Just over a month ago I attended a seminar/internship with Canadian National Weightlifting Coach Pierre Roy. His method of teaching the very technical Olympic lifts was the fastest and most effective I have ever seen.
My own technique has improved alot ever since practicing for a few weeks since I’ve been back from this internship.
The way Coach Roy teaches, may be equivalent technically to what is used in other countries Olympic lifting coaching. But the main point is that it can be taught in … 1 hour as opposed to 1 year! (For a fairly coordinated guy).
Just the same for anyone trying to achieve their fitness goals. Both our fitness bootcamp and personal training programs have the same idea – time saving, maximum efficiency and world class results.
Body fat (everybody wants to know this!): 1-2% drop. 2mm on the 1 site supra illiac. 2mm on the abs. I did not biosig myself (because I can’t self measure 12 sites!) but there is a clear difference.
Waist drop 3cm each down to 78cm (smallest point) and 81cm (around belly button)
Weight down 2kg total.
I did the same food today, and I feel quite drained (did not take an off day the last 7 days to keep the lymph fluid flowing) so I just did some lower weight prowler pushes. Anaerobic capacity was not bad I still managed 8 laps of my gym’s 35m track with only a slight desire to throw up haha.
Bowel movements were good, I am also getting great sleep. At least 7 hours straight at night and a nap in the day. Once again, the topical magnesium + capsule magnesium combination seems to do very well. I highly recommend this combination especially if you KNOW that your digestive system has issues. The topical application (on skin) is wonderful for absorption.
I would probably do shorter cleanses of 1-3 days every month for health. In the future I will rotate the “extra supplements” to detox new things. I have a package for detoxing heavy metals, one for plastics and one for estrogen. All the detoxes will start when my far-infra red sauna comes in.
I am a healthy and quite a “clean” guy and I benefitted. Imagine somebody who has not taken care of themselves in the past or has worked/lived in a more toxic area or has genetic tendencies to store/be affected by toxins. They will benefit even more!
I lost a bit of fat although this is NOT I repeat NOT a fat burning plan. There are ways to burn fat faster. It is just that those ways get “stuck” by poor health or toxicity. That is that this plan is for. Detox removes obstacles to future progress. And that is part of reaching your goals!
Athletes benefit because toxicity can affect tendon and muscle strength. As well as aerobic and anaerobic endurance as it prevents cells from producing energy effectively. So guys and girls wanting to be strong should be on a detox at least twice a year as well.
THE END of detox!
I will slowly reintroduce food to my life! I think I need to put some fat back into my diet ASAP. I miss it even more than protein.
A question came in about carbohydrate levels, yes they are quite high during the detox because the protein used is rice based and will have some carbs. But its only 100+g which is not going to help you strip fat, but its not high enough to make you a tubby either. Also the carbs are always with protein and often with fiber so its not so bad:)
Did things right sleep wise, computer off, phone off etc… and had 8 hours straight. Just as it should be. But still needed a short nap in the afternoon. I have been using a bit of topical magnesium along with the capsules. I think the topical one absorbs through the skin fast, so there is a quicker effect, and then the capsules to continue the release of magnesium through the night. The overall combination is better than either one alone.
Food was same except I ate a big bowl of seaweed + veggie soup at lunch.
I trained arms and shoulders today, the strength is clearly lower, and so is the ability to recover between sets. Most body fat sites are dropping a little 1-2mm which is quite slow considering considering the results I can get for clients haha. But because this is kind of a higher carb diet than I usually have (100+g/day) my love handle site (carb intake related) isnt dropping much.
Im not too worried though. This isn’t some radical fast fat burning diet, it’s for cleaning up stuff inside. I believe it potentates further fat burning in the future and sets your potential “standard” bodyfat level lower.
Nutrition was same as previous days, unfortunately the organic + non allergenic nature of the supplements mean they are rice protein based rather than diary, the taste takes some getting used to!
Some things to take note if you want to try such a detox program
You need to be taste tolerant – this is not for gourmet taste buds
You need to be good at swallowing capsules – there are lots of these and it would be best if you can swallow at least 4 at one time easily
You need to be able to handle social situations and get out of messing up the detox. I had a lunch today with an old friend from school. I managed to eat a small house salad and some broccoli while he ate a large yummy rib-eye ARGH.
Bowels were great as usual, weight loss is not too much considering the limited amount of food I’m eating. So far about 1-1.5kg in 4 days.
Some water/glycogen loss. It can be felt in workouts, the first few sets are ok, but feel drained after that.
Gasp on my 5th set of chin-ups I could only do 6 good ones- barely! Normally I can do 6 with 30kg weight added! But its only temporary. I also think heavy lifting is slightly affected because there is ZERO fat in this detox.
