Weekly Plan - June 23rd - June 30th

Last week of MTC!! I am having to double up on days to try and complete the program so that I can start P90X when we return.
Monday - Thursday workout goals -
1. Burn 2,000 calories
2. 100 pushups and 400 situps
3. deficit of 500 per day.
4. Finish last week of MTC - double days!!

Monday June 23rd - Making The Cut Day 21 and 25
Tuesday June 24th - Making The Cut Day 22 and 26
Wednesday June 25th - Making The Cut Day Day 29 along with 30 min HIIT run.
Thursday June 26th - Making The Cut Day 30 - Final day of MTC!!!!
Vacation June 26th - July 2nd

Weeky Results - June 16th - 22nd

MONDAY, JUNE 16th -

MTC Day 15 along with a HIIT run with plyo drill intervals - Cathe drill max dvd.

Total Time - 102 mins
Calories Burned - 1,014
Caloric Deficit - 714
HR - Avg - 78% - Zone 3, Max 99% - Zone 5
Pushups - 55 - divebomber, pike, balance ball, close grip, wide fly and core pushups.
Crunches - 100
Fitness Note - Great first day back after vacation. Awesome run today - sprint intervals! Did really well - felt strong.

TUESDAY, JUNE 17th -

MTC Day 16 along with Butts and Guts dvd intervals - Squat/Lunge Combo, Forward Thrusting Hammer Punch, Walking Lunges, Dead lifts, Freestanding lunge/squat combo and Squats w/barbell.
Followed by a 20 min HIIT run including 7 interval sets of 1 min sprints at 5.0 mph at 15% incline and core work.

Total Time - 68.5 mins
Calories Burned - 631
Caloric Deficit - 881
HR - Avg - 74% - Zone 3, Max 96% - Zone 5
Pushups - 0
Crunches - 85
Fitness Note - Wonderful leg workout today. Making the Cut day 16 was great with loads of leg work along with Butts and Guts made for quite a leg and glut workout! It feels great!!! Tread intervals went well - 15% incline sprints felt strong but gave me a much needed challenge and great for the gluts! LOVED IT!!

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 18th -

MTC Day 17 - Off day.

Total Time - 0
Calories Burned - 0
Caloric Deficit - 351
HR - 0
Pushups - 0
Crunches - 0
Daily Note - Had a nice day today. Decided to take today off. Will be back working it hard tomorrow!

THURSDAY JUNE 19th -

Workout 1 - Making the cut day 18 along with 2 circuits of Drill Max dvd - plyo drills with weights. Chest, shoulders and tris.

Total Time - 57 mins
Calories Burned - 510
HR - Avg - 74% Zone 3, Max - 89% Zone 4
Pushups - 100 - inverted divebombers, diamond, wide fly, close grip and core pushups.
Fitness Note - Great day! Chest, Shoulders and tris today. My dips on the balance ball are getting stronger. Worked shoulders hard - felt great! Getting ready to drink a shake and gear up for my second workout later today!

Workout 2 - 41 min HIIT run with track sprints.

Total Time - 50 mins - 41 min run with 9 min cool down after track sprints.
Calories Burned - 580
HR - Avg - 85% Zone 4, Max - 100% Zone 5
Fitness Note - AWESOME BURN! Ran outside today. Did really well. Ran track sprints - it felt great to be out there. Final time on run before cool dowm was 41 mins with a burn of 500 calories and a max HR of 100%...I was working hard!

Workout 3 - Turbo Ab Jam dvd.

Total time - 16.22 mins
Calories Burned - 130
HR - Avg - 69% Zone 2, Max - 84% Zone 3
Crunches - 220 - 100 of which where done with 11 pound dumbbell.

Final daily totals for all 3 workouts -

Total time - 123.22 mins
Calories Burned - 1,220
Caloric Deficit - 620

FRIDAY JUNE 20th -

Workout 1 - 30 min HIIT Run with 2 min cool down.

Total Time - 32.30 mins
Calories Burned - 322
HR - Avg - 78 % Zone 3, Max - 113% Exceeded zone 5.
Fitness Note - Another awesome run today! WOW! After yesterdays sprints I felt really strong and ready to push it again! Strong, hard run with multiple sprints - high speeds - 8.5 and 9.0!! Max HR exceeded zone 5.

