Archive for the ‘Healthy Lifestyle’ Category

Black Rice, Omega 3 Margarine, and The Mediterranean Diet

Monday, August 30th, 2010
Healthy Couple

Today I would like to show you some current news articles about healthy topics like Omega-3 Essential Fatty Acids, the high antioxidant concentration of Black Rice, and a fun little slideshow about the Mediterranean Diet.

We just can’t take old news for granted, because studies are confirming and rejecting some of what we think we know. Myths are created and dispelled on a daily basis. Check it out.

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10 Reasons Not to Train Like a Professional Bodybuilder

Tuesday, August 17th, 2010

One of the biggest mistakes you can make when attempting to gain muscle is to imitate your favorite professional bodybuilder.

Look Like a Bodybuilder
Do you really want to look like a pro bodybuilder?

If you’ve seen the magazines: Flex, Iron Man, Muscular Development, etc…, you’ve seen the pro bodybuilding routines. These guys train one body part a day, 10 exercises for each muscle group, 6 sets per exercise, 12-20 reps per set, and they put together brutal 6 days per week workout routines, sometimes with 2-a-days.

What they don’t tell you, is that routines written by professional bodybuilders are not going to work for you if you are not either a pro bodybuilder yourself, or an unemployed, juiced up, genetic freak. If you follow these routines, you will overtrain faster than Arnold shows his bare ass in a Terminator movie. At least you will learn how NOT to train, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.

My Experience Training Like a Pro

I wish someone told me all these things before I started on some ridiculous pro routine when I was 16. This guy had me using ramps, training 6 days a week, once a day for two weeks then twice a day for four weeks, and focusing completely on machines, cables, and leg presses instead of squats.

What a complete waste of 6 months that was. When I finally confronted a personal trainer about my sore body and lack of progress, he ripped up my routine and set me straight. Thanks Ted!

Here are 10 reasons why you should not train like a professional bodybuilder:

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How to Increase Productivity: Stop Working, Go to the Gym

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010
Brain Exercise
Exercise your body to exercise your brain.

How to Increase Productivity

I know some of you out there work 60, 70, 80 hour weeks. I know some of you also work 14,16,18 hour days. Hell, I’ve put in 36 hours straight writing computer code day and night to meet a deadline before. We all do it: we work too much!

Experts are finding out now that the best way to increase productivity, is to work less. That’s right, people who work 35-40 hours a week get the most out of their time. After the first 40 hours efficiency, speed, and quality all begin to deteriorate.

Companies that limit their employees’ working hours to 35 a week, typically have to employ less Quality Assurance (QA) testers, because their employees make far fewer mistakes. That is a multi-directional savings plan – save your employees health and save money by getting rid of half your QA staff (or just don’t hire them to begin with).

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What is Overtraining?

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

How Do I Know if I am Overtraining?

Over Trained
Over Trained

Overtraining is not good. Your performance and quality of life will suffer if you are chronically overtrained. Beware!

Navigation

How to Detect Overtraining
Physical Signs & Symptoms
Psychological Signs & Symptoms
Impaired Athletic Performance
Immunological Signs & Symptoms
Biochemical Signs & Symptoms
Contributing Factors
How to Avoid Overtraining
How to Recover from Overtraining

There are plenty of signs be aware of when it comes to your body’s signals about pushing yourself too far. Over training your body will cause you to plateau or worse – regress.

The most common sign of overtraining is the total loss of motivation to train, and exhaustion mixed with some the symptoms listed below.
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Happy 4th of July!

Sunday, July 4th, 2010

Happy July 4th from Project Swole!

4th of July bikini girl

Meditation with NFL Running Back Ricky Williams

Friday, June 11th, 2010

You might think it’s kookie or wacky if you’ve never put any time into learning about the benefits of meditation. I am here to tell you now, that judging or making assumptions about things before you really understand them, is totally ignorant. I implore you now to open your mind and be introspective.

Today I want you to read an article posted on ESPN about meditating with Ricky Williams – the running back for the Miami Dolphins.

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Technology is Rewiring Your Brain

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

Check out this very interesting article about how the deluge of information in our lives is actually rewiring your brain. Guys, now you have another excuse when your girlfriend/wife accuses you of being distracted and forgetful: “the Internet is stressing me out!”

Your Brain on Computers

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Why You Shouldn’t Drink Alcohol if You’re Serious About Losing Weight

Thursday, May 27th, 2010

The following guest article is written by Christine Howell of DNP Programs, a guide to doctor of nursing practice programs and careers.

Want Beer

When you are trying to shed those few extra pounds it is very important to watch what you eat and drink. One thing you should try to avoid, when possible, is the consumption of alcohol beverages. It is said that in moderation alcohol can help to maintain a healthy heart, but when it comes to weight loss efforts, alcohol has many negative effects on your dieting attempts.

Some of these negative effects include:

  1. Having a direct link to the body’s increased fat levels.

    The human body will use the carbohydrates in the alcohol first. This means that the fat from the food that you have consumed is laying in your stomach turning into sugars that are absorbed and deposited as fat.

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How to Avoid Being Bullied

Monday, May 3rd, 2010
Bullies
Avoid Being Bullied

In today’s “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know” category, I would like you to read about how bullies target obese kids. Um… no kidding, Sherlock.

I was bullied as a kid.

From 6th to 9th grade I really didn’t fit in anywhere. I was chubby, had acne, wore glasses, and I wasn’t any good in gym class. They called me names, drew nasty pictures of me, popular girls prank called me, and jocks punched me.

Looking back, I was probably one of the top 10 least popular kids in my class of 120 or so. It wasn’t any fun.

Bullying causes pain, anger, and resentment. So often in today’s society, we see so many acts of bullying the end in violence. Granted, I didn’t knife anyone, shoot anyone, or beat anyone up over it… but some kids do.

We need to educate our children and teach them how to avoid bullies, as well as how to avoid becoming a bully.

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Vacationing at Disney World

Wednesday, April 28th, 2010

Hi everyone! I realize Project Swole has been lame lately, and I am sorry. I have been real busy with work, family, and Crossfit. This week I am on vacation in Orlando Florida, so I can’t post much since I don’t have a laptop and it is slightly painful to create new blog posts on my Android smartphone. In fact its quite annoying to respond to comments or emails either, so I won’t be doing much of either until I get home next week.

Next up I hope to bust out some great new workouts and training articles. Until then, keep training!