#1 Predicted Fitness Trend of 2011?

QUESTION: What is the #1 Predicted Fitness Trend of 2011?

ANSWER: A customer base searching for a more qualified and educated trainer/coach to work with.

I think that's a huge statement regarding how people are starting to take their health, it's importance, and the overall cost of it. More people are reading food labels now more than ever, TV shows like "Biggest Loser", "Heavy", "Made", etc are gaining popularity with each and every passing moment; and mix that all in with a somewhat challenging economic struggle for some Americans, and 'POOF!' you've got a customer base that is more interested in who exactly is training with them, their friends, and most importantly their children!

In this day and age of fitness, health, and overall appearance, I truly believe that most people are looking for a qualified personal trainer to get the job done. Whether it's trimming some inches of your body, improving your young athlete's speed and agility, or having the ability to finish your first 5k race without stopping; people are making sure that they aren't simply signing up with the program or company that is the most convenient.

For those of you that are searching for a program, coach, or instructor of any sort, but are having trouble how to decide on one, take a look at a list of appropriate questions to ask when meeting with a potential fitness instructor for you or a loved one.

1. Simply ask what their credentials/qualifications/educational background in fitness is. An fitness professional should have at least 1 nationally recognized certification or license on Personal Training, Biomechanics, or Exercise Sciene, along with at least 3 years of experience with training people. This is a great lead in question to begin with. You want to work with someone who didn't just check out "Top 10 Exercises for your Abs" on YouTube in the last few months.

2. Ask for a success story where the trainer has improved someone's life in a particular way(s). Simply saying "Well this one lady lost ALL this weight in a matter of no time!" just simply doesn't cut it. A quality trainer will tell you the person's name (maybe just first name), their goals and how they attained them, as well as talking about something that changed within the client such as self esteem, gained confidence, they shared their experience with their family, etc.

3. Ask for a free week of training. Yes, a week. Not just one session, consult, or walk-through. Have the trainer actually work with you and TEACH you something. I stress this so that you can see if you are going to have a good personality match with the trainer. Ask yourself, "Did I learn anything from this experience?" A good trainer will actually teach you something about your body, a foreign piece of equipment, or maybe even a skill (throwing, catching, reaching, bending, etc).

So now that I've completely exposed what to look for in a quality trainer, I hope you take the time to get to know me just a little bit. Head on over and see what training at MEYER FITNESS can do for you!

Serious Training. Seriously FUN!

Bill

Take A Little Time Out...

Today I took a little time out:

To say "thank you" face to face to a client/friend who is helping me connect the dots with my business venture..

To play with the kids next door in a small sided game of soccer....(they won 10-9)

To make sure I provide a good hearty meal for my fiancee when she walks through the door from a long day at work....

To myself for a play-based workout for 30 minutes, swinging around an oversized mace from my good friend Ryan Pitts....

To spend a little extra time showing love to my favorite pets in the world; Scip, Brutus, and Tough....

Although today was super-productive in my career; the focus was more on taking a little time out for myself and my loved ones. Upon going outside for my fun workout with the mace, after 8 minutes of swinging, the kids next door hopped off the bus and ran over to my fence with the soccer ball begging if I'd play with them. Usually I'm a bit too busy with some type of work, but today I paused before answering my usual answer, and instead came out with a "Yeah, I think that sounds fun guys!".

30 minutes later of running, kicking, cutting, and diving; sweat was pouring from my forehead and my headache from the last 2 days was gone and positive energy was flowing through my veins. After the kids squeaked out a victory (maybe aided by some accidental slow running at crucial moments by yours truly) I returned to the Monster Mace and continued to swing about for 15 more enjoyable minutes.

It was a nice day to take a little time out from the daily grind to show a little love to my lovely lady, the kiddos next door, and last but not least my overall health and mood. I'll take that over any workout you out there might have had today, I'll get back to that tomorrow. For me, it's time to shower and get the rest of dinner prepared.

What have you taken a little time out for today?

Finish With Action,
Bill

Parents: Be a Tribe Leader, Not a Friend

So it's my fiancée and I's new favorite "must-see TV" series on MTV, and it's turned out to be quite the "blog producer" for me in the topic of health, fitness, and family relationships. MTV showcases teens that are overweight and looking for a change before heading off to college, or in last night's episode, culinary school. The show is called "I Used To Be Fat" and it comes on at 10pm EST on Wednesday nights, you should check it out and see it for yourself.

The premise is MTV's version of "The Biggest Loser", only that the hour focuses on troubled teen who has had a life full of tortuous eating patterns and enabling parents that seem to not know exactly how to have a positive relationship with their children. Just like "T.B.L.", MTV throws a personal trainer into the life of the teen, in an unrealistic and unsustainable environment where training takes place almost every day of their summertime. In the previous 2 episodes, I've seen some of the biggest examples of parents caring more about being friends with their children rather than actually guiding them through their first 18 years of life. Let's focus on last night's episode: Dominic.

