In the name of posting some text and moving the gross picture of the Luther burgers further down the page, here is a random question from my e-mails this week.

Q: I've tried so many different diets and I can't exercise due to ankle problems. I feel like I'm running out of options. Any advice on what I should do?

A: This is going to sound snarky, and I don't mean to sound snarky at all. I say this with nothing but humor and affection - what's wrong with the rest of your body? If you're talking one ankle (or two ankles) and the rest of your body is fine, you can still exercise. If weight-bearing cardio is out, you can bike or swim. If biking and swimming are out, you can lift weights. If you don't have weights, you can do bodyweight exercises. If mentally, you just can't stand the thought of setting foot in a gym, or sweating, or lifting things, you can do yoga or Pilates at home.

There's always a way to increase your activity just a little bit. It doesn't have to be major. It can be a part of your day- a few leg lifts while you're talking on the phone, some resistance band exercises while watching television, a stretch before bed. Moving even a teeny tiny bit makes you feel better about yourself, which leads to a more positive outlook, better food decisions, and eventual results. It's not a matter of, "I need to burn 500 calories or else I won't bother." You can always do something to improve your situation.

Diets don't work at all, so I don't recommend those. If you go "on" something, you're guaranteed to go "off" or it at some point. Your daily habits should be enjoyable and support your goals. Don't deny yourself anything. Include your some of your favorite foods and routines so you can look forward to your meals. Keep it flexible and fun. It's mainly a matter of learning balance and portion control. It's not a horrible proposition where you're going to starve and never eat carbs and never go to restaurants. I really liked the book Naturally Thin by Bethenny Frankel as a guide to knocking off the dieting and incorporating your favorite foods. Here are a couple of blog entries where I reviewed it: Naturally Thin and Naturally Thin for the Non-Elf.

Basically, what I'm saying is baby steps. You don't have to go on a diet, or take up a grueling exercise program. You just have to move in the direction of your dreams. If you dream of being lean, healthy, and happy, do things that make you feel that way. All of the struggle, uncertainty and pain comes from doing things that are at odds with what your heart wants. If you want to be fit, healthy, and balanced, pigging out on junk food (or not eating at all) is at odds with your vision and will make you feel horrible. If your ankles hurt, deciding to become a runner will create massive mental and physical conflict and make you feel horrible. Avoid things that make you feel horrible and do things that bring you joy.

Health and fitness is a state of mind more than anything else. Change your mind and you change your body. I have this quote stuck on my desk. "You speak your world into existence. What did you say to yourself today?"

Posted by skwigg at 8:56 AM CDT

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I finished reading The End of Overeating: Taking Control of The Insatiable American Appetite by David Kessler (see part one below). We have set ourselves up to become ginormous! The layered and loaded food, the new social norms, and the constant cues from advertising condition people to eat and eat and eat.

That slop you're looking at over to the left is called a Luther Burger. It's a bacon cheeseburger served on a grilled glazed donut! It is the very definition of a "layered and loaded" meal. It's an example of the sugar on salt on fat on salt on sugar on fat combo that causes people's brains to short circuit. It doesn't have to be that blatant though. The same thing happens with a restaurant salad. Ever noticed how a restaurant salad is so much more "craveable" than anything you throw together in your own kitchen? That's because in a restaurant, the lettuce is merely a carrier for the salt, sugar and fat. It sounds virtuous to order a salad, but by the time you add the crispy chicken tenders, the cheese, the croutons, the dressing, the bacon crumbles, the bread basket, and the creamy butter, you're just as fattened up and blissed out as the person eating a Luther Burger. If you eat that 1500 calorie salad in good company, on a fun day, and make all kinds of positive associations with the experience, you'll want it again... and again, and again, and again. Chili's, Applebee's, TGI Friday's and The Cheesecake Factory are counting on it.

