE BASICS. Master the techniques and mixed martial arts moves, guards, and stances you will use throughout all the LES MILLS COMBAT workouts.
• LES MILLS COMBAT 30: KICK START. A low-complexity but high-intensity workout, introducing you to the basic LES MILLS COMBAT combination moves.
• LES MILLS COMBAT 45: POWER KATA. This workout combines speed and power with cross-training for complete calorie scorching.
• LES MILLS COMBAT 60: EXTREME CARDIO FIGHTER. Challenge your endurance with a high-repetition sequence of moves that will have your muscles firing on all cylinders.
• LES MILLS COMBAT 60 LIVE: ULTIMATE WARRIOR'S WORKOUT. Upper body . . . legs and butt . . . core and cardio . . . this workout hits every muscle hard.
• LES MILLS COMBAT: POWER HIIT 1. High Intensity Interval Training uses short bursts of maximum effort followed by recovery to push you into muscle-conditioning overload.
• LES MILLS COMBAT: SHOCK PLYO HIIT 2. Uses propulsion exercises to improve athletic power and endurance, pushing you into peak performance mode.

I love the results I got !

Letupicitis the dream killer

It is a common disease that strikes many quickly and suddenly.

It has destroyed the strongest of men and the bravest of women.

It is a silent, decimating killer.

It's Letupicitis!  Commonly known as quitting, letting up, slowing down, pulling back and backing down.

It is the moment you taste the start of success in your goals and instead of hitting the gas you "let up".  It the day you step on the scale to see you have dropped 3 pounds and reward yourself with a Big Mac and a day off, instead of pushing play.  It is the moment after you have posted your third blog of the week and decide to cool the keys and wait on inspiration.

Letupicitis is rooted in the bacteria of disbelief.  It is contracted on the microbe of a poor self perception and spreads on the virus of a poor self perception.

It is known as the dream killer disease.  It slowly infects the dreamer and keeps him/her from pushing past barriers to new levels.  At one point or another we will all contract this silent killer of imagination, passion and conviction.  If you let it, it will infect your heart and keep your from achieving the dream you set out to.

Know the symptoms, recognize the signs, and push past letupicitis!  

A YUGO of a Ferrari

I dogged it this morning...

Not proud of that, but it's the truth.  Here's why:

I believe that we have the capabilities to find the physical fitness of a Ferrari.  A Ferrari is a high powered, sleekly curved, sexy machine.

Truth be told, I have treat myself a little more like a YUGO with all it's economical, boxy shaped, 3 cylinder, top speed of 40mph styling.  There are drive-through bags on my floor board.  It is way past having any kind of maintenance done.  And I feed it whatever I can find.

And this morning I felt it.  

At the starting line of my daily workout when I stepped on the gas to push through,  I got what I put into my body, a sluggish, slow result.  

In order to operate physically as a Ferrari, instead of YUGO, you have got to fuel your body like a Ferrari.  This means fueling up on whole foods, plenty of H2 and the O.  This means knowing the difference between treating yourself and going full on buffet on holiday dinner.

Lesson learned...

Do you feel the difference in your workouts when you eat clean?

Reminder Pants - The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

In my closet are lots of pairs of pants, but more specifically two specific pairs of pants.  I call them my "reminder pants".  

The Good - 
These are a pair of black suit pants.  They are a size 38.  To be honest, my chubby buns and dunlap belly I am sure stretched it past the 38 inch waist line.  There were Sundays when I would pour myself into those pants and uncomfortably suffer through the service. 

Now I am a true 34 inch waist!  Woot!

Those pants serve as a reminder of where I have come and how much progress I have made.  These are just a simple reminder of the good!  They remind me of the wins in my health and fitness.  The wins in my weight loss journey!

It's amazing reminder!

The Bad -
The skinny pants that I wear to work.  Like all of you I have moments of slipping back into poor habits.  There are days I skip workouts and feed my face fattening foods.  As I slide into those pants and pull that waist line across my belly I am reminded that I need to get back on track.  

Just the feel of those pants snuggling up under that little pooch belly that rares it's head when I make excuses for my health and fitness.  It reminds me "Jeff you need to refocus".

The Ugly -
Simply get rid of these.  Just a reminder that sometimes you make terrible clothing choices.

Enough said!