Google Search "Italian Family" and 75% of the images come up with this.

Dominic comes from a food-addicted Italian family that loves to eat for comfort and for reasons of bringing the family together. It seems like there wasn't a scene that the elderly grandmother (insert stereotypical Italian vision of a sergeant leading it's younger troops), was walking in the door, instantly helping to prepare some type of food while simultaneously complaining about something. At one point in the show, the grandmother exclaims "What!!?? Why do I have to change my diet now!?" You get the point.

Dominic's mother plays the buffer role. She is trying to appease her traditional mother while also trying to stick up for her "routine-breaking" son. This is where the "friendship" role is taken a little too far. The most notable moment of the show was not seeing Dom losing all of his weight, or throwing up during his first ever workout, or even learning how to stick up for himself to his family. Nope, none of those ground breaking moments did it for me as much as what I'm going to say next.

While cleaning out their pantry at the beginning of the episode, the mother's level of focus on being friends with her children instead of being a leader shone through. Out comes a box of cookies from the pantry, and after discussing that the cookies were originally bought for Dom's sister, the mother begins to cry with the task of throwing them away, saying "This is really tough for me. I know that my daughter loves the cookies, and buying them for her is my way of showing that I really care about her and that I want to make her happy."

Hmmmmmmm.....This is where I have the issue with the "friend vs parent" role. My feelings about a parent are quite simple. They should be the tribe leader. The tribe leader is responsible for maintaining the health, safety, and well-being of the tribe, making decisions that are sometimes very difficult to ensure the livelihood of the family. Back at the beginning of our country's existence, when Native Americans were roaming freely, they went where the food was. Meaning that no matter how comfortable they got in a certain area, when it was time to move due to lack of food, or because invasion from a neighboring tribe was looming in the near future, the tribe leader made the tough call of unsettling the reservation, not focusing on their initial comfort and happiness, but looking more towards their long term health and benefit of safety.

The Tribe Leader always knows what's best for his people.

In the world of "I want everything right now!" and "What I do now won't affect me 5 years from now", how can we teach the parents of today that creating an atmosphere of long term health is the more important role that they should play, rather than letting the child have whatever they want, not thinking that their actions now will probably create a landslide of negative choices in the near and far future. Here are a few ideas of how we can create a more healthy family structure:

1. Exercise together - building a relationship with your spouse, family, or just your children at a young age shows them the importance that you "the tribe leader" puts on exercise. Children are impressionable and pick up on the stuff that the parent deems important or even necessary.

2. Grocery Shopping as a Tribe - take a monthly trip to the grocery store as a family, learning how to read the labels on items, and deciding together if certain things are healthy enough to make it into the cart or not.

3. Plan Park Days - As a tribe, meet up in the kitchen on a Saturday morning, dole out responsibility to each of the family members to pack up a picnic basket. Take the basket, a frisbee, and a deck of cards or board game, head out to your local park and have a nice, active day together as a family unit.

Families that play together, stay together!

These are just a few ideas that a parent can connect with their children on, to better improve the health of the family, and the structural role of the parent as the "decision making tribe leader" and the child as the "learner that follows the positive lead of the parent". Help change your community and its outlook on family structure and health. Don't be afraid to step outside the box and hang out as a family!

Finish With Action,
Bill

Part 2 of 3 in my "Pick 3" Single Leg Stability Exercises from Hyper Wear!

Check out www.HYPERWEAR.com for the great products used in this video! 

Check back in next week for Part 3 of this month's "Pick 3" from Hyper Wear!

Finish With Action,
Bill

"I Just Want My Daughter To Be Perfect"

On a recent episode of the new MTV show "I Used To Be Fat", a young woman named Gaby was trying to lose weight during the summer before heading off to college; and while being vigorously (and unrealistically) trained each and every day on an apparently endless MTV budget of training sessions, Gaby was continually being berated with verbal criticism, both direct and indirectly, from her mom.

"Disturbing Perfection: All I see is UGLY"

The highlight (and lowlight) of this episode was the moment where Gaby's mom emotionally exclaimed that "she just wanted her (Gaby) to be perfect". After picking my jaw up from my chest, I was pretty speechless for a few minutes. However, after those moments passed, I realized the solution was pretty clear: the pressure the mother puts on her daughter to lose the weight, combined with the enabling of the mother with nutrition choices, was the key to her failure.

Now, I'm not a father just yet, but I have worked with probably over a thousand adult parents in my career so far and have learned tidbits here and there, listened to some pretty shocking stories, but most of all, I have heard more "my child can do this already" and "my child is already reading in the 90th percentile" and "my 9 year old's 40 time is the fastest on the team". Our children are capable of understanding the so-called importance we are placing on them. They simply feel the pressure (and the subsequent heartbreak) to STAY in that group as if it's their job.

