80/20 Rule

In business, the 80/20 rule suggests that 80% of your profits come from 20% of your clients. This same rule applies to your strength training program…80% of your results are going to come from roughly 20% of the exercises you do.

Let’s take a look at the 20% of exercises where you should focus your time.

• Dead-lifts- conventional and Romanian
• Squats- front and back
• Bench Press- pushup, incline and overhead presses
• Pull-up- pull-down, row

How about the exercises that produce a less than optimal return for your investment?

Triceps press downs, bicep curls, kick backs, side laterals, lateral leg raises and etc. There are too many to list (remember, this is 80% of known exercises)!

Now that we have established where you are going to produce the most results, we need to flip the formula. You need to spend 80% of your time on those 20% of exercises that are going to give you the best results. Here is a sample full-body workout following the rule:

(a and b are going to be performed as a superset)

Active warm-up

1a Dead lifts 3 x 6
1b Push ups 3 x 12

2a DB Squats 3 x 8
2b Cable rows 3 x 10

3 Stability Ball Crunch 2 x 20 (any posture or corrective exercises needed)

This program may look simple but it will produce the results that most of our clients are seeking with a minimal time investment.

Until next time,

Rick Mayo

Happy Birthday

In just a few short days we will be celebrating our 16th anniversary! It seems like just yesterday when we opened our doors. It was actually 1992! It is amazing how much has changed in our area and in our industry. On the other hand, a lot of things have stayed the same. Please indulge me for a moment while I reflect.

When we opened in 1992 there were no other health facilities in our area. There was hardly any road development and roughly 1/2 of the housing that we now have. We spent a good deal of our time explaining to potential clients what it meant to have a personal trainer and how we could help with their fitness goals. Our facility was only 1500 square feet and we were operating as Good Bodies Inc. It was widely believed that aerobic exercise was the key to feeling and looking great. We knew through our client success stories that weight training was the real fountain of youth but science was a little slow to catch up. Most weight training research focused on body building and not the health benefits of a strong, lean body. Low fat/high carbohydrate diets were thought to be best for weight loss and low fat cookies and cakes were flying off of the shelves. Needless to say, that diet fad passed like all of the others.

Leap forward to 2008 and we have completed our 3rd expansion into 6000 square feet. Several health clubs and personal training facilities have come and gone in the last 16 years. We are proud to still be growing and offering more services to our loyal clients. It is estimated that over 4 million people used the services of a personal trainer in 2007 and that number is sure to grow in 08. Everyone from professional athletes to seniors working on balance and bone density have benefited from personal instruction and custom weight training programs. Science has proven again and again that weight training is the single best investment of your exercise time. From weight loss to controlling blood sugar levels, the health benefits are too many to list in one article. Also, as it turns out, eating a wide variety of foods in moderation is the key to weight and lifestyle management.

One thing that has not changed over the last 16 years is all of the great clients that have allowed us to do what we love. They say you can judge a business by the quality of its clientele. If that is truly the case, than our business is more successful than I could have ever imagined. I can’t even count the number of clients that have been with us for more than 10 years and a few team members have been here since the beginning. We have had the opportunity to meet so many wonderful clients and friends over the last 16 years (See this month’s success story) through NPPT. These same individuals have made it possible for us to expand several times and offer more services to our community and our clients. It is said that “if you love what you do, you never have to work another day in your life.” Here is to another 16 years of never having to go to work!

THANK YOU!

Somethings Fishy

Generally speaking, supplements are a complete waste of your hard-earned money. The FDA does not regulate the supplement industry, which leads to outrageous claims by supplement manufacturers. Thankfully, we have a registered and licensed dietitian, Natalie Logan, on staff to help us investigate supplement claims and inform us of the truth.

Recently, there has been a lot of buzz regarding the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. According to Natalie, most of these claims hold water! Here is a list of 10 reasons why you should consider taking omega-3 supplements:

1) Reduce inflammation

2) Improve the body's ability to respond to insulin

3) Help lower triglycerides

4) Increase HDL (good) cholesterol

5) Fight against depression

6) Enhance brain development

7) Boost weight loss

8) Decrease the development of dementia

9) Promote optimal growth and rejuvenation for skin, hair & nails

10) Enhance function of most vital organs and hormones


To reap the benefits, studies show that either consuming 12 or more ounces of fish (i.e. salmon, tuna, sardines) a week or 1000 - 4000mg of pharmaceutical grade fish oil a day.


For the full report, click here.

Until Next Time,

Rick Mayo

New Trainer

I am always looking for additions to our great team and I've got my eye on this girl!



Enjoy!

Rick Mayo

Halloween Mask

As if diabetes, a big butt and a round belly weren't reason enough to cut back on sugar, new research suggests that sugar may actually make you look older. According to a study in the British Journal of Dermatology, sugar may contribute to the early development of wrinkles.

The wrinkle producing process is known as glycation. Glycation happens when you eat any sugar laden foods and the glucose enters your blood stream through digestion. The glucose then combines with proteins to produce a molecule called advanced glycation end products or AGEs.

The more sugar laden foods you eat, the more AGEs you produce. The increased number of AGEs interrupts the function of other proteins in a domino-like fashion. Unfortunately, the proteins most effected are collagen and elastin. These same proteins are responsible for keeping your skin firm and youthful.

The result- wrinkled skin. Yet another reason to throw out the kids' extra candy!

Until next time,

Rick Mayo