All I Want for Christmas!

Good morning! Here are the details for the 'All I Want for Christmas' Transformation Challenge! Good luck to everyone participating..

All I Want for Christmas 49 Day Transformation Challenge

1. To enter all participants must: a. Submit a BEFORE photo via e-mail or have one taken before or after a workout at TFL by November 8th b. Submit an AFTER photo via e-mail or have one taken before of after a workout at TFL by December 24th c. Have weight, body fat and measurements taken by one of your TFL trainers before AND after d. Submit the entrance fee of $25.00 by cash or check made payable to: Train for Life, Inc.

2. BEFORE and AFTER photos: *Submitted photos will be kept private upon request. a. Must be submitted or have had taken no later than close of business on Wednesday, November 7th b. If submitting photos via e-mail, send them to jordan@trainforlifema.com i. Must include Full Name, Front View and Side View ii. Men - Shorts and NO shirt iii. Women - Shorts and Sports Bra or Swimwear type outfit (The more visual difference between before and after pictures will be greatly beneficial in choosing our winners) iv. All email submitted photos must include a newspaper with the current date c. AFTER photos must be submitted no later than Monday, December 24th and follow the same rules as above

3. All Transformation Challenge winners will be selected by Jordan Marshall, Andrew McConaha, and Eric Stawarz

4. Other ways to WIN: a. Attendance - Each class participants attend will award them one raffle ticket. The more classes you attend the better your chances to win in this category, not to mention improve your overall chances of a more impressive transformation! The WINNER will receive a $100 Visa Gift Card

b. Physical Challenges - Each week, we will announce a challenge of the week. The top 3 finishers each week will be awarded 3 (1st Place), 2 (2nd Place) , or 1 (3rd Place) points. If there is a tie at the end of the 7 challenges, we will have a SUDDEN DEATH challenge to choose the winner. The WINNER will receive a $50 Visa Gift Card, one month of a package upgrade and a TFL t-shirt

c. Mr. or Ms. Congeniality - At the end of the 7 seven weeks, Jordan, Eric and Andrew will choose one member as our Congeniality award recipient. This individual will have shown marked improvements, made great efforts in food logs and attendance, and shown true TFL spirit throughout the contest. The WINNER will receive a $25 Visa Gift Card and one month of a package upgrade for FREE.

5. Prizes: 1st Place: $519.00 Value - $250 Visa Gift Card, 24" LG LED TV ($199.00 value), a TFL sweatshirt ($40.00 value), and Pro/Grade protein powder ($40.00 value) 2nd Place: $280.00 Value - $200 Visa Gift Card, a TFL sweatshirt ($40.00 value), and Pro/Grade protein powder ($40.00 value) 3rd Place: $170.00 Value - $100 Visa Gift Card, a TFL t-shirt ($30.00 value) and Pro/Grade protein powder ($40.00 value) *Prize values are subject to increase/decrease based on overall participation.

The photos for the challenge aren't meant to cause participants anxiety.. It is a fact that these photos will increase results, and are very beneficial to success. Please use this as a tool in order to create great healthy habits. We wish everyone good luck and we are here to support you in any way we can to make this your healthiest holiday season yet! Keep the competition friendly and most importantly HAVE FUN!

Check us out on Mass Appeal!

Last Friday, I was asked to appear on Mass Appeal on WWLP to discuss how to prepare for the Fight for Air Climb and our charity Boot Camp coming up on Thursday, October 18th at 6 PM. You can visit the link to watch our segment. We hope many of you can come out and support two great causes, the American Lung Association and Breast Cancer Awareness. We will be hosting a BBQ after the workout and encourage many of you to stick around afterwards.http://www.wwlp.com/dpp/mass_appeal/health/get-in-shape-for-the-fight-for-air-climb

All You Have to Do is Decide!

Today is the one year anniversary for a client and great friend of mine at Train for Life! I wanted to share with you her progress and story through her words here for you today. We are capable of pushing ourselves beyond what we ever thought possible. All you have to do is decide and everything else will get out of your way. One year ago, Lauren decided to take it upon herself to change her life. Congratulations to her and all of her accomplishments! I'm very proud of all that she has! Thank you for letting me and the Train for Life family be a part of your journey!!

