BQuick Speed Camp to be held on June 27th

BQuick Athletic Development is proud to announce a 1 day Speed Camp

Where: The camp will be held at the Madisonville Rec Field on Pine St. (2 blocks south of Badeaux's in Madisonville, on the right hand side)

When: June 27, 2009, From 9am-12pm.

Ages: 6 and up

Description: This camp will focus on the basics of speed and performance enhancement, movement training and proper form and technique as it relates to sprinting and changing direction.
The camp will begin with dynamic flexibility (flexibility in motion) and speed drills, which are the foundation of the remaining training techniques that will also be taught at the camp. These training techniques include, plyometrics, neuromuscular training to assist in kinesthetic awareness and proprioception (knowing where their growing bodies are in space), speed drills and fitness games to improve efficiency of movement in any and all directions. We will finish with static flexibility, core work, and will also speak to the kids about proper nutrition and fueling their bodies properly.

Things to Bring: water/sports drink, snack, cleats/tennis shoes, change of clothes, and a positive attitude!

Cost: $25 by June 13, $35 after June 13, walk up registration welcome.

Registration Form for BQuick Speed Camp

Inspiration

There are plenty of people in this world who wish they were blessed with the ability that we all have, as well as the passion, heart, determination, desire, and focus. Some are blind, some paralyzed, some who have degenerative diseases. Realizing this, what we get to do is and will always be a blessing. Live every moment like it was your last. If you left this earth tomorrow, what would you want people to say about you? "he/she was going to do the Ironman, but the training was too much", or "he/she pushed so hard and worked their behind off to realize their dream, at least they always gave 100% and went down with a fight, kicking a screaming". Who do you want to be? There will always be adversity in life: in our personal lives as well as training. It's how we respond to that adversity that makes us who we are, and helps us realize who we were called to be on this earth. Happy training, get your behind out there and finish, and when you look in the mirror at night you can look at yourself and be proud, knowing that you gave your heart and soul, along with everything else you have to realize your goals and dreams as well as helping others to realize the same thing in themselves, we all feed off of one another! TRAIN HARD AND SMART!

BQuick

Health in its many forms and TOTAL HEALTH....

In order to understand total health, we need to understand all of its components. There are several types of health that make up the overall healthy person as a whole. They include: metal health, emotional health, spiritual health, and physical health. All of these factors affect and can affect the other. Think about the physiological effects on the body from a single thought! Our heart rate can go up, breathing rate can increase and change, or if it's a relaxing thought, our heart rates and blood pressure may drop. It is important to keep all of these things in perspective when analyzing where your total health is at this point. Just step back and say: where am I emotionally right now? mentally? spiritually? physically? What you do or don't do in each one of these will effect the other.

BQuick

Women's Health Magazine talks abouts the importance of Metabolic Testing

Numbers You Can Trust
For a foxy figure faster, count on these weight-loss formulas
Blake Miller


We don't know who coined the phrase "Numbers don't lie," but we'll bet they never counted a calorie. And if you've ever tried using math to manage the digits on your bathroom scale, you know that most diet equations don't add up. We wondered whether any of the roughly 338,000 Google hits for "weight loss formula" can actually help you look good in that black latex cat suit this Halloween. Here's the lowdown on three basics:

Daily Caloric Requirement (DCR)

Translation The math is pretty simple: Eat 500 fewer calories a day than your body requires and you'll drop a pound a week. But most online calculators (and even the pen-and-paper variety) are only 82 percent accurate (even less so if you're obese, sick, or an ethnic minority), according to the American Dietetic Association. And, says Mary Hartley, a registered nutritionist for about.com, the results can be flawed because the equation isn't tailored to the individual and because many people misjudge their fitness level. Plus, if you lose 10 pounds or more, you'll have to do the math again.

Salvation Let sites like caloriecount.about.com, mayoclinic.com, or mypyramid.gov do the work for you. All factor in activity level and are backed by health pros.

Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR)

Translation While DCR calculates calorie input (how much you need to eat), the Resting Metabolic Rate tabulates calorie output (how much you burn doing absolutely nothing). Unfortunately, the ADA says the accuracy of these formulas is 45 to 80 percent (and again, they're less accurate if you're obese).

Salvation Skip the formula and get tested by a pro; you can do this at many gyms (members pay about $50). You'll have to sit and breathe into a scubalike plastic tube while a computer records how much oxygen you inhale and how much carbon dioxide you exhale. After 12 minutes of fun, you get a printout showing you (with 95 percent accuracy) how much you burn at rest and how many cals you can consume and still ditch your saddlebags.

