As I Remember

I was with her for a very long time, many years, in fact. We were so different she would often remark how odd it was that we were together. But we fit. We were like a comfortable pair of thick fluffly slippers. I can't explain it any better than that, we just fit. We never married but I'd be lying if the thought never crossed my mind. As I say...we fit.

Then a few years ago, she got sick. Very, very sick. Oh, at the beginning she tried. Tried to keep on doing the things she liked but soon things just became a litany of "Why me's", time took its toll and she passed out of my life. A blink, you're here then gone, there then simply not there.

I remember her. How she would curse like a drunken sailor on shore leave and I would always say, "Such a lady!" until she would let loose with some depraved profanity and say "Such a lady" before I could. Or how she would get this look on her face and I would know that, momentarily, some part of my anatomy would meet with the otherworldly cold of her hands or feet. Or how she would ask some inane question just to see if I would answer. Of course I would, launching off into some detailed explanation and look over to find her shaking with laughter.

She was not a picture person, never wanting to have her photo taken and that is one regret I have (among many I've collected.) The only picture I have of her is on an old inactive cellphone. She was sitting with her little dog on her lap, scratching it behind the ears. The dog had a little doggy smile, the light was behind them and she looked so beautiful. I remember taking it. It exists only in my minds eye now.

As I remember her. No matter the time that passes she will always be beautiful. Always have long wild curly dark hair, always be straight and tall, never age and never go.

I don't really know what I'm trying to say to whoever is reading this. I suppose it could be when you see that someone you have in your life to tell them what they mean, to fix them in your memory, to hug them just a little more.

I suppose I could be telling you women who run from the camera to stop. Take the picture, no matter how good or bad you think you look. Truthfully, its not for you but for us.

I suppose I could just be saying I'm a little bit lonely, especially around this time of year. Or maybe I'm hearing a voice with a Staten Island accent in my head and feeling an otherworldly cold hand on my back, giving me a little push.

I've almost deleted this about five times now, its a little raw for me to see. But maybe it'll have some value to others and maybe it was just a bit cathartic for me.

The Bravest Person In History - Revealed!

Through painstaking research which required spanning the globe, flying in coach class, and hours of combing through musty parchment, records, and paintings, I have at last determined the bravest person in history.

It is, of course, the first person to ever drink milk.

Come with me now to those days of yesteryear and imagine, if you will, two cavemen gazing across the velt, or tundra, or whatever it was cavemen gazed across. Listen, as one says to the other:

"Hey! You see that weird looking animal over there?"
"Yeah?"
"No,no...the other one."
"Right?"
"You see that freaky looking thing underneath it?"
"Uh huh, yeah?"
"Well...whatever comes outta there, I'm gonna drink it!"

I rest my case. You're welcome.

The Sweat That Makes The Sexy

I like to sweat. I'm not talking about the Florida "go outside and have your shirt stick to your body humidity" sweat. Nor am I speaking of the Las Vegas "standing at the pool and fearing that your calves may burst into flame" sweat.

I'm talking about the sweat you get when you push yourself to do that last rep. When you run 5 miles when you thought you could only run 3. When you're doing some new workout and you reach that "quit" point and say, "Oh, hell no!" and keep going. And then you're out of breath, maybe you're shaking a little, and the sweat is just rolling off you. Dripping from your nose, dripping from your fingers cause it's picked up speed as it rolled from your elbows, down your forearms, and now its pooling on the floor beneath you. That's the sweat that makes the sexy. When you've given it everything and then just a bit more.

I know I'll write this and people will think its odd. Perhaps it is. But I'm betting there's a few of you who read this and are nodding your heads. We're the same people who get excited over buying a new pair of workout shoes...and post pictures of them! We get excited over a new workout program coming out. We post pictures of ourselves in varying levels of sweaty pain.

And think it's fun. We never used to think that way, at least I didn't. Now I'll watch a video of a Spartan Race and see the finishers getting pummeled by guys dressed up as spartan soldiers and think, "That looks like fun!" Or see people getting muddy and climbing over logs or jumping over fire and say, "That looks like fun!" It didn't happen overnight.

But I just suppose it's another by-product of the sweat. That...and the sexy.

