TAKE ACTION
a
M
TAKE ACTION
FHP 433 – Now What?!

FHP 433 – Now What?!

by | Aug 16, 2022 | podcast

You’ve reached your goal…Now what?

Now comes oddly the hardest part…MAINTAINING YOUR RESULTS!

And maintenance is hard because it’s a new process in and of itself.

You can’t keep doing what you did to get to your goal – you can’t stay in a deficit forever.

And you can’t go back to what you were doing prior.

Old habits will just lead to you losing everything you’ve worked hard for.

Soooo, what do you do?

Here are 4 tips to help…

#1: Realize that maintaining itself has cycles.

We don’t do one thing forever.

Mentally I don’t think we could handle that.

Plus, there will always be mini goals, ebbs and flows, we need to adjust and tweak to work toward.

There will be times you don’t care as much and hit minimums and get lax.

There will be times you want to look extra fabulous on vacation and dial in those macros for more of a cut.

There will be times you want to lift more. Train for a marathon. Or simply feel in shape.

There will be times you’re out with an injury or surgery or child birth.

There will be times you’re stressed. 

And there will be times you’re super motivated.

The key thing is to realize you can tweak based on any goals you have and even the lifestyle you want or need to work around at that time.

The key is to give yourself mini cycles and end dates and have clear goals for your workouts to keep you motivated.

#2: Be patient with yourself as you transition and retrain your body to eat more.

You have to slowly transition from a deficit to more of maintenance calories.

You will slowly need to increase as you retrain your body to use the increased calories.And you will slowly adjust ratios as well.

Doing one thing at a time can be key. Whether you’re slowly increasing over the weeks 100 calories at a time or first going to more even macros, you want to find more sustainable ways of fueling.

And even then realize you may at time do short cuts with a small deficit. Short muscle building phases with a small surplus.

You may give yourself protein minimums to stay consistent enough or increase your protein for a little cut with set ratios to get ready for that beach vacation.

But you need to start retraining your body to use more calories which is a slow process while also finding a balance to work in more foods you love!

#3: Don’t freak if the scale fluctuates.

There will be times as you learn to maintain that you do gain. Especially to start.

Your glycogen stores will now be constantly full over depleted. So you have to be aware that maintaining may mean a gain of a few pounds to start but it shouldn’t just continue. 

You may also see bigger fluctuations from cheat days or lack of sleep as your body does fight against staying down.

But over time, with patience, you will create that new set point.

And as you maintain for longer, you will find it is easier and easier to stay down and you have more flexibility.

But just realize you can’t restrict or stay super motivated forever, so you need those breaks where you do the minimum. 

Be patient as you cycle learning what feels best. 

And at the slightest gain don’t go back into that deficit. Watch your data but realize that little fluctuations will help.

By tracking you WILL catch anything before you lose progress.

#4: Don’t stop tracking.

It’s tempting to start stringing together workouts based on how you feel. It’s tempting to stop tracking or at least not measuring everything.

But this is a quick backslide into old habits.

Especially because we feel good.

So as you first are retraining your body to eat more and trying to create that new set point, to even help yourself trust the process when the scale does increase slightly, MEASURE AND TRACK EVERYTHING.

Once you’ve maintained for a few months, you may just do tracking check ins if you feel or hit minimums, but give yourself time to really understand what you need to maintain.

Do NOT stop tracking and realize that using it to check in is also a good way to hold yourself accountable!

SUMMARY:

It is key we prepare for maintaining and realize that maintenance is a process. Our habits, lifestyles and goals are constantly evolving. We will never fully do one thing forever. But through macros and clear progressions we can tweak as we need.

So realize that learning to maintain takes time and you will have cycles.

But recognize it is a process and journey in and of itself!

The Most Underrated Bodyweight Quad Exercise

The Most Underrated Bodyweight Quad Exercise

by | Aug 14, 2022 | Blog, Bodyweight, Exercises, Functional Fitness

The best muscle hypertrophy results happen when we include both compound movements and isolation movements to target the muscles we want to strengthen and grow.

