Black Light Special 5.0!

You can't imagine how much fun we're having

Black Light Special 5.0 is here! I couldn’t be more excited, seeing as how I have the most black lights I’ve ever had and some of the rowdiest “Bad News Hulksters” this side of the Mississippi all the back on to the OTHER side of that very same river. AhhhhOOOO!!!!

Basically, I want everyone to wear whatever neon or white clothing options you’ve got. The flashier the better! I’ll provide the black lights and festivities if y’all bring me some flare! Be careful with those white shirts though… think “CSI.”

Black Light Zumba this Thursday night!

We’re going to be Hulk smashing your upper body right before BLACK LIGHT ZUMBA KICKS OFF!! I’ll be sure to leave your hips intact so they can swear to tell the truth, the WHOLE truth, and nothing but the truth in order to prove that your hips beyond a shadow of a doubt do NOT lie (Shakira Shakira).

Notice the shovel? We dug in the dark!

Lastly, I want to congratulate everyone on the number of inches lost! I will be posting the top totals on the boards along with number of people who measured over the weekend (because I missed quite a few of you). The halfway measuring point is something I highly recommend, but if we are not able to get your halfway measurements done due to schedule conflicts, well then we will be SURE to get them done at the end! NO EXCUSE! 🙂

Like I posted in the Facebook Trinity forum, take away from the measurements that you took part in this weekend what you’re supposed to take away. If they weren’t what you were hoping they were yet you know why, use it as a chance to pick yourself up by the bootstraps! We’ve got 5 more weeks, PLENTY of time to get rockin’ and work on breaking some of those “not so good for you” habits! If you haven’t lost much weight but your inches tell a different story, remember that! When it feels like you’re giving your all and the scale isn’t listening, remember that your body IS changing. It’s been a long and short 5 weeks… meaning we’ve gotten a LOT accomplished in a very minuscule amount of time. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the same applies to fitness. It took a long time to build the habits a lot of us are trying to break, so don’t beat yourself up too bad if you’ve still got “bad habits” left after 5 weeks.

We’re at the official half way point… imagine what the NEXT 5 weeks are going to bring! I know I’m excited…

– Hulk

PS here is the “No excuses” video I told some of you about…

Lastly, I love this song and wanted to share it. Reminds me of Hulk. Let’s pave our own way and ROOOOOOLLLLLLLLL!!!

 

Trinity Slideshow Teaser!

You should have seen Alan's face! Click on the picture to hear the song that soon overcame the situation and was all that could be heard as everyone in the room drifted away and all that was left was long standing eye contact between Alan and I, the music of our hearts, and a dimly lit room filled with the smell of sweat and difficult decisions...

This was Alan's face. For those wondering.

Hey Hulksters!

So, we’re almost at the halfway mark of this challenge, and I wanted to do something to commemorate that. I figured there was no better way to vamp up the excitement than to give you a little 1 minute teaser clip of the 25 – 30 minute slideshow to be presented at the Trinity Wrap Party on March 31st! We’re gonna bring in April Fools day with a Toga party Hulk style!

Hulksters, I look forward to sharing the rest of this slideshow with you in a month and a half :).

- Hulk

PS it was completely unintentional that the very last snippet you see on the slideshow is Alan and I sharing a broment. Unless you ask Freud probably. 

Bonus Boot camp!

Rain or shine... Boot camp time!

 

As a quick reminder… we have measurements this Friday/Saturday! Be sure to wear the same articles of clothing you wore on the FIRST measurement day! We are ONLY doing weigh-in, measurements, and body fat percentage testing. Everything else gets repeated at the END of the challenge.

I want to put out there real quick to be prepared to have your mind blown. I LOVE measurement day, because it provides a tangible answer to all the hard work you’ve been doing that the scale hasn’t been as kind in showing its appreciation quite as much. I’ve had MANY people lose little to no weight, even go u a pound or 2, yet lose TREMENDOUS inches… So keep rockin’ the better eating, getting proper rest (as much as you can!), and workin’ up a sweat as often as you can, and you’ll be sure to see a new side of results this weekend some of you weren’t necessarily expecting :).