VO2 Max

Translation This test, often used by athletes who train for grueling events, can also be useful for noncompetitors looking to lose weight, because the result helps pinpoint a target heart rate for fat burn. The formula is nearly 100 percent accurate, as long as you don't flub the test, which requires you to run or bike at top speed, typically for 12 to 14 minutes, while wearing a gas-mask-like apparatus that measures your oxygen intake. An ill-fitting mask (it should seal around your mouth) or not reaching your peak speed on the treadmill can skew the results.

Salvation Search at vo2max testing.net for places that provide the test, which costs about $120. The test will tell you the amount of calories you burn in different heart-rate zones. Once you get your results, invest in a heart rate monitor--either one that straps around your chest (the most effective) or a watch (like the MioMotiva)--to keep tabs on your ticker as you work out within your ideal fat-blasting range.

For more information about Metabolic Testing or to schedule a test please feel free to contact me.

Happy Holidays!!!

Happy Holidays!!!! Continue on your path to health and wellness during the holiday season! Stay disciplined to eat right, stay active, and live right! Be an example and role model for others at parties and family get-togethers, and do the right things and don't let others negatively influence you! Don't let yourself slide now, and, if you were planning on starting the 1st of the year, why not get a jump start on everyone and for yourself, your health, longevity, vitality, mortality, and quality of life! Call, message, or email us for help with any questions in the health, wellness, fitness, and performance fields! Happy Holidays!!!

Gym is Closed.....20 minute Holiday no-gym needed workout

Super-set Exercises Grouped Together

*Warm-up 5-10 minutes by jogging, riding a bike, jumping rope, etc--something to get the heart moving and the blood pumping, followed by....

*Squats or Jump-squats x 20
*Toe Touches (standing, keep eyes up back straight) x 20*Push Ups (wide Close or shoulder stance) x 20
*Push Ups (wide Close or shoulder stance) x 20
*Pull ups or Down Dog Push Ups x 20

*Toe Up/Calf Raise
*Bag Bicep Curl x 20 (put clothes or any other objects in duffel bag)

*Bag Overhead Tricep Extension x 20
*Bag Upright Row

Core--all exercises 15-30 reps
*Crunches
*leg lifts
*Russian twist
*Superman's

You're done! For the experienced athlete or fitness aficionado, this may only take you 10-15 minutes. Try not to rest too much between sets and stay continuous for as long as possible to get a cardio workout as well!

BQuick

Holiday Parties

Everyone makes so many excuses this time of year about going to parties, and they can't stick to their diets and nutrition plans because there is "nothing good to eat" at parties. Most of the time this is a false statement. There is always something healthy you can eat. Smoked Salmon, Vegetables, some cheeses, fruit, salad, finger sandwiches on wheat (turkey, chicken salad), etc. Some parties actually have good gourmet food. Either way, there are always healthy choices when at a party or eating out, but the people going to them don't always make the healthiest choices! Eat well, be merry!

Cline Jenkins
This is one of my hardest working clients and we should all look up to him! Cline works so much harder than you always ask him to, doing extra reps, sets, sprints, etc.! He has had a couple setbacks: having surgery on both shoulders, one about 3.5-4 months ago now. None of that has stopped Cline. As soon as he was given the release from the Doc for PT he started back with us, and did his PT as well as he continued to work towards his fitness goals, never letting his injury slow him down! Most people today would have used that injury as a crutch to NOT exercise, whereas he used it as fuel for his fitness fire! Ever since I have known him he has been passionate and driven towards achieving every goal he has and will not stop until he achieves them! He is the definition of drive, commitment, passion, heart, desire, and hard work and we should all learn some positive lessons from him and his positive attitude and outlook not only on life, but also achieving our goals! Cline's shoulder is a lot better because of his hard work, both in strength and Range of Motion (flexibility), and it's because of his commitment, hard work, time and effort! Cline reminds us all that success is always preceded by hard work! He is the definition of this and I know he will continue to work towards his goals each and every day! Take a lesson from Cline and his commitment: don't be lazy! There are a lot of people in the world a lot less fortunate than you are! God has blessed a lot of you with the gift of health, and Cline teaches us that even if you do have an injury, there are still things you can do and there is still work to be done! Continue working hard, and if you are not sure if you should undertake an exercise program, give us a call and consult with professionals about how to go about doing things the right way!