But when we don’t have a lot of equipment it can be hard to effectively target specific muscles, like our quads, with isolation moves.

Often when we think about exercises to isolate our quads, we think about the leg extension machine or some sort of cable extension or maybe even band extension.

That’s why I wanted to share one of my favorite bodyweight moves to really isolate and target those quads.

This move is deceptively hard when done right.

And if you have knee pain currently limiting your knee flexion or your ability to kneel, I will go over modifications to still get in bonus quad work!

But do not just demonize this move because of the kneeling or knee flexion.

While not every move is right for every person, lean backs, also often called Reverse Nordic Curls, have even at times been used to rehab specific quad or knee injuries.

Our knees are meant to flex and extend and controlling this movement is key to actually keeping our knees healthy and happy!

Plus this move may be a great way to specifically target the rectus femoris quad muscle because the hip stays in an extended position during knee flexion.

But before I go over modifications and other quad isolation options, what is this amazing bodyweight quad move?

It’s the lean back!

How To Do Lean Backs:

This move looks super simple. But it is deceptively challenging for those quads!

I mention this because, in an attempt to extend our range of motion, often we cheat without realizing it.

To do the Lean Backs, start kneeling with your knees about hip-width apart.

While you can point your toes, I highly recommend starting with your feet dorsiflexed to provide that solid foundation and help with activation. This gives the added bonus of working on foot and ankle mobility. However, if you find it painful you may keep your feet plantar flexed.

If you do find you struggle with calf cramps while keeping your toes pointed, just remember you have the other option too!

Come to that full kneeling position up nice and tall and squeeze your glutes as you brace your abs.

You can reach your hands out in front of you to help with balance to start.

Keeping your glutes engaged, lean back. The movement is coming only at your knees.

While tempting to sit your butt back toward your heels, make sure to keep your glutes engaged and hips extended.

Bracing your abs is also key as it is tempting to just lean back from your lower back.

You’re working your quads to control that lean back and knee flexion. They are working to control and even decelerate that knee flexion.

You are basically using your quads to slow down the eccentric portion of the movement.

Allow yourself to lean back as far as possible with the movement coming at your knees.

Then pull yourself back up to kneeling, feeling your quads working to pull you back up.

Repeat the movement, slowing down that lean back to make sure you’re controlling it.

To advance the move, work through the biggest range of motion you can control and even slow down the tempo further, even including a pause when you’ve leaned back.

If you do have loads, you can always add them to the move to advance it, holding a weight in at your chest or by even using a band anchored behind you so that you have to work harder to press forward and even fight the band pulling you to lean back.

Modifications:

While we need to stop demonizing moves with kneeling or knee flexion and stop stating they are “dangerous” for our knees, they may not be right for people with specific knee injuries, especially to start.

You may seek to build up to the lean back eventually or you may find you never include it because it doesn’t match your needs and goals or fitness level.

If you can kneel but don’t yet have full control of the lean back, you can modify the lean back, by using a band anchored in front of you to assist or even even by holding on to something to control the range of motion.

But if you are looking to improve your quad strength, and find that kneeling or active knee flexion is tough right now, consider including isometrics in your routine to start.

These moves are a great way to really improve your mind-body connection and start to build that strength endurance.

Do not just hold with these moves but actually focus on really feeling those quad muscles work as you even try to engage them harder during the hold.

Moves like the basic wall sit or even bulldog hold are a great way to improve your quad strength endurance while eliminating active knee flexion.

They are a great way to make sure you can engage muscles correctly while even allowing you to strengthen muscles to improve your joint stability.

If you are looking to include some active knee flexion to start, you may even consider seated quad flexes. You can start with just bodyweight and focus on holding harder or even begin to add ankle weights, bands or cables as you feel ready.

Just remember that sometimes we need to regress to progress.

And instead of demonizing moves, simply find the ones that match us where we are at.

SUMMARY:

No matter what tools we have available, there is often a way to find a movement to match our needs and goals.

So if you’re looking for an amazing quad move, give these lean backs a try. They are great to include after a compound moves like lunges or squats to isolate those quads and really make them work!

