March 15, 2018

How are you spending your time?

This topic has been on my mind a lot lately, so I decided to share it with all of you.

I want you to take a minute to think about the most valuable thing that we own, but many of us don’t realize the true value of it until it is gone.

We waste it every day on things that really don’t matter, only to look back, and wonder where it has gone.

TIME.

The thing we take for granted, until it is gone.

We waste countless hours of our time on things that don’t matter.

We tell ourselves that we will, “do it tomorrow.”

We play on Facebook, watch T.V., surf the internet, pour all our energy into a job, continue to do things we know don’t work, etc.

I can look back on my own life and see where this held true. I had allowed myself to become consumed with work and school. I felt like I was doing the right thing at the time, but looking back I can see how I allowed that to get in the way of personal relationships.

What I was doing wasn’t inherently wrong, but the time I was spending on these things was out of balance.

I had to pull back, reduce the hours I was working, and intentionally make spending time with loved ones a priority. Fast forward to today and one way I am doing this by coaching my daughter in soccer. This is my third year with her, and I plan on coaching girls’ soccer in high school, God willing. My daughter and I get to spend a lot more time together and are making memories that will last long after I am gone.

So, my question to you is, “where are you spending your time?”

Are you neglecting your health or family because you’re spending your time doing other trivial things?

What can you do today to begin to spend your time more wisely?

I think we all can benefit from asking ourselves this question every now and then.

Where we spend our time will reflect what we prioritize in life.

One day you and I are going to ‘run out of time’ so be sure you spent it well.

If you recognize that you need to make some changes in your life, comment and tell me how you will do this.

Cheers,

Brandon

 

February 7, 2018

Exercises to strengthen your core

Watch this is you have any kind of low back issues. ☝️

You must strengthen your core, booty, and possibly other weak muscle groups. There may be some you need to stretch and others you need to leave alone.

This isn’t a ‘quick fix’ issue by any means, but if you’re consistent you’ll notice a considerable difference.

Far too many people will opt for surgery and going on pain meds first, before utilizing corrective exercise methods. 👌

If you’ve been on my page for a while you’ll know that I dealt with a chronic SI issue. I was also in APT, which many people unknowingly are. My situation only began to get better when I took an active role in my recovery.

I was told I’d never be able to deadlift or squat again by a PT. She may have meant well, but lit a 🔥 under my butt. I have always loved to prove people wrong, and I did. I refused to accept what she was telling me.

Remember, when you see folks like this you’re only getting their opinion. You are not your diagnosis.

I began to research extensively regarding a hypermobile SI joint and all it entails. I then began experimenting with different training protocols and have created one that works.

I can now squat and deadlift MORE now than in the past. The pain I was in is nothing like it was before.

My message is simple.

Take an active role in your recovery. Exhaust all efforts before opting for surgery or taking pain medication.

A lot of the issues we see today can effectively be managed with diet and exercise.

 

January 31, 2018

Use these tips to help you lose fat and get in great shape

Use these tips to effectively help you to win the ‘battle of the bulge’ and get in the best shape of your life.

Tip #1: Get your calories from solid foods, reducing your consumption of sugary drinks and soda.

Tip #2: To reduce how much you eat, drink a glass of water 30 minutes before, and after, each meal.

Tip #3: Keep healthy snacks on hand when cravings hit. By doing so, this will help you to keep from driving through McD’s fast food or binging on junk. I like to keep raw almonds in my car along with apples and bananas.

Tip #4: Swap out those large plates you use for smaller ones. You can legitimately trick your brain into thinking your servings are bigger by using smaller plates. This will also keep you from feeling like you have to fill those plates to the rim with gut busting food.

Tip #5: Get in the gym and lift iron. This can help to give a boost to your metabolism as you diet and help you to retain more lean muscle mass. It will also help you to lose more fat over time, look great, and move better.

