TrainChange Fitness

Selling Your Health to the Highest Bidder

2008-01-05T15:45:00.000-08:00

It’s not often I get inspired to sit down and write, but every once in a while something spurs me so furiously it seems the only way I can vent is through a blog.

Ten minutes ago I sat at my computer and an article flashed through my RSS feed that immediately caught my attention. It said, “Mayor Puts Oklahoma City on a Diet”. Impressed by the idea behind the program I went to the site. In short, residents of Oklahoma have been given a challenge to lose weight and improve their eating habits. It’s still sounding like a great idea to me so I keep reading. As an added resource of support for the citizens, the City even created a website called, http://www.thiscityisgoingonadiet.com. At this point I’m thinking to myself, “Wow! This is a really cool way to inspire people to get in shape!” Then, while clicking through the site (yes, in true www fashion I abandoned the original article and was now blazing through web of information) I landed upon the Sponsor’s page.

Now, I must digress for a moment in order to ensure that you’re aware as to how the wonderful world of capital marketing works. Every event, product, promotion, TV commercial, television ad, election campaigns and even research study, costs money. Big money! More often than not this money comes from private corporations. And rarely is it because CEOs are interested in your well-being, but rather a financial investment for the company. Personally, as a business owner, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with taking care of your company’s financial well-being. However, I do have a problem with corporations that take advantage of the American people because they are in a unique position of being able to influence society by “purchasing” things that aren’t suppose to be for sale. Namely, public institutions. Which brings me back to the Sponsors of Oklahoma City’s diet program.

As of January 4, 2008 the event is being sponsored by The Weight Wise Bariatric Program and Foundation Surgery Affiliates. Out pops my Red Flag! And why you ask? Well, there are two very important reasons:

First, marketing savvy corporations realize that the in your face “YOU NEED THIS PRODUCT NOW” advertising campaign no longer works on today’s equally savvy consumers. Instead, their approach is to align themselves with people or things you already trust, thus allowing them to easily sneak through your fraud filter. In other words, they leverage the unconscious trust you have given to others, to their advantage. For example, how many times have you bought a product simply because a cardboard copy of your favorite celebrity was standing in front of it with a smile? This is exactly what’s taking place in Oklahoma. Sadly, instead of being proud of challenging their citizens to get in shape, the state officials should be ashamed for selling out the trust of their citizens!

Second, and most importantly, contrary to what bariatric spin masters would have you believe, surgery is not a solution for obesity. At present, there is no general consensus as to how the body works with regard to calorie storage and utilization. The majority of information we do have is based primarily on speculation and theory. Hundreds of years have gone into perfecting the body’s complex system of calorie utilization, and it’s unlikely that modern science will unravel the system anytime soon. But, what scientists do know is that weight loss is a far more complicated process than simply reducing caloric intake. Numerous studies have shown that the body is equally efficient at storing calories as it is at burning them. In fact, as one of the many people that have lost a family member to this type of weight loss procedure, I know first hand that the real danger to this surgery isn’t while you’re under the knife, rather, it’s when you return home and your body goes into shock. Think of it like this: a person wouldn’t wake up one day and find themselves overweight simply because they overate the night before. Instead, it’s a gradual process that allowed your body time to adapt to your eating behavior; be that as it may… damaging adaptations. Weight loss surgeries are the equivalent to the age when doctors used leeches to suck out illness.

I find it ironic how as a society we are appalled by third-world tribes that perform ritual genital mutilation and yet our government and medical authorities endorse stomach mutilation. The difference, however, is we deem our disfigurement as acceptable because we’ve been sold on the idea that, “…risk of their excess weight is greater than the risk of surgery.” - The Weight Wise Bariatric Program. In reality, the ones who benefit the most from this procedure are the doctors and insurance companies.

Do I have an answer to solve the obesity problem in America? No. What I do know is that instead of trying to change the way our body has functioned and survived throughout time our public institutions shouldn’t endorse procedures that go against the natural process of the body.

Unfortunately, even in such a beautiful country where we have the luxury to eat a 1200 calorie meal three times a day, the freedom to purchase products that offer instant gratification, and corporations that can sponsor government, the health of the American people will continue to be sold to the highest bidder.

