I Have Moved!

Hello Fellow Readers!

You might have noticed I didn't blog last week..... I know I am very sorry!

But! I have created my own website www.empowerhp.ca which has more information about my services and what my wonderful clients are capable of!

If you could please make your way to my website from now on for your fitness and health interests that would be great!

I do have a new blog section on my website which can be found at http://empowerhp.ca/blog

Thank you for all the support over this past year and I will continue your educate in fitness on my website from now on!

See you there!

Love Yourself Challenge

"New Year, new me."

You've probably have heard this line each and every year. Followed by some sort of 30 day fitness and health challenge, to get you back on track where you should be.

You tell yourself:

"I'll go back to the gym and start fresh"
"I'll lose that 10lbs"
"I'll start eating healthy again"
"I'll be ready to wear that swim suit this year"

Then what happens? Your eagerness and willingness fizzles out by week two, and you're right back where you started. You realize what happen and start to feel bad about yourself. Probably worse than before, as failing at starting your healthy journey ended up like this last year too..

Well that's a shitty start to the year isn't it? It doesn't need to be that way! I'm not going to tell you that fitness can be easy and this blog will tell you the "3 steps to a better you!" But I will tell you one thing you should focus on in 2016.

Loving yourself...

Simple right? Well, not exactly. You'd be surprised how many people don't really think about this. Can you look at yourself in the mirror and love what you see? The body and the person? Damn...Now that you think of it, it's challenging to convince yourself you're okay.

In the world of fitness and health, appearance is everything. If you don't have a six pack (guys) or thin waist and big boobs (women) you're apparently not good enough to step outside into the world.....

That's strange isn't it?

Many people will start 2016 trying to get back into shape, without realizing that the only reason WHY they are doing it, is to look better for OTHERS, not for themselves. When you continually focus on how you look for OTHERS and not yourself, you end up despising the way you look, because you know you're not perfect yet.

Why should it be that way? Why can't we get in shape and focus on looking better for ourselves? I bet that standard would be much lower compared to what it was before. Can you imagine that? For some, having more energy during the week because of exercise would make them feel a lot better about themselves. Achieving their first strict chin up could probably make them feel like a million bucks! Loosing 5lbs from the holidays will probably make them feel like a celebrity!

All these achievements I just wrote are huge milestones! But, for some reason when you compare yourself to OTHERS you end up thinking these achievements are nothing and you still hate what is starring at you in the mirror.

So, what should you do? Simple. Love yourself! 2016 should be focused on accepting and loving who you are, and how you look! This by itself will give you so much more confidence to bust through January and keep consistent through the year for your fitness and health goals.

The next time you look at yourself in the mirror, rather than criticizing every piece of your body head to toe in the morning, look at one part of your body you like, and compliment yourself.

For myself ,I am proud of my strong and athletic legs, especially my calves. I used to hate the way my calves looked because they are larger in diameter than my biceps! I thought I was a freak! By having these large defined muscle groups in my legs I have great success with single leg strength. So it's not all bad...

Now, be sure to take the time every day to love yourself. Look in the mirror and find that one part of your body you like and compliment yourself!

2016: Love Yourself.

Website Launch!

Hello my fitness followers!

I wanted to give you all a heads up that this up coming Monday, January 4th at 12pm my professional website will officially launch!

You might have seen my Instagram posts lately promoting my new venture like these:

I am excited to finally launch, I've been working on this thing for the past three months. I can't count the amount of hours I spent formatting, adding photos, changing text, adding pages, and then deleting everything and starting from scratch. But, I believe now it's ready.

Now what does this website have and how will it benefit you?

1. A referral source for clients and the ability to create an online community.

I found that over this past year, training on my own, and starting my own business, it was tough to get my name out there without having a website. Having a functional website will allow the ability to get noticed and ultimately connect, and most importantly educate others in fitness. I want to be able to help more people than just my circle of in person clients. I feel it's my sole purpose to spread the knowledge of obtaining sustainable health for the every day person.