Here is her update since the original testimonial posted on the website last year, ENJOY!

Short update on my journey with Train for Life since you last heard from me at the end of October 2011. Weeks after completing the Rugged Maniac 5K, during a moment of temporary insanity and at the encouragement of the TFL crew, I signed up to participate in the May 2012 Tough Mudder race at Mount Snow. Tough Mudder events are 10-12 mile obstacle courses designed by the British Special Forces; they proclaim themselves to be “the toughest event on the planet.” This stuff is no joke and I decided it could never be too early to start to train. I began to step up my running, registered for another 5K, and increased my mileage. But I still wasn’t feeling like that was enough. What better way to prepare my body for that kind of torture? Train for a half marathon… naturally. Clearly, my streak of insanity had continued, or so I thought. It’s important I mention that I have been following the lead of my fellow TFLer’s into these races. I was inspired by those around me setting goals and aiming high and I believed I should do the same. I set my sites on two things, hit 100lbs lost by March 15 (my TFL anniversary) and a February trip to Florida to run…or walk, the 2012 Disney Princess ½ Marathon. While it might sound like I made all these decisions lightheartedly and with an “I got this” mentality. I questioned myself and my ability every step of the way. At this point I had lost over 70lbs, had a couple small races under my belt and was stronger than I had ever been but it’s true we are always our own worst critics and I had some serious doubts about my plans. To be honest that doubt always lingered but the people who never doubted me were my friends at Train for Life. I have joked with Drew that if I announced that I planned to climb Mt. Everest next week his reply would be “yeah buddy!” So, on the days that I didn’t believe in myself I relied on the fact that others had faith in me. For those of us prepping for long races, half and full marathons, Drew put together a 15 week running program. I’m not exaggerating when I say I struggled through almost every training run. I would listen to my friends talk about their runs, their pace, their mileage, and their…runner’s high?! I started to loathe the nice lady on my Nike app who reminded me of my pace every half mile. I questioned myself, why I did I decide to train for this over the winter? How much money would I lose if I back out now? Why did I do this? WHY did I DO this? My weight loss was a different struggle. I plateaued, like we all do, more than once. I did my fair share of beating myself up over 1lb, 2lbs, and all that wine I drank last weekend. And I certainly had a few “pull yourself together kid” conversations with my friends, there was no doubt, this part of my journey had some bumps. These thoughts stayed with me for months, pretty much until race day, at which point my goal was finish… running, walking, crawling, just finish. There is a photo of me somewhere on this page at mile 11, I look happy but at that moment I’m pretty sure I could have stopped and walked the last two miles, no question. But my longtime friend and running partner that day kept running and so did I. It was in mile 11 that I let myself think back on the previous 11 months (coincidence? Hmmm). I thought about what a different person I was, not just physically but in all areas of my life. The goals I had achieved and the ones I had yet to conquer, the people who’ve told me I’ve inspired them and most importantly the incredible people who have inspired and supported me. When I was done I was amazed with myself, I spent the entire rest of that day saying “I can’t believe we ran a half marathon this morning!... No, seriously, I can’t believe it.” What I failed to recognize until that day was the challenge of training truly had prepared my body, it was my head that was creating the struggle. I flew back from Florida just over a week ago considering myself a runner for the very first time. Yesterday, March 6, 2012, nine days before my 1 year anniversary at Train for Life I hit the 100lb mark. I am not the first of us to reach this milestone and I’m certain I won’t be the last. When I started out a year ago it was never my goal to lose 100lbs or to run a race of any kind I simply wanted to be healthier and happier. And I am. It’s funny now that I’m here, what should feel like the end of something instead feels like the beginning of something much bigger. I’m still not sure what, but I can’t wait for whatever comes next.

Looks Like Success.. And Smells Like It Too!!!

