We’ll soon begin a 30,000 journey across America visiting all 50 states – 100 Cities in 100 Days – to raise money for my charity, The Boulevard Zen Foundation. We teach yoga to women and children living in domestic violence shelters. Ambitious? Yes. For a great cause? Yes. Impossible? Certainly not! I expect it to be life changing. For all of us, as well as all of you because we intend to EDUCATE, INSPIRE, EMPOWER and ENTERTAIN you with cool, trivia-filled workout videos from historical sites everywhere.
Here’s me teaching the women and children at the San Diego domestic violence shelter:
Here’s the Hollywood Sneak Peek Trailer for my Fat Burn America Tour. Enjoy! – R
It felt like a ghost-town when I walked into the gym this morning at 6am. I expected it to be light because of the holiday, but it was barren. And as I was making my way past the Chest machines, this older gentleman sat up tall and said to me, “I’ll glad you’re here.” Of course, right. Because when it comes to a daily fitness program, sometimes it helps to get a little boost from your compatriots. Let’s face it, honoring our Nation’s Independence deserves a day off from exercise, right? Wrong. That’s all the more reason to honor yourself and your freedom with a strong body – clear mind. So don’t let the Fourth of July festivities spoil your routine. Grab a fellow barbecuer and challenge yourself with today 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #95 – Dancer’s Pose. Enjoy – R
The other night I had dinner with Stephani Drapeau, my dear friend and co-star of my film, Boulevard Zen. We were discussing the concept of “freeing your mind and your soul” from anything that prevents you from evolving to a higher level. That is to say, letting go of the “ties that bind” you to past beliefs, or rather, disbeliefs about your dreams, your desires, and your life’s destiny. Because when you free your mind and your soul, you evolve to a much better and brighter place. A place where anything is possible if you truly believe it. So make a conscious effort to become Free Squared, especially when it comes to fat burning and a daily fitness routine. Because anyone and everyone has at least 5 minutes a day to respect themselves with a little exercise. So enjoy firming your Core & Abs with my 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #97 – Side Plank. My best – R
Oftentimes we receive compliments from friends or people we recently met, and just let them slide off us without really absorbing their energy. That is to say, really taking compliments to heart and warming yourself with the admiration. Especially guys. We can easily prefer criticisms to compliments because of our male conditioning. But it’s OK for anyone to basque in the moment of the compliment. Like what happened to me this morning. I saw a friend in the gym I haven’t seen in a while who complimented me on my film, Boulevard Zen, and my 100 days of blogs when she went on about how she loved the film’s characters, and my “totally believable” girlfriend, and my “powerful blogs”, until she finally said, “And you know what Rich Tola, you got heart.” Now that made my day. And why shouldn’t it, right? So take note and absorb that positive energy. Take compliments to Heart! And enjoy firming your Core & Abs as we countdown with my 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #99 – Core Power II. – R
I was working out next to this very large twenty-something year old guy in the gym the other day when he says to his friend, “I told myself I’m going to lose 15 pounds, so when I don’t make it and only lose 10, it’ll be a success. Because I only need to lose 10.” So what’s wrong with this statement? Besides the fact that he’s just casually throwing around words and talking about what he’s going to do, he’s playing mind games with himself and not facing up to the truth. Because when it comes working out and/or significant weight loss, it’s critical to be honest with yourself. Never judge yourself or the outcome, but be honest. Mind games never work. Because your subconscious knows the truth and will always sabotage your games. Rightly so, since any successful program begins with honesty, commitment and self-discipline. So forget the mind games and let the real games begin with a daily fitness program. With today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #100, why not BRIDGE your way backwards to the next 100 days! Enjoy – R
Twelve days ago I posted my 100th video/blog for my 100 days of 5 minute, low-impact, yoga-based, fat burning workouts. Since then I visited my family in New Jersey, and spent some time with friends in New York City, Philadelphia and San Francisco. Of course I continued with my daily fitness program, as well as took a few yoga classes. Challenging, yes, since you’re busy enjoying your time off. But do-able. Especially with my Fat Burning Workouts. That’s why I wrote this poem…to inspire you to keep with your daily fitness program even while on vacation. Enjoy your Daily Workout. – R
