Back to the future or stay in the present?

We all like to reminisce a little.

Recently loads of photos have been popping up on Facebook of my 18-20 year old years when I was out on the town every weekend which was funny in a way remembering my university years but also reminded me of many frustrations!

1) Slogging it away in the gym and wondering why I never got anywhere as I didn't realise just how bad alcohol is for fat loss and muscle gain.

2) Training for more than 45 minutes when I went to the gym - what a waste!

3) Having no solid, specific goals in life other than 'make lots of money', 'get a six-pack', and impress girls with the first two.

Looking back I wasted a lot of time and effort on things which didn't matter but that's life. Making mistakes is good for you. Failing to learn from them is when it becomes a problem!

I also look back and see years of sporting achievement, university degrees etc.

However, there comes a time when constantly looking back at what you used to be capable of, what you used to look like and how you used to feel becomes a massive road block.

Constantly looking back stops you looking forward so you fail to make any progress. How many of our parents still live on past glories on the sports field despite now being overweight and having the movement potential of a one-legged tortoise?

However, the other side of the coin is that constantly talking of what we will do or want to do in the future can have similar 'road block' potential. If you always see your dreams and goals in the future, that's where they will stay! You might make a little progress but you will never actually reach out and grasp hold of that dream and see it materialise.

Finding a balance between the three is the key to success.

By all means remember what you have achieved.

It's also critical to have goals which require you to push yourself.

But spare a thought for the present.

Live it, enjoy it and celebrate it.

I am terrible at never rewarding myself! I always feel I could have done better and never take time to realise that I have already come a long way since those drunken university days!

That will change from today and I'll take time to celebrate small successes as I know lots of these will lead to big things for me both mentally, physically and financially.

I'll keep looking to the future though and aiming high in everything I do.

Below is my new baby niece Ella. (I was blinking...)

To give me inspiration and even more motivation to succeed with my fitness businesses I have given her a Christmas present with a difference.

From January 1st 2009 until Ella's 16th birthday I am going to put 1% of all my Storm Force Fitness profits into an account for her, then when she hits 16 I'll teach her what to do with it and teach her the value of hard work so it won't be a handout!



I've set myself a target to hit, I know the date, and I know how I'm going to achieve it. That's the key to effective goal setting!

If you want my free 3 part goal setting reports GET THEM HERE.

If you want to be my mate on Facebook add me - I want to get to know you better! Just search 'Jon Le Tocq'

If you want to see how I train when I can't use my private studio, check this out...

New Year, Same Failures

New Year means the usual bout of lying to yourself about what you'll accomplish this year.

Whether you lie to yourself about money, fitness, fat loss, love or anything else you need this 3 part goal setting series of reports to take you through the process step-by-step.

I want to make sure you set goals that are both challenging and achievable and that you stick to them for 12 months rather than 12 days!

Get the report series here for free (no sign ups or anything like that!)

http://www.stormforcefitness.com/article.php?pid=314

Jon

1 girl, 2 kids, 1 month before Christmas

For the last 4-5 weeks I've been running an experiment on Guinea Pigs.

Not real guinea pigs but humans to see what they could achieve in 4 weeks following the Fat Loss Action Blueprint.

The boys were awesome and got their abs popping out in just 4 weeks.

But would it work for a girl? A girl with 2 kids to work around.






Weight 8 stone 10…..8 stone 3
Waist measurement 29 inches…..26 inches
Hip measurement 34 inches…..32.25 inches

"Having done little to no exercise for several years I always knew any sort of exercise regime was going to be an uphill struggle so the short intense workouts appealed to me as I knew I would be pushed for fitting in exercise time with 2 kids.

When I first saw the exercises on paper I wasn't totally convinced they would push me hard enough but I was wrong. The first week was the hardest as was really aching from the exercises, had thrown myself into the nutrition plan and was getting headaches from caffeine withdrawal! However by the second week I was really into it and could start to push myself that bit harder with the workouts.

Overall I have felt more awake and energetic, I used to skip breakfast but I this plan has made me realize that getting up 5 minutes earlier means I make time for breakfast and am not snacking come 10.30am!

The nutrition plan and exercises are easy to follow and the regular e-mails pull you back in if you are losing will a little bit!


I wasn't convinced before that it would work but the results speak for themselves.

I think anyone would benefit from following this programme. If I can do it in the month up to Christmas I am sure anyone can do it!"

Lorraine

**********************************************

I guess it does work for girls.

You could be next! Just get the Fat Loss Action Blueprint

Have a great Christmas - but be ready to transform yourself in 2009!
Jon

10 ways to beat the Christmas bulge

My mum makes without doubt, the best roast in the world. I will argue with you about that until Christmas 2009! As for the Rhubarb pie and custard. Good Lord....

But I also know I need to be controlled.

I prepare myself by training double hard in the weeks leading up to the feast and keep it going THROUGHOUT the Christmas week.

Yes it is possible.

I'm going to give you 10 things to make sure you do over Christmas to dramatically reduce the after effects (the depression, the flabby bits, the lethargy etc)

One of them is an actual 10-12 minute bodyweight session to do on Christmas morning!

1) Don't cook for an entire army

Why do you cook enough for 20 people when there's ten then complain about the left overs? Plan carefully and cook more than enough without going stupid - if it's there you'll eat it and you know it! If it's not you'll find you don't actually miss it and Christmas is still awesome!

The same applies to buying chocolates - by mixed nuts and dried fruit instead (dried fruit is still high in sugar but better than chocolate filled with caramel!)

2) Every third drink, have a pint of water

This is a highly effective tool for family get-togethers and Christmas parties! No one will give you grief and if they do you'll be able to go and wobble their jelly-belly in the office on January 5th.

Yes it's always the chubby ones who take the mickey.

3) Make best choices

The fruit salad over the cheesecake.

The small glass of mulled wine to sip over the 6 pack of lager

Extra lean turkey over fatty sausages.

Boiled potatoes over the roasties.

4) Schedule cheat meals

You know Dec 25th is going to be cheat meal time.

December 31st probably will as well.

Maybe squeeze one more in over the festive period.

Plan them in, expect them then expect to be good the rest of the time.

If you try to freestyle it and decide as and when required, you WILL crack!

5) Stick to your exercise plan

You might not get on in on Christmas Day but the rest of the days you should still be able to perform a good session.

If you're away from the gym routine get some bodyweight training in - short, hard, intense, no more than 20 minutes. That way you won't feel guilty that your missing out on any of the fun - you can do it before everyone else is up!

You need to plan exactly when you will exercise otherwise there will always be unexpected things cropping up to corrupt you!

6) Don't deprive yourself but don't pig out

I tell my clients that if they've worked hard and achieved good results, they DESERVE to have some extra stuffing and a bit of cake!

Just be sensible. It's not as hard as you think!

If you try to go full on and say no to everything, you will either get miserable, feel left out or end up caving to a huuuuge binge. None of which are good for you.

7) Steam your vegetables

Roasting veg causes them to soak up lots of the fat from the meat so steam them and save yourself and your family hundreds of calories!

8) Use a roasting rack for the meat

Again, avoid the soaking of cooking fat into the meat. A simple roasting rack will elevate the turkey over the fat dripping off chopping hundreds of calories from your meal!

9) Do some exercise BEFORE lunch

People tend to go for a walk after lunch to 'burn it off' when they're too full to make it a decent effort (or they fall asleep as the body shuts down everything else bar the digestive tract!)

Take everyone out while the meat is cooking for a brisk walk, or if you can go for a quick run or bodyweight blast outback.

This will increase insulin sensitivity and elevate your metabolism before you eat thus forcing all the sugar you eat into you muscles rather than having it floating in your blood stream ready to be depostied where you don't want it!

10) Do one of these on Christmas morning

5 or 6 rounds with 45 seconds rest. This will take around 12 minutes max but make you feel much better about shovelling that chocolate cheesecake in your face!

BEGINNER


INTERMEDIATE


ADVANCED

Top fat burning exercises

The question on everybody's lips come January is 'What are the best fat burning exercises to get rid of the belly I created over Christmas?'

My usual response is "why did you let yourself go so much - you didn't need that extra cheescake did you?!

However, it's going to happen the world over so below is a video of how to respond as fast as possible! Start them today and get a headstart on the food to come!

There is one catch though. Unless your nutrition is up to scratch and you're eating clean, healthy food every single day these exercises won't magically give you a six pack.

It must be a combination of heavy weights, interval training and clean nutrition!

You will not get anywhere near your potential with boring cardio work, crappy eating habits and bicep curls!

Bang out a few sets of these and resist the leftovers and you're on your way to a flat stomach!

Jon

Can my powers travel through time and space?

