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Bio | Testimonials | Blog | More About Jim
| Hot Cold |
4/4/2008 |
Yesterday it snowed, today it's 60 degrees. It has been a busy week, my training has taken a little bit of a hit this week. I missed a day of lifting and the workouts I have been getting in have been quick, not quite as much volume as I would like.
I am planning on a good leg workout tonight and then a Crossfit workout on Saturday, and then off to Madison on Sunday for the girls dance competition.
The personal training has been particularily busy lately. I have been getting a lot of inquiries and have started with some new clients. Busy is good. It is all about time management.
I got my first group of advisees at work. It is fun and rewarding to help students make important decisions about their education and ulitmately their life.
Believe it or not there is only about 5 weeks left in the semester, then school's out.
All else is well, have an excellent weekend. I hope the weather is good wherever you are.
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| More Snow? |
3/20/2008 |
Thanks to those of you that have sent mail, both snail and e about Beemer. We appreciate your thoughts. We seem to be getting along pretty well. We have moments where we still think he is around, like when we drop food on the floor or when walking through a dark room and we look for him on the floor.
Things have been busy, we are on Easter Break at school, and then believe it or not summer break is only about 7 weeks later.
Summer seems quite far off, especially when snow is forecasted for all of Friday. Looks like we will break the Dubuque snowfall record after all. I think we only need about 3" and some forecasts are calling for up to 10".
Training is still going good. I am eating too many cookies (sympathy gifts from friends).
I played some basketball last night. It's been a while since I have played and boy I am feeling it.
Have a great Easter, and if you're a BBall fan, Go Badgers and Go Marquette!!!
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| Goodbye Beemer |
3/14/2008 |
We all made it back safe and sound from Florida. Actually the weather here is starting to shape up. It has been 50+ the last few days and alot of the snow is gone. It is going to be pretty soggy for a while.
Training has picked right back up where we left off.... Busy. Work is going good. With an early Easter, we already have break again starting next Thursday. It runs through Monday. Believe it or not the semester is officially half over.
We kenneled our dog Beemer (purebread Keeshond) when we went to Florida. His health has been going downhill for sometime, so we knew it wasn't going to be long before we had to make the tough decision to put him down.
When we returned and met with the vet, she said he did not do very well and that it would be in his best interest to make a decision quickly.
We decided to put him down on Friday (this afternoon.) We are going to get the kids from the bus and go as a family to the vet this afternoon. The kids have been spending alot of time with him as they know every second counts now.
I even did my lesson prep the other night on the floor so I could be with him. He is on meds and is still in pain. His quality of life has diminshed, and as I told the kids last night, nobody wants to do this, but he wants to go.
He is 13.5 and has lived a loved life. Please think of us this weekend. It will be hard on the kids because it is there first experience with deathe, but it will be especially hard on Jennifer and I as he was our "first born" as we call him.
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| Red Sox |
3/6/2008 |
The father of one of my students at the U covers the Red Sox for the Boston Globe. She met us at the park in Ft. Meyers and he got us in to practice before the game with the Reds. It was a neat experience, Manny Ramirez walked right by us when we first entered and we had free reign of the park. My daughter got Johnny Peskys' (sp) autograph. He played with the Sox back in DiMaggios' and Williams'.
After the ball park we headed down to Naples to my parents place. More swimming, and then we went to a theme park for a little bit and out to eat.
Today we rented bikes to start the day. Actually my boy got the bike, and me and the girls got a Surrey, which is a 4 wheeled bike with a canopy. It is the closest I will ever get to being in the circus.
In the afternoon we headed over to the Sanibel Recreation Facility, which is about months old and is ridiculously cheap. A year membership for a single is $150 and a family is $250. It includes indoor and outdoor Bball coourts, tennis courts, a lap pool, water park and full weightroom among other thngs. We got a $10 day pass. I worked out for an hour while Jen and the kids swam.
My wife never reads my blog so I can tell you. Saturday is her 40th and because we are flying into Milwaukee, I am taking her to the Body Worlds http://www.bodyworlds.com/en.html exhibit at the museum. Pretty interesting bday gift but we are both intrigued by it and have always wanted to see it. Then as a family, we are going to take a horse and buggy ride throught downtown Milwaukee.
We head back home to the snow tomorrow. Oh yes, I have to comment on Favre. I am surprised that he is retiring but I can totally relate to his reasoning. Mentally tired. The first thing I said to my wife was. "It's a lot like training for shooting and competing. Very intense, always on your mind and very tiring." ut at least I am always around my family. I can apreciate him walking away now, it's better than going out like Jordan or Emmet Smith. Those guys pretty much depleted their talent. Favre is walking away (like Barry Sanders) with gas in the tank, going out on top and leaving people to speculate: What if? If Sanders would have continued to play he might have made the rushing record untouchable and if Favre continued to play he would have kept piling on the stats too. Oh well, now Rogers gets his shot. Can you imagine filling those shoes?
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| Winter Break |
3/3/2008 |
Well, we're officially on winter break at the college. Apparently the old fashioned "spring break" has too many negative conotations, thus the new moniker "winter." Anyway, I took full advantage. The whole family is in Sanibel, Fl. The current temp is 84 and I am sitting in the porch typing this as I look straight out to the Gulf. The kids all just ran to the beach because there is a dolphin sighting. Anyway, it has been pretty laid back, just alot of swimming.
I woke up this AM and decided to get a workout in. There is a club on the other side of the island, but I opted for the "walk out the front door and do whatever moves you" workout.
I did a ten minute jog and then I found the landscaping yard behind the Holiday Inn and used a cinder block for some upright rows, curls, tricep extensions and back rows. Between each set I jogged out to the road and back which took about 1:30. Then I was doing some push ups and bench dips on a park bench by a pond and I followed the same routine, I would do a set and then jog. When I returned after the first set, there was a guy sitting on the bench having an 8AM smoke. I said "Excuse me can I get on the bench?" He obliged, and puffed away while I did a set of Push ups and Tri's. I thought that was pretty funny. Two extremes of how people start their day. Then I came back to the room and did chest presses while holding my 60 pound son. It's a lot harder than it sounds because of the awkward balance.
My little girl was upset that she didn't get into the mix, so I promised I would use her for squats tomorrow. Finding a way to get it done.
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| Quarterly Blog? |
2/25/2008 |
When I was growing up in Milwaukee, there was a radio team in the AM's that used to always refer to their 7 listeners, and how much they appreciate their loyalty. Well, it seems that for my 7 fans, blogging quarterly is not enough. Thanks for "staying on me" about the blog. I got heat from fans across the country as well as co-workers. Thanks for reading, I guess I never new how many people actually read my mindless fodder. So anyway, let me give you a 3 month update as precisely as possible. Let's breakdown the main catregories.
1. Baby Romagna. This of course is the most important topic. According to Babycenter.com we have 97 days to go. All is well, Jennifer is doing great, and the kids are getting more excited by the day. We still can't settle on a good Italian boys name. Any suggestions? As for the girl name, Jennifer's mother is named Beatrice and her nick name as a child was BeBe. So I think that's what we're going with if it's a girl.
2. Gain a life, lose a life. It is pretty much safe to say that if we have a new baby w/in the next 97 days, we will also be putting our dog down w/in that time frame. The family dog, Beemer, a full blooded Keeshond is 13.5 and is really struggling with everything from eyesight to hearing to arthritis. I think we are holding on for our sake, not his. It will be a tough descision, but it has to be made soon. Jennifer and I were married in May of 94 and we got him in March of 95. He is our first born.
3. Weather. All I have to say is SNOW. According to the last article in the paper, and we have had more since then, this is the 7th snowiest winter in Dubuque. We have had 60+ inches with alot of ice mixed in with it. It is sleeting as I type.
4. Illness. I got slammed with Influenza that progressed to a sinus infection. I was basically out of comission for 2 weeks. I went from 202 to 189. That was just from a lack of appetite. To compound the problem Jennifer got the same thing shortly after me. I have recovered, but am still 192.
5. Workouts. My fitness has really struggled becasue of the sickness. I have worked out about 5-6 times in a month. I feel like I am back in a groove recently and it is going well. Mike and I are still doing a once a week total body workout amongst our bodybuilding style training. Mike has gotten serious about his nutrition again and is back down to 205. He came from about 230.
6. Business. Training has been going well except for the lost time when we were sick. Clients have been regular and dedicated, and we got 2 new cardio pieces in the gym. I got a new Lifefitness treadmill, and an Octane elliptical. Very happy with both. If there is a better elliptical than the Octane, I'd like to see it.
7. Work. Teaching is going well. I truly love it. It is hard to believe that we are coming up on Spring Break already. The year is flying by.
Okay, as in the past, I will try to blog more frequently. I will also make an effort to get my workouts posted on the site too. I am also using youtube more, anything I post is titled Romagna, Jim. My posting name is du4492. Go take a look, I have posted some unique exercises that i have been implementing into my workouts.
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| St. Nick |
12/5/2007 |
St. Nick comes tonight. The kids just put their shoes next to the fireplace (woodburning stove). It is looking like winter around here. Yesterday we got a bunch of snow, I didn't hear for sure but I think it was around 4-6". School was delayed 2 hours this AM.
It was an off lifing day, which is good, we went 4 days straight and ended with legs yesterday.
The lifting is coming along nicely, but we need to up the cardio. We are doing the total body workouts on the weekend which are quite a cardio workout, but we need to get back on the bikes after our lifts, that made a big difference when we did that last summer.
Get to bed, St/ Nick is watching.
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| Waaaaaay Overdue |
12/3/2007 |
Okay, last blog I titled "Overdue." Well, that's an understatement compared to the time elapsed between this blog and the last. Anyway, If I were to tell you all that has happened since the last writing, A. It would take forever and B. I'm quite sure I would bore you. I will focus on the most newsworthy items.
First, of most importance, the Romagna's are having baby # 4!!!! We figured the first 3 are so much fun, why not add another to the pack. Jennifer is due June 1st. She is just getting outside of the "sick" period, so hopefully it only gets better from here.
Secondly, from a training standpoint, things are going great. I am still working out with Mike and we have taken a new approach. During the week we do a body part specific routine and then on the weekend we do a highly challenging total body workout. For example for three weekends in a row we did the "300 workout." Take a look at it on youtube. What a challenge!!! Anyway, between my coach back in Milwaukee, Chuck Bova, and some other resources, we are never lacking in the "ass kicking workout" department.
On the personal side, I am back on my ebay kick. I'm trying to get rid of stuff and drum up some extra $ for Christmas. Just sent a pair of sunglasses to Australia today. And no, I will not be buying anymore Jaguars on line. Or off line for that matter. If anyone is interested, my ebay name is DU4492.... Bid away!!!
The semester is coming to a close. I am still happy and excited about my new job, and am looking forward to the 2nd semester. I will be teaching Biomechanics and Wellness Concept.