One of the most important things I preach is how important it is to have a plan in order to achieve your goals. Each Sunday, you should take a couple hours to spend time in the kitchen to plan out your food for the week. The more prepared you are for you nutrition goals, the less likely you will be to make excuses! I have compiled part of my menu for this week and put it below for you to use a cheat sheet! Pick and choose or straight up the copy thing.. Just do it!

Protein Pumpkin Muffins:

Wet stuff: 15 ounces canned organic pumpkin 2 egg whites

Dry stuff: 1 cup oats, ground in food processor 2 scoops vanilla protein powder (this had 23g per scoop!) 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1/4 cup splenda (you could certainly use sugar or agave nectar if you don't mind the calories) Handful chopped walnuts

Combine ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 8-10 minutes. I will be enjoying these with my morning coffee or as a post workout snack!

Sirloin Burgers: (I multiplied the amounts to make 6 burgers, plus leftovers that I used in the meatloaf.)

Ingredients (for Sirloin Burger) Ground sirloin or extra lean ground beef (170 g) 6 oz Salt 2 pinches Pepper 1 pinch Chili powder 1 pinch Fresh garlic (minced) 1 tsp Onion (finely chopped) 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce 1 tsp Olive oil cooking spray

Serving Size Serves 1 large or 2 small.

Preparation Time 3 min. Preparation Time 10 min. Cooking Time

Introduction A great-tasting burger is hard to beat. This Sirloin Burger has an excellent texture and flavor and goes great with Coconut Cauliflower Mash or Miso Vegetable Brown Rice.

Instructions Preheat a non-stick frying pan on medium heat. Combine all ingredients except cooking spray together in a mixing bowl and stir until completely combined. Form into a round shape about ¾ inch thick. Lightly coat pan with spray and place the sirloin burger into the pan. Cook the burger until lightly browned and then gently flip and brown the other side. Cook all the way through and serve. Serves 1 large or 2 small.

Variations and Options To add flavor and texture, add finely chopped peppers, corn or herbs to the burger.

Nutritional Information (per serving) large small Calories (k/cal) 232.9 116.4 Fat (g) 8.4 4.2 Saturated (g) 3.8 1.9 Monounsaturated (g) 3.6 1.8 Polyunsaturated (g) 0.4 0.2 omega-3 (g) 0.1 0.0 omega-6 (g) 0.3 0.2 Carbohydrates (g) 3.1 1.6 fiber (g) 0.3 0.2 sugars (g) 1.4 0.7 Protein (g) 36.2 18.1

This recipe is from - http://www.precisionnutrition.com/favorite-gourmet-nutrition-recipes

I will be eating these with some of the oven roasted veggies, and possibly some baked sweet potato fries!

Meatloaf: Kinda winged it on this one, so not too sure on the amounts for each ingredient. I used the remaining beef from my sirloin burgers and added a few extras.. We will see how this actually tastes!

Ingredients: See above in the Sirloin Burgers, then I added 1/2 cup cottage cheese, 2 egg whites and 1/2 cup steel cut oats.

Oven Roasted Vegetables: Super easy one, took cherry tomatoes, squash, zucchini, and onions and sprinkles with salt, pepper and olive oil. Baked for 30-60 minutes until brown.

Along with the recipes above, I will have baked chicken (always a good standby), currently thawing swordfish and a pork loin which I will have the swordfish tomorrow at lunch (cooked fresh) and the pork loin will go in the crock pot tomorrow morning, frozen veggies, greek yogurt, frozen berries, salad mix and fresh fruit ready to eat! I chopped all of veggies for the next couple days, peppers, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc so that I easily make salads and add veggies to my omelets. That may seem like a ton of food to some of you, but remember you're aiming to have a lean protein and a veggie at every meal so there will be plenty of opportunity to eat of all this delicious food!

Make this your Sunday ritual and as I continue to experiment with cooking more often that I have been I will be following up with more of these posts! It's great to have a full kitchen back in working order..

