Non-Fat? Not for Me! -- How to Avoid Weight Gain Over the Holidays

The hubby, kids and I went to Yogurtland in Downtown Burbank after dinner, and I was excited to have some dessert that is a little bit less guilt-inducing.  As I strolled down the line, I looked for a sugar-free option, but the best I could find was "non-fat" New York Style Cheesecake flavor.  I laughed at the description because it said it was a good alternative if you're trying to watch your waistline.

In case you haven't heard, the "non-fat" revolution is over!  We fought the war over which is better for you: "non-fat" or "sugar-free", and "sugar-free" won (in most cases).  Unless you are on a severely calorie-restricted diet, you don't need to worry as much about the fat content in your food as the sugar content... as long as you're not eating ribeye steak, bacon or sausage as your meat option every meal.

So why all the hype about "non-fat" (desserts are the most highly attractive for this kind of advertising)?  Because most non-fat foods have lower calories than foods with fat in them.  Nutritionists agree that if you want to lose weight, you should reduce the number of calories you take in and increase your exercise -- the goal is to burn more calories than you eat.  However, the non-fat foods still have loads of sugar.  Unless it is a manufactured "diet food", like those put out by the "Atkins" or "South Beach Diet" companies, the "non-fat" food probably has 2-3 times the amount of sugar in one serving than your body can burn.

Too much sugar leads to well-fed, happy fat cells that want to stick around in your body (most often in your waistline).  It can also lead to insulin-resistance, which causes inability to focus, weight gain, diabetes, bloating, increased blood pressure, and more!  Furthermore, sugar rushes have been proven to make you crash and crave within about 30 minutes, whereas sugar-free foods with protein and some fat have been proven to stave off hunger and have not shown an increase in overall weight gain in recent studies (International Journal of Obesity, April 2012).

As a fitness model and bodybuilding competitor, I stay well under the AHA's recommendation of 24g of sugar per day for a highly active female 30-45 years old.  It is very difficult unless I read every label carefully and check each restaurant's nutrition guide.  It gets cumbersome, but I would rather not revert to my old habits of overeating the wrong stuff (lots of fruits and smoothies, non-fat ice cream and non-fat milk, all of which sound "healthy").  Simply by cutting out as much sugar as possible, I lost 10 pounds in one week, then I tweaked other parts of my diet and exercise plan and lost 40 more pounds.

Bottom line: don't be fooled by the "non-fat" label, look at the amount of sugar that's added to make it bulky or tasty.  Try to stay below 20g of sugar every day, the American Heart Assoc.'s guideline for moderately active females 30-45 years old.  And if you're trying to make a healthier meal for the holidays, cut the sugar down (or cut it out by using Stevia or other natural sugar-alternative) and choose leaner cuts of meat.  Skip the cookies, unless you are at a party or special event or plan on burning off those calories and more at the gym that day.  Try some of the new, and quite tasty, sugar-free candies out on the market.

Why Walking DOESN'T work for Weight Loss

Do you walk your neighborhood for exercise a couple of times per week? Do you walk every day? Good for you! Studies have shown a direct correlation between walking and cardiovascular health, reduced risk of diseases and even certain cancers, and increased mood and self-confidence.

What most news media fail to mention is that walking your neighborhood (or strolling on the treadmill) is not recognized by the medical field as a weight-loss exercise.

Watch the following 1-minute video and decide for yourself if you want to stick with your neighborhood walk (for the benefits stated above) or if you want to amp it up and actually hit your weight loss goals while receiving the same benefits.... Then, call or email me for personal training!

"Mommy the Salad" (a.k.a. "You Are What You Eat")

My two-year-old loves making up nicknames for people in our family.  Daddy is "Daddy the doctor" or "Daddy the Raffi", her sister is "Abby the Sissy" or "Abby the Boo-Boo", and I am "Mommy the Salad".

My name is Allison, but my little one thinks it's Alice, like "Alice in Wonderland".  Somehow, her little brain has transposed the sounds in the name Alice to sometimes sound like "salad".  So, she often introduces me saying, "Mommy's name is Salad."

I don't correct her in front of anyone within earshot because I actually like her calling me "Salad" or "Mommy the Salad".  It means that somewhere deep down she associates me with salad, which I eat multiple times per week.  She always sees some sort of lettuce or vegetable medley on my plate, breakfast, lunch and dinner.  My body at all times is digesting and integrating into each cell the healthy nutrients of my consumed vegetables, so in effect I am "the salad".  I take pride in that, and I regret when I don't eat enough veggies in a day (notice I didn't say "fruits and veggies" because I rarely eat fruit -- but that's for another post on sugars at a later date).