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

About The Author: Al Smith, Jr., is an exercise and nutrition
specialist, and author of the book TrainChange: Fat Loss http://www.trainchange.com/beta/book.jsp.
For the past 10 years, he has provided Personal Training, Nutrition Consulting and Lifestyle Coaching to clients. Al currently resides in San Diego, CA where
he manages the TrainChange Fitness Studio http://www.TrainChange.com.

Copyright (c) 2007, by Al Smith, Jr. This article may be freely distributed as long as the copyright, author's information and the following
link is within the article http://www.TrainChange.com.

A Fitness Letter from Your Best Friend

2008-01-05T09:57:00.000-08:00

I'm writing you this letter because I miss the friendship we once had. I can honestly say that out of everyone in our group of friends, you are the one I'm closest to. You are my best friend.

You were in the delivery room when I was born, and I was there when mom tricked you into eating those horrible smashed green peas by pretending the spoon was a choo-choo train and your mouth was a tunnel. And how quickly we learned that peas weren't going to be part of our daily diet once I got sick and threw up all over the kitchen.

But, hands down the time we spent together in elementary school was the greatest!

Every day at 10:15am we'd run out to the field, hang our arms in the air and spin around like we were helicopters. That was so cool! And do you remember Jr. High? We'd play dodge ball on Monday, basketball on Tues then rush home so we could make time to ride the bike, skateboard and roller-skate before the street lights came on! Then in High School we couldn't wait for the lights to come on so we could hit the field for our Friday night football games. We had so much fun back then.

Unfortunately, when we went off to college the problems began. You'd constantly say you were too busy for me. At first it didn't bother me and I chose not to complain because we were older and life was different. Truth be told, you got too busy; I never changed.

In fact, I can't remember how many times I stayed up with you all night drinking coffee and eating pizza at 4am to help you study for your classes. I think we gained our Freshman 15 before the first semester was over. However, that's also when you started drinking and smoking. I knew it wasn't for me after the first time because my lungs burned so bad from the smoke I had a coughing spasm and the only thing I remember about the alcohol was throwing up in the toilet and waking up with a horrible hang over. Honestly, I don't think the others in our group appreciated your behavior but they couldn't say anything. I wished you would've learned from that experience and taken it as a sign to stop doing those things as well. But that's also when you began to let your other group of friends influence your life without considering how your decision also affected me. Nonetheless, I didn't give up on our friendship; I simply adapted and learned how to deal with it.

But as time went on, the more I adapted, the worse things got. In fact, I think the only time you've shown me that you still care about our friendship is that time when we had to run through the airport so you wouldn't miss our flight. I was so out of shape and could barely keep up, I swore you were going to kill me. But you didn't -- thanks.

Now that you've got a full-time job, kids and a significant other person in your life, I've fallen even lower on your priority list. Don't get me wrong, I'm not jealous of the time you spend with them because they seem to make you happy, and when you're happy I'm happy! I and our group of friends have once again adjusted to your new "lifestyle changesâ€. But unless you want me to start making trouble in your life, I suggest you start showing me a little more attention. And if you're too busy for that, then please just show me some respect...for ole' time's sake?

Please don't think I'm sending you this letter because I'm needy (okay, I'll admit when I'm sick I can be quite needy) but rather I'm concerned that this has become a one-sided friendship. Over the years I've overlooked the horrible things you've done to me, and only complained when I was sick and tired of you not making time for me. Sadly, every time I forgive you I end up getting neglected again.

I guess now that we're older maybe it's time for me to realize that our friendship will never be the same. You know, maybe the attention you used to show me, and the time you'd always make for us wasn't because you cared about me, you did it because it was convenient? And now that taking care of my needs is no longer convenient I can see that you really don't care about me, or our group of friends.

Hmm, maybe it's just time for us to go our separate ways with no hard feelings?

If you feel the same way please let me know and I'll be sure to tell the lungs, the liver, the heart and the rest of the group that you've chosen to sever our relationship. I'm sure they'll understand, and adjust themselves based on your decision.

