The Fat Trainer RSS Feed

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2012-05-10T21:51:05-04:00

Ingrid Michaelson

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-07-01T00:36:50-04:00

One of my favorite artists is Ingrid Michaelson. I really enjoy her music.

Before her song, “The Way I Am” became a huge hit, she was just doing what she loved and looking for a break. I’m glad she got her break because I like her music. I’m also glad she got her break because she seems like a solid and grounded person too.

It’s just inspirational that she was struggling along and now those struggles are behind her. Good for her. And thanks for inspiring me, Ingrid.

Here’s a clip from a recent interview:

Friendly Advice

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-30T23:28:37-04:00

A friend recently messaged me on Facebook and asked for some advice on how to get back into getting in shape after his wife had a baby and priorities changed for him a bit. Here’s what he asked:

Last summer I was weight training quite a bit. I was in the best shape of my life. Anyhow, we had a kid, and that does damage to the physique. So, I'm about 230 now, and would like to get down to a healthy 200-210. I want to do this mainly from weight training. So, where do I start, and what supplements (if any) should I take?

Well, I guess I was in a talkative mood, so I had quite a reply. I’ll copy it below. Enjoy!

A very similar thing happened to me with the birth of my children (check out Couvade syndrome)...

As far as getting back to 200ish, I would start at combining strength with cardio:

Strength increases muscle mass in turn burning more calories and causing you to look stronger in turn causing you to feel better about yourself in turn causing you to lift more... It also fights the issues of bone density loss and increases testosterone which also helps burn more calories.

Cardio is the most effective at burning the most amounts of calories in the shortest amount of time. The optimal format is interval training. This could be sprinting for 30 seconds then jogging for 90—repeat. Or swimming or biking or...

If you enjoy strength and despise cardio, focus on strength, but get cardio in too. I would lift each body part no more than 2 times per week. You can structure it anyway you like it beyond that, but be sure to give each body part 48 hours of rest before lifting it again.

Running is just about the best form of cardio. Swimming, boxing, jumping rope are all close behind. Biking, jogging, sports, etc. are good things to do, but not as demanding on the cardiovascular system as, say, running.

I'd go for at least 3 times a week of 30 minutes or more for cardio. The more you can do, the better. You can combine the cardio workouts with your strength or do them at different times/days.

Depending on how you break up your body parts, it will take you a different amount of time.

If you did a typical upper body/lower body or push/pull workout, I'd say 30-45 minutes should be good. If you did full body, I'd say 45-60 would be good.

Design your sets around getting in about 25 total reps for the specific movement. E.g. If you're doing a bench press and you want to do 3 sets, do about 8 reps per set for a total rep count of 24-25 (5 sets of 5, 2 sets of 12, etc.)

As far as supplements, you should be taking a daily multivitamin. I use the Equate branded (walmart) Active Male or something. Nothing special. I also take 500 extra mg of Vitamin C every day.

The only other supplement that I am comfortable with and use myself is whey protein. My favorite is Dymatize. Look for low-fat, and avoid artificiality if possible.

I prefer to add this to my shakes, but it tastes fine with milk too.

The third area (which I struggle the most with) is nutrition. Since we are about the same age and size, I can say that your average caloric needs are probably at around 2000/day (there are online calculators that can help with accuracy of that number.) So, if you could cut 500 calories off of that number then do a 500-1000 calorie workout, you've gotten yourself a good caloric deficit.

Ultimately a calorie is a calorie regardless of where it comes from, but it is good to eat healthy whole foods whenever possible. Stuff like fiber and whole grains can keep you fuller for longer and eating snacks (with carbs for short term energy and fat or protein for longer term energy) are a VERY good thing. ~55% of your calories should come from carbs, 25% protein and 20% fat (does that make 100%?)

The most important thing to do is start. If you can just do one day/week and you currently doing zero, then just get that one in. Shoot for two next week, etc. Look for excuses to be active. Take the stairs. Park further from the entrance to the store. Play ball. sign up for a 5k.... etc.

Risky Business

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-23T22:04:47-04:00

I’ve never considered myself a risky person, but I was reflecting today about some of the decisions I’ve made in my life that have been pretty risky.

In the last three years, I’ve basically quit two jobs to move my life in a very different direction. In 2008, I quit my job and moved across the country and wrote The Fat Trainer. Then last year, I helped divest the company I worked for so I could help start Five Degrees Consulting.

I’m still waiting for the positive ROI on these risks, so some days it can be pretty hard. Today was one of those days.

I gotta just keep plugging along because I believe in both the book and my company.

iPhone App Cyclemeter

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-20T15:23:13-04:00

I use my iPhone quite frequently when I run or bike. Yes, I use the iPod app, but I have an iPod Shuffle that I can use too. I take the phone with me for two reasons.

1: For safety. It’s nice to have a phone on me should I need to make a call.

2: So I can track my ride/run using GPS. There are a handful of apps out there that do this, but the one that I’ve settled on is called Cyclemeter (they also have one called runmeter). I’ve tried iMapMyRide and RunKeeper (the free versions) and just didn’t like them that much.

Cyclemeter is actually the only app that I’ve actually paid for. I think it was worth the $5.

It tracks a bunch of stuff from distance and pace to elevation and calories burned. I like the no nonsense way it sends me an email after each ride/run and I can click on a google maps link to see the data (like this recent ride).

Something that I’m interested in trying when I’ve got extra money lying around, though, is iMapMyRide’s sensor attachments. They’ve got heart rate and cadence trackers that are supposed to all interact with the app. That sounds pretty cool.