A Moving WHY

As many of you already know if you have read any of my previous blogs, my main reason I started on this journey of health and fitness (other than running out of clothes that fit) was my three kids.  While that reason remains true, what I have found is that my WHY has become somewhat fluid.

My weight loss journey started as a runner and about a year and half ago progressed into being a Team Beachbody Coach.   Since then I have tackled programs like P90X, Insanity, Les Mills Combat, Focus T25 and two very uncoordinated weeks of Turbofire!  I became a coach for two reasons. One to help me stay accountable to my own health and fitness.  Two, in order to create some secondary income for my family.  While neither of those reasons have changed, I had my eyes opened wide this week.

My beautiful 6 year old daughter has tumbled into loving gymnastics and she's good!  In just 8 weeks she has progress from Division 1 to Division 3, which is an amazing accomplishment!  I have already done the math, we are on track for the 2024 Olympic Summer Games!

Here where my eyes were opened!  In a conversation, with another parent of an older gymnast, I found just what the price tag is on competitive team gymnastics.  Let's just say I could drive a very nice car for what the monthly fee is. I mean VERY NICE!

Nothing is more a driving force toward success than the needs and desires of your children.  While I wanted to be successful in my business for multiple reasons, that WHY expanded greatly knowing what lies ahead of our family if our little tumbler stays on beam toward becoming a world class gymnast.

Author George Barna wrote, "Realize the future is not something that just happens; it is a reality that is created by those strong enough to exert control over their environment."  That is the challenge that lies ahead.  Taking control of my environment to create a future where Avery has every opportunity to succeed.  This goes beyond her gymnastic future and spills into every opportunity for all three of my kids.  As a parent, your heart always bends toward wanting to give them everything.  While I may never be able to give them everything, the provision for the future will not just happen.  It requires a vision and a plan driven by one really BIG WHY that I want it to accomplish.  And today that why is the dreams of this little girl...

4 Tips to Picking the Right Workout

So you are ready to start...but where do you start.  Here are 4 tips to think about when picking the right exercise and fitness program for you.

1) Pick something you LIKE to do.

If you like cardio, do cardio.  If you like to hike, hike! Running your thing, go run Forrest! It is important to find a program, a schedule or workout that you enjoy.  If you enjoy your exercise regime, there is a greater likelihood of you dragging your rear end out of bed to do it.  Pick something you like to do.  Pick something that you look forward to doing.

2) Pick a program that MATCHES your goals.

If you are trying to lose weight, then the program you are doing needs to match that goal.  You want to add mass, than you need to workout in a way that adds muscle mass.  Your goals and your program need to match.  This will prevent discouragement because you will actually get the results you are looking for.

3) Pick a program that fits your ability.

The worst thing you can do is take on more than you can handle.  This often results in either injury or be overwhelmed and quitting.  Make sure that what you choose to do matches what you are capable of doing.  Now this is not permission to not push yourself to your fullest potential.  Yet, understand that you need a program that is aligned with your capabilities at the current moment.

4) Pick a program that fits your lifestyle.

If you don't have 2 hours a day to go to the gym, than a fitness program that requires 2 hours a day will never work for you.  This is not a excuse for you not to workout or leverage the "I don't have time" excuse.  Yet, you need to have an understanding of what fits into your schedule.  There are plenty of great programs that are 25 or 30 minutes and get results.  Or if you have an hour, find a program that goes a whole hour!  Just make sure what you chose will continue to fit into your lifestyle.

The greatest tip I can give is just to pick something.  Get moving, get started, and start seeing results!

Work to Play

The overriding question to ask is WHY?

   Why be healthy?
   Why to active?
   Why improve your fitness?

What I realize is that everyone has a different specific reason as to start and pushing through their personal health and fitness journey.  Yet, I  believe that each of us could agree that there is one common reason for all of us.  We put in the work in order to play.

It doesn't matter what your play is.  It could be hiking, rafting, rock climbing.  That type of play requires you to push toward a peak physical condition to thrive in that type of hobby.  If you golf, play softball or just some YMCA basketball, being better physical condition means that at the end of those games you are less exhausted, less sore and recover faster.