We are talking about them to our peers and treating them as if they are adults trapped in a small body. I'm all for being a "proud parent" when the time comes, but I don't plan on tracking my child's progress in all aspects of development from homeroom to the hockey rink, making sure that he/she can keep up with what a "9 year old is supposed to be doing". I plan on simply keeping a watchful eye. I will watch my child develop. I will participate in their development and when I notice something that is noteworthy (no matter how big or small) they will be commended for it with a simple smile and a high five.

Simply put, I want to create an environment for my child and the children I'm able to work with through my career, where making sure they are developing at the same rate as everyone around them is not the ONLY yardstick available to them. I will let them know their strengths and weaknesses, but not hone completely in on what holds them back. Putting so much focus on something like that only shines the brightest of bright lights on it, making it even more difficult to overcome.

Earlier in my coaching career, one of my favorite phrases was: "I'm going to figure out your weaknesses, and focus in on them until they are your strengths." I still actively enjoy that phrase, however, I use it much more sparingly than I used to. I'm basically saying, "Okay Johnny (9 year old), you suck at lateral movement completely, and every time you see my face you will be reminded of that fact."

Now, I simply don't spotlight the negative message so much. Even if it's indirect. If my client says, "Well I look like a whale and people make fun of me", my response is, "I bet you can squat more than they can."

Frank Forencich of Exuberant Animal leads the gang through "physical happiness."

My new phrase that I have become very confident and comfortable with in training people goes as follows:
"I bring a 50/50 relationship to the table. For the most part, 50% of what we do together is stuff that you enjoy and brings sweat and a smile to your face, and the other 50% is going to be the stuff that you don't necessarily know you need to work on."

No one is perfect. And it seems to me that society tends to dislike people that come across perfect, so what's the rush to get to this so-called "Perfection"?

Be possibly the one person in your client's life that brings them joy, confidence, and physical interaction. What we do is 'personal' training, so be personal. Interact. Lead. Encourage. Move Together.

"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing".  - Harriet Braiker

Finish With Action,

Bill

Adversity, Focus, Discipline

These are just a few of the words that come across my mind at this very moment. I'm lucky enough to be able to spend my life with a woman that has an equal if not greater passion for health and fitness as I do. We just finished a training session, and although with different programs and different goals, we still enjoyed sharing the same space and working to better our lives.

A month ago, after purchasing her a couple kettlebells (10lb and 15lb) I began teaching Lauren the technique of the kettlebell 2-hand swing, a skill's success, which in my mind, is determined on 3 things:


1) efficiency of body's movement
2) breathing pattern
3) confidence in your own strength

A natural athlete she is, however, she had trouble with the timing of the movement and her grip strength (due to prior injury in the thumb). This frustrated her greatly. She is used to being great at everything upon the first few tries, or in this case, swings.

Knowing that she was already strong enough to handle the 15lb (as I continued to watch her swing it waaaay high in the air over and over), I had her try to feel what "heavy" for her felt like, handing her the 16kg that I have in my arsenal. She struggled and got even more frustrated, saying that "there's no way I could EVER do that". The word "ever" had a little bit of her Sparrow 'swag' to it, thus the emphasis.

I recently signed her up to Lisa Shaffer's 10,000 Kettlebell Swings in January challenge, knowing that through her discipline and ability to overcome obstacles, she'd find nothing but success.

For the first few days now, she's knocked out each workout designed by me to get her to the goal with her 15lb kettlebell, while grooving a great pattern of swinging and tempo.

Today, she decided to take on a different challenge. After completing 7 rounds of 50 swings with the 15lb'er, she declared to me during a quick water break that she was going for the 16KG for the last set of 8. I told her to be careful and focus on technique and even break up the 50 into smaller sets.

Yo Sparrow! Great job eh!!

Needless to say, she cranked out 50 reps in a row with great technique, finished her treadmill intervals, and walked into the living room with hands thrusted high a la Rocky Balboa. 

As I finished my set, I came in and watched her knock out yet another set of 50 reps with the 16kg. 100 total. Her choice, not mine.

So proud of my baby bird today for what she's accomplished.

What have you always thought you "just couldn't do"? Whatever it may be, go give it a shot, you never know how it might turn out.

  

Finish With Action,

Bill

G.T.L.

Not that I watched the season premier of "Jersey Shore" last night, but sitting in the office here with the training staff listening to our favorite front desk girl, Mandy, giving us the 5 min rundown on what went down was mind-blowing, but really it wasn't that strange after all....