Sincerely,

Your Body

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

It Was Once Known as Bushido

2008-01-05T09:19:00.000-08:00

Every time I read the following passage about the Bushido of 16th century Samurai's it reminds me that throughout history, in one form or another, there have always been a unique set of 'athletes' that refused to conform to the mediocrity of their society--and strived to work harder and live better, by setting their own standards.

The Samurai Creed
I have no parents; I make the Heavens and the Earth my parents.
I have no home; I make the Tan T'ien my home.
I have no divine power; I make honesty my Divine Power.
I have no means; I make Docility my means.
I have no magic power; I make personality my Magic Power.
I have neither life nor death; I make A Um my Life and Death.

I have no body; I make Stoicism my Body.

I have no eyes; I make The Flash of Lightning my eyes.
I have no ears; I make Sensibility my Ears.
I have no limbs; I make Promptitude my Limbs.
I have no laws; I make Self-Protection my Laws.

I have no strategy; I make the Right to Kill and the Right to Restore Life my Strategy.
I have no designs; I make Seizing the Opportunity by the Forelock my Designs.
I have no miracles; I make Righteous Laws my Miracle.
I have no principles; I make Adaptability to all circumstances my Principle.
I have no tactics; I make Emptiness and Fullness my Tactics.

I have no talent; I make Ready Wit my Talent.
I have no friends; I make my Mind my Friend.
I have no enemy; I make Incautiousness my Enemy.
I have no armour; I make Benevolence my Armour.
I have no castle; I make Immovable Mind my Castle.
I have no sword; I make No Mind my Sword.

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

Kellogs Special 'K' Lie - Lose 6 Pounds in 2 Weeks!

2007-01-12T11:31:00.000-08:00

Okay, if you haven't seen the ads, like most companies this time of year, Kellogs has a new media campaign that advocates if people add their Special K cereal into their diet, they'll be able to lose 6 lbs. in 2 weeks. Well, not only does that fly in the face of the dogmatic medical standard of never recommending that anyone lose more than 2 lbs. per week (Granted it may not be the most scientific fact but at least it set a ceiling to keep people from doing goofy things, like say...uhm....starving themselves do death in hopes of losing 10 pounds a week).

However, the creators of our trusted friend Tony the Tiger have decided to jump on the jam packed train -- that so many other companies are riding -- called the, "To Hell with Integrity Express". Once again, I won't go into details about this problem because I've written about it. I'll simply paste a two excerpts here and let you fill in the blanks.

And for those of you serious about fitness, you should drop them an email and let them know they've sold out too.

To: The Kelloggs Corporation:

Your company should be ashamed of itself. There is no way a person can lose 6 lbs in 2 weeks. That's more than 3 lbs. a week and even as a professional fitness consultant, simply losing 1.5 lbs a weeks is difficult. Not only are you setting people up for failure just to sell more products, you are contributing to the overall problems of false information that contributes to the problems of obesity in America.

Al Smith, Jr.
The Fitness Specialist

714.658.0962
6755 Mira Mesa Blvd. #123-409
San Diego, Ca 92121
www.TheFitnessSpeicalist.com

Excerpt #1
The Trouble with Conventional Weight Loss

The typical low-fat diet is high in carbohydrates and low in calories. For the most part, this is the traditional fat -loss and fat maintenance recommendation echoed throughout the medical community. The Dietary Guidelines recommend 20-30% of daily calories come from fat, approximately 10% from protein, and 60-70% from carbohydrates. Physicians and other fitness professionals are pressured from sanctioning government agencies and managed health care to support these guidelines. Statistically speaking, however, following these guidelines has provided no benefit in the area of fat management.

The premise behind low-fat dieting is based on the assumption that when calorie intake is reduced, excess fat is burned for energy. This premise is oversimplified and flawed.

To your body, low-calorie dieting is the equivalent of a primordial famine. When deprived of calories, the body initiates a sequence of innate preservation responses to maintain equilibrium between calorie intake and calorie [energy] expenditure.