Burn It Off!!!!

This is the time of year that people say, "oh...I feel horrible because I at or drank too much during the holidays, but, I swear I'm going to start training the 1st of the year!" Tons of people say this, but more than 80% of people who have new year's resolutions never even make it into their tennis shoes to start, or start and drop out quickly. Instead of waiting, get started now, and here are a few tips to keep you on track:

1.) Do something that you actually like doing, instead of doing something you dread or hate. If you used to play soccer and enjoy it, enroll in a soccer league. If you like to play hacky sack (footbag), then start by doing that. Exercising does not require that you be miserable while doing it. Believe it or not, doing something you love by going out and playing basketball or ping pong etc., is still exercise because you are moving! Movement is the key to a great quality of life! If you do not move, it will tear down your body on a cellular lever!

2.) Keep a journal for your diet and you exercise. Putting everything down in written form will help you to actually see what you are eating and what you are doing. This will allow you to see if you need to pick it up physically, and also what you are eating when and how much water you take in per day.

3.) Write down at least 3 goals and place them on your bathroom mirror so you at least see them when you wake up and before you go to bed everyday. How do we know what we are striving for without goals? Also, don't write down broad goals, ie, I want to lose weight. Be more specific, ie, I would like to lose 6 pounds in 3 weeks. Be realistic with your Goals so you are not let down!
Please let me know if you have any questions or if you would like to train or for us to set up a customized, individually specific program for you!
Happy Holidays!
BQuick

Training Tips:

Here are a few tips if you are implementing an exercise program into your life or if you have already been at it for a while:

 

1.)  Ease into things:  If you have not trained in a while, make sure to ease your way into it, especially the older you get (because as we age our growth hormone levels lower, which impairs our ability to recover as fast).  A great example is my father.  He will lay off of exercise and running for a year or two, then go out to the track thinking he is in world class condition like Usain Bolt!  He will go out and try to run 2 400's, 2 300's, 2 200's, and 2 100's on the first day.  This is why he came back the last time with a torn hamstring which was black and blue from his knee to his glute up the back of his leg.  Ease into it for better results later in your program.  Build a great, solid base and you will thank yourself later.

 

2.)  Make sure that your program is well balanced with all of these things:  Diet, Cardiovascular Training, Strength Training, Flexibility Training, and Education.

 

3.)  Diet:  this is the most important aspect of your regime.  you get out of your body what you put into it.  I know people who cycle 150 miles per week, weight train, run and swim several miles per week and are still obese.  They wonder why, and the first thing I always ask people is, "what is your diet like?".  Then they smirk, roll their eyes and before they say anything I know they eat whatever they want whenever they want it.  This will simply not work.  Diet alone can change someone's body composition tremendously even without exercise.  Don't take that the wrong way, i firmly believe in exercise but am trying to explain how important diet is!  Eat right--lean and clean always!  No excuses, such as, "I am always eating out".  There are always alternatives and things you can eat that are great for you while at restaurants:  fish, vegetables, lean meats, etc.  Eat well always and reap the benefits, both in body and mind.  Nourish your, body, your brain, and all functions of the body by ingesting the RIGHT things!  Yesterday, i saw a young girl I know who has hypothyroidism, standing by a cotton candy station at an all sports fair.  She ate some until it was gone, then put more on her stick and slammed it.  Her mom said nothing to her!  OOOOOOhhhhhhh, that heats me up, but, i threw in my two cents and told her how bad it was for her.  The cotton candy man didn't think that was a good comment to throw out amongst all the other kids too, so I had to explain myself to him.

 

4.)  Cardiovascular Training:  the heart is the most important and underlying muscle in the body that supplies the rest of the body's musculature, organs, etc., with blood, fuel, and much, much more.  We need a healthy blend of working both energy systems and its corresponding musculature.  This can be achieved by incorporating 1-2 days per week of continuous, aerobic training, holding a nice consistent pace on cardio of your choice (60-80% of heart rate max).  Second, we need a good 1-2 days of tempo work, where you hold that nice consistent pace, but increase your intensity every so often to increase your heart rate, then return to the consistent pace, then repeat.  The last 1-2 days should be spent at a higher heart rate for a certain duration of time (80-90% of heart rate max), or you can sprint several times until you achieve and reach your heart rate max.  Doing all of these things will ensure you are burning a healthy blend of protein, fats, and carbohydrates for fuel.