Charlie Brown Christmas is on tonight, so I better hustle. I promise to blog with more regularity..... you've heard that before.
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| Overdue |
10/26/2007 |
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Sorry, this is a long overdue update. It has been a while since the last blog, but I'll try to keep it brief. The fall weather has finally arrived, and I love it. It's my favorite time of year. Workouts are going pretty good, not as many as I would like, but we have been pretty good about getting in 3 a week for sure. Tomorrow is homecoming for UD, and they are playing my ala mater, Loras College. My students (that play football) have asked who I will be cheering for. I told them I will sit in the bleachers behind the endzone, and then they will never know. Regardless, it should be a great game. It is a great rivalry because the schools are literally 5 blocks apart. I finally got all my Pod Fitness recordings written, so I went down to the recording studio today and finished that project (for know). More later.
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| DVD is Finally Out |
10/26/2007 |
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Finally, the last Muscle and Fitness magazine announced that the Rock Hard Challenge DVD is out and can be purchased at www.musclestuff.com It has been over a year, but it's finally out!
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| Built In Cardio |
10/4/2007 |
Well, I'm finally teaching another indoor cycling class. I call it my built in cardio, because I HAVE to do it becaue I'm teaching. So, I'm getting that in on T/Th AMs @ 6 and then Mike and I hit the weights right after. The only thing worse than follwing a Javorek program is doing a 50 minute cycling class right before it. The good thing is we are done for the day by 7:45 in the AM. So right now we are only getting 4 lifts in a week on a T/Th/Sat/Sun split, but because of the intensity of the workouts, that's plenty.
This weekend is the Galena Country Fair at which I will be hawking natural fruit conserves again. It's a great fall festival and a chance to make a little spending money. If any one has an opinion on the Mr. O I would love to hear via email or the message board.
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| Jag-Less |
10/1/2007 |
Well, I'm no longer the owner of a 74 Jag. I have passed it along. Don't ask, I lost money on the deal and am not very happy.
Anyway, on to brighter things. The Packers and the Badgers are undefeated, so that's good. The Brewers are out of the race, and the Cubs are in which adds insult to injury.
On the more fun and sometimes more competitive side of things, my sons Pop Warner team won their first game. A defensive battle that ended 2-0. Exciting stuff when the only scoring is a safety. He is playing nose tackle, so he is in the mix on every play, he likes it much better. Less thinking and more playing than in the secondary.
Workouts are going great, Mike and I are a following a modified Javorek workout. Modified in the sense that we do 4-6 sets of the exercises versus the prescribed 8 sets of everything. We simply don't have the time to go 8 sets, and frankly it's a hell of a workout even modified.
I see Jay Cutler won the Olympia again and Ronnie took a 4th place finish...ouch. Coleman looked like he missed a cycle or two this off season. He is definetely lighter than in the past.
Poor Dexter and Victor, in my opinion, they have superior physiques to Cutler but because they don't weigh as much they went 2 and 3. Jay is obviously big, but he was holding water in the low back and his glutes weren't in. Oh well. Maybe someday we will see the return of the little guy that has the total package. Until then we will have to deal with the size craze.
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| Go Badgers |
9/23/2007 |
I'm a Badger fan in Hawkeye country. Badgers barely pulled it out. Packers also won today, 3-0, what a great start. Now if we can get the Brewers to go on a streak and the Cubs to follow through with their typical curse, then all will be good in my sports world.
I spent much of the weekend working on the yard. After our lift yesterday, Mike helped me get the yard prepped for some seeding. It is technically the final phase of the addition. Workouts are going pretty good, we are just finding a hard time getting into a good schedule. As I always say, this job thing is getting in the way of my workouts. We are thinking of going back to the Javorek workout that I did about a year and a half ago. It is only lifitng 3 days a week but it is very intense. Then on T/Th I will be teaching indoor cycling for my cardio and I will have all the pieces back together again..... oh yeah, I need to clean up the diet too..
Well, we are going to get a Sunday night workout in to close out the weekend.
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| In the Swing |
9/12/2007 |
I finally feel like I am getting back into the swing of training. I have lifted 3 consecutive days, which is the most since returning from CA. Mike an I have been getting in some good lifts. The strength isn't great, but the workouts are pretty intense. I even squeezed one in this AM after my 5:30 client and before going to work. I got all body parts in on this training cylce, so tomorroww I will be starting again from the top.
I soon will be starting another session of Indoor Cycling, which will get me on the cardio track again. The weight is holding arouond 192. Teaching is going good, the material is fun and the students are attentive and seem to be taking it in. I will be giving tests in both classes next week.
I haven't been doing alot of personal training lately just because of time constraints. When I get my new schedule nailed down, I can start filling up the open times w/ some training, that being said, I gotta go I have a training session!
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| Rough Go |
9/4/2007 |
Well, I am finally on something that resembles a regular workout schedule. Mike and I lifted both Sunday and Monday, and they were great workouts. monday was a little rough as we decided to ressurect the "15 Minutes of Fame" workout. The workout has a leg and back day and a chest,tri,bi,shoulder day. We opted for the leg back day as we had already done chest and tricep work on Sunday. We completed the workout in 21 minutes, so it is renamed "21 Minutes of Fame" until we can bring the pace back up. Basically you do 300 reps in 15 minutes. Its not the muscles that are so bad, it's the heart rate. I seriously thought I was going to puke, but after a few minutes I felt better and cooled down by mowing the lawn.
Anyway, I then squeezed in shoulders today in 25 minutes before a client over the lunch hour. Talk about maximizing your time. Just another argument for those who say they don't have time.
It's hot again today, 92. I have a new faculty orientation meeting this afternoon and then off to my boys' football practice. I had him prqctice tackling me in the yard the other day, we will see if it helped.
Mike and I got a bunch of good pictures during our chest/tri workout w/ the new camera, so when I have a little time I will get them uploaded to the gallery...... They ooze with intensity!?!?!?!?!?
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| School Daze |
8/30/2007 |
Well, school is in session (for most of us). My 3 kids started at a new school this year because of redistricting and our youngest is starting kindergarten. It was pretty hard on mom who is used to spending afternoons with her. It is all for good though.
I started my teaching at university of Dubuque, it has been great so far, although only 4 days deep. It is refreshing to start a new position. New attitude, new environment and a great support staff and co workers. Things are good.
My son has put the pads on for the first time in football... what a riot. It's funny to see these little kids running around in full gear. He loves it.
My training has taken a little bit of a hit. Partly because I need a break, as my last stint was so rigorous. I am slowly getting back into the swing. I lifted 3x this week. I guess that's still better than 70% of America. Anyway, hope everyone has a great, safe holiday weekend.
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| The Dog Is 13 |
8/20/2007 |
Not much going on other than my dog Beemer (Keeshond) turned 13 today. That is a little more exciting than all of the administrative meetings I sat through today. Okay, that's not fair, they were very helpful, it's just been a long time since I have had to sit through a days worth of meetings. It will take a little adjusting. Tomorrow is another day with more orientation and then some computer training on Weds and then it's time to focus on the teaching.
It really was the dogs birthday, and as is tradition, my kids go door to door with a wagon full of cupcakes ...and of course Beemer, to all the neighborhood dogs.
Wish I had some fitness related items to report, but I have been kind of a slug.... I will workout in the AM.
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| Pop Warner |
8/19/2007 |
Well, it was a very exciting weekend. No, not because I spent about 4 hours of it power washing it, but rather, my son Angelo started Pop Warner football practice. It was great to see these 7-8 year old boys experiencing football for the first time. So far he is enjoying it, I am excited to see him learn the game.
I was also interviewed today by Jose Antonio and Carla Sanchez on the Performance Nutrition Show. I will post a link to it as soon as I learn more. You will be able to listen to the interview on the website as well as download the podcast.
I started work last Weds with some preliminary meetings. This week will be full of orientation meetings and some small workshops, and then believe it or not schools in session on the 27th. The summer just flew by. I am excited to teach, but the schedule will be a bit of an adjustment. I will have to budget my time a little tighter. I have been spoiled with a floating workout time of between 10-12:30, now I will have to nail it down and be a little more regimented.
My workouts have been going good, I intended to back off, and I am holding true to the intention. I taught my total body conditioning class 3x this week and I usually just instruct in the class w/o doing much of the work. this week I decided to use it as my workout, and then I have been running a 1.3 mile loop around the block at the fitness center right after class. It has been great cross training, and my body weight is still under 190.
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| 37 |
8/10/2007 |
Not to self promote, but to merely state the facts. I am 37 today. One person tried to guess my age and said 33, so I guess that is a positive.
I have always been one that believes age is arbitrary, and the fact that I look the same as yesterday and feel the same, my belief holds true.
So I never did blog about our trip to SoCal, so here it goes.
We flew out of Milwaukee and despite beautiful weather, we were delayed 1.5 hours. Long story short: We got to our hotel in Venice Beach about 1:15 AM which was 3:15 on our clocks. Needless to say, Venice Beach has a whole different appeal at 1AM than it does during the day. So needless to say my wife was less than impressed.
Fast forward about 10 hours. She and the kids were having a blast body boarding, watching a taping of MTV's Next and people watching on the Ocean Walk. Meanwhile I was in Newport Beach doing a shoot for Labrada Nutrition along with some other models and Lee Labrada himself. Lee and I had some great conversation and he hooked me up with a shoot for Ironman Magazine the next day. He also mentioned that he wants me to do some writing for his website and possibly go to some trade shows with his company. It could be the start of a positive relationship.
The shoot went great, we did photos and supporting video that will be used as promo material at shows and in stores. Look for the results of the shoot on the Labrada website and in most fitness mags.
As I said, the next day I shot with Ironman. We just did some editorial lifting shots but then did some possible cover tries too. Cross your fingers.
the following day I shot with Randy Verdugo a friend of mine that I first shot with in 98 when I made my first trip out. He just got some casual shots on the beach w/ me and the family and we had a nice visist. The photos are more for my private collection as he is not really connected to any magazines. I will post some of them on the site.
Then on Thursday I shot with Cory Sorenson whom I have shot with several times before. He shot my recent cover of Muscle and Body. We got some great stuff that will hopefully turn up on Reps or Muscle and Body. The family went along on that shot and got to see dad work a little bit. When it was over, the kids hammed it up and got in front of the camera.
That day happened to be my oldests 9th Bday, so we went to the Santa Monica Peir and bought the all day bracelets for the rides. What a blast. We een went back at night and rode every ride several more times. The ferris wheel over the coast was pretty cool. If you ever get the chance, you have to do it.
Friday was our final day as we were leaving early Saturday AM, so we just hung out at the beach for the AM then we took a ride into Beverley Hills and Hollywood. It was pretty exciting for the kids. We got soome pics with the Hollywood sign in the background.
Aside from that, we ate at the famous Firehouse resteraunt, did alot of swimming and sandcastles.... I worked alot and they had a trip of a life time.
