Dad Fitness

Breaking News from Dad Fitness

2009-06-03T15:33:00.003-03:00

The Dad Fitness Blog Has Moved.

For all you busy dads livin' the Dad Fitness Lifestyle, The Dad Fitness blog has moved to a bigger and brighter location at

www.DadFitnessBlog.com

Be sure to update your RSS Feed to stay updated with tips on family and fitness!

Drop by the new blog and let me know what you think by leaving a comment.

Looking forward to seeing you guys there!

www.DadFitnessBlog.com

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Work and Weekend Workouts

2009-05-31T19:57:00.006-03:00

I was hoping to be posting this new post on my new blog.

But I still have a few little kinks to workout.

Once I get everything running smoothly I will be moving to my new Dad Fitness blog at: www.DadFitnessBlog.com

The web address is a lot easier to remember and everything is redesigned so you can follow the Dad Fitness Lifestyle in a cool new format. In the meantime you can still check out the new blog as I have some of my older posts already moved over.

Once again, its DadFitnessBlog.com

Anyway, as for my weekend workouts.

After working 2 twelve hour nightshifts on Thursday and Friday I got up Friday morning after only 4 hours sleep and headed to the gym.

Despite the initial struggle of getting up after such little sleep I do this on purpose as I know I always feel better after my Dad Fitness workout.

So this is what I did for my Friday workout.

3 sets each, 5-10 reps.

Sumo Deadlifts

Bent Over BB Rows

Cable Pullthroughs

Cable Woodchops

Saturday night was date night with my wife and we crossed the nearby border to Quebec, the land of the best poutine and smoked meat. The french really go all out as we opted for a well known pub that serves an amazing pizza topped with smoked meat.

..and if that's not fattening enough for you they even give you butter to spread on the crust! It's a good thing I don't live in Quebec...

After that we came home to relax while Matea stayed at Nanny and Poppy's for the night and we cheered on my Pittsburgh Penguins as they faced off in the first game of the stanley cup finals to the Detriot Red Wings.

Unfortuantley they lost 3-1 to thanks to some lucky bounces from Detriots home rink!

Then for my Sunday morning workout it was Upper body day 2.

Seated DB Shoulder Press

Pullups

Reverse Curls

Elbow Out DB Rows

2 rounds of DB swings for 60 secs with 60 secs rest.

the rest was 3 sets each, 5-10 reps

After that we picked up Matea and took her to the playground for the afternoon.

I am finishing the evening off by barbecuing my famous Dad Fitness Perfect Burgers and curling up with my family to watch game 2 of the stanley cup finals.

(I am Canadian after all, eh!)

GO PENS!

Who are you cheering for in the Stanley Cup Finals?

How I Gained 25lbs This Year

2009-05-25T23:51:00.005-03:00

This Saturday marked a special day in our house.

Our baby daughter Matea turned the big #1 on Saturday and celebrated her 1st Birthday!

Days later...I am still cleaning up cake

I can't believe a whole year has gone by since I became a dad.

I have to say it's been the most challenging AND the most rewarding year of my life.

Looking back I don't know how I survived on such little sleep!

But when you are suddenly responsible for another little life, you find a way to do what you have to do to be the best damn dad you can be.

Which also involves not forgetting to take care of myself.... I don't want to be huffing and puffing and out of breath when I am running around the backyard playing with my daughter because I neglected to take time for myself and stay fit with just 3 short workouts a week.

Despite being a busy dad working full-time up to 60 hours a week and running a business on the side , with my Dad Fitness workouts the only weight I gained during the past year has been my 25lb beautiful baby daughter.

I am actually down a few pounds to about 175lbs and a little leaner, compared to this time last year. But I am feeling healthier and stronger than I have ever been thanks to paying extra attention to my warm ups, mobility and my flexibility during my workouts.

I keep things pretty simple with short intense workouts and eating REAL food most of the time.

I work hard in the gym but more importantly work hard at home being a dad, a husband and a man.

That weight on my shoulders is something that I never want to lose...

Happy Birthday Matea.

Enjoy the ride...I will be there every step of the way;-)

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Trans Fatty Acids: The poison in our food supply that most people are STILL eating every day

2009-05-22T22:48:00.002-03:00

Guest Blog:

By Tom Venuto
www.BurnTheFat.com

Most people are eating a poison every day without giving it a second thought. This substance can increase belly fat and consuming even small amounts (2% of total energy intake) is consistently linked to coronary heart disease. The research also says that this stuff can increase visceral fat, contribute to insulin resistance, increase risk of type 2 diabetes, increase bad cholesterol, decrease good cholesterol, trigger systemic inflammation and adversely affect almost every cell in your body.

What substance could be so harmful that it causes all of these health problems and yet is so prevalent in our food supply that most people are eating dangerous amounts every single day? This industrially manufactured ingredient is called Trans fatty acids (TFA’s).

TFA’s are not found in nature, with the exception of some ruminant-derived TFA’s in certain dairy products (usually contributing less than 0.5% of total caloric intake). TFA’s come mostly from the industrial hydrogenation of vegetable oils, which alters the natural cis configuration of the oils to the trans configuration. If you see “partially hydrogenated” oil in the ingredients list of any food product, then it contains TFA’s.

TFA’s have been studied for decades, but were largely ignored until the past several years. Research papers linking trans fats to heart disease date back to the 1970’s. In 1994, the Center for Science in the Public Interest petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to put trans fats on food labels (didn’t happen until 2006). Since 2006, TFA’s have thankfully received a decent amount of publicity when they were in the news regarding new food labeling laws and the banning of their use in restaurants in some states.

New studies have been published in the past year confirming the dangers of TFA’s. Four recent studies indicated 24, 20, 27 and 32% higher risk of myocardial infarction (MI) or CHD death for every 2% energy of TFA consumption isocalorically replacing carbohydrate, SFA, cis monounsaturated fatty acids and cis polyunsaturated fatty acids, respectively.

TFA intake in the United States still averages 2-3% of total energy intake, 4% in some developing countries where fast food is being introduced and as high as 8-10% in certain subgroups (who eat large amounts of baked goods, fried foods, pastries, doughnuts, etc). The government recommended maximum is 1% of total energy intake (2 grams!). Some experts say there is NO safe level of TFA intake.

Legislation has been enacted in some states banning the use of TFAs in restaurants. It was big news New York. As of 2008, 11 cities and counties have adopted regulations to restrict TFA use in restaurants. However, industrial TFA use is still widespread and lots of people are still scarfing them down every day.

If Trans fats are so dangerous, why is their use so widespread? Dietary fat expert Udo Erasmus put it this way: “TFA’s are a food manufacturer’s dream: an unspoilable substance that lasts forever.” TFA’s are cheap and for countless food products, they can prolong shelf life, allow easy transport, provide solidity at room temperature (to make spreads), and increase suitability for commercial frying.

Although most people have heard of TFA’s, the bad news is that this increased awareness has not been enough to translate into behavior change.

A study recently published in the Journal of The American Dietetic Association (ADA) found that in 2007, 73% of Americans knew that TFA’s increased risk of heart disease, compared to 63% in 2006. However, the bad news is that 79% of Americans could not name 3 foods that contain trans fats. 46% of Americans could not name any sources of trans fats on their own.

“Knowledge about food sources of fats remains low” says Robert Eckel, professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado.

Public health messages have been raising awareness, but they haven’t been enough. “TFA’s are bad for you.” Ok, so now what? What you really need are some simple behavior guidelines and a list of foods to eat very infrequently if you eat them at all.

Here are some good places for you to start.

4 Ways to Avoid Trans Fatty Acids

1. Eat mostly foods that do not have a label. At the risk of stating the obvious, if you don’t eat anything that comes in a box or package with a label, then you won’t ever consume manmade TFA’s. If your diet consists primarily of fruits, fibrous vegetables, root vegetables, beans, legumes, brown rice, unprocessed whole grains, nuts, seeds, eggs, fish and lean meats, you’re home free.

2. Watch for label loopholes. WARNING: Food companies are lying to you on their product labels to make you think their foods are TFA-free. The front of their package may say “ZERO grams of trans fats,” and yet there is hydrogenated oil listed in the ingredients. How could that be? There is a label loophole where the government allows companies to claim zero trans fats if there is less than a half a gram per serving. So the food companies sneakily manipulate their serving sizes until the servings are so small that the TFA content falls below the per serving limit.

3. Read ingredients lists. The primary source of TFA’s is partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. In particular, soybean, sunflower, cottonseed and palm oils are frequently hydrogenated. Your first step then, is to read food labels on any packaged products and look at the ingredients list. If it contains partially hydrogenated oils, it contains TFA’s.

4. Avoid foods that contain TFA’s most of the time. TFA’s are commonly found in baked goods (bakery), fried foods and packaged convenience foods, especially:

cookies*
crackers*
biscuits*
pastries*
pies*
doughnuts*
packaged frozen foods (breaded chicken, breaded fish, etc)
corn chips
potato chips
packaged popcorn
some breads
frostings
french fries (fried potatoes)
taco shells
margarines and spreads
shortening
some salad dressings
some candies
some artificial cheeses

* major food sources for American adults

In 2002 when I published the first edition of my ebook, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle, I warned my readers of the dangers of trans fatty acids. I was not the only one either. Years ahead of the 2006 law requiring trans fats to be listed on food labels and the 2007-2008 restaurant TFA bans, numerous health professionals were already warning people to stay away from TFA’s.

Not enough people heeded the warnings, while meanwhile, politics and commercial interests delayed legislation. No doubt, skyrocketing rates of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease can be largely linked to the continued use of these artificial fake food additives. In the US alone, 1,700,000 new cases of diabetes, 233,600 diabetes-related deaths, 600,000 myocardial infarctions and 451,300 coronary heart disease-related deaths are reported every year.

