Thank you so much for all of your support, and getting the word out. It really means alot!
Unfortunately, I have some bad news...
B.E.A.R. Fitness has to take a little break. I have my own personal goals that I need to work out before I can successfuly help you guys! There will be major changes...hopefully.
I am busy trying to get signed with a Modeling Agency and trying to work 3 jobs. On top of that, I need to get my fitness and nutrition lifestyles back in order. But don't worry, goals and due dates are set. Time to get life back in order!
So, when B.E.A.R. Fitness comes back, we are hoping we can get an actual website together. Not just a small blog site. When we come back, one of the big things will be a new FREE workout program for guys looking to lose weight and put on muscle. The workout can be modified to fit girl's needs as well. So, stay posted.
While B.E.A.R. Fitness is taking a break, this will be a great opportunity to ASK ME QUESTIONS!! We need ideas for videos and your questions will be greatly appreciated.
I'll do another article on all my personal goals and plans, but for now, expect us to be up and running by APRIL 5TH!
We'll see you soon!
Hey cubs!
So, I know I kinda suck in front of the camera...who wants to give me acting lessons!!
In this video we talk about actually getting started with your new lifestyle. This is the HARDEST part of doing anything; actually getting started. So without further adeu, let's get STARTED!
The first thing you'll want to do is find out why you wanna get started. So you can live to see your kid get married? So you can bungee jump off that cliff? Or just to look good without a shirt? All are valid reasons, you just need to have a good reason and follow it.
When you find your reason, start writing goals, I recommend you read the article on how to set goals here. Make sure your goals follow all the SMART guidelines, and you're not too overwhelmed by goals.
Next, get started with some before pictures. You know the drill, you see them all over t.v. and the internet. ALSO! Be sure you weigh yourself, it's not necessary, but numbers always help.
Now that we have reasons and goals, now we gotta find a workout and a nutrition plan. Unfortunately, B.E.A.R. Fitness is still an infant, and we don't really have anything yet. So, I'll show you some great resourses. Bodybuilding.com is the world's largest fitness website. It has several resources and amazing workouts and nutrition plans at your disposal, for FREE! You can also get awesome apparel, supplements and books here too. Livestrong.com is one of my favorite websites to just read around and browse on. They have alot of great workouts and nutrition plans as well. They also have great tips and tricks to implement into your routines as well.
Now, you're going to be doing something very different. Something that your body isn't very familiar with. Exercise and proper nutrition may be out of your comfort zone, so your body won't want to do it. It's imperitive that we stay motivated so we DON'T GIVE UP!
Find pictures of a celebrity or a really fit friend and post them somewhere where you'll see them when you wake up or you go to bed. That way, you can wake up and say, "What do I have to do today to look like that?" or when you go to bed, you can say, "What did I do today to get me closer to looking like that?"
Okay! We have goals, we have a workout and we have some motivation. Now begins a new lifestyle, a new YOU! So, don't hold back, let's live a healthier, more enjoyable life. Good luck Cubs!! Feel free to comment or shoot me a message if you have any questions!
Sorry about the quietness, I promise I'm not that way in real life. I'm just a bit camera shy.
So! It's January and it's time to start setting goals for the new year! The most popular goals are centered around fitness, unfortunately not alot of people follow through with their goals.
In order to achieve goals, we have to set real goals. We are going to use the S.M.A.R.T. Goals Technique.
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant
Time-Bound
Be Specific with your goal. If you're trying to lose weight, how will you lose it? Cardio? High Intensity Training? Don't be afraid to get too specific with your goals
It helps to have a number set in your brain like, "I want a 32" waist." or "I want to lose 30 pounds." That way, you have something to measure. This alone will be a good motivator.
Is your goal Achievable? Will you be able to achieve this goal, is it possible? If not, what must you do to fix your goal?
Along with the big goal in mind, it's very helpful to make smaller goals to help get you to your big picture. It's like stairs, in order to get to the top, you gotta make one step at a time. So, with these tinier goals, will they be relevant to your big picture? If you're looking to run a marathon, swimming laps probably won't be very relevant to you.
Having your goals time-bound is probably the most important step in achieving goals. When you have a due date in front of you, you are much more likely to get an assignment done. Whereas if you don't have a due date, you're probably going to procrastinate, even forget the assignment. So, set a date on the calendar!
So with these goals in mind, let me explain one of my goals to you. I still want to put on muscle weight, along with getting as lean as possible. So, here is what my major goal will look like.