Not only has this layered and loaded "big food" become standard in the U.S., it's now socially acceptable to eat anytime and anyplace. For example, it's perfectly normal to have a giant spread of food in business meetings. Europeans think our bagel basket behavior is completely bizarro. Why on earth do people need to EAT in a business meeting? Here, food is expected and nobody questions it. The French paradox doesn't look so paradoxical when you realize that they are accustomed to eating meals, you know, where you sit down at a table with other people at a set time. Sure the food is rich and delicious, but if it's not mealtime, you don't eat. Americans eat all day - in cars, on planes, in classrooms, in offices, at our desks, and walking down the street. We eat alone. We eat at odd times. We eat an hour after we just ate. We eat when we're not hungry. We eat when we're cued - popcorn at the movies, ice cream after dinner, muffins in meetings. It's a trip! No wonder the obesity rate is skyrocketing!

Weight doesn't necessarily tell you who is prone to conditioned hypereating and who is not. Thin people can be just as addicted and obsessive. They can experience the same "brain fireworks" response to the sight and smell of certain foods, but they manage to compensate by ramping up activity or lowering overall calorie intake, even if they still exhibit some weird behaviors, or lose control periodically.

There is no easy solution to the problem. I was relieved that Kessler didn't push a restrictive diet as the way to handle it. He says that the only plan that will work is one built around your lifestyle and your personal likes and dislikes, that you can't sustain a change in behavior if it leaves you feeling hungry, unhappy, angry or resentful. He says that early on, you need to avoid being cued. If you always lose control in certain places or circumstances, you steer clear of those for awhile. Then you make your own rules. You control your portions using foods that satisfy you and that you can eat in moderation. Maybe an engineered fully-loaded fast food burger is a trigger for you, but one you make yourself on your George Foreman grill is fine. That way deprivation doesn't enter the picture, but neither does mindless loss of control.

He also talks about counterconditioning and perceptual shifts, taking what's seen as positive and desired and turning it into a negative. He uses the tobacco industry as an example. For years, smoking was socially acceptable, sexy and cool. People did it everywhere without thinking. Now it's seen as something repulsive and dangerous, and the industry is being forced to act more responsibly. He says the same kind of shift needs to occur with "big food." Right now, you have fast food commercials showing skinny, healthy people eating at bright, happy restaurants. They're not showing you the obesity, diabetes, cancer and coronary artery disease.

The End of Overeating gave me some great insight into how we're being manipulated, and also a lot more compassion for people who struggle. You can be an intelligent, confident, loving person with extensive nutrition knowledge and a sky-high self-esteem and still lose all control in the face of your trigger foods. Now I understand why.

Posted by skwigg at 4:25 PM CDT

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I realize that I shouldn't write a book review until I finish the book, but I'm so excited about this one I can't wait! I'm on page 154 of The End of Overeating, Taking Control of The Insatiable American Appetite. OMG! Maybe Oprah doesn't have a self-love problem, maybe her brain has been rewired by the food industry!! Maybe she is a powerless against salt, sugar and fat because consuming them together actually alters neural pathways, triggering a powerful reward mechanism that reinforces consuming more and more and more.

I first heard of this book when somebody mentioned the awesome Washington Post article Crave Man (a must-read) in the comments section. David Kessler is a former FDA commissioner who took an interest in the soaring obesity rate and people's seeming inability to stop eating - even when they don't want to eat, even when their health is at risk, even when it makes them feel awful. Why is that? Is it really just a willpower thing or has their brain chemistry been altered by Monster Thickburgers and Double-Stuff Oreos?

I hate all of the animal studies mentioned in this book, but they're fascinating. Rats don't want their rat chow if eating it has made them sick on previous occasions, and they definitely don't want their rat chow if they have to cross an electric floor to get to it, or if they have to push a lever too many times in order for it to appear. Rats will run mazes, push levers, ride unicycles and fight cats to get to a Cheeto. There have been tests to determine how hard they're willing to work for various rewards. They won't do much for a regular healthy rat meal, but to obtain a salt/fat or sugar/fat combo, they will work their little rat feet off. They'll push a lever almost as many times for junk food as they will for cocaine.

