With so many people dedicated to fitness, it would make sense that there are social networking sites for the health minded. People who are fit usually didn’t get there by reading a book; usually they talked to people at the gym, the local store, joined a running club etc. The fitness community is generally there to help others on their journey to being fit. Below are a handful of social sites:

• Gyminee
• Fitizens
• FitLink
• Gimme20
• FitFiend
• Traineo
• IntroPlay
• WalkingSpree
• PeerTrainer
• Run Fat Boy
• iTrainHarder
• MyFitTribe
• RunningAhead
• FitSpott
• Comotivate
• Diet Fitness

As with any social network, its best to sign up and give it a chance to see where you feel most comfortable. Not every site is for everyone, and I would bet that if you gave them a chance you will find a site that will help you achieve your goals.

As I try each one of these out, I will re-visit this post and leave a remark about my thoughts on each site.

Please leave a comment about your experience with any of these sites. If you know of other fitness social sites, please leave a comment and I will add it to the list.

Huge In A Hurry (HIAH) has been a great program so far. I have only completed the “Get Ready” phase and am on my first week of “Get Lean”. Its been quite some time since I have felt this strong. While I don’t see any weight loss, I do see some muscle gain. However, the greatest gain is the mental aspect. I feel great and am motivated to keep working hard to improve. The lifting is great and its something I really enjoy. The hardest aspect of exercise for me is the cardio.I cannot motivate myself to do cardio. That is why Huge In A Hurry is a great program for me.

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is a great way to do cardio, however it is fairly controversial in the fitness world. Some think that HIIT is just a fad. However, many experts believe that HIIT is the best way to leverage the thermogenic effect of buring calories. Which is the best way to get the six-pack abs! HIIT is the cardio method used for Huge In A Hurry.

HIAH HIIT is split into 15 seconds/45 seconds intervals. You do a activity all out for 15 seconds and then rest for 45 seconds. This is done after the lifting portion of workout. There are hundreds of exercises that you can do for HIIT. Below is a list of the ones that I have done that I enjoy:

• Jump Rope
• Sprint in place
• Bodyweight Prisoner Squats
• Squat Thrusts
• Jumping Jacks

You can also do intervals on a treadmill, a stationary bike. You can use kettlebells etc. There are hundreds of exercises that can be done to achieve the results. The key, as always, is to do it!!

Please feel free to leave a comment and ad your favorite HIIT exercise!

We all need motivation to workout and to keep working out. I always look for quotes or something that helps motivate and keep me driven. This video is the only motivation I need. I watch it daily…

It is very difficult, as an average joe, to find a workout out program that works and makes sense. The difficulty in choosing a program is that there is so much information out there. There are close to as many workout out programs as there are diets. How do we solve this problem? Here are a couple of ways to choose:

1) Pick one!

Just pick a program that you have heard of and do it. This doesn’t always work because of time commitments, current fitness level etc.

There are a few programs that I would like to recommend, however, these programs are on the extreme side of programs (this site is called Extreme Workout!):

Turbulence Training, CrossFit, Huge In A Hurry, P09X

I have dabbled in all of these and strongly feel that are all amazing workouts.

2) Lifestlye

Many programs require working out daily. If you can’t workout daily due to other responsibilities, a daily workout program won’t work for you. You will never succeed on that program because you won’t be able to stick to it.

3) Functionality

There are several workouts out there that focus on a particular function or result. For example, CrossFit was developed to be “real life”. The workouts in CrossFit develop muscles that you use in real life. You wouldn’t use a CrossFit regiment if you are trying to compete as a bodybuilder. If you are trying to accomplish something particular, do some research as I would bet that there is a program designed for that.

4) Ask around

If you see someone at the gym who is fit or is built like a tank, talk to them. Ask them what program they do or ask them to shed some light  on how you can improve your workout. People at the gym like talking about themselves and more times than not, they are friendly and willing to help you achieve your goals.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that it really doesn’t matter what workout program you are doing as long as you are working out and being active.  Walking every night, jogging three times a week, weight training twice a week…whatever…just be active! But, like anything else, to succeed you need to stick to it! If you don’t stick to a regiment, it won’t matter what the name of the program is or who designed it.

Lastly, do some research. The top programs quickly rise to the top amongst all the wannabe’s when you spend a few minutes researching.

I have learned something very valuable recently. I have learned that no matter how much my muscles burn, or how tired I am, I can always do more. We are trained to stop when our muscles tell our brain that its over. But the reality is that our brain controls everything.

See, the problem is that too many people sell themselves short. They stop when their body tells them to instead pushing through. When the muscle sends a signal to the brain that its burning and in pain, the brain has the ability to tell the muscle to keep working.

Pain is an emotion, not a feeling. Therefore, pain is a mental pitfall and can be push aside. As soon as the first emotion of pain hits you, tell yourself to welcome it in and that it really doesn’t hurt. If you can push aside the emotion of pain for a few seconds, the emotion with subside and you can continue on.