 

5.)  Strength Training:  will help to increase your metabolism not only during training, but throughout the day as well.  Strength training helps us to get stronger and sculpt our bodies.  It also has several other benefits:  injury prevention, bone density, strengthening the tendons, joints, ligaments and overall musculature of the body, etc.  Core work/Core Training is also included in this and is also one of the most important aspects of your strength training.  Every movement in your body is initiated from your spine and its surrounding musculature (CORE), which is why it's so very important to train the CORE in its entirety.

 

6.)  Flexibility Training:  for health, vitality, and longevity.  This will help you to recover from the others demands that you place upon your body.  It will limit the chance for injury, and, the longer your muscles are, the more force they can generate.  I call this the rubber band principle:  the more you stretch out a rubber band, the more force it will generate, which is the same as your musculature.  There is also a core element to the flexibility training when doing yoga and pilates.  Dynamic Flexibility (flexibility in motion) can be done before exercise or moving, or simply as another form of flexibility work for variation.

 

7.)  Education:  educate yourself on all of the previous things so that you too can make informed decisions at they relate to your health, wellness, and fitness goals.  Education is empowerment.

 

8.)  Variation:  vary what you do within each of these components.  From changing what you eat, to changing strength training routines, this will help ensure that you do not hit plateaus (sticking points in your progress), and will also help to cut down on boredom since you will always be changing it up and doing something new and exciting.

 

9.)  It's not a bad idea to hire someone to help you with this:  hire someone to give you a little help with all of these components.  Let a health and fitness professional guide you in you journey, lending a helpful ear and a helpful hand in what you are doing, making sure you are doing things safe and the right way.  We can provide internet coaching, 1 on 1 training, group training, program design and implementation (where we design a program specifically for you and implement this program with you, making sure you understand each and every aspect of it.  Even if you hire someone for 1 hour per week or month, it will help you in all of your health and fitness endeavors. 

 

Give me a call, shoot me a message here, or email me for help with any and all of the above.

 

Brandt Quick

504 451 5391
bquick@bquickfitness.com

Over Training: A couple questions to ask yourself.....

Here is a question that I had received from a friend and colleague about a problem she was having and my response to her. If you are having any issues like this, take a step back and answer a couple of these questions:

"Maybe you can offer some advice, through all my Ironman training, all of a sudden I am getting a cramp or muscle spasm in my left hamstring. Any idea's? Overuse?? It is not all of the time, it can cramp even when I am just sitting here."


When is the last time you took a week completely off? A couple days? A day? If you cannot remember when, you are definitely over training. Do you take vitamin E? Vitamin E directly correlates to the hamstrings. If you are taking too much or not enough that could be a problem. What about electrolytes, sodium/potassium, and calcium/magnesium? These all need to be kept in balance and if they are off, that could be contributing to the problem. What do you refuel with? Have you had a massage lately? When is your race? If you can answer a few of these questions I can give you some more specific recommendations. I hope it feels better!

REST

Rest is one of the most overlooked, most important parts of a training program. Our bodies adapt to the demands placed upon them when we rest. There are a couple forms of rest: complete rest and active rest and recovery. Complete rest is when we just do that, REST. Lying around, hardly moving, and allowing our bodies to adapt to the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual demands placed upon them. Last week was exam week for most students, and as you know this can take a toll on you mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually if you are praying very hard for the ability to study longer and asking to be guided through the process of studying and taking the tests! This mental, emotional, and spiritual stress and tension can lead to physical exhaustion when it's all said and done. Complete rest days are to be taken advantage of with: Epsom salt baths, whirlpool therapy, contrast (hot/cold) therapies, dry saunas, steam rooms, ice/heat, floating around in a pool, massage, laughter, light stretching and deep breathing with an emphatic emphasis on deep breathing.