Mandy is a 22 year-old friendly, rambunctious, and talkative girl who LOVES Jersey Shore. Sometimes I even think she will somehow find her way on the show in a matter of weeks. Every time I walk into the fitness center, I hear a story of how late she stayed out, or how hard she partied with her friends, or what new club is opening up near the beach. Ahhhhh, youth......

At one point, Mandy was describing the characters to Jen, the fitness director, who apparently doesn't watch it at all, saying "You know Pauly D, he's the one with the hair (shaping his famous do' with her hands)", with Jen responding with a silent deer-in-the-headlights stare.

I then told the story of last night lounging around with my fiancée' Lauren, who struggled to know what the phrase "It's T-Shirt time" was, as it was plastered all over the Facebook pages last night. I somehow knew what it was, explained it to her, with her giving a classic response of "Well........that's pretty dumb."

Point is, our society has shifted. Its morals, its values, and who it deems as its' heroes. Well, at least some of our society.

Let's just say I have added respect for my fitness director just a tad bit more after this conversation in the office, and I love my fiancee even more than I did yesterday because of her ignorance towards "The Shore".

At least one of their clichéd phrases revolves a little bit around health and fitness: "G.T.L." = Gym.Tan.Laundry......

Finish With Action,
Bill

Single Leg Stability - My "Top 3"

Here is a video I recently produced for Hyper Wear, a training equipment company that makes some pretty fantastic stuff for people of all walks of life. Each Monday, I produce a "Monday Morning Muscle" for them, and showcase their products in all forms of exercise.

This week I kicked off the new year with a 3-part series I call "Pick 3" on my favorite single leg stability exercises using Hyper Wear products.

Stability of a joint is often overlooked by many strength coaches around the world and through a few simple exercises that don't take a great amount of time, you can truly improve an athlete's ability to stay healthy on the field of play.

Enjoy Part 1 of the "Pick 3" from Hyper Wear!!

Finish With Action,
Bill

Get PUMPED!!!!

Quick laugh for all of you today:

Sunday was the first day of the new adult soccer league at the Virginia Beach Field House, where my fiancée and I work with the Legends Softball Club on their pre-season strength and conditioning. I arrive about 30 minutes early and notice that the parking lot is PACKED. I had already spoken to Lauren earlier in the day and she had informed of how busy the place was today due to the new season.

So I drive up and am forced to park a good hike away from the front doors of the building, no big deal at all, I actually prefer it that way in most cases. Bee lining to the entrance, I would estimate that I passed by 50 parked cars on the way to the door, with this being the scene of the humorous story of the day.

While walking this specific 60 second walk, I passed by 3 parked cars where the driver had all windows up, doors closed, and music PUMPING at full volume, with the look of pure focus and determination flooding through their faces. I found this to be such a true example of men trying to find that "locker room" feeling again, but it also brought me a little smile and a slight chuckle as it reminded me of my music jamming drives to the clubs back in Austin on nights that I was DJing.  Here were the selections that day, and I've also added my take on each one.....

1st Car- "Not Afraid" - Eminem - Obvious choice before preparing for athletic battle. Eminem  repetitively convince you that even as a 40-something year old man, your knees hamstrings ARE still good enough to sprint relentlessly up and down a field without the need to properly warm-up and then wonder why you spend the following 72 hours in sheer pain and agony. Score - 8 out of 10 on the PUMP UP SCALE

2nd Car - "Teach Me How To Dougie" - Cali Swag District - Strange to me, as it seems to be more of a song to pretend you're walking in slow motion down a city block crowded with people that you think you know, simultaneously pointing and nodding your head and hoping the recipient responds or even simply knows who you are; because we all well know that not having a response to the "point and nod" is quite possibly the most embarrassing public act ever. Score - 4 out of 10 on the PUMP UP SCALE



3rd Car - Some type of Chicano Reggae-ton song that unfortunately goes unrecognizable. I almost cannot comment on this whatsoever as it's not a genre I know too much about, however, the tone, instruments and tempo of this particular selection did not scream out "Get out there and kick some A**!!" Score - 2 out of 10 on the PUMP UP SCALE

Now I love music, and most of the time I require it during my workouts, but the essence of "pump up" music  simply brings out the best in people.

What is your choice of "Pump Up" Music??

Finish With Action,
Bill

My "Top 5 of 2011" - #1

#1 - To Be Married

As I've always stated in this blog and in other entries I've written in my lifetime, I feel the greatest accomplishment in life is to create yourself to be a strong, loving, respectful human being, find your best friend and soul mate, and be lucky enough to share your life with that person.

I am lucky enough to have found that person, and at 6pm on June 4th, 2011 in Virginia Beach, Virginia I plan on standing proudly at the end of the aisle, open my hands and heart to her, and truly begin to share my life with her from that day on.