Now, because measurement day means no boot camp, I have decided to do a boot camp at 1pm this Saturday! Hephaestus, Apollo, and Poseidon are ALL welcome! We don’t have a limitation on how many people because… we’re gonna be outdoors! That’s right, it’ll be the first outdoor workout of the challenge. That means dress accordingly. Long sleeves and pants if you have a grass allergy. I encourage everyone to bring their own mat, water bottle, and rock star attitude. Rain or shine, it’s gonna happen!

The cost will be $5 per person (keep in mind, this is extra in addition to the measurements, NOT part of the original challenge) and we will be meeting at Anytime Fitness off Santa Rosa Ave. to start. From there, I will lead the way! If you have anybody you’d like to bring or have participate, then make sure that you have steered them to this page so they get the gist of what’s going on, they sign the liability waiver when they get to the gym if it is their first time working out with Hulk, and that you let ME know so that I can be prepared for a fresh face :).

Also, Hulk’s own Jessica LaVenter will be rocking a Zumba class at 12pm! If you are a part of Apollo’s measuring group, I’ll make sure you are taken care of before Zumba starts so that you can get measured AND show how truthful your hips are! It’s $5 for members of Anytime Fitness and $10 for non members. Ready for the best part? All of the funds raised from the class will be going toward Jessica’s Relay team the TransFormers who are running 199 miles to raise money for Organs ‘R’ Us! So, you get a great workout, have a great time with great people, and it all goes towards a great cause! I dare you to find the downside!

See you all soon!

AhhhhOOOOOO!!!!

– Hulk

PS a LOT of you asked what song I played with “the high pitched guy in it.” That song, ladies and gentlemen, is THIS song. See what you started Austin!

Hulk Food Group: The Beginning

Click the picture for words everyone needs to hear.

Wow!

Last night was great!

TWSS Jessica.

So, I’m just going to get right to it and say that I think Hulk Food Group was a success. There were about 20 or so people who showed up at the gymnasium at 7:30pm right after Hulk Poseidon got done mopping the floor with… themselves? It was refreshing to say the least. Motivational to say a bit more. Eye opening on top of that. It was a tangible realization (I hope) that “being healthy” is not going to be a walk in the park, but it is MORE than doable and you are FAR from alone. 

That was actually the first point I brought up… I asked everyone to notice the volume of people showing up where they didn’t even really FULLY know what to expect, they just knew it dealt with nutrition and they needed help. If it were easy, everyone would be in shape and I’d go back to waiting tables and slangin’ diet sodas with double cheeseburgers. Unfortunately, it’s not easy… Doing the right thing takes a lot of hard work sometimes. Most of the time actually. But that’s ok… The things most enjoyed are those that are earned. That spark pride and self assurance. That allow you to feel good about yourself all day because you made a great decision where a moment of instant gratification would be MUCH easier to succumb to in the moment. What makes y’all Hulk (ANYBODY reading this, not just “official” Hulksters) is the recognition and ability that you have that fight in you. That you’re worth that fight. Last night, at the first HFG group, I saw the start of something great. A collective group of people choosing not to settle. I emphasize “start.” This is just the beginning!

There are big plans in the works for HFG! I was originally going to have it at my house, but when I put out the poll question in the “Hulk – Trinity” forum, the response was so overwhelmingly positive that the gym was the only place it could be done! I thank you all for that :).

A special thank you to Liz Rait (Hephaestus) for her volunteering her fantastic knowledge on the subject of Gluten Free (and much more) nutritional advice! She asked me the night prior if I’d like a little help, and I’m really glad I said yes because she offered insight that as much as I know, I couldn’t possibly know the nutritional side of things the way SHE knows. She has also offered to collaborate and make this thing as helpful, informative, and kick-ass as possible. Again, we have big plans!