So, if you ever have lunch with us (either out at Daphne's California Greek or some other healthy casual dining place around town), you will notice half the plate covered with salad and/or some vegetable mixture ... And you will probably hear my two-year-old ask if she can have some of my "Alice".

Road to Pro

Squeezed into Size 12 "skinny jeans" two years ago -- happy, but uncomfortable.

Training hard at Crunch - heavy equipment needed!

Hitting it super hard for 14 months straight. (Before then, it was multiple medium-weight workouts per week.)

Read the sign above my head.

First competition in May, 2013

Second competition in Nov., 2013

Winner - 1st Place, 2 Divisions

My latest Webisode on Universal Sports.com - I'm the Marathon Runner's Nutritionist

My latest webisode for Universal Sports and Asics.com came out this week! Take a look -- it's about nutrition during a marathon. It's only 3 min. long, so even if you're not training for a marathon, it's an interesting piece to watch. The editor is a good friend, and I think he does great work! Check out Universal Sports and Asics.com for all kinds of sports training tips and advice. 

http://universalsports.com/video/the-last-26-episode-20-meeting-with-a-nutritionist/

Mr. Bad

I LOVE my man!  Here's a photo of our recent date night.  I just thought y'all might want to see my #1 fan.

Oh Yes I DID!

I went on vacation for a week and worked out and/or carefully watched my nutrition every day.  I have no regrets, and I actually dropped body fat!

I went with my husband and little girls to New York (stayed in Times Square) 3 weeks away from my next competition. I was nervous about booking this trip because I thought I would be too tempted to splurge or not have a good time because I was worried about my food.  It was the only time we could go together as a family, so we booked it, and I prepared myself.

Here's how I got through... I brought protein bars (no sugar, low-fat), drank a lot of water, planned my workouts and didn't compromise (except once -- when we were awoken early in the morning by a fire alarm and didn't get back to sleep, I didn't work out later that morning), ate veggies whenever I could.  I stayed in touch with my trainer and accountability friends.

Early morning lifting

Afternoon City Schlepping

Bootcamp anyone?

I'm lining up my next series of bootcamps in the park. I need at least 5 committed people for a 5-session series, every other Saturday morning at 8:30-9:45 a.m. in Burbank.

We warm up, practice jogging, kicking, jumping, monkey bars, etc. ... and a little bit of monkeying around.  I give diet and workout advice all the way through.

Email me your contact info if you would like to be on the list: allibian@yahoo.com

I feel their pain (well, almost)

Watch this!  These guys are amazing, and I get what they're all about... sort of.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O6wMhDRST0

Mystery Bruises...Again

Left elbow and both knees have mysterious bruises.  I don't know how I got them exactly, but I'm happy they are there.  It means that I've been working out hard lately, and I haven't been paying attention to the pain.  I love when I get more bruises than I can account for -- I wear them proudly!

My Success is Your Success

Yesterday, after finishing off a 15-week program with a client of mine, we hugged and blessed each other and bounced away in opposite directions, feeling proud of ourselves for many reasons:  She more than hit her goal (original goal: 4% body fat loss, reached: 7% loss), developed a stronger sense of self-worth and power, and learned how to stop hindering herself from feeling the strength that God gave her.  I was proud that I could be a positive part of her process.

Before we parted ways (we will see each other again soon, an I hope to train and counsel her on nutrition for years to come), she said something that all at once made me pleased and curious, "My success is your success."  I was pleased because I believe that with my influence she now has the strength to take herself farther and become more successful in this phase of her life.  Because I love her, I am pleased that she is richer from the experience.

I was also curious. Is her success my success?  Now that I think about it, I am reminded that my success is my success, and her success just blesses me.  Her success doesn't increase my success.  It only makes me happier.  My success is earned by my hard work and education, etc.  I also earned it by working hard on myself and staying strong in my faith, so that I can have a cup that overflows to others.

The reason I'm even mentioning this important interaction is because I want to remind my readers (and myself), that your success is your success -- earned by you, assisted by others, blessed by God.  Others' successes add to your happiness but don't define you or add to your sense of self.  Don't allow yourself to attach yourself to anyone else's success.  Create it for yourself, accept assistance and blessings, and pour it out onto others.

Want to Lift and Tone Your Booty?

