Being an artist

I just recently heard that at least in Canada, tattoo artists, and every other form of artist I believe, gets a tax break, aka for the most part they don't have to pay taxes on their work.

Well, that made me laugh and I said

"well, I shouldn't have to pay taxes either"

why is that?

When someone in the fitness industry really gets a blank canvas aka. someone whom is coming in for no particular reason other than
a) wants some more "tone"
b) wants to "muscle up"
c) any one of those non-specific goals,

I get to have some real fun.

these people, regardless of how far along are they, are treated like marble slabs. obviously, some slabs are more dense/bigger/further away from finished product/easier to shape than others.

It really boils down to yes, I am an artist, especially when it comes to these clients.

the IDEAL marble slab is the figure competitor/bodybuilder, because that IS their sport, being sculpted into a masterpiece, and put on display hoping theirs (and mine) hard work pays off (not only financially, but in sheer recognition).

For example, if someone comes in to me, whom I believe is underweight, i need more marble aka. this person needs to put on muscle.

someone comes in with too much marble, we need to really chisel a lot off to get to the finish product.

it really is incredible to be able to have this ability to look and see what is needed. need more shoulders? we'll add more marble there. need less legs? we'll chisel off marble from there.

This is what keeps me going, knowing that everyone has the potential to become beautiful pieces of art.

Just how far are you willing to go to help me have the resources to do so? aka nutrition and adherence?

dieting stress

Is a meal plan stressful?

Kinda.

Sorta.

Not really.

I actually find it very liberating. As I have said before, I myself have a nutritionist, and I love it. Why?

Someone is telling me EXACTLY what to do to achieve my physique goals. He is constantly in contact with me, asking me the right questions, all the while I'm learning even more about my profession from someone whom has been doing it, successfully, much longer than me.

So this is what I tell my clients:

Stop worrying about the nutrition.

This is completely taken care of, once you hire a professional. I have weekly meetings with my clients in order to go over their concerns, with unlimited text/email support to answer their immediate concerns.

If things are bothering you in your life, don't let nutrition be one of them. Imagine if someone told you EXACTLY how to invest and make you great returns. Imagine if someone told you EXACTLY the way to deal with your stress at work. Imagine if someone told you EXACTLY how to get the girl/guy of your dreams.

This is what I do. I tell you EXACTLY what to do and how to do it.

Now, I also understand there will be hardships and the like along the road, and that's why its not getting a plan and "see ya!" Its constant monitoring, like your stock broker/financial planner does.

I slowly or quickly, depending on your experience in the gym, put you directly towards your goals.

Stop worrying about the nutrition and do it. Yes it is that easy.

Is a meal plan stressful?

Kinda.

Sorta.

Not really.

I actually find it very liberating. As I have said before, I myself have a nutritionist, and I love it. Why?

Someone is telling me EXACTLY what to do to achieve my physique goals. He is constantly in contact with me, asking me the right questions, all the while I'm learning even more about my profession from someone whom has been doing it, successfully, much longer than me.

So this is what I tell my clients:

Stop worrying about the nutrition.

This is completely taken care of, once you hire a professional. I have weekly meetings with my clients in order to go over their concerns, with unlimited text/email support to answer their immediate concerns.

If things are bothering you in your life, don't let nutrition be one of them. Imagine if someone told you EXACTLY how to invest and make you great returns. Imagine if someone told you EXACTLY the way to deal with your stress at work. Imagine if someone told you EXACTLY how to get the girl/guy of your dreams.

This is what I do. I tell you EXACTLY what to do and how to do it.

Now, I also understand there will be hardships and the like along the road, and that's why its not getting a plan and "see ya!" Its constant monitoring, like your stock broker/financial planner does.

I slowly or quickly, depending on your experience in the gym, put you directly towards your goals.

Stop worrying about the nutrition and do it. Yes it is that easy.

NEW FAD 4: Nutrition

so of course, half of my company name is nutrition!

so obviously there have been many many many and there will be many many many new fads with nutrition.

promising:

weight gain
weight loss
toning
shaping
fat loss
fat gain (joke)
muscle shaping

and everything else under the sun you could imagine.

here is what it all boils down to:

consistency. that is the key.

if you're reading anything about nutrition, you're either trying to BETTER your current look/mood/energy level, or embark on what is correct.

here is the ticket: read my limiting reagent post, and then figure out yours.

if people are big, VERY big,its usually all nutrition. if you're drinking 8 litres of full sugar pop a day, there it is. going to 6 litres will probably yield some results. your battle isn't in the gym, its in the kitchen.

so all the fads/trends aka high carb, low carb, high fat, low fat, no fat, high protein, high everything etc. have SOME value.

They're trying to make you better than where you are now. direction is obviously a big thing.

i recommend finding someone competent in your area (MEGA MARTY!) to sit down and do your nutritional coaching/programming with you for AT LEAST 3 months. then you can get an idea of why he/she is doing what they're doing, if it is working, and that'll give you enough time to PUMMEL them full of questions are to why. why why why.