Time Marches On

I'm 52 years old. I feel 25. I act like I'm 12.

I seem now to be making more "urrumph" sounds when I sit down, or stand up, or have to bend over to pick something up. If I'm on the ground for a while, doing some kind of exercise or putting something together, it takes me a bit longer these days to get to my feet. It's a bitter pill to swallow, but I realize now...I'm getting older. I just have to accept the fact that time is catching up to me.

Unfortunately for time, I'm going to put it in a headlock and beat the crap out of it! I...Feel...Great! I do, truly. I'm doing things now that I never thought I could. And the best part is I see other people my age, or younger, who look like they're 10 years older than me!

Secret? I work out..hard. I eat right. And, I think most important...I do young things! Age is number. Mr.P90X, Tony Horton, is 54! A woman at the most recent Beachbody Coach Summit, won his impromptu pushup challenge - she's 58! Geez...read my story - I've had my insides removed and reconstructed and I'm still trying to crush it!

Have I slowed down? I have to admit, yes, a little bit. Am I leaps and bounds ahead of others my age? Absolutely! Why? I keep trying.

I'm 52 years old. I feel like I'm 25. I act like I'm 12.

In other words - I feel young!

Time for a Vacation!



The family plot!

I've been in Germany for the last two weeks, more specifically Bavaria. My dad comes from there, way down south in the Black Forrest region. I always say when you're driving, you're in the forrest, in the forrest, in the forrest, then it opens up and its like a post card. Then you're back in the forrest.

I saw my relatives, saw some new babies, ate a lot of food and drank a lot of beer. And managed to gain 5.8 pounds in the process! It could have been worse, but I at least made sure I got out and walked just about every day...uphill...both ways! (Well, that's how it seemed to me...sidewalks on a 30% grade. Good times!)

The thing is, I'm not really too upset about the weight gain. I know a lot of other people would be completely freaking out but, after all this time as a Beachbody coach, helping others reach their health and fitness goals, I've learned enough to help me reach my health and fitness goals. I'm not worried about it, so much so that I'm confident I'll have that weight gone within a week, two at the most!

I suppose what I'm trying to say is if you go on vacation, or a trip, or travel, don't beat yourself up if you gain a couple of pounds, or eat a few pieces of chocolate cake, or have a few liters of beer (not at one sitting, please!). Enjoy yourself! You're out of your routine for a few days and that's a good thing.

Recharge and then get back in and hit it hard! Often times, that rest is what your body is craving and when you reset, recharge and hit it again, the gains you'll see will be astounding.

Flashback - Day 1 of P90X

I come across and talk to several people on social media sites saying things like: "Day 1 of P90X in the books!" or "First week P90X done" or things to that effect and it caused me to remember my very first day doing the X.

The first disc, in the Classic version, is Chest & Back. So I pop that in and I'm marching in place. Not too bad, I say to myself. Then I'm jogging a bit. Ok, I say. And then I'm doing jumping jacks and run lunges, 30 seconds of each which to me, at that time, seemed like for-ev-ah! I was sweating like Dom at the beginning of Plyo! We get into the stretching and I'm back to feeling better about things. Really, how tough can it be -reachers, arm circles, swimmers, press your hands together, clasp in the back...good times.

And now it's time for Push-ups! Tony asks the kids in the video, "What's your goal? How many are you going to do? Bobby?"

Still working hard!

"30."

"Scotty?"

"30."

"Maren?"

"30."

So I say to myself, again, "Well, that sounds ok...I'll do 30 too!"

I did not do 30 pushups. I did not do 10. I don't think I got to 5. Annnnd the tone was set for the rest of the DVD. Pull-ups...maybe...maybe 1. And the horror continued. Wide front, military, close grip, and don't even get me started on Diamond pushups and Divebomber. Then I hear, "Most workouts would be done by now...NOT OURS!" Oh, thank you, Tony Horton. Mind you...this is Day Freaking One!

This is also what I call the "Wakeup Call Workout." Now you know what kind of shape you're really in. And you have a choice to make - stick with it or give up because its too hard. If you're serious, if this is something you realize you have to do, you stick with it. And by sticking with it you progress so that now when the man himself asks, "How many are you going to do?" you can say 30 and do 30.