One of the responses is to reduce lean muscle mass. Lean muscle burns more calories per day than any other tissue. On prolonged calorie-restricted diets (more than three or four weeks), studies show that close to 50% of the weight lost comes at the expense of lean muscle. One pound of lean muscle requires an average of 35 calories per day, in contrast to a mere 8 calories required to maintain an equal amount of fat. Since maintaining muscle requires more calories than fat, muscle is destroyed when there is a lack of calorie intake. This means muscle is destroyed to reduce metabolic overhead, so your BMR may be decreased by as much as 25-40%.

Accordingly, the decrease then causes fewer calories to be burned and more to be stored as fat (a significant factor contributing to weight gain after a diet). In spite of this known occurrence, calorie reduction is still the customarily recommended approach to fat loss.

FIG 1-1 NOT SHOWN

Fig 1-1. Lean muscle is destroyed on prolonged diets.

50% of the weight lost on a diet will come from fat and
50% will come from muscle.

Figure 1-1 illustrates the difference between losing weight and losing fat. In the first picture, our person (whom we'll call BetaUser) has 24% body fat, weighs 250 pounds, and wants to lose 30 pounds. If BetaUser chose to lose the weight simply using a low-calorie diet (Incorrect Weight Loss), he would lose 15 pounds of fat, 15 pounds of muscle, and end up gaining 1% body fat. On the other hand, if BetaUser chose to lose weight using the TrainChange approach (Correct Weight Loss), he would lose the entire 30 pounds from fat, maintain his existing lean muscle and decrease his overall body fat by 11%.

Another problem caused by low-calorie dieting is when the body enters starvation mode. While in this mode, energy expenditure is decreased further by reducing things like energy level, skin temperature, digestion and fat-burning hormones. In an attempt to replenish overdrawn energy reserves, alternate hormones are released that work to conserve energy and increase calorie storage. Once in this mode, nearly every calorie consumed is immediately stored as fat. In short, the dual combination of decreased metabolic activity and increased energy conservation creates the ideal environment for rapid fat storage.

Excerpt #2
What to Expect

Expect to gain weight every 4-6 weeks (especially during the first four weeks). Wait (!) – before you close this book, rest assured the weight gain is temporary. Frightful as it may seem, this is how your body establishes a stable weight. For example, say you start your goal plan weighing 200 pounds and you lose four pounds by the second week (down to 196 pounds). The fourth week, you gain three pounds (bringing you back up to 199 pounds), then lose four pounds at the end of the following week (back down to 195 pounds). Although you lost a total of 8 pounds, your body stabilizes at 195 pounds. When progression is done in this manner, it allows your body to make corresponding adjustments in order to accommodate your new metabolic activity and lean muscle growth. This slow type of spiral helps to keep the weight off because the longer you can stabilize at a given weight while on a diet, the more likely you are to keep from putting it back on. When crash dieting, however, you lose ten pounds in one week, but your body rebounds all at once and you gain back more weight than you lost.

As long as you are following your exercise and nutritionroutines, don't freak out if the scale moves in the other direction. Also, avoid attempting to reduce your calories as a means of compensation — that is the worst thing you can do. No matter how many times I prepare people for this prospect, they still flip out when they see the numbers rise. [Your body fat percentage will not fluctuate as wildly, which is another reason to monitor it in conjunction to the scale.]

In all fairness, I tell my clients, "Don't get dismayed — or excited — every time the scale moves (the majority of rapid weight fluctuation is water anyway)." Your goal is to reduce body fat. Gauge your progress by declines in your body fat percentage, not weight fluctuations on the scale. As long as you follow your goal plan, you'll watch your body fat and total weight will go down while your lean muscle weight goes up.

Read more in The Fitness Specialist Newsletter

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

You Have Permission to Stop Eating for the Starving People In Africa

2006-11-30T09:34:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you but my parents always made me feel guilty about not wasting food because of the starving people in Africa. Well, guess what mom...
(Actually, I mentioned this 3 years ago in my book, TrainChangeThe excerpt is after the CNN article).

Obesity a big problem in Africa
www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/africa/11/29/Africans.overweight.ap/index.html

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) -- Africa, a continent usually synonymous with hunger, is falling prey to obesity.

It's a trend driven by new lifestyles and old beliefs that big is beautiful.

