Archive for the ‘Fitness Lifestyle’ Category

Exotic Dancer, Author and Abs Expert Darren Michaels Interview

I hope no one thinks this blog is too “risk-ay”, because, after all, it is about male stripper Darren Michaels, his abs-o-steel and his exotic dancing. But beyond all that, this is about a guy who took a vision and turned it into a reality, through hard work, dedication, consistency and a passionate determination, he did what some might think impossible.

What did he do? Well, let me paint the picture.

Imagine a chemist with a Masters Degree, working a 9-to-5 in a lab, nothing special otherwise. The guy is shy, and I mean super-shy. He’s got no luck with the ladies (25 year-old virgin?), and his fitness level…average at best.

I was teaching abs classes at the Foster City Athletic Club when I first got to know Darren. He would join in on my half-hour, ab-marathon classes, and each time he’d push himself harder than the time before. He seemed like a man on a mission, and we got to know each other after a while. I could tell he meant business. The quiet people in the gym are always the ones to look out for, because they are the ones who get the job done.

He reminded me of myself during my martial arts days. I didn’t go around telling everyone I was going to become a second degree black belt, I just did it.

After months of taking my class, Darren showed interest in teaching abs classes, and I introduced him to the group exercise director there at the club. Sometime around then, he had an emergency appendectomy, and after the doctor said to lay of the abs training, he came back, more determined than ever to create his 6-pack abs and to teach his abs class.

Somewhere along Darren’s path, he met a professional exotic dancer, got it in his head that he wanted to become one, decided to go for it, and did it! And I’m talking from scratch!

He packed on the muscle, lowered his bodyfat to below 5%, and got the kind of indoor tan any WWE wrestler would be more than proud of. The dude didn’t even know how to dance for Pete’s sake! Not only that, but like I said, he was incredibly shy. I don’t know about you, but in my opinion, it takes a hell of a lot of courage to make that big of a life change.

Whether you agree with his path or not, I’m sure you’ll agree that he has demonstrated the exact kind of mindset it takes to make a real body and life transformation.

These days, Darren is a super-successful chemist by day, superstar exotic dancer by night. He’s found success in all areas of his life, and is sharing his passion about fitness with others. Did he ever get the girl? What do you think!?

If you want to find out more about Darren (and all his crazy stripper adventures!), I suggest reading his book or checking out his website at www.AbMiration.com.

When you break it down and analyze how he was able to pull it off, you can see the steps he took and apply them to your own life. In my view, this is what he did:

1) Desire to change. He had a desire to change because he was frustrated with where he was at in his life. He had a career, drove a Mustang, and had the looks, but no girl! Believe me, that will fuel any man’s desire to make a life change, no matter how successful you are!

2) Commitment to take action. After desire comes commitment. Through his training and mentoring, Darren made a real commitment to the type of people who would hold him accountable to his actions. You can think about something you want to accomplish all you want, but until you make a commitment, nothing ever happens.

3) Consistently taking focused action toward the goal. Although having desire and making a commitment are the first 2 important steps, the steps lead to nowhere without consistency. Darren showed incredible perseverance by coming to the gym almost every day, meeting with his dancing mentor every chance he could, visualizing how he would look and feel when he reached his goal, and never quitting, no matter how impossible things may have seemed at the time.

Great work, Darren! Thanks for being an inspiration to me, and to so many others. Although this may sound cliché, you are living proof that you really can do ANYTHING you set your mind to!

So without further ado, here’s my video interview with Darren and another video of him “doing his thang” at one of his photo shoots.

WARNING: ADULTS ONLY PLEASE. NOT X-RATED, JUST PROVOCATIVE…THANKS!

P.S. – Only cool people leave comments! Put yours below!

3 Simple Strategies to Lose 8 lbs in 28 Days

Would you like to lose 8 lbs from your stomach, hips and thighs in the next 28 days?

This year, year of the Tiger, is the year of taking action. What better way to take advantage of the New Year? In this blog, I help you create a simple plan, go into action, then stick to it. Give yourself a goal to lose 8 lbs of fat in the next 28 days. With these strategies at the heart of your focus, you will get there!

1) Take control of your calorie intake. You need to start thinking in numbers (and once you learn numbers, you can think in terms of portions). It doesn’t have to be forever. Just do it for 3 weeks. I know it doesn’t seem like much, but after 3 weeks a mental shift takes place because you start understanding and memorizing the calories of your favorite foods. (Minimally do it for 3 days…you can’t make excuses about just 3 days!)

Keeping a food log really helps deter you from reaching for a donut when you think of that donut in terms of calories and fat grams instead of just Homer Simpson’s famous phrase, “mmmmmmm…donuts…”

So to take control of your calorie count. I recommend going to www.fitday.com to start logging your food. It’s free, so what have you got to lose? This one thing will be the most important action you take when it comes to understanding how many calories you consume on a regular basis. This is the key to weight loss!