If you want to lift and tone your booty, then follow these simple (but hard) rules:

#1: Get a personal trainer to push you harder than you thought you could push on your own.  I have my own trainer, even though I am a trainer to others.  My trainer reinforces how strong I am, while still keeping me safe by checking my positioning.

#2: Work your glutes, hamstrings and lower back with moderate to heavy weight, not only body weight exercises.  Sometimes, you need to just do treadmill at a steep incline or stairs for about 25 - 35 minutes to get your cardio and your legs strengthened.  However, you also often need to tear your muscles apart with heavy weights, so you can rebuild dense, strong, lean muscle fibers.

3#:  Be proud of your progress.  Nothing helps motivate better than being proud of yourself and being aware of your progress.  Ask your trainer to take regular measurements of your abdomen, hips and thighs to accurately measure your progress.  The scale doesn't tell the whole story.  Also, take progress pictures and other pictures in your "skinny jeans" to remind yourself of where you are and/or where you want to be.

Here's an uplifting exercise I did today with Ricardo: long bar + 45 pound plates on each side, stiff-leg deads on the bosu with him pulling me back to add resistance on the back side.  This picture only has 10-pound plates, but I did a set of 15, so Ricardo upped the ante to 25 plates, then 45s.

 

Why we Fail

I client of mine said this video reminded her of me.  I'm proud to say that I agree: "He who says he CAN and he who says he CAN'T are both usually right."

Monkey see, Monkeys do!

My two-year-old came crying to me today, "Mommy, I got a scratch."  I replied with a kind little retort and a kiss on her boo boo.

Then, I asked, "Baby, how did you get that scratch? Weren't you just playing in the playroom?"  That playroom has no sharp edges of any kind, and the only scratch she would have gotten in there would have been self-inflicted or from her sister.  I suspected the latter.

She replied, "I was exercising, like you do, and I got a boo boo."

"Oh, I see," I said in a nice, calm voice, trying not to get upset that she went into my exercise studio (a place forbidden to children in our home).  "Well, Mommy gets boo boos all the time when I exercise," was my way of trying to discourage her from going in that room.  Upon hearing that, my bigger girl came running in announcing that she, too had scratches from exercising.  She showed me the one on her elbow that she got from doing one exercise, and the one on her knee from doing something else.  Then, excitedly, she began doing push-ups.

Somehow, my frustration about the exercise room having been breached had waned in light of the fact that my girls were excited about exercising like their mommy.  We were soon all doing push-ups in the middle of the kitchen, trying not to get boo boos and laughing at how funny it was when we all grunted and snorted after a couple of reps.

I hope we never stop exercising together.  Maybe tomorrow we can recruit Daddy to the kitchen for some exercising, too.

Are you in Marathon training? When do you eat which foods?

Most of my clients ask me if it's important to eat certain things at certain times, or is it okay just to stick with calorie counting?  Well, that's a loaded question.  If we're going for general weight loss, then calorie counting is a great place to start.  It gives a strict guideline for those who have not given themselves "rules" to follow regarding food (or have given themselves too much latitude in breaking the rules).  However, if we're training for a specific sport, we have to consider what time of day we train and how we fuel ourselves for the workout and the rest of the day.

For example, if you're training for a marathon, there are certain requirements for proteins and carbohydrates, so that you don't run out of energy and don't waste away to skin and bones while you run like the wind. I spoke on this in my recent webisode on UniversalSports.com: http://universalsports.com/video/the-last-26-episode-4-kinga-straightens-out-her-diet/, presented by Asics.

If you're a morning runner, i.e. you train at 6:30 to 7:30 a.m., you should have juice or an orange and water before you run.  After you run, you should have a hearty breakfast, roughly 30% of your daily calorie needs, including protein and low glycemic-index carbs.  Lunch, should be at a normal time and should be well-rounded, but not heavy, followed a few hours later by a snack around 4 p.m.  Dinner should include one high glycemic index carb portion for energy while you sleep, so that you are not depleted by morning.

If you're a lunchtime runner, you need a carb-rich breakfast, consisting of low glycemic index carbs like fruit and oatmeal.  You will need a protein/high glycemic index carb snack around 10 a.m., such as a 200 calorie yogurt or energy bar.  After your run, you should have a protein-rich lunch, followed several hours later by a small snack.  Then, you should have a late dinner with a good balance of protein and low glycemic index carbs.

If you're an evening runner, i.e. you train at 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., you should have a balanced breakfast, an early lunch rich in low-glycemic index carbs, a balanced late lunch, a 5 p.m. snack, then a late protein-rich dinner after your run.