Since the day we met, we have developed a great friendship, a bond beyond belief, and a love more satisfying than anything I could have dreamed of. To be fortunate enough to take her hand in mine and begin the journey that awaits is a blessing that God truly has delivered to me and I thank Him daily for that.

I made a decision several months ago to pick up my life in Texas, to drive away from all the people and places that I know; to ensure that I would wake up next to her each and every morning and be able to share this journey together. You see, I am a free spirit in many ways, enjoying being in new places and meeting new people and seeing what this beautiful Earth has to show me; but this journey away from my comfort zone was for something different, something lifelong, something that won't shift, bend, or break.

I did it for you baby, and I will not and won't ever regret that. You have been such a rock in my life as I hope that I have been in yours, and will always love you and protect you in any way that I can and more. I look forward to our growth together through Christ, through our family both near and far, and through our undying love for each other.

Thank you for helping me take the next necessary step in my life. I couldn't be prouder than to be able to meet you at the end of the aisle on that day where you will look more beautiful, angelic, and radiant than any rainbow in the clouds or star in the sky.

You're my best friend and my soul mate, and I look forward to accomplishing my greatest goal of 2011 with you, my love, Lauren Sparrow.

Always "Proving It",
Your William

"Begin With Reading, Finish With Action"

My "Top 5 of 2011" - #2

#2 - Opening "Meyer Fitness"

So, this blog was supposed to be posted yesterday, alas, we had some great friends of ours from Austin, Texas come into town to celebrate the new year, and as usual, one thing led to another and the laptop never graced us with its presence throughout the afternoon and evening. As my dad would say, "Well, son, you're a day late and a dollar short." Story of my life haha....

I have always been asked if I would ever own my own business, and in the back of my head I suppose, if I was to be completely honest with you, the answer would be yes.

So this is the year. It's the year to take the plunge, put my best foot forward, and put my heart and soul into the family business. (Side note, how many more cliches can I put in one sentence?) Upon deciding to move forward with this goal, my excitement level as never been higher professionally speaking. The research it takes (still taking), the decisions to make, the conversations I've had with fit pros that have experienced what I'm venturing into, and the meetings with my real estate agent, Paul; all of it has made me more and more excited about this stage of my life.

Starting with the name of the studio: Meyer Fitness; the strength of the name pours over me as I am extremely proud of my family, as vast as it is, and extremely thrilled to put it in lights and do them all proud. Not all of my family that is important to me owns the name "Meyer", however, I feel as if I am representing all of them with this venture, and the pressure that comes into play by choosing that name is welcomed.

Timing; the timing of the business opening couldn't be better. I credit my good friend, Jude Howe, for sealing the deal with when the business takes flight. Before leaving Austin, Texas, I went down to train with Jude at his Underground Strength Academy off of South Congress, spending the better part of 2 hours with him, working out, shooting Hyper Wear video, and talking business possibilities. Standing in his small bit of a parking lot outside his garage-like, rustic studio, he said to me,

"Bill, don't wait until you're "ready", because you'll never be ready. Do it now when you're sure that you're not ready, because you will indefinitely work harder for it each and every day."

These words have bounced around my head for the last 3 or so months and have probably made the most difference in my decision-making since then.  Thank you, Jude, for inspiring me the take the hardest step: the first one.

Why open my own business?

I wish to take my career into my own hands. I wish to make a permanent mark of improved health and fitness in the community that I live in. I want to feel that satisfaction of knowing that when the business succeeds, and I know it will; it was because of the hard work that I put in and the effort and support of my fiancee, friends, and family. I wish to provide stability and freedom to my family and have a place that anyone in my family can always feel welcomed to come work, play, and stay at anytime of the year. I want to take my dogs to work and let them walk around and be the mascots of the studio, watching the smiles they put on the faces of the wonderful people that walk through the door.

Overall though, I want to feel the pride of ownership. Looking back on these blogs, there is one consistent theme of taking control of my life in 2011, whether personally or professionally. It is time. I will succeed. I will take control of the outcome of my life from this point on and my business will be a large part of that.

Stay tuned in for my #1 goal of 2011, coming up tomorrow!!!

Finish With Action,
Bill

My "Top 5 of 2011" - #3

#3 - Travel Abroad

"For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.” by Robert Louis Stevenson

What a beautiful set of words Stevenson has strewn together right there. As a coach of movement, I especially enjoy the last part: "The great affair is to move."

How wonderful it is to live in a place that allows you the ability to go anywhere on the planet simply for the sake of movement and discovery. My parents often asked me when I was younger and had the time and means to travel on my own at the drop of a hat, "Why do you want to go to _______?" My response was always simple, "because I can." As Americans, let's all take a minute to sit back and take in a fresh breath of solid gold freedom and free choice........(inhale).......................(exhale)........Very nice....