I've said it hundreds of times to my clients, the most powerful question you have with anyone in the service industry (particularly mine) is why. If i can't answer their "whys", I tell them "I'd tell me to beat it and I'd find someone else"

and it is as simple as that. anyone can find a diet on the internet, print it out, and follow it. so that stops working. now what? print another one? eat less? eat more? take out the fats? less protein? more protein? more cardio? less weights? more sleep? more..

exactly.

it really isn't hard to obtain the knowledge as to WHAT is "good" to eat (other than the massive mystery which fruit seems to have behind it and just how "good" it is still eludes most people) but they when, how much and to what ratio (and sure, percentages if that works for you) to have the foods.

thats where I have employment, is manipulation based upon what it does to you. physically and mentally in almost every aspect of what that entails.

so here is the fad:

get something that have been verified "sound", and follow it. pick your limiting reagent, and kill it. stop eating X, or stop drinking so much of Y. if you're not exercising, thats a great start, but if you're mowing down 293847987234 calories a day, sprinting for 5 hours a day isn't going to help you.

go to a calorie counter website and put in what you eat a day. and be prepared to be SHOCKED if you've never done this.

Looking good vs. looking good

So, my view is skewed, and after this yours might be too.

So, what does the average "ohhhhh you look SO good"
"You're not fat!"
You're in such good shape"

Mean?

To me, not much.

Why?

Friends are the worst judge of ourselves. Ever see the girls that hang around with others that are in "worse shape" than themselves? Exactly. To look better / boost self esteem.

Look at facebook photos.
The comments I quoted earlier, or something close will soon ensue.

My opinion due to my profession has been skewed horribly. I rip/pick people apart. He needs more pecs.
She needs a bigger but
He needs less love handles
Her triceps are too small.

Huh?

But she looks "soooooo good"

No.

If we were to take two people, put them in "covering" clothing aka nothing form fitting, and covering limbs, they could potentially look the same.

We put them in the skimpiest bikini available, those 2 could look vastly/massively different. Then, if we up the ante, let's do their body fat testing/ go up and give them a squeeze.

Harder vs softer is everything to me.

All the time my girls weigh much more than others, and then look much better than their 10-20-30 lb lighter counter parts, and they're "toned" by their standards.

Where am I going with this, as always?

Look for it. Look as someone's "defintion"
You say you want to be toned, show me. Do you? Or are you going after weight? Scale chasing? What for? Do you actually ZENJOY looking anorexic?

And if you do, let's have an in person chat.

So, before you envy that girl/guy, look at their composition.

Until next time, keep questioning the status quo.

Limiting Reagent

Way back in highschool, at the beginning of my highschool chemistry obsession, We learned about limiting reagents.
what is a limiting reagent?

in a reaction, there will always be one chemical or one thing that will hold everything else back, regardless of the amount. think about having a ridiculous amount of guns, but only so much ammo (ruling out that you could throw the guns or smack someone with them). so, you're only as tough as the amount of ammo.

you're only as tough as YOUR limiting reagent.

what does that mean?

if you just "aren't hungry", that's your limiting reagent.

if you have "no time to eat", that's your limiting reagent.

you could have all your food prepared, going to the gym X times of the week, perfect technique, no stress, perfect sleep, but no matter how good those are, if your limiting reagent isn't in check, then it will fail.

I work with all of my clients to find their limiting reagent.

I'll use mine as an example

I was having a lot of issues in my personal life at one point, and it was really causing a BIG snag in my personal goals. the people close to me could see this, and would tell me so.

when this limiting reagent was gone, "awesomeness" happened. i started sleeping more, eating more (appetite was back), which in turn everything else turned on.

where I'm going with this was that eating wasn't my limiting reagent. sleeping too little wasn't my limiting reagent.

the garbage in my personal life was holding those things caged, no matter how hard i focused on them. so without me even putting any effort into these other factors, they came into place once my limiting reagent was fixed.

here are some common ones:

1)personal life issues/relationship issues
2)sleep issues (irregular patterns, shift worker, smoker, drinker)
3)partying
4)social circle (friends of not same interest, discouraging comments)
5)time
6)motivation
7)knowledge
8)drugs (prescription or non prescription, illegal)

these all can be the one thing holding you back from your goals.

once again, where am i going with this?

once you figure this out, this ONE factor, watch all your hard work come to fruition.

another reason to have a great coach/trainer (MEGA Marty plug!) is to help you figure this out if you can't on your own. I'm very fortunate to have had friends and mentors to help me be able to figure mine out.

can you figure out what yours is?

Being "in shape"

what exactly does that mean?

Lots of people want to be "in shape"

so, let's go over what that can entail.

first off, there are people trying to get in shape for bodybuilding.
what does this mean?
1) achieving the lowest bodyfat possible while obtaining muscle mass
2) learning posing, and being able to present your physique effortlessly.
3)being able to mentally handle the challenges of society/every day life to stay on your meal plan/training/supplement regimen.

lets compare this with marathon running.

what does "in shape" for it mean?
1) being able to have longevity to be able to finish the race/distance
2) having the time to prepare for endless hours to build up your cardiovascular ability to handle the race.
3) have a good bodyfat/muscle ratio to be efficient during the race

2 VASTLY different goals, and 2 VASTLY different definitions of being "in shape"

so figure out with yourself what that means to you.

so you want to "shape up" or be "in shape"

okay, so what does that mean?
obviously, a bodybuilder couldn't (typically) be able to finish a marathon, and a marathon runner should (typically) come in dead last at a bodybuilding competition.

I am writing about this because who doesn't want to shape up or be in shape.

I have clients all over the map. feel healthy, compete, lose fat, gain muscle, you name it. but all of them would agree that they want to be "in shape"

who says one shape is better than the other?

you.