Believe me...its a great feeling to be able to keep up with the P90X kids now. If I had given up, I couldn't say that.

Maybe one of these days I'll talk about my first day doing Insanity (Oh My Gawd...This is the warm up?!?)

Joe

My Home Workout Space

A quick glimpse into where I spend an hour or so just about every day! You don't need much room to make it count!

Nine Little Words That Change Lives

I'm sure by now you've all seen the informercials with the amazing personal transformations; the fella who went from being a pudding of a man to the picture of health or the woman who was, frankly, a big fat thing who is now slim, trim and insanely lovely. And I'm sure one of the things that went through your mind was, "I can't do that." "She doesn't have kids." "He doesn't have to travel for work." "They probably have plenty of time on their hands." "I can't do that."

Kim B. A sweetheat if ever there was one!

News Flash! Those people are the same as you! But they did one thing - they made a decision. Either they saw themselves in a mirror, or got some bad news from a doctor, or even were able to see themselves as they appear to others and said, "I've got to do something. I can't go on like this. I look bad and feel worse. I've got to change." And then they said nine little words that changed their lives:

And this time I'm going to stick to it.

That's all it takes. That mantra that this time you're going to accomplish it, you're going to be fit, healthy, maybe an inspiration to your family. And in the process save your life.

Tommy M. Super Energized Master Motivator!

And this time I'm going to stick to it.

I've actually met some of the people you've seen on the P90X or Insanity infomercials. Big secret? They're no different from any of us. They just decided to do something.

And this time I'm going to stick to it.

Me. 52 years old. This time I stuck with it.

They're nothing special. They don't know any secret. They don't have the special sauce. They changed because they decided to. They were sick and tired of being sick and tired. Nothing special. I know...because I did it too. Why?

I stuck with it.

There's no stopping you. I believe it!

Attack of the Treadmill!

Here's a Citibank commercial featuring the unluckiest treadmill user...ever!

If They See It...Believe It!

In my travels around the lands of Twitter and Facebook I've noticed I've become involved in several conversations with folks who are near completeing P90X or Insanity or Turbo Fire, etc that go just about like this:

Them: "Day 58 of Insanity!"

Me: "All right! How did you like it? Did you notice a lot of change in your body? I bet you're looking great!"

Them: "I don't see it but everybody I run into says I look so different. My clothes are looser but I don't think I look that different."

Here's my question - you've just completed 60 days of Insanity, the toughest workout on the planet, or 90 days of P90X, the most life-changing workout on the planet, and everyone you run into says you look so great and so different. Why don't you believe them?!?!

We are our own toughest critics which, I think, leads us to being our own worst enemy! We'll totally transform our bodies and when we look in the mirror all we see are that little bit of stuborn fat around our waist, or the tiny pimple on our forehead...not the abs that are popping out, the lean physique that everyone else sees.

If they're seeing the huge difference we've made -Believe It! You've worked hard, you've sweat like a pig, cried a few tears, denied yourself that chocolate cake, and built a body that people notice and wish they could have. And they're probably asking how you did it! (Unabashed plug - get paid to work out, check out the P90X, Insanity Coach opportunity at Be a Beachbody Coach. This concludes the pluggage!).

So be proud, hold your head up, and believe them when they say how great you look. You do!

Joe

Committment!

Here's a short Video Monday featuring me after a P90X Core Synergistics workout talking about committment. You may need to turn the volume up a bit.

Tweak It!

I was stuck. My goal weight, for some time now, has been 190 pounds, and I had been stuck a little above 200 for weeks. I usually weigh myself once a week, for the scale is not our friend, and every time the numbers leered back - 201, 204, 205, 202, 203, 206, 201 - a seemingly endless progression of the device laughing "Ha Ha! Not this time! Thanks for playing and we'll see you next week!"

My eating and diet had been pretty good. My training had been going great guns. So I thought and said to myself, "Self, " says I, "its got to be something you're doing and not noticing." And then I did something radical. I started to pay attention to the little things I was doing everyday that I assumed were fine and were probably the culprit. Enlightenment followed.