Fat is important in building the nervous system. You can maintain muscle (like I do with the big bunch of amino acids) but strength is hard to keep without saturated fats – yes that’s right nutritionists – go have a spasm!… saturated fats!
Sleep was not as good last night. I actually stayed up late reading. Also I forgot to move my work phone away from my bed. No mistakes tonight!:) Sleep is important!
Why I’m doing this? – I attended a seminar by one of the best functional medicine doctors in the world last month. He was talking about how important it is to get rid of all the bad stuff in our body once in a while. Probably about 2x/year. I am following Coach Poliquin’s model on his blog. But I will be trying to detoxify estrogen as a priority. There is other bad stuff in the world like plastics and heavy metals. When our infra red sauna comes in, I can try to get rid of those other things.
While I consider myself a healthy guy, I’m not as lean as I should be considering how good my usual habits are. If a person has good habits for nutrition, and still is not able to get maximum results, toxicity is often the cause. I’m trying to eliminate the problem of toxicity. During my young days I lived in quite a few polluted countries and Singapore is quite polluted also (as are all major cities) so I’m toxic for sure!
I will be eating medicinal, non allergic, totally organic food with lots of nutrients for both phase 1 (stir up the bad stuff) and phase 2 (kick the bad stuff out) detoxification in the liver. These are Primal Clear Px and Inflam Px
I will try to make my body as alkaline as possible with Primal Clear, Phyto Px (an organic veggie/fruit drink), and limes in water
I will also use frequency specific micro-current (FSM) liver detox protocol once/day to help the liver handle the toxins that will be kicked up.
I will eat lots of fiber because toxins are cleared partially through bowels (and sweat and breath and urine)
I will drink filtered water as much as possible.
I will train every day, even if its not a record setting attempt, it will help lymph – which is very important for immune system health – to flow around the body because it flows due to muscle contractions.
I will eat organic green veggies if possible
I will train without air-conditioning when possible to get more sweat going – sweating is good for detox and this is the best I can do before our detox infra-red sauna comes in.
I will record how I feel and how I progress throughout the week. I may feel bad/tired/brain fog at times as the toxins are being handled by the liver. I may need to nap a bit more. I don’t know, lets find out!
I will eat amino acids to help preserve muscle mass because this is quite a low calorie week. These will be a mixture of branch chain amino acids, and regular essential amino acids
I will eat close to zero fats (this is NOT what I usually do, I eat lots of omega-3s and healthy fats on a normal week) this is to rest the fat digesting and metabolism pathways of the body.
I will eat glutamine and add some pro-biotics along with Inflam Px – these supplements take care of digestive tract health and rest the digestive system because I eat quite alot of food normally.
If you look at Coach Poliquin’s detox, I probably eat a bit less because he has more muscle mass than I do.
If you are smaller than I (I’m 81-84kg most days) you can scale the nutrients accordingly but just eat as much as you like, this is not about restricting calories to go for a bodybuilding contest, its about eating perfect food so that your body gets a chance to recover from the stress of living in a city like Singapore. Remember – health first, appearance and strength come along next
Wake Up: Primal Fiber + Water – 1 big scoop (about 15g) + Limes
Do you think you would get a better workout in a park? Or at the best gym in Singapore?
Although the quality of the coach who designs your personal training or weight loss fitness program is the top priority, I would admit that the quality of your fitness program design is influenced by the tools available to the coach.
Imagine…If you only gave me a 5 kg dumbbell, I would run out of useful exercises faster than if you gave me a complete gym set up with the right mix of different dumbbells, varieties of barbells, lifting platforms, power racks, machines and accessories like gym balls, bands, lifting pins, grip training equipment, etc (oops that just describes my Gym in Singapore).
In my experience, it is almost impossible for a in home personal trainer or a fitness instructor who trains out of a condo gym or a hotel gym, or a community center gym, to match the results we get at the Genesis Performance Center.
Just think for a moment why this would be so?…They would need to match both my program design ability, knowledge of health, understanding of anatomy, thousands of hours of study and seminars, as well as have the right gym equipment to do the job! This is a problem because these gyms were not designed by a person with 16 years of drug-free training study and experience.
It is also hard for any outdoor boot camp in a park to match the results we get at our indoor fitness boot camp which fully utilizes all the equipment available to us. In fact one bootcamp member recently commented “I’ve tried all the other bootcamps in Singapore and yours is way more value” … well of course:) We only design good programs and will ALWAYS get the equipment needed to support it.
This year 2010 alone, I plan to spend much of our business budget on upgrading our equipment to continue to lead Singapore Gyms as the best equipped (with the most useful stuff!) so that I have the greatest variety of gym equipment, so that I can design the greatest variety of personal training fitness programs, so that I can help the greatest amount of people get the weight loss, mass gaining or sports performance goals they deserve.