A campaign for better education and lifestyle change is worth supporting. As researchers from Harvard said, “A comprehensive strategy to eliminate the use of industrial TFA in both developed and developing countries, including education, food labeling, and policy and legislative initiatives, would likely prevent tens of thousands of CHD events worldwide each year.”

For a healthy and balanced lifestyle, and for better long-term compliance, I’m rarely in favor of tagging any foods as totally “forbidden” or to use words as strong as “poison” in describing foods. But if there are any exceptions, trans fats are one of them.

If you are unable or unwilling to eliminate TFA’s from your diet completely, then you would be wise for the sake of your health and your family’s health, to keep foods containing TFA’s to a bare minimum and avoid eating any TFA-laden foods on a daily basis.

Last, but not least, be on guard, because history tells us that when one harmful food additive is banned, it is often replaced with another, which is sometimes even worse. That’s why item #1 on my list of four ways to avoid trans fatty acids is the best way to avoid anything that is harmful to your health.

Train hard and expect success,

Tom Venuto
Fat Loss Coach
www.BurnTheFat.com

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a fat loss expert, lifetime natural (steroid-free) bodybuilder, independent nutrition researcher, freelance writer, and author of the #1 best selling diet e-book, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle: Fat-Burning Secrets of The World’s Best Bodybuilders & Fitness Models (e-book) which teaches you how to get lean without drugs or supplements using secrets of the world's best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and increase your metabolism by visiting: www.BurnTheFat.com

References

Americans’ Awareness, Knowledge, and Behaviors Regarding Fats, Eckel RH et al, Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Feb 2009 (2):288-296

Metabolic implications of dietary trans-fatty acids, Dorfman SE et al, Obesity, Feb 2009, 1-8. Cardiovascular and metabolism disease area, Novartis institutes for biomedical research, INc. Cambridge, Mass.

Mortality from arteriosclerotic disease and consumption of hydrogenated oils and fats, Thomas LH, Br J Prev Soc Med, Jun 1975 29(2): 82-90

Health effects of trans-fatty acids: experimental and observational evidence. Mozzafarian D, Eur J Clin Nutr, May 2009: 63 suppl 2S5-21, Harvard Medical School

Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill, Udo Erasmus, Alive Books, 1994

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Barbells and Beer Can Chicken

2009-05-17T20:59:00.005-03:00

Saturday I started back to the gym with my new workout routine after taking a week off to give my body a break...from the gym anyway...as I was hard at work renovating our bedroom.

It felt good to get the body moving again so I trained on Sunday morning as well.

This Dad Fitness workout program is focused mostly on building muscle and involves 4 different workouts a week instead of 3.

But I will still only workout 3 days a week and resume the 4th day the next week.

Each week I will change the first exercise to something similar, regular squats to front squats for example.

After 4 weeks I will rotate back to the exercise from week 1.

Day 1, 3 sets, 5-10 reps

Barbell Squats
Split Squats
Stability Ball Leg Curl
Front Planks

Day 2, 3 sets, 5-12 reps

BB Bench Press
DB Bench Press
Dip
Ez Bar Tricep Ext.
DB External Rotation

Day 3, 3 sets, 5-10 reps

BB Deadlift
Good Morning
Back Ext.
Side Plank

Day 4, 3 sets, 5-12 reps

BB Push Press
V Bar Chinups
Upright Rows
Incline Hammer Curl
Side Lying DB Raise

To refuel after my weekend workouts I took advantage of a beautiful sunny day and made Beer Can Chickens on the BBQ.

The Ultimate Beer Can Chicken

1 or 2 Fresh roasting chickens
1 tsp of olive oil
Seasonings and spices of your choice,
I like sea salt, freshly ground pepper, garlic powder, oregano, paprika and parsley
1 can of beer for each chicken

Preheat gas grill to 350 degrees. Remove giblets from chicken cavity. Rinse chicken inside and out and pat dry. Rub surface of chicken with oil. Rub cavity with 1 tablespoon seasoning. Sprinkle remaining seasoning evenly over surface of chicken.

Drink half a can of the beer . Hold chicken upright (legs pointing down) and insert opened beer can into cavity. Stand chicken in upright position in center of grill. Position legs to best support chicken; (similar to a tripod). Close lid

Grill chicken over INDIRECT heat for one hour and 15 minutes, leave lid closed to keep heat in

When done, let chicken cool for 10-15 minutes and remove can from chicken before serving.

For sweet potatoes fries, clean and wash potatoes.

Slice up in the shape of fries and toss in bowl with olive oil and spices such as salt, pepper, chili powder, garlic powder and parsley

Place on baking sheet and place in preheated oven at 425F for 30 minutes.

Another weekend of food and fitness livin' the Dad Fitness Lifestyle...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

There is no place like home

2009-05-14T20:28:00.007-03:00

It's good to be home!

After sleeping at our in-laws most of the week because we have been renovating our bedroom, I am glad to be able to sleep in our own bed tonight.

and I must say...we did a good job. Thanks for all the help dad!

How not to use a hammer!

So this week was also a good time to take a week off from the gym as it has been another 8 week run with my workout routine.

By taking a week off from the gym every 8-10 weeks it not only gives me a mental and physical break from my intense workouts but it also frees up some time I can devote to other projects like this renovation for example.

You can time your rest week from your Dad Fitness workouts for other things that might come up as well like vacations, an unexpected injury, or just to spend some extra time with your family with the long summer days ahead.

That's what I love about my Dad Fitness 3 day a week workout program, it gives me the flexibility to do all the other things I need to do as a busy dad without having to stress over trying to get in a workout every day.

So after my wife getting her "new" bedroom, she has to head out of town for the weekend on business.

...Oh the thanks us guys get!

This weekend will also be the last weekend I spend at home as a full time stay-at-home dad with my baby daughter as I will be returning to work on Monday after 4 months parental leave.

With my wife and I back to work we reluctantly will have to leave Matea with a babysitter for the first time on Tuesday. Luckily it is a friend of ours so we are hoping the transition will be OK.

It's been a privilege to play such a hands on roll as a dad and I look forward to coming home from work and seeing her beautiful 3 teeth smile greeting me at the door...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Lazy Man's Workout

2009-05-11T19:18:00.001-03:00

I hope you had a special Mother's Day weekend with your wife or mother.

Things were a bit chaotic here at our house as we are renovating our bedroom with new flooring and a new paint job, so we have been staying at my in-laws down the street.

It's working out well because they are on vacation in Cuba...

I gave my wife one of those digital picture frames that I preloaded with pics of her and Matea over her first year as a new mom. She really loved the idea!

I treated my wife and my mother well during their special day and we ended off the evening by wining and dining them to a fancy meal.

I had Escargots for an appetizer and Filet Mignon with a baked potato and veggies for my main course. They even served little Matea some mashed potatoes and green peas on a silver platter!

Good food, Good times...

Alright, enough about food and more about fitness...

The Lazy Man's Workout

Do you find yourself making excuses as to why you can't workout?

Are you worried working out in the evening will cause you to miss your favorite TV show?

FINALLY, there are no more excuses for missing out on a short workout.

Workout during commercials with just your bodyweight!

Just think, the average commercial time is 30 secs, 2-4 commercials of 1-2 minutes

A 1 hour show has 4 commercial breaks of about 4 minutes each.

You can get in a short and intense full body workout while watching TV.

Don't count reps!

Don't count sets!

No gym, No equipment!

Just watch TV and workout during commercials, its that simple!

1st Commercial - Warmup with Burpees

2nd Commercial- Prisoner Squat Off Couch

3rd Commercial - Decline Pushup Off Couch

4th Commercial - Mountain Climbers with hands on couch

For more quick workouts for busy dads try the

==>Dad Fitness System

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Best Mother's Day Gift

2009-05-08T09:46:00.006-03:00

OK guys, this is your FINAL reminder, Mother's Day is THIS Sunday!

Now before you rush off to grab the few remaining Mother's Day cards that nobody wants,... STOP and think about what your wife AND your mother would really want on this special day.

With my wife busy and back to work now after her parental leave from having our first child this is her FIRST Mother's Day!

So no matter how much flowers or chocolate I give her that's still not going to give her what she REALLY wants... and it doesn't cost a cent...TIME

Being a busy working mother with a 11 month old baby in the house TIME is priceless.

So that is what I intend to give my wife this Sunday, the day to herself doing whatever she wants. I will serve her breakfast in bed after she sleeps late and will take Matea off her hands for the day.

...Plus I got a few other personal things up my sleeve that will brighten her day as well.

Oh and don't forget that other special Mom in your life, yeah... YOUR Mom!

Instead of taking her out to some loud and over crowded restaurant on Sunday, if you live near by... just spend some TIME with her.

Dust off some of the old photo albums of you naked in the tub and go through them with her and ask her questions about how she was feeling at the time the photo was taken.

That will be sure to stir up many great emotions and memories that might be fading with time.

A great mothers day gift idea if you are lucky enough to live near your mom is a digital photo frame loaded up with lots of photos of you and her together. These can play hundreds of photos in a continuous slide show allowing her to look back in time every day at her motherhood years even if your not there.

Alright guys, the rest is up to you...just remember on Sunday that time is precious and priceless so make the best of it by showing how much those special ladies in your life mean to you...

Have a great weekend!

Thanks for being MY Mom!

Happy Mother's Day Mommy!

Love Matea

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The 10 Best Injury-Management Tips

2009-05-07T10:05:00.009-03:00

With the sun shining and the temperatures rising to a balmy 15 degrees here in Labrador the last few days, I am trying to get out and enjoy it as much as possible.

After my Dad Fitness workout yesterday afternoon we spent the entire day outside with baby Matea and put a nice few miles on her stroller.

The fresh air really did her good as she slept like a rock last night!

So instead of sitting in front of the computer today I called upon one of my friends in the fitness industry to help you out with any aches and pains you might be having.

Make sure to enjoy any spring sunshine coming your way and get outside and get active with your family...