I love coffee. I drink coffee everyday. And, no, I didn't stop drinking coffee but...no matter the amount of coffee I was drinking I would put in 2 tsp of sugar. 22oz or 8oz or anwhere in between - 2 tsp of sugar. So I cut that down to 1 tsp (because I'm NOT going to stop putting sugar in my coffee).

The next weigh-in? 196 lbs.

The long winded point of this is simply to be aware. One little thing you can tweak in your diet or training could lead to gains in muscular size, a drop in weight, the breaking of a pleateau, or even the discovery of a new and better way of doing things. I thought I was dead-on but 1 tsp of sugar was the source of the hang up. Last scale day I was at 193 so it's working.

Think about where you can make a small adjustment and see what happens!

Just one little tweak can make a huge difference.

Joe

Spartacus Actors Getting Gladiator Ready!

This Video Monday installment features the actors from the first season of the Starz series Spartacus: Blood and Sand. All had to attend a few weeks of boot camp to get in super shape for the physically demanding roles.

Please note the late, great Andy Whitfield, the original Spartacus, who passed away recently. It's always a wake up call to see someone so young and vibrant taken away. Time is short. Do the work and enjoy the results!

The Work You Don't See

I'll be talking to someone about working out, what I did that morning, or what I was eating and sometimes I'll show a photo of one of the women I've met who's had fantastic results doing P90X or Insanity or any one of the programs and ususally, with alarming regularity, I'll hear this:

"Oh, she doesn't have to workout!"

Then I'll see if I can find the persons before photo and get a "That's not the same person," or "What kind of surgery did they have," which usually culminates in "You're a filthy liar!" (I'm not really...I'm quite a clean liar, thank you very much!)

People seem to have a mental block...when they see the photos, or see the woman or man on the beach with the fit physique, that they were lucky or just born that way. They don't realize the hours of work in the gym, with the workout DVD's, the correct eating habits, that allow that girl to wear the tiny bikini and look that good. It's not a case of osmosis. She or he didn't just rub the P90X DVD's all over their bodies and get results.

It was the getting up at 5am so they could fit that workout in before work - the only time they could do it. It was the commitment to eating healthy and right. It was forming the habit of fitness. It was getting into the mindset of just pushing play, or going to the gym.

I suppose "Oh, you don't have to workout." is kind of a compliment.

But really it's all the work you don't see.

Joe

Greatest Muscle Up Celebreation Ever - the JOY of Fitness!

Video Monday begins with a great video I think shows the sheer JOY of accomplishment! It wasn't perfect. In fact it was probably the ugliest muscle up ever but the celebration afterwards is priceless!

Truthfully, if I had been there, I would have been jumping and screaming along with them.

And that's what I do...scream and jump and cheer YOUR I-did-it-iv-ness...because it's not about me, or "I", but you! I really feel that when you succeed, I succeed.

Please let me know what YOU think!

I Didn't Like It and That's...OK.

Firstly, in the interests of full disclosure, let me say that I've consumed mass quantities of the Beachbody Kool-Aid. I love the company, the people, the products, the community, just about everything! But its the "just about" that I want to talk about here. Beachbody had come out, over the last few months, with the new program P90X2 and a new flavor of the ultra premium health shake Shakeology, Tropical Strawberry, a totally vegan formulation.

I had tasted the Tropical flavor at the 2011 Coach Summit and it was amazing! It tasted so good, so smooth, mixed with pineapple and yogurt and a few other things. I could not wait for it to come out. People who had already received it were marvelling at how good it was the taste, the flavor, it was fantastic!

I got mine! And I was underwhelmed. From how it tasted at Summit to how it tasted now was..different. I still think its the best tasting of the Shakeology flavors, but how it mixes up leaves me cold. But almost everyone else is raving about it! "It tastes great!" "Mixed it with xx!" "Its the only flavor I'll drink now!" And I..kinda didn't like it. It must be just me...something must be wrong with me...

And then P90X2 arrived. I was in the middle of my current round of P90X and wanted to finish that to get ready for X2. What fantastic results I had! I literally could not wait to tear open the box and get to it! Finally I finished the X. Time for X2! Could not wait!