The biggest tip I can give is to be sure that the GPS is fully “warmed up” before you start. I live in a mountainy area, so if it isn’t right to begin with, it’ll give very skiwampus results (like this 1 hour – 54 mile ride).

Fat Trainer for iOS Devices

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-17T14:45:43-04:00

I am thrilled to announce that my book is now available on all of the major players in the book reading industry. Paperback, PDF, Kindle, Nook and now iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch!

All in all, it took about 3 weeks to get approval from Apple once I got the book submitted to iTunes via iTunes Producer. I have included links to the respective iTunes stores across the globe where one can buy The Fat Trainer for your iOS device here. If you cannot purchase the book because you are outside one of these countries, please connect with me, and I’ll figure out a solution.

This is a great start to my week and I’m excited to finally see that little orange dot replaced with a green one earlier today (on iTunes Connect).

UK Purchase

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-09T17:55:25-04:00

I don’t know who you are or how you heard about The Fat Trainer on Kindle... but thank you to that first person who purchased the book from the UK Kindle store the day it was available. I hope it is the first of many millions of purchases. :)

Thank you!

I’m still awaiting approval for inclusion in the iBookstore with Apple for iPad and other iOS devices. I’ll keep you posted.

Fat Trainer for Nook!

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-06T23:05:41-04:00

Another day, another post, another eReader!

The Fat Trainer is now available on the Nook! Both Barnes and Noble and Amazon were pretty easy to deal and very timely in getting the book listed in their stores. I am still awaiting approval for the iBookstore with Apple (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch), even though it was the first place I submitted the “manuscript” for publishing. It only has been a few days though. So far, I’ll give Apple the benefit of the doubt.

I also started to get the contents of the book on Sony’s readers, but they have bigger hoops to jump through. We’ll see if it’s worth it to reformat the book again (into lowly .doc for heaven’s sake), but I’m looking into it.

Any requests for a Sony version?

So, if you’ve a Nook or a Kindle - click on the links above and let me know what you think.

Thanks!

Fat Trainer for Kindle!

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2011-05-05T18:26:34-04:00

Well, blogging never has been one of my strong points. It was a nearly a year ago to the day that I recommitted to blog more... nice. Since then, I’ve managed one big post! Pretty week, I know....

I am back at it though. At least for now.

I have a very exciting announcement: The Fat Trainer is now available in the Kindle Store for all of you Kindle lovers out there. It was a two month process to reformat the book (again, again) to get it ready for Apples iBookstore, then a ten minute process to convert that format (ePub) to a Kindle appropriate format (MOBI) via Calibre.

I am still waiting to get approval to get on the iBookstore (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch). Hopefully that will just be a matter of days rather than weeks. Amazon took about one day.

I will now start to get the book on the lesser popular ebook readers out there.

Out-n-About

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2010-05-24T09:00:00-04:00

Even though it snowed last night (!!), spring has definitely been in the air the last few weeks. I am lucky enough to live in a very active and health part of the world. There is something motivating and energizing now that I see more and more people out biking, running, walking, etc.

My older son and I went on a bike ride and we had a great time. It makes me even more excited to see the thermometer rising so we can spend even more time outside. What are some of your favorite things to do outside?

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705345246/Utah-ranked-No-2-healthiest-state.html

I'm Still Here

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2010-05-08T00:12:00-04:00

First of all, I am sorry that it has been months since my last post! Wow, I can’t believe it’s been this long. I guess the biggest reason for the delay is a combination of my wife being with child and things at my day job getting busier and busier. Well, work is still super busy, but my wife did have our little baby: a baby boy actually. Darin. Mom and child are healthy and doing well.

I have recommitted myself to blogging more often to continue to share with you my experiences and my journey towards optimal health.

I have also had the opportunity to recommit myself to better health and fitness. With the busyness of life, it sure can be hard to do what is right. Well, I’m glad that the warm weather is coming and I can start getting outside more. There is something special about fresh air and sunshine. My current strength routine is a really cool one that I learned from Mens Fitness magazine.

How about that for a random blog post. I’ll do better next time:)

Thank you for reading!

Switching to CreateSpace

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-11-10T23:00:00-05:00

I’ve been mulling this over for a long time now, and I have finally put in the research to switch to a new publishing company called CreateSpace. I only just learned about CreateSpace, however. I was going to switch to Amazon’s BookSurge. I don’t know all of the ins and outs, but believe BookSurge and CreateSpace were two separate companies both owned by Amazon.

Regardless of how it all went down. I am now in the process of getting The Fat Trainer print ready to go with CreateSpace.

Because CreateSpace does not offer prints to be sold at The Fat Trainer’s current size, I have a fair amount of work to do to get the printed version ready. This will, though, allow me to add some things to the book that the smaller size didn’t do well at.

One of the things that I’m working on adding is more food recommendations. This will give you some new ideas of healthy eating options throughout your day.

The best part about this move is that it will allow me to significantly lower the price of the printed version of the book. This is very exciting to me, because I want as many people as possible to take advantage of this special book.

I will release the price when publishing is ready to go. I anticipate the switch to take most of November.

Apple and Microsoft Keep It Fun

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-11-06T19:00:00-05:00

I love the competition between Microsoft and Apple. Their products, strategies, business models and promotional tactics vary so much for products that can be seen as so similar. Whether you’re a mac person (that’s me) or not, there is much to study and learn from the both of ‘em. It can be argued that they both get a lot of things right a lot of the time.