No time to talk.

Must show you this!

Read, look, be inspired! Either just look at the pics or read how they found the Fat Loss Action Blueprint experience.

I LOVE results! Can't wait to see the girl at the bottom by Christmas!

They're going to have a much more guilt-free Christmas! Wooo yeah I love this stuff!


****************************************

They had just 4 weeks to transform themselves.

They received no help other than the email support which all F.L.A.B subscribers receive and came from all areas of Britain! The Channel Islands, Coventry and Derby so that they could have no face to face contact with me!

Could the ‘Guinea Pigs’ really achieve anything in 4 weeks with 20 minute sessions and by following the step-by-step nutrition plan?

Guinea Pig 1 - Jez



Weight 12 stone 5…..11 stone 8
Waist measurement 36 inches…..32 inches
Hip measurement 39.5 inches…..36.5 inches

“I work in an office and have 3 young boys aged 7, 9 and 10 so am very busy with both work and family life. The boys are very much into their sport and have weekly activities in Athletics, cross country, cricket and football so I am busy taking them around and coaching the football. I am in charge of the whole of the Mini's football section at Rovers where there are about 250 kids and I coach the under 12's so this takes up a lot of my time.

I have struggled with bad knees for a lot of my playing career and have been trying to get back to playing for the past few years without any success as the knee pain has been too much. Since doing this program for the past 4 weeks I have noticed a big difference in the strength of my legs and this has helped stabilise my knee.

I went for an MRI scan last week and am awaiting the results of this as I am likely to need another knee operation so have not been able to attend football training but I was at the club on Saturday after training the kids and the 2nd team coach was there and was struggling for players so I offered to sit on the bench for him as I felt fairly strong after my 4 weeks of training. In the end I played the whole of the 2nd half and had no after effects the next day so am over the moon with this as this will now give me further encouragement to keep on the gym program and try and get back to football, this would not have been possible without the 4 weeks of following this program.

I am much more alert and don't have energy dips at any time and has hugely assisted with my sleep patterns. I used to get to sleep no problem but then woke up 3 or 4 times per night sometimes waking up at like 2 or 3 then not being able to get back to sleep. This has now changed, I am getting to sleep fine albeit a little bit later as I am so much more alert and then sleeping right through, which is great.

People have noticed my weight loss which is great so I have referred them to the website straight away!

It was very easy to follow, I read it all through a couple of times at the outset then just had to refer back a few times for specific subjects. I kept the printout with the exercise routines with me all the time and found the photos explaining the exercises very useful as you need something like this when the trainer isn't actually with you. The videos were also very good as they showed you what to do but also motivated you as well.

The e-mails were great as they kept you on track and made you more determined to make it work, the more you got into it the more you were looking forward to the next e-mail as you are learning all the time.

The ‘Better Burgers from the recipe book were really nice as well!”


Guinea Pig 2 - Tom



Weight 76.9 kg…..68.0 kg
Waist measurement 93.5 cm…..82 cm
Hip measurement 98 cm…..93.5 cm


“I am a pretty busy person, I work as the head of business studies in a city centre comprehensive school. Time is pretty tight, my evenings are taken up with school work. I have always struggled to get my weight below 74kg. It generally swayed between 74 to 79kgs. I am over the moon that I managed to get my weight below 70 kg which is a first for me.

The training has been a bit different! I’ve been used to long work out sessions in the past. I tried to do the work outs at least three times a week and played quite a lot of football. I definitely will be maintaining these short impact sessions they are much more time efficient.

I have had much higher energy levels, which has been great for the last few weeks leading up to Christmas – I’ve managed to stay focused enough to complete most of my marking before the Christmas break! I’ve also had lots of comments from colleagues and students saying how much weight I’ve lost.

I found it really easy to follow, although I did every week have at least one minor slip up – but the results still came!

I generally kept to eating a lot of turkey and salmon and eat lots of vegetables. I tried to experiment with my herb and spice collection which was a successful ploy and I spent less on food by preparing my own!”


Guinea Pig 3 - Lorraine



At the time of writing Lorraine had been a ‘Guinea Pig’ for the F.L.A.B for just 1 week.

She was called in with no preparation time due to the first Guinea Pig getting flu!

Weight 8 stone 10…..8 stone 7
Waist measurement 29 inches…..28 inches
Hip measurement 34 inches…..33.5 inches

“So far have lost 3 lbs in the first week - not bad considering I had the first of 2 Xmas nights out with work where I had already pre-ordered some 'bad' food before I knew I was doing this trial. Also had a trip to the Good Food Show on Sunday but was relatively restrained there with all the freebies!

Overall, the first few days were most difficult (had headaches from detoxing I think) but finding it much easier with keeping to the food now and finding it easier to say no to any naughty snacks. Have been drinking loads of water and have been preparing my healthy snacks for the day at the same time as doing the kids packed lunches. Feeling more awake and definitely feeling the burn from doing the exercises!”


The Fat Loss Action Blueprint will be available VERY soon!

Jon

7 things which must be present for you to get a leaner body.

Unfortunately there are many people who are desperate to achieve a lean, athletic looking body but just lack the knowledge.

The willpower is there, they don't allow themselves to make bullsh*t excuses about time, kids, work etc, and they put in the effort.

But they don't see the rewards to justify their efforts.

They get frustrated.

Simply because they are still using methods which have been shoved in their face by the media and unscrupulous marketing companies.

Clear your mind of everything you thought you knew, then ensure you include EVERY SINGLE action listed below.

You WILL see results.

1) Perform weight training three times per week. Ensure every muscle is worked and include some form of squat and / or deadlift movement in every session. This will help build and shape muscle and ramp up your metabolism.

2) Eliminate all food and drink which comes in a packet or is processed in any way. This includes, chocolate, crisps, biscuits, cakes, takeaways, shop sandwiches, alcohol, coffee, tea and bread. The further it is its state when off a tree, out of the ground or off the farm, the more it will hinder your progress.

Be ruthless or be fat.

3) Forget long, steady state cardio. If you want to run, cycle or swim, use intervals. Try running at 80% of your top speed for 30-60 seconds depending on fitness levels then recover for 1-2 minutes. Repeat this 6-10 times.

You won't last much longer!

4) Have ONE treat meal per week. If your body fat has not come down that week you don't get the treat. Treats are rewards for achievement. The fact that you had a bad day at work and feel a bit down or someone made you feel a bit bad because they shouted will not be helped by being fat.

Get over it and get lean. A great body and the happy hormones from exercise will increase your confidence, improve your ability to deal with stress and make you realise that there are better solutions than the 60 seconds of pleasure that Mars bar gives you.

5) Set a clear goal timeline then backtrack the steps you need to take to get there. Take time to create vivid images of how you want your life and your body to be. You will gravitate towards these images.

For this reason, constantly thinking about being fat and not having time to exercise will gravitate you towards....being fat and nto havnig time to exercise.

Be ambitious with your goals.

Achieving 50% of a 3 stone weight loss target is better than achieving 100% of a 1 stone target!

6) Involve other people. Either make sure you have someone to keep you accountable (a mentor, a personal trainer or a friend) or become part of a group which trains together. This might be a group of friends or a group fitness class.

7) TAKE ACTION. No one ever lost weight by talking about it or worrying about it. Don't wait until Monday, January 1st, the day after your birthday or any other meaningless moment in time. If you won't do it now it's because you don't want it enough and this will NOT change on New Year's Day.

Find the motivation and the means to achieve your goals TODAY and just start taking action.

Don't fall for the trap of searching for the perfect diet or training plan either. If you don't want the help of a professional just get going and adjust it along the way!

Falling down and making mistakes isn't a problem, so long as you keep falling forward!

Jon
http://www.stormforcefitness.com

How to make a healthy breakfast quickly

If you've been following me for a while you'll know that not eating breakfast is one of the best ways to slow your metabolism down, breakdown muscle and put yourself on an energy rollercoaster at work.

This nearly always culminates in eating chocolate bars or crisps.

This video will show you how you can make a quick, healthy breakfast with healthy fats and protein in - both critical elements in a fat loss plan!

(Do not watch if you are offended by half-naked men who have just crawled out of bed)

CLICK THE LINK BELOW...

Show me the silly half-naked man making breakfast in stupid slippers.

The Guinea Pig Trial Week 2

As you many know my triallists for the Fat Loss Action Blueprint are into Week 3 now.

They are performing short, intense workouts between 20-30 minutes long and eating clean, healthy food.

They are all busy people with no time for hours in the gym.

These are the latest results

(A new lady started this week so we'll see how she gets on next week!)