Workout 2 - MTC day 19 along with Cathe Butts and Guts dvd intervals - Warm up squat sequence with 11 pound dumbbell, Squat/Lunge Combo, Forward Thrusting Hammer Punch, Walking Lunges, Dead lifts, Side to side hammer punch, and Squats w/barbell. Followed by a 20 min HIIT interval set - run, sprint, pushup, jump squat..repeat interval.

Total Time - 80 mins
Calories Burned - 724
HR - Avg - 74 % Zone 3, Max - 92% zone 5.
Pushups - 150 wide fly
Crunches - 100 all with 11 pound dumbbell.
Fitness Note - Great second workout. Lifted hard today - worked back, biceps and legs! Replaced balance ball in warm up with dumbbell and it made for a great burn! Killer leg workout followed by awesome sprint intervals at 8.0. Strong day. I did my very best and that feels amazing!

Final daily totals for both workouts -

Total time - 112.30 mins
Calories Burned - 1,046
Caloric Deficit - 850

SATURDAY JUNE 21st -
Day Off!!
Caloric surplus - 200

SUNDAY JUNE 22nd -
Day off!!
Caloric deficit - 300

Weekly totals -

Calories burned - 3,911
Caloric deficit - 3,516

Runner's world 10 rules of weight loss.

Nutritionist Nancy Clark shares 10 tips all runners should know if they want to drop some pounds.
By Nancy Clark

PUBLISHED 03/05/2008

1. To lose 10 pounds of body fat a year, you need to eat 100 calories less per day. Cutting too many calories from your daily intake will sap your energy level and increase your hunger, making you more susceptible to splurging on high-calorie foods.

2. Don't skip breakfast. Eat within two hours of waking.

3. In fact, eat more breakfast than you think you should. Trade in some of your dinner calories for more calories at breakfast.

4. Don't allow yourself to get hungry. Eat at least every four hours, and split a meal in half to make sure you properly fuel up pre- and postrun. For example, eat part of your breakfast before your morning run (a banana) and the rest of your breakfast afterward (a bagel with peanut butter).

5. Eat at least three kinds of food each meal from these four categories: breads, cereals, and grains; fruits and vegetables; low-fat dairy and soy; and lean meats, fish, and nuts. Breads, cereals, and grains should be the foundation of each meal, with protein as an accompaniment.

6. Shoot for a gradual loss of body fat. You're more likely to put the weight back on (and more) if you drop weight too quickly.

7. Liquid calories add up fast and can lead to weight gain. Minimize the amount of sodas, juices, store-bought smoothies, sports drinks, coffee drinks, and alcohol you consume.

8. Eat closer to the earth, enjoying fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Minimize the amount of processed foods you eat; they tend to offer less fiber and are less satiating.

9. If you can't resist fast food, ask for nutritional information before you make your choices (or check in advance via restaurant Web sites). Avoid any menu items with the words "fried," "crispy," and "special sauce," which are guaranteed to be high calorie.

10. Remember that the calories in the energy bars, sports drinks, and gels you consume during a run add up, even though you're running. Consume them only as needed.

The Natural Anti-Inflammatory - Tumeric

I recently started reading a book called the Spectrum by Dr. Dean Ornish and I am really enjoying what I have learned so far. One the chapters mentioned the benefits of the spice Turmeric. My own father has recently started taking this as an anti- inflammatory and I find the research on the use of Turmeric as prevention of Alzheimer's disease fascinating.

Below is a excerpt from an article from the Worlds Healthiest Foods website - to read the entire article please go to -

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=f
oodspice&dbid=78

A Potent, Yet Safe Anti-Inflammatory -

The volatile oil fraction of turmeric has demonstrated significant anti-inflammatory activity in a variety of experimental models. Even more potent than its volatile oil is the yellow or orange pigment of turmeric, which is called curcumin. Curcumin is thought to be the primary pharmacological agent in turmeric. In numerous studies, curcumin's anti-inflammatory effects have been shown to be comparable to the potent drugs hydrocortisone and phenylbutazone as well as over-the-counter anti-inflammatory agents such as Motrin. Unlike the drugs, which are associated with significant toxic effects (ulcer formation, decreased white blood cell count, intestinal bleeding), curcumin produces no toxicity.

I say...Dont quit. Keep reaching!!

"Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit"
-- Conrad Hilton

Little Boy At A Big Piano
By: Author Unknown

Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a mother took her boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her.

Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE." When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that the child was missing.

Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."

At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit. Keep playing."

Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child and he added a running obbligato. Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was mesmerized.

That's the way it is in life. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren't exactly graceful flowing music. But when we trust in the hands of a Greater Power, our life's work truly can be beautiful.

Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, listen carefully. You can hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear, "Don't quit. Keep playing."

A thought for Thursday.

"Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."

Mid week progress report

Doing well this week. Runs are strong and I feel as if I am constantly improving not only my speed but endurance as well. I am looking forward to the last week of Making the Cut! It has been a great program,however I am excited about the start of P90X again starting in July. The combination of P90X and Cathe proved to be winning combination for me and I hope it does the same this time around!

****WEEKLY PLAN - JUNE 16th - JUNE 22nd****

GOALS FOR THE WEEK -

1. Burn 3,500 calories - as of today - 2,865
2. Loose .5 inch - will measure 6/22
3. 400 pushups and 800 crunches - as of today - 155 pushups and 405 crunches
4. Deficit 300 - 750 per day. - as of today 2,566 total for 4 days.


MONDAY, JUNE 16th -

Making The Cut Day 15 along with a HIIT run with plyo drill intervals - Cathe drill max dvd.

Total Time - 102 mins
Calories Burned - 1,014
Caloric Deficit - 714
HR - Avg - 78% - Zone 3, Max 99% - Zone 5
Pushups - 55 - divebomber, pike, balance ball, close grip, wide fly and core pushups.
Crunches - 100
Fitness Note - Great first day back after vacation. Awesome run today - sprint intervals! Did really well - felt strong.

TUESDAY, JUNE 17th -

Making The Cut Day 16 along with Butts and Guts dvd intervals - Squat/Lunge Combo, Forward Thrusting Hammer Punch, Walking Lunges, Dead lifts, Freestanding lunge/squat combo and Squats w/barbell.
Followed by a 20 min HIIT run including 7 interval sets of 1 min sprints at 5.0 mph at 15% incline and core work!

Total Time - 68.5 mins
Calories Burned - 631
Caloric Deficit - 881
HR - Avg - 74% - Zone 3 Max 96% - Zone 5
Pushups - 0
Crunches - 85
Fitness Note - Wonderful leg workout today. Making the Cut day 16 was great with loads of leg work along with Butts and Guts made for quite a leg and glut workout! It feels great!!! Tread intervals went well - 15% incline sprints felt strong but gave me a much needed challenge and great for the gluts! LOVED IT!! The program only called for one sprint at 5.0 and 15% but I did 7 sprints!!! Felt great to push it!!

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 18th -

Making The Cut Day 17 - Off day.

Total Time - 0
Calories Burned - 0
Caloric Deficit - 351
HR - 0
Pushups - 0
Crunches - 0
Daily Note - Had a nice day today. Decided to take today off. Will be back working it hard tomorrow!

THURSDAY JUNE 19th -

Workout 1 - Making The cut day 18 along with 2 circuits of Drill Max dvd - plyo drills with weights. Chest, shoulders and tris.

Total Time - 57 mins
Calories Burned - 510
HR - Avg - 74% Zone 3 Max - 89% Zone 4
Pushups - 100 - inverted divebombers, diamond, wide fly, close grip and core pushups.
Fitness Note - Great day! Chest, Shoulders and tris today. My dips on the balance ball are getting stronger. Worked shoulders hard - felt great! Getting ready to drink a shake and gear up for my second workout later today!

Workout 2 - 41 min HIIT run with track sprints.

Total Time - 50 mins - 41 min run with 9 min cool down after track sprints.
Calories Burned - 580
HR - Avg - 85% Zone 4 Max - 100% Zone 5
Fitness Note - AWESOME BURN! Ran outside today. Did really well. Ran track sprints - it felt great to be out there. Final time on run before cool dowm was 41 mins with a burn of 500 calories and a max HR of 100%...I was working hard!

Workout 3 - Turbo Ab Jam dvd.

Total time - 16.22 mins
Calories Burned - 130
HR - Avg - 69% Zone 2 Max - 84% Zone 3
Crunches - 220 - 100 of which where done with 11 pound dumbbell.