Active rest and recovery is when we do light, gentle yoga, light blood flow workouts to flush out the metabolic waste from our tissues, light swimming, eating the right foods for recovery (pineapple has an enzyme called bromelain, which is a natural anti-inflammatory) and any activity or sport that we deem fun and enjoyable.
Please do not ignore this very important component of your training program as it is one of the most important. Schedule your rest days accordingly, just like you plan your weekly workouts! Please let me know if you have any specific questions or concerns and have a great day! SMILE! It's contagious

Difference in Musculature and Energy Systems

While training a baseball team recently, we were testing them on their verticals and broad jumps (standing long jumps). During the testing, they were all excited and wanted to see where one of our coaches and myself could jump to in both events. I told them that i would once they were finished and so did Scott Cook, who is one of our great coaches. To my disappointment, I only jumped a 32 in my vertical, and 8 ft 10 in in my broad jump. The reason this disappoints me is because when I tried out for the NFL, I jumped a 36 in the vertical and a 9ft 8in in the broad jump. However, I know that the training that I have been doing for triathlons for over a year now which is endurance based, is not conducive to sprinting (ie running a faster 40yd or 60yd dash, jumping higher, and overall being more explosive in general) but is all about the pace. The training I have been doing is working my aerobic system, thus training the type I (slow twitch) musculature of the body. I do still do sprints, jumps, etc., but I am doing more endurance training so I am now starting to see the effects of this training on my other explosive movements where my anaerobic system, type IIa and IIx (fast twitch muscle fibers) are being affected. I never thought I would ever run a half marathon, do triathlons, or bike 150 miles for that matter, but i am enjoying it thoroughly. The reason is because it is a big challenge for me because my entire life I have been an anaerobic athlete and have never asked this much of, or have I placed this much demand on, my aerobic system. I am going to finish off this half Ironman in New Orleans in April 2009 very strong, continuing to work my aerobic system more, then I am going to train my anaerobic system more and get back to heavier lifting like I used to. I am a firm believer in variation, and need to get more anaerobic training back into my life. I am still going to do triathlons though, but not do as much crazy training for them as I have been over the past year. I needed to build a solid aerobic base and foundation, and now that I have done that, the sprint triathlons will not be as hard to train for. Whatever your goals, continue to push forward with everything you have and you will not disappoint yourself!

Two Week Triathlon Training Schedule

Week of October 6th 2008

Monday: AT Run: warm up for 10 to 15 minutes light running in your warmup zone to get your motor running, then get your HR up to AT and keep it there for as long as you can. If you feel like you need to back down, back down to AB, then get back up to AT and hold for as long as possible. Cooldown in your warmup zone for 5-15 minutes after finishing. Stretch and breath if time permits.

Tuesday:Get on your bike. Forget Spin. You do need some real time on your real bike. Try to ride for at least an hour if not more. Stay at you AB, but periodically get up and sprint as long as you can, then get back to the saddle and back to AB.

Wednesday:Swim. Swim as many laps as you can in a row after swimming 6 laps easy for a warmup. Again, please let me know what this # is. Even if you burn out before, try to swim and finish at least 36 laps (1/2 mile). Also, let me know how long this takes you.

Thursday: Tempo run---stay at AB, then burst to AT as many times as possible.

Friday: Get on your bike or spin. find your most efficient gear, stay consistent, and hammer down on the pedals at a consistent speed, please let me know what that speed is.

Saturday: swim for recovery and distance. swim as long as you can at an easy pace that allows you to stay continuous. let me know where you get to. lift, core, yoga.

Try to get at least 2-3 lifts in per week and core and calves everyday.


Week of October 13th 2008
There is a Duathlon on Sunday the 19th in Mandeville for any one who is interested.

Monday: Brick Training--ride at or right above your AB on the bike or in spin for 30-45 minutes, then get off and try to run for 20-30 minutes (whatever time permits for you) at or right above your AB as well. If you are feeling great and want to push it a little (HR), go ahead but let me know what you do.

Tuesday: Swim as many laps as you can in a row, time permitting after warming up. You are not going for speed here, rather distance. If you have to stop after a certain #, fine, but rest and then see how many more you can do in a row, with a cooldown after. Core and weights if you can.

Wednesday: Same as Monday. If you did not pick up your intensity above AB on Monday, do it today, push it pretty good and let me know what HR you get to above your AB.

Thursday: Spin or bike for 45 min-1 hr doing some tempo work which a traditional spin class should do for you with the hills. Stay consistently around your AB then sprint to AT and hold for as long as you can, then back off and repeat. Core and weights if possible.

Friday: recovery swim. swim 3 easy laps and 1 fast 1 for a much time as you can before heading up to do core and weights, giving yourself enough time for these two things.

Saturday: your choice---probably a good day to get on the bike or swim, take Sunday off, next week will be a down week with less intensity.

Keep eating right and staying true to your cause. remember to eat early and often.