When choosing a gym, like in the rest of life, there are three groups of people.
Those who read and make the right choice (check out the remainder of my Singapore fitness blog to read more!)
Those who observe others and make the right choice (check out our success stories on the Singapore fitness homepage, or the success stories page)
And those who “piss on the electric fence to learn for themselves” – unfortunately some people try other methods and places to try and get results but are disappointed, frustrated and upset. In the end, after some pain and unfortunate experiences, they end up at Singapore’s best Gym, The Genesis Performance Center.
Whenever I work with Singapore weight loss or fat loss clients, one of the key components of their program is nutrition. I get them off all sugary, starchy, and refined foods. Yes this is harder to do for some than others, yes it takes a willingness to change, but YES it IS effective!
Not What God Intended Us To Put In
And now I read a study that was a waste of money. The University of Minesota has concluded that sweet drinks (and if they extended that study to sweet or starchy foods, I’m sure it would give the same results) cause cancer… OF COURSE THEY DO.
More sugar, more insulin needed, over work for the pancreas and thus more pancreatic cancer.
Here is the bad news. Pancreatic cancer is one of the hardest to kill. And sometimes the “methods” I have seen recommended are just madness. A relative of mine with cancer was asked to drink “Ensure” as part of his “nutrition” plan. Unbelievable. Ensure is 55-60% SUGAR!! That is a big part of what caused this mess in the first place and now its seen as a form of treatment.
Cancer cells like sugar! So starve them (and better still prevent them from happening) by not having refined carbohydrates in your diet (meat, veggies and healthy fats is the way to go), and protecting your DNA (antioxidants, trans-resveratrol and nutrients). Also detoxing yourself of any environmental poisons.
Anybody who excels in their profession has somebody to give credit to, somebody to thank, somebody to appreciate for their success. While there is lots of studying that you can do on your own (after all, I have a book and education material collection worth a small car….) it is the moments of inspiration that come from being around the industry leaders who are the best in the world at what they do that truly allow my mind to expand by allowing me to see just how much I DO NOT KNOW! And how much more there is to learn. Just like Stephen Hawking wrote, we really are standing on the shoulders of Giants.
I’m honored to count these guys as my teachers and mentors. After attending their courses and seminars, I can truly say that all our Singapore personal training clients and boot camp members benefit alot in their health, weight loss, fat burning and strength building goals. Unfortunately, in Singapore, these guys are not very well known to the general public, but only to those who are serious about getting the best information in the world!
Coach Charles Poliquin – Olympic strength and conditioning coach. This guy knows a lot about almost any training or health topic out there. And his certifications are the hardest to obtain in the fitness industry. In fact to reach level 5 (the highest level) you need to produce a medalist (verified by the sport council) in either the world championships or the Olympic games. I am currently the only level 3 coach in Asia, that means that we have coached people to national teams. Am going for level 4 later in 2010.
Dr. Mark Houston – Cardiovascular health specialist. This guy literally “wrote the book” about how to use nutrients and lifestyle to combat high blood pressure, cholesterol issues, and all heart/cardiovascular health conditions.
Dr. Robert Rakowski – Functional Medicine Doctor. This guy is a former US marine, but has applied the discipline to study of how the human body works. I saw him treat a person for a shoulder problem… and found out that it was his LIVER that was too toxic and causing the pain…this doctor taught me alot of what I know about detoxification and cancer as well.
Coach Pierre Roy – Pierre has been coaching the Canadian Olympic weightlifting team for 35 years and has the sharpest eye for the details of training. He corrects high speed lifts to the accuracy of 0.5 cm! and the next time the lifter does it, the weight goes up effortlessly. His methods of coaching that I learned save clients HUNDREDS of hours of learning technique. Things that used to take weeks to learn, now take minutes. That’s value for money everyone!
I am constantly looking for great mentors to learn from. It really helps clients get results faster and better! And it helps keep the Genesis Performance Center Singapore best health & fitness center and personal training Gym.
Ok, many of my Singapore personal training and fitness boot camp clients as me if fruit juice is ok for them to drink… I mean, fruits are healthy right? so why not just juice them and get all their goodness… and as an added benefit you can have so many fruits in one glass… my answer (after a short chuckle)…NO, No, NOOOO…unless you want to get fat, diabetic and brain damaged!
Clients come to me to lose weight, burn fat, get healthy and improve their performance and strength… so of course NO is the answer.
Pretty Nice Ads, Pretty Ugly Results
Why?
Firstly fruit juice is high in sugar and low in fiber (even the most organic, healthy ones) – that means that it’s just as bad as any other processed and overly sweetened cola or syrup based drink. Almost nobody can get a healthy and lean physique drinking those… and nobody can get a great physique drinking fruit juice either.