Yet, maybe your play is shopping or singing KAROKE on a Friday night.  Does being in better health improve these?  Why not!  Isn't more exciting to shop for clothes that fit you better?  Isn't enjoyable to go the store and buy something a size smaller?  And what about KAROKE?  Well, sure.  Better cardiovascular will help you belt out those Celine Dion notes from the Titanic Soundtrack, you diva!

No matter what your play is, improving your physical conditioning and health can make that activity even more enjoyable.  Improving your health will prolong your life giving you more time to enjoy those hobbies and activities.  Improving your health will in the long term lower your medical expenses and give you more resources use toward enjoyable activities.

So why do you put in that work, why do you sweat, strain, push and dig deeper?  In order to play!  Go make the most of your work and enjoy your play time!

Jeff Pitts Fitness

New and Improved Greenberry Shakeology

Over a year ago when I started this journey with Beachbody, I was instantly in love with Chocolate Shakeology.  My wife, not such a fan.  She on the other hand loved the not so sweet taste of Greenberry.  Let's just say I disagreed, strongly...(yuck).

Several months ago, Beachbody went back to the lab and reformulated the Greenberry flavor.  I am a natural skeptic, so it a has taken me this long to try it again.  Here are my thoughts on the new, improved Greenberry Shakeology.

I mixed it with:

•  1/2 cup of soy milk
•  a frozen mixed berries - blueberry and raspberry
•  ice and water

The first thing I noticed was the flavor.  Where the previous flavor had (to me) a bitter after taste, that no longer existed.  The flavor was smooth and I actually...liked it!  I know this sounds silly, but the berries blended to a more lavender color.  For some reason, I struggle with drinking something green.  That was maybe more mental than anything else.  The new improved Greenberry had the same great results - energy, digestion, and all the great dense nutrition from all the other flavors.  

While not going to be my everyday flavor choice, I am more inclined to drink it on occasion.  Still love my original Chocolate and falling quickly for Vanilla!

Focus T25 Review - Alpha Phase

I am a self proclaimed Insaniac.  I got hooked into Beachbody with the high interval training program by Shaun T, Insanity.  Shaun T and the good folks at Beachbody have gone back to the studio with the crazy idea that 25 minutes a day, 5 days a week is all you need to get in the best shape of your life.  Honestly, the skeptic in me came out.  Just 25 minutes a day!!! No way!  But anything that allows me to a few more minutes of sleep in the morning is worth trying.

After just 2 weeks, I can tell this is another world class program from Beachbody!  The key, as Shaun T will reiterate over and over is to Focus.  Each move asks you to focus on a specific area of the body.  As you "focus" you maximize the effectiveness you get from each exercise.  And water breaks...forget a water breaks.  This a non-stop 25 minute sweatfest!

The first 5 weeks is Alpha.  This is the base for what will come in the second 5 weeks, Beta.  There is a third phase which you can add as an upgrade called Gamma which includes some added weight work.  The base kit is just the Alpha and Beta phase, along with a resistance band that is to be used during the Beta phase of the program.  The program is a true 25 minutes with an additional 2-3 minute cool down after the workout!

I look at this as a working man's workout.  One of the most common excuses for not exercising is not having enough time.  This program eliminates that excuse.  In a very short and quick 25 minutes you can get in the workout you need and want!  I am really excited to see my results and will post before and after pics once completed!

After just one week I broke through a plateau and tipped the scales under 170 pounds for the first time since my junior year of high school.  I am stunned at the quick results.

To Shaun T: Thanks for an extra 15 minutes of sleep in the morning!

Rowboats and Ocean Liners

I have always been okay with just enough.  Whether that was in a relationship, in business, in faith, in my fitness, in my health, in my finances and in general, life.  I have felt like most of my life has been spent in a tiny one man rowboat where I have done nothing but tried to fix the holes to keep it floating.  Moments of peace have come in between times of constant repair of the tiny boat.  I have often been envious and even jealous of those on the ocean liners of life.

Today was a watershed moment in my life.  Today, I decided I was done trying to fix the rowboat of my life.  No, I haven't quit, but I have decided to take on a new project.  I have parked the boat along the shore and decided to leave that boat behind.  I am going to build an ocean liner, the S.S. Hope is what it will be called!

My little rowboat was my personal dingy that on occasion was capable of taking along a passenger or two.  The rowboat kept me from achieving bigger things in the life.   The S.S. Hope will have the capacity for hundreds if not thousands of people to go on the journey with me.  What I have realized is that life is done better with others.