Here’s a video comparing the two over the years from The Big Money:

Nice Thoughts

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-11-04T10:00:00-05:00

A received a nice compliment the other day...

Someone that I have recently met, looked up the book and gave it a read. He said he liked the way it flowed and liked its simpleness. We talked about it for a few minutes and it was really cool. I guess it is nice to have people say good things about you to you every once in a while. That is something I should work on.

Feel free to share your thoughts, comments or questions about the book with me. Thanks.

iPhone & Lose It!

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-08-14T11:25:38-04:00

While there are many health and fitness apps on the iTunes App store, I found one that I can’t live without. It is called, Lose It! It allows you to track calories consumed and calories burned through exercise. It has a very large library of foods and exercises and it keeps things pretty tidy by allowing you to put in your goals then it customizes your needs.

It is very much worth checking out, and it is free!

iPhone & MapMy

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-07-27T10:28:54-04:00

For fathers day, my beautiful wife got me an iPhone. It is an amazing piece of technology and I quite enjoy it.

One thing that I use almost every day is a free app that I downloaded called iMapMyRide. This app, while not perfect, uses GPS to track distance, time and pace then maps the run, ride, hike, etc. on a map so you can see where you went. I absolutely love this app and it has made a big difference in motivating me to run a little harder or a little longer.

If you are looking to lose weight or get into better shape, it makes purchasing an iPhone or iPod Touch completely worth it.

I'm still here

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-07-20T22:55:29-04:00

I wanna catch you up in my life and provide a small justification of why I haven’t blogged in two months:

I moved and started a new job.

Things are going really well here in Salt Lake for me personally and professionally. I really enjoy working at PeopleSmarts. I also really look forward to the near future and distant future with the company. We have some very fun and innovative training and consulting products we’re working on to help companies be profitable and sustainable. (I do the marketing stuff).

My wife and I moved to our new place in Daybreak at the beginning of June and I love the trail system they have set up. For about three weeks now, I have been getting up and running again. I’ve averaged about 25 miles per week. I’ve been at the plateau of about 220-225 pounds for about six months, so it is nice to be able to get over all of the change in jobs and relocating and get back into the groove of weight loss.

My current goal is to get to 199 lbs by mid September. That is a lot of weight fast, but so far so good.

I’ve been hearing some great feedback from people who have read the book and are implementing some of my suggestions and tips. It is really fun to see and hear people have results. It makes me excited and makes me want to help you wherever I can so always feel free to connect with me.

Holland

A Cold

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-05-22T00:13:04-04:00

I’ve had a cold for the last week or so. It has moved from a sore throat to a cough to major sinus congestion to my chest to a stuffy nose. Well, the last few days, especially during sleeping, I am coughing a lot. While this is no fun, I’ve discovered that having a heavy cough is a great ab work out!

My abs are sore. My abs are tender. Maybe I’m coughing with poor form or something, but I use my abs each time I cough, so it is like doing 30 crunches every hour for an entire day. Blah!

Suggestion: next time you don’t feel like doing abs, just get a cough and you’ll be forced to do ‘em:)

10% Off At Lulu

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-05-14T11:11:00-04:00

I just got an email from Lulu with a coupon code good for 10% off. This makes it the best time to order The Fat Trainer! Enter 'MAYCONTEST10' at checkout. This code expires soon, so order asap! Don’t forget to share this info with your friends.

Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks.

Small Changes

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-07-31T12:49:17-04:00

A reader of the book recently told me of some of the changes she’s trying to make in her life because of the book. She said that she is paying more attention to her heart rate when she exercises. This actually keeps her more motivated because she doesn’t have to guess at how hard she is working.

That is what makes the difference, small and simple changes. I tried to fill the book with simple things that can you can implement in your life to bring about great changes.

What changes have you made that have brought about great things? Let me know.

New Shoes

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-05-05T00:34:58-04:00

Last week was the week of the new shoe for me. I got two new pairs of shoes. One pair for basketball and one for running. It seems like all of my shoes are wearing out at the same time... I could use some new dress shoes and casual shoes too. Oh well, those can weight:)

Anyway, the new running shoes are quite nice, Asics Gel-Kinsei. (Similar to the above image.) I tried looking at two local running shops, (Salt Lake Running Company, Wasatch Running) but couldn’t find something within my price target (<$80). I ended up at Sports Authority and while I didn’t get the same type of service as at a running shop, the sales people were very friendly.

This is my second pair of Asics, but I had to choose a different size because Sports Authority doesn’t carry 12.5. I got 13 instead of 12 because it felt better. Well, I ran on the treadmill this morning with the shoes and liked ‘em till the very end when the heel started to rub the wrong way. I’m going to give it another go on my Wednesday run, but will have to return them if they still rub.

So what? Well, it got me thinking of some of the things I learned at my favorite running shop: The Starting Block (in Missouri). The owners are great and the service is wonderful. They do a video gait analysis then recommend shoes that will best help you on your run. I learned that I am a neutral runner which means I run with pretty good form.

I also learned the importance of actually running (on a treadmill) before you buy the shoes. Once you buy them, you can continue to run on a treadmill to be sure they’re right and return/exchange them for the right fit. Also, running shoes should offer about a thumbnails width between the end of the big toe and shoe when standing. This gives the foot plenty of room to move while running.

Finally, I learned that shoes break down over time (~350 miles). If the shoe is broken down inside, even if it looks fine on the exterior, you increase the risk of injury and it can make you sorer faster.