"By March 28th, I will weigh 170 pounds and have at least a 9% Body Fat. I will go to the gym Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Wednesday will be my swimming day."
Specific: I have a workout regimen, and I want to gain weight.
Measurable: Plenty of numbers in here! 170 pounds and 9% body fat.
Achievable: For me, this will be difficult, but it is achievable.
Relevant: Swimming and Weight lifting are essential to reaching this goal.
Time-Bound: I have a set date, March 28th.
So that's my very basic example of my main goal. Of course I have workout goals and nutrition goals to go along with that. And I will help you make those smaller goals.
*TIP* Find a picture of someone you want to look like. It could be a celebrity, or just a really fit friend. Find a good picture and hang it somewhere where you will see it often, hang up several if needs be! Do whatever it takes to stay motivated.
I'm interested in hearing what your goals are. So feel free to contact me or shoot me a comment and I would love to here from you! Please Share and spread the word! This blog needs your help!
oh p.s. JUST BECAUSE IT'S NOT THE FIRST OF JANUARY DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN'T START NOW! The beginning of January is just a date. You can start a healthy lifestyle whenever you want!
So here is the plan for Phase 2. Basically, Phase 2 is the transition from muscle gain, to extreme fitness. Phase 1 was fat loss with a little muscle gain, now Phase 2 will be the reciprocal. So, 5 days in the gym, 1 day intense cardio.
Day 1: Arms and Shoulders (Size)
Day 2: Chest and Back (Size)
Day 3: Legs (Lean)
Day 4: Arms and Shoulders (Lean)
Day 5: Chest and Back (Lean)
Day 6: High Intensity Cardio/Swimming
Day 7: Rest, Pig out.
HEADS UP!! IF WE CAN GET ENOUGH VIEWERS, WE WILL DISCLOSE VIDEOS ON ALL WORKOUTS, MEAL PLANS AND SUPPLEMENTATION METHODS!!!!
So as you can see, less cardio and more lifting. The reason is fat loss isn't the problem now, now it's filling in all the gaps with muscle. The cardio day will be for good cardiovascular health and functional fitness.
In Phase 1, we practiced something called Carb Back-Loading. This was the most efficient way to safely gain muscle mass and lose fat. Now the meal plan will change and be more like this:
Pre-Workout:
Banana
2 Cups lemon water
Meal 1:
Peanut Butter Toast (whole wheat)
2 Egg whites, 2 whole eggs
Gold Standard Whey Isolate
1 Cup of Quinoa
Meal 2:
Protein Bar
Apple
Meal 3:
Whole Wheat Tortillas
Turkey breast
Low fat cheese
Cup of Almonds
Meal 4:
Trail Mix
Cup of Fruit
Meal 5:
Chicken Breast
Whole Wheat Pasta
Tomato Sauce
In Phase 1, the meal plan was: More Protein, Less Carbs. In Phase 2, it's going to be Even more Protein, More Carbs. Our muscles are going to be starving, so we need to fuel them with proper carbs. Carbohydrates being the first fuel source for mucles.
In Phase 1, I really didn't use any supplements, I wanted to see how far my body could go without the help of outter sources. In Phase 2, I'm going to need supplementation. There are some things that even proper nutrition can't provide your body with. But rule of thumb, SUPPLEMENTS CAN NOT REPLACE A GOOD WORKOUT PROGRAM AND A GOOD NUTRITION PLAN.
The thing that people don't understand is, you need to eat and workout right before you can supplement. It's like using expensive car wax to polish a crappy, rusty bucket of bolts. It's not going to turn it into a race car. So here is the plan:
Pre-Workout:
5,000 mg Creatine-Monohydrate
1 Scoop 100% Whey Protein
Post Workout:
1 Scoop Whey Isolate
1 Pill BCAA 2222
1 Pill Fish Oil
Before Bed:
1 Scoop Creatine
1 Pill BCAA 2222
1 Althletic Multivitamin
I'll explain what all of the different purposes of those supplements mean later. Again, thanks for reading! Be sure you share and leave feedback!! Thanks!
Hey Cubs! So Phase 1 (Fat-burning Phase) has come to an end. It was only 3 weeks and they were the toughest 3 weeks ever!! Not necessarily because of the workouts, but because of the time management that comes with a new lifestyle.