Jez

Weight 12 stone 5.....11 stone 11.75
Hips 39.25cm.....37.5cm
Waist 36cm.....33.5cm

Tom

Weight 79.9kg.....73.1kg
Hips 98cm.....96cm
Waist 93.5cm.....85.5cm

Jon

Weight 82.8kg.....77.2kg
Hips 102cm.....97.5cm
Waist 100cm.....91cm

Can't argue with that.

The programs out soon, so keep an eye out!

Jon

PS If you want free fat loss advice join my community at http://www.fatlossactions.ning.com

The scales don't matter

Bathroom scales are one of the reasons ladies never get better bodies. Chocolate-fuelled Sex in the City marathons are another.

Unfortunately I cannot think of a good enough article to stop you fantasizing about the lives of four American city-dwelling man-hunters. (Actually I can – it will be out soon)

The truth is every lady in the history of modern society has had minor (or major) heart palpitations at the sight of the small red hand whizzing up and around the bathroom scales.

It seems that to many this is the only thing that matters in life. Now I am not about to tell you that I believe the human mind is actually the most important thing and that true beauty is on the inside.

Whilst this may be true to a large degree, it won’t help you attract men in a bar.

The truth is that focusing on your weight can be a fast-track way to making your body look and feel even worse than it does now, no matter what state you’re in.

When you step on the scales, what you see is how much your body weighs. But consider the following:

- How often has a man come up to you in a bar and asked how much you weigh? They don't. They look at your face, your bum and various other parts!
- When you look in the mirror, are you thinking "Oh dear I weigh 2 stones too much" or are you thinking "I look fat".
- When you see a great looking model waltzing around the red carpet outside the Batman premiere, do you think "Oooh she weighs about 8 stones" or do you think " I wish I looked like her" or " I wish I had a bum like that!"

You should be seeing a recurring theme here. The word 'look'. How much you weigh should not be the focus.

It's all about how you look. For many, health and fitness is about how they FEEL. Looking great usually makes you feel great too.

The point is that what the scales say is a small, often irrelevant chapter in a much bigger story.

I am a man who likes ladies. I am attracted to ladies with good bodies (plus intelligence, humour and personal drive before I get the feminist brigade on my back!).

I am attracted to girls who weigh 7 stones and girls who weigh 10 stones. I couldn't care less about how much they weigh as there are many 'weighs' to look sexy and attractive.

Let's be honest here. If you are concerned about your body image it is because you want to be more attractive to the opposite sex (or same sex in some cases).

Your key concerns in improving your body image should not be the scales as an absolute end but your body fat levels, muscle tone and circumferences (waist, hips, upper arms etc)

It is possible to lose weight and look worse. Similarly you can lose only a little weight but look so much better.

Let's say you weigh 60kg and have a body fat percentage of 35%. This means you have a lean body mass (muscle, bone etc) of 39kg and fat stores of 21kg.

You crash diet, do lots of boring cardio and your weight drops to 55kg. Job done, yes?

No.

If you have been starving yourself and performing lots of cardio and no weight training you will have lost mainly muscle and water. So if out of the 5kg you lost, 4kg is muscle and 1kg is fat, your numbers will now look like this.

Lean body mass of 35kg. Body fat 20kg. This means your body fat percentage is now 36.4%.

So you have lost weight according to your scales but you are actually fatter than before! Not only will you look slightly fatter and feel flabbier but, because you have lost muscle, your metabolism will have slowed down.

This means you have to work harder and harder to lose more weight. So you do more cardio. You lose more muscle. Your metabolism slows down further.

You get the picture.

The girls with the great bums and tight arms and stomachs have sculpted those using weight training and sensible eating. There is no other way.

Cardio has its place but not long, boring runs. Short, sharp interval training will help you burn fat without losing muscle and you'll have a much better shape.

If this means your weight hasn't gone down much but your body fat is 10% lower allowing your newly toned muscles to pop into view, what's the problem?

If you believe eating less and exercising for longer each time is getting you a better body you're wrong.

People are probably commenting that you look stick-thin. Either that or you still look like you did a year ago but your metabolism is slower.

We all know the lady in the office who does every diet, talks about it, starves herself and ends up looking fatter 6 months later.

You can choose to be next by focussing on your weight or you can get smart, eat properly, train in short, sharp bursts using cardio and weights together.

I know which one will get more attention from the lads!

PLEASE LEAVE ME A COMMENT BELOW WITH YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE MATTER!

Train hard, eat clean.
Jon

What lies beneath

I'm part of a great online fitness pro community and spend a lot of time interacting with the guys and girls on it.

The leader of the community Dax Moy has challenged us all to write a blog about our true beliefs and our own intepretation of where we are headed.

I think if EVERYONE did this from time to time, the world would be a much happier place and there would be a hell of a lot more successful people.

So here goes Jon Le Tocq's view on the world...

1) The more I practice, the luckier I get.

I stole the quote from Gary Player but it's so true. There is no such thing as luck in my eyes. What many perceive as luck is where days, months or even years of preparation meets an opportunity. I have been told on many occasions I'm lucky to have my own studio in the city centre of Notts and lucky to have my own business doing my dream job at 25. Generally it's the same people who told me I was nuts to leave the financial security of Guernsey for a 5.77 per hour gym instructor job; the same people who questioned why I worked 60 hour weeks at the gym.

You get what you deserve.

Maybe not today or tomorrow or even this year, but you get what you deserve.

Overnight successes take years.

2) Don't focus too much on yourself in order to progress my life.

I have made mistakes in the last two years focussing too much on what I wanted and what I wanted to do and how I thought it should be done. Yes goal setting is imperative but I now realise that the key to individual success is other people.

Help other people, teach other people, learn from other people, follow other people, use other people as a guide to what you do or don't want to be.

Success will follow.

3) Burn your bridges and you will force yourself to move forward

It's so easy to cling to the security of the past but if you never let go, if you never force yourself out of your comfort zone and if you never take risks but always leave yourself the option to take backward steps that is exactly what you will do.

4) It's all about you.

This may seem a contradiction to me saying that success is all about other people but it's not. My point here is that the world is in the state it is in because it is always 'someone else's fault'.

- The economic crisis in Britain is America's fault.
- I'm fat because my friends make me drink lots.
- I'm poor because I don't get paid enough

All of the above are b*llocks.

We are all responsible for our actions.

I don't mind people celebrating their own successes whereas other people see it as boasting or gloating. These are usually people who are able to accept that their mistakes are also just that. THEIRS.

Only when we become accountable for everything good and bad in our lives can we become better people.

5) There isn't as much of a difference between success and failure as people think.

There is actually very few differences between the great men and women amongst us and 'Joe Average'

The key difference is this.

Successful people manage their fear.

They realise fear doesn't actually exist. Two identical people can be in the same situation but experience opposite outcomes because one allows fear to control them and the other accepts it as part of the experience. The physical situation is no different for either person but the outcome is MASSIVELY different because one stepped through the fear and the other walked backwards away from it (see Point 3).

6) Experiences are everything.

I believe that philosophies about life can be summed up in one snigle sentence.

When you are lying on your death bed, will you be able to say "I did everything there was to do"?

I have been very bad at this up until now. I missed the point of success and earning money.

This is changing.

7) I believe I am on the verge of greatness.

I have gone through the school bullying for being a hard worker.
I have gone through very difficult months at university feeling like I didn't fit in (because I couldn't control my fear of new situations)
I have left a comfortable life and stepped into the unknown in a very different environment.
I have left my friends and family behind in search of great things.
I have invested lots of time and money in things which may or may not work.
I have spent many weekends holed up worrying about things but trudging through it with the support of my family.
I have nearly quit on many occasions.

But I am still here. I am stronger. I am ready. I am ready.

I. AM. READY.

Why?

Because I am destined to do great things in this world.

I know I have the intelligence.
I know I have the drive.
I know people are starting to see me as a leader.
I know I have prepared and am ready for the opportunities when people will say I am lucky.

When the world is ready for what I have to tell them...

I AM READY.

Bring it on.

How to do cardio at home

Let's face it.

Not many people like gyms.

They're expensive and the average person gets no noticeable results.

They're also about as much use as a chocolate fireguard when you're always away on business.

So I like to teach people how to train at home or anywhere else for that matter.

One of the most underestimated ways of shedding body fat and dramatically improving your stamina levels and coordination is skipping.

A decent rope will cost you about 8-10 pounds (don't go for cheap options because they will break very quickyl trust me!)

Here's how to get better at it...

THIS is how you shed body fat for fun!

I am quite literally astounded.

For just 7 days my Fat Loss Action Blueprint guinea pigs have been performing 3 lots of 20 minute sessions with either bodyweight, dumbbells or kettlebells, interval training if they have time and eating clean.