My New Studio - my new favorite room in the house

My new In-home Workout Studio

We just moved into our new home, and I've been settling in for a couple of weeks.  That has meant a small hiatus on my intense workouts (who wants to be sore while moving?), but not a complete hiatus on exercise, of course.  I'm excited that after a couple of weeks of hard work, I'm all set in my home to begin training more fiercely than ever!  It's going to be fun figuring out how to push myself to do it when I have laundry, cleaning, cooking, etc. right around the corner, literally.

Normally, home gyms don't work out for people for very long, but I'm determined to make this work for me. I plan on competing again very soon, so I have to really stay motivated.  Also, my clients are counting on me to be their motivator.  I have to stay above bar.

Now, I just have to get off the computer and start lifting!  Getting to it right now...

Universal Sports Webisode: I'm a Nutritionist for Marathon Prep

Hey y'all.  Check out my latest webisode on nutrition.  Universal Sports network likes my style and has had me consult for a web series with Kinga Phillips regarding her marathon preparation:

http://universalsports.com/video/the-last-26-episode-4-kinga-straightens-out-her-diet/
(This link doesn't work anymore, but I'm trying to find it on archive. - 7/29/13)

Check it out and learn something!

Training the Type-B

A while back, I wrote about training the Type-A personality (August, 2012).  I get how their minds operate and how they are motivated/unmotivated, and it is easy to anticipate their needs.

Training the Type B, however, is much more challenging to me.  Below is the definition:

Type B personality,

n a form of behavior associated with people who appear free of hostility and aggression and who lack a compulsion to meet deadlines, are not highly competitive at work or play, and have a lower risk of heart attack.

Mosby's Dental Dictionary, 2nd edition. © 2008 Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.

Because this is vastly different from the way I operate, I have had to develop strategies for motivating this personality type.  Sometimes I have to motivate them to complete a set, even though it is painful, and sometimes I have to motivate them to even show up for a workout.  Here's how I tend to do it:

1.) Find out what they perceive to be their motivation for exercise, and further, working with a trainer.

2.) Repeat these motivators back to them when they lack the compulsion to complete their task.

3.) Find out what they gravitate toward as rewards, and provide these rewards (if possible, or tell them to reward themselves) during or between workouts.

4.) Remind them that I am committed to them and their own goals, even if we may not see eye-to-eye.

Look at me Now!

I have gotten my photos back from my latest competition, and here are my favorite ones!  Hope they inspire you (if I can transform my body like this, so can you).  I placed well, and I had a fun time.  I hope to do it again in the near future.

My husband, friends and several family members were behind me all the way.  I am not trying to show off, but want to show how muscles can be developed over time.  The body, fed appropriately, can develop to be healthy and strong, even in our culture where proper nutrition is often looked at as a luxury, rather than necessity.

I have gained about 5% body fat since then because I'm still building, and I intend to enter a natural contest (no steroid or enhancing drug-use allowed within the past 5 years) in September.  I haven't ever used enhancers, but I competed against some who clearly had used.  I want to be on an even playing field, and I might do even better next time.  Either way, it's fun, and I give God the glory for making our bodies so amazing!

Credit for my Creds

On Friday, I was asked to provide nutritional information for a mini-series of webisodes for Asics.com.  I not only provided information, but I did it on camera!  It was fun being in front of the camera again -- it had been  over 15 years since I had even done any extra work.  I never thought I would be filmed again... only in L.A.!  I feel like I was given this opportunity because of my credentials, but it was also right place-right time/who I know.

It was a cool project.  I got to interact with Kinga Phillips, who does adventure hosting for networks such as Travel Channel, giving her info on how to prepare for and stay balanced during a marathon.  I hope it turns out well -- it was a blast to do, and I felt like I really gave her some helpful, interesting information.

My credentials, as I hope to have them listed on this series are as follows:

Allison D. Salibian, B.S., CPT
B.S. Molecular, Cell, Developmental Biology, UCLA
Research Scientist, Human Genetics, UCLA, VCU School of Medicine
Certified Personal Trainer
Nutrition Specialist in Weight Loss, Sports Nutrition & Body Building
NPC Figure Competitor, Master's Women's Figure Division

Bigger and Better

I was just re-reading some of my posts in this blog, trying to get back to my "roots".  I had a fun day at the gym, for the first time in months, and I wanted to check if I had gone away from my roots in the fitness industry or if I'm still the same person I was a year ago.

