Fitness Exposé

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Posts written by Michael J. Mahony

The following posts have all been authored by Michael Mahony

Saturday Sharing: Time to Get Off Your Ass

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Get up off your ass

If you are easily offended then this is not the article for you to read, so do yourself a favor and click away. Today is the day that you need to finally get off your ass and start building the body you know you have always wanted. What the hell are your excuses?

Everyone makes excuses. Tomorrow will be the day they start. Sunday will be the day they start. Why the hell does it matter what day you start? Just start for crying out loud! Once you make that decision it is time to get up off your ass and get moving. Go for a quick walk. It doesn't have to be far, it just has to start establishing a pattern of movement. Stop whining and start working. Putting things off just gives you time to change your mind. Seriously! Just get moving now!

If you've been thinking about eating right–get off your ass and do it now!

If you've been thinking about lifting–get off your ass and do it now!

If you've been thinking about going for a walk–get off your ass and do it now!

Just get off your ass!

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Where Are You Right Now?

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Where are you right now?

Where are you right now? No, I don't mean your location, where are you in relation to your goals? How are you doing? What can be improved? Today i am going to take you through a list that I use to get myself on track.

Tracking Your Results

The answer to “Where are you right now” involves tracking your results. You've set some goals and are working towards achieving them, but how are you doing? By tracking your results you will be able to answer this question at any time. I personally track body fat percentage, weight and circumference measurements. These things all show me a trend. Yes, I am fully aware that it is difficult to measure your own body fat, but it isn't the exact number I am looking for, it is a pattern of results. As long as I track it consistently each week, the results are meaningful. Am I increasing or decreasing the number. As long as the numbers are going in the direction I want we are good.

Making Adjustments

One goal is very important to clarify and that is: are you trying to gain muscle or lose fat? Yes, I know you want to do both and while I agree it is possible, it is more realistic to look at your goals in terms of one or the other being a priority. If your goal is to lose fat (get lean) and you notice that your fat loss number is slowing down, you should look at your cardio and your weight training intensity. Is it time to increase the amount of time spent doing cardio? Should you be more intense with the weights? Make the adjustments that make the most sense to you in relation to your goal.

Don't Be Afraid

People set these goals and then get scared when the numbers say they need to eat more. Yes, eating more can definitely still help you burn fat. It depends upon how your body is responding to the calories and exercise you are throwing at it. More calories may be warranted. Stop being scared. Just do what your body is telling you it needs. You won't go wrong listening to the results your body is producing.

Realize Results are Always Produced

I have spoken to clients who tell me they are “not getting results” and I shake my head. Yes, you are getting results. You will always get results. You just are not getting the results you want. Don't get stuck int he “I am not getting results crowd” but rather, join the “I make adjustments so my results are where I want them” crowd. Ultimately this is all up to you, so make it work.

Where Are You Now?

At this point answering the question originally posed should be easy. Knowing what to do next should also be easy. Just get yourself in the right mindset and the world is at your beck and call.

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What to Do About the Gym Goofball

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What to do about the gym goofball

What do you do about the gym goofball? You know the goofball…the guy who thinks being at the gym is all about making jokes and teasing other people. He goes around annoying anyone who will listen. There are a few simple strategies for dealing with the gym goofball.

Engaging the Gym Goofball is a No No

The key strategy here is to just ignore this person. They are not serious like you, so why engage with them at all? All that does is encourage the gym goofball to continue their bad behavior. We cannot change them, but we can certainly ignore them.

Listen to Music to Avoid the Gym Goofball

I personally do my best to always train with music playing. It not only benefits me because my workouts are more intense, I also avoid the gym goofball because even the gym goofball knows not to bother someone with headphones on.

Don't Be Caught Sitting Around

Stay busy while you are in the gym. Always be doing something. If you're not lifting then you should be logging what you just did or tracking your time in between sets. Whatever you do, don't get caught by the gym goofball being idle.

Is There Really a Gym Goofball?

The joke may be on you. I wrote this piece as a way to lighten the mood for the day. Yes, people do joke around at the gym and no, we don't want to be part of their time wasting ways while we work hard at the gym, but it really isn't as big a problem as this article makes it seem. Smile. Have fun. Enjoy what you do.

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Menu Planning Strategies

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menu-planning

Menu planning strategies are plentiful, but not many break things down into simple steps. I intend to break the mold on that. Whether you want to lose weight, lose fat or get into competition shape, menu planning strategies are what you need to accomplish your goals.