I had hoped they would lose 2-3lbs each but was somewhat nervous about them letting me and themselves down.

It appears I was very, very wrong on many levels.

I seem to have underestimated the power of not only the systems they are using but also the power of being under some friendly pressure from me and the hundreds of people reading this!

These are the changes in vital stats I received today. I will do weekly updates on this blog then after the 4 week trial they will send in their photos (so if they are lying we'll expose them at the end...) ;-)


Jez (High level finance job, kids, too busy etc)

Weight change: 12 stone 5.....11 stone 13
Waist circumference: 36 inches.....34 inches
Hip circumference: 39.25 inches.....38.5 inches

Comments:

It is surprising how much more energy I have already, I am not feeling
half as tired in the evenings but I have always had real problems
staying asleep, getting to sleep was fine but just used to wake up loads
in the night, thinking about things too much but this seems to be
improving as well.

At first when I started the workouts I looked at it on paper and didn't think that it would work me hard enough because of the amount of time it was due to take, how wrong I was! This woke me up to the schedule and think the work outs are great, short, sharp and really hard work, depending how hard you want to push yourself.
Can't wait for the next week as have lost almost half a stone in the first week.

Tom (teacher, wanted to fit in social football, has to have lunch meetings filled with crappy foods, likes a Saturday night curry and a beer)

Weight change: 76.9kg.....73.5kg
Waist circumference: 93.5cm.....86.4cm
Hip circumference: 98cm.....96cm

Comments:

Looking back at the past week I have managed to fit in a lot of training around the work day. I’m making sure that I get in at least one piece of solid exercise a day; also I am making sure that I walk to work each day.

On the food side I have managed to eat well for the majority of the week. I had two sort of cheat meals due to training days at work (curry with all trimmings/ pie and chips). Apart from that everything else is going pretty well. I’ve started to eat cherry tomatoes are a snack through out the day, instead of other forms of snack. I’ve also found that because I’m planning my meals out that I am reducing my shopping bill, as I question what I put into my basket.

All in all I feel really alert, am sleeping well and have a lot more energy. Cravings have generally gone, the weight is dropping off and I look forward to what challenges this week puts in front of me.

Jon (I'm not sure what Jon does at present but he's a busy boy!)

Weight change: 81.8kg.....79kg
Waist circumference: 100cm.....95cm
Hip circumference: 102cm.....99cm

Comments:

Jon couldn't be contacted for further comments!

Sara - Currently can't be contacted - hopefully have an update soon.

*************************************************************************************

So there we have it.

Many of you have been slogging it out on treadmills or aerobics classes for over a year and not achieved those results.

So far, the guinea pigs have lost shed loads of weight in just one week and none of them live anywhere near where I work!

This is likely to slow down to 2-3lbs per week. Still not bad eh? ;-)

The best thing is they are all reporting higher energy levels. Fad diets are usually associated with torturous days trying to resist the urge to eat the office pot plant!

It's time to rethink EVERYTHING you thought you knew about fat loss.

DON'T FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE BLOG SO YOU GET UPDATES AS THEY HAPPEN.

The Fat Loss Action Blueprint will be released soon!

Eat more, weigh less

If you are the average female (and I say this not in a sexist way) you will have a fear of the dreaded calorie. (Despite ramming chocolate in your face when Take That reveal they are splitting up again and won't release another corker.)

I have further proof that eating more is often the key to losing body fat.

Clearly this is more good quality, clean, unprocessed, natural food with no red wine involved to wash it down.

It is very hard to overeat calories if you eat grilled meat and vegetables. You'll feel full yet won't be inhaling calories faster than a Dyson (or all other good vacuum cleaners).

I have a client who was losing weight already but then stalled one week.

It was then revealed in the last 36 hours she had eaten a banana and a protein shake and was scared of over eating calories and undoing her good work.

This would equate to about 300 calories at a push.

Bearing in mind your body needs over twice this amount to function properly (brain, lungs, digestive system etc), we are talking about putting yourself in starvation mode. This is a defence mechanism we got from our cave dwelling ancestors.

When our bodies are put in severe calorie restriction they begin to STORE body fat in case another meal is not 'caught in the forest' for another few days. So by being on a very low calorie diet you can expect your muscle to diminish and your body fat percentage to go up.

This client of mine then introduced a small bowl of porridge for breakfast every day. (Oh yes CARBOHYDRATES!!! Shock horror...) and a few healthy snacks here and there.

She waltzed on to my scales 7 days later weighing 3 pounds less.

Now we still have a way to go to create a top-notch diet but that tells a story.

Yes a calorie deficit (more out than in) is essential for fat loss.

However, going as low as you can bear is a very, very, very bad idea.

The longer this goes on the harder it gets to convince your body to start shedding fat again because as far as it is concerned you might starve it again so it will hold on to body fat just in case.

This is one of the reasons those who go on crash diets usually end up fatter when they finally crack and binge. The body stores all the calories they then dive into!

It is also the reason fat loss can take a week or two when you finally sort your life out.

Give it time - you got yourself in this mess so have the patience to wait a week or so for the results!

Still luv ya though!
Jon

PS That particular client has lost 11 lbs in 5 weeks of training. We targetted a stone in 6 weeks so 3 lbs this week and that's mission accomplished! It could have been you!

What lies behind motivation?

I often get asked what keeps me motivated.

What makes the difference between those who DO things and those who think about things?

We're all human.

We all have a brain and a soul.

The difference is shown in these three videos.

The way I see it, the difference lies in what you want to see when you look back on your life.

Do you want to have worried about money all the time and never experienced anything?

Do you want to have drunk yourself stupid every weekend and never achieved anything?

Watch all the videos as they'll all give you a different message.

Everyone has their own reasons for doing what they do and accepting certain challenges.

I am humbled by these guys as the challenges I have taken on so far are nothing compared to what they endure.

You are stronger beyond what you can ever believe. The problem is that we only ever find out when we are put in extreme circumstances.

If you never get out your comfort zone and put yourself in such a position, you will never find out.

So the videos...

1) Thanks to my friend Dax Moy who posted this on his personal trainer community site. The guy is phenomenal - his name's Nick Vujicic if you want to search more on him. Make sure you ahve the sound on.

NICK VUJICIC VIDEO

2) An all time favourite of mine and one you may have seen before if you've subscribed to my emails for a while. Make sure you have the sound on.

TEAM HOYT VIDEO

3) A classic song. Labi Siffre came out of retirement to stand up for what he belived in and against oppression of his heritage and beliefs.

LABI SIFFRE VIDEO


Take up a challenge,
Jon

Five key elements of goal setting

My heart sometimes sinks when people come to me as a personal trainer and say 'I'd like to lose a couple of pounds' or 'I just want to tone up a bit'.

Where's the ambition?

Where's the challenge?

Where's the drive for a total transformation?

What's happened to "I don't know if I can achieve this but what the hell let's go for it."

Come on guys, get yourself out of all this depression and 'life's a bitch' attitude!

You all have it in you to make big changes, but you have to believe YOU are capable, not just those you see making a success of their lives.

We all have tough times, me included - suck it up and get on with it.

It has to begin with setting clear goals. My guinea pigs have already done that using the STORM process.

Your goals must be...

Specific - Exactly what do you want?
Timed - When by? Set a day
Operations based - How? What's the exact plan?
Relevant - Does it really matter or is it something you feel you should do to keep someone else happy?
Measurable - Can you clearly measure it to see if your plan is working?

Shape goals based on the above and your half way to achieving them - seriously!

On that note some moron made a comment to me on Facebook a few weeks ago implying that it was easy for me because I had probably never been fat and I somehow didn't have a right to then try to help people!

He's right - I've never been so lazy and lacking self-rspect to let myself get into that state in the first place.

However, the conversation turned to him implying you can't improve your body shape without bodybuilding exercises and machine based workouts for optimum 'burn' (yeah people still use that stupid word.)

So I embarked on an 'up yours' quest.

A quest which for beanpoles like me is tough and requires hard work and desire - to get bigger not smaller!

This guy clearly doesn't know me like you do. He didn't understand it would result in a backlash and a point proven.

3 weeks later....I rest my case your honour.

And for those who for some reason doubt my testimonials are valid, you know this is real as it's a picture from my recent Borneo trip.

Stop looking for reasons why NOT. If you want something enough, it's yours.

This guy gave me all the motivation I needed. And he's still fat.

I show you this for no other reason than to prove my genuine commitment to inspiring people to search for more, want more and achieve more.



PS This is not fake tan it's our dodgy studio energy-saving light bulbs!

Get outside and train!

I don't know why people find exercise so hard!

