Benefits of balancing

Balancing poses are great for the mind and body because they help you develop lightness, strength, agility, muscle tone, coordination, concentration, self-confidence and overall control of your body.  And when you add a backbend to your standing balancing pose, like we do with today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #95 – Dancer’s Pose, you’ll also rejuvenate the body, giving you more alertness, openness, flexibility, energy and courage. So add some balancing & backbends to your long holiday weekend.  And enjoy!  – R

 

Who can forget “the Nineties”?

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, Pulp Fiction, 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

Power and economy go hand in hand

I read this in my Horoscope this morning and immediately thought how it relates to almost everything in life, including the correct fitness program.  I say correct because the power comes from doing a combination of simple, full body workouts using the proper technique, and the economy comes from maximizing your time and results by doing them on a daily basis.  So maximize your power and economy today by getting started with my 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #86 – Terrific Triceps II.  Enjoy – R

Slow and steady wins the race

Everybody’s read Aesop’s fable, The Hare and the Tortoise, right?  It’s about a hare who vainly boasts of his great running speed and challenges the slow tortoise to a race. However outpaced, in the end the tortoise wins because the hare decides to take a nap en route to the finish line.  The moral lesson here:  slow and steady wins the race.  Just like with your daily fitness program.  It may seem to progress slowly, but in the long run you’ll certainly see the results you desire as well as feel the rejuvenating affects of doing a little something to strengthen your mind and body every single day.  So enjoy getting Fantastic Forearms with today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #83.  – R

Do it with consistency…like the self-flushing toilet

Exactly 219 years ago today, the toilet that flushes itself at regular intervals was patented. Wouldn’t it be cool if you could automatically set yourself to exercise at regular intervals?  That would certainly make it easier to stick with a daily fitness program, right. Believe it or not, you can set your internal clock to go off daily, reminding you to workout.  That’s right.  Because like any activity that’s become routine in your life, e.g., brewing your morning coffee as soon as you wake up, taking that afternoon cigarette break at work, or going to the laundromat every Wednesday night, you can program yourself to workout on a daily basis.  The easiest way to do this is to do it with consistency.  Because once you’ve established the habit of working out, your mind and body will crave it.  Plus, your internal clock will subliminally remind you that it’s time to exercise.  It’s true.  At this point in life, I couldn’t go two days without exercising and not feel my “alarm clock” reminding me to workout.  So enjoy flushing that fat away with today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #78 – Sculpt Those Shoulders II.  – R

Sometimes you have to dig deep

Sometimes you have to dig deep inside yourself to stand tall in the face of adversity.  Like the tornado stricken residents of Alabama and the South.  In memory of the 77 residents who have perished, survivors must now dig deep within themselves to overcome this horrific tragedy.  But they will recover.  And they will thrive. Because as humans, that’s what we do – we dig deep and thrive.  So please send your positive thoughts and energy to the storm ravaged residents, and enjoy becoming a steel rod of energy in today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #64 – Forearm Plank.   My condolences & prayers – Rich

Try something different

I was inspired by my sister this morning when she said, “sometimes it’s good to just try something different”.  She was speaking about a situation that turned positive for her once she tried something different.  I agreed.  Because oftentimes a fresh approach will give you that winning formula.  Whether it be that dream job you desire, or that daily fitness program you’ve been thinking about.  So try something different with today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #60 – Beautify Those Buns II.   Happy Easter!  Enjoy – R

Empty your mind

At the beginning of yoga class this morning, our teacher uttered this phrase during our first forward bend (that’s Uttanasana in Sanskrit).  The start of any practice is an excellent time to let everything go and empty your mind of any excess baggage you might be carrying with you.  That is to say, baggage in the form of mental chatter that prevents you from staying focused and just being present in the moment.  Because whether you’re practicing yoga or doing my 5 Minute Fat Burning Workouts, there’s no place for excess baggage.  So empty your mind today – and everyday – at the start of your fitness program. And have fun sculpting your abs with today’s 57th consecutive workout!  – R

Re-think and dispel

The other day in the gym I read this as it flashed across the TV screen and quietly disagreed:  Never judge those who tried and failed;  judge those who failed to try.  I get the first part, because how can you judge someone for trying, right?  But what’s this about judging those for failing to try?  Because if you fail to try, that’s your personal decision. Not one that should be judged.  On the other hand, if you fail to try, maybe there’s a specific reason for it – a reason that can be re-thought and dispelled.  Whatever it is. Especially if it involves fitness.  Because if your reason for not exercising on a daily basis is not very compelling, i.e., not enough time or money, consider getting started today with my 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #56 – Blast Your Abs II.  Because who doesn’t want to improve their posture and breathing in only 5 minutes a day!  Enjoy – R

They’re not superfluous

There are many things in life that are not superflous, that is to say, not unnecessary. Like brushing your teeth or going to the doctor.  So when my friend said to me, “you know, your 5 minute workouts, they’re not superflous, especially for people not working out,” I paused for a moment, then smiled as I realized the power of this eloquent double negative.  Because regardless of what type of physical fitness you choose, the concept of exercising everyday is necessary.  That is to say, if  you believe that strengthening and preserving your body for the long haul is not superfluous. Enjoy blasting your thighs again using cool lunge variations in today’s 5 Minute Fat Burning Workout #53.   – R