Do men seem to lose weight faster than women do?

This was a recently asked question by a lot of women who are frustrated by their husbands or any other male in their lives losing weight a lot faster than themselves. Men have more of a particular hormone called testosterone, which promotes lean mass and tissue, decreases body fat, and has many other health benefits and detriments as well. Women obviously have more estrogen as the main hormone in their bodies, which promotes adipose (fat) tissue, leads to diseases, sicknesses and cancers (in excess amounts), and also obviously has a lot of good things associated with it including helping the female to maintain homeostasis (balance) in order to reproduce and have children. Men also have estrogen but not a lot of it, while women also have low amounts of testosterone. These two hormones keep a certain balance within both male and females and change as the other hormone changes. One way to decrease the amount of estrogen present in the cells, is to drink soy milk or ingest some sort of soy products, due to the fact that soy isoflavones are the only other thing beside estrogen itself that can bind to an estrogen receptor site, thus allowing the excess estrogen in the body to be eliminated via excretion through the excretory systems of the body (sweat, urine, feces).

Do not always look at the scale as this is one of the most common mistakes. Look at the way your clothes fit and the way you feel. When starting an exercise program, especially with resistance training, you will actually see the scale go up because you will be gaining muscle and losing fat. Muscle weighs more than fat, so if you are gaining muscle and losing weight at the same rate, you are going to see the scale go up. This frustrates a lot of people, but you want to gain lean tissue because it is going to increase your metabolism and you will eventually see the turnover (which is different for different people) where you will start losing pounds, although you may gain a few good pounds first. Although you won't burn a ton of calories while you are doing the resistance training, your body's metabolic furnace will continue to burn those calories for you later and throughout the day. Men can jump start and lose weight a little faster, but stay consistent and true to your routine, and you will see over time that you too can change you body and feel and look a lot better than before! Always be your hardest critic, but keeping these things in mind so you don't get frustrated, and most importantly, stay focused and consistent on your goals! Make sure you set goals, because without them what are you working towards!

Deep Ujiyah (Yoga) Breaths

During this time of stress and uncertainty in our lives with the hurricanes (and everyday life if you are not affected by the storms), take a step back and take at least 5-10 deep belly breaths as many times per day as you can. If you ever look at a newborn baby while they are sleeping or lying on their backs, you will see that as they inhale their belly rises away form their spine and the floor, and as they exhale, their belly button moves toward the spine and floor. As we grow and develop and get enveloped into everyday human life, we lose this natural belly breathing. Notice when you get in a stressful situation what happens: your breathing will start to shallow and hyperventilation occurs. This is not optimal for performance. Performance in life or in anything that you do. Why? By filling the lungs to capacity on a inhale, several things happen: 1.) Our lungs are lengthened (if we inhale until we can fit no more air in the lungs) which helps to improve the amount of oxygen you can consume in a minute, which, if improved will improve your VO2max and how efficient of an athlete/active person you can be because you fitness levels and thresholds will improve as well. 2.) By filling the lungs and fitting this excess oxygen into the lungs and body, this excess oxygen will help us to be more efficient and recover quicker because that oxygen works to nourish every cell, tissue, and organ of the body. This happens because the fuels that we put in our bodies are transported by the amount of oxygen that we can consume, so, if we can consume more oxygen, our fuels will be delivered more efficiently and more often to the places in the body that need them, both during exercise and at rest. 3.) Finally, when stretching and doing yoga, our breath can help us to lengthen our tendons, ligaments, and musculature more and allow us into positions that would not otherwise be possible for us unless we were inhaling to the capacity of the lungs which will help us create a greater capacity for our lungs. By emptying the lungs completely on a exhale, several things happen: 1.) We release toxins from the body through our expiration, in the form of CO2 and other metabolic waste. 2.) We allow the body to internally decrease space so that we can move through different ranges of motion when doing yoga, stretching and even doing core exercises and other activities. 3.) by detoxifying the body we allow the body to be more efficient in everything from cognitive function, to neuromuscular impulses, to muscular contraction, and a decrease of free radicals in the body which are the agents that cause disease, sickness, and cancer. This detoxification can also help in many other areas as well.