I just got out of bed an hour earlier than my usual Sunday rising to meet a couple of clients in Wollaton Park, Nottingham for some sprints, kettlebell work, burpees and whatever else we felt like.

Despite a minor back issue on my part this was awesome and just what I needed!

It's so good to just get out in the crisp November air amongst the grass, trees and aggressive deer who apparently are in rutting season.

It's left me feeling ultra-creative and ready to hit my latest projects.

The last couple of days I've felt a bit stale and needed something to clear the tubes and open up the brain wave channels again!

You'll be amazed what exercise, especailly exercise in nature will do for your fitness, wellbeing and mental peace.

Try it next Sunday. You'll be amazed!

Jon
PS If you want lots of workouts you can do in the park at home or anywhere else you fancy, join up at http://www.stormforcefitness.com

Top 10 things to increase daily energy levels

Everyone has crap days.

Everyone has days when they feel like there's lead weights on their eyelids!

It doesn't have to be like this.

Unless you can't be bothered to make changes.

If you're not interested you wouldn't be reading this.

So we know you want to know.

What we don't know is whether you want to spend a bit of time IMPLEMENTING things.

Don't read this if you have no intention of changing your days into energy-fuelled productivity machines.

Here's the Top 10 Energizers for you.

1) Do not drink ANY caffeine. It will have the opposite effect. What goes up must come down. In this case you come down further than you go up!

2) Get some exercise for crying out loud! Exercising early in the morning will have you buzzing (if you do an intense session not a mediocre jog which is enough to put anyone to sleep!). It's a vicious circle which will see you energy levels spiral so you want to exercise more resulting in higher levels of energy and 'happy hormones'!

3) Eat 5-6 small meals per day with carbs and protein in. Small meals like this take 5 minutes to eat because they're small. Use a protein supplement as a last resort if you only have time to knock a milkshake back - you'll be amazed at the difference. This is critical.

4) Get to bed before 11pm. Get up when the alarm goes off. No snoozing. It won't help but WILL make you feel drowsy all morning.

5) Eat breakfast. The excuse of not having time is absolute rubbish and you know it. It's a pathetic excuse because you could just go to bed 10 minutes earlier and get up 10 minutes earlier, you're just too lazy and it sucks!

6) Have a plan of jobs to do in the day. When you are doing little bits of everything it will stress you out more and mentally drain you - I'm still practising this but it makes a big difference. Taking 10 minutes to plan in the morning will make you ultra-productive and more up for getting everything done!

7) Mid-afternoon is normally the worst time because people eat big lunches then experience a similar come down to coffee at 10am! Try to exercise outdoors at lunch time then eat half you lunch straight after and the rest about 3 hours later so your energy levels are constant. It also means when you're knackered at 5pm you don't have to think about the gym. The natural light outside will do wonders for you as well!

8) Eat clean food. All the preservatives and chemicals in processed food is really hard to digest which means higher body fat and more energy wasted on digestion. It will slow you down and make you sluggish. Avoid anything that comes out of a packet. Don't 'cut some out' - eliminate it.

9) Drink lots and lots of water - more than feels normal. I'm taling 5-6 pints of water each day at regular intervals. Flush out your system and everything will function better giving you a spring in your step and keeping you brain functioning properly.

10) Take time out to recharge the batteries. This is something I've always been bad at but this year's really hit home that I am not invincible and need to sit back and watch the world go by sometimes. Turn your phone off after 8pm, turn the TV off after 9 (the lights and noise will stress you out) and just read a book or listen to music (I like ministry of sound chill out tunes personally!). Gather your thoughts then come out the blocks in the morning (as soon as the alarm goes off - remember no snoozing!)

If possible put the kids in a cupboard and lock the door - they'll get over it.

Jon

Beating the Big Freeze (with no cardio or equipment)!

Survive the Big Freeze!

Stop your boring cardio outside in the cold and do this indoor fat blaster - no equipment needed!

Do as many rounds of the following circuit in 15 minutes as possible.

20 split squats (beginners) / plyometric split squats (advanced)
20 bodweight squats (beginners) / jump squats (advanced)
10 push ups (beginners on knees)
20 mountain climbers (beginners) / burpees (advanced)

It's that simple.

If you don't know what these exercises are just pop along to my youtube site to see exactly what you need to do. (Just search for the exercise you want).

http://uk.youtube.com/user/StormForceFitness

These kind of 'time challenges' form the basis of the Storm Force Fitness programs so if you like it come and join us at http://www.stormforcefitness.com !

Try it then post how you get on here!
Jon

What happened in London?

I was in London this weekend on an awesome fitness marketing course to help me spread the word about http://www.stormforcefitness.com and for a cheeky beer with friends.

(Yes I do drink the odd pint BECAUSE I EARN IT)

Three things happened which really made me think about how what is true and what our perceptions are, can be VERY different things!

1) One of the presenters on the course, Dax Moy is renowned for his inspirational methods and motivation techniques.

Now I'm not exactly short on motivation to get what I want in life, but Dax takes things to a new level and knows how to deliver a kick up the backside and I learnt a lot!

At lunch time all the attendees grabbed their food and sat down with each other to discuss business and what they had or hadn't done with theirs to that point. I stood there and thought why go through the discussions of 'maybe this' and 'we could that' and went a sat with Dax, who proceeded to open my eyes to many ways to help people better and develop myself and my business.

LESSON - Why struggle with ifs and maybes when you can go straight to what or who you know will get the job done?

2) I was in the Oxo tower in London being treated to a meal. I was sat next to a lady who struggled to fit in her chair.

She proceeded to tell her date / friend / husband how she was 'trying' to lose weight by walking to work each day. This was between mouthfuls of the 12oz sirloin with curly chips and garlic bread.

She then struggled to stand up, turned to me and said 'Excuse me can I get through?'

To which I nearly replied, "I doubt it"

LESSON: Trying to lose body fat involves trial and error. Actually losing body fat simply requires listening to those who are professionally qualified and can provide exact programs and systems which you KNOW will work.

3) I finally did something in London which has been on my mind for 3 years and caused many nights of upset! It's a personal thing and something which will stay between myself and I (as is often the case with the biggest challenges in life).

I also got the ball rolling on a top secret project which could change my life and those of the people who get involved within the next year! You will hear more as it develops but it has never been done before. Oooh the excitement!

LESSON: You need to take risks and persevere for the things which you value most in life and which pose the biggest challenges to you whether mental or physical. Sometimes the unknown will scare the life out of you as you can never be sure what the result will be. The risk will seem immense, but if the reward is enough, everything that goes into it becomes insignificant!

Jon, Storm Force Fitness

PS If you're ready to finally accept the challenge of not feeling flabby at Christmas....

Ladies - http://www.stormforcefitness.com/article.php?pid=213
Gents - http://www.stormforcefitness.com/article.php?pid=214

Amazing new fat loss research...

I heard some real ground breaking news today on the radio news.

Some no-doubt very well-paid scientists and researchers have found that eating your food too fast may well lead to weight gain.

I thought we knew this ten years ago.

And if we didn't, surely it's pretty damn obvious!

Stuff your face fast and you don't have time to feel full. As is usually the case with fat loss, it's a simple process.

The science behind is that we have a hormone which is released from our brain telling us we have eaten enough food and are full. This hormone usually takes around 20 minutes to be released so if you take time to chew food and digest it slowly over a good conversation you will realise you have had enough and stop eating.

Could this be the reason countries outside the western world don't have such high obesity rates?

They see meal times as a time to converse with family and relax rather than shovelling in food and drink like the Simpsons.

Another more complex reason I would suggest is that it is an all-round philosophy.

In the UK and Britain we are always stressed and rushing around. There is never enough time. Those who 'haven't got time' to slow themselves down and eat slowly are usually those who don't prepare food either (due to supposed lack of time) which leads them to eat processed, crappy ready meals.

As a trainer I always, always promote a new lifestyle rather than just a new diet or new training program because without an all round philosophy you will continue to struggle with many aspects of weight management.

Mess up on one and the rest will come tumbling down too!

Jon

Health, fitness and the credit crunch

Apparently there's some kind of financial crisis going on.

I generally try to ignore such doom and gloom and fortunately my digibox broke last week so it's been no TV since.

What a blessing - it's been nice just reading, studying and listening to music!

As far as I'm concerned these things are largely a self-fulfilling prophecy - the more we talk about them the worse they get.

But what can you do if you do need to start saving some cash but you don't want to give up on your fat loss and conditioning plan?

1) Buy in-season fruit and vegetables. Supply and demand economics mean that those which are not in-season and must be imported will cost more. You'll also do your bit for reducing the negative effects of transportation and to support the local economy!