Many of you are like me and you find yourself in the sinking ship and busted boat.  You find yourself fighting just to stay afloat.  You have come to the intersection of despair and overwhelmed.  You have hit walls that you can't break through.  The end of your rope does reach the end of the dock.  Your ship is sinking!

You are in the sinking ship of a broken and unhealthy life.  You may be in the sinking ship of broken financial situation.  You may be in the sinking ship of a broken marriage.  You may be in the sinking ship of unsatisfied career choice.  You find yourself in a  sinking ship of your life!

What I realize is that an ocean liner takes time, even years to build.  It is not an overnight project, but a lifetime endeavor.  Building an ocean liner is not something that one man can build alone, heck even Moses had the help of his sons.   Building an ocean liner takes a team of people to dedicate their time and energies and life to make it happen.

My hope is that you will become a part of the S.S. Hope.  My hope is that you will join as a passenger in finding hope through changing your own life, through a physical, emotional, and mental transformation.  My hope is that you will find this ocean liner to be a place of refuge, a place of inspiration and place of motivation.  A boat of hope!  If that is you, the S.S. Hope is now boarding.

Some of you will choose to be join the crew of the boat of hope.  You will sign up to be a coach and share hope and help to those in need.  You will join because you know that all of us can do more than one of us.  You will join because you recognize people need hope.  You will join because you have been a passenger on the boat and found your own hope.  You will join this crew because you believe in the mission of offering hope to people!  You will join because you know that one single row boat does not have the capacity to bring the change that needs to happen!  If that's you, then we want you on board as part of our crew!

The S.S. Hope is now in production.  The S.S. Hope will soon be boarding. The S.S. Hope is a place for you!

Counting calories counts

Darren Hardy in his book The Compound Effect talks about the challenge of paying attention to the small details.  He poses the question how much more likely are you to reach your goal weight if you counted every bite, crumb, scrap of food you put in your mouth.  That bite of cereal, the "dad tax" bite off your kids plate, the little "taste" of this unbelievable dessert.

Oftentimes, those are the calories we forget.  No, I am not trying exaggerate here and saw that your little nibble is what is keeping from your goals.  But enough nibbles during a day will add up.  The challenge is to track every calorie that we take in, in order to create a calorie deficit for that day.  The complex idea of weight loss has a simple formula, burn more calories than you take in.  Now there are many other factors, but a great starting point to achieving weight loss is to do the math -- count calories!

There are some great tools that make this even more convenient:

MyfitnessPal

SparkPeople

LiveStrong -- save the Lance jokes.  It is still a useful tool.

plus many more in the App Store or Google Play for your smartphone.  Which leads me to this point, all these calorie counters you can take with you.  No EXCUSES for not keeping track!  So do it!  I want you to have a beach ready BEACHBODY!  Do the work, eat right, and keep track!!

Another Reason WHY

This weekend our family took a short getaway to Caribbean Cove Hotel and Waterpark in Indianapolis.  The waterpark was your typical indoor facility with kiddie area, activity area, lazy river and 3 water slides.

My youngest child is my little diva.  She is 5 years old and working on 15 most days.  It took me a little convincing, a couple dollars cash to get her down that first waterslide, but once she did...it was I could do to keep up.

Here is a little perspective, the waterslides stand 40 feet up in the air, 4 stories high, 4 stories of steps...multiplied by the enthusiasm of a 5 year old girl who kept saying "daddy, one more time."  Every one more time meant picking up our bright yellow intertubes, lugging it up those 4 stories of steps, to sit her down on that tube and give her smiling face a push down that slide.

It was just 7 seconds of bouncing and bumping down that yellow tube on that air inflated tube to get to the bottom of the pool only to find her their soaked by water but having the time of her life.  And then those words "one more time" was reason enough to pick up that tube and travel up those 4 flights of stairs one more time.

There is a difference between being a dad and being an "active" dad. Being an active dad means not sitting on the sideline and watching them slide, but traveling along side them down the slides of the journey.  It has been a journey for me to lose the weight, get healthy and get fit.  But days like yesterday make it worth it.  Worth every step, worth every slide down, worth every water soaked smile on her face.  Just one more reason why I am stay healthy!

A Recovering Fat Kid

If you have ever worn anything with Husky in the title...you might be a fat kid.

