My son Gabriel tested for his Purple Belt at CMA Martial Arts in Langley. He is almost halfway to getting his black belt now and I am very proud of him, he is doing really well and is beginning to look like a real Martial Artist!
Testing involves demonstrating some punching and kicking combinations, breaking a few boards, sparring and grappling with opponents. I was really impressed with Gabriel's sparring and grappling, he is starting to put it all together and it is paying off with some nice combinations and submissions.
Congratulations to all the boys for their hard work, commitment and the reward of some new belts!
Recently I happened upon a new Gym located fairly close to me in Langley BC Canada called Fit4Less (by GoodLife). Yes I have a wonderful home gym setup but I still like to get out of my house and do a workout from time to time. Sure I enjoy my CrossFit gym workouts for their group type setting but I still feel the need to do my body building and isolation work since this is required for the physique I am going for.
Up until now I have been training at Fitness World since I am grandfathered into a really low month to month rate (About $14 per month). But I find the Fitness World hours of operation to be a bit limiting especially on weekends and many of the workout stations and dumbbells are being used when I am there working out which makes my workouts less efficient.
So I thought I would give Fit4Less.ca a try, heck they only cost $8.99 per month for their basic membership and no locking in (as long as you are willing to pay their $35 initiation fee). You can avoid the $35 fee by signing up for a full year and at around $9 per month that is not a hard commitment to make ;)
The best part about Fit4Less.ca is that they are open 24 hours and have a card-lock system for when their staff is not on duty. And so far even at the busy times I can still get a quick workout in since they have a ton of free weights and dumbbells on hand.
If you want to ramp up your membership plan you can go with the Black Card Membership which is a wopping $18.99 per month! The same initiation Fee rules apply but with the VIP Fit4Less Black Card membership you also get free tanning, free massage chairs and half price vending machine prices. You can even hand off your Fit4Less Black Card to a friend or family member and they can use the gym for free any time they have your card with them...
One other bonus with the Fit4Less Black Card membership is that you can use it in any Fit4Less gym in Canada. That said there are not that many in BC where I live, just the one in Langley I go to and another one in Vancouver but I have a feeling that will change over time. Fit4Less also has other locations in Alberta (6), Saskatchewan (1), Ontario(29) and New Brunswick (2). But again most provinces do not have many of location just yet, except for Ontario which has close to 30 gyms. I'm thinking Ontario was their startup province and they are just now branching out to other provinces.
Well anyways I will be working out periodically at Fit4Less here in my hometown of Langley and taking advantage of the tanning since I have my Men's Physique Contest coming up soon in August.
Make sure to watch my YouTube video for this article on the 3 Most Important Tips for Success in Health and Fitness as I go into much more detail than here in my written article.
For those that just want the condensed written version here it is :)
My first number one Tip for Success in Health and Fitness is Diet & Nutrition:
Without your eating under control you simply will not achieve your Health and Fitness goals no matter what they may be. If you are trying to lose weight and fat, there is no way you can out train a bad diet because you can spend hours a day burning calories in the gym, and then in a matter of moments you can eat them all into oblivion by choosing the wrong foods. Likewise, if your goal is to get strong and gain muscle mass then you need to make sure every piece of food you put into your body has a purpose. Not only do you need a surplus of calories when bulking but you also need the correct macros, so lots of protein, enough fat to keep the machine working at it's best and yes you will need a decent amount of carbs to fuel the workouts.
Number two on my Tips for Success in Health and Fitness list is Intensity!
Many people believe if they simply put the time in the gym that they will automatically get results. By simply moving some weight around they expect their muscles will jump into action and grow bigger and stronger with each workout. Unfortunately this is simply not true :( Your muscle need to be challenged every time you do a workout. If you are picking up the same weight you have been picking up week after week and even month after month doing the same amount of sets and reps each workout, then how can you expect anything to change? Sure you can maintain a level of Health & Fitness this way but to improve upon it you need to step up your game. You need to do 1 of these things... Grab a heavier weight, do more sets than before, or do more reps than before. You may not be able to improve your strength each workout but over time by pushing yourself beyond what you think you can do, you will find that you actually can do it. This takes focus and concentration and writing down what you do each workout will help you to avoid falling into workout plateau.