In-season fruit and veg: Apples, pears, figs, pumpkin, leeks, sweetcorn, broccoli, potatoes, kale and onions (there's lots more so do your research!)

SAVING - APPROX. £30 PER MONTH

2) Go to your local fruit and veg market about 15 minutes before closing. They will literally throw produce at you for next to nothing.

SAVING - ABOUT £30 PER MONTH IN CONJUNCTION WITH POINT 1.

3) Perform bodyweight training (or use dumbbells and kettlebells if you have them) at home. It doesn't cost you anything and let's be honest, how much have you achieved through your gym membership in the last year? Sprint up hills, ride up hills on your bike, lift heavy things you have at home - just get rid of your gym direct debit!

SAVING - ABOUT £40 PER MONTH PLUS REDUCED TRAVEL COSTS

4) Stop buying health and fitness magazines. Again, if you need to keep reading them, they haven't taught you much so far so why keep buying them?!

SAVING - ABOUT £4 PER MONTH

5) Stop smoking and drinking alcohol. Old news, but you still do it. This will save you hundreds and hundreds of pounds and your family can save on having to pay for your funeral until this 'crisis' is over.

SAVING - ABOUT £180 PER MONTH (BASED ON 20 CIGARETTES AND 7/8 DRINKS ON A FRIDAY)

6) Stop going to Starbucks (and other coffee shops) everyday. If you buy a coffee on it's own everyday of your working week (not including that muffin) you're throwing money away for something which most of the time contains a pile of calories and will only wake you up for half an hour!

SAVING - ABOUT £40 PER MONTH

So if you do all of the above, you could be saving over £300 per month.

Of which £50 could get you membership to http://www.stormforcefitness.com/ which will instantly show you how to fulfil Point 3.

Are you creating your own credit crunch....?

Weight training will make women bulky....or will it?

Many ladies shy away from weights because they 'just want to burn fat and not bulk up'.

This is one of the girls I train as a group of 4.

She has trained with me once per week for about 3-4 months, eaten well but not obsessively and done a couple of sessions at home each week.

A picture does indeed tell a thousand words.

Enough said my friends.

Oh and don't forget Jemma.....!

Jon v Dean Macey at Survival of the fittest

I raced an ex-Olympian on Saturday.

He didn't know I was gunning for him from the moment I heard he was taken part in the inaugural Men's Health Survival of the Fittest race in Nottingham, but I was!

When I spoke to Dean Macey (ex-Decathlete) after the race he said something about having not done too much training since he retired a couple of months ago.

But that was Olympic level training, and whilst he kept saying how he had never run more than 8km, as you know I hardly ever go running because of my dislike for joint-shattering, fat preserving aerobic exercise.

So what happened?

12.5km interspersed with assault courses, cold water, rope climbs etc. is what happened.

Would our training methods stand up against the 'Dean Machine' and the numerous triathletes who train specifically for running?

Final results (out of 882 finishers)

1 387 0:54:57 Simon Griffin
37 1142 1:02:50 Jon Le Tocq
113 1140 1:08:30 Dean Macey

Now I don't know about you but looking at those results and bearing in mind most people find 'cardio' boring, I'd rather train like we do at BodyClocq Personal Training and at http://www.stormforcefitness.com , with shorter, more intense, fun sessions!

Mix up your sessions, make yourself work hard, and forget what you thought you knew about exercise and life will become so much more fulfilling!

If you want to win running races then yes you will need to run.

If you want to enjoy fitness, become a great all-rounder and be able to perform well in random fitness challenges of any sort, you know where to come. With some running training the difference between myself and the winner would have been much smaller but I have no interest.

I don't know why people make themselves use training methods they don't enjoy! It's a recipe for long-term failure.

You can either start listening to and working with people who have proven results, or you can keep reading about wonder diets and magic exercises in magazines.

I hope you're still filling in your nutrition diary from Friday - the weekend is always interesting when it comes to food and drink!

Jon

See me and Big Dean..
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=844351&l=027cc&id=511307969

3 pounds lost with no exercise?

Today I have a challenge for you and a friend.

It's so easy a 4 year old could do it.

Yesterday a new client of mine walked in 2 weeks after her initialc onsultation with me.

I had asked her to do one thing.

Write down everything you eat and drink until the first 'real' session.

She did. She lost 3lbs of body fat.

Unfortunately, handwriting is not the perfect fat loss solution sodon't get all excited and rush out to Wilko's for a set of 10 biro's.

The key is MONITORING.

Simply by becoming aware of what was going in her mouth, this lady became more controlled and stopped eating cr*p (or so much of it;-) )

I've told you over and over again - if you're not recording stuff(training, food etc) you will not lose weight unless you get lucky.

Now imagine what could happen when we get some good ol' short,sharp exercise sessions going on.

A stone in 6 weeks? Probably.

This stuff works EVERY TIME.

So write down everything you eat and drink until next Friday.

Get your friend to do it as well.

Swap diaries each day.

See what happens.

If you want to do it on your own, post you daily consumption under this blog entry in the comments - whatever makes you take control and be accountable.

Just try it - you'll be amazed.


Always here to help,
Jon

3 mistakes

Did you try the curry recipe I sent on Friday night?

Over the weekend I received quite a few emails asking for regular recipes so it must have tasted good - unfortunately I can't give away all the good stuff as that wouldn't be fair on my members at http://www.stormforcefitness.com/ !

They have access to Burrito breakfast, Egg pot, Moroccan chicken, Turkey and apple burger, Amazing meatballs, Beef tacos, Tuna and kidney bean salad and many, many more recipes - and everyone of them is low in calories and VERY tasty!

So what mistakes are often made?

1) Did you enjoy the curry then got frustrated on Saturday because you were rushing around after the kids trying to get food ready? Why did you not just make more of the curry then have a healthy meal already prepared for the next day?

You can do this EVERY evening as a Storm Force member ensuring you don't have to buy salt-laden, fatty, mayo smothered sandwiches or pasta dishes from Marks and Spencer (or other good stores :-) )

2) You assume healthy food has to be boring. I've proven my point. I must admit I didn't have the curry - instead I knocked up a vegetarian roasted vegetable dish (with a sirloin steak) in 30 minutes from chopping board to plate!

3) You didn't have time to cook the curry because you spent over an hour in the gym after work then were too stressed out to relax and cook a nice meal. Why didn't you perform one of the 20 minute fat-blasting sessions on Storm Force Fitness then you could have done both AND got more results from your session?!

I really, really wish the people in this world who claim they don't have time to be healthy would just open their eyes!

For a one-off fee (less than a good night out and probably less than you spend at Starbucks each month) you can have access to the fastest, tasty, healthy recipes and the most time-efficient training I use for myself and my clients.

You get noticeable fat loss results, eat healthier food, can exercise at home in private or in the gym if you do like it AND have more time to enjoy life, showing off your new body to anyone who will look!

But hey, what do I know?

Jon - 5.5% body fat and never has to train for more than 45 minutes!

http://www.stormforcefitness.com

Let's all have a curry on Friday

It's Friday tomorrow, which for me means treat night!

I train and work hard all week (especially today!) so I deserve a meal when I can go a bit nuts.

Last week I had a not-so-healthy pizza. But I earned it - that's the key. It helps keep me on track.

There's a MASSIVE difference between caving all the time and earning a treat.

Today however, I am going to give you a curry recipe which can be ready from scratch in under 20 minutes and is actually really healthy!

Enjoy....

Chicken Masala(4 servings)

Ingredients:

1 chopped onion
6 fresh green chillies
6 chopped garlic cloves
2 tsp grated fresh root ginger
1 tbs ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1 large bunch of fresh, chopped coriander
150ml water
2 tbs olive oil
400g chicken breast cut into strips
250ml chicken stock

Preparation:

Blend vegetables, herbs, spices and water until a smooth paste is created

Heat olive oil in large, non-stick frying pan, add the paste and fry stirring constantly for around 1 minute

Add chicken to frying pan, stir for around 3 minutes then add chicken stock

Mix well, cover and cook on low heat until tender (around 10 minutes)


Remember there's plenty more where that came from...

http://www.stormforcefitness.com/article.php?pid=216 (scroll down to the recipe section)

Why Michael Phelps is a disgrace

You know my thoughts on fast food.

You know my thoughts on sporting heroes.

Hate one, love the other.

But I feel really let down today.

For two weeks in the summer I marvelled at Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps as they showed the world that the impossible is in fact sometimes easily done.

However, today I have lost all respect for Michael Phelps afterfinding out that he has chosen to endorse McDonald's and Kellogg'scereals.

Phelps, you're a disgrace and you've sold your soul to the devil.