Guest Blog:

By Charles Staley, B.Sc, MSS

Director, Staley Training Systems

Tip One: The Hyper-Warm-Up

If you're hurtin' and you start your squat session with 135 on the bar, keep reading…

Look, if you're young, healthy, and stupid, you can skip the warm-up- for now. But if you've got a few miles on that chassis and you're not yet ready for replacement parts, it'll serve you well to institute the hyper-warm-up:

Step 1: The Early Bird Gets Burned:

If you can, your joints will appreciate a later workout as opposed to an earlier one. Synovial joints, for example, aren't fully lubricated with synovial fluid until a few hours after waking. Think of your first few hours after waking as part of your warm-up- and in fact, you'll immediately find that your exercise warm-up will be faster when you train later in the day as opposed to earlier.

Step 2: The Long, Hot Shower:

This is another example of success by "doing the opposite:" Take your shower before your workout, not after (well, OK, you can take one after too if you like). How long? How hot? As long and hot as you can comfortably tolerate- 15 minutes is probably plenty, but play around with it and you'll come up with the best duration. Warm tissues respond better to training- which is where the term "warm-up" comes from in the first place).

Step 3: Dress For Success:

Even if it's warm out, try to wear Under Armor-type sweat-wicking material. There are a number of materials available now, but the salient idea is that these new fabrics wick sweat away from your skin as you train. Why is this important? Because evaporating sweat cools your body- the exact opposite of what you're trying to do. I love cotton when I'm not training, but in the gym, forget it- I'm sold on Synthetic sweat-wicking materials. If you haven't yet tried them, I urge you to give it a go and see what you think.

Step 3: Joint Custody:

Neoprene joint sleeves help to warm your joints faster, and they also keep those joints warm through your entire workout. At Bed & Barbell, we like sleeves made by TK and Rehband, but a number of brands are available. If you haven't yet tried joint sleeves because you view them as "cheating" or "giving in," you're really missing out!

Step 4: Sweat:

Your general warm-up should be sufficient to generate a sweat. You don't need to be pouring sweat mind, you, but if you're still dry, you're not warmed up. I like skipping rope, but whatever works for you is fine.

Step 5: Come In Through The Back Door:

If you've got a "problem" joint, muscle, or body region, try training it last in the workout. Now here's why you'll probably dismiss this idea- your "problem" areas are likely to be related to exercise you deem important to you. For example, if you love to squat and/or you're a powerlifter, and your knees are a bit cranky, try squatting at the end of the workout instead of at the beginning. I know this violates the old axiom that important exercises should come first in the workout, but your HEALTH is what's really important, correct? Use your upper-body exercises as a general warm-up, and you'll find that your knees will respond better to the squats as a result.

Tip Two: Control Variables

If I've got a client who needs/wants to squats, but he's got orthopedic issues, I'll always do everything I can to ensure we're using consistent technique on every rep. For example, squat depth can be made more precise by squatting down to a box or bench. Similarly, tempo can be monitored/timed as well.

Tip Three: Hold Load Constant And Use The "O" Rating

If you've got a nagging injury that you're determined to train through, consider this tip: Every time you perform a/the exercise that tends to aggravate joint pain, use the same load, and the same set/rep bracket. For example, if you're benching with shoulder pain, you might work up to 185 pounds for 5 sets of 5. Then, every time you bench, in your training journal, make a note of your joint pain on a 1-5 scale (0 meaning no pain, 5 meaning you had so much pain you had to stop). If, over a series of bench press workouts, your "O Rating" increases, you'll need to reconsider your plan. On the other hand, if your O Rating decreases, you're probably on the right track.

Tip Four: Stop the Vicious Cycle

When you've got an injury, you might need to rest it, but if you never return to training, you'll be victimized by the "vicious cycle:" the initial injury tends to cause reduced activity, which causes atrophy, which further reduces activity, which leads to further atrophy, etc. You've gotta break that cycle somehow. And that might mean medical intervention by the way.

Tip Five: Train Injured Parts Last

This was already addressed in the first tip relating to the Hyper Warm-Up, but it bears repeating: don't hammer your hurtin' joints right out of the gate, even if that's the way you've always done it. The more a joint hurts, the later it should be trained, if at all.

Tip Six: Your Warm-Up Remains The Same

Consistent with the idea of controlling variables is the concept of using a consistent warm-up routine. Here's mine for Olympic snatches:

44 pounds (2x3)
66 pounds (2x3)
88pounds (2x3)
110 pounds (2x3)
132 pounds (2x2)

Then I proceed to my heaviest weights for the day, whatever they might be.

Notice that I always use the same weight jumps, and also notice that I perform each weight twice. This provides me with a basis of comparison- if, for example, my second set with 110 pounds feels better than the first set with that weight, I know my warm-up's working for me- I can feel myself becoming more prepared for the heavier weights to follow. Without this approach however, I don't benefit from this comparison

Tip Seven: Be Efficient

If you're a competitive lifter, are all those joint-trashing exercises really necessary? For example, let's say you're looking for a bigger bench and your elbows are becoming problematic. Further, your pecs (not your triceps) are the weak muscle group in the bench press. So why are you still doing heavy triceps extensions?

Tip Eight: Is Pain An Ibuprofin Deficiency?

OK, it's probably irresponsible for me to suggest this, but the point is, anti-inflammatories can really help. Ask your doctor, not me.

Tip Nine: If All Else Fails, Rest

I know, you don't wanna take a layoff. But if you're O Rating is climbing and your Ibuprofin purchases are breaking the budget, you might have to do it. Take heart: after a very recent three-week layoff, I hit a lifetime PR power snatch right out of the gates, at age 49. Sometimes the upside of healthier joints are worth the downside of detraining.

Tip Ten: If That Fails, See Your Doc

Here's a wild thought for ya: if you know what's actually wrong, you might be closer to finding a solution! I know, you don't want your doctor to tell you to stop lifting, but obviously he will, so just get over it. Knowledge is power. Get the knowledge, make a plan, get those joints healthy, and get back to the gym already.

About The Author

Charles Staley...world-class strength/performance coach...his colleagues call him an iconoclast, a visionary, a rule-breaker. His clients call him “The Secret Weapon” for his ability to see what other coaches miss. Charles calls himself a “geek” who struggled in Phys Ed throughout school. Whatever you call him, Charles’ methods are ahead of their time and quickly produce serious results.

Click here to visit Charles' site and grab your 5 FREE videos that will show you how to literally FORCE your body to build muscle, lose fat and gain strength with "Escalating Density Training," Charles' revolutionary, time-saving approach to lifting that focuses on performance NOT pain.

Dr. Dad is in the House

2009-05-04T16:16:00.006-03:00

It was a restless night in the Barker household last night...

But sleep takes a back seat when I got two ladies to take care of.

Not only was our 11 month old daughter Matea up a few times throughout the night as she is teething and has a little head cold,

BUT my wife woke up with a bad headache, high fever and ended up getting sick all night and this morning.

So while I tended to my wife resting in bed I thought the best thing for today would be to let her have some piece and quite while I packed up Matea and headed over to my parents house for the afternoon. My wife liked the idea so we left and let her rest...

I did have a workout scheduled for today so while Matea was happy playing and getting her workout at Grammie's and Grampies I headed across the street to the gym for a quick and intense Dad Fitness Workout.

I loved the convenience of growing up with that little dungeon of a gym just across the street from where we lived. I have been working out there for about 14 years and it is like having my own little gym as there is hardly anyone ever there.

Here was today's workout.

Pushups off a fixed barbell with feet elevated on bench,3 max sets, 60 sec rest
Lying Flat Barbell Tricep Extensions, 4 sets of 8 reps
Pullups from rope, 4 sets of 6 reps
Standing DB Shoulder Press, 3 sets of 8 reps
Standing One Arm Cable Curls, 3 sets of 8 reps
Ab circuit of hanging leg raises and cross body mountain climbers

I am gonna refuel after today's workout with my mother's homemade spaghetti
...I couldn't turn down her offer!... then we will head back home to take care of mommy...and maybe I will get a chance to check out the hockey game.

GO PENS!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Buff and Busy Workout

2009-05-01T15:22:00.005-03:00

TGIF...Today is May 1st, which means there are only 3 weeks until the start of summer.

Not too sure if that applies to us here in Labrador, Canada though with the rain and wet snow falling outside...

So I decided I would give you time crunched dads a little kick start workout that I pulled from my training tickle trunk.

For complete exercise descriptions and to get over 16 weeks of fitness workouts for men download the Dad Fitness System HERE<==

The Buff and Busy Workout is more of an advanced muscle building workout, but can be done at home with minimal equipment and will get you on your way to building strong lean muscle and goodbye to that gut before the shirts come off this summer.

If you are just starting out, do a couple sets of each exercise until you improve your conditioning.

Bodyweight Warm-up (to be performed before each workout)
• Prisoner-Squat – 10 reps
• Pushups – 10 reps
• Wall Slides – 10 reps

*Complete 2 circuits of this entire warm-up without rest

Bodyweight Workout

1A Jump Squat, 5 sets of 5 reps, no rest

1B Spiderman Pushup, 5 sets of 5 reps, 60 secs rest

2A Chin Ups or Bent Over DB Rows, 5 sets of 5 reps, no rest

2B Standing DB Shoulder Press, 5 sets of 5 reps, 60 secs rest

3A Standing Zottman DB Curl, 5 sets of 5 reps, no rest

3B Lying Floor DB Tricep Ext. 5 sets of 5 reps, 60 secs rest

4. Stability Ball Jackknife 3 sets of 8-10 reps, 60 secs rest

Cooldown Stretching (to be performed after each workout)

*Hold each stretch for 10-15 seconds
• Lat Stretch
• Chest Stretch
• Quad Stretch
• Hamstring Stretch
• Shoulder/Tricep Stretch

Alright guys, give this workout a try this weekend and let me know how it went!

Enjoy your weekend and your workouts...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Everything is amazing, nobody is happy...