There is always more in the tank, because the tank is your brain, not your body!

This is an amazing video of a gentleman who exercised everyday for 365 days and took a picture every single day. Amazing transformation!

365 Days Of Exercise – Watch more Funny Videos

There are times when every workout regiment hits a wall. When you are doing the same thing you were to make all of those improvements but aren’t seeing any results. Yep…its the classic plateau. Everyone on any program will eventually hit this, its just a part of the package. When you sign up for it, they should notify you of it. So, what is a guy to do when that wall is hit? Easy……change it up!

For this very reason, I am beginning a new workout program: “Huge In A Hurry”. This program is created by Chad Waterbury of T-nation.com and Men’s Health fame. This program has been created with a ton of science behind it, which really all makes sense. The program is well-defined and guided; not a “do this type of exercise” program. This program is gym-based, not home-based like P90X. So, unless you have an awesome hme gym, you will probably need to drag your butt to the gym! This program also has a meal/nutrition plan, although its not as detailed as the P90X plan. I might continue on the P90X eating program

I am beginning this program on Monday 9/14/09 and I look forward to updating this site as I progress. I am going into this knowing that I will hit a wall and will be going back to P90X. I plan to go back and forth as necessary.

We all fail at some point. If you haven’t failed, then you haven’t tried. You’ve heard all of the quotes about dusting yourself off and getting back at it, but the truth is, those quotes are true! Unless you workout for a living, there is no way you can stick to any workout program for an extended period of time. Life gets in the way. When you get sidetracked, or stop working out for whatever reason, the important thing is to get back at it. No matter how long you have been off the saddle, it always feels good to get back on. Life got in my way and I haven’t been able to work out for a few weeks. However, I have made up my mind to get back at it and start a new cycle of P90X. All it takes is the motivation and courage to start again.

Sometimes its not life that gets us offtrack, sometimes its doubters and people projecting their problems. I have heard, more than once, that “P90X is a scam” or “how can you get in shape from a infomercial?”. The reality is, P90X works and those people have issues of their own. This reminds me of a quote from Franklink D. Roosevelt:

“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”

Basically, don’t let those watching from the sideline have an impact on what you are trying to do….they aren’t even in the arena!

Keep at it, keep pressing play and keep ignoring the critics!

To be successful with anything, you need to have the proper tools. Just like carpenters needing good hammers, you need good equipment to workout with to be successful. In my quest for the perfect P90X workout, I have found the absolute best equipment.  I will be spolighting these products on a weekly basis.

This weeks product spotlight is the Bodylastic Resistance Bands. The resistance bands made by Bodylastics are above and beyond the best on the market. Your entire P90X workout regiment (sans Yoga X) can be administered by the Bodylastic Resistance Bands. They are strong enough to be used as a pullup bar replacement, and they hold up for all of the arm workouts.

One aspect of a good product is durability. I have used many resistance bands and time after time, they begin to weaken over time. I have now had my Bodylastic bands for quite some time and they are still as resistant as when I first bought them. This is the ultimate sign of quality and a product that I feel good about recommending.

Please click on the image below to get more information on this amazing product. As you can see, the Bodylastic bands are promoted by Terrell Owens. Now, you may not be a big fan of T.O., but he is in amazing shape. There are several videos out there that detail his workout using the bands.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment and I will respond. Trust me, you will take your P90X workout to the next level with the Bodylastic Resistance Bands.

P90X is a funny thing. Its a legitimate workout regiment, but there is a following that is almost cult like. P90X is either known by people who are on the program, people who only know it as an infomercial, or people who know nothing about it. 

The people who know it only by the infomercial will almost never give it a try or listen as you try to explain it becase “how can an infomercial ever be for real?” I don’t waste my time with these people, becasue they probably don’t work out to begin with and aren’t open to changing their bad habits.

The people who know nothing about it are the people that I love to talk to. They are usually stuck in the same routine of going to the gym and working out with no purpose. They are usually openminded and looking for a regiment that works. They usually will listen.

The people that have worked out with P90X understand its power. They get it, they really understand what its about. They understand that not only does it change their lives from a fitness perspective, but it can change their lives from a life perspective. 

BeachBody, the creators of P90X, have created an entire industry around P90X. Hundreds of people are employeed via the coaching opportunity, while others have become personal trainers inspired by amazing transformation from P90X. When you enter the world of P90X, you are given every support tool possible to be successful. 

You can sign up to have a BeachBody coach assigned to you, for free. You also have access to the forums that have thousands of people on hand to give you support and answer any questions you have. There are numerous videos on YouTube of people giving their weekly updates. 

What I am trying to get at is that the only way you can fail at P90X is within yourself. If you give to it, it will give back tenfold. You are given all the tools and support that you will ever need. Its out there for you to take………..go get it!