Whilst he may be able to get away with eating 12,000 calories perday swimming for 6 hours to go with it, this is just going tocompound problems for the next generation of kids.

Kids copy heroes. McDonald's and Kellog's know this.

So now kids are being led to believe that to be the best in theworld you must eat cereals full of sugar and additives, and as forMcDonald's food?

Well we all know that story.

Even 'healthy' Cornflakes contain as much salt as a pint of sea water.

Unfortunately common sense and acting in the interests of future generations has yet again taken a massive kick in the knackers.

We need to fight this. You need to fight this. I don't have children - you do.

You need to pass on good habits or you're as bad as the rest ofthem.

Stop leaving it to someone else and blaming it on cr*ppy schooldinners, a lack of time or the fact that 'they'll burn it off'.

They might burn it off now but then they'll hit 17, be lazy and like bad food and discover beer.

Soon your child is fat, unhealthy and no longer burning it off because they don't do any exercise and no longer enjoy running round like headless chickens and being active because they've grown up with their arm attached to a Nintendo Wii which has given them reptitive strain injuries.

This needs to stop now.

Apparently by 2050, 9/10 adults will be obese.

Why?

Because YOU let it happen when they were children.

Free hotel room workout

I often get asked by clients and friends "What should I do when I'm away on business / holiday"

Often if it's a holiday I will tell people that if they have been training hard enough the rest of the year then they deserve a rest!

However, if you regularly go away on business and are staying in hotels, what can you do to get a fast, effective session in without much equipment?

Today I've posted a 'Hotel Room Points Challenge' workout at Storm Force Fitness.

THIS IS AVAILABLE TO NON-MEMBERS AS WELL SO PLEASE SEND THE LINK TO ANYONE YOU THINK WE CAN HELP!

http://www.stormforcefitness.com/article.php?pid=253

I am desperate to get people out of the 'I need a gym to exercise' mindset so have this one on me!

Yes I know it's becoming something of an obsession but I've seen the devestating effects bad information can have on a person when it comes to exercise.

Don't forget you don't have to be in a hotel! You can do it at home as well!

Enjoy!

Please send this link to all your friends if you think they could benefit - the more people we help the better!

Jon

Was I good enough?

Standing on top of the world at 13,000 ft watching the sunrise?

Spending a week with like-minded people who understand the life-changing effects of attempting things when you don't know you can complete them?

Being at one with nature in it's purest form?

I really don't know where to start with my tales of Borneo - it was the most amazing week of my life and no matter how I tell the stories and the photos you see, you still won't understand the emotions involved.

I figure the best thing to do is tell it in bits and what I learnt from each day.

I want to start with the cycling because I'm still buzzing from what happened at the end.

10km from the end of a gruelling day of endless hills in 35 degree heat, Yami (the Malaysian cycle guide and 3rd best mountain biker in the country - see photo above) issued me a challenge.
Could I beat him to the hotel we were resting at that night?

Me? Having done just 5 cycle rides in preparation. Against one of Malaysia's best?

This after climbing Malaysia's largest mountain 2 days before.

With 45 miles of undulating terrain in the baking heat under my belt for the day, it seemed a stupid idea.

So I accepted.

The sunglasses went on, and I necked what water I had left.

There wasn't going to room for error or pitstops.

A quick gear shift and a nervous look back at Yami's rippling leg muscles and it was time to put the kettlebell training to the test.

I knew Yami had the endurance capacity of a Duracel rabbit on speed so I was going to have to find something else in my locker.

The only way to get close to Yami would be to take the pain levels through the roof and see if he could take it.

And off we went.

Flying along the open roads with just the noise of the local wildlife to distract us.

Small Malaysian children waved and cheered at us as we sped through their villages.

7km left.

Yami wasn't even breathing hard yet. I was!

Past rice fields and random cows in the middle of the road, the hot sun beating down.

I realised that although I was trailing sweat as it poured off my chest, I had never felt so alive.

Yami shouts that there's 5km to go.

My legs are burning (as well as my suburnt shoulders).

Yami cleverly stayed behind me in my slipstream so I couldn't see if he was hurting as much as me!

Yami shouts that we're burning along at around 30mph now. Not bad considering we're on mountain bikes with tyres like a monster truck.

The sweat started stinging my eyes and the leg burn was cutting in. My chest was heaving so hard I thought my lungs were going to blow.

"Yon, Yon 3km left - you're doing well"

This was it. Play time.

I let rip.

2 minutes later I lifted my thumping head expecting to see Yami laughing at my attempts.

Nothing.

I looked behind and saw his red shirt 100m back.

He'd been dropped with 2km left.

I nearly burst into tears (again - I'll tell you about the mountain soon).

When you go beyond what you think possible and justify the hardwork which has gone before, it's hard to control emotions.

I wish I could have bottled that moment up and kept it. Writing about it gives me goose pimples.

All the pain and the suffering in training had paid off in a challenge I didn't know I would face until 30 minutes earlier.

I always promote 'random fitness' when training people. The ability to call on your body to be faster, go for longer, be stronger or whatever else the random situations in life call upon.

This is why I don't admire bodybuilders or those who train purely for long-distance running. They usually fail miserable in anything other than their specialist subject.

Having done little cycling training I was able to beat a top cyclist albeit over a relatively short distance.

Clearly I don't claim that if you want to be a top cyclist you don't need to ride a bike, but on that day, mentally and physically, everything came together for me and I have never felt so much at peace with myself or with nature.

The effects of out training methods were spelt out loud and clear.

This is how life should be lived.

Where physically you are ready for anything and mentally you are at one with yourself and the natural environment.

Unless you were on that bike with me, flying through rural Borneo with the bursts of warm tropical air racing over your body, you'll never quite grasp the adrenaline surge experienced in the making of this story.

But it's my story and it will live with me forever.

You have the power to create your own life-changing stories you just have to want to do it enough.

Next up....climbing Mount Kinabalu.

Remember if you want to start developing the type of fitness which makes you ready for anything (as well as roasting body fat) sign up at http://www.stormforcefitness.com/ . You could be writing your own story soon.

The biggest mistake you're making

As you should know by now, I am currently in the middle of Malaysia probably mountain biking so hard I have a sore bum.

I also promised you wouldn't hear from me for ten days.

Then I realised I was making the mistake that many of you are making.

The mistake millions make every year.

The reason people go round in circles and never get results withtheir fitness.

The reason?

I didn't plan ahead.

I assumed once I had left for Borneo, that was it.

I couldn't continue to help you until I got back.

Then I thought more and PLANNED BETTER.

I set up this email the night I left.

It is simple reasons that stop you getting results.

And to be honest this applies to everything in life not just fitness.

But fitness is my specialty and I see people continually failing to get anywhere because they don't have a plan.

They think they can turn up to the gym and just 'do a workout' and the fat will disappear.

Sorry it won't.

Set goals then 'reverse engineer' the goal.

In other words, plan backwards step by step from where you want to be (e.g 1 stone lighter) then work it back to where you are now.

These steps should be challenging but manageable.

I cover this goal setting process in more detail at http://www.stormforcefitness.com/article.php?pid=139 using my proven process.

All goals must be...

Specific
Timed
Operation-based
Relvant
Measurable.

Plan properly and you will be amazed at what you achieve!

Having problems breathing when running?

I've noticed on a brief return to running (to prepare for the Mens Health Survival of the Fittest Race) that I have a habit of panic breathing when the going gets tough towards the end.

So I set about finding a way to regulate it.

The technique described here will work well for anyone who finds themselves wasting energy and generally becoming uncomfortable with the whole breathing thing when under intense physical pressure.

It has been used to help train fighters and marital artists in particular who need to remain calm in the face of danger and panic.

It really is quite horrible and requires a lot of self-discipline and will power but works a treat!

The method and the exercises are open to adaptation depending on your sport's requirements / skill levels / fitness etc but the principles remain.

The idea is that in you control how much rest you get between sets of a particular, full body, exercise. Full body exercises are required to rapdily shoot your pulse and breathing rate upwards. You perform 10 reps of a given exercise then rest for 10 breaths. How long the rest lasts depends on your ability to slow your breathing and remain calm!

You then repeat but with only 9 reps and 9 breaths. The process continues until you perform 1 breath and 1 rep!

Below is a sample session I have personally used. Obviously the weights used should be adjusted according to the individual. A good guide for weight selection is 40-60% of your 1 repetition max for the exercise in question - you should be able to move the weights quickly.


Push jerk with 2x24kg kettlebells 10 reps, 10 slow breaths, 9 reps, 9 slow breaths etc down to 1

As above using 60 kg barbell front squat

As above using 2x28kg kettlebells swing


Pre-requisites for this type of 'panic training'

- High level of competence in the exercises to be performed
- Will power and pain tolerance
- A partner may be useful to prevent sneaky extra breaths!