We made it back safe and sound. I picked the weights up for the first time today since July 29. The break was good but it felt good to get back in the swing of it. Tomorrow I am going to hit a quick one and then we are heading up to the Wisconsin Dells for a final outing with some friends before.... dare I say... summer is over.
It feels good to eat again, but I have vowed as I did last time to really stay close to this weight. I shot at about 185-90 and I am about 192 right now.
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| 182.5 |
7/29/2007 |
Well after a night of getting up to go to the bathroom about 4 times, I weighed in at 182.5 on my scale which I have always believed to be a few pounds heavy. Okay, so that is the "break you down" phase, and here comes the "build you up" phase. Today I will start a steady stream of carbs and if all goes as planned I will be in front of the camera around 190.
I decided to forgo the cardio this AM, but I will lift a little later this AM with Mike. I will do a shoulder/bicep routine and then on Monday a quick Chest/Back/Tri circuit. As much as I love legs, the last leg workout was about 5 days ago. The legs when stressed can hold water so it is adisable not to trai them to close to the target date.
Today will be spend tying up loose ends. I have a few programs to write, have to go do the tanning thing one last time, finish packing, and then after lunch we are headiing to get massages and then the pool.... ahh the life. And it will all be so much better w/ the extra carbs.
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| Packing |
7/28/2007 |
Well, the end is near. We are spending the weekend packing and then we shove off for LA on Monday. I am quite ready for the regimen of diet/training/cardio to be over. I am physically tired and perhaps even more mentally.
I am down to about 185 this AM, and I wish to shoot at around 190, so I will start my oatmeal/yam carb load tomorrow and finally enjoy some carbs, although bland, for two days and hopefully come in full and tight for Tuesdays shoot.
We have a call time of 10AM and looks like we will be shooting all day, there are 5 of us, one other male (he's been on the cover of Men's Health) and then 3 females... don't know there history. It should be fun as it is all outdoors on the beach in Corona Del Mar, the Newport Beach area. Trust me I will be having a Corona with a Lime soon after.
yhou know you are overtrained when you can't get out of bed in the AM without hitting snooze 3x, the first minute on the elliptical feels like the 31st, and lifting weights sounds as about as exciting as another can of tuna with a side of asparagus.
I am just excited that for the first time in 10 years of travel to LA I won't be going alone. The family is very excited to go. It is fun to see the look on their face when you explain that we will be the lsts to see the sunset, or that we can walk out the front door onto the beach, or we can ride a ferris wheel above the ocean. The shoots are going to be secondary to the family vacation.
I am not sure if I will get a chance to blog, but I will give it my best shot. If not I will give a report when I get back. I may try to squeeze a blog in before I leave Monday, check back.
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| Forever and a Day |
7/23/2007 |
Wow, when I read the last blog, it makes me realize what a long time has passed since the last update. Sorry about that.
So here is a summary of the last month and a half.
The main thing is that my father-in-law is doing well, he was cleared to drive and play golf again, so he is back to good health.
Training is going well, although I am ready for this diet and shoot to be finished. I am ready to go and just hanging in there now. It is very hard for me to get in the gym now, I need a break. I am taking the whole family and we are leaving on Monday for LA> We are staying right on Venice Beach. I am excited for them to finally see the places and faces that I talk about during all my trips out there. We are going to have a blast.
My Canadian fishing trip was grerat time spent with my son. We both had a great time fishing and bonding. He really enjoyed himself and wants to return
Business is still busy, and I am welcoming the chaos as I feel I need to play catch up for the missed week during my Canada trip, and the week we will both be missing this coming week.
I will post some current pictures before I go, I have even taken a few AVI clips that I will try to find a wayt to post.
I obviously never finished the Waxman squat workout as I was gone for a week and then had to change my leg training in prep for the shoots. On the other hand, Mike saw it through to the end and was awarded with 2 reps @ 425 which is a personal best for him. He has been working hard and deserves it.
The jag was a bust. It was (and still is) a piece of shit, I am trying to get rid of it lesson learned...
I promise more updates this week.
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| Asking for Prayers |
6/5/2007 |
Well, Jennifers (my wife) dad had two mild heart attacks on Sunday. It has been a tense few days, but everything is good now, he is doing well and should be home in a day or two.
Worouts continue to go well, we just completed the first phase of the Waxman leg workout. We have been doing nothing but 10's for 6 weeks, the low reps will be welcomed. I am really sore from the last squat workout coupled with a cycling class.
I am trying to clean up the diet little by little because I have a job for late July, never too soon to start. I am starting in better shape than the last shoot, so that is encouraging. Hopefully that equates to less cardio in order to get ready.
Talked to the transport company today, my Jag should be at the dealer tomorrow. The driver said "This thing definately needs a tune-up." Oh well, we shall see what you get for $1,225 on Ebay.
Business is really picking up with school letting out. I have had an influx of kids getting on the schedule for the summer. Usually the health club biz experiences a lull in the summer, but I have noticed in the personal training business there is no slow time.
Train chest tomorrow... More later.
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| MIA? No |
6/1/2007 |
Wow, way too long w/out an update. When you guys start emailing me asking where I have been, then I know it's been a while. Thanks for checking in, and don't ever hesitate to e me about anything. So here is a nutshell update.
I mentioned in my last blog that school is out. One less place to be this summer, so that is a relief. Next year I will be strictly teaching at University of Dubuque.
The June issue of Muscle and Fitness has also been out for a few weeks. I have been getting awesome feedback. It's funny, there seems to be a much larger wave of interest this time than w/ the last cover. Not sure why. Anyway, that has been fun and cool and has snow balled into other ops.
I have been teaching my Group Cycling classes a.k.a. SPIN out of my own studio. Awesome. When I did it at the local club it was $11 an hour, now it's $77. Something to be said for being your own boss. I am in the second 6 week session and it is going great. Make me do my ever dreaded cardio.
Lifting is going great. Mike and I have been very consistant. We tried NO Explode. I will say it gives you a pump, but it ain't worth the trips to the bathroom. I finished my first tub last week, and won't be re-uppin'.
My friend Connie and I are going to be offering a high intensity bootcamp style program on Friday mornings starting next week, so I am looking forward to that. We are doing it invite only style. We targeted people that we know will work hard and can take the challenge. I will get some pics up when it gets underway.
Yesterday the crew from www.myworldofsports.com taped our workout. It is a cool op that I will tell you more about once it gets rolling. It could be big. Check out there web page at the same name.
I am talking with someone currently about getting out and doing another photo shoot this summer, so it looks like another summer of dieting. It will be interesting to diet in the Canadian wilderness for a week. I will have to lift stones and logs for a workout.
Family is good, my 4 year old daughter started soccer last night. It was the cutest thing I have ever seen. They kicked the ball off to start the game and no one moved. It was hilarious.
Kids are excited, they only have 3 days of school left, then on to 4th, 2nd and K next year.
Finally, totally out of character, I bought a 74' Jaguar on Ebay. I'll tell more when it arrives.
I promise a more frequent update.
Stay tuned, we will be adding video clips to the site shortly!!!!
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| Friday High Day |
5/4/2007 |
Good day today. I gave my final exam at the U and have a test to give at Loras on Tuesday and then the school year is over. That will open a little more time for training.
Today was legs again. Congrats to Mike again, he got another PR, he squatted 370. I ended my workout with 475x2 and it felt much better than the 465x1 on Sunday. I totaled the weight for todays workout. Just under 24,000 pounds of iron moved. Legs will be sore tomorrow.
I have been on the NO Explode since Sunday. I did notice a great pump the last chest day. I have chest again tomorrow, so we will see. I think it's working pretty good, but I will let you know.
I will be spending the entire day tomorrow at a dance competition for my daughter, it is s good chance to get out of the house and I love watching her, she is so in to it.
I guess everyone has their copy of the June Muscle and Fitness EXCEPT ME!!! I am getting phone calls from California, NY, Milwaukee, and in Dubuque we are still looking at Albert Pujols. Oh well, I'll see it soon enough.
Well tomorrow I've got an 8AM chest workout a 9 AM client and then hit the road at 11 for the dance comp. Have an awesome weekend.
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| Rainy day |
4/26/2007 |
Pretty crappy day around here. Chilly and rain, that's three days in a row with rain. I taught my cycling class this AM, it was a good class but I coasted for the most part because I knew I was squatting today.
Mike came over and we lifted around 10. He got a personal best when he did 355 for 2 or 3, I can't recall. Either way it was a PR for him (see Extra gallery).
I finished with a double at 455 (see extra gallery), it felt pretty good. We finished up with some heavy half squats and then some single leg step ups. It was a good workout.
I met with the radio station today, and I am going down Monday to start recording my audio CD. I am pretty excited. We also talked about the process of taking my fitness minutes to other markets. We are going to get working on that right away.
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| I owe you |
4/25/2007 |
Okay,
I owe you one. That might be the longest period between updates. Sorry about that. I will try to sum up the last two plus weeks in a nutshell.
First off, believe it or not there is only a week and a half left in the school year. I have six lectures left and the year is over.
Workouts have been going very well. The squat is coming along nicely, I doubled at 445 last week and it was not too difficult. This might be the year the I get my 600# squat....
On the other hand the diet is not going so well. I am actually eating too little and all the wrong foods. I haven't been on the scale in a while but I am guessing 195-97. I am going to try NO Explode for the first time. I hear all the hype about it so I thought I would give it a try. i will let you know. I figured now is the right time, lifting is good and consistent, and it will make me clean up the diet.
My Indoor Cycling classes are going well, at least I am gauranteed two AM's of cardio a week.
Two weekends ago I went on the Christian Retreat Weekend that my wife went to the week prior. Mine was the male version of course. It was an awesome experience. If you ever have an opportunity, put your life on hold for a weekend and do it, it's worth it.
Tomorrow, I am having lunch with some people regarding my first audio training CD, as well as taking my local "fitness minutes" on the radio to a regional or larger audience. Wish me luck.
Talke with Muscle and Fitness today, looks like the cover is a go, ironically it sounds like they are going to use a shot from my last cover shoot back in August of 05. I guess I will have to wait and see.
The steps along the side of the house to the gym are finished. They look great and can be used for step workouts.
Well, that's not everything, but most of it. I will be more frequent.
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| Happy Easter |
4/8/2007 |
I just returned from a Sat/Sun trip to Milwaukee to visit the family. Hope everyone out there had a nice Easter.
Props to Cathy at Big Fish Creative for putting the slideshow up on the home page, and moving things around a bit. Please give feedback on things, and let me know what you would like to see.
Workouts have been going great, but I have been eating too much chocolate. Time to get back on track. Stopped at my HS coaches house and he set me up with some bands so I can now do some acceleration training in the new facility, I will get some pics of that and post them.
My indoor cycling classes have been going great, all two of them so far. Finally I have found a reason to be excited to get out of bed at 5:15 in the AM.