2009-04-29T14:11:00.003-03:00

Make sure you watch this video below. It really has a powerful message!

As for me, I had a great workout this afternoon. I got to the gym at 11am instead of my usual 12pm this morning as my wife came home for lunch early so she let me out early, lol

Thanks to my properly designed Dad Fitness workouts I can get to the gym, warm up, workout, stretch and drive home, all within an hour to be back home to resume my daily duties as a stay at home dad with my baby daughter so my wife can head back to work.

...and I only need to do this workout 3 times a week so I don't have to worry about fitting in a workout everyday!

Here is Day 1 of the new workout routine I started today that I will do for the next 3 weeks.

Day 1-Max Effort Upper Body

Weighted Dips, 1 max set of 3-5 reps
Flat DB Bench Press, 4 sets of 6-10 reps
Bent Over BB Row, 4 sets of 10-15 reps
Bent Over Cable Raise, 3 sets of 10-12
BB Side Bends, 3 sets of 8-12 reps

I have been feeling really good lately with my workouts and I am thankful that I have found the proper balance between family, fitness and fun by following the Dad Fitness Lifestyle.

If YOU find yourself feeling stressed about your health, wealth and happiness during these tough economic times you need to watch this video!

There is nothing like a little perspective to show you that if you take a minute to just look around, EVERYTHING IS AMAZING...

Let me know what you do to keep things in perspective by posting a comment below.

I would love to hear your opinion!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

18 Reasons Why You MUST Weight Train

2009-04-27T08:37:00.002-03:00

I have got to get something off my chest and I hope it doesn't offend you...

It seems almost on a daily basis I continue to hear from busy dads who are trying to slim down and get in shape but are only doing long boring cardio like walking on a treadmill or even knee numbing long distance running to burn fat.

First, if this sounds familiar...I applaud you for doing SOMETHING, but if you are putting in some effort I want YOU to get results.

Walking and running are still good ways to stay active but they must not be your only source of exercise if you want to change the shape of your body.

So if you are trying to lose a few pounds and you are NOT doing some type of resistance training like weight training or bodyweight workouts you will NOT be happy with your results!

Weight Training increases your body's metabolism 24 hours a day, not just for a hour, like when you do long duration cardio like running.

More specifically it is referred to as E.P.O.C. otherwise known as "excess post-exercise oxygen consumption."

Without getting to technical, EPOC represents the process your body goes through in which energy is used to recover from exercise.

When you finish exercising, it takes time and energy for your muscle cells to return to resting levels.

Energy is also needed to replenish depleted glucose, protein and fat stores, and to remove accumulated cell waste.

The more rebuilding that needs to be done, the greater the rate of EPOC, which in turn, means more calories from your body's fat stores are being burned after your workout.

While the primary factor in determining EPOC is exercise intensity, there is also duration to consider -- just not to the same extent.

Just visualize spinning one of those Tops you used to have as a kid, as your metabolism. You want to spin it really hard so it will continue to spin on its own when you let go of it.

Studies show your metabolism remains elevated to such a level up to 48 hours after high intensity exercise like weight training.

When intense weight training exercises using your entire body are combined with intervals in the same workout, like are found in the Dad Fitness Workouts, the positive effects it will have on reshaping your body is astonishing!

Still don't believe me? Here are 18 more reasons to weight train...

1. Weight training tones your muscles, which looks great and raises your basal metabolism, which causes you to burn more calories 24 hours a day. You'll even burn more calories while you're sleeping!

2. Weight training can *reverse* the natural decline in your metabolism which begins around age 30.

3. Weight training energizes you.

4. Weight training has a positive affect on almost all of your 650+ muscles.

5. Weight training strengthens your bones reducing your risk of developing osteoporosis.

6. Weight training improves your muscular endurance.

7. Weight training will NOT develop big bulky muscles; just hard toned muscles!

8. Weight training makes you strong. Strength gives you confidence and makes daily activities easier.

9. Weight training makes you less prone to low-back injuries.

10. Weight training decreases your resting blood pressure.

11. Weight training decreases your risk of developing adult onset diabetes.

12. Weight training decreases your gastrointestinal transit time, reducing your risk for developing colon cancer.

13. Weight training increases your blood level of HDL cholesterol (the good type).

14. Weight training improves your posture.

15. Weight training improves the functioning of your immune system.

16. Weight training lowers your resting heart rate, a sign of a more efficient heart.

17. Weight training improves your balance and coordination.

18. Weight training elevates your mood.

If you have some other good reasons of your own why YOU should weight train please share it and post a comment below!

...and if you want a quick and easy recipe for my Mmmmmm Meatloaf, watch my latest cooking video.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Real Way to Stop Eating Fast Food

2009-04-24T12:25:00.003-03:00

Guest Blog: By Tom Venuto
www.BurnTheFat.com

I rounded up fat loss expert Tom Venuto for a great guest post on The Real Way to Stop Eating Fast Food

Plus he even shares some quick healthy recipes that you can whip up in minutes when it's Dad's time to cook!

“How could you eat that junk? It’s so bad for you!” (nag, nag).

“Don’t you know those fries will give you a heart attack?” (nag, nag).

“You have to stop eating all that fast food, it’s going to make you fat!” (nag nag).

“You have to eat more healthy food like fruits and vegetables - they’re good for you!” (nag, nag).

Your friends nag you, your family nags you, your doctor nags you, the health newsletters, websites and magazines - they all nag you, and of course, your personal trainer nags the heck out of you, to stop eating all those BAD FAST FOODS.

But does all that nagging you and bad-mouthing the fast food industry really help anyone stop?

It doesn’t look that way. The fast food industry is thriving, even in the bad economy. The Chicago Tribune recently said that McDonalds is “recession proof.”

As one of only two companies to turn a major profit over the last year (the other being Wal Mart), McDonald’s is laughing its way to the bank. In fact, McDonalds plans to open 1,000 new stores this year.

I was driving down Route 95 a few weeks ago and pulled over to use the rest room at Mcdonalds on a Saturday morning (there’s a McDonalds conveniently located immediately off almost every exit up and down the full length of Interstate 95).

The parking lot was full, it was standing-room only inside and the lines snaked around into the seating area! You’d think Brad and Angelina were there signing autographs or something. Nope. Just a regular weekend at breakfast-time.

I was shopping in Wal Mart the same week and I almost passed out when I saw (smelled, actually) a McDonalds… INSIDE THE WAL- MART! Also, with lines.

Yep. It looks like your friends and family’s nagging you to stop eating fast food, and all the messages of the health and fitness industry to get people eating more “health food” are not working!

So what does work?

The results of a new survey from the behavior and psychology section of the journal, OBESITY (Feb 2009) provide some answers:

Researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Public health surveyed 530 adults about their attitudes towards fast foods.

They found that people already know fast food is unhealthy. (like, no kidding!)

The primary reasons they eat it anyway are because of the perceived convenience and a dislike for cooking! (I’d add another: they think fast food is always cheaper than healthy food).

So, said the authors of this research paper, nagging people to eat more healthy food and warning them that “fast food is going to make us fat and kill us” is not the best approach.

What’s the right approach?

Focus on teaching people how to make healthy eating fast, convenient and easy, because those are the reasons people are choosing fast food in the first place.

So what’s holding us back from implementing or taking this advice?

Well, I think that most people can’t get over the ideas that they “just cant cook” or that cooking is “too time consuming” or that healthy food “tastes like dirt” (as if McDonalds is gourmet food!)

That said, I’m not going to nag you, scold you or try to scare you out of eating fast food. I’m not going to lecture you about health food (not today, anyway). Nor am I going to bad-mouth the fast food restaurants.

I’m going to lead the new charge by showing you just how easy and convenient it is to eat healthy and nutritious food and make it delicous.

Here’s a few meal ideas (for starters) to prove my point.

3-MINUTE APPLE CINNAMON OATMEAL

* natural oatmeal (like Quaker old fashioned rolled oats)
* natural (unsweetened) applesauce
* cinnamon
* for protein, serve with scrambled eggs or egg whites on side or stir 1-2 scoops of vanilla protein powder into the oats

I eat this almost every morning. It’s faster, easier and cheaper than going to the donut place or getting sausage, cheese, bacon breakfast muffins at the fast food joint! (you don’t have to wait in line, either!)

10-MINUTE LAZY PERSON’S CHINESE STIR FRY

* Brown rice (I like basmati)
* frozen oriental vegetables
* chicken breast, grilled (try foreman grill)
* bragg’s “liquid aminos” (or light/lo-sodium soy sauce)

This takes 30 minutes, however, if you get a rice cooker and make a giant batch, you can have your rice on standby for instant eats and this will take less than 10 minutes.

It doesn’t get much easier than that. (I like those chinese veggies that come with the little mini-corn-on-the-cobs… reminds me of that Tom Hanks Movie, BIG)

2-MINUTE BLACK BEANS AND SPICY SALSA

* black beans (15 oz can)
* Medium or hot salsa
* 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
* 2 cloves garlic or chopped garlic to taste
* salt and pepper to taste

This one takes you all of 2 minutes to make. No cooking required! And it’s good! It’s vegetarian as listed above, but if you’re a high-protein muscle-head like me, just add chicken breast or lean ground turkey.

Best part: this is all inexpensive food! Oats, rice, beans… doesn’t get much cheaper than that - buy your healthy staples in bulk and the cost per serving is probably less than mickey D’s! (yes, even the “Value” meals)

Every one of these recipes is compatible with my Burn The Fat program

This means that my way of eating makes you more muscular and leaner… so you can look hot wearing very little clothes this summer… and be healthier… and save money too.

Train Hard, Eat Right, and Expect Success!

Tom Venuto
www.BurnTheFat.com

About the Author:

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The #1 Food You Should NOT Eat

2009-04-22T08:52:00.015-03:00

Nope its not snow, read on to find out what this mystery food is...