Don't expect an easy ride on this one and make sure you're fresh before trying it!

The 1000 rep challenge!

Phew it's over.

I finally completed my 1000 rep kettlebell challenge for charity.

The aim was to do 1000 reps in under 45 minutes.

The pain went something like this...

20 swings, 20 snatches, 20 swings, 20 jerks, 20 swings, 20 snatches, 20 swings, 40 split rows, 20 swings, 50 push ups

Four times.

Brutal but glad I did it and we raised some more money for my charity.

Thanks to everyone who supported me and took part in the Kettlebell Olympics afterwards - everyone was awesome and there were some cracking performances - but you can do better next year.... ;-)

Jon

Something you HAVE to do to lose weight

"I don't have time to cook / prepare food"

If this is how you feel, be prepared to never lose body fat.

No matter how much you hope and pray and invest in bogus fitness scams, there will never be a way to permanently lose body fat and get a great body without preparing food.

Unless you are wealthy enough to pay someone to prepare every meal you eat, you will NEVER get rid of noticeable amounts of body fat.

And don't try to come up with excuses.

I am getting fed up of hearing excuses as to why people CAN'T do things. Why are so few people willing to accept that the reason they are fat is that their current lifestyle has caused it. It's not down to time constraints, work hours, kids or any other crap excuse. I know very busy professionals, with children, who have lost ridiculous amounts of body fat because they accepted it was solely down to them to take responsibility and take action.

Stop looking for reasons why you can't and use the resources you have available to find out how you can!

Here are my answers to the 'reasons' I hear for not preparing food.

"I don't have time"

Rubbish. You can prepare all your food for the next day when you prepare our evening meal or when you make breakast. Make more of it and stick in the fridge for tomorrow.

Alternatively, do it whilst you make breakfast. Goto bed 10 minutes earlier and get up 10 minutes earlier (you'll get abetter quality of sleep as well!)

If you really enjoy cooking, why not make a couple of hours of it at weekends, batch everything up in boxes then your set for the next few days at least.

It takes under 10 minutes to grill chicken breasts, take tuna out of a tin, take raw prawns out of a packet, steam vegetables, boil eggs, boil pasta....the list goes on.

"I don't know how to cook nice, healthy things"

There are lots of combinations on the Storm Force recipe pages, and ultra healthy ones in the fat loss pages. There are also many, many healthy cookbooks in bookstores. Once you learn how to make something you can rack it up very quickly as well!

"I don't know how much I need"

The Storm Force Nutrition system includes an automatic calorie calculator - you put your height, weight, gender and lifestyle in and it will magic up the calories! If you don't want to count calories just buy food from the Storm Force shopping list then trial and error how much you need in your 5-6 meals. We do all the hard work for you!

"I'm too tired in the evenings"

This is probably because you are not eating enough throughout the day so by the time you get to 5pm your body wants nothing but the sofa. Healthy eating will set off an incredible chain of energised days, loss of body fat and greater productivity at work and when exercising - but you have to start somewhere!

Stop making excuses and take sole responsibility for your past and current state - once you can do that you are well on your way.

If you want all the nutrition advice and training programs to shed body fat, register at Storm Force Fitness now.

And don't be afraid to ask questions!

Jon

http://www.stormforcefitness.com

Why commercial gyms shouldn't be successful

They never seem to get people the results they pay for, they cost a lost of money and they have one of the highest customer turnover rates, yet commercial gyms continue to make millions.

It's a disgrace - and I'm going to tell you what happens. Believe me I've worked in one, been the top trainer within months (mainly by treating people like clients who deserved results rather than Member No 4253), and seen it all.

Why gyms are successful when they shouldn't be!

1) They get thousands of people to sign direct debits every January. Easy money - take advantage of the post-Christmas podgers. If all these people turned up on a Wednesday night, the gym would be screwed. The truth is the average gym member goes to the gym 0.8 times per week. Generally this translates as going all of January then getting bored or sick of putting in a lot of time and effort for no results.

2) They successfully play on the innate human trait of needing entertaining. They put on new classes every few weeks with new music, new choreography or a new instructor and everyone gets excited. They add new shiny screens or new machines. If you're a keen class goer you'll have seen adverts for the latest 'BTS launch' every 3 months. Great....so you now have to listen to the latest annoying 'Cheeky Girl tricep track'. You think this will spur you on to results. It doesn't. Again. And why are you excited by machines? I've met so many girls who say "I don't want to bulk up like a bodybuilder", then I see them sitting on those machines which are all designed by bodybuilders, for bodybuilders!

Progress in training needs to come from lifting a heavier weight, resting less between sets, performing variations of key, functional exercises, eating better and becoming more flexible. Anything that forces your body to adapt will bring results - new music won't!

3) They play on the 'burn factor'. Most gym goers wrongly assume that if they ache and can't move after a class and they 'felt the burn' it must be working. Whilst this may be true in some cases, generally the 'burn' in gym classes comes from a build up of lactic acid from high repetition exercises. Whilst this may improve your lactic acid tolerance slightly, you can keep dreaming about lower body fat! Body Pump for instance is a shocking, dangerously unsafe, and grossly ineffective way to lift weights. I won't go into it here or we'll be here all day - just trust me! I've seen (and felt) the results.

4) Most people have no idea how to exercise outside of the gym. They wrongly assume 'the gym' is the training meccah of their local borough, completely blind to the much more effective, cheaper and more exhilirating ways to train at home at outside. The poor, unsuspecting members get into a routine of going to the gym after work, so that's the way it is!

5) They rely on the fact that people think if they keep trying a particular way of getting fit it has to work eventually. "If I just keep banging my head on this brick wall it will eventually break...even though there is a sledgehammer on the other side of the wall"

6) Good gyms are busy gyms - there are some around! However, busy gyms become annoying gyms because no equipment is free. Good gyms then become bad gyms.

7) They give you what you want. Surely that's a good thing? Yes and no. You THINK you need treadmills with heart rate monitors, cross-trainers, steppers, weights benches and aerobics classes. So the gyms give you all of the above so you don't quit. They don't educate you on what you really need to get fit otherwise you wouldn't stick around! You don't get results but it's not a problem....see Point 5!

I could write all day about this topic but it should have given you food for thought.

Take time to stop and take stock of what results you are getting for the time and money invested in your health and fitness. Once your eyes have been opened, seek a different way or you will be stuck forever in the putrid, crowded, recycled air of the local gym!

I know one, and the growing member list do as well - Storm Force Fitness

Calories - to count or not to count?

I keep getting asked about calories so here goes...

Some people live their life by them, others 'don't have time'.

Some people will say calorie counting is unnecessary, some will say it's vital for fat loss.

What's the truth?

As always there are different 'truths' depending on your personal situation.

It is true that you can lose body fat without counting how many calories you are eating each day.

However, I have found this only to be true for those who are very controlled about their eating and have gone through a lot of trial and error to get there!

I have heard many people say that they don't need to count calories but when they finally get annoyed at not losing body fat and give it a go, they find out they are eating far too many calories (once all the cheeky snacks and fizzy drinks are noted!).

Alternatively, some find they are undereating so much that their bodies go into starvation mode and start to protect body fat as part of an age-old defence mechanism.

It is for this reason that I created a nutrition system which uses an automatic calorie counter (at Level 3 of 5) to tell you how much you should be eating each day based on your height, weight, age and lifestyle. That way the 'trial and error' has already been done for you to save you time!

Once you have done this for a few weeks, you soon learn how to control portion size to keep you in the calorie deficit which is definitely, undeniably, without question, required for fat loss.

It's a bit like driving a car. For the first few weeks or maybe months, you have to concentrate really hard on doing everything right. However, you soon find yourself able to do it with ease - to the point that it doesn't take you any longer to prepare food than it did when you poured anything down your throat!

But the results will be much more spectacular!

So how many do YOU need?

Today I'm going to open up the calorie calculator page of the Storm Force Nutrition system - all you need to do is stick in your stats and it will immediately show you how many calories you need for fat loss.

Once you've done that, count how many calories you eat for a whole day and see what the difference is.

Beware, you may be shocked!

Don't forget, as a Storm Force Fitness member you only go to the level you feel is appropriate for your lifestyle and the results you want to achieve. You might choose to still avoid the calorie section and still get impressive results, by using the carb rotation and healthy recipe section!

The training, flexibility and abs systems work exactly the same so they work every time!

You get out of life what you put in!

Go to the calorie calculator (this is only available until Tuesday 26th August 18.00)

Live life in the fast lane,
Jon