Finished my third week of yoga, it is a learning process. I like what I have learned, as a matter of fact I used some of the stretches this AM when I got out of bed to help relieve the stress on my back from sleeping on a POS pull out bed this weekend.
I finished last week by pounding out my taxes, what a pain, but a good feeling to have it ALMOST all done. We had a great business year, and the first Q this year is already better in comparison to last year. The future looks good.
My wife went on a CRW (Christian Retreat Weekend) last weekend and absolutely loved it. So much that she signed me up for one this weekend. I'll be honest, I am not looking forward to it, but then again either was she.
Back to lifting tomorrow after 2 days off.
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| April's Here |
4/3/2007 |
Hard to believe but April is already here. I am giving a test in my Biomenchanics class tomorrow, then it's Easter Break and then the students come back for 4 more weeks before school is out. That was the fastest school year I can remember. Now that I said that, watch the next 4 weeks be a grind.
I started my Indoor Cycling class today. This is the reason we built our facility. I have seven bikes, all full. We ride T/Th AM at 6 for 6 weeks. I call it my built in cardio.
Weight workouts are going great, Patrick, my old training partner joined Mike and I for workouts on Saturday and Sunday, it was good to have him in there, we talked a liitle shit to each other, like the good old days.
Training is busy, we seem to be getting calls and emails daily. we are going to have to make a game plan if it continues to grow at this rate.
I spent most of today trying to reduce the huge paper pile on my desk..... and get my taxes together. Speaking of growth, I did a preliminary tun on QuickBooks and our business is up 40% from last year. It's exciting and a little scary at the same time.
My lesson learned: Get rid of the negative forces in your life and good things start to happen, even if you have to take a leap of faith.
Took yoga again tonight. Just reconfirmed that my hips are tight as a drum... I will keep at it.
More to come later this week.
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| Yoga 2 |
3/27/2007 |
Well, I just finished my 2nd yoga class. I am really going to try and stay committed to once a week to work on my flexibility. My linear flexibility is great, I can reach down and touch my toes, I can get into a deep squat and hold it forever. It's my Lateral movement that is terrible. I can't sit "indian style" my hips are too tight.
Business is busy. To the point where I think I have to start saying no to some things. I hate to sound cliche, but there isn't enough time in the day. Workouts are going well, hit back and biceps again. I am nearing 200 pounds so I need to get back on the cardio to maintain my goal weight of 195. I start my Indoor Cycling classes next week, so that will help. I haven't done a lick of cardio since I returned from Florida.
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| Too Long |
3/26/2007 |
Sorry for the big break between blogs, things have just been busy as usual.
Workouts have been going great, diet is going terrible. I am still a sugar-aholic lately, mainly peanut butter and trail mix. I suppose those aren't that bad, but it isn't good either.
I made a pact w/ myself to make yoga a regular part of routine, so I started that last week. I did it on the same day as a leg routine, so I wans't walking properly for about 3 days.
I think that is the only missing link in my fitness, my flexibility. I will gave you updates.
I am going to be offering my first Indoor Cycling class in our new studio, that is start next week. I am excited to get back on the bike and teach. Plus it is a great way for me to guarantee 2 days of cardio a week.
School is going pretty good, there is only 6 weeks left in the semester, believe it or not. I fianlized all the paper work with university of Dubuque right before I went on vacation, so it is official I will be starting there in the fall as a full time faculty member, no coaching or strength and conditioning. Strictly teaching.
On a side note, my 4 year old took her training wheels off this weekend and learned to ride in about 15 minutes. If only we could pick things up that quickly.
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| Back to Reality |
3/11/2007 |
Got home last night about 11:15. Talk about throwing the body a curve... Went from 85 and sunny back to 35 and snow in a matter of about 10 hours. Also, with the time change and the late travel times, I am really screwed up. Although I am not really looing forward to getting back to the routine tomorrow, it is probably the best thing for me.
We had a great vaca, just perfect, not too long and not too short. Jennifer and I did finally hit the gym on Friday, I really didn't want to go, but I went and did a total body workout. I did about 2 sets for every body part. It was a nice gym (only one on the island), a little crowded, but it served its' purpose.
So far today I have been doing nothing but working!!! I am trying to get caught up on all the thngs that tend to pile up when your gone that long.
I am looking forward to getting back on the lifting track. I am not sure what approach I am going to take. Not sure if I want to continue with the fast paced circuits or get back into some heavier lifting. That will be a game time decision... Speaking of game time Go Badgers!
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| Sunny Florida |
3/5/2007 |
Greetings from Sanibel Island in sunny FLorida. The island is just off Ft. Meyers. We arrived Sunday, all travel went smoothly unlike my trip to and from LA. I know one thing, the more time you spend in airports the less you like them.
Anyway, I am blogging from the library, and because the library is not my idea of vacation I probably won't be online again until Saturday when we return home.
It is a little chilly here, by Florida standards(low 70's) but the sun feels good. My parent will be coming up from Naples Weds for a visit.
The kids have already logged alot of hours in the pool and at the beach. I think we will be going out for dinner tonight.
This AM I went for a run with my wife. Put it this way, she ran for an hour and then came back and got me and we ran for another 20 minute.... That should give you an idea of the pace.
TOward the end I would jog a few blocks then do a set of 20 walking lunges, I did about 4 sets and then when I got back to the condo I did 9 sets of different elevation push ups. Something is better than nothing.
There is a prett nice gym on the island, I may hit that a few times this week.
I'll report in later.
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| Back Home |
3/2/2007 |
Well, I finally made it home. I left LA at midnight their time and to make a really long story short I finally made it back to DBQ at 2PM... I slept for maybe a total of 3 hours, with 1 of thise hours at the table of a reseraunt.
The second day of shooting was great, we shot in Johnny Damons (trainer to the stars) gym in Santa Monica... I didn't see any starz. The gym was awesome, it has only been open for 6 months. It was loaded with Hammer Strength and Life Fitness equipment.
Anyway, we shot all the ab exercises for the June issue. My abs were killing me by the end of the day. The shoot went pretty good, alot of moving of the lights and because we were shooting abs, it is a little trickier because of the position of the exercises. I weighed in at 179.5 that day and felt awesome, I hade shed all the water and was really tight, so it will be interesting to see how the shots turned out. I have not been that low in about 3 years. But I felt good.
The second night I stayed at a Courtyatrd Suites in Marina Del Ray. It was a nice area because everything was in walking distance. The previous night I ent to Vnice Beach, but it was cold and windy, I grabbed some t-shirts and headed out.
I popped my head into the MECCA, Golds. It was busy but I didn't see "anybody."
When the shoot was done on Thursday, I headed to the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica. Supposedly that is where all the stars hang out. Apparently the stars don't hang out when it is chilly out.
From there I headed to the Santa Monic Pier, very cool. I was there about sundown and the sunset was awesome. Then I headed back to the room, relaxed a bit, packed checked out and then strolled some of the shops before heading back to the airport.
I got there in plenty of time and finally had my starbucks and then got on the plane.... Then began the traveling adventure!!!
This AM I had to teach and some training and then Mike and I hooked up for a leg routine. He is down to 213 from 230+!!!
The rest of the day I am going to spend getting organized because we are heading out Sunday for family vaca in FLorida for a week..... From one coast to the other!
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| Taking a Break |
2/27/2007 |
TO make a long story short, I got to my hotel room at 12:30 LA time, 2:30 my time, and then on top of it I couldn;t fall a sleep.
I surprisingly woke up early and feeling fresh. I walked out the front door of my hotel room and was looking at the beach and the famous Santa Monic Peir.
I got to the studio at 9:30 and we did all cover shots until about 3pma nd then took a lunch break..
We are going to shoot a few more editorial shots of me eating and prepping food and then I am done for the day.
TOnight I am in a different hotel, I am staying in Marina Del Ray and then we shoot an ab routine in a gym tomorrow in Santa Monica
As far as I have been told, all of this shooting is for the June Ab Issue. I think I will have quite a few things in the issue.
I am not sure if I will be able to blog any more today, but I will try, until then..... I got to go and eat some fake chicken!!!
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| Better Late Than Never |
2/26/2007 |
Okay, Looks like I am goign to get out of here today at 4:50.... Cross your fingers. We are keeping the cover shoot on for tomorrow and then we moved todays assignment (ab routine) to Weds.
I will be arriving in LE at 11PM which is 1AM our time and then I have to get my car and dive a bit... Then up for a 9:30 shoot.. Yikes, they assured me the make-up artist can work wonders on bags.. Then I have to take the red eye home at midnight LA time on Weds getting back home Thursday at 10AM.. Talk about a whirl wind tour.
I got up, did my last round of cardio this AM and did a quick hi rep upper body workout just to pump the muscles a little. I am weighing 182, lighter than I wanted but I am happy with the result so far.
Can't promise that I will be able to blog or update pics from out there, but I will do my best.
We are shooting at Magiclight Studios if you want to check out the website, very cool.. Robert Rieff is the photog, he is good... has shot Eddie Murphy, Clint Eastwood. Pretty cool... Till next itme.
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| Snowed in |
2/25/2007 |
Well, I am still here in snowy Dubuque. The flight out od Dbq are cancelled, and most of the conecting flight to LA are booked. If the weather were to get better (it's raining now)I could possibly get to LA by 5:30 tomorrow night... I am waiting to hear from them to see what they want to do... We have shoots for M/Tu but I obviously won't make the Monday shoot.
I am waiting to here if I may be going at all. If not, I am going to turn this Midwest blizzard into a Dairy Queen Blizzard!!!!
I'll keep you posted.
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| BLIZZARD |
2/24/2007 |
Well, I am supposed to leave tomorrow AM for my shoot with Muscle and Fitness and things are not looking good. It is snowing like mad, and even lightning on top of it. I am preparing as if I will be heading out, but it doesn't look good right now.
Monday I am supposed to shoot an ab feature and then Tuesday I am supposed to shoot the June cover! Hopefull I can get out there.
I weighted in at 182 this AM which is way lower than I want to be but that is just the way it happened this time. I have not been eating quite as much this time so I am now starting to carb up a little to see if I can fill out a bit. I will be staying and shooting in the Santa Monica area. I will try to give updates from out there.
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| No Training Today |
2/19/2007 |
Today is an off lifting day, we went 3 straight, so it's a welcome break. My legs are pretty soar from yesterday anyway. I did get up and do 30 minutes on the elliptical. The rest of the day was training and teaching. I may do some more cardio this eve, although I am leaning away from it as I feel the weight is down enough, it's more about manipulating the diet now to get tight this final week. Lots of loose ends to take care of before I head out, so that will keep me busy.
Tomorrow back to the upperbody circuit, I will get some pics tomorrow and get them posted. Until then....
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| Dropping Like a Rock |
2/18/2007 |
I got on the scale today and I was 185.5... and that's a scale that is believed to be 2 pounds heavy. I am not drinking enough water and I am not getting enough meals in right now. I am eating very clean, have not cheated at all, but I think I am too low on cals.