Now it's been a few years since my passport has been stamped, and for good reason. My career has taken off in recent months and years, and with that has added responsibilities; I am engaged to the most amazing woman on the planet and have spent 2010 planning to and subsequently moving to the East Coast, and have since realized that I need to finish paying for the trips that I have thoroughly enjoyed in the last 5 years before traveling again and then hopefully start my own family.

However, 2011 is my year. I just know it. I can feel it in my bones that Lauren and I will be handing over our passports together at Norfolk International Airport and jetting off...........somewhere!

So why travel? Why is that such a huge goal for me in 2011?

2 Reasons - let's break them down together shall we?

1 - Traveling is in our bones - Americans have never settled with standing still. We are a people that are on the go, not satisfied, and always looking for the best photo to snap, most original souvenir to purchase, or to hear the most exotic spoken accent. I for one, enjoy going to faraway places to simply get LOST. Not like the tv series, but simply to lose touch with my current reality.

Call it what you want: turning off your smart phone, leaving your laptop at home, and not knowing who won the Super Bowl until a week after it's been done and dusted.  I've done this a handful of times in my life and have realized that I am most happy when I am left simply alone with my thoughts and senses. And now I plan on sharing that with my future wife.

2 - Magical Feeling - There is something simply magical about packing a small bag, hopping on a plane, and going somewhere in this vast world where no one is waiting for you at the other end of the flight, and you're not quite sure where your head is going to rest that night.

I once was in London and was ready to move on to a new location in my current journey and so I packed up and took the tube to Heathrow. I walked right up to the first check-in desk which was a British Airways, asked for the next available flight to anywhere in Europe for under $150 one-way. The young man behind the desk tapped away at his computer and informed me that I would be traveling to Edinburgh, Scotland 40 minutes from now from gate G23. I didn't know anyone there, but I just went. Through some amazing conversations with people sat around me on subsequent planes, trains, and buses over the next 5 hours, I ended up staying with the Illaffe Family for 3 nights outside of Inverness, Scotland, and getting to know their family members and what life was like in northern Scotland.

It was purely magical and I desire that feeling again greatly, and thus it has made my Top 5 list, and look forward to writing a blog about the upcoming trip sometime in the new year!

Stay tuned tomorrow for #2 on my list of "Top 5 Goals of 2011"!

Finish With Action,
Bill

My "Top 5 of 2011" - #4

#4 - Compete in my first Kettlebell Competition

Since earlier this year, I have finally found my type of competition. Let's get this straight, I love all types of exercise from weightlifting, yoga, and plyometrics, to tai chi, rock climbing, and running hills. Pretty much, if it involves getting my heart rate up and stimulates me mentally, I'm game. When it comes to "competing" though, that's another story. I haven't officially competed in anything since college, and that was 10 years ago. That's where kettlebell sport comes into play.

After 2006, when I broke my tibia, tore both lateral ligaments of my ankle, and ripped a tendon nearly in half from playing soccer, I decided that if I wanted to continue being as active as I like to be and as mobile of a coach that I enjoy being, I had to find something that was a little less risky on my body. The beautiful thing about kettlebell sport is that my success (or failure) is solely dependent upon me. Have I put the work in to be prepared for my event? Is my technique where it needs to be? Is my nutrition in line with performing at my maximum level? All of these questions can only be answered by me, and there's a satisfying feeling in knowing that.

Here are the 2 extremes that I'm talking about when it comes to protecting my body and remaining mentally stimulated throughout exercise for the remainder of my life:

 1) Soccer is fantastic, I love it. I love playing a little pick up game, and I love watching it on tv or live at a stadium. The issue with soccer is that while it's mentally and physically stimulating to me, I am putting my health, livelihood, and mobility in the hands of several other people on the field, and with my past experiences, that is something that I will always have in the back of my head. I have attempted to play aggressively a handful of times since then, and always found that I play hesitant and a great deal more friendly than usual. This doesn't bode well with soccer. I imagine it's similar to driving cautiously on a highway, meaning that those are the people that typically cause the accidents from my experience.

2) Running bores me. Although it's success and failure is similar to kettlebell sport where it's all about me and my preparation, I can't imagine anything less stimulating than running from here to there for 30 - 120 minutes at a time at a somewhat droning pace. Now, my fiancee LOVES to run, and asks me from time to time if I would like to enter a race with her. I accept these invitations simply because I love her and want to share her passion with her to support what type of exercise she has chosen to love.


Kettlebell Sport is the beautiful mixture of both. I am in control, and when it's time to train or compete, my level of focus reaches new heights each day. One of my friends in the kettlebell community said something one day not too long ago that is now etched into my mind during a tough training session:

"You must be able to get comfortable with being uncomfortable."