A good, comprehensive nutrition program is the Diet Solution by Isabele De Los Rios. I recommend it highly.

2) Make a commitment to exercise. That’s right, I said that scary word that everyone runs from, “commitment”. I have to admit that I’ve always been scared of that word myself. But the commitments I’ve made have changed my life in incredible ways. Once you make a commitment, it makes things so much easier, and you will be amazed by how good you feel when you do finally commit. So join a gym, or even better, join a boot camp or get a trainer. Your commitment will keep you focused and clear despite the obstacles that are sure to arise.

Think about the word commitment for a second. Now ask yourself, have you ever achieved anything worthwhile in your life without making a commitment at some level? Probably not. I think the best thing to do is to suck it up and sign on the dotted line. When most people have thrown in the towel, you’ll still be moving toward your goals because of the commitment you’ve made to your training.

3) Write down your goals, then set a date of completion. You can do this yourself, or join a weight loss contest to bring in a sense of urgency. Either way, having your goals and a date written down will make you consciously and subconsciously work harder toward your weight loss goals.

Your conscious mind is good for setting goals, but it’s your subconscious mind that gets you performing daily habits that will get you to your goals. Your subconscious mind is like a compass. Once your subconscious mind is set properly, it will continue endlessly to follow it’s course until it reaches it’s goal for you.

Writing down your goals, setting a date on the calendar for your completion of those goals, working out regularly, visualizing how you will look and feel when you reach your goals, taking your vitamins and supplements, eating wholesome and nutritious foods. All of these things align your subconscious mind to get you to your goals. The power you possess by putting this into practice is unstoppable!

Please leave a comment about this post, it really helps me deliver you more content!! Thank-you!!

Thinking about a 5K?

When I mention a 5K to most people, usually their initial response is “I’m not a runner” or “I can’t do that!”.

Not being a runner myself, I can relate.

I’m been a professional fitness trainer for close to 10 years.

I’m a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

I’ve hiked 30 miles in 3 days in Yosemite with giant blisters and a bruised knee, I’ve mountain biked some of the most wicked singletracks in the Bay Area, and I’ve participated in every sport known to man except figure skating.

But I’ve only done ONE running event in my life.

That event was a 5K.

It was the Carneros Valley Vineyard 5K at the Artesa Winery in Napa and it was awesome!!

This was a few years ago, and ever since I’ve really been sold on 5K’s, but haven’t done any…until now!

You see, I want to do something to motivate both myself, and YOU!

I’ve found that anyone can do a 5K. If you don’t believe me, click on this link:

http://www.active.com/running/Articles/6_Reasons_to_Run_a_5K.htm

If you want to join me and the others who have decided to challenge themselves with a 5K, just go to our 5K Club page. Make a commitment. You’ll be surprised at what you can do!

Hope to see you out there!

Your Trainer For Life,

Forrest

Drink, Party and Burn Calories this New Years 2010!

This New Year I am really looking forward to going BIG with everything I do. Bigger focus, bigger fitness, bigger results, bigger business, bigger fun, bigger family, bigger goals. The only thing that isn’t going to get bigger are my clients! HaHa!!

So I’ll let you in on what I’m doing for New Years (especially now that I’ve set up a babysitter…thanks Natalie!).

I’m going to a place in San Francisco called the Coda Lounge to see my brother Tommy’s band play. They are called Dynamic and they rule!! You can check them out at www.dynamicliveband.com.

If you don’t have plans yet, you should go!! www.CodaLive.com to make a reservation. (It’s only $20 without dinner, and I think it’s $60 with dinner.)

I’m looking forward to dancing the night away (I may look like a fool, but hey, I have fun doing it!)

I checked out how many calories a 160 lb person burns in 1 hour of dancing and it’s about 350. (If I dance for 3 hours that’s over 1,000 calories!!) Not bad for a fun night out, eh? I’m sure that a few drinks would cancel that out…but I don’t think I’ll have more than 3 drinks, so I think I’ll come out ahead.

My favorite drinks when I go out are either a Guiness, a Hefeweizen, or a White Russian.

Here are some calorie counts for beers to help you plan your night. (I got this from: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_calories_are_in_beer)
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Calories in Beer

Here are some calorie counts for 12 ounces of different beers:

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 175
Sam Adams Lager: 160
Pilsner Uruqell: 160
Michelob: 155
Guinness: 153
Heineken: 150
Corona: 148
Budweiser: 145
MGD: 143
Stella Artois: 140
Bud Light: 110
Coors Light: 102
Budweiser Select: 99
Michelob Ultra: 96
Amstel Light: 95
Miller Genuine Draft Light: 64
Anchor Steam – 153
Bass Ale – 160
Beck’s – 140
Budweiser – 140
Corona Light – 105
Guinness Draught – 126
Guinness Stout – 153
Miller Lite – 96
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale – 175
Sierra Nevada Stout – 210

By the way, the average wine has about 275-300 calories per 12 ounces. Of course, one glass of wine isn’t usually 12 ounces. You might drink half as much wine as you would beer, making wine slightly lower calorie.