Training is going great, Mike (who is also down to 218 from 230) and I have been doing fast paced high rep workouts and are done each time in at the most 30 minutes, then we log 20 minutes on the bike immediately after the workouts. In addition to that I am getting in 1/2 hour of cardio in the AMs.
I am exactly where I need to be I just want to tighten up... need to make sure I am getting the right amount of protein and keeping my glutamine up.
So far I have not heard back on my exact assignment, but I know I will be leaving next Sunday and they have me booked for Mon/Tues, and one of theose days is for the June cover. I suppose the other is for a workout.
The diet has been easy this time because I kept myself at 195.
All else is good, we spent the entire day at my daughters dance contest in Madison yesterday, it's nice to get away from the house for a day, especially when you run your biz out of your home.
It is easier to diet too when I am not home, I bring all my food for the day in a cooler, so it's easy not to stray.
On the way home we hit the Trader Joes Grocery... Awesome, but too bad I can't eat any of the purchases yet.
At Wal-Mart I found these pre-packaged Tyson diced chicken breast in a zip lock bag. Just when I thought zip lock tuna was mans greatest invention, I find this. it comes in 6 ounce servings. The only downfall, 330 sodium because of a little flavoring, but drink enough water and you flush it away.
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| Bodybuilding or Dance? |
2/10/2007 |
I just spent the entire day at my 8 year old daughters 1st dance competition. It is exactly like going to a BB show, but frankly, more exciting. Like BB it is all day long, you see the same faces on stage over and over, you hear really good music.....and really bad music, and it can be incredibly boring unless you know someone competing.... Well, I had a great time and was very proud of my daughter, the youngest one on the team. After the contest we went to dinner at the Thunder Bay Grill, if you've never been to one, go. It was great. Unfortunately there are only 3, Pewaukee (Milwaukee), Davenport (Quad Cities) and Rockford, Il(more than once referred to as the arm pit of the earth). I actually stayed within my diet guidelines, Bison steak, Sweet potato and steamed brocolli..... Trust me, it was great but there were about 10 other things I would rather have ordered.
I missed my cardio this AM so I decided to get it in before bed. I did 40 minutes at 9pm, hopefully I can sleep tonight.
My wife and I made a pact not to do any training on Sunday.... I have 2 clients tomorrow.
Good day in sports: Badgers beat the Hawkeyes in Bball, and my Loras Duhawks won their first conf championship since 1951.
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| Computer Probs |
2/9/2007 |
Thanks to all my regular readers, I found out that I have lost a ton of data. My service provider had a major crash, and all info basically added since the middle of Oct....POOF! The thing that is most disappointing is the gallery in which I was posting my construction pics. I do have them on my hard drive but it would be very time consuming to go through and add them all back in. I will try to get things back up and running as soon as possible.
Apparently the message board cannot be rcovered, so any discourse there is gone. Feel free to start posting again and beefing up the content again. Sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.
On a positive note, I am on the current cover of Muscle and Body Magazine. You can see it on my links page. I am also heading to LA to shoot with Muscle and Fitness again in a few weeks... More details as I find them out.
The current issue of Muscle and Fitness has a DVD review in it of the Rock hard Challenge we shot in Sept. they say it is on the MF website at www.muscle-fitness.com but I don't seem to see it. I will let you know through what channels it will be maid available when I find out...... Has it become apparent that I am always the last to find things out!?!?!?!?
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| Jelly Selling |
10/9/2006 |
What a great weekend. Friday I went to the mall for an appearance. It was good to talk to a few different people abput there fitness goals. The turn out wasn't great but we didn't promote it very much. We are going to do it again and now we will have over a month to get the word out. I am positive for the next one.
Sat AM I had my bootcamp at Body and Soul. It was great weather, and a great class, we ended up outside for a mile run.
From there the Romagna's headed to the Galena Country Fair, my youngest was done up like a strawberry, very cute. For about for hours I just sampled the product to passer by's and directed them to the tent. Bill said his sales were up 13% from a year ago on the first day..... I know there are a few other variables, but I am advertising my services as the 13% difference!!!! anyway, it was awesome weather and the rest of the family had a blast floating around the fair. I returned on Sunday for another 4 hour stint.... It was really fun and I think I found another niche to do some work. We returned home for some burgers on the grill and a bonfire.
Monday was an incredibly long day. Just when I thought we couldn't get any more athletes in the weight room.... we do! I then took my son to his first Cub Scout meeting and also volunteered to be a Den Leader.... add it to the resume. It will be a blast.
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| Friday Around the Corner |
10/5/2006 |
What a long week, with a busy weekend to come. Good things happened this week. Had a great conversation and development with a new opportunity. I will tell more when I can. I finally landed my long awaited Hammer Strength Leg Press. I should have it by late next week. my builder was over twice this week. We should be breaking ground in a week or 2.
Work has been busy, it's homecoming week, so a little more activity on campus than usual.
Tomorrow night I will be doing an appearance at the local GNC in the mall. Locals, stop in and say hi... 7-8. Than on Saturday and Sunday, My family and I are going to go to the Galena Country Fair and work a clients booth. We are going to see how many jars of preserves a bodybuilder and his cute kids can sell. it is an all natural product. if seriously interested, contact me through the site. They will ship them out. Trust me it is a great product.
Anyway, I will update more over the weekend.
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| Jurassic Revisited |
10/2/2006 |
Okay, It was my first day back in the gym since my trip to LA. Willie, my strength intern, is following the Jurassic Mass program, so I hopped in with him for chest and tris. The time off did me good, I had an awesome workout. I went full sweats so I got a great lather going and was pushing good weight considering I haven't trained hard in nearly a month.
I weighed in this AM at 193 which surprised me...... I had a lot of salami sandwiches and peanut butter cups this weekend!!!!! Leave me alone, I deserve it!!
Any way, my new goal is to not exceed 195 so I stay in better "shape" for things. So I am excited that I am under right now.
Weather is awesome here, unseasonably warm for this time of year. All the colors are turning bt it is 80.
My Duhawks beat 13th ranked Coe College this weekend 32-30! My packers play tonight.
We are going full steam ahead with the plans for the home gym addition. I will post pictures when we start.
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| Still Adjusting |
9/28/2006 |
It has been a busy week since returning. I am still not totally adjusted. It is good to be back home. I have yet to start my training, but I think I will get workouts in Fri - Sun, so that will be a good start.
I have been eating whatever I like, and am now back up to 195. that is where I would like to stay. Training at that weight would perfect. I would still be big enough to make some gains, yet stay close enough to that optimal 188 for work.
I ahve been really working on my contacts and developing this momentum that has started with the trip.
Tentatively, I will be doing an appearance at the local GNC next Friday at 7PM, I will give the details on the "Latest News" when I know for sure.
My friend and contractor was by last night and we talked about the expansion of the home gym and ironed out some of the logistics. He says he could be excavating in 2 weeks! We are adding about 450 square to our current 485! I can guarantee one thing: It will be the nicest gym in Dubuque. I will be posting pictures of the construction as it happens. That is it for now..... Busy day ahead.
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| Back TO Reality |
9/24/2006 |
Well, Sunday night and I am still flying high, which is nice considering I will probably spiral into depression tomorrow....... No, it is great to be home, I just need to get back in the working mindset. My flights were delayed aong the way, but I still made it home by 11PM, an hour past the original time.
It was good to see my friend Gary, his fortunes have changed for the better as have mine since we last saw one another. We grabbed some coffee at the Fig Leaf Cafe in Venice Beach and strolled the boardwalk in search of gifts for the family. I ended up with some T-shirts, I know, so typical, but the kids loved them. I got a few other little trinkets that they absolutely loved as well.
The flight, after the delays in LA, was fine, I slept about an hour and then finished my book from my son. Excellent read. the flight was only about three hours. They said they made up time in the air because we were behind. My thought is if the plane can go that fast and make up time, then why don't they do that all the time?
When I arrived in DBQ, the kids were all waving at the window in their pajamas. My youngest Ava, fell to pieces and began bawling hysterically when she saw me. They were all very happy that I was home. We made it home and after all the excitement it was nearly 1AM when we went to bed. I awoke at 8:30 which is really 6:30 LA time, which I feel I am still on, so I have been in a fog all day. Part of it is that I am now eating whatever I like, and the drasitc change in diet also has an effect the way I am feeling. We went to breakfast as a family as promised and then went to church. It felt good to be back in the normalcy of the midwest!
After church my younget and headed downtown to the 4th street elevator, which is a historic cable car that runs up the bluff, it is one of her favorite outings because ther is a candy shop at the bottom of the hill. The fudge was good. After we returned home and did a little first aid on my son, who slammed his fingers in the door, I then took my oldest out for a little one on one time. Her choice: Starbucks! Wow, they start young. We got a few drinks there and then headed to the grocery to pick up some dinner. We ended up with Chinese, and they are all in bed sleeping.
I will have a busy day trying to catch up on all I missed, starting with training appointments at 5:45..... So off to bed.
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| Heading Home |
9/23/2006 |
Wow, what a week. I have mixed emotions. Without a doubt I want to go home, but only to see my family. I am not ready to get back to the rest of "life" there. I could spend more time here, but this is the plan for now.
I am heading to Venice Beach to meet my friend Gary (who grew up with my sister back home); small world. Then on to Dubuque.
Although the trip is over, I will still be blogging. Those of you who have been visiting the site please come back with regularity as I will be blogging and updating about all these new and exciting possibilties that have been born from this trip.
Thanks to everyone who has been following and supporting me through the years. I truly appreciate everyone's support and interest in what I do. Take care.
Signing off from West Hollywood!
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| Last Day |
9/22/2006 |
Sorry my loyal blog readers, I accidentaly deleted yesterdays blog which was not even finished, so I hope you had a chance to read it. If not here are the cliff notes:
Yesterday was the last day on the set of Rock Hard Challenge..... I can see how people on long running shows (friends, cheers etc) become so close and don't want to say goodbye. Even in a 3 1/2 day video shoot I made some great friends, had good times and had wonderful conversations. I was not ready for it to be over.
The last day was long, I arrived at the set at 7:30 AM and left at 8:00 PM, many of those involved were there until 11. It all came together so nicely, it's going to be one hell of a production, I can promise that.
Today I had a 10 AM call time at 360 Fitness in Reseda, we shot some photos for Muscle and Fitness, look for them in the January issue, they had a motion effect to them, very cool. It was also a long day, 10-4, but I am here to work so I love it.
I handed out 2 cards in the gym. Between shoots. People were asking training questons, so I talked shop and tried to expand my biz.
I met Sean Waxman on the shoot, he was the technical advisor, what a great and knowledgable guy. He has an olympic lifting background so we had so good convo about training and the like. check his site out at www.shutupandlift.com I drove back to the hotel, which had a chocolate covered strawberry and cookies waiting for me because it is the last day!!!!