YOU CAN DO IT
I’m here to help you
There’s no need to fail
If you know what to do
Then just step on the scale
Believe you can tighten
Believe you can win
Cause who better than you
Conquers that battle within
Mother Nature’s quite cruel
Father Time’s a quick chime
Who says you can’t switch
To a program like mine
Don’t despair my good student
You’ll never be bored
With a daily fitness program
You’ll love your reward
For the past 98 days, I’ve been coming up with different fat burning workouts that are uniquely challenging, simple and short. No special equipment or anything else required. Just yourself, a device with internet access, and a space about the size of your bathroom. Clothes optional. So check out the cool arsenal of exercises you now have at your disposal with the past 98 workouts. And enjoy blasting your thighs from the Ground to the Penthouse with today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #98 – Elevator Squats. – R
In exactly three weeks (June 21st), the summer solstice will occur when the days are longest and the nights are shortest. I’m not sure about you, but I certainly prefer the daytime when it comes to working out or doing anything fitness related. With longer days and the hot summer weather, it’s a great time to go for that after dinner walk or scenic bike ride. And why not consider adding a few 5 Minute Fat Burning Workouts to the mix to round out your evening. Either before or after, these bite-size workouts will provide you with a quick and effective warm-up or cool-down to complement your stroll. So let that extra sunlight help you achieve that better body, and enjoy sculpting your entire body with today’s 97th consecutive fat burning workout – Side Plank. – R
I met a thirty-something year old gal in the gym this morning who’s there religiously, Monday-Friday, but never on the weekends. When I asked why, she said “because she likes to sleep a lot to get ready for Monday”. Interesting, I thought, then she asked me why I workout everyday, even on the weekends. Because working out everyday is a religion to me, I responded, and I believe that rest is more pertinent to strength training than it is to a comprehensive daily fitness program. One that includes weight training, yoga, cardio, abdominals, and stretching, all combined with a moving meditative mindset. As described by Dictionary.com, the noun religion is also defined as “a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects”. Thus, my fervent belief in a daily fitness program makes it a religion for me, albeit, in an unconventional way. No worries if you believe otherwise. Just consider the results you’re getting from whatever fitness program you believe in, and if they’re not too satisfying, then perhaps consider embracing my religion. And enjoy another 5 Minutes of Fat Burning with today’s 92nd consecutive workout – Killer Thighs. My best – R
Now who can forget the end of Modernity and the start of the current Postmodern Age? And what do you remember most? Is it the World Wide Web and the Internet Boom, MP3s and mobile phones, Amazon and eBay, AOL and Yahoo, the iMac and Windows 95, Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, Apartheid and Nelson Mandela, Great Britain handing Hong Kong over to China, Hurricane Andrew and the Northridge earthquake, Boris Yeltsin and the old Soviet Union, the surging Dow Jones and proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem, the Dodge Ram and the Saturn, Dolly the cloned sheep and the Hubble Space Telescope, Generation Y and the Spice Girls, Tattoos and body piercings, Princess Diana and Mother Theresa, OJ Simpson and Colombine High School, assisted suicide and Jack Kervorkian, the Gulf War and Rwandan Genocide, the blockbusters Dances with Wolves, Titanic, PulpFiction,The Silence of the Lambs, Forrest Gump, Pretty Woman, Ghost, and Home Alone, the lovable Friends and ER – and don’t forget George Clooney, Beverly Hills 90210, Beavis and Butthead and The Simpsons, the passing of Freddie Mercury, Kurt Cobain, Selena, Tupac Shakur, and The Notorious B.I.G., punk rock and the rave movement, Resident Evil and Laura Croft, Nirvana and Britney Spears, the Major League Baseball strike, Michael Jordan, Lance Armstrong and Hulk Hogan, Jennifer Aniston’s haircut and the resurgence of the Wonder Bra, and of course, Y2K. It was also a decade of fitness fun with Taebo, Boot Camps and the Soloflex. And no worries if you can’t remember the 1990’s and lost all your Soloflex bands, because there’s no equipment necessary with my 5 Minute Fat Burning Workouts. So enjoy strengthening your upper body with today 90th consecutive daily workout – Shoulders & Arms. RIP 1990’s – R