The same is true if you have hit a weight loss plateau, if this has happened then you need to change something you are doing, either take a look at your diet and make an adjustment or increase the amount of exercise you are doing.
Last but still supper important on my list Tips for Success in Health and Fitness is Consistency:
We all have those times when we lose focus or get burned out and perhaps take a little too much time off from our routines. Getting back on track can be a struggle but the key to your success in Health and Fitness is sticking with it! That could mean you might have to scale things back to fit into your lifestyle and to make sure you don't burn yourself out or stray from your diet. If you go too extreme you are setting yourself up for failure. It's best to start out with realistic goals and then over time increase the level of exercise or tighten up your diet a bit more. Success in Health and Fitness is not a race it's a marathon that lasts a lifetime so don't be in such a rush, earn your success by sticking with it and making a positive change for the long haul.
So far my Fox Force Wrist Wraps have been holding up really well and I am now in possession of some more products from FoxForce.ca! My old Knee Sleeves where getting kind of sloppy so I needed a new pair, and my Wrist Straps where starting to get pretty shredded up, hey that's what happens when you use stuff all the time ;)
So LeeAnn from FoxForce.ca was kind enough to set me up with a new pair of their Fox Force Knee Sleeves and Wrist Wraps. I have been using them for a few weeks now and have no complaints. The Fox Force Knee Sleeves have just the right amount of thickness to give ample support without being so thick that they constrict my movement. I like how they keep my knees nice and warm while I workout and cushion my knees when I do lunges, no more bruised knee caps!
My Fox Force Wrist Straps have added neoprene in the wrist area that I find eliminates how standard Wrist Straps can bite into my wrists. Wrist Straps are a must for me as I have mild carpal tunnel which can really flair up if I am not careful to reduce how much stress I put on my wrists and tendons. The Fox Force Wrist Straps help out tremendously in aiding my grip when pulling heavy weight, allowing me to concentrate on the exercise rather than my grip.
At the time of this Article FoxForce.ca does not have their new Knee Sleeves and Wrist Straps listed but after some testing (by their local Patrons), they are planning to add them to their product lineup.
Watch my YouTube Video Review for the Fox Force Knee Sleeves and Wrist Straps:
My reason for entering the Victoria Cup is mainly for some more experience and to keep myself on track and motivated till the next BC's come around. Hey, you never know, I could even get my BC's qualification for the Open Class but I kind of doubt it since the under 40'ers are in pretty good shape generally!
We are about 2 month out from the Victoria Cup and it would be pretty normal to stat cutting for a competition like this but to be honest I am really well setup right now sitting around 7-8% body fat and only really need to lose 2-3% before the competition which is only around 4-6 pounds. I should have no problem doing this a month out, so my contest prep videos will begin in another month or so...
The next Big August announcement is that I will be attending TheFitExpo in Anaheim California and as it turns out this expo is literally the weekend after my Victoria Cup Physique Competition. This means I will be going to "TheFitExpo Anaheim" August 22nd 2015 in pretty much contest ready condition. What a great time to mingle with other Fitness folks and make some new connections in the industry!
If you are also planning to attend the "TheFitExpo Anaheim" this year then send me a shout out and perhaps we can connect at the show!
I also mention a couple of other things in this video, mainly to do with my nagging chest shoulder injury that has not really stopped me from training but has limited how much I can push myself on certain exercises. I have been doing higher reps and lower weight to work around the muscle strain and I'm getting pretty close to a full recovery. I have noticed a little bit of a strength loss but not so much of a muscle loss which is good.
Keep posted in about a month when I start my series of contest pre videos!
Tuesday, June 23, 2015 at 11:22PM 
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