Also, a special thanks to Bobbi Rivera for bringing in an AWESOME Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe! If anybody knows how to throw down in the kitchen and still be healthy, it’s this girl. I urge everyone to check that recipe out!

To give a little overview of what we talked about:

•  Handed out homemade protein bar recipe, Bobbi’s chicken tortilla soup recipe. and my “alcohol effects” handout (posted below)
• Talked about the importance of proper nutrition in accordance with “over training” (I quotation over training because if you’re not giving your body the proper amount of nutrition then it turns “intense” training into “too much” training).
• Liz gave a brief overview of what gluten actually is, the misconceptions on the matter, and opened the floor to any questions anyone had
• Briefly discussed the battle of “logic” versus “fatigue and emotion” and how it’s very hard to intertwine the two and make the “right choice” (see previous post) when you’re anxious and miserable with what you’re doing.
• Ended with open floored questions and discussions pertaining to individual matters. 
• Afterwards, I printed up copies of my 3 page universal guide to better nutrition and gave them to anybody who wanted one as well as went over any nutritional journals anybody brought in.

 Next Wednesday, it is going to be at the same place (Anytime Fitness off Santa Rosa Ave.) at the same time (7:30pm) with a similar structure, only newer topics, recipes, and odds are… a bigger group of people :).

Thank you again everyone for showing up! 

You get the results that people don’t get by doing the work people don’t do… 

– Hulk 

 

Which would you choose?

Which would you choose?

 

So last night… I posed a question for Team Hephaestus. That question was NOT the one above. I had flubbed my own exercise with Hephaestus so I want to thank them for being the guinea pigs for a successful point made on Saturday. Don’t get me wrong, I was still able to make my point, just not quite as smoothly. So, Hephaestus… THIS was the intended exercise ;).

TODAY I posed the question of “Which would you choose? 60 minutes of discomfort for a day of positivity or  60 minutes of comfort for a day of negativity?”

The response was OVERWHELMINGLY positive. Talking only a couple of people chose to spend a day negatively, and one of those people even wrote down “I’m a glutton for punishment.” How cheery…

The point I was making is that we ALL have a choice, only it’s not always so black and white. How many times have you PROMISED yourself that you were going to start eating breakfast in the morning because you know it’s important. Because you know it is going to keep you on the pathway to being who you’d like to be. Because you know it will kick start your energy and leave you feeling good all day. Because you know that it’s an issue and you’d like to make good on at least ONE promise to change some of your ways. You may not be perfect all the time, but you can change some of the big things, right?

Then, that alarm that you set for 30 minutes earlier hits… You look over and don’t take more than a moment before you go “Nope… SLEEP!” and slam that snooze button for jammin’ back to dream land for a few more minutes.

That, my friends, is choosing a moment of comfort for a days worth of kicking yourself. You’ll try all day to say “oh it’s ok, I mean how important was that goal REALLY? I mean, I’ll DEFINITELY get up early and make breakfast tomorrow…” yet somehow, tomorrow never comes… You then fall into the rut of forever saying “tomorrow”… Today. You will forever be reaching for tomorrow when you choose a moment of instant comfort (sleeping in a bit longer) in return for letting yourself down and feeling secretly bummed about yourself. All day. Until “tomorrow.”

How about when you say to yourself “I need to do more… I’ve got a routine right now, but I’m complacent. It’s not as hard as it used to be and damnit I know I can push myself a little bit hard. You know what, I’m gonna add that extra gym day in! You know what… make it TWO extra gym days in! That’s what I NEED!”