Theses full, deep breaths, when combined with a full inhale and exhale help to relax the mind and body, no matter where or what situation you are in. Even in stressful situations be mindful of your breath and what it's doing and always come back to those deep ujiyah breaths. The physiology behind the full, complete, deep breath is this in addition to all of the aforementioned: when we inhale, our diaphragm drops to facilitate the oxygen moving into the body. It does this to allow your body to take in as much oxygen as possible. When this happens, all of our organs drops to the lowest possible place in our bodies allowing our body to be nourished by that oxygen. When we exhale, our diaphragm is pulled in and up as high into the ribcage as possible (keep in mind the diaphragm is a muscle). When this happens our pelvic floor, or perineum, is lifted and all of our organs lift. If we exhale to the point where we have to almost gasp for our next inhale, our organs are squeezed, and rung out like a wet rag, releasing those unwanted toxins from where they are being held. So, with a full complete breath, our breath will work as a pumping mechanism used to nourish all the tissues of the body (inhale) and rid the body of all of the toxins (exhale). Try to get in at least 5-10 long, deep, ujiyah breaths everyday!

Variation and Balance

These are two key components of the BQAD training system and programs. We use this variation and balance throughout all of the individual components to health and fitness that we use (ie. Strength, speed, flexibility, and nutrition), and also integrate all of these individual components to achieve overall balance in our lives. For example, when devising a strength regimen, we must make sure that the entire body is balanced by working all of the different muscle groups equally (we can also balance the body even further by working through specific "planes of motion" as well). The same can be done in a speed setting by working the 3 specific systems of the body (aerobic—type I muscle fibers—slow twitch, anaerobic alactic—type IIa muscle fibers—hybrid fibers mixed between fast and slow twitch, anaerobic glycolytic—type IIx muscle fibers—fast twitch). Also, the body can be balanced in the flexibility component, by lengthening as well as strengthening all areas of the body equally. Nutrition needs to be well balanced through good proteins (lean), fats (mono- and polyunsaturated), and carbohydrates (good simple and complex). There also needs to be a balance in the core of the body as well by working not only the abdominals, but also the transverse abdominus, internal and external obliques, spinal erectors, quadratus lumborum, psoas minor, and all of the muscles of the pelvis (hips). By balancing all of these individual things, one can then integrate all of these things to balance the body as a whole.

Variation in training is one of the keys to achieving this balance. People often do the same thing over and over and over again in their fitness regimens. This repetition creates sticking points, or plateaus where these people see their strength or cardiovascular conditioning stick in the same spot, or even decrease due to the same demand placed on the musculature involved constantly. This happens because our muscles have memory, and eventually end up knowing the exact demand that will be placed upon it on a daily or weekly basis. When this happens, people gain those few pounds back, or decrease in strength due to the fact that the same demand is placed upon the muscles, or muscular systems involved. Remember, the body will adapt to any demand placed upon it. Demand a lot of different things out of your body, not just one or two.

These to things are vital to the BQAD program(s) and go hand in hand with one another. Variation and balance are included daily and hourly for everything that we do, stand for, and provide to our clients, both young and older alike.

This Week's Triathlon Training:

Monday: Swim 50-72 laps continuous if possible, starting at a slow warm up pace and gradually picking it up so that the last 10-30, you are getting it pretty good. Lift, Core and stretch.

Tuesday: spin or get on the bike and go hard. Stay at AB, then ramp up to AT (big hills) and hold it for as long as possible, then back down to AB, then repeat, time permitting, get off of the bike or spin bike and run a hard 2-4 miles at least at AB, but preferably between AB and AT, closer to AT, which will be hard getting of the bike, push through and get yourself better!

Wednesday: Swim 50 same style, then core and stretch, lift if possible

Thursday: get on the bike or spin bike, warm up in your warm-up zone for 10-15 minutes, put it on your best, most efficient gear, and ride hard consistently for about an hour, lift core and stretch after if you have time

Friday:swim 48, you can use some training toys if you'd like for this, buoys, fins, paddles, kick board for 36 laps, then do 6, 50yd sprints (there and back) to finish off. core, lift, stretch

Saturday: Go hard on the bike for 20-45 miles, trying to ride some hills if you can get out to the country somewhere. After finishing, get off the bike and run 2 at as good of a pace as you can between AB and or at AT.

Lifting: remember that next week we'll be tapering, so try to get some good lifting in--not heavy, heavy weight but a medium/medium heavy lift in the beginning of the week and lightening up a little toward the end of the week with a more fast paced circuit type workout maybe on the clock if you can. Have a great week, and let me know if you have any questions! Let's all smoke the Cajun Man!