Yup! I'm still me.  I still wake up each morning thankful for what I have and am very much in love with my husband and kids.  I'm still thankful to God for who He is and what he's done for his creation.  I'm still a pretty decent friend (yes, I've been off the grid a bit since I started working as a trainer and have increased my personal fitness goals), and I think I'm still okay at keeping the household in check.

The major differences are that I'm working as a professional trainer, so I'm much more strict with my schedule (I have about 15 clients on any given week, some of them train 2-3 times per week), and I push myself harder at the gym than ever before.  But those are just day-to-day differences.  Emotionally and spiritually I think I'm the same: I am loving and kind to others, I teach my children to be that way, and I try to encourage positive change in others.

Physically, I am very different.  I have gained about 10 pounds of lean muscle over the last year, and I have leaned out all of the fat, except for the essential fat.  Two weeks ago, I was down to 11% body fat, which is in the high-performance female athlete category.  I actually had not a patch of cellulite for 3 days out of my adult life!  Then, I went to Las Vegas with my husband and ate like a beast and I'm now back to a more balanced 13% body fat.  That's still athlete status, but not competition-ready, which is okay with me because I'm still gaining muscle.  Yes, I do have about 3 square inches of lumpy-bumpies on the back of my thighs, but I know exactly what to do to get rid of it. Also, my eating habits are a bit worse, but I can tighten that up whenever I feel like it.

I'm excited that I am a professional fitness trainer, and that I pretty well manage my fitness, food and family, and still remain me.  Now, I just want to get better at the balancing act, so that I can continue to grow on all levels -- because, as you've heard me say before, "if you're not growing, you're not living."

Better Late than Never

Wow... time flies!  It has been over 3 months since my last post.  Since then, I have gotten a new job and have been quite successful at it.  I have been training clients and changing lives (on the fitness level, at least) for a few months now.  It has been amazing!

I have used my prior knowledge that I gained while losing my own weight and new information that I learned during my certification to help people lose weight and feel better about themselves.  I'm so grateful people have trusted me.  I think part of the reason they trust me is that I practice what I "preach".   I have been able to maintain 11-15% body fat for months and months, even during the holidays, and have continued to build muscle and train hard.

My gym manager says I'm an inspiration to my clients because usually when people train that hard, they get really tired and distracted and aren't at the top of their game with their clients.  He also applauds me for maintaining a close-knit, happy family structure.  I AM happy overall, but I admit I have had some down days.  I'm human, but I pretend to be a super hero.

I would love to post a picture of my progress, but in deference to my mom, who thinks it's scandalous to show off my physique, you'll just have to take my word for it that I have muscles in places that I never thought I could grow distinctive muscles. Now, I want them bigger, so maybe I will win a muscle contest.  We'll see.

For now, I'm happy to inspire my clients, excite my husband and make myself proud of my own strength.

One Tough Mother!

A trainee of mine has decided to run the Tough Mudder in San Diego in June.  She has asked me if I want to do it with her, her husband and some friends.  Here's a link:
http://toughmudder.com/events/california-socal-2-sat-jun-22-sun-jun-23-2013/

I hope to get my strength, agility and endurance up to be able to perform well at this.  Of course, I won't leave my client/friend in the dust (unless she says it's okay to go ahead).  If I decide to go ahead with my figure contest, then I will train for this after the contest is over.  If not, I will probably set my sights on this one.

I'll keep you posted!  I'm always looking for a challenge.

No pictures, please

I had a heart-to-heart with my mom yesterday.  She is very conservative and raised me to be that way, too.  I am very modest normally, but this contest has pushed my personal limits lately - at least in terms of my contest uniform.  In order to honor her (and also our relationship), I have decided to take the photos out of my blog.  I feel like it is making her too uncomfortable knowing that my pictures are out there in cyberspace, and it is hindering our relationship.  It's more important to me that we have a good relationship than for me to be able to fully express myself.  I know that's censorship in a way, but it's me making the call to censor myself.  I have the freedom to post whatever I choose, but I'm choosing not to post everything I want to, for the sake of something more important.

She also asked me to not compete in the figure contest, but I'm not sure I am ready to give that up just for her.  She reminded me that as a Christian I need to be modest and honor God, and that does have quite a bit of pull on my thought process.  I have a lot to consider, and I'll keep you posted. 