David Kessler interviews food industry insiders about how they are deliberately manipulating our brains to want more food. They're working to create foods where there is no "point of diminishing return." The seventh, tenth or fifteenth bite is as good if not better than the first bite. There is no cue to stop. Even if some small part of your conscious mind doesn't want to finish the bag, your happy neurons are lighting up like a fireworks display and you're not stopping. You're the rat on the electric floor.

I have learned so many cool food industry terms from this book! Bliss point, eatertainment, premium treating, dynamic novelty, craveability and conditioned hypereating. That last one is the scariest of all. Conditioned hypereating. It's no accident that people are supersizing themselves. It's like the tobacco industry manipulating nicotine addiction. It's fascinating and freaky. I'll keep reading and let you know what he suggests we do about this.

On an unrelated note (or somewhat related note) lots of people asked for more details about the Lean Eating coaching program - what it is, what it costs, how it works. Here is a page with all of the details. Ok, back to my fat rat book! Stand by for a follow-up post. I have lots of questions and thoughts about this one. Remember I said that I quit eating Nacho Cheese Doritos because they have like five kinds of MSG in them? I switched to Tostitos because they only have three ingredients (corn, oil, salt). That lasted one week! At some point I decided I had to have the Doritos, that I didn't care if they killed me. There was just something about the flavor and the texture and the crunch... and now I realize that I am an electric rat!

Posted by skwigg at 2:00 PM CDT

Updated: Sunday, 24 May 2009 11:52 PM CDT

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Quite a few people read my recent intuitive eating posts and said, intuition, yeah right!

- If you're someone whose intuition wants nothing but chocolate

- If you prefer guidance, accountability and serious incentive

- If you want to get superhero lean and haven't been able to achieve it on your own

John Berardi is about to start a Lean Eating coaching group. This is an opportunity for regular people (all ages and sizes) to receive the kind of world class nutrition and fat loss coaching he gives to his Olympic athletes, figure competitors and gladiators.

His Precision Nutrition program was a HUGE factor in my recent food peace. It's not all about counting things and depriving yourself. He taught me how to relax and make good decisions based on measured results. If something isn't working, you identify and change it. If something is working, then you leave it alone. Precision Nutrition was the first time I'd really eaten for health. I'd always blabbed about "healthy eating" but my focus was still on my weight. I started the program around the time I was diagnosed with skin cancer. Suddenly, it wasn't all about body fat percentages and jeans sizes; I wanted to keep my DNA from mutating! I learned how to prepare and enjoy 10+ servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Before, I would buy fresh produce and it would always rot while I ate protein bars, rice cakes, and Lean Cuisines. PN taught me how to grocery shop, and how to prepare and enjoy everything I bought. It didn't quite teach me how to cook (recall the great granola fire of '08) but I'm getting there.

I can't say enough good things about John Berardi, his style of coaching, and the support provided. He gave me a great foundation that allows me to stay lean and healthy no matter what goal I'm pursuing or what crazy activity I'm enjoying. I understand my nutrition needs well enough that I can stay on track whether I'm training several hours per day, spending eight weeks on crutches, or enjoying everyday life. I don't have to struggle or guess. And while I may bend some rules (Cadbury Eggs, cough, cough...) I know exactly how much I can get away with before ab wreckage occurs. I've become a kick ass intuitive eater and not somebody who is always going to go for the cupcakes.

If you join the coaching program, JB is also giving away $20,000 for the best transformations. That's whack because there aren't that many openings available and so not a lot of competition. It's not like a Body for Life challenge where you're competing against millions of other people. This is a prize you actually have a shot at.

If you're tired of struggling and you're in need of motivation, guidance and support, take a look at the Lean Eating coaching program. If I hadn't already reached nutrition nirvana, I'd be signing up myself.

I use an affiliate link when discussing this product. I will receive a portion of the sale if you buy it. See my Disclosure Statement. 