Final daily totals for all 3 workouts -

Total time - 123.22 mins
Calories Burned - 1,220
Caloric Deficit - 620

Caribbean Seafood- and- Black- Bean Salad

Ingredients
Serves: Prep: 10min|Cook: 2min |Total: 1hr 12min

* 3 tablespoons olive oil
* 1/2 pound peeled, deveined medium or large shrimp, cut into chunks
* 8 ounces bay scallops
* 1 tablespoon preminced oil-packed garlic
* 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 cup drained jarred tropical fruit
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
* 3 tablespoons frozen lime juice concentrate
* 1 teaspoon hot-pepper sauce
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions
1. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp, scallops, and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, or until the shrimp and scallops are opaque in the center. Remove to a bowl. Add the beans, fruit, cilantro, lime juice concentrate, hot-pepper sauce, and salt. Stir. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or as long as 24 hours.

Nutritional Facts per serving
CALORIES 158.2 CAL
FAT 5 G
SATURATED FAT 0.7 G
CHOLESTEROL 42 MG
SODIUM 202.7 MG
CARBOHYDRATES 15.7 G
TOTAL SUGARS 3.7 G
DIETARY FIBER 3.9 G
PROTEIN 12.4 G

Not loosing inches? Is the scale stuck? Try this....

25 Ways To Break A Fat Loss Plateau
by Tom Venuto

Here's your personal 25-point checklist of actions you can take and strategies you can use to tighten up your diet, training and or attitude, to accelerate fat loss and break through any progress plateau. Breaking a plateau means working harder and smarter. In many cases, it means checking your compliance to make sure you are still following your original plan consistently. In almost every case, a plateau-breaking strategy is a matter of increasing your caloric deficit and/or making sure you still have a calorie deficit consistently, which you may have had, but lost over a period of dieting and the accompanying weight loss. Take a look at the checklist and see what areas apply most appropriately to your current situation. That's what it means to work smarter -- look for your weakest link and strengthen it.

A word of caution: Never make any drastic changes to your diet or exercise program without checking with your doctor first, especially if you are over 40, if you have been sedentary and or if you have any health problems. Techniques like high intensity interval training, for example, can be very stressful on the cardiovascular system and strict dieting techniques such as those used by competitive bodybuilders are intended only for those in good health with no restrictions or contraindications.

1. Check your calorie deficit and re-calculate your calories The number one reason most people are not losing weight is because they are not in a calorie deficit. Please read that again and let it sink in because it's the simplest and most obvious answer, but the one that most people refuse to accept. A major reason that you hit a plateau or experience slower weight loss over time because your calorie expenditure decreases with weight loss and exposure to a severe or prolonged calorie deficit. Because your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) is related to your lean body mass as well as your total body mass, when you lose weight, your maintenance level decreases. In other words, heavier people need more calories than lighter people. In addition, you experience a decrease in your metabolic rate in response to the caloric restriction (metabolic adaptation). Finally, most people underestimate their caloric intake. All these factors combined explain why most people's weight loss hits a plateau over time. Therefore, when you plateau, the very first thing you must do is recalculate your calories to be sure you have a defict at your new level of energy expenditure, and then you must hold yourself accountable for every calorie to make sure you are not underestimating your intake.

2. Use more challenging compound weight training exercises. Generally, we view nutrition and cardio is the stimulus to create your calorie deficit, but don't forget that weight training can burn as many if not more calories than cardio. To maximize calorie expenditure from weights, choose compound weight training exercises such as squat and lunge variations, pressing exercises, full body-involvement exercises and barbell, dumbbell or cable rowing movements to stimulate heart and lung action, burn more calories, release more fat burning hormones and increase post-workout energy expenditure. Use fewer isolation exercises and fewer machines. Get your heart pumping and your lungs working during your weight training workouts. If you're breathing heavy and your heart rate is up, you're burning more calories, releasing fat burning hormones and stimulating your metabolism.

3. Increase workout "density." Many people have heard of intensity, but not many people know about density, which simply means to perform more work in less time. To break a plateau, you can increase the "Density" by decreasing rest intervals between the sets of your strength training exercises. For example, a normal rest interval is one, two or even three minutes between sets. To accelerate fat loss, decrease that to less than 60 seconds, 45 seconds, and ultimately down to 20-30 seconds between sets. Experiment with circuit style weight training where you perform, three, four or even more exercises in a row without resting. Use more supersets such as biceps followed immediately by triceps, quads by hamstrings or chest followed by back. Do abs and calves in between other exercises instead of resting ("staggered supersets"). Get your heart rate and breathing up a little during your strength training...keep moving!

