The 2008 Indianapolis Performance Enhancement Seminar is set!

Here are the details:

When: Saturday, May 17th, 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Where: Omni Severin Hotel, Downtown Indianapolis
Cost: $129 Before April 1st; $159 April 1st and after

For those of you looking for NSCA CEU’s, we’ve applied for .7 CEU’s for this event!

Mike Robertson and I will be heading up this seminar, and we’ve got some great topics at hand.

You can get the entire seminar brochure and sign up at Mike’s website:  www.robertsontrainingsystems.com

I’ll see you there.

Bill

Back in 1977, if you were interested in an exercise program directed toward fat loss, you’d have been told that you need to focus on long duration aerobic exercise. 

Why?

Because that’s primarily what was being researched at the time, Kenneth Cooper was “The Man”,  and the world was in the midst of the jogging craze.  (Unfortunately, too  many folks are still stuck in that mindset and remain frustrated with their fat loss attempts)

Funny thing is that we actually knew there was a better way to lose body fat even back then.  There was even research to support it.

In 1977, a group of firefighters were tested on their response to a high intensity exercise program.

The program consisted of progressive interval runs on a track (starting with only 18 minutes of exercise) and a progressive strength training circuit with incomplete rest periods.

The result?  Significant decreases in body fat and significant increases in strength, performance of functional tests, and limb circumference measurements related to increased muscle mass.  It should also be noted that there was no significant changes in body weight, so these changes were almost exclusively related to body composition.

Does this type of program sound familiar?  It should.

The same principles represent the foundation for the top selling fat loss program, AFTERBURN by my friend Alwyn Cosgrove.

Bill

Most general descriptions of muscle function are explained from a reference of anatomical alignment.

Anatomical alignment is much like lying on your back, arms at your sides, palms up, legs straight, toes up.

When you begin moving out of such an alignment, joint angles and muscular functions change.

For instance, gluteus medius is primarily known as a hip abductor and external rotator.

In standing and walking, it will resist the hip’s tendency to adduct and internally rotate at the hip. 

In a complex movement like a squat or a lunge, as the hip flexes its moment arm changes such that the muscle no longer abducts and externally rotates the hip but rather it becomes an internal rotator of the hip.

If you’re trying to correct someone’s lunge because their knee tends to “cave in” at 90 degrees of hip and knee flexion by strengthening their gluteus medius, best of luck because it won’t help due to the change in the muscle’s change in function.  Look for a posterior chain weakness in this case.

Learning more about how a muscle functions throughout a joint’s range of motion will help to assure proper corrective strategies and exercise selection.

Bill

You can get 25% off Inside-Out and some other products from Mike Robertson and Eric Cressey.

Here’s a link to Eric’s blog as to why:

http://ericcressey.blogspot.com/2008/02/help-charity-and-help-yourself-with.html

Bill

Whenever I get a chance to visit the left coast, I always make sure to get together with my good friends the Cosgroves, Alwyn and Rachel. 

I had he good fortune to interview Rachel last week and got a chance to talk about their fat loss philosophy and programming that they use in their gym, Results Fitness.  It’s almost like that have a real-world fat loss laboratory as they’ll train anywhere from 200-300 client sessions per week.  In other words, they’ve got fat loss down to real-world science.

I also found out that Rachel has recently been made a member of the USA Trialthon Team.  Seeing as she’s only been at it for a couple of years, it’s quite an accomplishment.  

With her recent background in endurance competition, you’d think that her endurance training would strongly influence her fat loss programming with her fitness clients.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  In fact, Rachel is very clear that fat loss training and training for endurance are two distinctly different animals.

So much so, Rachel has written a new book specifically for those wanting to train and compete in their first triathlon.  It’s called, So You Want to Train for Your First Triathlon:  Beginners Guide to Training, Nutrition, Recovery, and Competing.

I’ve gotten a sneak peak and the book is outstanding.  It covers everything you need to address and not address in your preparations for your first triathlon.  If endurance training is your thing, this is a must have for your bookshelf.

Bill

P.S.  Quick story…Rachel got into triathlon competition as part of Team in Training to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society after Alwyn was diagnosed with cancer.  It was her way of giving back for without the funding that’s raised via Team in Training and donations, Alwyn may not have beaten the cancer like he did.  Alwyn also gave back in his own way by brining together a Who’s Who in the fitness industry to create an 800 page “book” called Liftstrong.  Not only do you get the best info in the business, but all the proceeds go to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help others who are battling cancer.  To date, LiftStrong has raised over $50,000….it’s not enough.  If you don’t have it yet, get it.