And I didn't like it. Wait that's not right...I really didn't like it. No...wait...I hated it! Yes, you read that right...I hated it. And it wasn't just "I hate this workout." It was 5-6 weeks of just not liking any of it! X2 is a very different type of program. "Functional Fitness" they call it. Its a lot of balance, stability ball, one-footed-ness. After 6 weeks I learned that I am unbalanced and unstable.

And it didn't help that everyone else doing it was, again, raving at how wonderful this was. "Couldn't wait to do P.A.P. or Plyocide or Core," they said. Again I figured it must just be me because, truthfully, P90X2 made me not want to work out..that's how much I disliked it. So once more I assumed there must be something wrong with me.

Unfortunately, this negativity began to affect every other area of my life! Truly! I didn't want to work out, I felt worthless and weak, I was miserable and depressed. Why didn't I like this? Everyone else did...what was wrong with me?

And then I talked to Kim Bemis, another Beachbody coach and all around swell chick, and she said seven words that completely changed my attitude:

"Joe, it's OK not to like something."

So...I put P90X2 back in the box. It's not for me...right now. I may revisit it sometime in the future. I'm doing a P90X/Insanity hybrid workout for the next 90 days and I AM LOVING IT! I can't wait to get out there and sweat. And I've thrown the new Tai Cheng program in too, which I'm loving also!

I guess the long winded point of this whole thing is - Try it, stick with it, and if you don't like it...that's fine. Move on to something else. But do something. It was a surprisingly hard lesson to learn. But it's also given me some insight into those who start a program and quit. They try, its too hard, they stop. The magic is in the moving on to something else.

Don't like Insanity? Try RevAbs. Don't like P90X? Try Power 90. Don't like this? Try that.

Simple enough but it was such a difficult lesson to learn.

Joe

Shakeology - You're Thinking the Wrong Way

When I talk to someone about fitness, how I've lost over 40 pounds, workouts and then get to Shakeology, the remark I hear most often is, "That's too expensive!" It does cost a bit more than Ensure or some other protein shake or health drink.

But you're thinking about it all wrong! You are not adding something new to the mix, you are replacing a meal! Allow me to paint a picture:

Shakeology is 150 calories of 70+ all natural, healthy ingredients, chock full of superfoods and nutrients. You get:

• 1g Fat
• 17g Carbs
• 18g Protein

And the cost is around $4 per serving.

Lets say now that you go to McDonalds and get a Big Mac, Large Fries and a Chocolate shake (well...that's what I would get :)) You get:

Big Mac

• 540 calories
• 29g Fat
• 45g Carbs
• 25g Protein

Large Fries

• 500 calories
• 25g Fat
• 63g Carbs
• 6g Protein

Chocolate Milk Shake

• 440 calories
• 10g Fat
• 76g Carbs
• 10g Protein

So for that one meal you've had:

• 1480 calories
• 64g Fat
• 184g Carbs
• 41g Protein

IN ONE MEAL!! Not to mention the fact that there've been reports recently that McDonald's washes its hamberger meat with some kind of amonia compound to keep it fresh! And you've probably paid about $9 for all this.

So by my calculations you could of had 150 filling, healthy calories and saved $5 or had almost 1500 calories of an insanely bad for you breakdown of fat and carbs. And if you're going to McDonalds or Burger King or Wendy's several times a week...how can you afford NOT to get Shakeology.

Check out http://www.myshakeology.com/josefk for more in-depth information about Shakeology, Doctor's testimonials and just a fun look at something I drink every day.

P90X Results - Not Bad For An Old Man!

Finished Round 3 (I think!) of P90X on Feb 12, 2012. I can honestly say that this time I brought it with renewed vigor and consistency. I placed more of an emphasis on nutrition and supplementation and I think it paid off!


                    <---235lbs        194lbs--->           

I started my Fitness Journey at around 235 pounds and a 44" waist. As of now I'm at 194 pounds and a little less than 36". By my calculations thats 41lbs and over 8"! Not too bad for a 52 year old fella.

Do the beachbody programs work? Yes. I'm proof! Want to know more? Go to http://www.beachbodycoach.com/josefk and explore. Do you want to wait another day to start getting into the best, healthiest, fittest shape of your life?

And if I can do it, anyone can!

Joe