I had to balance out 3 jobs, schooling, cooking and on top of all that, 1 1/2 hours a day to exercise. It was stressful, and it was difficult to fit in my workouts. But, I did what I could, suprisingly I still lost the weight I was shooting for! 3 Pounds of fat my friends, 1 pound of water!
I know you can't see much..but it's coming in. Now, the last bit of "flab" that you see is skin. There is still quite a bit of water being retained the skin and the muscle. That will recede with a modified diet (CARB BACK-LOADING BABY!!) and more exercise.
I will come out with Phase 2's new diet plan and my shopping list, along with supplements that I'm using. This is now the muscle building phase! Freaking Stoked!!
Thanks for reading, be sure to share and keep following!
Today is going to be a great day. I am going out and restocking my Refrigerator with the proper nutrients to fuel my body! This is my shopping list for the foods that I'm going to buy.
Phase 1 Grocery Shopping List: Proteins:
Eggs
Egg White Cartons
Whole Milk
Fat Free Milk
Nuts
Pecans
Almonds
Chicken Breast
Beef
Tuna
Peanut Butter
Greek Yogurt
Sugars:
Oranges
Lemons
Blueberries
Bananas
Honey
Vegetables:
Carrots
Green Beans
Broccoli
Sweet Potatoes
Peas
Lettuce (other salad items)
Carbohydrates:
Whole wheat bread
Oatmeal
Whole Wheat pastas
Quinoa
Fats:
Avocado
Butter
Coconut Oil
And of course I will buy little snacks like Trail Mix Bars and other goodies. Low carb, high protein goodies that is.
Everything that is bolded means that it's a necessity. This is the most important item out of that category.
Chicken breast, beef and tuna are very high in protein, while being low in fat and carbohydrates. Greek yogurt is just like regular yogurt, but with a whopping 20 grams of protein per serving.
I bolded lemons because I am trying something new, Lemon Water. It's the first thing you drink in the morning as soon as you wake up. I'll explain it more in depth, but basically it deep cleans your liver and brings your body into an Acidic state, rather than an Alkaline state.
All of the vegetables on that list are equally important. They all have different Amino Acids and vitamins that cannot be found in just one vegetable. Variety in vegetables is very important.
Quinoa (keen-wah) Is a grain seed. It's tricky to cook but it's very high in complex carbohydrates. It is packed full with rich nutrients including all the Omega Fatty Acids. This is much healthier for you than a packet of rolled oats.
While healthy fats are important, I didn't bother highlighting any of them. But avacado's are indeed, a power food. I always request a heeping amount of avacado on my sandwiches at Subway.
So this is a very rough sketch of what you should keep in your house. You can alter and modify this grocery list as much as you like. But this is a good place to start. Thank you for reading! Videos will be coming soon!
Hey Cubs!
So it's the second day in my 13 week Journey. As far as the workouts, they feel great! As far as my nutrition, it's a little shaky. There is literally nothing in my pantry or in my refrigerator. So, it will take some major adjusting and grocery shopping. So I thought I might as well make an article on the nutrition plan as well!
The nutrition plan, so far, goes as follows:
Pre Workout: Small fruit, Creatine Monohydrate, Lemon Water
Post Workout: Protein Shake
Breakfast: High Carbohydrate-Low Protein meal, Multivitamin, Fish Oil
Snack: Trail Mix
Lunch: High Protein-Low Carb meal
Snack: Tuna w/ Crackers
Dinner: High Protein-Low Carb meal
Bedtime: Casein Drink
So when I stock up my refrigerator, I'll go more into depth on what I SHOULD be eating.
Recently, my friend suggested I take a look at a "diet" called CBL, Carbohydrate Back Loading. I may be considering switching my nutrition plan to fit this criteria and I will explain why.
Throughout the night, your body is being starved of nutrients for 8-9 hours. The body has nothing left to do but burn what's left in your stomach, and whatever it can get. So, your metabolism is sped up and a fat burning process has begun. Now this fat burning process can continue for a few more hours after you wake up, but we cut it short by loading up on insulin-boosting carbohydrates.
Based off of this logic, if you are looking to lose weight, try having a straight protein diet for the entire day. The only time you can have carbohydrates will be at night, when your body is physically exhausted.
I'm still studying this process, but it looks very promising. And it's logical, it makes sense! If executed correctly, you're not starving yourself, simply putting off your carbohydrates till nighttime. You still eat, you're just eating protein!