My goal is to reach as many people as possible. For 2016, I want to connect with 10,000 people in some shape or form. From views on my blog and website, Instagram likes, Facebook likes, Youtube views, emails, or just a simple text message saying "Hey, I saw your website, keep doing what you're doing." This is what I hope to achieve and spread the gift of knowledge.

2. One stop shop for fitness and nutrition guidelines.

You've probably seen most of my posts mocking so called "fitness professionals" selling you snake oil online, and some how are multi millionaires.

I will do just the opposite, just like my blog, I will have FREE and accessible content on my website for you to read, enjoy, and share. I will never sell out and begin to promote waist trainers, shake weights or any other ridiculous looking fitness apparatus.  

3. Quality programs and meal plans for purchase. 

I will have a fully functional E Store set up on my website, for programs and meal plans. Since I've been fascinated by the online fitness business, what better way to wet my feet than building my own E store.

This section of my website will have programs for men and women, specialized towards fat loss, performance, and aesthetic goals. Each program is a PDF version that has descriptions of each exercise along with a link to my Youtube page with a specific exercise playlist that correlates to your program.

Now I don't want to spoil any more, so you will just need to wait and see! The count down begins!

  

How to Pistol Squat

Many of you have probably seen this video of me:

I received a lot of attention good and bad, from this; But the point is the execution of the pistol squat. I have a solid range of motion that allows me squat low and with my form intact.

Since my Facebook post sparked some interest on how to progress to a full pistol squat, I thought I'd share my thoughts how to get there.

1. Mobility

If you can't touch your toes without bending your knees you might have trouble achieving full depth. Body parts such as your lower back, will begin to compensate. When your back becomes your prime mover you can fall into a category of pain, and we don't want that.

How can you improve your mobility? Here are a few things I want you to focus on.

- Foam Rolling:  Foam rolling is the single greatest thing since sliced bread. If you're not foam rolling, you're not living!

There has been tons of research out there proving foam rolling can improve movement, decrease pain, restore muscle imbalances and more. So, please take the time and roll!

Here is a video of all the spots you should be hitting every day to loosen up and improve your range of motion.

- Lower body mobility exercises: After your foam roll you should focus on a couple exercises that help improve range of motion. Here are three you should focus on.

Dynamic Hip Flexor Stretch:

Hamstring Drops:

Squat Hip Mobility Stretch

You should take the time to practice these three exercises above, along with foam rolling on a daily basis, to improve your mobility. This in turn will allow you to achieve a deep single leg squat. Improving your mobility is just like anything else. Practice. The more you practice, the better it becomes.

The phrase "If you don't use it, you lose it" works quite well here. Mobility is earned and is taken away as you age. Get off your chair and start working these mobility drills ASAP!

2. Single Leg Strength

Along with building mobility you should also be strong on one leg. If you are a firm believer of squatting on two legs, you might have to open your mind a bit and try single leg variations like these:

Rear Foot Elevated Split Squats:

Single Leg Squats to a Bench:

Single Leg Step Downs:

Being able to perform these three above with efficient movement and eventually weight will prepare you to try a full pistol squat. It might take some practice and time, but is definitely worth it, as it's more bad ass to pistol squat than a regular meat head barbell squat!

Enjoy!

"Gym-ing" You're Doing It Wrong...

Hello Fitness Freaks!

Today will be another blog post based on my Facebook question from last week. I will be throwing down common mistakes I see in the gym, and in the world of health and fitness.

1. Cardio.

Back in the day when I first started my career I worked at a big box gym. Thousands of square feet of iron, rarely touched by an average Joe. Why? Most likely every typical person out there is intimidated by the "juice monkeys" preaching "Bro-Science" staring at themselves in the mirrors while doing curls. 

Then plan B happens. Cardio machines! Treadmills, rowers, stair climbers, bikes, you name it. Day in and day out all these people chasing fat loss and not getting the results they want. They end up discouraged and leave the gym, never to come back and still pay the monthly fees for the rest of their lives. 

What should you do instead? Hire a trainer to at least show you how to do the basics. People have this idea that hiring a personal trainer is some luxury that only multi millionaires can have. Why not get one session per month and a program? Most trainers (in my area) charge any where from $80-$100 per hour for a private session. You probably spend that amount of money going out to dinner every weekend so let's put things into perspective people!