Physical Copy Release

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-28T11:51:38-04:00

The Fat Trainer is now available as a soft cover book! Hurry out and get one for yourself and a friend!

I will now start marketing it harder and work on getting it on the Kindle and other ebook readers.

Don’t forget to tell all of your friends.

Not Quite There

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-22T01:24:08-04:00

Just a quick note. I just made a handful of small adjustments to the print version of the book. I think it is as close to perfect as I think I can get it. Lulu requires that I purchase the book and approve the physical version, so it will probably be another week before I get the book printed and shipped and approved. I am getting rather anxious to move on with promotion and other formats of the book (Kindle, audio, etc.)

Regarding Lulu, I am a little unhappy with the end-user experience. In order to purchase an ebook (or any product) the customer must register on the site. It is more than just filling out credit card info, but the customer essentially creates an account that they can log into. That is a bit disappointing.

I’m considering moving back to a google checkout/paypal or ejunkie option. I just ready to get the book officially released. Thoughts?

Mini Twitter Explosion

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-16T01:49:59-04:00

I haven’t figured out why yet, but in the last few days I’ve had 16 people add themselves as followers to my twitter account (@TheFatTrainer). Perhaps it is my previous blog post about Social Media? Perhaps it is my comment on a friends blog? Perhaps it’s just one of my recent tweets? Perhaps it’s just coincidence...

Well, whatever it is, thank you for following me. I hope I add value to your twitter experience. I feel like I’ve learned a lot in the past month or so that I’ve been on Twitter. I started out just doing updates of when I was going to the gym or what the weather was like, but now I try to be relevant to my book and personal brands and provide useful information or links.

In my opinion, if Twitter will ultimately succeed, it’s users must be useful and relevant to followers.

Thoughts?

Social Media for Small Business

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-15T01:04:28-04:00

While looking for another video on AMEX’s OPEN Forum to show some coworkers the other day and found this video and thought I’d share. It is a quick couple of minutes relating to whether or not small businesses should use social networks to market their products/services.

I agree with the comment that small businesses should use social media marketing, but the communication should be authentic, relevant and useful to their audiences. Engagement, openness and dialogue should be the goal, not selling.

If you’re real, the awareness and revenue will come. (At least that’s what I’m hoping.)

Here’s the video (sorry I can’t embed it - shame on you AMEX!)

http://www.openforum.com/marketing/video_socialgood.html

Dual Cable Cross

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-12T00:34:43-04:00

I was asked recently what my favorite machine is at the gym. Well, it’d definitely have to be the Dual Cable Cross by FreeMotion. If you don’t have FreeMotion equipment in your gym, you’re missing out.

The Dual Cable Cross is really a great piece of equipment because of it’s extreme flexibility. You can do all kinds of lifts and variations for so many purposes. It is using a type of training called functional training. This is when you use resistance training to mimic sports movements. One lift I came up with was mimicking a “pull” for a lineman in football. I do it quite frequently.

If you have 6 grand lying around, I’d recommend picking one up next time your out. :)

Lulu

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-11T01:07:43-04:00

Should any of you be interested in self-publishing, I just wanted to briefly touch on how my experience is so far with Lulu.com.

Lulu is a self-publishing/print-on-demand site that gives everyday people all kinds of printing options. From family calendars to photobooks to full-on books like The Fat Trainer, Lulu has a pretty wide product offering.

I am using an advanced desktop publishing software called InDesign (made by Adobe). It took me a little while to get the full bleed to fit just right, but I got it all figured out. Lulu isn’t the cheapest place in the world, taking about 20% of the revenue of each sale, but I like their site and prefer them over PayPal.

The ebook is now hosted and for sale on the Lulu’s site. The hard copy version will be available for purchase from Lulu in about a week or so. Something that I’m happy about is that I will be able to sell the audiobook version of The Fat Trainer once I get it recorded and edited.

So far, I’m happy with the experience with Lulu and will keep this blog updated if I find something new.

John Stockton

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-08T23:47:30-04:00

My favorite athlete growing up was John Stockton. Durning the Final Four in Detroit, it was announced that he is in the class of 2009 for the basketball hall of fame.

He was hard-nosed, unselfish, extremely skilled and talented and made all of is teammates better. I tried to emulate him in my athletic endeavors and miss seeing him play. I just wanted to take a minute to pay tribute to my sports hero. Here’s a YouTube clip of the announcement:

Above the Neck

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-07T19:27:13-04:00

I thought this blog post from Fitness magazines senior editor, Bethany Gumper, was a good thought on whether or not to work out when ill. She says that if your symptoms are “above the neck” then it is typically okay to work-out. I like this terminology.

Typically, if I think I can at least walk for a bit, I almost always feel better having worked-out than not. If I’m sick with something other than a cold, I think it is wise to rest until your body can catch up.

I first heard about this post from Twitter.

Pulldown Jerk

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-06T16:26:20-04:00

While at the gym today I noticed something that I talk about in The Fat Trainer. A man was doing a lat pulldown exercise and was using such poor form. For starters, he had too much weight on the weight stack. Because of this excess weight, he used jerking motions to pull the weight down. He was pulling the bar down in front of his face, but could barely reach the top of his head.

Proper form for a lat pulldown:

Sit tall and align your neck with your spine. You may lean back slightly.
Grasp the bar just past shoulder width apart.
While keeping your body steady, lower the weight from full extension to just below the level of your chin.
Return the weight at a controlled rate to the starting position.
Avoid rocking, jerking or bouncing the weight.