Before I begin I want you to understand that menu planning isn't what you might think. In fact, I am going to explode the myths you've been holding on to. This is important because if is the key to all of your success with physique transformation.

Counting Calories

So many people have come to believe that menu planning involves counting calories. To an extent they are correct, but the key is that they don't seem to grasp the right way to count calories. Counting up the calories of your meals as you go along is not what I am referring to. I advocate planning your meals at least the day before and counting the calories and macronutrients as you do so. This makes the job easy because you don't have to track as you go along, you just have to stick to the menu planning you already did.

Picking a Strategy

I used to follow the “bro” mentality for eating. I would minimize the number of foods I could eat and stick to it. Now I follow a flexible diet. I can eat what I want and when I want as long as it fits my macros and my calories. I plan ahead each day for the next day's meals. I cook the food and pack it in containers that can travel easily. This takes away a lot of the problems I used to face. If I know that I am going to have lunch with my co-workers tomorrow, I plan all other meals accordingly. The goal is to hit my macros consistently.

Using a Meal Tracker

Again, like the calorie counting, I don't enter my food as I go, I simply enter my menu planning ahead of time into the app (My Macros+) and edit it during the day. If I miss a meal, I edit it out of the app. If I eat something unplanned I edit the app. In this way, tracking what I eat becomes easy.

Being Consistent

Nothing works overnight. You have to be consistent over the long haul. It takes time to see results, but the results are worth the wait.

How to Execute Menu Planning

The steps for menu planning are quite easy.

  1. Decide on a methodology. Will it be “bro” eating or will it be flexible dieting? Whatever you choose, be prepared to stick with it for some time.
  2. Plan your menu at least one day in advance. Do more if you have time, but the bare minimum is 1 day in advance.
  3. Enter your plan into an app for tracking food consumption. Check the numbers and adjust your plan so that you meet your goals.
  4. Repeat steps 1 through 3 daily.

By doing this type of menu planning you increase your likelihood of success greatly.

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The Best Shape of My Life!

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One of the stated goals of Fitness Exposé is to help people get into the best shape of their lives. I have developed a program that does just that and I am going to be the guinea pig over the next 90 days. I started Mission Best Ever on  October 17, 2015 and it will end on January 16, 2015, my 51st birthday. At that point I will be in the best shape I have ever been in. It is the start of something big for me and for Fitness Exposé.

Mission Best Ever: Starting Point

I started out this journey at 261.4 lbs and 25% body fat. I let myself go after my last mission and I am upset with myself for it, but this time I am going to get into even better shape than the last time. I am going to show off the hard work I have done to gain muscle. Below is my starting set of photos. I will be updating this weekly.

Mission Best Ever - Day 7

Mission Best Ever: The Goals

I am not making a body weight goal because I don't really feel that it matters. I am making a fat percentage goal because I want to be as lean as possible.

Goal Description
Body Fat Percentage 10%
Workouts I have trained every single day of the 90 day mission
Nutrition Plan IIFYM with carb-cycling – 3500 calories

Mission Best Ever: The Training Plan

I am going to be using Y3T for the first 9 weeks and then a full body HIT routine for the final 27 days.  I have used Y3T in the past with great success. When handled properly it really leans me out and builds muscle.

I will use the off days to get some cardio in, so that means 3 days per week of cardio. I am planning to do some of this in the gym and some of it outside (if weather permits). I have found that I need cardio in order to get into the shape I want. My body doesn't do well with just weight training alone. I am a little impatient, so I will do the cardio, but keep an eye on myself so that I am not overdoing it.

Mission Best Ever: Supplementation

I am going to start out using the Commander Go Pack from 1stPhorm as a test. I am very interested in seeing how well it works in the first 30 days and will review the product for you on this site at the end of those 30 days. I will also be using a multi-vitamin from Kirkland and protein powder in addition to all the solid food I can stuff down my throat.

Mission Best Ever: Motivation

I have reconnected with a group of people over on Facebook and will be participating on a daily basis. I find that helping encourage others really also motivates me. It is something I both enjoy and need. I am looking forward to seeing the results these people achieve and will be cheering them on the entire way.

Mission Best Ever: Blogging

I thought about creating a separate blog to chronicle my results, but decided this was going to be the place. You can follow my progress by bookmarking https://fitnessexpose.com/category/mission-best-ever. Visit that link regularly and you will see my progress.

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