Tip #6: Make sure you get your zzzz’s. Studies show that those who don’t get adequate rest tend to eat more and are predisposed to weight gain. Your sleep is huge to recovering and being able to lose fat.

Tip #7: Ditch all the crazy fads and crash diets. Find what works for you and make this a lifestyle change. Otherwise you’ll keep going from one fad to the other and get nowhere. Make a list of the activities that you like, and keep you active, and find ways of doing these things daily.

As you can see the above tips aren’t flashy or glamorous, but they are scientifically proven to help you when it comes to losing weight and keeping it off.

Which of these do you think you can benefit from?

December 17, 2017

Remote/Online Coaching

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December 16, 2017

Soccer Specific Fitness Program

Do you want your child to become a better athlete, avoid injuries, improve their confidence on the pitch? if so, they should be doing some form of strength training, along with more technical work as they get older. This is especially true for the female athlete as this will help to reduce, or prevent, many common injuries related to the knee and ankle.

Many soccer players have adequate lower body strength, but neglect their upper body and core. This imbalance will have a negative effect on their performance over time and can set the athlete up for unnecessary injuries.

With my soccer specific training program we will focus on building a strong foundation, and from there we can progress to power, speed and agility. By focusing on compound movements for both the upper and lower body, we will be able to develop a much stronger, faster, and better athlete. This will translate to their play on the field, leading to better play and an increased level of confidence.

We will train in a fun environment that will allow for your child to grow, be challenged, and learn to become a better athlete. Feel free to reach out today to see how I can help your child succeed.

 

October 20, 2017

Being Overweight or Obese Sucks

Being overweight or clinically obese SUCKS.

I don’t care what anyone else says or tries to convince themselves of.

It is unhealthy, it is mentally and physically exhausting, it erodes your self-esteem, and can rob you of a decent life.

I know firsthand because for YEARS I was obese.

I tried to convince myself that it wasn’t “that bad.”

I get a message from a gentlemen the other day who told me, “Brandon, not everyone who is overweight has some sort of psychological issue. You know that right?”

To which I responded, “duh.”

I’m well aware that not everyone has some sort of underlying issue surrounding their weight issues.

But, everyone I’ve ever worked with has had some sort of underlying issue we’ve had to address before they could successfully lose the weight and keep it off.

Mind, Body, Spirit.

You can’t address only one aspect of yourself and expect any type of major, long lasting change.

Here are just some of the things that I personally deal with to this day. I have no problem being transparent and sharing my struggles in this area.

-I’ve got to exercise often and watch my diet or I will balloon back up to Nutty Professor status.
-Losing weight and keeping it off takes WORK.
-There are days I look in the mirror and feel like dog crap; I can see that fat guy staring back at me.
-Those old tapes can start playing and if I’m not careful I’ll believe the lies they try to tell me about myself….I’m no good, not worthy, etc.

Now, these things I mentioned above are not as bad as they once were but they still creep up from time to time. I’ve had to work my ass off to overcome a lot, as have the clients I work with.

The majority of people I work with are survivors of some sort of trauma. It could have been sexual abuse, emotional abuse, physical abuse, parents were drug addicts, codependents, neglectful, etc.

Often times we used food as kids to numb ourselves and this carried over into adulthood.

Maybe you had no issues like this but you find yourself struggling today with food or some other ‘thing’ that you’re using to avoid your feelings.

No matter what it is there IS healing from it. I know because I did the work and my life is completely different because of it. That doesn’t mean I don’t struggle because there are days that life kicks my butt, but I am no longer a slave to those things.

If you are struggling with your weight or some other thing that is keeping you in bondage I want you to know that I GET IT.

I know the shame you feel.

The guilt.

The feeling of being invisible.

The feeling of hopelessness.

The feeling of being unworthy.

You name the emotion, I have felt it right along with you.

Your situation isn’t hopeless, you’re not a failure, and you are not unworthy.

God didn’t put you here to just survive.