I talked to the kids and Jennifer, I am excited to get back home to the family. My last venture will be in the AM, I am going to stop in Venice Beach to visit a friend who use to accomodate me back in the days when I had to come out here and sleep on floors and hitch rides. We are going to do breakfast and then I want to walk the boardwalk. I love the atmosphere there, so many interesting people, shops and of course the ocean, then I am on a 2PM flight.....
What a whirlwind week.. I will report more later as I am now heading out to Sunset Strip for some dinner.
I went to Maribelles Steak HOuse on the recommendation of the front desk. It was excellent. I had an angus burger with sweet potato fries. It was awesome, but I am not used to eating that much. Very full.
I will sleep well tonight.
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| Great Wednesday |
9/20/2006 |
ALright, I had about three paragraphs written and my laptop crashed, so I am typing this from the lobby of the hotel, which by the way there is a fashion photo shoot going on right behind me. A bunch of 6' tall female models. Apparently for fashion.
Anyway, I got to the room last night around 6:30 and tlaked to Jennifer and the kids a bit then went to the workout room for a 20 min tread and 3 bouts of 7 min in the sauna. It helps keep me tight fot he shoot. Went to bed and watched mindless TV until 12. I woke at 6:30 and was at the studio by 7:30. Apparently it was my day fo legs, cuz that is all I did. Squats, Calves, leg extensions, leg press and then we had to reshoot yesterdays tricep bench dips. it all went very smoothly, I think now we have it down to a system so it runs quite good.
The down time is fun because you get into some great conversations. There is a lot of time between sets so you just hang out and visit. All great unique people and I feel I am building a wonderful network of friends and professionals.
I was done by 2 today and am now back at the hotel catching up. I am going to try and squeeze some side shoots in while I have some open time, so I am just waiting for a few calls back.
Tomorrow seems to be mostly shooting of the hosts and the voice overs, so it may be a brief day..
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| Great News From Home |
9/19/2006 |
7:30 WST
I talked to Jennifer this AM and she gave me a bunch of great client news. Jennie Weber placed 6th in her first WNBF Pro Bodybuilding Show out of tean, that is awesome. I will get some pics up ASAP.
Wes Hartig, a client of mine that is a tennis player went to U of Dayton this fall as a walk on for the tennis team. It was in the paper today that Wes made the team. Congrats to him and good luck for the rest of the season.
Brooks Bertsch a clint of mine that is a junior in HS is playing for a U-18 hockey team that travels and his mom told Jennifer that he finally got on the scouts radar. I know Brooks aspires to play big time hockey, and I know he will. He has a great a work ethic.
Last night I hit the tread for 30 minutes and hen the sauna for ten and then up to the roof top hot tub for a little R/R. I have a 8AM call time at the studio and I haven't eaten yet, so I will post more later..
11:00 WST
I just finished shooting the first four exercises of the DVD. Bent Lateral Flye, Shrugs, Deadlift and bicep curl. It went smoothly. There was some talk of fake weights and I caught heat for mentioning that to my fitness class the other day….. Let me tell you, there was no fake about it. I was lifting the real thing, and right now my forearms are so tight I can barely type. What made it so hard is that there is no amount of reps; you just keep lifting while the camera is rolling, and you do it very slow and very strict. There will be no need to workout while I am here.
This group is so accommodating and a lot of fun; I have had some great conversations with some of them during the down time.
I was the first to go on so I went right into makeup….. I took pictures for my girls; they will get a thrill out of dad getting his make-up put on!!! I am trying to get a lot of behind the scenes pics for my gallery, so keep checking back.
I think the best part of the whole job is that there is actually a girl named Dene that is in charge of the food. She takes all my food orders for the day and makes sure I am eating what I want and when I want. She even brings me my coffee…. I am so not used to this!
She is a great person; we were talking about how we both have had friends in Africa helping people there and had great conversation about life, kids and doing the right thing.
I am now off for a few hours before I shoot again, so I am going to try and get my newspaper article finished and get off my feet for a while. More later.
4:30 WST
I just finished my second round of exercises. I demoed the flat bench, incline bench, bench tricep dip, incline flye and wrist curls. I think I am done for the day but then I offered to do the treadmill segment at the end of the day. I figured, hey I came this far I may as well get as much film time as possible.
Things got a little heated at one point, but that is expected when you have that many talented people in the room. The cool thing is they are all professionals, so get it out in the open and then work the rest of the day happily ever after….. I think.
Anyway, Jimmy Pena the Fitness Director for Muscle and Fitness is the mind behind the Rock Hard Challenge. What a great guy. He and I clicked from the get go. He is a great personality and very energetic. He is very talented as well, he has this project that will roll out in December, then he co-wrote LL Cool J’s Platinum Fitness book and next year will be working on Heather Locklears’ fitness book. He knows his stuff.
When I was done shooting, they did an interview and have been compiling some behind the scenes footage to do as bonus material on the DVD, I am very excited to see the finished product, it will be incredible. At one point I counted 30 people in the room. That’s what it takes for something like this to go. A lot of talented people coming together for one production. More later…….
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| LA Morning |
9/18/2006 |
7:30 AM WST
I awoke about 7, which means my body still thinks it's in Iowa. Anyway, slept great, and I don't have anything until 1 so I am going to workout and then go get some groceries.
I did a 15 minute full body dumbbell circuit, and did 20 minutes of cardio.... Just an FYI, think twice if you are thinking of buying a SportArt elliptical.....yuk! Anyway, then I hit the sauna for 10 minutes, very relaxing. I headed out to find the studio ahead of time, just so i know where I am going. It's very close to the hotel. Then I hit the Trader Joe's grocery, which if anyone has ever been in before, the prices are incredible. They are an all nutural and organic grocery with protein bars like 69 cents... anyway, I picked up the usual and am waiting for housekeeping to bring up the cooking utensils so I can prep my food for the rest of the day.
Oh, and by the way I ate breakfast in the hotel rest., 4 egg whites and a bowl of oatmeal $12. Glad I'm not paying. Where is the Denny's when you need it. I guess you pay gor the linen napkins.. More later.
6:45 WST
Today was the rehersal day. i tried on my clothes and we tested the lighting and that was about it. We were there quite a while, but it was fun to visit with all these people from all different walks of life. Everyone was very friendly and accomodating. Stan Mcquay and I talked shop about competing and the bodybuilding scene, and I visited with Timea. She has a very thick Slovakian accent, and is very nice, she is very appreciative to be in the states. jimmy Pena and Linda Rosario (sp?) are going to be the hosts of the video, both are awesome personalities and will be a lot of fun to work with.
I cam back to the room and then took a walk up Sunset Blvd.... saw several Rolls Royces, and a lot of people milling about, very active and fun area.
Anyway, we have a call time of 8 AM and the eyes are tired. I amy hit the hot tub or sauna one more time.
I am very excited about this project and working with such a fun and talented group, I will try to get a bunch of pics tomorrow.
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| Leaving on a Jet Plane |
9/17/2006 |
Chicago O’Hare Airport 2:00 PM Sunday September, 17th 2006.
Well, here I am in the Chicago airport. So far so smooth except for the fact that they keep announcing the Dept of Homeland Security has upgraded ………some alert! Not sure what that’s about.
I got up at 7 AM. Finally, I got to sleep in. Did 20 minutes on the tread and then about a 15 minute total body lifting circuit. The Mystic Tan is setting in nicely, and I hit the scale this AM totally dry at 186. I am ready. I never would have thought 5 weeks ago I would have got into this shape this quickly. (I will give more insight into this later).
Anyway, spent most of the AM packing and prepping food, then we drove out to the airport. Luckily in Dubuque, we only have to leave home at 12 for a 12:50 flight. We took some pics at the airport and then the kids started to get sad. My oldest was holding on to me the whole time, my boy, out of no where says “dad I love you,” and lunges into me crying, and then Ava the youngest waits until I am through security to start bawling hysterically. Jennifer and I hugged and off I went.
They presented me with gifts at the airport. From the girls I got the book “She Calls Me Daddy” Seven Things A Man Should Know About Building a Complete Daughter, and from my son “Raising a Modern-Day Knight.” A Fathers Role in Guiding His Son the Authentic Manhood. Both books had their hands traced inside the back cover with a note…… I cried.
Again, the luxury of a small airport is that we have only one plane there at any one time, so when I took off I could see the family in the observation parking lot waving from the ground.
I have about 45 minutes till we take off. I will sip my Starbucks and people watch.
5:50 PM Central
I spoke too soon when I said things were going smoothly. Takeoff was delayed nearly two hours because of a light that was out and then some weather related issues. The real unfortunate part is that the delay was IN the plane. I did start my new book (from my son) and have gotten through 50 pages.
7:00 PM Central. Somewhere over the Rocky Mountains
Boy, not being able to carry on any drinks really sucks. They have water on the plane, but they are cups the size of my daughters’ tea set. I knocked out a 1,300 word article that I will get posted on the site ASAP, it will make for some fun and hopefully motivating reading.
Eating cold egg whites in flight is a conversation starter. The flight attendant (male) keeps walking by noticing that I am eating healthy and trying to drink water, so we have a quick conversation and I gave him a card to visit my site. He said he really wants help getting back in shape. Hopefully he will take advantage of my services.
We are up over the mountains now, beautiful. More later.
10:00 Western. West Hollywood CA
Finally made it. I picked a PT Cruiser as my rental car per my kids request. It's the same car we had on our Florida trip. I got a little lost on the way to the hotel, and ended up driving through residential Beverley Hills. Anyway, I found the hotel. Wow. I will get some pictures in the gallery tomorrow. It has a roof top pool, hot tub, tennis courts and a very nice fitness room with a sauna. I will be using the hot tub and sauna. This is truly a first class place. I came in and the music was playing and there was a ice bucket with drinks waiting. They even ask you if you want the "bed turning service." They will come up and turn back your bed, refold all your towels and freshen up the room. I may do that one of these nights just because! Anyway, I am about 3 blocks from Sunset Blvd and I am going to venture out in the AM to get some groceries, although I think I will use room service a bit too. Might as well live the life while I can!!! Check out the client gallery, that is where I am dumping all the photos.
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| Last Night |
9/16/2006 |
Tomorrow I shove off. I am ready to go except for the fact that I have not packed a thing. Actually the good thing is I don't need much because they are providing all the wardrobe. I just need my hangin out clothes and some workout gear. Not sure if I will be up for working out if that is what I am shooting all day, but I will at least plan on it.
Got a massage last night, it was great but definately am feeling the effects of training, alot of soreness in the joints and alot of little balled up areas of tight muscle.
I did an AM treadmill, taught class today at the fitness center and did another 30 on the bike around 7. We had a nice quiet family dinner. I had chicken breast of course with some cream of rice and greens been while everyone else had pizza!!!!
Jade, my 8 year old and I went for a walk, me being gone is really going to be hard on her, she is really strugging with it. Then I went to the tanning salon for a mystic tan. Very interesting if you have never had one.