4. Try fasted morning cardio. Do light to moderate intensity cardio early in the morning on an empty stomach (Note: timing is NOT the critical factor, but this may add an extra "edge." because fasted cardio oxidizes more fat during the workout). Fasted cardio is probably most relevant and beneficial when you are already lean and have hit a plateau with the last bits of "stubborn fat." If you're concerned about your lean body mass, then track your body composition and eat a light protein meal (example: egg whites) or small protein shake 20-30 minutes before the session. Note: high intensity cardio training and weight training are better done while fed.

5. Mix up your cardio: Has your workout gotten stale? Has your body simply adapted, like the "borg" on Star Trek? Change the type, the program and or intensity. First, you can change the program: Try short 20-25 minute HIIT sessions alternated with longer moderate intensity sessions (30-45 min). Second, you can change the type of exercise. Recent research suggests that doing a form of cardio you are not accustomed to may help with stubborn fat due to an increased in catecholamines, which signal your body to release stored fat. Change your cardio machine, such as switching from bike to elliptical or from stairmaster to inclined treadmill. Even condier some kickboxing or mountain biking a couple times a week in place of a cardio machine. The possibilities are endless. Don't restrict yourself.

6. Do High Intensity interval training or Sprints. Replace 1 or 2 conventional cardio sessions with HIIT on a cardio machine or wind sprints outside. Run flat out or run intervals (sprints) up hills or stadium steps if you have access to them, in place of some of your regular cardio workouts. (Warning: High intensity cardio can be dangerous, orthopedically and cardiovasculalrly speaking. It is only appropriate if you are already fit and have clearance from your physician, and then, the intensity should be built up gradually. Do not attempt to go from a walking program to sprints. Ie, walk, brisk walk, jog, run, sprint, is a sensible progression.)

7. Eat lightly at night. Push back last meal of the day so you don't eat anything within 2-3 hours of bedtime (if practical). If you eat anything at night, keep it low calorie, light and mostly protein and fibrous carbs, with small amounts of fat (no starchy or calorie dense carbs)

8. Decrease carbs. Pull the carbs down to as low as 25-30% of total calories for 3 days (increase protein, non starchy carbs AND good fats to compensate), and have a high carb, high calorie day on the 4th day. Low carb diets tend to automatically reduce caloric intake and keep hunger at bay more efficiently. Some data suggests that low carbs can help reduce stubborn fat by acting as alpha-2 receptor antagonists. They may also have metabolic health-related benefits in people who have symptoms of metabolic syndrome.

9. Experiment with removing wheat from your diet. Some people have gluten sensitivities that cause bloating or water weight gain which can mask weight loss on the scale. Wheat, grains and starchy carbohydrates are also more calorically dense, so by removing some wheat, you usually are automatically reducing calories. Cutting some starches out of your diet and increasing lean protein and vegetables tends to increase fat loss as well, due to protein having high thermic effect and non starchy veggies having high fiber content.

10. Experiment with removing dairy from your diet. Some people are lactose intolerant or have dairy allergies and don't know it. This can cause bloating which masks muscle definition and distends the stomach or causes water weight gain or bloat which masks weight loss on the scale. (Also note: a fitness competition or bodybuilding "contest diet" of the strictest level usually has neither wheat/bread, nor dairy products, although both could be included for people who are tolerant to them, provided a calorie deficit is in place.

11. Consider glycemic index (GI). Glycemic index is not a primary consideration on the Burn The Fat program. Your first criteria for selecting carbs is whether the carb is natural or refined (eat natural carbs and you are usually good to go). However, if you are stuck at a plateau and especially if you know you are carb intolerant, then the glycemic index carries more weight. For plateau breaking, start to "nit pick" by paying attention to the glycemic index of your carbs: For starches use yams, sweet potatoes, long grain brown or basmati rice (NO white rice or instant rice), beans, lentils, black eye peas, or barley.

12.Eat fruit, but choose low calorie varieties and cut out fruit juice. Some people cut fruit out of strict fat loss diets. This may be fine for short periods of time on extremely strict diets, but fruit is really too nutritionally valuable to remove in most cases. Eat fruit, but check the calorie counts of the fruit, and eat low calorie density fruit such as apples, grapefruits and other fruits with fewer calories per serving (some fruits like bananas have about 120 calories, whereas an apple has 80 and an orange averages about 60. Make the calorie substitution and take the calorie savings where you can). Avoid calorie dense fruit like raisins (at least temporarily while you're working on breaking a sticking point). Avoid fruit juice completely because it is calorie dense and it is better to eat the whole fruit and get the fiber.