2. Fitness Idols With Advice.

 

                                                    

I see so many people look in the wrong areas of the internet and TV for fitness advice. It's not their fault as the media has control over everything we ingest with our eyes and ears. We are left with quacks that prescribe nutrition and fitness advice that can be harmful and just plain old stupid to your well being. 

It makes me cringe knowing that some of these "fitness gurus" selling snake oil are worth more than $100 million dollars that are feasting on the general public that have no clue. 

Enough of me ranting about them, here are some solutions when it comes to fitness advice from the actual professionals!

• Dr. John Berardi - Founder of Precision Nutrition
• Bret Contreras - "The Glute Guy"
• Sohee Lee - Great inspiration for women trying to get strong out there
• Kevin Larabee - Amazing and intelligent strength coach, and creator of The Fitcast
• Jon Goodman - Founder of the PTDC that contains all the current fitness and health info 

This list could go on forever but this a a start! Just let me know what you're looking for and I'll guide you in the right direction. Hey! I might be of good use too! haha

3. Deadlifts..........

 

This one exercise has it's own section as this single exercise is one of the most butchered lifts out there. I've seen way too many times, people lifting huge weight with rounded backs. Every time I see form on the lines of the picture above my eyes start bleeding and I can hear your discs exploding out of your spine.

Instead, you should go through the proper progression before deadlifting.

1. Can you touch your toes without bending your knees? This is the first prerequisite if you are able to deadlift off the floor.

2. Can you engage your hamstrings and glutes throughout the movement? If not, most likely your back is doing all the work.

3. Is your lower back ever sore after deadlifting? This is probably because you're doing it wrong.

Here is a great video from Neghar, explaining how to deadlift properly. Enjoy.

Questions? Thoughts? Comments? Let me know!

How Much Do I Need to Eat?

First off, I am happy that my Facebook post stirred up some attention. I will blog about the questions and topics you've asked. Since I am all about nutrition, I thought I'd start off with calories and macros, and how to use them.

Many people understand some of the basics. If I eat less I'll loose weight. If I exercise more I'll loose weight. But when those two things are stressed enough your results ends up hitting a wall. Then you don't really know where to go from there.

I personally believe you should have a general idea where your macro nutrient intake is, on a daily basis to:

1. Know if you are eating enough

2. Know if you are over eating

What are macro nutrients? Well let's get started and figure out and how much you need on a daily basis.

Macro nutrients are made up of 3 things:

1. Protein

2. Carbs

3. and Fats

Why are these 3 things important?

1. Protein - helps to control your appetite. It keeps you feeling full longer than carbs or fats, and takes longer digest. Which means, you burn more calories eating protein than carbs and fats. This is why with every client I train I tell them to up their protein intake. No matter what the situation, more protein can be very useful in any fitness goal. Unless you are having 6 protein shakes a day, you should probably cut that out immediately...

2. Carbs - Is stored in our livers, brain, blood and muscles as gylcogen. Which then can be used for energy production. Depending what your goals are, it depends how many grams of carbs you need per day to produce your desired result.

3. Fat - Is essential to our bodies for living. It helps us absorb vitamins, hormone regulation and brain function. Many people still live in the fear of Fat = More Fat on the body. Not true! Fat can help burn that stubborn spare tire off of you!

So... how many calories per day should you be having? Well that depends on what your goals are and what type of body you have, age, activity level and other factors. But for the sake of this blog I will show you an example of the most common client's calorie intake should look like.

Since I follow Precision Nutrition's guidelines, below is an example how they calculate calorie intake.

Example 1:

140lbs woman that's moderately active that wants to lose weight would eat between 1680 calories to 1960. 

PN has a formula that goes like this ( your body weight) x 12-14 for a moderate active individual. 12 is equal to 1680cal and 14 is equal to 1960 cal. Why these numbers? A lot of years of research and trial and error. These numbers turned out to be the best when it came to calculating calories for weight loss.