Learn how to dial in your workouts and your nutrition to see the amazing and lasting results you want…

–> 3 Steps To Results

FHP 432 – Why Ask Why?

FHP 432 – Why Ask Why?

by | Aug 9, 2022 | podcast

As kids some of us loved asking WHY…like annoyingly so.

Ok…we were asking it often more JUST to be annoying, but still…as kids there is a curiosity there to understand more of our world.

But at a certain age, we stop….we stop assessing and being as curious.

However, as annoying as constantly being asked WHY is, we need to embrace our inner child more if we want to learn and grow.

If we want to overcome our own self limiting beliefs and doubts, if we want to break free of the self imposed limitations and negative mindsets, we need to start asking ourselves WHY.

Think about it, how often do you ask yourself WHY you have a specific belief?

How often do you ask yourself, WHY you believe something is a certain way?

How often have you asked yourself WHY you feel you’re good or bad at something?

Why you like or dislike things?

Why you’ve succeed or failed at certain activities or ventures?

Why you are willing or unwilling to do certain things?

Why you even expect certain results.

Think about all of the times we make statements, especially in opposition to making a change, yet never really question WHY.

We just accept things as fact and never dig any deeper.

Kind of interesting when you think about all of the things you’ve never really questioned or assessed.

We either just rule things out or even condemn ourselves for actions without really assessing WHY they happen.

We just even think there is something wrong with us at times…

Like think about eating out of stress.

We’ve all probably done it…

And usually we just feel guilty, which leads to us eating more or even falling off or giving up on our program completely.

But when was the last time you asked yourself WHY you did it?

Why did it happen?

Why did you feel the need to eat out of stress?

Why couldn’t you stop yourself?

Why do you even feel guilty when you’re a human and we’ve all been there?

And of course not just asking WHY but even WHAT you could do to change those things.

What could you do next time to stop or change the behavior?

What could you do to help yourself move forward now?

To often we don’t pause and assess to learn.

And getting in the habit of learning to ask WHY can help us do that.

It can help us overcome false beliefs about ourselves that hold us back.

Like you saying you can’t do something…

Why?

When was the last time you actually tested this or worked to improve at it?

Or you saying you’re too old…

Why does getting older have to stop you?

Why do you believe that age has anything to do with what you’re experiencing? Couldn’t it be other lifestyle factors adding up?

Or even saying you don’t have the time or any number of excuses…

Why can’t you make the time?

Why can’t you work around your schedule?

Why can’t you do something small instead?

Instead of questioning our belief, our excuses or even realizing our priorities, we make statements and hold ourselves back.

Or believing that a certain habit or routine is something specific…

Like for example tracking macros…

Why do you think it is restrictive?

What made it restrictive in the past so you can avoid that now?

Or Keto…

Why didn’t it work for you before?

Because you cut out carbs?

Why did cutting out carbs make it hard? Was it really cutting out the carbs or simply the restriction in general? Telling yourself you can’t have something?

While it may seem unimportant to dive into exactly what it was that sabotaged you, it can truly make all the difference.

Because it being just that you cut out carbs is very different than that it triggered a restrictive mindset as seemingly small a difference as that may seem.

With one just learning to balance in the carbs may be key. With the other you may find any diet that eliminates ANYTHING or simply tells you NOT to include something will make you obsess over it.

The key is in breaking things down to understand the nuance in our feelings, thoughts and actions.

Start QUESTIONING yourself and your beliefs.

BE CURIOUS.

Be that annoying kid to yourself and ask yourself WHY far too many times if you feel yourself resisting a change or believing something negative about yourself.

The more we can dive into the WHY behind things, the more we can truly learn what we need and give ourselves the opportunity to make changes and succeed.

There is more nuance to life than we often realize or take the time to recognize.

But the more we ask why the more we can see the shades of grey that really exist and give ourselves the best chance to improve daily!

So this week, take a second to assess a few beliefs you have about yourself. Take a second to look at habits and changes you’ve resisted. Take a look at excuses you’ve made….

And ask yourself WHY you believe or feel or think these things!