It's been a crazy couple days here in our house.

Our baby daughter who will be 11 months old on Thursday seems to have gotten into the habit of waking up around 1am at night and wanting to stay up and play for the rest of the night!

So for the last few days my wife despite our best efforts have had only a couple hours sleep.

But wait until you read what happened to us due to lack of sleep!

You will definitely get a good laugh at MY expense!

...Yesterday was a BEAUTIFUL spring day here in Labrador with clear blue skies and a warm 11 degrees Celsius. That's as good as it gets here for spring sunshine.

So we all decided to head out for some good' old Vitamin D with my folks on snowmobile Labrador style by lighting a fire and having a "boil up" up on a nearby lake.

For those of you who don't know:

"Happiness is a mug of tea, made from water boiled in a newfie flat ass kettle over a fire of blasty boughs!"

Anyway, earlier that morning I made some quick and easy Chili in the crockpot to bring to our day out on the lake.

Check out this cooking video for a quick and easy chili recipe...

My wife and I were running around the house trying to get baby Matea ready as well as pack up our food and gear for the day.

I took my Crock Pot, which even had a lid that seals up for transporting to potlucks and packed it in the cooler along with the rest of our stuff...including my new Flip video camera.

Looking back I obviously was rushed and my brain was half asleep.

and I didn't pack things good enough because when we got to our destination, after towing our gear with our cooler in the sleigh across the lake.

Chili was EVERYWHERE!

The lid ended up coming off and chili was all over the inside of the cooler, INCLUDING my camera!

The chili was ruined and so was my new camera...

But, thanks to my mom who had some sandwiches packed as well as a can of beans which is great cooked over an open fire we all managed to have a great afternoon.

When you have "one of those days" you need to take a step back and think, is it really a big deal?

Being healthy and alive with great family and friends is the BIG DEAL....

Oh yeah, I even treated myself to the #1 Food You Should NOT Eat...wieners

Keep these artery clogging pig parts for rare occasions like a campfire or a family bbq and your gut will thank you!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Real Men DO Eat Quiche

2009-04-19T14:48:00.005-03:00

Despite what some books may tell you "Real Men DO Eat Quiche"!

I consider myself a manly man as I like hunting and eating wild meat, lifting heavy weights and watching sports and Food Network's Giada De Laurentiis for more than her recipes.

Eating Hungry Man microwaved dinners and sporting a big belly don't make you more of a man.

It actually makes you LESS of a man as eating junk food from heated plastics and carrying around excess belly fat creates more estrogen in your body not testosterone!

Can you say man-boobs?

I love to eat so with that comes a love to cook...

Plus by letting your wife sleep late and serving her a Sunday morning breakfast you will definitely win points in the testosterone department...

So this morning I took the Quiche recipe from my favorite cookbook, Gourmet Nutrition.

The only change I made was I didn't cook them in muffin pans.

I thought that was a little too sissy even for me... I just used a regular casserole dish.

After that I was off to the gym for a quick workout to sweat and grunt and lift heavy stuff.

Here was my Dad Fitness workout:

Barbell Front Squats
Barbell Reverse Lunges
Cable Rope Pull Throughs (definitely a manly exercise)
Forearms Grip Holds

OK, I am off to watch the hockey playoffs. GO PENS!

Let me know who you are cheering for in this years NHL playoffs.

If you want to build the body you never thought you could have, start eating the meals you never thought you could eat! Get over 120 recipes and a no-nonsense nutrition plan that will show you how to make it all work. Get Gourmet Nutrition today.

Get the book HERE<==

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Wok With Sean? Healthy Fish and Chips Video

2009-04-17T15:57:00.006-03:00

For you fellow Canadians, you might recognize the humor in today's post.

"Wok With Sean" instead of a cooking show called Wok With Yan, that used to come on CBC television here in Canada back in the 80's.

It was a funny blend of Cantonese cuisine, recipes, feeding the audience, and dorky humor.

...and who could forget his trademark apron’s which contained a variety of Wok puns.

Some of my favorites were:

Wok & Roll
Danger, Men at Wok
Wok the Heck
Stuck between a Wok and a Hard Place
Wokkey Night in Canada
Raiders of the Lost Wok

I always loved watching cooking shows and that was probably the first one I ever watched.

Now you can join ME in the kitchen as I whip up a healthy version of the classic Fish and Chips.

If you want to get REAL results from your workouts then you have to starting eating REAL.

Nothing processed or out of a box or package.

If it don't fly, swim, run around or is green your body don't need it!

What's not enjoyable about frying up some tasty fish outdoors on your grill in the spring sunshine while sipping on a cold beer? Watch the video to see for yourself.

..and yes you can even enjoy an occasional beer and still lose that "beer belly"!

As long as you are eating real food most of the time such as lean meats, fruit and veggies and doing your 3 intense workouts a week, YOU will see RESULTS.

I hope your hungry, because if you are not, you will be after watching this video!

Remember, You Are Wok You Eat...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Dad Fitness Cooking Show How To Make The Best Burger

2009-04-15T09:05:00.005-03:00

When people see me eat burgers and pizza, the first question they ask me is

"How do you eat this stuff and stay in such great shape?"

My first answer is with 3 short and simple, BUT intense Dad Fitness workouts each week.

These build strength and lean muscle which is a must if you want to increase your metabolism and force your body to burn fat 24 hours around the clock, even while your sleeping!

...which seems to be a commodity here lately in the Barker household with our teething 10 month old daughter. Poor baby...

Then my second answer is that MY homemade pizza and burgers is not the same as YOUR pizza and burgers that you feed your family.

They taste better and are actually GOOD for your health!

So sit back, relax and watch me fire up my BBQ and show you
how to make the best burgers Dad Fitness style!

WARNING: This video may contain really good food!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

What was in YOUR Easter egg?

2009-04-12T19:32:00.008-03:00

Happy Easter!

I sincerely hope you're having a great weekend with your family and friends.

We had a fun day as it was Matea's first Easter and it seems like Easter is the new Christmas, according to all the gifts she got!

Our friends knitted her the cute yellow outfit you see in the pics.

She is too young to dig into any chocolate bunnies yet but we did let her taste one of those yellow marshmallow "Peeps" or should I just call them yellow sugar.

As for me I am not a big fan of cheap sweet chocolate like you find in "Mr. Solid". I honestly prefer to enjoy a small piece of 85% rich dark chocolate that is actually good for you and great after a meal with a cup of green tea.

We got up this morning and headed to church and then my wife's parents had an Easter egg hunt all setup for Matea at their house and we had lots of fun deciphering the clues trying to find the hidden treasures.

Then we all enjoyed an early Easter dinner with a big juicy turkey with all the trimmings. I had a little chocolate cake for dessert and that was that.

I don't feel guilty about eating what I want on the weekends because I know that I will be back to eating healthy meals and doing my Dad Fitness Workouts come Monday.

Eat good healthy food 90% of the time and do 3 short fat loss workouts a week and you can burn off that belly fat and be a fit father while still enjoying the foods you love.

I never planned a workout today with all the Easter festivities but I will workout tomorrow and am excited to SPRING into another week of livin' the

Dad Fitness Lifestyle...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Quick Hotel Room Bodyweight Workout

2009-04-10T15:38:00.005-03:00

It's good to be home.

I was in Toronto all week attending some business meetings and networking with some of the top fitness professionals.

We also had lots of fun as we checked out a Toronto Raptors basketball game and had a great view from our own skybox. The players even looked big from that distance, they must be monsters in person!

For times when you are away from home for work or even vacation, you can still stay on track with your workout routine by doing quick bodyweight workouts in your hotel room or if you have the time you can get a great workout in at the hotel gym.

I actually did both during the week as I knew that the gyms would be closed on this long weekend when I returned home.

So check out this quick hotel room bodyweight workout for times when you are on the road.

No excuses!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Top 10 Things You Must Do To Have A Great Workout - EVERY Workout

2009-04-08T20:19:00.009-03:00

I have been staying in Toronto the last few days attending business meetings.

I don't travel all that much but I gotta say I really have been missing my wife and my baby daughter.

So today I have a special guest post for you from one of the top fitness professionals in the industry and who is also a fit dad over 40.

The Top 10 Things You Must Do To Have A Great Workout - EVERY Workout

By Charles Staley, B.Sc, MSS
Director, Staley Training Systems

The basic idea of a good warm-up is to walk that fine line between preparing yourself adequately for the intense work to come, without fatiguing yourself in the process.

From my observations, however, few people seem to manage this, either performing far too little work, or doing so much that their warm-up becomes a workout in itself. I conceptualize the perfect warm-up as a 5- stage event, as follows:

Engage Brain Before Putting Body in Gear: The Mental Warm-up

The experienced athlete has been thinking about the impending workout all week. He’s rehearsed the workout dozens of times in his mind, and is already aware of the possible problems he might encounter (such as dealing with rush hour in the gym or a nagging hamstring pull that might kick up during the workout).

A novice trainee, on the other hand, can be identified by the fact that he doesn’t even know what he will do until he gets to the gym (and maybe not even then!). Since novices typically get novice-level results, I urge you to explore visualization and autogenic training, both of which are established methods of maximizing physical performance both in training and in competition.

Some people learn these techniques on their own, others need instruction. Either way, USE them!

If you’ll be training early in the morning, and/or if it’s cold out, beef up the warm-up process commensurately.
Training in dry climates requires a more thorough warm-up than training in humid surrounds.
Older trainees generally profit from more extensive warm-ups.
If you are otherwise healthy but have “creaky” joints, err on the side of being too extensive with your warm-up. After all, the goal of being able to train takes precedence over the fact that you might fatigue yourself slightly with an extensive warm-up.