Posted by skwigg at 12:33 AM CDT

Updated: Sunday, 8 November 2009 11:09 AM CST

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I saw Kirstie Alley on Oprah talking about her weight struggle. When her contract with Jenny Craig ended, she didn't weigh herself or workout for a year and a half. She regained 83 pounds, about ten more than she'd lost. I can't even get my brain around that. I understand cutting loose and splurging a bit when the pressure is off, but dang! She had a whole room full of high-end exercise equipment and she had it all moved to the garage.

On my dog walk this morning, I was still puzzling over the whole thing. What drives people? Or maybe a better question would be what runs over people and kills their desire to take care of themselves? I saved this great quote from Oprah:

I don't have a weight problem-I have a self-care problem that manifests through weight. As my friend Marianne Williamson shared with me, "Your overweight self doesn't stand before you craving food. She's craving love." Falling off the wagon isn't a weight issue; it's a love issue.

So, there's that. But I also think there's a soul-crushing boredom issue. If working out means an hour a day on the treadmill, or the same circuit of weight machines, or mindless repetition of hated exercises, I'd want to break my legs and eat cupcakes too.

I've worked out regularly for years, and I think one of the reasons I do it is because it's FUN. I don't do any boring workouts. I'm always trying new activities, new methods, and new gadgets. When it's time to workout, I'm genuinely excited. It's like play time for me! I get to be a fitness model, a dancer, a ninja, a skater, a boxer, a trapeze artist, or a Russian strong man. My workouts always support my current interests or my current vision of myself. Plus, they're flexible. I don't do a program that requires an hour a day six days a week if I don't have the time or desire for it. I don't use an alarm clock to wake up, not ever, not for anything. So, I'm not going to sign up for a crack-of-dawn class at the gym. My workouts fit my life. That's huge! I see so many people pick a random plan and try to force their lives around it. When they lose interest or can't keep up, they quit exercising completely.

I've been thinking about all the things I still want to do. I've never been a runner. I always claim that I don't run unless something is chasing me but I'm somebody who can open my front door and run for five miles without stopping. I did that one Christmas morning, no idea why. But I've never worn a number or crossed a finish line. That might be fun.

I also used to show and train horses. I really miss that sometimes and I'd like to take it up again. My fear is that if I go near a horse, I'll buy one. You know me and the buying things.

Every time the winter Olympics are on, I want to be a figure skater. I think it would be a blast to take lessons. I can already skate, and I probably have a build and attitude more suited for hockey, but just once I'd like to wear a cute outfit and land a jump.

I could babble on and on about everything I'd still like to try - crossfit, rock climbing, skiing, snowboarding, spinning, ballroom dancing, wilderness hiking. Do you know I've never taken a yoga class? I have a whole list of activities that I'm dying to investigate. Right now I love kettlebells, I'm on a huge Pilates kick, and I've become completely infatuated with the TRX, but when the novelty wears off, I won't be like, "Well, it's not convenient for me anymore. I'm done working out." I'll be onto one of the dozens of other activities that I'm looking forward to.

Can you guys relate? Am I nuts? (No, don't respond to that one. ;-) For longtime exercisers, I'd love to know how you keep interesting. For those who struggle, why do you think that is? I want to understand.

Posted by skwigg at 1:56 PM CDT

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This morning I attempted my first-ever workout on a TRX Suspension Trainer. It was... hard. LOL I don't know what I was expecting! Maybe more of a "Weeee! Fun! Look at me! I'm Flying!" experience.  What I got was my ass kicked.

If you've never seen one of these things, here's a promo video that shows it in action.

And a dorm room workout using the door mount.

I've wanted a TRX for awhile but I never got one because I couldn't figure out how or where to mount it. The TRX people on Twitter assured me that the door mount actually works on any standard door, no matter what kind it is or which way it opens. As long as it's reasonably sturdy and latches securely, you're good. You could also secure it around a pull-up bar, tree, fence, jungle gym, swing set, weight machine, ceiling rafter, or anything that's tall and won't move.