And don’t just stop at one. Really annoyingly dive in!

9 Tips For Faster MUSCLE GROWTH

9 Tips For Faster MUSCLE GROWTH

by | Aug 7, 2022 | Blog, Diet, Exercises, muscle-featured

Gaining muscle, especially without gaining fat is not an easy process. Especially if we’ve usually just focused on weight loss, it can require a very different focus for our training and fueling.

That’s why I wanted to share 9 tips to help you dial in your workout routine and diet to see the best muscle gains without doing a dirty bulk, causing you to ultimately gain a ton of fat you just have to lose later!

#1: Use All Three Drivers Of Muscle Growth

There are 3 drivers of muscle growth – muscle tissue damage, mechanical tension and metabolic stress. So often we try to rely just on muscle tissue damage, lifting heavy and seeking to be sore.

We even skip those silly looking pumper exercises with mini bands that have small ranges of motion and really burn.

But when we don’t use these different moves with different ranges of motion, different points where the muscle is under the most tension, we miss out on using all three drivers of muscle growth.

We have to remember that soreness not a great indicator of how hard we’ve worked, we also may constantly be beating ourselves down, instead of using all 3 drivers to allow for the best results as quickly as possible.

Don’t only just focus on those heavy compound lifts and heavy weights.

You don’t just want to use big range of motion movements that load the muscle most when stretched like squats and deadlifts. Also use moves like hip thrusters, where the muscle has the most resistance applied where it is strongest (mechanical tension). And even use moves that create that pump and burn to benefits from the hypertrophy created by metabolic stress. Think mini band moves and smaller ranges of motion where the muscle is constantly under tension!

#2: Don’t Fear Protein and BCAAs

Protein is the building block of muscle. We need to make sure that we’re giving our muscles what they need to repair and rebuild.

And especially as we get older, we become less able to utilize protein efficiently.

It’s why timing even more protein, and specifically amino acids, right around our workouts can be key to create that anabolic environment.

This is extra essential for any women in menopause. It’s why you may find it essential to supplement with BCAAs prior to, or during your workout, while following up your workout with a quick protein shake or lean protein meal.

With hard training sessions, and our changing hormone levels, we are actually at risk for catabolizing muscle mass if we don’t get sufficient fuel to support growth even while focusing on lifting.

So using this timing around workouts, and optimizing everything with a BCAA supplement can help us get better results faster by making sure you get your muscles the fuel they need to repair when they are primed to do so.

#3: Stop Cutting Down Your Rest Times

Too often we try to make our workouts harder by cutting out rest between moves. But the more we reduce rest, the less we recover which means we may be able to lift less each and every round.

When driving toward muscle growth, we want to avoid just turning our workouts into cardio by eliminating rest. We want to focus on making each round through moves or supersets or trisets as hard as possible through how much we lift and maximizing each rep so we NEED the rest to recover for the next round to keep maintaining, or even increasing the weight.

The heavier you lift, the more you should want and use that rest to recover between rounds.

So as you change from even weight loss as your focus to gaining muscle, consider increasing rest and upping those weights!

#4: Focus On A QUALITY Calorie Surplus

I know we see these bulks where people chow down on all sorts of crazy delicious foods, but these extreme calorie surpluses don’t lead to better results faster. And often they just lead to a ton of unwanted fat gain we have to deal with later.

Instead focusing on a moderate surplus of even 100-400 calories is enough. Starting smaller and increasing based on your results can even be a good way to go if you’ve been more focused on weight loss previously and haven’t maintained your current level of leanness for long.

It can also be key to keep the calorie surplus smaller, or even a very small deficit of just 100 calories, if you aren’t as lean as you’d like to optimize fat loss while gaining muscle. Just make sure that you’re focused on increasing that protein.

And of course, the more quality our fuel, the better our body will function. So while it’s super tempting to eat a ton more…well…not so whole, natural foods, remember to stick with your 80/20 balance.

We want to enjoy the foods we love, but also still make sure our body gets not only the macros, but micronutrients we need.

