Lifting with Tony

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I still see it far more commonly than I’d like..

People are proud of having worked so hard, they’ve throw up during or after a workout because it was so tough. 🤮

Seemingly, it’s worn like a badge of honor.

“You can tell how hard I worked out by how hard I threw up after.”

No. We can’t tell that.

We can tell that you went WAY TOO hard in your workout.

We can tell you have a strange relationship with exercise.

We can also tell that we don’t want to train with you.

The fact of the matter is you can have a fantastic workout and not get a hint of nausea. Let’s be real: that last meal you ate, you probably enjoyed. You also probably put some work into making it. Do you want to waste that time, energy, and money you spent on the meal? I’m guessing no.

Train better. Eat better. You’ll want those to complement each other for the best results.

This one is for the people that are on that cycle.

You know the one.. that yo-yo of losing the same weight over and over by getting on and off the treadmill or elliptical.

There’s a reason for it. Weight loss isn’t the same as fat loss. When you use mostly cardio to shave pounds, up to half of that weight can also come from muscle.

When the muscle drops off, that can lead to a metabolism that slows down right in step. Then, you have to either do even MORE cardio or eat even LESS than you already are when the scale stops moving.

What if I said there was a better way?

When you throw resistance training into the mix, you’re sending a signal to your body to prioritize and hold onto muscle tissue even as weight drops due to a calorie deficit.

The result? More of the weight lost is from stored fat. AND a metabolism that not only won’t slow down as much but may even speed up as the muscle builds.

The one caveat is the weight loss MAY be a bit slower than you’ve been lead to expect. However, it’s also a far more sustainable approach.

So build some strength. Get some muscle. Lose some fat. And have a great weekend.

This one is for the people that are on that cycle.

You know the one.. that yo-yo of losing the same weight over and over by getting on and off the treadmill or elliptical.

There’s a reason for it. Weight loss isn’t the same as fat loss. When you use mostly cardio to shave pounds, up to half of that weight can also come from muscle.

When the muscle drops off, that can lead to a metabolism that slows down right in step. Then, you have to either do even MORE cardio or eat even LESS than you already are when the scale stops moving.

What if I said there was a better way?

When you throw resistance training into the mix, you’re sending a signal to your body to prioritize and hold onto muscle tissue even as weight drops due to a calorie deficit.

The result? More of the weight lost is from stored fat. AND a metabolism that not only won’t slow down as much but may even speed up as the muscle builds.

The one caveat is the weight loss MAY be a bit slower than you’ve been lead to expect. However, it’s also a far more sustainable approach.

Burgers are delicious. So is cake. And pizza. Donuts. Butterfingers. I could LITERALLY go on and on past the character limit, but i digress.

🍔🍩🍕🍗🧇🌮🍛

The main point is that they’re all meant to be enjoyed. We don’t “earn” these things because we exercised. You’re not only worthy of having something because you exercised.

You get to to have that food because you want it and it helps support your goals.

You also get to exercise because it’s a way to focus on yourself and your health. Part of that is your diet, yes.

BUT you don’t pay for one with the other. They support each other but can also exist without the other.

The two can be used to balance each other, but there’s also no reason to feel like you can’t have one without the other or that you need one because you had too much of the other.

Life’s about balance. Not over the course of a day. But overall.

Enjoy the hell outta that burger.

This is a key when building new habits around anything including exercise.

When you get that workout done, you’re casting a vote for that in your life.

When you eat that delicious, healthy meal, a vote is tossed in for that in your life.

When you get a great night of sleep and feel great the next morning.. yeah you guessed it. Another vote cast.

But also, when you skip workouts, those are votes.

Same goes for willfully cutting sleep and making poor nutrition choices.

It’s something to keep in mind when thinking about what may help contribute to you becoming stronger in AND out of the gym.

The best diet.

This is probably one of the most mostly debated topics in all of fitness.

And it makes sense. There are so many different options. Here is a list just off the top of my head: keto, carnivore, vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, pescatarian, Mediterranean, Atkins, macro-based.