13. Eat more fibrous carbs and veggies. Eat so many green fibrous vegetables and salads that you start to "grow leaves." The benefits of non-starchy vegetables, salad vegetables and greens is that not only are they loaded with nutritional value, they are also very high in fiber and low in caloric density. As a result, it is almost physically impossible to overeat non-starchy vegetables. If you increase the non starchy vegetables at the expense of more concentrated calorie sources, it tends to automatically make you eat less, while improving the nutrient content in your diet at the same time.

14. Don't drink your calories: Research has shown that liquid calories, especially sweet and non-viscous liquids, do not register in the brain and stomach the way that whole food does. As a result, we tend to consume too many calories when we drink them, without compensating for it by cutting back on other calories elsewhere. To break a plateau, either account for your liquid calories meticulously in addition to the rest of your food, or simply try cutting them out. That means No soda, no juice, no milk, no calorie containing liquids at all. Drink lots and lots and lots of water and or green tea.

15. Do not eat ANY protein bars or nutrition bars. Some "nutrition bars" are made with whole food ingredients, so they are definitely better than others, but all protein or nutrition bars are processed foods that are nutritional compromises. Bars often provide 300-400 very concentrated calories without filling you up the way a 300-400 calorie whole food meal would. As a result, you tend to compensate by eating more (another bar, another snack, or simply more food at the next meal). Let me emphasize again, that fat loss is all about the calorie deficit, so you could "get away with" eating bars if you knew you had a calorie deficit. However, when you are breaking a plateau, it pays to do a little "nutritional triage," budget your calories wisely, and get the most bang for your buck from each calories. So, your best bet is to ditch the bars. (add them back in later as convenience foods when you're back on maintenance, if you like)

16. Take a layoff for a full 7 days . If you have been under a lot of chronic stress and or if you have been dieting and training non stop for more than three or four months without a break, take it easy and rest up for a little while. Yes, you read that right. Stop everything and rest completely. Let your nervous system and endocrine system get a rest and prepare for the next big push. Eat a little less for those 7 days because your calorie expenditure will be lower, otherwise you may gain weight. Then restart, fully rested, with a vengeance!

17. Re write your goals and recommit to them . Be very specific and clear about exactly what you want. No vague generalities like "I want to get leaner." Use a goal card to put your goal in writing and carry it with you. Twice a day, morning and night, review your goals and mentally visualize yourself with your body looking exactly the way you want to look. Feel what it would feel like (emotionally) as if you had already achieved it. Remember, if you have a negative self image, you will always cheat and sabotage yourself. Get the new image of yourself in mind, and hold it there. All achievement starts with goals and changing the self image. Read Pyscho cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz and understand how you may be sabotaging yourself.

18. Drink a gallon of water a day . Be fanatical about your water intake.

19. Increase Your Cardio Frequency. If you're doing less than 6 days per week, 30-45 minutes of cardio, then gradually, and incrementally increase your duration and frequency until you're up to 6 days, 30-45 minutes per session. (e.g., if you start losing fat at 4 days, 30 minutes, then stop there; do as much as it takes, no more, no less.) If you are already doing daily cardio, consider increasing intensity (see #20 below), and look more closely at your diet.

20. Increase Your Cardio Intensity. Remember that you can increase your intensity and burn more calories in the same time simply by doing your cardio harder. Challenge yourself by seeing how many calories you can burn in a cardio session of the same duration. Set some new personal records. Get a training partner and challenge each other. Make your cardio progressive, not just your weight training. Reach new peaks. Remember, your body adapts.

21. Cut out the alcohol. NO! No alcohol at all! None. Zip. Zero. Nada. Nope, not even that one beer or that one so-called "healthy" glass of red wine. If you're stuck at a plateau, you can't afford it. If you made sure you had a calorie deficit, you could "get away with it," but it's a (psychological) principle and discipline thing as much as it is a matter of increasing strictness of your program. Physiologically, everything that we've said about liquid calories applies to alcohol equally if not more so. In addition, alcohol suppresses fat oxidation and can suppress male hormones and disrput sleep cycles.