BEFORE:

AFTER:

The Mayonnaise Jar

All of us who have committed to a goal have made training a priority. Until you do this, you will only go so far. Below is a very clever story about all the things in our lives. Many of us are extremely busy and the most common reason I hear from people of why they aren't exercising or eating right, etc. is that there is not enough time. You must look at your life and prioritize what is important to you. The harder you work the more time and energy you will have for all of the other things! I hope you enjoy the story as much as I did. It brought a smile to my face as I finished. I'm so lucky to have so many great people who have come into my life as a result of Train for Life and it's great to be reminded about these things that are so important.

When things in your life seem, almost too much to handle… When 24 hours in a day is not enough… Remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee. A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, He picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students, if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous ‘yes’. The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed. “Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things – family, children, health, passions. Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else – the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. So… Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first – the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.” One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”

Something to Think About..

I came across this today on Mike Boyle's blog and it definitely made me think. As someone who has been wrapped up in working so hard, I make sure that I have time for things like this.. This isn't just an important message for kids, but us adults too. We are so busy that life just passes us by. Take sometime for yourself, a minute, an afternoon, a weekend to just enjoy the simple things in life. Life is too short, enjoy all the things it has to offer! This article was in a recent Parade Magazine:

Go ahead, kids. Lie in the grass. Study the clouds. Daydream. Be lazy. You have our permission.

I feel sorry for todays kids. Summer comes, theyre finally free from schooland bang! Band camp. Science seminars. Internships.

Instead of downtime, its get-up-and-go time. Chorus travel, archaeological digs, dance tours. My nephew from Michigan flew to Georgetown University for a summer medical program, replete with cadavers. He was 16.

He’s hardly alone. Some kids fill their summers with so many prep courses that theyre ready to graduate from college by the time they get there. Its all very admirable, but heres a question: Why so busy?

I can make the case for doing nothing all summer. Thats right. Nothing. I know it wont advance your kids career objectives or improve their SAT scores.

But it might be good for them.

When I think of my childhood summers, I remember lying in the grass, hands behind my head, feeling the blades dig into my fingers. I studied the clouds. I joked with my friends. None of us wore watches.

Weekdays were indistinguishable from weekends. Id wake up when my eyes opened, read comic books over bowls of -cereal, go outside with my baseball glove (just in case a game broke out), and find something to do on my bike, make things in the garage. Was it lazy? By todays standards, maybe. But there was a freedom that todays kids dont enjoy. We sat on curbs. We daydreamed. Think about the word. Daydream. It means your imagination wanders while your eyes are open.

What kid has time for that today? Preteens are on travel soccer teams. They fly to faraway cities. Play tournaments. Isnt that what pro players do?

Likewise, camps chew up the summer months, but theyre no longer just softball and swimming. There are fashion camps. Circus camps. Science camps. Achievement is emphasized.

Even kids at home find their free time under scrutiny. Some children are made to adhere to playdates as if keeping a doctors appointment. (By the way, the closest I ever came to a playdate was when my mother opened the door on summer mornings and said, Go. Dont come back until supper.)

We need to lighten it up. Sometimes doing nothing is doing something. Sure, camp can be fun, and travel ball is exciting, but if we cram in activities from the last day of school to the first, were ignoring an important fact: The way kids work during the academic yearhonestly, youd think homework was a full-time joba mental break may be needed. These are young minds, young bodies. Replenishing the juices by kicking back is not a bad idea. And if not in childhood, then when?

Now, I know what youre thinking: If we dont enroll our kids in an activity, all theyll do is text. Or watch TV (and text) or talk on the phone (and text).

Well, you could prevent that. You could take away the cell phone, the iPod, the Nintendo. Then see if you can get your kid to do four things in a day:

1. Have a face-to-face conversation with a friend.

2. Read something.

3. Build something.

4. Get wet. A pool. A hose. A sprinkler. Whatever.

Thats really enough. Before you can blink, its the school year again, where every day is jammed with sports, AP classes, student government, and field trips.

Thats fine for September. But if September is no different from June, July, and August, then were doing something wrong. And our kids are missing something precious.