By no means is that all-inclusive. Which begs the question again: which is the best one?

In a way, it’s simple: the best one is the one you’re going to be able to stick the most consistently. If you can hold to a keto(or pick any other diet here) from Monday-Friday only to kick it to the curb on the weekends or even all together because the diet was too restrictive, you’re not setting yourself up for long term success.

There’s also something all these have in common that we could see if we take a few steps back. They seem different up front.. after all, what could a carnivore and a vegan diet have in common?

I know what you might be thinking. They help you control calories. That’s true! It’s also not what I’m getting at. Something else all of these have in common(and I mean at their bases, not at the headlines you’ll see plastered on magazines and social media) is they all point to making better food choices.

Think about it. Who eats things like fresh fruits, veggies, and lean meats while mostly avoiding highly processed foods and also has issues with things like feeling full and STAYING full?

Also, those fresh foods? They tend to be low in calories. The processed ones? Pretty damn high in them. Not that there’s no place for them since, being honest, they’re fun. But to be most effective with your overall diet, they should hold a small place towards the end rather than being the centerpiece.

Here are some small tips to get the most out of your consistent workouts!

1. Make a ritual around lifting. No, it doesn’t have to be anything insane like getting the Soul Stone from Vormir or saying grace before you reach in for the chicken. BUT simple things(notice how you might have a gym playlist or how things just don’t seem right when you forget your headphones) are great for getting the mind ready. Wearing a certain type of clothing, having a set spot(ya know.. like a gym), and a brief stretching or priming routine are all great things to incorporate to help dial in your focus.

2. Plan your lifting ahead of time. We’ve all been there. We know it’s time to go lift, but we don’t have a plan. What do we do when we walk in without a plan? If it’s a big gym, we’ll do whatever happens to be free when we’re ready for the next exercise. A better move would be to figure out a program that works with your schedule and have that ready to go before you walk in the gym so you can be ready knowing what you’re about to tackle.

3. Journal your lifting. The best way to know where you’re going is to know where you’ve been. The easiest way to know that when you’ve been doing numerous different exercises? A journal. Pen and paper is a great combo. You have just use the notes app on your phone or even a dedicated workout logging app. The point is having some way to objectively track what you’ve been doing will help you make sure you’re not staying stuck in what’s comfortable because you’ve been using the same weights for 3 months.

4. Visualize the lift. This is especially true if it’s not a new-to-you exercise and the weight is going to be a great challenge. When you know what it feels like to be in the middle of a squat, lunge, or tricep extension, imagine yourself working through that with the upcoming weight. Feel yourself going through the full motion from picking up the weight, performing the reps, and setting it back down. This won’t work if you’re used to deadlifting 200 pounds with some good work and you painfully want to get 500, mind you. Used reasonably, this can be a great mental spike.

Here are five ideas surrounding exercise that still seem to hold true despite evidence to the contrary.

1. The post workout, anabolic window. The idea here is that you have a small window of time(normally an hour) after you finish your workout. If you don’t supply your body with nutrition(usually a mix of protein and carbs), you’ll have effectively wasted your workout because there’s nothing for your body to use to rebuild itself. There isn’t any research supporting this idea. More realistically, if you’re training later in the day, the meals you’ve already eaten would be providing protein that your body can use to start rebuilding muscle.

2. If you lift heavy, you’ll get bulky. This one boils down largely to food intake. You can only get physically larger if you’re consuming extra calories. Lifting heavy will get you stronger, and to an extent build some muscle BUT only if the calories are there. And also, heavy is a completely relative term that means different amounts to different people.

3. Ah, yes. Soreness. DOMS(delayed onset muscle soreness) as it’s known in some circles. Seemingly a goal in others. Really, you don’t have to be sore in order to have an effective workout. You definitely don’t have to be so sore, the thought of getting off a toilet is enough to traumatize you. A little bit of soreness is ok, but if you can’t get off the couch without announcing how cripplingly sore you are to everyone in earshot, you most likely overdid it.

