Doug Jackson’s Fitness Blog

I hired our trainer Tom Bowler to train me a few days ago.

It’s not too often that you hear of a trainer hiring another trainer to train them.

But many of the best do.

When I was completing my Masters Degree and wanted to continue getting stronger with less total time in the gym, I hired well-known Las Vegas-based strength coach Charles Staley to design my programs.

One of my favorite questions if I talk with a massage therapist or a chiropractor is how often they actually utilize the same service they provide.

I would think that a massage therapist (who we would assume believes in the value of massage), would also get massages themselves. If they didn’t, it would be a little bit of a credibility gap.

Now as I find myself becoming more and more like the clients we serve (in terms of growing demands and responsibilities) I have an even deeper understanding of the value of the personal fitness solutions we provide.

Tom took me through my first workout on Monday. He gave me that “extra push” that I knew I needed. We shot a quick video of how I looked after ourworkout, check it out:

This morning was the second time in a week that someone was in my office crying.

This time, it was one of the first clients that I had when I moved to South Florida.

She’s been out of work for a year, fallen out of shape, and just in a big rut.

Fortunately, she committed to starting a fitness program again and is planning on using that program as a stepping-stone to get her mind right, her health right, and get back on track.

We can all use some inspiration every now and then… and I have a special, motivational, Youtube video for you today. Check it out:

The TRX Suspension Trainer has gotten pretty popular in the last few years.

I had the opportunity to take the certification a couple years ago from my good friend and trainer of trainers Jonathan Ross.

One of my favorite movements that I learned in the certification was the atomic pushup.

Watch this youtube video, see how’s it done, and implement it in your own TRX workouts.

Yesterday after giving a talk to a Cub Scout den about the benefits of staying fit, I swung by the local Whole Foods and picked up three food items that I wanted to share with you today.

1) Quinoa:

Although you may have read about this food before, I’ve found that many people have tried it. In fact, the first time I tried it was after a local dietician pushed me to add it to my diet. Quinoa is a seed that cooks and functions much like a rice, but it has more nutrition.

Quinoa was a main food source for the Incas and is one of the very few grains that is also considered a complete protein source (great for vegetarian-types). According to Dr. Jonny Bowden in the book The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth, along with being high in iron and fiber, quinoa has “lower sodium content and is higher in calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium, copper, manganese, and zinc than wheat, barley, or corn.”

2) Kefir:

The same dietician suggested that I try kefir. Kefir is a fermented milk drink that’s sort of like a “drinkable yogurt”. Some websites claim that people that are typically allergic to milk products due to lactose intolerance seem to tolerate kefir. It’s also promoted as being more nutritious than yogurt although I haven’t been able to substantiate that claim. Due to the fermentation process, it has active “probiotics” which are generally good for gut health. I like to mix kefir into my protein shakes. I might use 5 oz water, 3 oz kefir, and a scoop of protein powder.

3) Freshly-ground flaxseeds:

Flax seeds are a healthy source of essential fatty acids (fats that are actually required for human health). I prefer grinding fresh flaxseeds rather than buying the popular flaxseed oil due to concerns about rancidity due to the unstable molecular structure of omega-3 fatty acids. Freshly ground flax seeds also have a measurable amount of fiber…something you won’t get if you are just using the oil. I typically use ground flaxseeds on oatmeal or mixed into a protein shake.

A last note on all of these: while each of these is healthy in its own right, they should be used as just small parts of your total nutrition program. I won’t tell you that any of these is a magic cure and you should overload on any single food. But give them a try. It can’t hurt to start taking out less healthy foods that you eat and replacing them with healthier choices such as the three foods I’ve written about today.

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http://www.PersonalFitnessAdvantage.com

I wanted to share a question with you today that I often ask myself.

“Does it weaken me or does it strengthen me?”

It is my acid test for many decisions and actions I make each day.

A few years ago, a mentor said something to me that stuck with me.

I can’t remember the exact circumstances, but I think he felt I was making excuses about something.

He said, “When you make excuses, it weakens you.”

“IT WEAKENS YOU.”

I’m now about to turn twenty-nine and since I was fourteen, I have been obsessed with doing whatever made me stronger.

So the concept of “it weakens you” stood out to me.

A lot of this mentality has come from the fact that I was very sick when I was a baby and grew up weak. I was a nice kid, but I was pretty wimpy.

I was weak both physically and mentally. And I came to despise that weakness.

And now, my passion about strength emcompasses all sorts of strength…

Physical strength

Mental strength

Emotional strength

Spiritual strength

After having that “it weakens you” conversation with my mentor, I developed my acid test question:

“Does it weaken me or does it strengthen me?”

In my book, there’s not too many things that are neutral.

Here’s a few examples of weaken/strengthen off the top of my head:

Alcohol - weakens me

Prayer - strengthens me

Exercise - strengthens me

Being judgemental - weakens me

Directing anger towards others - weakens me

Proper sleep - strengthens me

Checking out women other than my wife - weakens me

Planning ahead - strengthens me

Lack of emphathy - weakens me

And so on…

Answering “I don’t know” generally doesn’t cut it. Most of us know whether something is good for us or not.