You can apply most of these suggestions to most of your exercises. Get with a trainer for best results.

Whirlwind Week

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-05T01:19:38-04:00

Well, it has been a whirlwind of a week. I was so crazy busy getting the book released on time, but even after it was released, I’ve been go, go, go to fill in all of the marketing cracks.

I’m getting close to getting the book on Lulu for self publishing. They have a bunch of options and I’m just trying to be sure I choose the best one for The Fat Trainer. Plus, I’m having some issues getting my InDesign file to upload correctly to their site as a PDF with a full bleed.

I’ve also been working on Facebook marketing at the personal level, and that is fun. The thing I’m still trying to figure out is Twitter. I try to tweet useful things, but also keep it at the personal level. It is a fun challenge to have.

It has been a great week. Be sure to tell your friends and acquaintances about the book now that it is released. Also, let me know if you have any suggestions or comments. Thanks!

BOOK RELEASE

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-04-01T03:24:10-04:00

Hello! I am back. I had to descend into the cave of getting the book ready for yesterday’s release. Well, after hours and hours and hours of work, the time is finally here. The book is done and is available for sale now.

I am really excited to have that portion of this journey done with and am now looking forward to spending more time promoting the book. I need your help though. Please tell all you know about The Fat Trainer.

I am working on getting a physical copy available to be purchased, the book Kindle ready and even an audio version. I still have lots to do.

Anyway - take a look at the book. It’s only $1.29 as a limited introductory special. Let me know what you think.

Vacation Thoughts

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-24T14:01:59-04:00

Well, our wonderful vacation has finally come to an end and we’re now back home. We had a lot of fun. Disney does a lot of things right in terms of marketing, customer service, expectation management, etc. They have things set up down there to make money and lots of it. Oh, and they do provide a fun and memorable experience too.

If you care to hear, here are some of my observations from the trip.

Disney does not provide adequate sidewalks between resorts. For the very few people that would be interested in walking or cycling between the parks or hotels, there isn’t much to do besides be on the roads. As Disney becomes more health conscious and green, perhaps they will add bicycle rental to their transportation options. (Hey, it’d be another revenue stream (if anyone used it)).

While the food in the parks (and everywhere on Disney property) is very expensive, so I appreciate Disney’s open door policy when it comes to bringing in outside food and drinks.

Our hotel (All Star Sports) had no weight or exercise room, while I don’t blame them, it would have been nice. It is my understanding that the more expensive resorts have better exercise options.

Pool hours were until midnight. This didn’t matter to us, but as a child it always made me sad that hotel pools weren’t open later. This is a plus for Disney.

Allegedly, Disney has been working on improving the healthiness of their children’s menu’s. Kids can still have soda and fries as an option, but apple slices, grapes, carrot sticks and the like are commonly the standard side items for kids meals.

Maybe I’ll voice some of my gripes about the Southwest Air flights we used at a later time.

While there are certainly less expensive places to vacation, Walt Disney World provides a great time to spend with those you love. If you haven’t been, I recommend going.

Disney Fitness

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-18T16:13:12-04:00

I am at the happiest place on earth for the week with my wife and her family. It has been, and promises to be, a lot of fun. I’ve been here before, but have never stayed on Disney property. We are at the All Star Sports Resort and it is a fun hotel....but that’s not what I want to talk about.

Here are some tips we just used that you should try on your next vacation:

1. Keep exercising.

I know I’m on “vacation” but my body still needs at least some maintenance. The hotel doesn’t have a weight or fitness room, so I’m left to body weight exercises and running.

The resort claims they have a “jogging trail,” which sounded really cool when I read about it before I came. Turns out - it is just a sidewalk along the side of the road. Nevertheless, it works, and is still a nice change of scenery.

A lot of people consider all of the walking around the parks as their exercise, and while I don’t disagree that it is exercise, I find that running in the morning gives me a little extra energy to get through the day. I did a 4-5 mile run the first morning here and a 5-6 mile run this morning. My legs are tired, but I also know, I’ve done my cardio for the day (at an elevated heart rate). It also helps me counteract any excess calories I may consume from bounteous food options.

2. Bring and wear a CamelBak.

[To be fair, my “camelbak” is actually made by Trek]. Especially since Orlando is almost always warm or hot, proper hydration is vital. One really nice thing about Disney, is the ability to bring your own food. Since you can bring as much food and water as you can carry, you might as well as have it all on your back at easy access.

3. Share a meal with your mate.

We went to the Rainforest Cafe yesterday. This is a fun restaurant. To save money and calories, my wife and I ordered one meal and two plates. We saved a bunch, ate really well, and were satisfied. (We got grilled salmon w/ mango sauce and coconut shrimp with a lettuce salad (italian dressing)).

By sharing the plate, we saved at least $25 and didn’t eat more food than we needed (we were both satisfied with the portions we ate.) This kind of activity can be super useful if you’re trying to be fit and watch your wallet.

p.s. I did a report on genericide in grad school - CamelBak is a good example of it.

E-Junkie

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-12T16:57:23-04:00

As I mentioned earlier, I am getting close to finishing off the book and getting it released. We are getting very excited about the release. It is coming together nicely and I think it will be a good read for just about everyone.

I’m looking at a service provided by e-junkie.com to host and sell the book. I think that this will provide customers with a better and more reliable way to purchase the ebook. While e-junkie does support both PayPal and Google Checkout (I currently use PayPal), I am seriously considering switching to Google Checkout.

