Let’s get this out of the way first, we, as humans, are incredibly complex, diverse, and above all else weird. This is why something like the Atkin’s Diet will work great for Bobby Joe, but will cause Johnny Ballgame to binge three days into the same diet. What about the fad of liquid diets? Low Fat, high carb, moderate protein? High Fat, high protein, low carbohydrate? No carbs (i.e. Anabolic Diet)? Fasting? Straight up calorie restriction is fine too, as long as you make sure you get in adequate protein and carbohydrates to complement you training. But since many people like to follow a designed program or a set of guidelines I will help you decide if one of these diets are right for you.

(It is getting harder and harder for people to succeed when the read books like this)

All of these diets work when done as directed, but depending on the kind of person you are, you might be setting yourself up for failure. Here are a few questions you should ask yourself before you decided what route to go.

1. List your three favorite foods, do more than 50% of their calories come from carbohydrates?
2. Do you like/have to train HARD?  By “HARD,” I mean you go heavy, you go hard, you do death circuits at the end of training, do heavy singles, sometimes need to lay down and catch your breath because you are training so hard.
3. Do you have control over 90% of the food you eat? For example, do you do your own grocery shopping, food prep, and cooking for yourself? Do you cook one meal for your family and need to make, “something the kids will eat,” and can’t make something separate for yourself?

If you answered yes to 1-2 of these questions, commercial diets with a specific name will be difficult. Answering yes to all three will make it impossible and you are just setting yourself up for failure and nights of binging. In your case, it may make more sense to start with a 500 calorie deficit/day and go from there. We all know what foods are considered healthy. Think lean proteins, vegetables, fruits, some nuts, etc.

Modifying your diet is a major event, and it should not be taken lightly. That is why all of those people who say, “Oh yeah, I know I need to lost 10 pounds, I am going to start this diet I saw in [insert magazine of your choice]. It worked great for [insert celebrity],” fail each and every time. There is no planning or accountability involved (more on accountability later).

Click here to view the embedded video.

(poor Fat Bastard, “I can’t stop eating. I eat because I’m unhappy, and I’m unhappy because I eat. It’s a vicious cycle.”)

This doesn’t mean you can not follow these diets (most of which are low-carb), just be conscious that you will need to support your training style with proper workout nutrition and get as much rest as you can. Try to shoot for 8 hours of sleep per night like it is your job. Even I have made some sacrifices so I can get the appropriate sleep in.

If you want my two-cents on how to approach dieting, I would send you to Leigh Peele and her two books The Fat Loss Troubleshoot and Body By Eats. The Fat Loss Troubleshoot has multiple plans of attack when it comes to dieting based on your personality and how fast you need to lose the weight.

Want to hear something original? I am going to do a random thoughts post on a Friday. Can you believe it? Now hold on to your butts while we light this candle.

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Can you believe it? That is two consecutive days of blogging? I think this calls for celebration. In the tradition of Random Friday posts, this will most likely have nothing to do with fitness or nutrition. I can however guarantee that it will feature a picture of a female celebrity that I have no shot with.

(Yvonne Strahovski of Chuck)

Today I am excited to get in a lift with Roger Lawson of RogLawFitness.com. He is also a former Cressey Performance intern and gamer. We actually had an epic day of gaming last month when the Penny arcade Expo strolled into tow. Tomorrow I plan on making the trip to Hudson, MA to visit the rest of the CP crew that I haven’t seen in two months. I could be in for something like this:

Click here to view the embedded video.

I am officially converted to Greens Plus Protein Bars. They really don’t taste so bad, especially the chocolate coated ones. You can’t look at every meal on the run as an opportunity to eat something that is like dessert or a Snickers Bar. I recommend checking them out if want a healthier alternative to your current on-the-go snack on bar.

Finally, I need to pimp Resident Evil Afterlife. I really enjoy somewhat bad movies by the fancy pants people who watch artsy fartsy (technical term) movies instead of watching fun movies like the RE series, Crank, or the Fast and Furious series. This trailer looks really stupid, but a sh*t ton of fun!

So, of course the doctor is going to say that, “yes, you should exercise for 60 minutes each day…” NOPE… Not going to happen.

She explains that women should be eating better instead of exercising more. Sure, I can agree with eating better, but why not still encourage women to move more! Not just for weight loss, but to stay healthy. What about osteoporosis? Keeping a healthy heart rate and blood pressure in check? What about just for the sake of their mental health? I don’t know about you but I am in a much better mood after I train for an hour. And how about just keeping a baseline of strength so you can pick up bags of groceries or your kids.

One hour of activity can be doing a Yoga DVD for 30 minutes in the morning, then walking your dog for 30 minutes at night! Come on health professionals!

All we are doing is giving people MORE EXCUSES!!!

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Beginners make a lot of mistakes when they first start lifting and it isn’t their fault. They see a workout in FLEX or SHAPE magazine and just go at it. Then their form is poor, they are complaining of soreness, and they don’t see results. Why? Because they don’t use progressions. Why start with reverse lunges or body-weight squats when you could be doing back squats with German volume training that promises 100 lb increase in your 1RM in 3 months? Same think with push ups to benching. I don’t let any of my untrained athletes and clients bench until they have shown proficiency in the push up. I mean they should be able to do 15 body weight push ups before I put them under the bar. Dumbbells are another case, but hopefully you are picking up what I am dropping you.

The Plank

This post I want to focus on the plank,  the most basic core stability exercises. I have a hierarchy of goals the athlete/client needs to meet before moving on to further progressions:

Phase 1

• 30 second front plank/15 second side plank (Per Side)
• Ability to do Pallof Presses properly in the tall kneeling position (weight will vary, I just want them to be able to stay tall and squeeze their glutes)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Phase 2

• 60 second Plank/30 second side plank (Per Side)
• Ability to do half-kneeling and standing Pallof Presses properly
• 12 kneeling rollouts on an exercise ball or TRX.
• Half Kneeling Cable Chops/Lifts

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Phase 3

• 30 Second Feet elevated (FE) Plank (on 12″ box)/15 second FE Side Plank (per side)
• Ability to do 1 Legged Pallof Press
• Crawling Planks
• Rollout on Ab Wheel
• Landmines/Extreme Core Trainer
• Standing Cable Lifts

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Phase 4

• Feet supported Side Plank
• Standing TRX Rollout
• Landmine/Extreme Core Trainer with Handles
• Band Resisted Rollouts

Click here to view the embedded video.

Phase 5

• Use your imagination

This is just what I go by and it can change based on other variables. But for the most part this is what you should go by for your own training and your clients.