Ask Nodo Njobo, a plump hairdressing assistant.

She is coy about her weight, but like many African women, proud of her "big bum." She says she'd like to be slimmer, but worries how her friends would react.

"Here, if you lose a lot of weight, people automatically think you have TB or AIDS. It's not like in America and Europe where you go on a diet to lose weight," Njobo said.

More than one-third of African women and a quarter of African men are estimated to be overweight, and the World Health Organization predicts that will rise to 41 percent and 30 percent respectively in the next 10 years.

"We have gone from undernutrition to overnutrition without ever having passed healthy nutrition," said Krisela Steyn, a retired professor with the South African Medical Research Council.

Although the figures are lower than in affluent countries, many experts fear that health systems already stretched by the AIDS virus, malaria and poverty-related diseases may snap under the additional burden of heart disease, strokes, cancer and diabetes, conditions linked to obesity.

Worldwide, an estimated 1 billion people are overweight, compared with 800 million who are undernourished.

Ironically, the poorest are often most vulnerable. Children born with low birth weights to malnourished mothers tend to be more at risk of becoming overweight as adults. They are also more prone to obesity as family members give them too much food to help them catch up, according to experts at a recent conference on chronic disease in Cape Town.

Culprits are starchy diet, less walking

The problem is most pronounced in South Africa, where death rates from obesity and diabetes are on the rise.

Some 56 percent of South African women are now either obese or overweight, compared with fewer than 10 percent who are underweight. More than 17 percent of adolescents here are overweight -- for teenage girls, it's 25 percent, according to the Medical Research Council.

The traditional diet is heavy in starch, with foods like maize meal and white bread being staples. Three spoons of sugar in coffee and tea are the norm. And, as elsewhere in the world, high-fat, high-sugar fast foods, snacks and fizzy drinks are in.

And, like elsewhere, growing urbanization has led to less walking and other exercise and the spread of television has led to a generation of couch potatoes rather than athletes.

In South Africa and throughout the continent, it is considered rude to refuse food.

"We face a very difficult situation in trying to manage obesity. We are up against social and traditional norms that being fat is a sign that you are wealthy, you are successful, you are happy, that your husband can feed you," Steyn said in an interview.

"Plus the trend toward less physical activity and the viewpoint that if you are wealthy you don't sweat," she added.

Njobo is typical. She comes from a remote rural village where walking was the main means of getting around. She now works in downtown Cape Town and says she doesn't have time to buy and cook vegetables and lentils so she often grabs convenience foods.

She is too tired to exercise after being on her feet all day and after the long bus ride to and from the hair salon. In any case, she wouldn't dream of jogging in the poor suburb where she lives as it is plagued by high crime.

South Africa is not alone. In Cameroon, where the diet is rich in palm oil, cornflower products and red meat, 35 percent of the population is overweight or obese. Similar rates are found in Gambia and Nigeria, particularly among women, according to figures presented at a recent conference organized by the Oxford Health Alliance of health professionals and academics.

These numbers are still far below the industrialized world -- only about 2.4 percent of Africans suffered from diabetes, compared with nearly 8 percent in Europe and North America. But the International Diabetes Federation says Africa's overburdened health systems are ill-equipped to diagnose the disease and treatment is too expensive for the vast majority of its victims.

The federation cites the example of a diabetes patient in Bamako, the capital of the desert country of Mali, needing to spend more than $21 on diabetes care a month -- more than half the average family's income.

Poor communities with no electricity or refrigerators face the added problem of how to store insulin. Even in relatively sophisticated cities like Cape Town, the number of diabetes sufferers with amputated feet due to late diagnosis and poor treatment is distressingly high.

"It's not true that only the rich have problems with obesity and overweight," says Jean-Claude Mbanya, director of Cameroon's National Obesity Center.

"The poor suffer even more."

Excerpt from TrainChange: Fat Loss

Suggestion #6: Give yourself permission to walk away from your plate.
"You can't leave the dinner table until you finish your plate." "Don't waste food because there are starving people in Africa." Growing up, we were taught to never waste food. Eating was not about curbing hunger, it was about clearing your plate. As adults, we're still bound to the dinner table by these same voices. Whether at a restaurant, at home, or as a guest at someone's house, the obligation to polish off our plates often results in us eating more than we need or even want.Accept that it's okay to leave food on your plate when you've had enough. Stuffing yourself won't help the starving people in. Is it really any less of a "waste" to force down food you don't want than it is to just throw it away?

