"Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” Aristotle

Rant and Tip for September 21,2012

Quote: “Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” Aristotle

Well last night I had to do a little shopping for some chicken and vegetables. I buy my chicken in bulk because you know I will eat it all. Any way I purchased the items at one store and headed home realizing I needed to buy some storage bags. This caused me to stop at another store. While there I saw a young kid looking at the protein powders. Since I did not want him to make the same mistakes I did in protein choices I offered up some information to him. I spent the next 45 minutes talking to him and his mother discussing diet and exercise. Of course I pointed him to my blog to help him. This young man had already lost 30 pounds and God Bless him he is up to the challenge of losing another 20 to 30. He is making his diet a habit and building exercise in to his daily habit as well. This will give him the quality of life he wants and deserves.

Building good habits in regards to diet and exercise helps you to achieve your goals regardless of your age. This young man’s mom is in her 60’s and had some concerns regarding her own exercise needs, taking in account her inner ear problem. I told most exercises can be modified to accommodate a person’s needs. One of the exercises she did not think she could do was squat, due to an inner ear problem. I suggested squatting to a chair and as she builds the strength she can use a lower chair. She seemed excited about this and never thought of using the chair in this way. Now she is not going to have a bar on her shoulders but a couple of dumbbells in her hands will be a good start. Also when using a chair don’t sit completely back, you may be tempted to grab that bowl of chips and turn on the TV remote. In this case the chair is not helping.

I will be attacking my shoulders today and I will include some rotator cuff work as well. The rotator cuff is a group of muscles in the shoulder and if I tear something in there I will be done benching for a long time and I do not want that.

Have a great workout!

Tip: If you are new to strength training and are concerned with your form or are not sure how to approach a new exercise please do not hesitate to ask someone at the gym. Most trainers and experienced lifters will be happy to help. If you are unable to get the assistance send me an email and I will see if I can help.

 Here is a video of me handling 500 lbs for the first time. Over the next few weeks and months I will be working this down to my chest instead of using the boards.  500lbs