Best-selling author Mitch Albom is a Detroit Free Press columnist.

Recipes from TFL Clients

Submitted by Kim T:

Ingredients: 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (not oil-packed) 1 cup prepare sun-dried tomato pasta sauce 1 cup fresh basil leaves 2/3 cup cold water 1 pound ground skinless chicken breast 1/3 cup seasoned dried bread crumbs 1/3 cup grated Parmesan 1 egg white 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions: 1. Combine the sun-dried tomatoes and enough boiling water to cover in a bowl. Let stand until softened, about 10 minutes; drain. 2. Put the sun-dried tomatoes, pasta sauce, basil and cold water in a blender and puree. 3. Combine the chicken, bread crumbs, cheese, egg white and pepper in a large bowl until well mixed. Shape the mixture into 20 meatballs. 4. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook, turning occasionally, until browned, about 4 minutes. Add the sun-dried tomato mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the meatballs are cooked through, about 7 minutes.

Per serving (5 meatballs with 1/3 cup sauce): 347 cal, 12 g Fat, 4 g Sat Fat, 0 g Trans Fat, 75 mg Chol, 894 mg Sod, 27 g Carb, 33 g Prot, 190 mg Calc; WW Points - 7

Recipe taken from Weight Watchers Cookbook

Recipes from TFL Clients

Submitted by Nancy:

Filling: 1/2 cup of minced mushroom. I like to use fresh mushrooms but canned works fine 1/2 cup of thinly sliced kale. In a pan add 1/2 tsp of olive oil and cook the kale and mushrooms. For about 5 minutes or until mushrooms are cooked.

Chicken: I like to use cut thin chicken breasts. I season the chicken breasts and then add the kale and mushrooms mixture on top of it. Roll the chicken and add toothpicks to keep it from falling apart.

I cook the chicken in a pan with light coating of olive oil for about 1 minute on each side.

I remove the chicken and put in a baking dish.

Cook on 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until chicken is completely cooked.

I like a to make a sauce to go over the chicken.

I saute mushrooms in the same pan I used to lightly cook the chicken. Once the mushrooms are completely cooked, I add the liquid from the chicken that is in the baking dish. (Make sure that the chicken is fully cooked before adding the liquid from the dish) I then add some lemon juice. Cook for about a minute and then pour over your stuffed chicken.

I like to have this chicken recipe with a side salad.

Enjoy!!!!

Why You Will NEVER Do a Crunch Again

Many of you have attended Boot Camp for more than 3 months now and we have yet to do a single exercise that resembles a crunch. With that said, many of you have also noticed your waistline shrinking and getting tighter without them. All of the core exercises we do are based on the principles Stuart McGill has widely researched and published work on. A flat, tone stomach has nothing to do with how many crunches you are doing everyday and every thing to do with the type and intensity of exercise you perform and what you're putting in your mouth! You CAN NOT out work a bad diet!So I encourage you to read the following article that explains WHY you will never have to do another crunch... The man who wants to kill crunches A Canadian professor of spine biomechanics rails about the dangers of the ubiquitous sit-up by Patricia Treble on Tuesday, January 19, 2010 9:00am

After three decades of figuring how out the spine works, Stuart McGill has come to loathe sit-ups. It doesn’t matter whether they are the full sit-ups beloved by military trainers or the crunch versions so ubiquitous in gyms. “What happens when you perform a sit-up?” he asks. “The spine is flexed into the position at which it damages sooner.” The professor of spine biomechanics at the University of Waterloo knows a thing or two about snapping spines. In his lab, McGill proudly shows off a machine that’s probably created more disc herniations than any other in the world. “We get real [pig] spines from the butcher and we compress them, shear them and bend them to simulate activities such as golf swings and sit-ups, and watch as unique patterns of injury emerge.” A disc has a ring around it, and the middle, the nucleus, is filled with a mucus-like liquid. Do a sit-up and the spine’s compression will squeeze the nucleus... Click the following to read the remainder of the article - http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/01/19/the-man-who-wants-to-kill-crunches/