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

The Deception of Physical Perfection

2006-11-23T13:24:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you but I guarantee that by 8 o'clock tonight I'm going to be sitting in my living room chair slipping into a food coma caused by a head on collision between me, several pedestrian turkey slices, scoops of stuffing with cranberry sauce, an innocent sweet potato pie that never saw me coming…and best of all, several bowls of moms homemade gumbo taken straight to the head! Yeeeeeaaaah buddy there is going to be a horrific pile-up of food on MY PLATE today! Thankfully, first thing Friday morning I'll be at the gym starting my rehabilitation (covered in sweat that smells like a full course Thanksgiving dinner).

There is nothing wrong with eating and celebrating the holidays. However, the biggest problem most people will from today through New Years are the diets and supplements they're going to (ab)use to get back in shape. This year, I'm encouraging everyone to start by creating a realistic, and more importantly, attainable body image.

Sadly, Hollywood celebrities and the weight loss industry have created unattainable images of physical perfection. Sure, we see our favorite actors and actresses in movies and music videos with perfect bodies, however, what consumers don't see is the time it took to develop that body--and more often then not, the rapid weight loss approach entertainers use ultimately causes them to regain the weight (PLUS MORE) once the diet and filming is over. For example, Jessica Alba, Toby Maguire, Val Kilmer, Alec Baldwin, John Travolta, Christina Aguilera , Al Gore, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Oprah and Kirstie Alley is the short list of celebrities that struggle with their weight when they're no longer in front of the camera. But no one ever thinks about that when they write articles about the latest "Hottest Celebrity Diet". In short, not even celebrities can maintain the bodies they portray on screen--yet we endlessly strive to attain their fabricated images.

And what about the models we see on the cover of fitness magazines posing next to the articles that say, "Get a 6 pack in 6 weeks"(?). Well, here is the scoop. The models are usually either a) genetically gifted with the particular body part they are featured in; b) they're airbrushed into perfection; or c) they've spent the last "12 weeks" on a hard core diet and exercise routine preparing for the photo shoot! Blah…deceived again!

The purpose of this blog and my "The Deception of Physical Perfection" video isn't to bash overweight celebrities. Rather, the intent is to make people realize that there is no such thing as a quick fix fitness solution--regardless of how much money you're willing to spend. Think about it like this: anything worth having in life requires hard work….otherwise, it wouldn't be of any value, because everyone would have it. The real success in getting in shape is learning how to master the process of training your body and changing your life. (1)As the process continues, you get excited at the physical changes taking place in your body. Once you do you'll feel a new sense of well-being. You look in the mirror and say, "I look great!" But in addition to that, you feel great because your energy level and self-esteem have also gone up. Yet, even once all of this occurs, don't expect the process to get easier. Just realize (and appreciate) that looking and feeling this great are the benefits of continually working through the process.

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

Can You Handle the Truth?

2006-11-06T00:19:00.000-08:00

If you haven't heard by now, a Police Chief in Winter Haven, Fl. was fired for suggesting that his police officers get in shape. After reading that article it became painfully obvious why 63% of the American population is overweight, and why that number will continue to rise. Our society has natured so many emotional cry babies that when someone attempts to confront them with the truth, instead of using it as a catalyst to CHANGE, they start whining about they're feelings being hurt. Give me a break! I was so irate I ended up sending the following letter to the Mayor of Winter Haven. Change has got to start somewhere, so why not start it here!

"Out of respect for your time I will keep this short. I recently read about Winter Haven, Fl ousting Police Chief Goward for suggesting that his police department get in shape and am saddened by actions the message it sends to the rest of America. In short, it discourages leaders from encouraging subordinates to make positive changes for fear of offending them. In order to truly help people, a good leader must assertively push others outside of their comfort range. For example, a 36 year veteran of the Compton police department died in 2002 because of his poor health choices and chronic alcohol abuse. That officer was my father. I wish someone like Chief Goward would've had the courage to take corrective action to help him.