Now, how should this individual spread out her macros? Since this woman is trying to loose weight I'm assuming her body type would be on the thicker and bigger side. She is probably insulin dominant, has a slow metabolic rate, and most likely a low carbohydrate tolerance due to her weight gain over the years.

I would put her on:

35% of her diet Protein

25% of her diet Carbs

40% of her diet Fat

Now how does this look in grams per day?

Since her calories is suggested on the low end 1680 calories, just divide the percentages and you receive your daily allowance.

558 grams of Protein

420 grams of Carbs

672 grams of Fat

How much is that per meal? Just divide 5 meals a day and you have your numbers!

111.6 grams of protein per meal

84 grams of carbs per meal

134.4 grams of fat per meal

When you break down the numbers you can really see a balanced ratio and may even surprise you if you are not eating enough,

Remember, this is just an example. EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT. To properly determine what you need, I'd have to sit down with you discuss your goals, background, body type, and more just to figure out a baseline and then hammer out the fine details.

If you'd like to know more, feel free to ask!

My 40 Hour Fast Experiment

You might be asking yourself, "why?"

You might be also wondering "whats the point?"

And finally you're thinking.......

Before I start a word of caution. Just because I'm sharing my experience of fasting does not mean this is for you. This doesn't mean that you should go on Google and start researching how to fast and implement it in your daily life.

Fasting is a strict way of eating, and majority people will struggle with it. Let's put it this way, eating 5 meals a day with vegetables at every single meal, no skipped meals, protein at every meal, and only 3 cheat meals in the week is equivalent to playing recreational hockey with friends. Fasting protocols on the other hand, is like playing in the NHL. Don't be stupid and go play with NHL players when you don't know how to skate in the first place.....

Now that my disclaimer is out of the way, please read below.

If you have known me for a couple years, you probably know that I've been a huge advocate of Intermittent Fasting. There are many protocols, but the one I follow is a 16/8 schedule. Fast for 16 hours and then have a window of 8 hours to eat. Next week I will go into detail to why I do it, and how it's done. But for now I want to let you all know my experience with fasting for such a long period of time.

Let us begin with why I did this in the first place. Well for one, I love to experiment. I've been always interested in fasting and since 4 years ago when I started as a trial, I never stopped. I've seen and read people fasting for longer periods of 24 hours, so I finally decided to give it a go.

The science behind this method is fat loss, obviously. If you remember back when I wrote a couple blogs about certain hormones, this is where it all comes together. 

Dieting long term causes leptin to drop, which slows down your fat loss. The more active leptin is, the more fat you will burn. Having cheat days causes your leptin hormone to turn on and work twice as hard to burn all those excess calories, which in turn overall makes you leaner in the bigger picture. Starting to follow me now?

By having an "over feed"  one day during the week is more beneficial than have small cheat snacks throughout the week, as those small snacks can't trigger leptin as much as a full day cheat.

Following this I am able to prevent any fat gain from eating like a mad man, and any stagnated fat loss, which allows a hormonal benefit from the fast to proceed uninterrupted. 

My experiment? Saturday was gloves off for junk. Sunday fast for full 24 hours, then Monday at 11am (still following my 16/8 protocol) have my first regular meal in the day. Total 40 hours, no food.

Saturday 

Meal 1: Half of a spinach dip party tray, nachos with beef, cheese, guac, sour cream, salsa, left over halloween candy and to wash it all down a couple mimosas.

Meal 2: Burger with Caesar salad, more spinach dip and bread, and more halloween candy.

Sunday

Water, black coffee, and green tea throughout the whole day

Monday Morning

Water, black coffee

11am: First meal regular meal.

How did I feel? Sunday night I had a light headache and mild hunger, but I was impressed I wasn't dying on the floor in pain. I think the headache was due to dehydration. Even though I drank around 5 litres of water, I still felt like I could drink more. This is probably due to the lack of water from my food. Since I eat a lot of vegetables on a daily basis, and vegetables contain a lot of water, this makes sense.

On Monday morning I felt normal, nothing out of the ordinary, I actually felt better than I did on Sunday.

What do you think about fasting? Let me know!