The closer you venture toward 1RM in your workout, the more extensive your warm-up should be. In other words, do a more thorough warm-up for 5×5 than you would for 3×12.
You can accelerate your warm-up through passive means such as a hot bath or shower. Although active means are superior to passive, often, a combination of the two leads to great results.
On exercises where your own bodyweight is the minimal load possible (chins, dips, etc.), first warm up with similar exercises that allow lesser loads (e.g., lat pulldowns and decline bench presses), and then proceed to the target exercise, using multiple sets of 1 rep. As soon as the next set of 1 does not feel any easier than the set before it, you’re ready to proceed to your work sets.
If you are executing exercises for antagonistic muscle groups “back to back” (such as training seated rows with triceps extensions), do your warm-up sets for these exercises in the same pattern that you’ll use for the work sets.
If you’ve done it right, your middle work set(s) will feel the easiest. For example, when performing 5×8, the 3rd set should feel the best, and sets 4 and 5 should feel progressively more difficult. If your last sets feel the best, it indicates that your warm-up was not thorough enough. If your first work sets are easiest, you may have warmed-up too much.

On to the Heavy Metal…

If you’ve followed my suggestions, you should now feel warm, strong, loose, and enthusiastic about training hard. It’s kind of amazing, isn’t it? Fifteen minutes ago you could barely tolerate the thought of a hard workout; now you’re looking forward to it!

About The Author

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Manly Meals In Minutes

2009-04-05T19:24:00.016-03:00

Every busy dad needs to have a staple of quick manly meals he can fall back on when he feels like getting creative in the kitchen and cooking something that even the kids will eat.

You can get really creative with this "recipe" and mix and match the pasta, meat, veggies, cheese and spices.

Use this meal as a base to try a different combination every week to keep your families taste buds guessing.

The best part about this easy recipe is it won't bust your gut like those "heart attack hungry man dinners", and it makes great leftovers that you can freeze in those Tupperware containers so you have healthy meals to bring to work or to refuel after your short fat loss workouts.

Just don't reheat them in the plastic containers using the microwave do to all the nasty estrogen-like chemicals that can leach into your food and give you man boobs!

I find Pyrex glassware great for storing and reheating leftover meals.

So move on over Chef Boyardee...dad is taking over... so here is a hearty and healthy manly meal you can feel good about serving your family...(Puffy white chef hat is optional)

2 cups of whole wheat pasta
1lb of extra lean ground beef
1 bell pepper chopped
1 small onion chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
half a can of slice black olives
a few chopped sun dried tomatoes
half a cup of shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup of tomato sauce
sprinkle of sea salt, freshly ground black pepper,
oregano, parsley, hot chili flakes, and clubhouse garlic pepper seasoning

Add pasta to boiling water and boil for 10-12 minutes

Cook ground beef in pan with veggies

Add spices to beef and veggies

Drain pasta and add to pan with beef and veggies

Add tomato sauce to beef and pasta mixture, stir and simmer for 5 minutes

Sprinkle cheese over top and turn off heat allowing cheese to melt with remaining heat.

Enjoy!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

This guy lost 49lbs in 11 weeks with Dad Fitness

2009-04-03T16:44:00.003-03:00

It's been a good week of training for me as one of my closest friends who used to be my training partner for years is back in town for a few months.

We haven't worked out together in years so it is great to meet up at the gym 3 days a week for some short intense workouts.

Oh yeah, he also made a dramatic transformation using my workout and nutrition system.

Check it out==>

"In just 11 weeks I went from 247lbs to 198lbs,
lost my beer belly and gained rock hard muscle!"...

“Coming from a “big boned” family I thought I was cursed with the fat gene. I am a guy who loves to eat, and on this lifestyle program I ate more than I ever had.

Within the first week after each workout it’s like I could actually feel my body burning fat. Over the years I tried all the traditional forms of exercise and spent hours in the gym, with minimal results. With this program I loved the freedom it gave me with just 3 workouts a week.

Sean’s program was different, it’s short, simple, and it works! And it’s backed my science, so I know it had to work.

I completely transformed my body to the point my own mother barely recognized me. Wherever I went around town or to social events people would compliment me on how great I looked, and man did that feel good. For the first time in my life I could actually see my abs!

The best thing is I now have the knowledge to maintain this body for the rest of my life. This program is the only one I will ever need. Sean is the real-deal and practices what he preaches.”

Thanks Sean,

Toby Aylward,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

But there is a BIG difference in my life and the way I train now compared to the way we used to workout, because now I am married and a proud and busy dad to our 10 month old daughter Matea.

We always were pretty intense with our workouts back in the day but they were more bodybuilding style workouts and we took more rest in between sets to chat about last nights hockey game or our plans for the weekend.

From our first workout on Monday he noticed that I now don't waste anytime in the gym anymore as I only have an hour at the most to get to the gym, warmup, workout, stretch and be home to get back to my duties as Mr. Mom. Thankfully the gym is only 5 mins drive away.

With my Dad Fitness System I have fast and furious workouts that build lean muscle and keep my metabolism into overdrive burning fat even while I sleep.

We had a great training session today, here it what we did.

Max Effort Upper Body

Incline Bench Press, 1 max set, 3-5 reps
Flat DB Bench Press, 4 sets, 6-10 reps
One Arm DB Row, 4 sets, 10-15 reps
Cable Rope Upright Rows, 3 sets, 12-15 reps
Hanging Leg Raise, 3 sets, 10-12 reps

Now I am heading out and looking forward to date night with my wife as my mother has Matea for the night. Now that my 3 short workouts are finished for the week I can relax come the weekend and enjoy time with my family.

On tonight's menu, the movie Benjamin Button and then I think I will treat myself to a couple slices of Pizza after eating healthy all week.

Love Livin' the Dad Fitness Lifestyle...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Im Watching You Dad- A video every Dad must see!

2009-04-02T20:59:00.003-03:00

For all you dads out there, this is a powerful video that you must see!

because remember, EVERYDAY you are being watched...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Barbell Belly Blaster Workout

2009-04-01T10:36:00.002-03:00

Are you a busy dad who likes to go to the gym for a quick fat burning workout but hate encountering a crowd of regular gym goers who hog workout equipment while yapping on their cell phone?

If so, The Barbell Belly Blaster Workout is for you.

If you are lucky enough to have an Olympic Barbell in your home gym, you can also do this workout without ever leaving your house.

This is primarily a fat loss workout as it elevates your heart rate while supersetting exercises using your bodies major muscles.

But by using your major muscles you are building strength and endurance in those muscles which will also help to build lean muscle in beginners to intermediate lifters.

This is also a great alternative to long boring cardio and can be done at the end of your regular weight training workout to burn extra calories and lose bodyfat.

To increase the muscle building effects of this workout you can add additional weight to the bar but I wouldn't recommend it unless you have a few years of training under your belt.

For absolute beginners who find that the 45lb bar is too much, you can use a lighter bar like the EZ curl bar which is around 25lbs or even a broomstick.

This workout only requires the empty 45lb Olympic Barbell for the entire workout so you can grab a barbell and head off to an empty corner in the gym so you can get a great fat burning workout and be free of any distractions.

You will be using the barbell to complete a Complex, which is just a series of barbell free weight exercises that you will do without rest while keeping the bar in your hands the entire time.

Perform 10-15 reps for each exercise. Complete all exercises without rest, then rest 60 seconds and repeat the circuit 2 more times.

*Warmup with 12 Burpees.

Jump down onto the floor in the bottom of the pushup position and jump back up with hands in the air reaching for the ceiling.

1A Barbell Pushup

Perform regular pushup with hands on the barbell. Brace your abs hard so that you do not roll the bar on the floor.

2A Barbell Squat

Pick barbell off the floor and press overhead and rest the bar across your shoulders. Pushing hips back squat down until your thighs are parallel to the ground.

3A Barbell Shoulder Press

After squats, press the bar back overhead and in front of your shoulders with shoulder width grip press the bar straight up overhead.

4A Barbell Bent-Over Row

After shoulder presses, bend over with bar hanging straight down. Using your elbows pull or row the bar up to your belly button.

5A Barbell Mountain Climber

Place bar back on the floor and get in top part of the pushups position. With abs tight hold that position while you bring one knee to towards your elbow and alternate each leg

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

March Madness Dad Fitness Style

2009-03-30T22:22:00.012-03:00

I hope you are enjoying March Madness as much as me!

...and NO I am not talking about basketball.

I am talking about enjoying the start of the spring season with your family by getting out and being active, no matter where you live.

Spring is still a ways away here in Labrador, Canada, but any days above zero is good for me!

So this weekend my family and I headed down to our friends cabin for the night to enjoy the warm March temperatures, do some snowmobiling, snowshoeing and even a little ice fishing...but we didn't have much luck with the fish.

I had a few nibbles on my hook but the fish just weren't hungry I guess.

But everyone else sure was... so when we got back to the cabin I fired up the BBQ, opened up a cold beer and grilled everyone steaks and turkey sausage, Mmmmm...

Good Food, Good Times...That's what the Dad Fitness Lifestyle is all about!

Our 10 month old baby daughter Matea really enjoyed her FIRST snowmobile ride and also loved watching the Grey Jays land in Daddy's hand for a bite of cheese!

Stop eating like a bird to lose weight and start LIVING the Dad Fitness Lifestyle...

==> Get started with these short workouts TODAY!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Processed People

2009-03-29T18:57:00.006-03:00

I just stumbled upon this new documentary coming out called Processed People.

I am looking forward to seeing this and encourage you to check out the trailers for this film.

If you want to live a long and healthy life with your family you have to ask yourself are YOU Processed People?

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Dad Fitness Cooking Video: The Popeye Omelet

2009-03-27T10:10:00.004-03:00

For you busy dads who want a quick high protein meal after your short fat loss workouts that you can have for breakfast, lunch or even dinner...nothing beats the omelet.

It's fast, healthy and a budget friendly meal to feed your family during these tough economic times.

Plus your kids can get involved and add their own ingredients.

Check out this cooking video of me in the kitchen whipping up my Popeye Omelet.