Want to improve your physique? Here’s the question to ask with the cookies sitting out at the office:

“Will these cookies strengthen me or weaken me?” (Please, no smart-ass replies to this)

Correct answer: “Eating those cookies weakens me… plus they make me fat.”

Yes, even if they don’t weaken you physically, eating them weakens your self-confidence and self-resolve.

So this is much more than about physical strength. It’s about strenthening your entire self. It’s about being your best self.

And I make mistakes with this all the time. But that acid test question “Does it strengthen me or does it weaken me?”, is a great way for me to guide my decisions and actions. I’m hoping this may be a valuable idea for you too.

Dedicated to your success,

Doug Jackson, M.Ed.,CSCS
http://www.PersonalFitnessAdvantage.com

P.S. For those of in South Florida who are ready to get some professional and experienced guidance regarding your fitness programs, I invite you to fill out a consultation request at:
http://www.PersonalFitnessAdvantage.com

It’s Saturday and I just got back from a business expo called Celebrate Plantation (Plantation is the town our personal training business is in). It was sponsored by the local Chamber of Commerce and took place at the Broward Mall.

To be honest, I wasn’t originally looking forward to it. It was a Saturday after a grueling week and my natural inclination was to relax. But I committed to being at the expo so I showed up.

Now I have to tell you a little background info… since we are just starting our business in Plantation, to keep costs down, we got the less expensive set-up without premium placement. That meant we weren’t getting optimal exposure to people in the mall.

So about an hour into it, things were humming along and we were talking to some people, but I could tell that if we had a premium table placement, we could be talking to A LOT MORE people.

It just so happened that one of the premier sponsors (who paid for a premium spot) didn’t show up and their spot was empty. I wanted to take the spot but I didn’t think the person managing the expo would let me.

I tried anyway…it went something like this:

“Lynn, I know you guys want this expo to look great, right? (big smile on my face) You know … it doesn’t look very good that the spot over there (pointing to the premium spot) is totally open. (pause) Since the other company didn’t show up, do you mind if I take the spot.”

Response: “Doug, go ahead. I can’t believe they aren’t here. They paid a lot of money for that spot.”

Within ninety seconds or so, I occupied the spot, attracted people to the booth, and ended up generating way more prospective client leads than I had anticipated. Plus, I connected with a few key people from the city council that I had been trying to connect with for the last two months…

Two lessons:

1) Show up

2) Look for opportunities/ fill in gaps/holes that others have left.

Lesson #1 is key for your fitness program.

Lesson #2 is key for anyone looking to thrive in a down economy.

Yesterday morning, I had stopped by a convenience store along side state road 84 as I was driving to our South Florida personal training studio.

I had been up since 4:00 AM working on some stuff and decided to stop by the store to pick up some coffee since I was starting to feel tired from waking up earlier than normal.

As I was parking, I saw some people loitering near the store entrance. It didn’t look like the safest crowd but it didn’t stop me from getting out of the car to grab the coffee.

As I walked up to the group (needed to get past them to enter the store), one of the guys (about my age) decided to target me for some verbal harassment. He was clearly drunk (there was a bar near the convenience store).

Luckily for him and myself as well, I was feeling pretty chilled out so I ignored his provocation, and I went in the store and got my coffee, ignored some more verbal provocations, got into my Jeep and left.

But it got me thinking…

We were two guys about the same age (I might have had a year or two on him), but at 5:45 AM yesterday, although we were in the same physical location, we were in very different spots.

I’m married, wouldn’t mind having kids soon, and although I’ve had some ups and downs, I still believe in the beauty of America and the American dream. Hopefully I’m making a positive difference in the lives of those I know on a day to day basis. And that’s why I got up at 4:000 AM.

The other guy had clearly been up all night, was drunk, and causing problems for those around him.

I actually feel sorry for him. I wonder what made him get to that place.

My point in writing this is not to talk about how I’m better, but to encourage everyone to fight the good fight. To not give up. To keep moving forward. And when you to falter, when you get knocked down, you get back up again.

Detiorating your brain with excessive amounts of alcohol (or any other drug) certainly isn’t the way to do it. If you are having a hard time coping, here’s three ideas of things you can do to help you get through any tough times you are facing:

1) Exercise - it gives you an uplift and helps you think more clearly in times of stress.

2) Connect with family and friends- researchers find that the happiest people have the strongest ties to family and friends.

3) Don’t ignore your spiritual side - most people I know feel much more fulfilled when they have filled the spiritual holes that are in their lives. Your faith is like a rock that can allow you to get through things you couldn’t get through otherwise.

I’d like to hear your thoughts on this. I invite you to leave your own remarks for others by commenting on this blog.

If you haven’t done so yet, I invite you to download our Ultimate Exercise Guide for free. If you already have it, I invite you to send friends and families to the following website so they can get their own copy:

www.UltimateExerciseGuide.com

Best,

Doug Jackson, M.Ed.,CSCS
www.PersonalFitnessAdvantage.com