#5: Focus On Compound Lifts First

When lifting to gain muscle, you want to think about working in multiple rep ranges to not only create muscle hypertrophy or growth but also build strength. Let’s face it, the more you can lift, the better your muscle gains will be.

So when you’re freshest, start with your biggest, heaviest lifts. Focus on big compound moves for slightly lower reps with longer rest periods at the start of your workout.

You can even separate these lifts out to be done on their own before any supersets, trisets or circuits.

Think even about working in that maximal strength rep range of 1-5 reps for 3-5 sets. Consider rest periods of even 3-5 minutes.

If you aren’t as advanced a lifter or really don’t enjoy getting near those max attempts even 5-8 reps can really be a great way to go!

But use those heavy lifts to help you gain strength to then be able to lift more as you do other more accessory compound moves in the 6-12 rep range for 3-4 sets, with more like 1-3 minutes of rest.

Lifting heavy will NOT make you bulky but will cause your muscles to have to repair and grow!

#6: Cut Back On Cardio

If you’re an endurance athlete, I’m not asking you to stop your passion. BUT you do want to recognize that steady state endurance cardio can be catabolic to muscle tissue and make it harder to gain muscle.

So if you can reduce your mileage for a time, it may be key to making better muscle gains more quickly.

We also don’t simply want to turn our lifting sessions into cardio workouts. If you want to optimize your muscle growth, now is not the time for more metabolic strength workouts. It’s not the time for tons of high intensity interval training.

Now is the time for focused lifting and longer rest periods!

#7: Strategically Finish With Isolation Moves

After you’ve focused first on those heavy lifts, you can strategically use isolation moves to capitalize on all 3 drivers of muscle growth and really target those stubborn muscles to fully fatigue them.

If you’re short on time, compound moves should be your focus, but if you have a lagging muscle group or an especially stubborn area, isolation exercises that hone in and target this area are super key for better results faster.

When you include these moves, use them at the end to fully fatigue the muscle so you don’t compensate in earlier moves. Consider higher reps even for many of these movements (12-20) and just a couple of rounds 1-3 at the end. This will encourage more muscle fiber recruitment for better results.

And ladies, working to fatigue for muscles may actually be even more key for you to see the hypertrophy results you want!

#8: Don’t Fear Carbs

Especially when trying to lose weight, many will cut out carbs. But when we train hard, and our focus especially shifts to gaining muscle, we need those carbs to create that anabolic environment and serve as immediate fuel for our sessions.

While it can be hard if you’ve recently lost weight to see the scale slightly increase as you increase carbs, it is truly key to embrace the process.

To start even, you may not increase carb intake overall for the day, but simply time them more around your training sessions as you transition into a gaining muscle phase.

Some complex carbs prior to your training to make sure you have full glycogen stores followed by some simple carbs post workout to replenish depleted stores can really help you make sure you’re fueling growth!

But do not fear those carbs! They truly are key to optimize hormone levels and fuel that lean muscle growth which will increase our resting metabolic rate and even help us look leaner while being functional stronger!

#9: Increase Your Training Frequency

We see so many bodybuilding programs with body part splits, training areas even just once a week. But you may actually get better results by increasing your training frequency, especially for stubborn areas.

Consider designing your workouts progressions to work areas even 2-3 times a week. While this may mean not doing as much per session, this increase in training frequency can really pay off.

Hemisphere splits or upper/lower splits and even full body training sessions may be helpful, especially if you don’t have as many days to train.

But if you’ve got a lagging area, don’t fear working it multiple times a week as long as you’re working it in different ways and still giving the muscle time off to repair and rebuild!

Bonus reminder:

While it can be tempting to try to train more to get results faster, there will be a point of diminishing returns. A point at which we are beating ourselves down and NOT rebuilding. We do NOT want to waste effort and hard work doing more than is needed, especially if it actually holds us back!

I know it can be hard to take a day off, but you’ll only see the results of your hard work in the gym if you give your body time to repair! Dialing in our recovery, from our fueling to making sure we get enough sleep, is so key if we want results as fast as possible.