TRX workouts fit right into my current fixation with body weight training, core strength, flexibility and grace. Although, my first experience with the TRX was not so graceful. It's easy to adjust but if you've never done it before, there are definitely moments of fumbling, clutzy confusion between exercises. I'm sure my transitions will get smoother as I use it more.

I also had some trouble finding the right resistance. You adjust resistance by changing your angle and foot position. The steeper the angle, the more challenging it will be. As a first-timer, I was a bit clueless about what would work for me. I'd try something, find it too easy. Adjust, find it too hard. Adjust again, get it just right and the set would be over. Every freakin' exercise that happened! It makes me want to try it again right now but my chest, back and arms are already yowling at me. I'll have to give it 48 hours.

The soreness from the pistol squats hasn't hit yet. That ought to be a joy tomorrow! I loved using the TRX for single-leg balance exercises. You can use as much leg as you're able. When the leg starts to fail, your upper body can jump in and assist. I was more willing to push the reps and range of motion knowing that I couldn't topple. And once I finally figured out how to put my feet in the loops and turn over, the suspended mountain climber, spiderman, push-up, pike and crunch options were numerous and killer. This is going to be fun!

I haven't worked out a schedule yet. Right now I do cardio every day to wear out the dog monsters, usually an easy walk with elderly Samantha and then a longer hike or hill sprints with Ripley. I do Pilates mat work most days. I do a Pilates equipment session on Mondays and kettlebell / body weight strength training on Wednesdays and Saturdays. I didn't used to consider Pilates a strength workout, but now that they've figured out how strong I am, they're giving me loads of resistance on the springs, pull-ups, squats, isometrics, crazy hanging balancing stuff. It's totally different than the kind of strength training I'm used to, not so much with the high heart rate and sweat, but I'm definitely sore the next day!

I ordered the professional bundle when I bought my TRX. It came with a door mount, a workout DVD, laminated workout cards and a carrying case. That's a good start but I need more resources, so if anybody can recommend good sites, books or videos, I'm all eyeballs. I sort of wish I'd bought the Force Kit because it comes with a 12-week workout program. Does anybody have that? Is it worth going back for a separate purchase? Anybody doing "The Infamous TRX Workout" from John Berardi and Alwyn Cosgrove? I intend to check that out too.

If you've ever used a TRX in your life and you have any thoughts or tips, please share!

I use an affiliate link when discussing this product. I will receive a portion of the sale if you buy it. See my Disclosure Statement. 

Posted by skwigg at 1:08 PM CDT

Updated: Sunday, 8 November 2009 11:10 AM CST

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Well, it took like 25 years of trial and error, but I am a happy eater. I follow no rules. I count no calories. I'm completely over nutrient ratios, meal timing and measuring cups. Plus, as an added bonus, I'm not fat. Any time I've flirted with this "intuitive eating" stuff before, I've quickly become too fat for my little pants. This time I'm gradually losing. I'm 5'8" and weigh 135-137 most days. I don't know my percentage of body fat. It's possible that I'm losing muscle and brains. I'm not concerned enough to get out the calipers. My Tanita scale tells me that I'm between 14% and 24% body fat. Helpful, eh? It's like asking a Magic 8 Ball. The readout may as well say "Concentrate and ask again." Or "Signs point to yes."  All I know is that my yoga pants are loose! Woohoo!

So, why did intuitive eating work this time when it's destroyed my abs so many times before? I've been trying to figure that out. I know that in the past I've used intuitive eating as an excuse to binge. I'd turn to it after a bout of really restrictive dieting, or when I couldn't face my nutrition software, or when I wasn't accountable to a trainer. My "intuition" would tell me to eat boxes of glazed donuts and sheets of cookies. I'd gain weight, scoff at the total lameness of this "embrace your inner cow" intuitive hoody-hoo, and go right back to obsessive dieting, tracking and measuring. I wrote down every single thing I ate or drank for TWO YEARS. That was not fun, and actually not helpful.