That was me, the chunky, husky kid (with a brother that wore jeans with slim in the title).  I was that slightly overweight athletic kid.  While always good at sports, I was even better at a buffet.  I loved food and food loved me back.  For whatever reason I could not out run the calories I was taking in.  I was active, energetic and played outside.  I was part of the pre-video game society.  We played hide and seek, kick the can, and ghosts in the graveyard.  And I was still the chubby kid.

Here is the intriguing piece of this puzzle, most of us grow up to still wrestle with that fat kid.  I am Jeff Pitts and I am a recovering fat kid.  This is because over time our metabolism slows down and so do we.  The one lesson that we continue live out is how we still eat like a kid...pick at our green veggies and sliding them off to the dog.  We must muster through some mustard greens in order to fill a bowl full of ice cream.

As a recovering fat kid I have had to swear off sweet tea, end my love affair with Chex Mix and close the bag on my deep seeded desires for Peanut M&M's.  I have had to mature into a passionate consumer of broccoli, a master chef of veggie medley and daring daredevil of things that fall in the vegetable category.

There are not meetings for people like me, but there is help.  I have found support in the caring arms of the Beachbody community.  Beachbody is more then the company behind the eye catching informercials for the world's leading fitness programs.  It is a group of fitness minded, exercise lovin', nutrition learning recovering fat kids like me.

Maybe you found yourself in some Huskies in your youth...then I invite you to join me and thousands of others who are recovering fat kids!

Day #22 The Hardest Workout

No it is not P90X or Insanity Pure Cardio...it is the workout that you don't want to do.  Tonight was one of those nights.  I was fighting a headache, so every time I jumped my head throbbed.  I watched the seconds tick slowly as my only thought "oh Lord, when is this going to be done!"

Sometimes the hardest things are the things that you feel least like doing.  On the flip side of that coin is that those workouts are oftentimes the most rewarding.  I may not have burned as many calories as a workout that I felt fresh and ready to go, but the emotional reward of pushing through a difficult workout is as much a gain as workout you attacked.

These are the moments that are a test of grit, a test of determination, a test of discipline.  Tonight I had all three....

EXERCISE:
LES MILLS COMBAT Extreme Cardio 60

21 days in the rearview

January 7th I put a ground and said NO MORE!   I weighed in at 184.7 pounds, by far the most I had been in several months.  Let's be honest, it was a steady diet of monkey bread and Christmas cookies for about 2 weeks over Christmas and New Year's.  While tasty on the tongue, it was killing my around the gut!

So I kicked of 2013 with Les Mills Combat, Shakeology, and focusing on what I eat and as of today, I weigh 180.1.  Not the weight loss I hoped for but seeing some great results in the change in my shape.  While I do have a weight loss goal that I want to reach my focus is really beginning to shift.  I could press and workout extra, trim additional calories and get completely stringent to get to that goal.  And that would be fine.  But what I know about myself is that if I sprint to that goal, I will eventually run out of gas and while I might hit that number on the scale I know that my weight will yo-yo back up.

As with most things in life, the "tortoise" wins - slow and steady wins the race!!  My goal is to become actively healthy, not just a specific weight.

RESULTS HAPPEN HERE!

I would love to hear your comments!

Are you a cheater?

Friday nights at Casa Pitts are blocked off as a family night (at least as best as our schedules allow).  After a long week, prepping a sit down meal at close to 7 PM (after finishing our other Friday responsibilities) is just not feasible.  So our Friday night is our "cheat night".  It is the one night a week that nutritionally we let our guard down a little bit and make frozen pizza or sandwich bar or something easy and pop in a movie and just chillax as a family.

So I wanted to pass on some tidbits of wisdom from a cheater like me.

1.  Take caution in what you cheat with -

Just because you allow yourself a cheat meal does not mean that meal has to lack complete nutritional value. If  you get a pizza make sure has some veggies on it.  If you are going to eat sandwiches use a lighter cheese, skip the mayo and use mustard or even avocado as a replacement.  You want chips with that sandwich, even here you make a better choice about the chips you eat.  Cheat with wisdom, if you eat out you can still enjoy a yummy meal, but do it responsibly.  Just because you are eating a cheat meal don't make a wasted meal full of empty calories because...