Last bit of news, my client Jennie Weber is competing tonight in KC at her first WNBF show. It is her first contest as a pro. She was very upbeat after pre-judging, she said the top 3 were really good and that she felt she could fall anywhere thereafter. There are 10 girls in the class. she is in the lightweights 120 and below at 106. I am awaiting a call right now. I will let you know how she does on my next post.
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| Egg Whites |
9/14/2006 |
Oh the life, it's 8 AM and I have been at work since 6:15. I have already been on the tread for 30 min this AM and I am heading to the grocery store here shortly, as I am out of eggs.
I am spending the morning trying to get things organized before I leave, I have to write a test to be given next week, update all the strength programs, and basically make sure everything is covered for all of next week. Not too bad just alot of details and work.
Anyway, I am feeling pretty good, not too much change. I was very tired yesterday and again was not real fired up about training. It was a long day, got haome about 6:30. Today is about the same, although I may take it as an off lifting day. I did legs yesterday so I have back and bis left in this cycle. May save it for tomorrow and get a 45 minute cardio in this afternoon instead.
I am still holding just under 190.
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| Another Day |
9/12/2006 |
Makin' it through another day. I got all my flight info and my hotel info from Muscle and Fitness. My hotel looks awesome, it is right off of Sunset Blvd near Beverley Hills. I am still waiting for my call sheet for Fridays shoot. We are all set for the M-Th shoot, it is in a studio in Hollywood. I am getting excited, I just wish it were here. I like doing it I just hate all the headache that goes w/ prepping to go out of town and traveling.
I got up early again, 5AM and was on the tread by 5:15 as I had to be at work agoing by 6:30. Today I am finished about 4:30. Over lunch I hit a quick chest/tri/ab workout and then rode the bke for 20 min. I am holding at 189, although when I wake up "dry" I am bout 187.5. I feel good, now it's a matter of maintaining.
It took every once of energy to get in the weight room. I am surely burned out. I will be taking a break when I get home, or at least drastically changing the way I am training. I would love to get back to some heavy squatting and deadlifting. I am tired of this high rep regimen. Also, I will give the old treadmill a definate break.
I was checking out my hotel on line, and it has ?hi Speed Internet, so I will be blogging daily for my readers. Thanks all for your support.
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| 5AM comes early |
9/11/2006 |
Well, rainy weekend, the Duhawks got beat, the Packers got their ass handed to them and I am dieting...... Can it get worse? Anyway, things are going good, I am feeling really good, actually alot of energy but just a little grumpy cuz I can't eat what I want. As crazy as work is it really makes thing go smoothly, because I am forced to really plan and prepare, leaving very little room for error.
Jon came over for a workout yesterday, we haven't lifted together in a while so it was good. I just did a quick back/bi superset workout with 30 min on the bike. I am definately staying out of the weight room for at least a week when I get home.
Woke up before 5 this AM and was on the treadmill at 5:05. Had to go early, as I had a clinet at 5:45.
Today is still rainy, I am taking off from the weights. If I do decide to go in. I'm due for chest and tri's. None-the-less, a little more cardio this afternoon.
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| Under 190 |
9/8/2006 |
Wow!!! Woke up this AM at 187.5 on my digital scale which I am not sure is completely accurate. The scale at work is and I came in at 191 with clothes/shoes. Now I would like to just maintatin as much as possible and get harder each day.
Did a 30 min treadmill this AM and then came to work w/ womens basketball. I hardly remember it, must be the coffee and thermos mix! Now that the weight is down, I am going to get a way from the 20 rep total body workouts. i am definately overtraining, I can feel it. My legs always feel heavy, I get tired during the day and then can't sleep at night. I have been getting up at 5-530 every AM and surprisingly feel great. Anyway, did more of a traditional chest/tri/ab workout, although the heaviest I went was 80#. The low carb diet takes its' toll. Did another 30 min cardio after that. I am done with the workouts for the day unless you count mowing the lawn.
I will welcome the weekend. I can sleep in tomorrow, and then teach a fitness class at 8:30. I am going to do either legs/bi's or back/shoulders at some ppoint on Saturday.
Very long week, glad it is over!
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| Back to the Routine |
9/7/2006 |
Work has been very busy, coming in at 6:30 or 7:00 everyday. Some of those days I have clients prior and a few AM's I have had to get up and on the treadmill by 5 to get in my cardio.
Last night I got a massage, I am feeling the rigors of the training, alot of tightness and some sore joints. I am happy with the way things are progressing I am just at 190 and hoping to drop a few more pounds. I really need to just tighten up in the mid-section and get a little harder on the top of the thighs. it is coming along.
Being prepared is the key. If I get all my food done the night before and throw it in a cooler for the day, then the tempation to waver from the diet is lessened.
I don't think I even mentioned what I am training for. Muscle and Fitness called about 4 weeks ago and wants to shoot a training DVD called "Rock Hard Challenge" which is similar to a program that they published in the mag a while back. They picked 3 fitness models, Me, Stan McQuay and Timea Morajova. It will be a 3 day shoot in a studio made to look like a gym. We are demoing all the exercises that go along with the program. It is an awesome opportunity with a ton of exposure.
Yesterday, Muscle and Fitness emailed again and wants to add one more day to the trip to do another shoot, so I am adding another day of work. Strike when the iron is hot!
So, needless to say I have been busting my ass, trying to juggle work, working out and personal training. I have gone to a condensed workout in which I do all upper body one day and all lower the next. I do it in a circuit with no rest and high reps. It really gets the heart rate cranking and a hell of a pump, and the longest workout takes about 25 minutes. The only problem is by the last set I am only pushing 55# DB's on the bench!
Busy day today, meetings, coaching and teaching. Later.
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| Holiday Weekend |
9/3/2006 |
Taking our last trip for the summer, we headed out to my folks house in Milwaukee. Things are going good, I need to try to get to the gym for a quick workout. There is a Cardinal Fitness my dads house. It is a nice gym that has everything I need. I always like to go somewhere different, it's motivating to get in a new environment and on some new equipment.
This AM I woke up and went for a run with my brother in law, I hate running on the road, it pounds the body so much, but I had no choice as I couldn't get to cardio equipment. We went out for a 44 minute workout, it was a combo of jog/run and some hills by lake Michigan. Again, it was refreshing to do something different. I have two weeks left to get down a few more pounds. It should not be a problem, but anytime you travel, it throws you off a bit.
Today looks like a day of hanging out at the pool. Have a great Holiday.
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| Still ALive |
8/31/2006 |
Sorry I haven't posted in so long, things have been crazy with the start of the school year, my training business and the fact that I am getting ready myself. To give you an indication, I got up at 5am so I could get my cardio in before my 6am client, and then off to work by 7:15. I have a client at 6:30 tonight to top off the day. I guess it's better to be busy on a diet than to be sitting at home staring at the fridge.....
Yesterday I changes my lifting approach for the final three weeks of training. I am going with a total body lift that is high rep to really crank up the metabolism and get me under 190. Right now I am about 191-193. Although the workout is total body, I go total upper body on day 1 and then legs day 2 and then repeat. Also alternating between DB and BB days. I like it because I am out of the weight room in 25 minutes, completing 18 sets of exercise.
The other afternoon I think I was feeling the effects (in a bad way) of my training, I almost fell over from being dizzy, and the champ I am (crazy as it may seem) I still tried to hop on the bike for my cardio. I was seeing double for 20 minutes and figured it was probably better to sacrafice the extra burned calories than to leave my young wife to raise 3 kids on her own. I did teach that day but then went home for a 3 hour nap. Slept better than I have in months.
I know I am a little run down, but just a word of advice be careful when you drink half a cup of coffee, take a themogenic and ride the bike on a carb restricted diet!!!!!
Today is a leg day, feeling pretty good. I have been doing all my lifts at the college which is a nice change of pace from the home gym. I promise some pics shortly!
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| Keepin at It |
8/24/2006 |
Things are going fairly well. I am about 195 need to get under 190 and then I will be happy. My mind hasn't changed about cardio, still hate it. Have had some great workouts considering I am on a low carb diet, mood hasn't been too bad either. The thing that is the most burdensome is trying to keep up with all the food, I am spending the majority of my life in the kitchen or in the grocery store.
4 weeks and counting, although when this is done, I have a guest posing gig on October 14th, so I will still have to sta up with the rigors of dieting and cardio.
I vow to never let myself get over 200# again!!!!!
Another necessary evil of doing a shoot: Tanning. I am off to the bed!
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| Long Week |
8/20/2006 |
It has been a long week and a longer time between posts. Sorry for that. The football team has reported, so I have been back on campus supervising parts of practice (stretch and conditioning) and then doing weight workouts with them every other day.
Regarding my own training, it has been going well, I have been upping the cardio lately and am really strict on the diet. I am down to 196 from 203 in one week. I have a short time to get ready. I would like to be around 186-190, I feel that is where I look my best. I should have no problem making that goal.
The hardest part about the strict nutrition is being prepared. You always have to plan 2-3 sometimes more meals ahead or you get your sel in trouble. For example I got stuck at a party yesterday and was overdue on my meal time, so I had to dip into the shredded beef. It was actually a good substitute, a little salty, but all the water will flush it out. It is better to get something halfway decent than to skip a meal all together.
Today the volleball team reports, and tomorrow the typical pre-semester meetings start, so it is going to be a crazy week but I will make it.
The workouts have been going great, I have an intern working with me this semester, so he has been joining Jon and I in the workouts. It has been very humid. The weather takes alot out of me especially when I am low carbing.
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| Time To Get Serious |
8/11/2006 |
Had a great bday last night, we headed to a hotel about a half hour away and had dinner with friends (Jon) and all the kids. They took off for home and we went back for swimming sauna and whirlpool. The kids had a great time and jennifer and I relaxed. I also got a massage earlier in the day. We slept in and swam a little more and then headed back home for some training appointments. I went into work for most of the afternoon to get ready for the upcoming football season. The players report tomorrow, so things are gonna get busy.
Got a great call tonight, I guess I could look at it as a bday present. I got an assignment out in LA. I will let you know more detail after I talk with them about it more. I will say it is a great opportunity and a fun one. Part of it is I have to be in great shape for it, so needless to say it is time to bust ass. It's only about 5 weeks away. Up early tomorrow to get my cardio in......
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| B-Day |
8/10/2006 |
Not to self promote, but today is my birthday. Yesterday I hooked back up with Jon for a good chest workout, and also got the good news that he will be staying in town for his new job....we will have many more great workouts to come.
My family is kidnapping me tonight for a birthday outing, so I need to try to squeeze my lift in this AM between clients.
I know I am getting a bday massage and then we are of to a hotel for the night, the kids will get to swim and my wife and I can relax. I will report tomorrow.
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| 700 Miles Later |
8/8/2006 |
Left Thursday and came back on Monday. We took a family vaca and logged 710 miles. That is a lot of windshield time, but the travels went well and we had fun.