4. Sweating. Feels great! Especially when a breeze hits you while the shirt is still soaked. Much like the point above, it’s not a requirement for a quality workout. Some exercises and styles will absolutely get your skin dumping liquid. Others won’t. It doesn’t mean one is more effective than the other.

5. Ah, cardio. Some people exclusively hang here. Others avoid it. Other still mix the two… and they’re getting the best of both worlds. Here’s the deal: cardio exercise makes your heart stronger, period. Last I checked, the heart plays quite a key role in keeping us going. You do NOT have to go all out with cardio. A good walk is just fine, too.

Happy Thursday! What a way to wake up.

Also, it sucks to find out while you’re doing these that your shoes do not grip the turf very well. 😑

Chasing perfection SOUNDS like a great thing. It really does, right?

Here’s the thing: we have a habit of getting so fixated on perfection that we feel awful even if we’re only 1% off the mark. We can also feel terrible if we didn’t hit the mark EVEN IF we did better than before.

Really, we’ve got to do a better job of recognizing when we’re doing better, period. That holds so much more value than just getting a gold star.

If we hunt down small improvements over time, one day we look back and go, “Wow. I wasn’t always able to do this!”

Will there be days where we totally miss it and even slide back a bit? Of course. BUT that doesn’t mean everything done up to this point was useless.

Take a step back and look at how things have gone over a longer timeframe. Progress lies there, and it’s a much better indication of effectiveness.

!!Benefits of lifting that have no focus on building muscle!!

Mood - Exercise boost endorphins in the body. Not only that, the endorphin boost can also provide more energy throughout the day.

Healthier bones - Strength training challenges the bones just like it does your muscles. They have to get stronger to keep up with the training.

Sleep - Sleep is useful when it comes to recovering from workouts. In fact, it’s necessary for muscle repair and growth. Aside from that, strength training will help you sleep better because the body will want to make those repairs. The deeper sleep can help your body’s hormone balance which is was sets you up for those repairs.

General day-to-day movement - If you can reach better, squat lower, or have better balance, coordination, and posture, you’ll have a much better time with things you do every day.

Stress management - Strength training gives you a place where you can create a stable obstacle then work to overcome it. As you learn to overcome them, this mental resiliency can carry over to the rest of your life.

Q: When is the best time to go to the gym?

A: Whenever your can find space in your damn schedule.
(But 2-3 times a week is a really great start)

If your diet doesn’t let you have that slice of pizza, f**k that diet.

Stay in shape because it feels good and you want to. Then, you’ll find that you never need to get in shape.

I Ate One Big Mac Every Day for 30 Days And Lost 7lbs (Here's How)

The Cliffs Notes:

1 Big Mac daily.
Calorie deficit through the month.
7 pounds gone.

I Ate One Big Mac Every Day for 30 Days And Lost 7lbs (Here's How) Get My Diet & Workout Program ► http://bit.ly/SFINNERCIRCLE Subscribe for More Videos ► http://bit.ly/jordansyattyoutube - Find me on... Instagram ► https://...

Psst. Hey.

You see that person over there? You know the one. The one that’s at the gym every day.. sometimes twice a day.

Pretty inspiring, right? Wanna know one of the best things about lifting or going to the gym in general?

You DON’T have to go as often as that person!! It’s entirely possible that life happens and you can only consistently make it two or three times a week. The most important part is “CONSISTENLY”.

Going to the gym three times a week for year is FAR better than going seven times a week and burning out because it’s tough to keep that up with the rest of your life.

IF you dig going that often and you can sustain it, props. If you can’t and you know this, props also.

Figure out how much time you CAN set aside regularly throughout the week. THEN figure out the best way to use that time.

✌🏽❤️

Lifting, simplified.

Squat, hip hinge, push, pull, twist, and carry.

The six basic movements patterns in the human body.

Pick things you enjoy that work these patterns. Do that a few times a week. Enjoy the results.

Lifting with Tony updated their information in their About section.

Lifting with Tony updated their information in their About section.