Unfortunately, like most Americans I don't get involved in the day to day quagmires of our society; opting instead to idly sit back and focus solely on my immediate circle of influence. However, in hope that the untimely death of my father can help save someone else's father or mother, I'm going to make my voice heard.

The actions that Mr. Goward took to motivate his department to improve their health should be commended. He made them face the reality of their situation by telling them the truth. And the truth often hurts. Statistically, police officers have the highest occupational alcoholism rate. Moreover, officers don't simply eat doughnuts and coffee all day--they also consume calorie laden fast food that gets offered to them--for free--as they patrol the city. The risk factors of these variables alone should spur departments across the country to take a more proactive approach toward improving the physical fitness and health education of police officers. A concern for saving their life should out weight hurting their feelings.

The irony is that I am the man I am today because my father constantly reinforced into me the values of self-discipline and self-respect. Sadly, there wasn't a support system in place for him when he needed help."

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."

Is your Self-Discipline Wwitch ON or OFF?

2006-09-15T08:57:00.000-07:00

Okay, a video was posted on YouTube.com (Would you believe it's been removed! If you missed it the video showed 5 male soldiers binding a willing female soldier's hands and legs with tape, then taping her to a pole.) Well, the Pentagon was upset at what they saw. Nonetheless, people have taken sides as to whether the actions of the soldiers were appropriate because it was being done in fun. Well, here's a blog I posted about it because I believe it's applicable to explaining a core component of "living a fitness lifestyle".

"The problem isn't whether or not they're having fun--it's obvious they are. The problem is that they're placing themselves in an obvious situation where something could easily go wrong. Someone touches her breasts, her ass, she gets dropped or as mentioned, she couldn't breathe. Quite often things we do in life are rationalized as, "Well if everyone involved is having fun it's okay to do it." In this case it could be said they need relief from their stressful environment and that boys will be boys (not to mention their total loss of military bearing). However, in addition to the GI Bill and being able to see the world, the military is about maturity and self-discipline so that soldiers can learn how to look at a situation, evaluate possible outcomes, and weigh the risk of something going wrong verses living for the moment. In other words, you no longer need a babysitter (or in this case someone in command) in life to help you start using common sense. While it can be said she is just being treated like one of the guys, the fact is they're all in uniform therefore they're at work (If the rules haven't changed since my days of being in the Army you're not even allowed to travel in your BDUs). Would five guys tying up a female co-worker be acceptable at your job? Nope. It's sad that our society has gotten to the point to where we have to scrutinize every move that's made for fear of it being taken the wrong way, but that too is a result of people not being willing to assume personal responsibility for their actions. I can hear it now, if something bad did happen as a result of their actions the first thing the guy would say is, "Well everyone else was doing it" and she'd say, "Well I was trying to tell them to stop". Hopefully, as people get older they'll also get wiser (I'm only thirty-two so don't think this is coming from someone's grandfather) and you begin to learn that you have a choice to either avoid needless complications that could arise out of a scenario like this, or be the person that constantly asks, "Why do bad things always happen to me?" Duuuuuah! Because you constantly PLACE YOURSELF in BAD SITUATIONS!"

From a fitness perspective everyone knows that in order to achieve your goal require self-discipline. Specifically, self-discipline means that your able to do what you know you're suppose to do--without someone having to make you do it.

However, the reason most people lack the discipline to achieve their fitness goal is because they don't have discipline in their life, period. In other words, if you don't have self-discipline in your life outside of the gym you definitely won't have it inside the gym (ahem...you know the people the show up at that gym and spend more time socializing than training, if they show up at all, then always wonder why they aren't seeing results). If you really want to achieve your fitness goal, or any goal for that matter you've got to begin by learning how to discipline yourself (and no, that's not the job of a personal trainer). Once you acquire self-discpline, and learn how to apply it in all aspects of your life, achieving your fitness goal becomes nothing more than committing yourself to a goal, and having the self-discipline to follow through with it.

"What you need to hear isn't always what you want to hear."