That statement alone challenges me physically and mentally, how about you? I always preach to my clients that our training program will get them "out of their comfort zone"; and now I have finally found the same thing for me.

Check in tomorrow for my #3 Goal for 2011, and for more information on kettlebell training, hit up the IKFF's website. A great bunch of men and women who are down to earth, friendly, and know how to get the best out of their bodies and minds.

Finish With Action,
Bill

My "Top 5 of 2011" - #5

As Ken Blackburn has recently reminded me: Goals are always a good thing to have. Something he has noted a couple years back regarding having goals goes a little something like this...

"ambiguous goals are like ambiguous driving directions; your chances of getting where you want to go are slim. State them as specifically as possible."


After reading that quote for the first time, my immediate thought was "Well, damn, I've got great sense of direction and rarely get lost at all no matter how much the GPS is off with it's instructions! I can work with this!"

So as the Holiday Season comes to a close, bringing the end to yet another fantastic year, I've decided to spend this week-in-blog counting down my "Top 5 Goals of 2011", one per day until the culmination of the #1 Goal is released on the first day of the new year!

#5 - Buying My First Home

 There's something satisfying about this goal that I can't seem to put my finger on. Maybe it's the simple feel of owning something for myself and my fiancée, a comfort of "you can't take THIS away from me", well maybe you can, but an extremely odd string of events has to take place for that to happen. I'm also feeling that there's always been some strange type of status-building sensation when you say to someone that you own your home instead of renting it, like "you've finally made it out of your 20's and you have a somewhat successful career going for you" kind of feel.

Overall though, mostly there is a cozy feeling that one gets when they purchase their own home, and for someone like me, the ability to provide a certain level of protection and satisfaction of sustaining a roof over your family's head no matter how hard the wind may blow outside. We just finished 2 days in a row of official "Snow Days" here in Virginia, and it was a nice feeling to have being inside with our fireplace warming our bodies, movies and sports on the television, and board games and card games peaking our interest and laughter. By the way, if you haven't played a solid hour or so of Catch Phrase with your family and/or friends, you're missing out on some serious fun and competition.

It was a nice feeling knowing that soon enough, I would be the owner of this very home that provided my fiancée and I so much warmth, safety, and laughter during a great period of time in the Holiday Season.

Tune in tomorrow to find out #4 in my end of the year countdown of "Top 5 Goals of 2011".....

Finish With Action,
Bill

What's The Big Rush? BREATHE!!!

Yesterday was what I call a "Work Day" in my kettlebell program. I typically have 3-4 of those per week with the other workouts being mostly mobility, tai chi, or GPP intervals. I love all types of workouts of course as any fitness enthusiast would, however, my "work days" are my favorite.

This particular work day was full of jerk sets to increase my overall work capacity, followed by single arm overhead squats to work lockout and core strength. I had 5 jerk sets of 2min followed by 1min of rest, and started off really well going at a good pace. During my 3rd set, I realized that I was burning out pretty bad for what I considered to be normal. This was definitely abnormal for me. Instead of dropping the weights and feeling frustrated, I held rack position and thought about what I was doing wrong for a few moments. I realized that it wasn't my muscles, or my grip, or my heart rate; but that it was my breath! I was out of it! Thinking purely about technique of the movement skill I was performing, I simply forgot about my anatomical breathing pattern and was basically all over the map of when to inhale and when to exhale.

I tell all of my clients and athletes that the two things to be concerned about most when exercising are technical movements and breathing patterns. Focusing on both of these will keep you at your best always.

Amazingly enough, this small detail did me in for that set, but once I made sure all the small pieces were running smooth, I was back on track and had a great work day.

Here's a quote from John Wooden speaking about teamwork and its similarity to cars:

"It's the little things that make the big things happen. The big engine is not going to work unless the little things are being done properly."

Finish With Action,
Bill

Training Equipment: What's Your Choice?

With opening a training studio in the new year, I'm faced with challenges, obstacles, decisions, and all sorts of bumps in the road. Lately, I've been making decisions on what type of training equipment (and what to leave out) I'm going to outfit my studio with.

I have a wealth of experiece with all sorts of equipment and I've found my favorites naturally, those being SandBells, kettlebells, stability balls, and dowel rods; to name a few.

Now I want to hear your voice! If you were left to exercise with just one piece of equipment, what would it be? Curious to hear your thoughts on this.......

Finish With Action,
Bill

Let's Narrow It Down

Ok, here are the names I've got emailed to me in the last week for naming the training studio....

Keep in mind that my target audience is going to be personal training for moms and dads to seniors, offering 30 min intense training that's fun and gets results. Also, I'll be offering a sub-program that specializes in youth-to-professional athletic development called "M.A.D.: Meyer Athletic Development". I'm also looking for something that just rolls of the tongue when said in abbreviated form......