I'm more relaxed now. I don't make food decisions from a place of frustration and panic. My intuition really likes strawberries. I eat chocolate every day. I like bagels. I like to eat out. I'm not limiting myself to dieter food but I'm very aware of portions. I eat one Cadbury Egg, not six. I eat mini-bagels, not those bakery bagels the size of my head. I understand that a typical restaurant serving is enough to feed four people.

Last time I tried intuitive eating, portion control was my downfall. I believed those books that said to eat as many cookies as I wanted and that eventually I wouldn't want as many. Right!! Weeks later, I still wanted every cookie that had ever been baked. I was reeling out of control on a blood sugar rollercoaster. The more junk I ate, the more junk I wanted. I was never able to pull it together enough to even maintain my weight, much less lose.

Some things that really helped me this time:

- I weigh myself every day. If you're not going to count calories or measure your food, you'd better be keeping an eye on something. It could be weight, waist measurement, a caliper pinch, a pair of jeans, but you need some kind of objective feedback. If you choose not to track your food and not to look at any of your measurements, then you'd better go buy some fat pants.

- I eat what I want but I always control portions. Generally, the more I want something, the more I need to watch out. I can play fast and loose with spinach but I'd better take my ice cream in a single-serving container.

- I share. I never used to share before. Sharing is the greatest thing ever! You get to eat whatever you want and make everyone around you fat. Try it! Order the double-fudge super cookie dough caramel delight. Eat three bites and watch your dining companions devour the rest of it like hungry hyenas. Share your French fries. Split the sandwich. Order three tacos and only eat one of them. It's exhilarating! Plus, I always have great leftovers.

- I strike a nice balance of healthy food and treats. You can't eat an all-treat diet and look or feel very good. I eat loads of fresh fruits and vegetables every day. I love whole grains. I eat nuts and seeds like I'm a squirrel. I'm a sucker for a big salad. I enjoy lean protein as long as it's not forced upon me every 2-3 hours. I eat a lot of healthy whole foods but I like to add a Pop Tart or Reese's Peanut Butter Cup for good measure.

- I don't eat six times per day, or three times per day, or three meals and two snacks. I don't follow anybody else's rules because how does the book or the calculator know what I'm doing or when I'm going to be hungry? It doesn't. So, I eat when I feel like it. On an active, hungry day I might eat 5-6 times. On a lazy day with restaurant food, I might eat 2-3 times. I'm no longer dumb enough try to force three more meals after lunch at The Cheesecake Factory.

- I grasp the importance of good nutrition. I'm not knocking diet plans or nutrition programs, especially if you're trying to achieve a sports performance or body comp goal. A little bit of structure can be good. I base my eating on the healthy principles I've learned but I don't allow myself to become a slave to the details. And don't believe that I can eat as many cookies as I want and still lose weight. Big derrrr there!

- I flow. That's significant because I used to battle. I battled my weight. I struggled with willpower. I waged a war against fat. I fought with the numbers. I kicked myself when I slipped. My mindset was one big bloody massacre. My fitness goals were always at odds with what I really wanted, which was to relax and eat Cheetos. Now, if I want to relax and eat Cheetos, I do so immediately. No struggle. No stress. No guilt. I know that for my next meal I'll choose something a little more ab-friendly.

Posted by skwigg at 1:18 AM CDT

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I did my first TT Bootcamp Workout this morning. I started with the kettlebell routine. I was expecting like straight-up death, where it would wipe me out and I'd hate it but I'd gut it out anyway. It was surprisingly fun, even with no other campers except Ripley the mat hog. Without giving the whole thing away, there is a warm-up circuit, a strength circuit, a TT big 5 circuit, a depletion circuit, and a total body abs circuit. I believe the depletion circuit should have been called something like "the happy kittens and sunshine" circuit so that people would not realize what they were in for. And, curse you, Craig Ballantyne, for putting burpees as the very last exercise. I was like a drunken jack-in-the-box by that point.