Mixed drinks are about the same. Gin & tonic or vodka cranberry have about 300 calories per 12 ounces. Margaritas are very bad: they might have about 750 calories!
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Well, there you have it!

So have fun, eat, drink, dance, and enjoy life, cuz come January your butt is mine!

Roy and I look forward to seeing you and helping you achieve your fitness goals this 2010!

Your Trainer For Life,

Forrest

The Cycle of Addiction and Green Tea

I was standing in line at Starbucks once again. I had told myself I wouldn’t do it anymore. “Just one more time” I said to myself, as I stood browsing at the display case of scones, giant chocolate cookies and yogurt parfaits. I wanted to turn and walk out of there. I wanted to run away. But hey, I deserved this. It was my “daybreak”.

“I’ll have a grande caramel macchiato, please.”

“Sure, what’s your name?”

I wanted to tell them it was John, or Mark. Who knows who might be listening in.

“Forrest”, I would say in a low voice.

“GRANDE CARAMEL MACCHIATO FOR FORREST, PLEASE!!”

There it was. The call of shame for everyone within earshot. My sugary, highly-addictive, four dollar caffeine fix had been called out for all the world to hear. But hey, like I said before, I deserved this. It was my “daybreak”.

This caffeine and sugar affair went on for some time. Oh…for a while I would quit. But once something happened to stress me out and my energy felt low, I would get the uncontrollable urge to stop by a Starbucks.

And who can blame me? They were popping up everywhere. I had four of them within a 3-minute drive from my work in Foster City. I lived a five-minute walk from the Carlmont Shopping Center Starbucks in Belmont. Near my kids school, I would sometimes stop at the Crystal Springs Starbucks (it was a nice one, too; fireplace and cozy seating) just before I had to pick them up.

Even my favorite place to hang out and kill time, the Barnes and Nobles Bookstore, had an in-house Starbucks. As did Safeway. As did Target.

With dealers on every corner, it was not going to be easy to quit. I needed help. I had an addiction. No more excuses. Where would I turn?

Then, I found my answer – to replace my addiction with another, more healthy addiction! I was going to drink Green Tea!!

You see, all addictions are cycles. They start with a feeling of unhappiness or a feeling of being un-fulfilled. Then there is a trigger, such as a thought, image, emotion, or a combination, that sets the addict to find his addiction of choice. After the drug or action has been completed, there is temporary relief and satisfaction, followed by a feeling of guilt, which then cycles back to being unhappy, which starts the cycle all over again.

One could be addicted to many different things. Shopping, TV, drugs, gambling, anger, compulsive eating, alcohol, cigarettes, control over others, being a victim, abuse, and caffeine.

Some addictions may even be beneficial. Exercise, reading, practicing music, yoga, dancing…drinking green tea.

So, in my opinion, learning to replace one addiction with another can be an effective way to change unwanted behavior patterns. After all, I had done it before to great effect.

When I was younger and in the “party scene”, I knew I needed a big change. That’s when I found martial arts, and turned to exercise and mind/body training instead of going out to bars, clubs and parties (best thing I ever did, by the way).

When I noticed I was watching too much TV, I got rid of cable (yes, I got rid of cable. It’s not necessary people!) and started reading again. Reading is another great addiction. I read books on motivation, diet and exercise, science and religion, books for entertainment, books for self-growth and inspiration.

And now that I came across another pattern I wanted changed, I knew what to do. I wanted to stop giving my body these sugar/caffeine hits and start giving it a more balanced energy.

Since I’ve been on the green tea kick, I’ve felt much better. I’ve been going with it for a few months now. I still drink an occasional Starbucks, but now it’s more like once per week, not once or twice per day. Not only have I saved a lot of money, but I’ve felt much more emotionally balanced, I’ve had better sleep, and I have longer lasting energy levels.

Green tea has tons of benefits. I’ve been reading about them in the book, Green Tea – The Natural Secret for a Healthier Life, by Nadine Taylor, M.S., R.D.

Some of the great health benefits of drinking green tea regularly are:

Boosts your immune system
Helps prevent cancer and heart disease
Helps metabolize body fat
Slows the aging process
Lowers blood pressure
Fights harmful bacteria and viruses
Helps the body regulate cholesterol levels

If you have an addiction (I think close to 99% of all people do in some form), don’t run from it. Stare it straight in the eye and ask yourself, what can I do to replace my unhealthy addiction to a healthy one? There’s always room for improvement, right?

I’ve included this very interesting video that explains more in depth on why we get involved in habitual patterns that don’t serve us, and what we can do about it.

Your Trainer For Life,
Forrest Folen, MCT