If that was the case He would have made you a tree stump.

You have a purpose in this life.

I want to help you uncover that purpose.

If my words can help just one person then it is all worth it.

If you need help with this I am available to assist you.

Your life will change the day you begin to do the hard work.

Yes, it is scary.

Yes, it will require hard work on your part.

But it is worth it and so are YOU.

If you’re ready to change your life, and live in Idaho or beyond, I can help.

October 15, 2017

Avoid yo-yo dieting

I see this far too often from people with good intentions.

The crazy low calorie diets that people are going to go on in hopes of losing WEIGHT. You really should be after FAT LOSS, but I know what you’re saying.

EAT LESS AND MOVE MORE!

That is the mantra of most of you out there who really want to lose weight. But this approach simply doesn’t work for the long haul. Yes, you may drop some scale weight initially, but it won’t last, and you’ll start the yo-yo process all over again.

With my clients I have them approach weight loss from many angles. It isn’t enough to just say, “Go do this work out program and eat______.” We are very complex and I believe this approach is too simplistic. I feel you must take a holistic approach when working with someone. You must address all the parts of the person, and not just one area. Now, that isn’t to say that someone can’t benefit from a training program only, you just need to be honest with yourself and where you’re at on your journey.

1. Address what is driving the urge to emotionally eat/numb/avoid or basically run from unpleasant feelings.

You are eating out of emotion for a reason. Understand that the weight you are carrying is just a SYMPTOM of what is going on inside of you. Address WHY and you’ll begin to see the weight taking care of itself.

2. Develop new habits.

We cannot eliminate old habits so why bother. We focus on creating new habits that will help you to be successful in all areas of your life. You don’t have to be a slave to your old, ineffective habits any longer. You can choose to make different choices, and I’ll show you how.

3. Eat foods to optimize hormones, reduce cravings, and feel satiated.

I really want you to think about how you eat, what you eat, and the response from your body. Does the food you fuel your body with make you feel alive or sluggish? do you feel like you could go climb a mountain or climb into bed? Also, when do you notice your cravings hit you the hardest? These are all things we would look at so that you can make better choices for yourself. I want to help set you up for success.

4. Aerobic/Anaerobic activities.

I want to help you find those things that you truly enjoy doing, be it strength training, hiking, biking, swimming, running, walking, etc; It’s all good with me. We will create a strength training program that you will be able to do in under 40 minutes. It will be geared to the environment you train in; home or gym. Your current physical fitness level is taken into consideration, and it will be progressive in nature. Meaning, you will progress to more challenging movements, weights, etc; over time. This will all help you to be able to become stronger, decrease body-fat, move better, look better in your clothes, but most important; feel better about yourself.

If you have struggled with your weight, tried diet after diet, only to end up right back where you are now, seek help. It isn’t a bad thing to invest in yourself, and in fact, it’s a great form of self-care. Too many people, especially women, think of themselves last. That is tragic to me. You can’t pour from an empty vessel, and if you’re not taking care of yourself properly, then you’ll struggle to care for others. Stop putting yourself on the back burner, and take care of the magnificent body that God gave you.

Improving your health has so many wonderful benefits:

• Improved mental state; happiness
• Decreased anxiety and depression
• Fat loss
• Better sex life/more confidence in self
• More stamina to do those activities you enjoy
• Keep up with the kids or grandkids
• Wear clothes you actually like
• Improved self-esteem
• Get off certain medications
• Be stronger physically
• Improve bone density

The list really is endless for you. If you’re ready to start but just feel unsure of how or where to begin, I want to be your coach. I will walk along with you, and make sure that you have the tools you need to be successful.

I know that the thought of changing brings about a feeling of fear, and that is okay, it’s normal. When you step outside of your comfort zone  you should feel some anxiety, that’s good, it means you’re changing.

Remember that courage isn’t acting in the absence of fear, it’s acting in spite of it.

Cheers,

Brandon Jenkins