Watch carefully as I share with you two SECRET tips to make you look like an expert in the kitchen.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Secret to Quick Workouts

2009-03-26T13:48:00.006-03:00

I am going to have to make this post quick as I am only running on fumes today.....zzzz...

..oops almost drifted off there...

Our baby 10 month old daughter is in the painful process of teething and I was up most of the night with her last night.

I can't imagine how painful this must be for a baby as I have been having some pain with one of my wisdom teeth the last few weeks myself as well.

What's the point of getting wisdom teeth anyway!...I am wise enough

So after us watching lots of late night TV and with only a few hours of sleep for the both of us I still managed to get to the gym today when my wife came home for lunch.

The key to long-term consistency with your workout routine is sometimes you just have to go do your workout anyway without thinking if you feel up for it or not.

Once you start you will start to feel better and be glad that you did.

I usually get my Dad Fitness workouts done in about an hour but today I never had that much time so I supercharged my workouts with SUPERSETS.

By working opposite muscles back to back, such as chest and back without rest I saved time and had an intense workout and was finished my normal one hour workout in half the time!

Working opposite muscles in this way actually allows the opposing muscle to recover faster in between sets because the opposite muscle has to relax for the other to contract.

I was soaked after this 30 minute workout and even had to time to drop into the convenience store on the way home for a post-workout chocolate milk.

Here is what I did today.

A Incline Barbell Bench Press, 1 max set of 3-5 reps
B1 Flat DB Bench Press, no rest, 4 sets of 6-10 reps
B2 Bent Over DB Rows, 4 sets of 10 reps
C1 Rope Cable Upright Rows, no rest, 3 sets of 12-15 reps
C2 Hanging Leg Raises, 3 sets of 10-15 reps

So for days when you seemed too rushed to get a quick workout, take your normal workout and superset the exercises to get it done in half the time.

All 16 weeks of the Dad Fitness workout program use supersets to save time so you can be a super dad and get on with your day.

Get your super workouts here==>Short Fat Loss Workouts

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Best Way To Relieve Muscle Soreness

2009-03-24T17:29:00.005-03:00

Ahhhh...f$%* that hurts!

That's how I felt this morning as I bent over to pickup my baby daughter off the floor this morning.

After getting back to the gym after a week off and doing my first lower body workout in almost 2 weeks yesterday my legs are pretty sore and stiff!

For the best way to relieve muscle soreness check out the video below.

We have all experienced this one time or another, muscle soreness or what the exercise geeks (me included) refer to as DOMS.

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness...

This can occur whether you have been working out for years or are just starting to exercise.

Basically its the microscopic tearing of your muscle fibers that causes the inflammation and swelling of the muscles putting additional pressure around the surrounding joints.

But I bet what you really what to know is how to avoid it or even relieve muscle soreness when you do get it.

To prevent it, try not to do much too soon and ease into any exercise program wether its lifting weights, running or your favorite recreational sport. Whatever workout routine you are starting, just do half of the exercise volume to introduce your muscles to the exercises.

Warmup properly BEFORE you workout and stretch AFTER you workout to remove the lactic acid from your muscles and start the recovery process.

To help relieve it when you do over do it from doing too much or doing something new, get some "active rest" by going for a walk with your family or playing with your kids at the playground (lying on the couch watching 24 is not considered active rest!).

Also take rest days from your workouts which means don't work those sore muscles with heavy weight training until the soreness subsides.

Make sure you are eating high quality protein throughout the day to provide your body with the nutrients it needs for muscle repair and stay hydrated by drinking lots of water.

Vitamin C has been shown to aid in muscle recovery as well as hot saunas and deep tissue massage.

Getting lots of omega 3 fats in your diet through fish oils, mixed nuts and avocados will also help to scavenge free radicals and reduce inflammation in your muscles and throughout your entire body

These recovery tips all help...

But for the BEST way to relieve muscle soreness watch this quick video.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

I was 1300 feet underground!

2009-03-23T11:21:00.012-03:00

Going down...1327ft!

I had a great workout yesterday. It was the first leg workout since I have been back to my new workout routine after my recovery week.

I will show you my workout later in this post as you gotta see what I did on Saturday...

On Saturday my wife and I, my parents and my cousin and her husband who are in from Newfoundland visiting, we all took a road trip to Churchill Falls to tour the the 2nd largest underground power station in the world!

The massive transmission towers that
bring power all the way to New York!

Churchill Falls is a small isolated Northern town of 700 people just 3 hours east of Labrador City, Labrador where we live.

Living in Labrador most of my life and being to Churchill a few times on fishing trips, this the first time I went and did the tour of this amazing underground hydroelectric plant.

The underground roadway

Here are some quick facts on the falls thanks to Wikipedia.

Project facts

Churchill Falls power plant is the second largest hydroelectric plant in North America, with an installed capacity of 5,428 MW (7,279,000 hp).

Churchill Falls was, at the time of its construction, the largest underground power station in the world. (The Robert-Bourassa power station in Quebec currently holds the record, both for installed capacity and volume of the main underground hall).

Left to right: Me, my wife Kathy, my parents
and my cousin and her husband on the power house floor

The powerhouse is 972 ft (296 m) long, up to 81 ft (25 m) wide and 154 ft (47 m) high from the bottom to the top. The height would be equivalent to a 15-storey building or almost as long as three Canadian football fields (990 ft (300 m) and is hollowed from solid granite. To strengthen walls and ceiling, more than 11,000 rock bolts (steel rods 15 to 25 ft (5 to 8 m) long) were used in the three major chambers.

To move the 2,300,000 cu yd (1,760,000 m³) of rock that was excavated from the underground caverns, it required 5,000,000 lb (2,300,000 kg). This material was used in roads, building the town site, and as dike material.

The emergency bus with the keys in the ignition
in case of emergency, creepy...

The turbine wheels are cast of stainless steel and weigh 80 short tons (73 t) which is a world record for the largest stainless steel casting ever made.

During construction, 730,000 short tons (660,000 t) of material, equipment and fuel were moved to the site.

The natural catchment area for the Churchill River covers over 23,300 sq mi (60,000 km²).By diverting the water from the Ossokmanuan Reservoir the total catchment area became 27,700 sq mi (72,000 km²).

Total natural drop of the water starting at Ashuanipi Lake and ending at Lake Melvilleis 1,735 ft (529 m). As a comparison, the water starting 30 km (19 mi) upriver until it enters the power plant drops over 1,000 ft (300 m).

There is no big dam associated with this hydropower plant. There are 88 dikes to contain the reservoir, the longest is 6.1 km (3.8 mi) and the highest is 36 m (120 ft).

The total length of all dikes is 64 km (40 mi) and contains 26,000,000 cu yd (20,000,000 m³) of embankment material.

After five years of non-stop field work by approximately 6,300 workers and costing $950,000,000 (1970) construction culminated on December 6, 1971 when the first two generating units began delivering power, five months and three weeks ahead of schedule.

Currently Churchill Falls makes almost 1% of the world's hydroelectric power.Newfoundland and Labrador recently announced a call to develop the Lower Churchill Project.

This is, in fact, a number of small projects which includes a 2,000 MW (2,700,000 hp) dam at Gull Island, an 824 MW (1,105,000 hp) dam at Muskrat Falls, 1,000 MW (1,300,000 hp) upgrade to the existing facility at the Churchill Falls power plant. This would increase the present power production capability by an extra 4,000 MW (5,400,000 hp) for a total of 9,252 MW (12,407,000 hp) for the entire Churchill River hydroelectric complex.

The refuge bunker that has supplies for
50 people for 35 daysin case of emergency!
Has never been used thankfully...

It was an amazing tour and made me realize that you don't have to go on a far-away vacation with your family to find some interesting sites that just might be in your back yard.

...Oh, and if my legs weren't so sore I would have forgot to show you my lower body workout!

Max Effort Lower Body

Rack Deadlifts, 1 max set of 3-5 reps
Barbell Lunges, 4 sets of 10 reps
Good Mornings, 4 sets of 10 reps
Grip Rollers, 3 sets of 3 rounds each

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Couch Workout

2009-03-19T19:48:00.004-03:00

Today was my first day back in the gym after my recovery week from weight training.

I felt recharged mentally and physically to start a new Dad Fitness workout routine for another 8 weeks or so.

After my wife and I completed a 4 hour recertification for CPR this morning I headed off to the gym to ease back into training.

Word of advice: never go all out in your first few workouts back after a layoff!

If you do you will be sore and moving around like a zombie for the rest of the week.

Here is Day 1 of my new workout program.

Max Effort Upper Body

Incline Barbell Bench Press, 1 max set of 3- 5 reps
Flat DB Bench Press, 4 sets of 6-10 reps
One Arm DB Rows, 4 sets of 10-15 reps
Rope Cable Upright Rows, 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Hanging Leg Raises, 3 sets of 8-12 reps

I kept the weights conservative and had a good start back to the gym.

For you busy dads who find it hard to get off the couch and go workout.

Well, I got a solution just for you!

Give The Couch Workout a try.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Everything is Possible

2009-03-18T15:45:00.004-03:00

Well my recovery week from my workouts couldn't have come at a better time.

I guess I was a little more overtrained than I thought as I haven't had a break from my workout program for almost 12 weeks, but I also got hit with a nasty flu bug,... stomach included...not nice!

So as I am starting to feel better I am looking forward to returning to the gym with my workouts.

I am currently putting together my new Dad Fitness workout routine and came across this motivating video, that shows you Everything is Possible if you set goals and work hard to achieve them.

After watching this video doing your 3 short workouts a week will certainly seem possible.

Enjoy!

Everything is Possible - Watch the best video clips here

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Perfect Penne Pasta

2009-03-15T10:12:00.010-03:00

Today I was planning on heading to the gym for one last workout before I take a week off from my workout routine.

But I seem to have caught a head cold the last few days and I am not really feeling 100%, sniff..sniff...cough..cough.. Seeing as my last workout was Thursday I won't head back to the gym until this Thursday.