It combines all the “bad parts” of fruit – the high sugar, concentrates it and gives you many servings of this in 1 glass – it takes several apples (4-5) to make 1 glass of apple juice. When was the last time you ate 5 apples in one sitting? Thats the amount of sugar you are taking in!
It takes away the good stuff – the skins and fiber in fruits is gone! These actually slow digestion if you eat the whole fruit. That makes the impact of the sugar less on your body when it is digested slowly and released slowly into the body.
Most fruit juices in coffee shops and hawker centers are “enhanced” with sugar syrup – oops thats not in real fruit!
Finally fruit juice commercial production is EVIL. Fruits are very heavily sprayed with poisons to protect them from bugs (its actually because the soil they are grown in is so bad that artificial fertilizers are used which do not provide the plant the nutrients to be healthy and have its OWN defense against bugs – thus pesticides are needed)…
Do you think fruits are lovingly plucked and gently squeezed one by one to make juice? Of course not. They are crushed by the thousands, skin and rind and all and the juices drained out. Oops some pesticide is left on the skin… oops… its in your juice.
Most pesticides are nervous system and brain toxic. That is BAD.
I prefer to have full nerve function and brain function. I prefer to be lean and healthy. I don’t drink fruit juice! And any Singapore personal trainer who knows his/her nutrition facts won’t tell you to either.
I know that we need about 8-12 servings of fruits and veggies to stay healthy, alkalanize our body, and get a wide spectrum of anti-oxidants. That is why I use a organic veggie and fruit extract that keeps the nutrients but does not give us the high sugar content. I also use a variety of organic fibers to keep the digestive tract healthy. We used to be able to get great nutrition from fruits… but fruit today is not what it used to be – its low in nutrients, genetically modified to be sweet, and covered in pesticides… we should all use a greens/fruit supplement and a fiber to stay healthy. Contact us to see if we have any in stock so you can get the nutrition your body needs to maximize its potential.
It is normal for customers to compare products before buying or signing up. That is totally the right thing to do. And one of the things they as me, is “what makes your Singapore fitness boot camp better than any of the others around?” What they are actually asking is “why should I join this one and not any of the many other options”.
Besides the quality of coaching and the positive environment, the key component of the science based training program itself that makes our weight loss and fat burning program so effective is that we have an emphasis on strength.
Yes we do circuits of various kinds, we do interval training of many varieties and we do teach nutrition and lifestyle habits that boost energy, improve sleep and even get our diabetic or cardiovascular health clients come off the drugs they have been using for years.
But we never neglect the ONLY physical attribute that improves all others.
STRENGTH
Strength improves flexiblity because your body is more comfortable moving to new ranges of motion when it knows it is strong enough to control itself in that extreme range.
Strength improves endurance because it improves efficiency and “ease” even when you are doing stuff like marathons or triathlons.
And strength improves fat burning because fat burning is about doing alot of work in as short a time as possible.
For a simple example, lets say I can lift a maximum of 100kg one time. Perhaps in 10 mins I could lift 50% of that 50kg 50 times. Thats 2500kg of total weight lifted.
But lets say I am strong enough to lift 200kg one time. 50% of that is 100kg! And if I lift that 50 times in 10 mins, that is 5000kg. Twice as much work done, that means more fat burned.
It’s not as “simple” as that of course and there are alot more things going on… but the idea is the same.
Get strong – And your fat burning workouts get more effective – You burn more fat, and lose weight from your fat stores faster.
And strength doesn’t mean “size” when we train for strength, it’s possible to do so without getting too “big”. Our female clients haven’t complained:)
Check out what a strong 48kg woman looks like. Certainly not “huge” or un-feminine by any means. Below is Marilou Dozois-Prevost of Canada, a lifter in the under 48kg category (hey that’s a weight many ladies want to be at!)
This is what a strong 48kg looks like
So everybody, being strong makes you more lean, more fit, more firm, more toned, and more of everything good. It also improves your bone density, and makes you have a stronger immune system… that’s why even though people come to bootcamps for weight loss, we incorporate strength training as well. That’s why I’m happy to say our boot camps for fat loss are held in a fully equipped gym where there is stuff to not only help you burn fat and lose unwanted weight, but also to get strong so that you can maximize your results and your potential.
Anybody who excels in their profession has somebody to give credit to, somebody to thank, somebody to appreciate for their success. While there is lots of studying that you can do on your own (after all, I have a book and education material collection worth a small car….) it is the moments of inspiration that come from being around the industry leaders who are the best in the world at what they do that truly allow my mind to expand by allowing me to see just how much I DO NOT KNOW! And how much more there is to learn. Just like Stephen Hawking wrote, we really are standing on the shoulders of Giants.
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