In [1] part 1 of this series, we looked at the basic causation of obesity and began to establish simple positive habits in diet and exercise.

In many ways, establishing “good habits” is our most difficult task. I want to be very clear about this because somehow over the last three or four decades, very negative habits have crept into our lives. While many of these habits on the surface do not appear to be attached to health and fitness, they in-fact have a massive impact on weight loss, overall health and are general environment.

“Habits” are a very interesting phenomenon and often one of most of overlooked factors in an individual’s development. Within the sporting community, the “habit” of success is well-known amongst coaches. “Winners” only know how to “win” and never fit-in with those who are comfortable with the disease of accepting defeat. It’s one of the reasons why leaders often stand-alone. To be successful often means being contrarian and going against the grain of mediocrity.

Interestingly, during the time of this writing the Beijing Olympics are underway and I’ve just learned of a highly ranked athlete who performed well below expectations. The “reason” why was that they were used to training much later in the afternoon and weren’t prepared to compete in the early morning. Unfortunately for the athlete and coaches, they made a crucial error in not creating the habit of being able to perform at a variety of times in the day and being able to adjust to rapidly changing situations. The lesson is simple: Create habits for success.

Building upon the first steps of our program found in [2] part 1 we’re going to integrate the second series with five additions to our program. These additions are extremely challenging, so be diligent in your efforts regarding diet, lifestyle and supplementation. Within our fitness work we’re going to add one new item to our original list found in [3] part 1. This might not seem like much but in-fact it is such a large concern it could actually be a book topic. Effectively, it sits at the root of the Renegade Concepts of Training^™ and is equally one of the gravest weaknesses in many training environments. For those with a martial arts background, this will not be anything new to you, as it is easily described as “stance keeping.”

Stance keeping or the ability to hold proper body-position and “rooting” with correct posture is a fundamental point in exercise. But as exercise machinery has moved into the gym floors, postural alignment and the ability to maintain proper alignment under duress has been weeded-out of the training hierarchy. This is the cause of a vast array of problems but when tackled properly it will have a pronounced effect upon every aspect of your health, training and injury prevention. Prior to the start of the Core section, Rx squat postions 1, 2 and 3 (pictured below) are to be held in continuous circuits of upwards of forty-five seconds each, alternating from one leg to the next. The total duration of the set is nine minutes in-which there is no break. For those starting out I would suggest fifteen second sets and a very slow build-up over time.

Moving from this exercise point we’re going to look at four extremely profound changes to your diet. Like the above exercise point while seemingly “easy”, this has massive implications upon your overall health and if done correctly, excess weight will drop from you in a safe and healthy manner.

• When grocery shopping, stay on the perimeter of the store and with few exceptions, never go down the aisles. The outside aisles are (typically) where stores will house fresh fruits, vegetables and meats whereas interior aisles contain processed man-made items that you do not need to be tempted by.
• Set aside a quiet time to prepare a number of the meals or the base for some of the meals you will have later in the week. For an example I will shop at a local market on Friday mornings and then prepare two or three major dishes that will be a major part of my diet until the next week. This is one of those habits that go a long way because not only are you setting aside a period of relaxation to cook but you are inherently then eating home-cooked meals.
• Buy only enough food to suit what you need for the recipes you have in-mind. I can’t tell you how peculiar the shopping habits have got over the last twenty-plus years as people load their trucks with massive supplies to rival the most ardent survivalists.
• Support local farm communities who properly rotate crops. I’m not even sure where to start with that because that simple sentence is a book topic and equally has massive implications upon society and the economy. From one aspect it will naturally have you purchasing regionally, thus improving the economic conditions of local farm groups, while from another vantage, farm-fresh, vipe-ripened fruits and vegetables contain a much higher level of nutrients then many foreign (or long-distance shipped) items picked well before ripening do not. Additionally, through proper crop rotation we will radically improve the nutrient quality of soil which in-turn will lead to a higher grade output in the future. This simple measure is a win-win for consumers looking to improve their health, the success of regional farms and the environment.

Integrate step two and continue to be focused on your dreams.

Subscribe To Site:

[4] [5] Full Post Feed | [6] [7] Summary Feed | [8] [9] Comments Feed