It looks like Google is more flexible and will save me money. If you have any experience with these or other suggestions, let me know.

Personalizing the Book

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-10T18:46:40-04:00

The book is coming along well. I have it pretty much written and am now going through the long editing process. One thing that I’ve learned, now that most of my thoughts are down on paper, is that I didn’t make it personal enough in this first full draft.

I’m grateful to my wife and other editors/contributors because they’re helping it go from just your everyday run of the mill fitness book to my story and how I finally put everything together to get in shape.

Barring any big issues, we are still tracking to have it launched and released by March 31, 2009.

Please tell all of your friends.

Off Kilter

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-10T01:00:12-04:00

Ever have a couple crappy days where you just feel off?

Well, while my spirits were fine - my body just felt a little off kilter Sunday and Monday. I think it just happens from time to time, but I also think my dinner (not that tasty and greasy pizza and cookies) from Saturday night, played into it. We were watching my nieces and nephews and we treated them to a take-n-bake pizza. There were some cookies and we had a good time playing with them.

But afterward, both my wife and I just felt ‘blahish’. So anyway, it just felt good to get to the gym tonight and get back on track. I feel so much better now that I kinda got to restart my system. Add rebounding from off-kilterness to the list of reasons to exercise.

p.s. I just looked up the definition of kilter:

“out of harmony or balance : daylight savings throws everybody’s body clock out of kilter.”

I thought that was kind of coincidental:)

Newton's Nature

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-06T12:45:46-05:00

I just read another very interesting article regarding mid-foot running. (I posted a few weeks ago about Newton shoes.) This article is again found on the Newton blog. It references an article from Popular Science about how humans are natural long distance runners and can “outrun just about any other creature on the planet”.

I’ve never thought about that before, but think it is a great way to look at how we are designed to run. Before modern transportation, we must have run an awful lot (when we weren’t riding horses:)).

Have a read of the above links. Pretty interesting stuff. I’m still enthralled by Newton shoes and look forward to trying them someday.

Kindle to iPhone

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-04T16:21:44-05:00

I just read some great news regarding Amazon’s Kindle and the iPhone. Books purchased using the Kindle format will now be readable using the Kindle app for the iPhone. This is really good news for me, as I am planning on making The Fat Trainer kindle format ready once getting the ebook finished up. I was unsure how I was going to make the transition for iPhone compatibility, however. Amazon kind of solves that issue.

I still have several format options to pursue, but was just excited to read the story about Kindle for iPhone.

Green Apple

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-04T16:19:20-05:00

I love Apple (the computer company). I’ve been a Mac fan since 2003, when I bought an eMac. I do all of my personal and professional work on a Mac. It is just a great machine and I love the ‘intuitiveness’. I of course have an iPod (5G) and an iPod Shuffle for working out.

They just released a whole bunch of new desktop computers and have been touting their ‘greenness’ recently. I think this is a smart tactic, a tad bit late, and about time. Apple prides itself on innovation and being the leader in the technology world. They received some pressure last year from Greenpeace, and did a good job of reacting to it.

Anyway - it is interesting to see how corporations are trying to be green and still make money in this economy.

Passion

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-03T16:36:56-05:00

I was thinking about this whole experience (writing the book, making the website, doing strategic marketing, etc.) and am just happy about it. To me it is a lot of fun. It really is a combination of many of my passions. I like to write, I like developing strategy, I like helping people, I like communicating, I like fitness, I like sharing things that I’ve learned, etc. All of these and more are being combined with this project.

Probably the most difficult things are staying balanced among all of the components and putting into structured sentences all of the thoughts and ideas I’ve had for this book. But mostly this is just a lot of fun to me.

I hope through this, I can inspire others to not just get and stay in better shape, but to find their passions and then figure out a way to do those. Life is just so much more enjoyable when you’re doing things that are, well...enjoyable.

Downhill Ruckus

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-28T12:23:24-05:00

A friend of mine is starting a business and I thought it sounds pretty cool. I think the gist of it is that you get in a big air-filled ball and roll down a hill. Maybe they’ll let you roll the ball back up the hill and you can call that your cardio for the day:) Anyway - take a look:

Downhill Ruckus

Jim Rome Gym Guy

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-01T00:10:44-05:00

Are you a gym guy?

I was actually working on book stuff the other day and ESPN was on in the background. I couldn’t help but notice this segment from Jim Rome. I thought it was pretty funny, so here’s a YouTube of the clip:

Training Session

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-27T19:45:31-05:00

I joined a new gym recently that gave me some free assessments for joining. Even though I know a lot about working out and lifting weights, it is alway nice to have a refresher and get a different perspective. This morning I had a great session with a trainer. We did a lower-body workout and I felt really good afterword. While he didn’t necessarily show me anything new, he had me do things that were outside my normal routine and pushed me a little harder than I probably push myself. It was a good experience.

Most gyms will offer some kind of free training opportunity, whether it is complimentary session or trial offer or whatever. If those kinds of situations ever present themselves, take ‘em! Sure the trainer will probably try to sell to you, but I think it is always worth it to get a little kick in the pants and see some new and fresh stuff.

If you’re not in a position to hire a trainer, it is also worth it to ‘invest’ every 6-12 weeks in a session to help stay on track. Most reasonable training sessions are going to be $70 or less for a one time shot. (The price typically jumps way down the more sessions you commit to purchasing.)