I use iTunes to time my intervals. Here's my lame explanation of how to edit song clips in iTunes. (If there's an easier way, somebody please share.) You can create a playlist with clips of an appropriate length, say 30 seconds, and you switch exercises every time the song changes. You can use a longer clip with a slower song to time your rest periods. Making all the clips is a nuisance, but once you have them, you just copy and drag them into the sequence you want. If that sounds like too much work, you can also use round timer audios. They're just timed clips that say "30 second round" "10 seconds left" "one minute rest" etc. I downloaded mine free from The Fight Geek.

I also wanted to share my new love of puzzle mats or gym flooring or whatever you want to call the stuff my dog is lounging on. They're mat squares with jigsaw edges. They're cheap, light and easy to store. You can lay down a nice big workout space, do your thing, and then pick them up and stuff them in a closet. I had been using a regular exercise mat, but they're too little and they slip and move, very hazardous for Turkish get-ups! Now, I mat off my floor space and I can train barefoot, which I love with kettlebells, and after my KB workout I can do my Pilates mat exercises. You can buy the squares from sporting good stores or Amazon has all kinds of gym flooring.

If only I could find a way to pad the walls. :-D I really shouldn't train indoors with kettlebells. I have ceramic and slate floors, sliding glass doors, mirrors, aquariums, flat screen TVs, all kinds of things that it would be really bad to toss a kettlebell through. So far, I've had no mishaps.

You may have seen this already from Precision Nutrition, but I thought it was pretty cool. They sent out an e-mail with the subject line "How to get women into great shape." I (and Eve ;-) thought, "Oh no, what's this?" I feared pink dumbbells or possibly a figure competitor "arm day" thing. Well, guess what? You get women into great shape by having them flip tires, slam medicine balls, and do pull-ups. Hell yes!!! Check out the fun videos.

Posted by skwigg at 11:19 AM CDT

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Yes, I bought the Turbulence Training Bootcamp Workouts. You knew that I would! I buy everything I see on the Interwebs. :-P If you're thinking about getting it, here's a quick summary:

Who is it for? - This package is really designed for trainers, either trainers who already run fitness bootcamps or trainers who would like to start bootcamp programs. They're totally done-for-you workouts that you could lead a group of people through anywhere and with no equipment. They would be especially handy for a trainer just getting started. If you don't have your own facility or money to buy equipment, you could get your business off the ground by running bootcamps. They're a great option in a struggling economy. For participants, they're much less expensive than private training sessions. For the trainer, they're more profitable because you're able to train more people in less time.

What do you get? - They're downloadable e-books. The full program comes with the TT Bootcamp Workouts, a Bootcamp Business Success System, a Bridal Fitcamp bonus, and Rapid Fat Loss meal plans. Most of the workouts are no equipment, but there are a few bonus bootcamp routines for kettlebells, medicine balls, dumbbells and stability balls.

What if you have zero interest in running a bootcamp? - You can download the workouts and meal plans for yourself and pass on the business and marketing goo (as I did). The workouts are great. The meal plans I can sum up for you in five words - eat protein and green vegetables.

What if you're already a TT Member and already have like a gazillion TT workouts? - It's your call as to whether you need or want more. These routines are all new and they're a bit different in that they're timed sets. Instead of doing 5 or 10 or something, you'll do 30 seconds or a minute. From the group bootcamp point of view, that's so all fitness levels can keep up. A beginner might knock out 5 reps in 30 seconds and an advanced exerciser might knock out 50, so everyone goes at an appropriate pace. I enjoy the novelty, intensity and pace of timed sets. I think it's more fun than counting reps and is a nice way to shake things up. You'll need a stop watch or a Gymboss interval timer.

I've talked to several trainers who bought the Turbulence Training Bootcamp Workouts planning to unleash them on unsuspecting clients. I got them for my own entertainment. I'll be doing the kettlebell bootcamp routine on Wednesday. I'll let you know!

I use an affiliate link when discussing this product. I will receive a portion of the sale if you buy it. See my Disclosure Statement. 

Posted by skwigg at 1:54 PM CDT

Updated: Sunday, 8 November 2009 11:11 AM CST

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