2. Your body knows what it wants -

Here is the reason you need to make sure even when you cheat, you cheat right.  Your body is smarter than you are.  It's true.  When your body has a need for protein you will crave meat or eggs. When you body has a need for calcium, you might want cheese or milk. Your body knows what it needs and signals your brain "hey get us that." One of the dangers of a cheat meal is not fulfilling the need of your body.  When that happens your body tells your brain "hey we need something else and more of it."  If that something else is not what your body needs it will keep sending that signal to your brain.  Your brain sends the signal to the rest of you and you find yourself with your hand back in the bag of chips even though you are not hungry.  Which leads to...

3.  Overeating

A cheat meal does not mean 5 trips to the all you can eat buffet.  While you will more than likely blow your typical calorie count for a meal out of the water (my meals range from 350-425 a meal), this is not an excuse to eat like you are in the 4th of July Nathan's Hot Dog eating contest.  You need to still have some portion management.  So you may go back for a bite of seconds, but thirds, really, fourths.  At the bottom of the bag of whatever you are eating is regret.  So take caution!  Manage the amount of what you are going to eat.  Just because it is a cheat meal does not mean that you throw out the discipline you have the rest of the week.  Consider this a controlled indulgence.

You don't bust your backside to not enjoy life.  We fight for our health through diet and exercise in hopes a living a happier and healthier life.  Give yourself some grace on occasion to cheat.  Just cheat with caution.  It is still cheating and cheating can always lead us down a slippery slope and leave us caught elbow deep in a tub of ice cream.  So enjoy your pizza, your occasional scoop of Rocky Road, even juicy steak, but make this the exception to your life and not the rule.  If you let poor habits rule what you eat you will be right back to the point you were before your journey toward a fitter you!

Day #18 Emergency Plan

So I live in a place where if it snows the world seems to stop. Stock up on bread and water from the local grocery, because you are not going anywhere. The emergency plan here in the Bluegrass is to just stop doing whatever you had planned.  This seems quite familiar with most people's health and fitness plan.

Most people don't just decide to stop exercising or just stop going to the gym.  What typically happens is that some sort of storm in our life happens and we don't have an emergency plan for our fitness.  We get in a time crunch so we skip a workout, we have something come up, so exercise gets pushed aside.  What is needed is an emergency plan.

My go to in a crunch, got little time to get the burn in is Insanity Fast & Furious.  It is 22 minutes of heart racing, calorie burning intensity.  It fits neatly into a tight schedule!

Here is why I keep this workout handy, while we all work hard to stick to our programs it can quickly unravel with a missed workout or two.  What we know about habits is that it is harder to build a good habit than it is to tear one apart.  I know that while one missed workout won't necessarily keep me from getting the results I want, I do know that it can start to unravel the disciplines I have put into place.

No matter what it is have an emergency workout plan.  Life is going to happen.  There are going to be days that working out is not going to coincide with life.  Have a plan for those moments!

Day #14 Full Swing

Missed the blog yesterday, but no worries, I did not miss the workout.  Here are some thoughts for your today!

Back full swing, sort of.  

While I am a huge advocate of exercise that is organized and planned out, I am also a huge sports fan.  Today was the start of baseball, well sort of.  My sons play and today we started winter hitting practice.  Remember as a kid when you just went and did.  You played baseball, skipped rope, hide and go seek, and just ran to run.

I think we need to get back to that youthful mentality.  As adults we become calorie counting, treadmill running, heart rate monitor wearing individuals in order to achieve a certain goal.  There are times when we just need to go to go.  Go golf, go swim, go for a walk, go be active.  No calorie counting, no heart monitor wearing (unless doctor recommended), what is the point of being fit and healthy if you are not enjoying it.

Here is why I love being a fit and active dad.  This Spring I will take hour long stretches of throwing pitch after pitch to a 9 and 11 year old.  I will hit ground ball after ground ball.  I will throw fly ball after throw ball.  I will run after errand throws, demonstrate 500 times how to properly chase down a ball in the gap and how to round second base.  I won't count calories burned, but count myself blessed.  Blessed that I have the health and energy to do these things, which was not always the case.

I exercise and eat right so that I spring and summer can be spent giving my best at the ballpark, because they deserve my best....

What activities can you do or do better because you chose fitness?  POST IN THE COMMENT SECTION

REST DAY