It's not easy to listen to authority when you're a grown adult, but I have to figure out which authority is true, and which may be a manipulation.  I know the bible is not a manipulation, and I believe every word is inspired by the Creator of the universe.  Now, I have to figure out how God (and not my mom) is instructing me to live out the teachings in my own life... and that's what I have to do every single day.  This situation is no different.

We'll see.  But if it's not this contest, I will still write about my fitness expertise and some new challenge that I will find in order to push me and help to inspire others (if possible).

Incredible shrinking woman

I've been training a friend of mine in her living room for the past month, in order to gain experience in one-on-one training and also to help her gain self-confidence and lose pounds and inches.  I wasn't sure how things were going for several reasons: she didn't keep in close contact with me during the week (which made me think she wasn't sticking to her diet and wasn't exercising like I prescribed), she didn't make her food log readily available for me to scrutinize, and she changed appointment days often.  I wasn't sure if she was truly invested.

Finally, on the last appointment of the month, I asked her probing questions about her underlying issues and motivations for trying to change her life through fitness.  She opened up, we had some laughs, some "ah ha" moments and some tears.  Then, she showed me her food log, showed me her kitchen cabinets, and even discussed changes in her bra size and bowel movements.  It was amazing how my digging deeper really opened her up to sharing about her progress.

We ended the session with her telling me that her buns, thighs and hips were feeling much less squished in her jeans, and I had noticed her mid-section was much less full when sitting and standing.  I asked if I could write about her progress in my blog.  She seemed proud that I thought it was so remarkable and gave me the go-ahead.  The truth is, I don't think it's that remarkable that she is following through with a diet and exercise plan and losing inches -- she should be losing weight if she follows my advice and accepts my support.  The thing I feel is remarkable is that a 50 some-odd year old woman would desire change in her life and go after it ... even to the point of having a younger friend come over and tell her what to do, make her sweat and squirm and have her cabinets looked into.  I hope I inspire her to continue to seek personal growth (through fitness and other avenues), and I love that she inspires me to want to pursue ongoing growth for the rest of my life.

May we both have another 50 years or more of physical, emotional and spiritual health... and may we be there for one another in the process.

Sick and Tired

I caught the cold flu that has been going around!  I somehow avoided it a couple of weeks ago, but it hit me like a ton of bricks, even though I'm eating well and exercising like crazy.  I'm sick and tired and achey and runny, and it stopped my in my tracks.  I wasn't mentally prepared to take a break from my training plan.

I was just beginning this high-rep regimen that had me burning by the end of the first set.  I was quite amazed that I made it through all sets and all reps (sometimes 100 of some sort of leg press), and I was darn proud of myself.  A few people came up to me and asked me why I was doing so many reps, and I said I had no idea.  My coach just told me what to do, and I'm doing it.

On a related note, I'm still not even close to being certified as a trainer.  I'm frustrated that the studying has been on hold because of my focus on other things.  I think it would help me to push even harder (if that's possible) because I'd know why and how the certain weekly plan is supposed to work.

I feel like I need to have some motivation to get me certified.  Let's hope something comes along soon, or it may not happen until I'm done with my competition.  I know this fitness lifestyle is a life-long process, but I'm not usually the kind of person who procrastinates.... Maybe it's because I have two tiny girls and a household to run while my husband works looong hours.  I think I'm just in a bit of a "season", and this season will change with time.

I will go back to my training plan on Sunday with cardio (probably not full-out, but I'm sure it won't just be walking on the treadmill -- why waste my time?).  I wish I could have finished out the week.  It looked interesting.  Next week, I'm back to heavy, lower reps, circuit training again.  Then, onto something else.  It's so exciting!  I can't wait!!

It pays to be nice!

I introduce myself to someone new and commit their name to memory about 2 times a day now.  I do this mainly at my gym (Crunch Burbank is my main gym now).  It's a way to know I'm being held accountable -- the more people who know me there, at least by face, and the more names I know, the more I feel like I'm being kept on track.  I'm sure few people care how much muscle I'm building each week, but they know I'm consistent and I'm friendly and a hard worker.

One lady, who has had years of exercise/fitness experience, gave me some tips on where to buy supplements.  I saved a bundle of money by following her advice, and I got good quality stuff.  So, it pays to be nice, literally and figuratively.

So far, I'd say I have never walked into the gym without knowing at least 15 people's names within the specific area I'm training.  I think that's pretty amazing, considering the stigma that some gyms have.  These are all real people underneath their muscles or flab.  I'm the real me, and I want everyone to know exactly who's sweating next to them.