College Bound Athletes

While working last week, I received a text from an athlete that has trained with us in the past, Jerry Mitchell. He informed me that he has been offered a full scholarship to The University of Arkansas. He still has his senior year to play for Mandeville High School, which I told him, should be the most important thing in his life right now. I am so excited for him and love what I do so much! These are the times and experiences that make all of my 15-18 hour days worth it, helping these young men and women achieve their goals of earning a scholarship to college, or even getting drafted into pro athletics. Another one of our athletes, Beau Dickenson, received a call on Thursday of last week and was invited as one of the 105 select athletes that can attend 2 a days with the University of Southern Mississippi. He worked his butt off all summer to get ready to play college football, and he deserves every opportunity that he gets. He only played one year of High School Football at Holy Cross, and 4 years of soccer.
To name a few others, Maddie Commander, Theo Hooker, Christine Walters, Eric Hymel, and Morgan Springer have all received college scholarships. I couldn't be prouder!

Weekly Triathlon Training Schedule

Tuesday: spin easy at AB (aerobic base)

Wednesday: light, easy .5 mile swim, core, stretch/yoga/lift

Thursday: light 2 mile run at AB, you can do some tempo work here if you're feeling good, increase intensity by running at an incline or increasing speed until you reach or get close to AT(anaerobic threshold), then take it back down, STAY AT AB UNLESS YOU ARE FEELING UP TO TEMPO

Friday: light .5 mile swim, lift/core/yoga

Saturday: 7am spin, just do the class and push, followed by a light swim of your choice on distance.

Sunday: rest and take an Epsom Salt bath to help you to recover quicker

My Triathlon Training Schedule for This Week

Tuesday:  Cycle with the group from Franco's that rolls at 5:50am, they will ride 20 miles. Its an out and back route, I'll probable link up with them too and run a brick after for a couple miles. Before you hook up with the group, swim for 45 minutes. Do a 10 lap easy warm up, continuous if possible. get a kickboard and do that for 12 laps. If you have fins, swim freestyle with fins for 12 laps, put a buoy in between your thighs and swim 12 laps. remember, try to stay continuous between blocks. Then, if you can, since you will be good and warm, swim 24 straight laps. Let me know how you do, and don't miss your ride!  You'll be back to the club by 7am, DO IT!  I'll see you out there!

Wednesday:  Go on the golf course in Beau Chene for a run in the dark and watching the sun come up, get in as much time as you can, stay at AB, and toy with moving up to AT a few times, if you feel great there, stay there  for as long as possible and repeat as many times as you can.

Thursday:  Swim 36 laps at a comfortable perfect technique pace, lift, yoga/flexibility/YOGA if you can, CORE EVERYDAY (to work the core, think: front back lower upper, rotational, sides)!

Friday:  Spin until you can't,  just go with the teachers lead, then go outside and get a 25 minute AT run in.  I promise this will not be fun, but you get to take a well deserved break, just DO IT with that in mind!

Weekend:  Try to stay active, but take a couple days off to let your body compensate for what you've been doing lately.  Try to get something in while on vacation, just one day, your choice, keep doing core and stretch for at LEAST 10-20 minutes per day, taking long deep breaths while doing so.

KEEP ALL THOSE TIMES YOU WERE IN A BAD MOOD AFTER THE TRIATHLONS INSTEAD OF ENJOYING YOURSELF SO THAT WHEN WE DO THE NEXT ONE YOU CAN PARTY YOUR ASS OFF BECAUSE YOU'VE ATTAINED YOUR GOALS AND WORKED YOUR ASS OFF!  KEEP PUSHING, STAY STRONG, BODY, MIND, AND SPIRIT!
 

Week 4 Triathlon Training:

Monday:  Swim easy warm up laps and gradually increase you pace to a comfortable one for as many as you can consistently.  If you feel good and would like to do some sprints at the end, definitely do that but let me know how many laps you are up to in a row, lift and core

Tuesday:  Ride or spin.  Don't kill yourself here, stay around your AB, but you can get up and sprint or do a hill or two when you feel up to it.  Lift and core.

Wednesday:  Easy 2-6 mile run at or around comfortable AB pace, lift and core.

Thursday:  Swim 12-18 laps freestyle, the 12-18 laps with a buoy in between you legs

Friday:  Do the 4 on the 4th race at Hubie Gallagher Park in Covington and try to PR (personal record) in it

Saturday:  off or yoga