22. Cut back on cheat meals. If you're getting results weekly, then you go right ahead and have a "reward meal", "cheat meal," "free meal" or whatever you like to call it... once or even twice every week. In fact, many people can follow the 90-10 rule and by following the program 90% of the time, they get excellent results. However, if you are NOT getting results, you have to be stricter than that. Your "cheat day can be a larger amount of healthy food, as this can be good for increasing metabolic rate, but abstain from eating junk if you're having difficulty with fat loss. Let your results dictate how strict you should be on your diet.

23. Do A Lifestyle review. Look at other factors in your lifestyle outside of exercise and basic nutrition. Sleep, stress, recovery, alcohol, smoking, artificial foods and chemicals. Is your cortisol sky high due to stress and poor recovery? If so, take steps to improve your sleep quality and or quantity, take measures to reduce stress, and look closely at whether you are overtraining and as a result, not recovering completely from your workouts. Do you smoke? If so, you may be concerned that you may gain weight when quitting, but ultimately, you must quit. Get your lifestyle in order and do it now. Analyze your diet more closely. How clean is it really? Are you still taking in a lot of chemicals or artificial stuff? Reduce or eliminate foods containing artificial colors, artificial flavors, or preservatives. Cut out alcohol and processed foods of any kind. Look for anything at all that is not natural and remove it. Maybe even consider organic. Get your food intake as "clean" as humanly possible.

24. Medical review : Last but not least, if all else fails, see your doctor for a physical checkup. Get complete blood work done and tests for the functioning of hormones, glands (thyroid) and organs. If there are any problems, follow the advice of your physician. Your doctor may have solutions - both natural or pharmaceutical (preferably the former). If you are not given natural solutions, seek a second opinion elsewhere (natural way is best way, if that is possible). Also, if you are on prescription medications, ask your doctor if they impact body composition (anti-depressants and other prescription drugs are known to make it more difficult to lose body fat). If all is within normal ranges as it is 99.9% of the time, then get back to work -- the only thing stopping you is you! Most people's glands are functioning just fine. The only gland that is usually malfunctioning is your mouth gland -- eating too much junk food and too much food altogether.

25. Adjust your attitude. Hey, did you ever consider that maybe you're not "stuck" at a plateau after all? Maybe you're successfully half way up the mountain, just temporarily "pitching camp," catching your breath and enjoying the view so far, preparing for the final ascent to the summit… before you go on and find your next mountain to climb. Keep in mind that it's more natural to have peaks and plateaus of progress than it is to sprint up in a straight line -- that's just how your body operates and adapts. Post these words of Harold V. Melchert someplace where you can look at them often:

"Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance toward the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point. Climb slowly, steadily, enjoying each passing moment; and the view from the summit will serve as a fitting climax for the journey." (thank you to Bob Proctor for this quote)

In conclusion, you won't need to do everything on this list. Simply run down the list and see which options make sense to you and which ones apply the most to you in your situation. It's good to have this entire list handy, however, because the more weapons you have in your fat-burning, plateau-breaking arsenal, the more options you'll have to turn to if you hit a plateau in progress. If you have only one "back up plan" then you have a problem if that doesn't work. You now have 25 "back up plans!"

Rest assured, you can break any plateau if you are willing to pay the price and do what it takes. If it takes more training, harder training and stricter dieting, are you willing to do it? How bad do you want it? If you want it, you will avoid caving in to the comfort zone, turn up the heat in your desire fire, crank up your motivation meter, and you WILL break through any plateau and enjoy the view from the next level. See you at the top!

Dr. Weil's Red Pepper Vinaigrette

8 Servings

This salad dressing is nothing like your basic vinaigrette formula – but you'll soon want to use it nearly every day. The classic vinaigrette is made with 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar. As you can see, this version has no oil in it at all, making it extremely low in calories. But don't worry – it's very high in flavor. Once you've tried this I'm sure it'll become your basic everyday staple for salad. And you can never eat too much salad!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup apple juice
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried whole oregano
Pinches of rosemary and thyme
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 of a roasted red bell pepper

Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in a blender container. Blend to mix thoroughly. Nutritional Information:

Per serving:
8 calories
0 g total fat (0 g sat)
0 mg cholesterol
2 g carbohydrate
0 g protein
0 g fiber
50 mg sodium