Then, on the first “extra gym day” day, you start looking at the clock when it comes to quittin’ time… As each hour draws nearer and nearer to “go from work to the gym” mode, your brain starts to creep on you. It says “Really? Today? I mean… Today sucks… We’re tired you know! You still have errands to run, you crazy? You’re gonna choose the GYM over errands? That elliptical isn’t going to get that set pile of dirty clothes started! Dinner isn’t going to cook itself!” and so on and so forth so that by the time it comes to punch the clock and head to the gym, you’ve already convinced yourself that going to the gym after work would be the WORST decision you could make, all the while knowing that you’re going to regret that decision later. You KNOW you’re going to regret that decision, yet you go home anyway…

I can bet you 99% of then go home, sit on the couch, and “rest” before you end up doing your errands. That “rest” turns into a storage wars marathon/ nap (YUUUUUUP!) followed by those errands getting pushed into the ever popular “tomorrow.” If not getting done tomorrow, then guess what… 10 bucks says that you started your errands when you would have been back from the gym (or a trail, or a soccer game, or whatever floats your boat fitness wise) ANYWAY.

Again, you chose a moment of comfort (NOT going to gym… WOO!) by trading in the “I’m willing to feel down on myself for the decision I made” card.

What I’m trying to say is that when given the black and white choice of a moment of discomfort for a day of positivity or a moment of comfort for a day of negativity, you ALL (for the most part :-P) chose to feel good about yourself. I challenge you all to take a moment of discomfort: getting up a little bit earlier for breakfast… Drinking on the weekends a little less often… Packing those lunches you swear you’re going to pack and never do because you “just don’t feel like it”… Actually MAKING it to that gym appointment you made for yourself… and recognizing that you are setting yourself up to feel good ALLLLLLLLL DAAAAAAAAAY.

I hope you realize that you ALWAYS have a choice. ALWAYS.

 So remember Hulksters… The choice is yours. Which would you choose?

This holds true for every one of you...

 

And for good measure…

– Hulk 

“Hulk” is the newest food group!

Sometimes, we tend to do the wrong kind of smashing...

Alrighty everyone, I’ve had an idea for a bit that I tossed out today in regards to getting together as a group and discussing everything under the sun in regards to nutrition! From sharing recipes to talking about the struggles that come with a healthier lifestyle so you can maybe get a different perspective or hear a few tips and tricks maybe you haven’t heard before. Well, when I tossed the idea out there, it was received so well that rather than e-mailing those interested, I felt it necessary to sound out a mass hulk post! Another action I’d like to take with this “Hulk Food Group” is to answer any questions as a group and address the question to everyone. You’d be surprised at how many people have the same question you do!

Those who would like to bring food journals for me to look over are more than welcome to do so! Click HERE to get some easy to use food journal templates that you can print right from the website and keep track of what you’d like me to look over! You can also get a simple notebook and document that way as well. If choosing that method, please still check the template website and seeing the basic info I’d like you to keep track of for me :).

The goal of this is to unify! To support! To encourage! To listen! To speak! To broaden your nutritional horizons! To get a better grasp of the MENTAL side of changing your nutritional lifestyle for the better! I have already talked to a couple people (and a couple more I still need to contact) that would love to come guest speak in the future. When that happens, best believe I will post about it :).

I would like to get this started next Wednesday, February 8th at 7:30pm (after Team Poseidon meets) at Anytime Fitness off Santa Rosa Avenue. If you are not a part of Team Hulk or a “hulk associate” then please e-mail me at AllLevelsTraining@gmail.com so that I can be ready for a new face :).

This first HFG (Hulk Food Group) I will be providing a post workout juice mix to any Hulksters who worked out prior as a “thanks for staying!” along with a “this will make it so you can sit, listen, engage, and not feel like you’re going to die.”

This coming first HFG, I will also be starting it out. I will go over whatever struggles I’ve experienced during the week nutritionally (I go through lots daily, trust me!) as well as providing a quick, easy, and healthy “homemade protein bar” recipe to share with anybody who would like one :).

Lastly, if any of you get the chance, please check this film out. That intangible energy that is hard to explain that makes a Hulk workout so lively… They talk about exactly that in this movie, among many other intriguing perspectives that will leave you thinking for sometime after the ending credits have rolled. I still plan on putting up a post about this movie in relation to “Hulk” and the connective energy you all harbor, so be on the lookout for that :).

– Hulk