Here's what we have so far:

Meyer Fitness Studio
Meyer Physical Culture
Meyer Strength Training
Meyer Family Fitness
Meyer Functional Fitness
Meyer Training Studio

Thanks again and have a great week of training! Check out my video for Hyper Wear in Galveston, TX at the TAHPERD 2010 Convention last month with Part 2 of our morning workout with 80 teachers! Miss Part 1? Well here it is!!! Part 1

Help Name My Training Studio!!

Ok gang, I'm calling on you for your brain power and creativity. Yes, yes, I know that might not be a strong suit for all of you out there, but let's come together and give it a shot!

As you probably know by now if you read my blog, I am planning on opening up my own training studio here in Virginia in the new year. I'm very excited about it and have started putting together the necessary pieces to make it successful from the start.

Here's how you come in:

1) If you enjoy my blog and hearing about fitness tips, funny stories around the weight room, and other random facts about health, music, and people in general, help me spread the good word of a professional, contemporary, and private training studio coming to the Hampton Roads area in 2011 by sharing these posts with your friends.

2) Leave comments below this post with your ideas for what I should name my studio. The only caviat is that I want to have my family name in the title: Meyer. I've got a few ideas so far but don't want to share them with you as to not create a biased thought in your head.

So let's get cracking on it! Once the name is set in stone, the business can be created and then comes the logo and slogan!! Help out with a great new project for 2011!!

Looking forward to hearing your responses!!!

Finish With Action!
Bill

My Sparrow

There are moments in life that one needs a reminder of what is truly important in life (well, to me at least): and that's being a strong, loving, respectable man that chooses to share his life with the woman of his dreams, best friend, and soul mate.

And that for me is my Sparrow, thank you for being my rock and for supporting me through it all, and just for simply being you.

Thanks for reminding me that it's not what you accomplish in this life, but who you are lucky enough to share your life with.

I love you baby,

Will-Yum!!!

ps - i love taking pictures of you when you don't know it =)

Vocal Chords

Here's one to make you smile.....

Last week, while training one of my clients, we'll call her "M", rather energetically I might add, the following story actually is:
1) True
2) NOT exaggerated
and
3) totally blowing my mind every time I re-enact it

Here's the scene:

I'm in an 8,000 sq foot training room full of a million dollars worth of cybex equipment (none that is used by either myself or my clientele), and get this, a Smith Machine. Seriously, when was the last time you saw that being used for anything but a TRX mount or someone learning how to balance on a stability ball and using the bar for a safety net? But I digress.

Inside of this room, there are 4 people. Yes, 4. Myself, my client, an elderly man on a recumbent bike, and a "not-so-elderly-but-getting-there" woman on an eliptical. It's 1:30pm and I'm having my client work on her squat pattern/mobility (coming off of partial knee replacement, soon to have the other one done yet for our work together) by having her pick up SandBells from the floor, sit down onto a box, immediately stand up from the box and toss the SB over the cable crossover unit and onto an adjacent box. In plain English, she's standing up and playing horseshoes with something heavier and softer than an actual horseshoe, and she's doing it over and over and over again.

Being my normal self, a coach, is encouraging M to do her best as she struggles to simply get off the box. I'm somewhat loud with my positive words of affirmation, something I don't realize I do and don't think is out of place for the setting we're in.

As we finish, I escort M over to the designated "Cardio Area" as if cardiovascular training is not permitted with anything but a $10,000 treadmill or some sort of new seated elliptical machine that must have cost a fortune (strangely enough, I was having a tough time convincing the manager to purchase 4 Superbands for under $100). The "not-so" woman on the elliptical nearby waves me over with an "Excuse me sir". I oblige and the following conversation ensues......

Me: Yes ma'am can I help you?

Not So: (with an awfully disturbing look on her face) Do you have to be so VOCAL?

Me: Excuse me?

Not So: (pointing back to where we played horseshoes) Over there! You were being so vocal, is that completely necessary?

Me: (keeping my calm) Oh, I'm sorry, I was simply motivating my client to do her best.

Not So: Yes, but it's extremely rude and is breaking my focus from what I'm doing and I'd like you to stop it.

Me: (looooooooong pause) Duely noted, thank you for your feedback.

Moral of the story: Not even 24 hours later, I took a friend's advice that owns his own training studio and put it into action. "Don't wait until you think you're "ready" to open your own place, opening it when you're officially "not ready yet" will only make you work harder for it". (Thanks Jude)

Alas, steps have been taken to make Meyer Athletic Development (MAD) a reality. And yes, music will be played there and loud coaching and grunting will take place on a hourly basis. Feel free to join in.


Finish With Action,
Bill

ps - if you love a little bit of house music, enjoy CVS's "Vocal Chords"