Skiing

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-26T23:37:47-05:00

I went skiing with my wife, 2 1/2 year old, and sister today. It was a great time. It was my son’s first time skiing. He had a great time, but he is probably a bit too young to really get the hang of it. My sister is a ski instructor and did great with him. He seemed a little more interested in using my ski poles and rolling around in the snow than actually skiing

Anyway, it was a long day and it reminds me how it is nice to be in the position to go skiing once in a while and not be knocked out the next few days. Add ‘minimal soreness after skiing’ to the laundry list of positives that come from getting and being in shape.

p.s. Ski Utah’s slogan - “The Greatest Snow on Earth” isn’t just a slogan - it’s true!

Bike Stitch

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-25T18:24:07-05:00

I did a bike ride for cardio today and it was a good time. It was about 50º outside, so I couldn’t help but get out. I live at the base of a little mountain in the Salt Lake valley called Steep Mountain with about 1000 foot vertical change, so it is about 30 minutes up and 7 minutes down.

Anyway, I wasn’t on my ride too far before an uncomfortable side cramp hit me. I did my best to just work through it, but was curious if there was anything knew I could learn about cramps when I got back. So, I turned to the proverbial source of knowledge... Wikipedia;)

Here’s a link to the page, but I thought I’d list the things I did wrong (according to Wikipedia) before my ride to possibly complicate the benign side cramp:

I ate a snack just before I left.
I probably haven’t had enough water intake today.
I didn’t warm-up as much as I could have.
I didn’t gradually increase the intensity of the ride (I got right into going up the hill.)

Amy Mac

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-13T17:28:00-04:00

I’m always poking around online for useful sites that can help us reach our fitness goals. I found one site that particularly caught my attention.

Recently, I was able to connect with Amy McIntyre from the fitness site withamymac.com. Along with running the website, she is a personal trainer with a varied background. Her site provides all kinds of useful information including videos, articles, and discounts.

The videos that she produces are called “Fit Life” and can be viewed online or subscribed to in iTunes. I find them useful and entertaining and Amy’s personality keeps things fun and light.

While she says that wellness is one of the most overlooked segments of health, it is also very easy, “to make changes to your life that will eventually make a big difference!”

Amy feels “the confidence that comes from feeling healthy, strong, energized and in control of your life,” is the best thing about being fit and that, “a great workout can make you feel like you are on top of the world and can tackle anything.”

Two other great things about her site are the discount section and the ability to purchase her book. The book was an Amazon Best Seller in the Family Health section last Feb. and March. It looks like a great read, I’ll have to check it out.

Anyway - take a look at withamymac.com and keep striving to reach your fitness goals!

I first met Amy via Twitter.

Archer Farms

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-24T12:45:37-05:00

I had Archer Farms Instant Oatmeal for breakfast this morning and I tweeted about it on Twitter. Wasn’t sure if they spell it “Strawberry Creme” or “Strawberry Cream” so I did a quick search for it at Target.com (it’s a Target brand). As it turns out, it is called “Strawberry Créme”.

Anyway, while I think the food is good and tasty, I was thinking about how Target does a great job with their image. We are big Walmart shoppers in our house (to the chagrin of some of my college buddies:)) but we love Target. This Archer Farms store brand is a great example of how they do just the little bit extra to give the perception of higher quality. They also have the “lower quality” brand of Market Pantry, which is imaged in a way to give the perception that it is good quality, but not quite as much because of its packaging.

Walmart actually knows exactly what they’re doing with their image (I think). Their discount brand “Great Value” looks like it should be the least expensive and it is (typically). If it was packaged the way Archer Farms is, I think many of its purchasers would feel alienated in the sense that they couldn’t “afford” something that was so “nice”.

It brings out the point that while there certainly are advantages to purchasing the “higher quality/more expensive” brand from time to time, a lot of it is just positioning and marketing to different audiences. Take a few minutes to get to know the products you buy frequently. Read the nutrition label and the ingredients list. These are the best clue as to the real quality of products.

p.s. Walmart does have a higher quality brand called “Sams Choice” that is packaged and positioned to compete against the name brands with more unique product offerings.

Here are some images from Google Image search of some of the brands listed above:

Wii Fit

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-23T20:46:02-05:00

Have you ever played the Wii? If not, you should find a friend who has one. I haven’t played a lot of games, but I can say that the Wii Fit it a super fun game. Not only is it mentally challenging, but it actually can give you a bit of a workout.

If you haven’t seen it yet, it comes with a small platform that you stand on. It senses how you’re shifting your weight and balance and the little Mii’s on the game respond accordingly.

It has cardio, strength, yoga, and balance games. It is pretty fun. Try it out.

Here’s one of Nintendo’s promotional video’s:

and a hilarious parody I found too:

Set Aside

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-21T23:29:59-05:00

I’ve set aside a bunch of time next week to really hash out some good work for the book next week. It is a lot of fun to do the website, blog, tweets, and other things, but now that a lot of that is up and going I can sit down and focus on the getting the book together.

I think one of the hardest things is getting all of my thoughts organized and put on paper. I am excited to see if I can get it written by the end of the week. This will allow for editing and formatting to be done the week after. If you haven’t noticed, the book is scheduled to be released before March 31.

Check back or subscribe to the RSS feed to see how the book is coming. I’ll try to keep things updated here.

