Training is a very cyclical thing. There are times when it is going well and times when it is not going well. Your job is to work through the hard times and enjoy the better times.

Lately I have found a sweet spot in my training. I have found that I have alot more energy before, during and after my training sessions. I feel extremely agressive in the gym. This special groove has led to increases in the weight I am throwing up. I just feel much stronger.

I celebrated my 45th birthday yesterday. I feel more alive than on my 25th birthday. I have a tough fat loss road ahead, but I know I will reach all of my goals. I've found a groove and I'm riding it to victory in my training.

Life, for me, is not about wallowing in the mud pits, it is about climbing the highest peaks. It is about facing challenges and conquering fears. It is about the success that comes from the knowledge many failures has provided.

My advice today is to never give up. No matter how hard you try you can always go a little bit harder. This is how I approach my training. I always go harder than the last time. It is my own personal training philosophy and I live by it.

So get out and find your groove. Take ahold of it and ride it to victory.

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• Listen or Make It Worse
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As I looked around the gym yesterday I noticed something. The majority of the people in the gym train without real purpose or intensity. They simply go through the motions, not really bothering to push themselves. The question is why bother?

To me, the reason I spend any time in the gym is to see results. When I fail to use intensity in my training I fail to see results. That means that without intensity my gym time is a complete waste of time.

Think it over. Why bother training at all I'd you don't want to train with intensity? I know it hurts to train with intensity, but it is a good hurt. Get with it and up the intensity. You won't be sorry.

Related Posts:

• Listen or Make It Worse
• The Beat Goes On
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There are many ingredients to successful training, but none better than consistency. Creating a plan and then sticking to it daily does more for your fitness success than anything else. I get more compliments on my progress now that I am insistent than ever before. So how do you insure this consistency?

There are three keys to consistency: planning, perseverance and priority.

PLANNING

Take the time to plan your workouts. Know ahead of time what you will be doing. Don't leave it to chance. If you are into a body part split workout, know the order of the body parts. Know exactly what exercises you are using. This saves you time and makes you more productive.

PERSEVERANCE

As you travel down your fitness path you are bound to hit roadblocks. You will plateau. The key here is to push on through. Don't allow yourself the luxury of giving up. Through hardwork and perseverance you will remain consistent.

PRIORITY

We all try the excuse of not having enough time. It is truly just am excuse. We make time for what is important to us. Mak your training a priority in your life. Get up earlier if that is how you can fit it in. Do what will keep you consistent.

By planning your workouts, persevering when you feel lik quitting and by making training a priority you will be consistent!

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Today I went to the gym to get a cardio workout in on the bike. I brought my heart rate monitor with me. I was completely unaware that the battery on it was low, so I was unprepared for what happened next.

Technical Difficulties

As I started my workout the reading on the heart rate monitor was at 00. I remember thinking “Either that's wrong or I am actually dead as I pedal this bike.”. As I knew I was not dead I set out to fix the problem.

Problems Distract Us

I pulled out my iPhone and did a little research. I tried resynching the monitor with the sensor strap to no avail. I reset the monitor. Nothing worked and that was starting to include my workout. I was not keeping up the pace that I had planned.

Focus for Fierce Intensity

I began to realize that this distraction could destroy my workout time. I took the monitor off my wrist and set it in the tray next to my water. I began to focus on the task at hand.

My mind became consumed with the goal I had set for the session. I noticed an immediate improvement in my workout. My goal was now at the front of my mind. Nothing was going to get in my way.

Redirect Before It Is Too Late

I learned a valuable lesson that I want to pass on to you. When you find yourself going astray, immediately redirect yourself. Do not tolerate the deviation. There is something about a fast correction that keeps the brain on task.

Had I continued to fuss with the distraction I would have completely lost focus. My brain would have prioritized the distraction ahead of my goals.

Habit Forming Focus

If you let something continue it soon becomes a habit. This relates to both positive and negative habits. If your goal is to lose body fat and you fin your nutrition slipping, correct it at once. The longer you wait the less likely it will get fixed. Prioritize your life and the important things will get done.

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As I travel rapidly along the path to my first bodybuilding contest I spend alot of time considering where I am and planning my future steps. I've come to many conclusions along the way. Some of these conclusions have been extremely personal while others have just been educational.

I've always thought of myself as being fairly intense. I began to wonder if I was using the right measurement to determine my intensity status. As I examined things I realized that there was room to be even more intense. I then set out to intensify.

Intensify nutrition

Here is an area where simple is better. I went back to the drawing board and simplified my eating. I began to make one small change each day. By taking these small steps I was able to intensify my nutrition.

Intensify my attitude

Not accepting less than my best is a lesson I had to learn. I focused on small changes in my attitude. As I made more changes I was able to intensify my attitude.

Intensify training

This one was hard for me. My training has always been intense. However, I realized that my common problem has been that I get so focused on the weights that I forget the cardio. As a result I have pushed my cardio to a different place. This has enabled me to intensify my training.

Intensify my goals

Today I am publishing this week's goals. The idea is to intensify them by holding myself accountable to my readers.

My goals are (each day builds on the last):

Sunday – I only drink water, milk, coffee and herbal tea, with water being my main beverage.

Monday – I get the majority of my carbs from fruits and vegetables.

Tuesday – I only eat protein if it is a lean protein.

Wednesday – I drink 1 gallon of water daily.

Thursday – I do some type of cardio each day.

Friday – I set personal bests at every workout.

Saturday – I eat 2700 calories each day.

Please hold me to these goals.

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