We started in Appleton WI, I went to the YMCA and had a great leg workout. Although it was at 7:30 in the AM it went well. From there I popped into the new Max Muscle store and visited with the owners. We took a promo shot, and I will post it when he sends it on to me. Gunther Schlierkamp was coming the next day for the grand opening, I would have liked to stop back in but Saturday we headed up to Green Bay and the hallowed ground of Lambeau Field. We watched the Packers Family Night Scrimmage. The looks good folks..... I think I can at least guarantee more then the 4 wins in 2005.
The next day we headed farther north to a friends cottage. It was fun and relaxing, my 8 year old water skied on her first attempt. I also did a little knee boarding and skiing. No matter how good a shape you are in, when you do something different, you feel it! Needless to say, the workouts have taken a vacation as well. My last lift was Friday, so it's time to get back int the gym....
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| Steamin' Up |
8/2/2006 |
Hit the last two workouts with Jon. It has been hotter than hell, the body starts to drag a little toward the end of the workout, but we have been getting through it.
Hit the pool several times this week, trying to get a little relief fromt he 105 heat index.
My first born Jade turns 8 today, so we are going to dinner down at a restaraunt along the banks of the Mississippi tonight. Tomorrow we are heading out for a little R/R. We are going to see my beloved Packers scrimmage on Saturday night.
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| Kiddie Pool |
7/30/2006 |
Yesterday I hooked up with my long lost lifting partner Gmac for a leg routine. I starting to finally get some decent squats in, I went up to 445 and it felt pretty strong. I won't be happy until I am back in the 500's.
Last summer he and I started somewhat of a tradition of sitting in my kids pool after the leg workouts to bring the legs back to life a bit. Nothing funnier than 450 pounds sitting in a Fisher Price pool. I will post a pic of that to the Candid gallery.
Today I was due for chest and went solo. I did what I hate most. Straight bar bench. I actually did both flat and incline, and it didn't feel too bad, I would just rather do DB's any day of the week. So why did I go straight bar you ask? Not sure, just needed a change of pace I guess.
Tomorrow starts a new week!
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| Hammered Back |
7/27/2006 |
Met up with Jon for the first time since the 17th. We met at the College for a back workout. There is a Hammer Pulldown that can be done with various grips. What a great machine. There is no AC in the room, the floor was literally wet with humidity and the air was so thick it made it hard to breathe. All in all it was a pretty good workout, it came after a long day. Between my wife and I we saw 9 clients.
Jon is going out of town again, so I called GMac out of the stables for Saturdays' leg workout, hopefully kevin can join us. The more the merrier for leg day.
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| Out of the Routine |
7/27/2006 |
Jon left for a little vaca so I called up Kevin who has been wanting to get together for a workout. Kevin is a formidable partner, he is a soph in college and is really taking the "Iron Game" seriously. he is doing a lot of reading on training. He is emersing himself in all aspect of training which not many do. He also informed me that he has grown 2 inches and added 30 pounds in the past year. Sounds like he is hitting a late growth spurt and maxamizing it by lifting hard.
He joined me for a leg workout on Sunday. He sayed it's nice to to lift somewhere were the squat racks not full of steroids and F bombs.
Sorry Kev, I don't meet either requirement.
Anyway, the workout was intense and we both had a great squatting day. Hopefully we will hook up again soon.
I have taken the last 2 of 3 days off and am ready to roll today. Jon is back in town and we are meeting later for a workout.
Took a much needed rest yesterday and got a 2 hour massage.....Ahhh.
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| Out of the Box |
7/17/2006 |
Went into the weight room today for a shoulder day, and felt like doing something a little different. We started with a bunch of ab work. Then we moved on to a shoulder/tri plate workout. You will have to check out my workout regimen to get the details. we followed that up with some explosive ball drops and then some basic shrugs and pushdowns.
The workout was a nice break from the traditional bodybuilding work. Doing something really different once in a while keeps things fresh.
Tomorrow we are on to back and Bis, or a possible off day, we will decide in the AM.
We need to get back to some cardio, we have let that fall off a bit. The good news is I feel like I am leaning out but the weight is staying the same. Soon I will take a bodyfat and see if it is more than psychological.
My 7 almost 8 year old daughter is my biggest critic, and to be honest really knows her stuff. Tonight I was walking around w/o a shirt and she gave me a funny look. I asked. "Do you think dad is looking better?" She answered. "You could be on the inside of the magazine, but not the cover." Ouch. I guess you can't always be at the top of your game.
You want the honest truth, ask a 7 year old.
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| Still Hot |
7/17/2006 |
It was 98 yesterday with high humidity. I had a late Saturday night, we were unloading a truck full of chairs at church. I hit the pillow at about 12, so I slept in on Sunday AM.
Within a 1/2 hour of waking, Jon and I were in the gym pounding out a chest routine. It was 78 and humid in the gym. I felt strong and had some great lifts, but between sets the humidity took its toll, I felt like I was gonna blow after each set. We did about 18 sets on chest and saved Tri's for later in the week. Today we are due for Back, I will give you an update.
I know Kevin reads the blog. Kev, looking forward to having you join us.... If you time it right, you may even catch us on leg day!!!!
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| Working Hard |
7/13/2006 |
Workouts are going awesome. It is hot and humid and my gym is cool but no AC, so the sweat is rolling. All my weights are going up from workout to workout, and the body weight is hovering at 200..... Time to start leaning out, but my metabolism is so cranked I am eating everything in sight!
I have been cleaning out my office and found some great pics from my travels to LA, I will get them scanned and posted as soon as I can. You'll like the one of Jack Lelane and I.
I have posted two workouts in the training area that I have tried in the past and have seen great results. I especially like the Jurassic one from Muscle and Fitness..... Give it a shot.
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| Back at Base |
7/10/2006 |
Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Last Sunday we took a last minute trip to our friends parents farm. Aweome people awesome place, overall great experience. We did not want to come home. The town was at the Iowa Minnesota border and they had a little rec center that gives keys to the members. It was actually Jon my lifting partners parents, so he and I did get one lifting workout in, and then played three straight days of racquetball.
I don't care how fit you are, when you do something different it really whacks the body. The old adductors were soar for quite a while.
We returned home for a day and a half and then took off for my parents home in Milwaukee. We did a family portrait for the first time that I can actually remember. There were over 50 people in the pic!!!!
Ate alot of food I shouldn't have, swam alot, played some basketball and never really got too far behind on the lifting workouts.
I am back home and settled for the most part. No more trips until August so I will have a nice steady streak of focused training. The lifting is going great, Jon is very motivated and is doing his part keeping me motivated too. I feel the training is going great, now I just need to clean up the diet. I am still steady at 200. I will try to get some lifting pictures up by the end of the week.
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| Did It Anyway |
6/28/2006 |
Had a long day with a lot of training appointments and didn't feel much like lifting. I ended up finishing my newspaper article past deadline as usual and then Jon met me for a great chest workout. I really had to convince myself, but once I got going I had a great workout.
Okay, let me vent. I was surfing the web and came across a site that was promoting Musclemania. I have done 2 Musclemania shows, the last one in 2002. This site boasts how all the Musclemania competitors get so much worldwide exposure, and it shows the magazine covers they are on. It shows my Muscle and Fitness cover, which by the way was shot in 2005, long after I cut ties with Musclemania.
After the 2002 Superbody, I nearly quit competing. We all know that bodybuilding is political, but I have never been in a show that was so poorly and unfairly judged. I new someone on the judging panel who new the score totals and said there is no way the outcome is correct, the scores had to be changed.
Anyway, my point is Musclemania is no what got me on the cover of MF. What got me on the cover was the people at Muscle and Fitness that first saw me in Gold's Venice and then in the NPC LA Championships.
Musclemania will try to take the credit for my exposure, when in fact that organization hasn't done s**t for me, except make a lot of empty promises.
I usually am pretty tight lipped aboout most of my BB experiences, but thought I would put this one out on the table.
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| Legs Still Hurt |
6/26/2006 |
Last blog I had just finished a leg workout. Well, they are still soar. Workouts are still going great. Last night we had some friends over and I ended up having abouot 5 beers, which is about 4 more than I have had this entire past year. I joked to Jon during our back workout that I need to drink more often cuz I had a hell of a workout.
I completed my cleanse yesterday, and I definetely feel better. Noticed a big diff in the old BM's too.
Jon and I couldn't get together for a Sunday lift, so I ended up trimming hedges for 3 hours and then hitting a modified shoulder/bi workout on my own. I actually broke one of my lifting rules..... I lifted in boxers. I always say you can't be serious about the iron game if you lift in boxers or lift w/ your shoes untied. Maybe I'm old school but I don't want to be worrying about Big Jim and The Twins during a 25 rep 325 squat.
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| Weekend |
6/23/2006 |
Had an early training appt this AM. Haven't blogged in a few days, but my workouts have been intense and productive. Had legs today, finished my last set of 235 for 25 reps..... thought I was gonna puke. I have been increasing all my weights and getting more reps than the previous workout.
My rep strenght is awesome, I can just keep going, the max strength is still not quite where I want it. I have been dropping a HyperCell2 and a tbsp of glutamine after every workout. It's magic. Go to my Schwartz link and try it.
Did a short canoe trip on the Ole Miss yesterday, and I know this sounds like a tall tale, but a fish jumped right over my lap and in the water on the other side of the canoe. Anyway, it was good to get out and get some fresh air.
Tomorrow: Shoulders Bi's
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| Day Off |
6/19/2006 |
Okay, so I took an unexpected day off on Fathers Day. There was too much going on and I had a fun day, so Jon and I took a well deserved day off and cranked it back up today....see pics in gallery.
Yesterday the kids brought me breakfast in bed and then we had a relaxing day, with a family grill out in the eve. I am doing pretty good on the cleanse, day 4 and I am down about 2-3 pounds. I am starting to feel better.
Worked on the site today, always trying to make it better, so make sure you tell me what you want to see, and I will try to do it.
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| Squats and to the Pool |
6/17/2006 |
Had to teach a class this AM and then came home for a great leg workout. Jon and I hammered the legs, lots of squats. My rep stength is good but I still need to get the overall strength up. I did 365 as my heavy set for 8 and finished with 225 for 20.
We then finished it off on the hill 10 minutes of 25 yard hills, in 90 degree temps.
Hit the pool for the afternoon, good therapy for the legs....... they will still be soar in the AM.
Shoulders and Bi's for Fathers Day.
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| Eating Better |
6/16/2006 |
First day of the cleanse, so I cleaned up the diet. Had a full AM of training and then hit my own chest and tri workout with Jon. Great workout, I went up in reps on all the same weights. We revisited one of my favorite training methods, the "Stairway To Heaven" you will have to check out the workout log for the details. Think PUMP!
Lats are still tender from yesterdays back workout, legs are on deck for this weekend. Come back for the update.
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