Remember to design your workout progression so areas get rest over the week and you’re not constantly beating down your body!

SUMMARY:

Use these 9 tips to improve your muscle gains and see better results faster without the unwanted fat gain often associated with traditional bulks!

And if you’re looking for help and guidance to get the best results as fast as possible, check out my 1:1 Online Coaching!

–> Apply To Coaching

FHP 431 – Where Is Your Comfort Zone?

FHP 431 – Where Is Your Comfort Zone?

by | Aug 2, 2022 | podcast

I was one of these people…

So I always sympathize with this comment, “I’ll workout all day. It’s just so hard to change my diet.”

Or…

“I can train hard. I just can’t change my diet. I love food too much.”

The thing is…

We CAN change our diet.

And yes, we all know we just aren’t “willing” to or we don’t “want” to….

But what we don’t realize is that training is NOT easy.

We’ve just become comfortable being uncomfortable in that way.

Realizing that was oddly eye opening for me.

Because A. It made me truly recognize that many people do NOT like training. I’ve just developed a comfort zone that includes it.

And B. Even with training there are still things I’m not comfortable doing…often new skills I’m not good at. And when you start to assess moves or tools or such you won’t include and often scoff at even, you’ll start to see where your comfort zone ENDS.

Basically what we’ve got to recognize is that dietary adjustments are possible…they’re just outside our comfort zone.

So how do we learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable with dietary adjustments?

And I think that it starts with how we approach changes…

First…Realize that when you push too much, you rebel more. Assess the mindsets that make you resistant.

So often when we make a ton of changes and mentally can’t handle them, we then start to associate those habits with that negativity. They become one in the same.

Like tracking.

When we only track to seriously restrict, when we feel super hungry and miserable tracking, we believe tracking is restrictive.

Realizing we will associate the habit with our mindset and that can 100% color things, A. We want to assess why we don’t like habits. But B. We want to break those mindsets around them and find new ways to implement them.

Like tracking.

Start tracking without making changes.

It will be eye opening and you’ll see you can actually make sustainable changes. You’ll start to learn. You won’t just be cutting out or restricting.

You can even learn to ADD IN foods you love more.

But the key is making small changes and assessing the mindsets behind the changes when we are resistant.

Second…Start by making changes that are closer to your current comfort zone.

Usually super different things, things that seem to threaten our lifestyle will be further from our comfort zone.

And we will be more likely to come up with excuses to resist making those changes.

So start with things closer to your comfort zone. Start with changes that seem easier.

Associate those changes with creating MORE of the lifestyle you enjoy.

Like maybe you know you need to boost your protein, but the idea of figuring out changes to your meals is overwhelming. But you’re also really into fueling your workouts and so much want to see gains from them.

Just add in a post workout protein shake!

It may be a small change but it can easily be linked to habits you enjoy and the lifestyle you’re living.

And as you see results from the small changes and feel better, you’ll start to want to make more.

Too often we make these massive changes that pull us outside our comfort zone only for us to run back into it.

Instead we almost need to keep expanding our comfort zone so little at a time we don’t almost even fully realize it’s moving. And as we get comfortable even challenging ourselves in these new ways, we’ll find it easier to do more!

Third…Own the awkward.

Sometimes I think we try to downplay how uncomfortable change is. But instead we need to really recognize it and own it.

When we can admit something is going to be hard, there will be challenges, it’s going to suck, it’s almost easier to embrace the hard.

Instead often we try to downplay things and say it will be easy, it’s no big deal…but then when it doesn’t feel that way, it almost leads to us rebelling more.

I like to remind myself to own the awkward.

Embrace the learning process.

Realize I’m going to suck at things before I get better.

Even the master was once the beginner.

Recognize the challenges you will face. Recognize that the journey will NOT feel good at points.

This can help you lower your defenses and get more comfortable being uncomfortable.

SUMMARY:

Remember changes are hard. And especially diet changes that we’ve never really tried to make that “threaten” our current lifestyle balance.

Remember we’ve created the comfort zone we are in and at any time we can expand it BUT it takes a conscious effort!