HFCS

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-19T21:09:57-05:00

I was just thinking today about an ad that has been showing recently supporting HIgh Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). While it is almost impossible to eat food that doesn’t have HFCS in it, we rarely eat the altered sweetener. Originally, I was just going to mention how well structured the campaign is. Take a look at this ad:

While I completely disagree with how the ad minimizes the effects of HFCS, I think it is very well crafted. This is because it gives the uniformed viewer the impression that HFCS is really no different from natural sugar and that any hype that is going around has no foundation. It says that we have no idea why HFCS is bad for you so therefore it isn’t.

But, as I was looking for the above ad on YouTube, I found a video response. It does a great job at answering why to avoid HFCS. Enjoy:

Chocolate Milk vs Whey

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-19T00:22:51-05:00

My sister told me that an acquaintance of hers said that after a workout it is better (nutritionally) to drink chocolate milk than a protein shake. While I have no problem with drinking chocolate milk as a post work-out energy refill, I don't think you can beat a well designed protein shake for nutritional power.

For example, a common concoction found in my mug is:

Whey
Raspberries
Banana
Low-fat vanilla yogurt
Skim milk
Natural Peanut Butter
Flax seed
Plain oatmeal
Ice

Now, of course you can't have huge portions of this (it's not just nutritionally high, but also calorically too), but I don't think chocolate milk can match the vitamins, phytonutrients, and overall good fats, proteins, fibers, and carbs.

Newton Shoes

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-17T20:53:13-05:00

I was looking through a running magazine the other day (Runners World?) and saw an ad for Newton Running shoes. I thought it’d be pretty cool to have a shoe with my name on it (unlike NikeID), so I looked them up. Take a look... they’ve got a pretty cool and unique technology that allegedly helps runners move with a more natural motion. They claim that too many of us run with a heal strike first whereas we should be running with a forefoot strike.

I’d like to try them out, but am mid-cycle with my current shoes and haven’t budgeted for their $150+ price tag. But I’ll post about them if I get a chance to learn more.

Here’s a (YouTube) video from their website:

Drink Cold

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-02T18:47:31-05:00

Stock your fridge with an ample supply of cold water. Most people need to drink more water regardless of their fitness routines and one trick of how to get your body to take a little bit more in is by using cold (or at least cool) water.

By drinking cold water, your body will be more satisfied and will be more willing to drink more than if the water was at room temperature. So make it a cold one next time.

Run More

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-12T01:15:19-04:00

If your goal is weight loss, you must burn more calories than you take in. The bigger the deficit (caloric deficit) the more fat weight you will lose. To optimize the time you spend trying to create this deficit, run. There are few things that burn as many calories as running does. Biking, sports, elliptical training, and many others certainly are good and burn calories, but they don't work as well as good old fashioned running.

Let Go

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-06T01:27:52-05:00

Far too many exercisers hold on to the cardio equipment their using. Holding onto the machine is certainly good to do when changing speed or resistance, but let go whenever possible. By holding onto the supports, you minimize the efficacy of your workout by reducing how many muscles can be in action. You're essentially resting part of your body (at least a little bit) by holding on.

This is especially true on stair climbers or treadmills at a high incline. If you slow down or decrease your incline, and don't hold on, you'll get a much better workout and get fitter faster!

Better Balanced Dumbells

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-03-20T13:50:49-04:00

When grasping a dumbbell, instead of holding right in the middle of the bar, place the little finger side of the hand nearer to the weight than the index finger side. This will create a more natural position and better balance for the dumbbell.

SuperSet

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-20T22:47:25-05:00

To get over a plateau or to just change things up in the weight-room, try a SuperSet. Instead of resting in-between each set of your work-out, perform your repetitions for the set of one lift then move straightaway into the repetitions of another lift. The two most common ways to perform this is by either working the same muscle group back-to-back or by working opposing groups back-to-back. E.g. perform a set of bench press, then move right into a pec fly or to a bench press and move right into a row.

Comments

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-19T16:56:38-05:00

Let me know if you have any issues with posting comments. I’m using RapidWeaver to make this site, and while I love RW, the comment function is just fine.... Just drop me a line if you need any help, comments, suggestions.

Thanks.

Add-ons

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-16T18:36:39-05:00

I haven’t decided how or when I’m going to do it exactly, but there are a few things I’d like to do to expand the offering for The Fat Trainer.

For example, I would like to do an audio-book version, Kindle format, iPhone format and offer the book in printed format too. I know how to make the audio part, although it’d be best to get it into the iTunes store. I need to do more research on Kindle and iPhone eBooks. Physical copies also can be done at a handful of places. I’ve taken a gander at blurb and lulu.

I’m excited to see where this goes.

Cover

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-14T19:52:06-05:00

I designed my first version of the cover today. It features different shades of red (which happens to be my favorite color).

I didn’t brainstorm too long on it (although I think I’ve had the concept in my head for a while now) so I am pretty happy with it. It’ll be interesting to see how much I change it before the book is released.

Also - I’m wondering about the sub title. It is a pretty good summary of what is going on in the book, but does it have sticking power? I guess we’ll see

And I'm actually blogging

holland@thefattrainer.com — 2009-02-13T23:02:54-05:00

Well, it is official. I am making a website, writing a book and am doing the marketing myself. And I’m actually blogging. It is pretty cool actually. Hopefully I can pull this all together and give the world a high quality product at a respectable price. I probably wouldn’t be doing a blog, but I watched this video and decided that he is probably right.

(It’s actually a pretty good video - but in case you don’t wanna watch it - the guy says you should do a blog because it helps you think, it helps you work through processes. I’ll give it a go.)