Every 8 weeks I try to take a recovery week off from my intense workouts but I have now gone over 10 weeks without a break and I guess I am starting to wear myself down.

I will still try and remain active during this week but won't be doing my intense Dad Fitness weight training workouts.

I am not the only one in our house feeling under the weather as our 9 month old daughter has it as well. I feel bad for her as she keeps waking herself up during the night coughing. But at that age they recommend that you give them nothing, and let it take its course.

She's tough like her dad but we have a humidifier going in her room during the night to help her congestion.

Shirt reads: "There is Snowone Like Dad"

Despite us battling the sniffles we had our in-laws over for dinner last night and I made a delicious new recipe from the April issue of Men's Health Magazine.

Savory Seafood Penne

This turned out awesome as I even made the power side salad as well,
Arugula and Parmesan Salad

The only changes I made was I used Spring Mix instead of Arugula and garlic goat cheese instead of Gorgonzola as I could not find it at my local supermarket.

The whole meal was super easy to prepare and we all REALLY loved it. The pesto and garlic goat cheese gave it amazing flavor!

I upped the ingredients to make enough for 4 with a little leftovers.

Savory Seafood Penne

1 box of whole wheat penne pasta
2 bags of frozen cooked shrimp
1 small cub of garlic goat cheese crumbled
3 cups of baby spinach
2 tomatoes chopped
2 tsp walnuts chopped 3 tsp of ready made pesto

Defrost shrimp under running water for 5 mins.
Cook pasta according to directions.
Transfer pasta to large bowl, add shrimp, cheese, spinach, tomato, walnuts and pesto.
Stir well to combined ingredients.

Another healthy meal in minutes for you and your family that will fill you up without filling you out!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

3 Tips To Lose Belly Fat

2009-03-13T14:09:00.005-03:00

Are you frustrated with your weight loss results even though you have lost some fat around your middle and your spare truck tire is now the size of a bicycle tire?

For us busy dads its seems that fat loves to hang out around our belly.

Well it's time to issue your belly fat an eviction notice and get that fat burning furnace started again...

Basically what is happening when you plateau on a weight loss program is your body is adapting to the workouts and caloric intake.

Your body is smart and is catching on to your fat loss efforts. It's fat loss reserves are getting lower so it's panicking and holding on to whats left.

It's like when people who swim continue to be able to swim more laps and thinking that it is a good thing as they are doing more and improving their conditioning.

But what is happening is your body is burning less calories each time because you are IMPROVING your conditioning.

The harder your muscles and heart work to move your body the more calories you will burn even at rest.

Just visualize spinning a top as your metabolism...

You want to spin it really hard so it will continue to spin on its own when you let go of it.

Ok...enough analogies, I think you get the point!

So you will just need to kick things up a notch and cause a metabolic disturbance in your body so you keep losing fat.

Variety is the spice of life inside and outside the gym. Constantly challenging yourself improves your physical fitness as well as mental fitness.

We all know if you are bored with your current workout routine, you won't do it. So don't let your workouts get stale!

1. Change up your weight training workouts to exercises that you haven't been doing. Make sure to focus on exercises that work many muscles at once like squats, deadlifts and pushups. Use different rep ranges like 1-3, 4-6, 8-10 and 12-15 reps, different angles such as flat, incline and decline, and shorter rest periods, 30, 60, 90 seconds or no rest.

2. Stop slaving away on the treadmill for your cardio and use bodyweight exercises and barbell or dumbbell complexes where you superset without rest from one exercise to another. This will burn a ton of calories in a short amount of time because you are using all your bodies major muscles while increasing your heart rate.

3. As for your diet plan, don't drop your calories too low, too fast. This is a surefire way to lose lean muscle mass and slow down your metabolism. Take a closer look at your diet and track your caloric intake for a few days to make sure you are not taking in some hidden calories that you may not be aware of.

You can't trick basic biology. If you are burning up more calories than you are taking in, you WILL lose weight.

One simple tip for fast fat loss is to only eat starchy carbs like oatmeal, breads and brown rice within the 2 hour period AFTER your workout. That's when your body will use carbs for restoring energy instead of storing fat.

For the rest of your daily meals and snacks, eat only fruits and veggies for energy and fiber rich carbohydrates.

With a few little diet tweaks and adding some variety and intensity into your weight loss plan you should start losing that frustrating fat again.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Want to live longer? You need this nutrient

2009-03-11T10:41:00.002-03:00

I found such a great article by Best Life Magazine on Omega 3 fats and our health I had to pass it on.

"A higher intake of omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish such as salmon has been shown to positively affect ailments as diverse as stroke, allergies, dementia, and dyslexia."

Before you read it make sure to watch this quick video on the world's top expert in omega 3 research.

==>Click here to read the article about omega 3 fats

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Blast Straps and Burgers For Busy Dads

2009-03-10T15:14:00.010-03:00

Today was workout day for me, and I really look forward to my 3 Dad Fitness workouts a week.

My wife comes home for lunch on Tuesdays and Thursday so I can get out of the house for a break and head to my local gym for an hour. I also get a workout in on the weekends.

I must admit I absolutely love working out! I always have and especially now I found it to be a great stress reliever and a nice break in the middle of my long days as a stay at home dad.

I had a really great workout today as it was my Upper Body High Rep day in my current workout routine.

The Blast Straps are an awesome way to challenge your entire body no matter what exercises you are doing. You can use them for pushups, inverted rows, triceps, biceps, abs or pretty much any bodyweight exercise can be replicated with the blast straps.

I gotta tell you after using these for the first time awhile back doing pushups my abs were sore for 3 days afterward!

Blast Strap Pushups, 3 sets of 12 reps, 60 sec rest
Lying Dumbbell Tricep Extensions, 4 sets of 5-10 reps
Pull-Ups, 4 sets of 8-12 reps
Preacher Curls, 3 sets of 8-10 reps
Ab Circuit, Cross body mountain climbers and Planks, 2 rounds

You can get the Blast Straps here

Then it was back home for a post workout meal of my wife's tasty homemade chicken soup. Go here for the recipe ==>Mmmm Soup

For dinner today I took a recipe out of my favorite cookbook. Gourmet Nutrition

Sirloin Burgers

I took a couple pics to give you the recipe and a glimpse into this awesome healthy cookbook.

My version with a spinach salad

If you want to build the body you never thought you could have, start eating the meals you never thought you could eat! Get over 120 recipes and a no-nonsense nutrition plan that will show you how to make it all work.
Get Gourmet Nutrition today.

Sean Barker, CPT

PS -You can get the NEW "yet-to-be-released" Dad Fitness Maximum Muscle Home workouts for FREE when you download the Dad Fitness Lifestyle System

==>Click here to get your short home workouts

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Time to Spring Ahead

2009-03-08T14:23:00.006-03:00

Just set the alarm and in the morning it will buzz until you’ve done 30 reps. Annoying? Maybe. Effective? Unquestionably!

Consider this your WAKE-UP call!

For those of you who hit the snooze button this morning, it's time to spring ahead, not fall back.

If you are like us and have a 9 month old in your house losing an hour sleep last night was nothing new!

Her sleeping patterns seem hit or miss lately, some nights she sleeps on through the night. Other nights...not so much.

Last night was not so much.

She went to bed at 8:30pm but was up at 11pm and despite mommy and daddys best efforts didn't settle back down until 2:30am.

Or what was actually 3:30am!

Today being the first day of daylights saving time, take a minute and look at what you can do in just 1 extra hour a day.

For you busy dads who seem to be stuck in the time vice where its seems you still can't find time to for your workout program, you now have no excuse.

Especially with the Dad Fitness workout routines, that only require 3 short workouts a week to lose that belly fat and get back in shape.

With 3 hours a week for your workouts, that still leaves you an extra 4 hours during the week to get started on those renovations your wife keeps bugging you about, or to read a new book, prepare your meals for the coming week and even more importantly get outside during the extra daylight and spend some extra time with your kids while you get some exercise and fresh air.

Increasing your exposure to sunlight also boost Vitamin D levels in your body, which helps us to build strong bones as well as low vitamin-D levels may increase the risk of heart disease, colon cancer, and prostate cancer.

Getting outdoors and being active with your family has to be the best stress reliever there is after those long workweeks in the darkness of winter.

Take advantage of natures alarm clock and you will have a spring in your step long before summer rolls around.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Lose Fat By Eating Pizza and Burgers

2009-03-07T15:22:00.006-04:00

One thing I like to do when people say they can't eat healthy food that actually tastes good, is well...prove them wrong.

I then start by asking them what they normally eat during the day.

Pizza and burgers seem to be some family favorites.

Then I show them how to make the same unhealthy foods healthy. Or if I am really in the mood I will cook it for them, which really wins them over.

So Thursday evening I made some awesome little mini pizzas for my wife and I. For you busy dads who has kids old enough to eat solid foods, these will be a hit in your house.

The best part is they only take about 10 minutes to make!

Just take whole wheat tortilla shell, spoon on some tomato sauce, add some cooked extra lean ground beef or chicken, add some veggies and a little low fat cheese and bake for 10 mins at 400F.

Then Friday I had a great workout consisting of:

Max Effort Upper Body

Barbell Floor Press, 1 max set of 3-5 reps
Decline DB Press, 4 sets of 6-10 reps
Chest Supported Barbell Row, 4 sets of 10-15 reps
Bent Over Lateral Raise, 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Cable Crunch, 3 sets of 8-12 reps

Friday was also my older sisters birthday so we had her over for a birthday BBQ and I made my famous Perfect Burgers.

So here is a simple recipe to avoid the artery clogging fast food burger and make your own Perfect Burger thats tastes great without the burger belly!

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds extra-lean ground beef

Vegetable oil, for grates

4 whole wheat hamburger buns, split and lightly grilled or toasted

Lettuce, tomato, onion,or other toppings, as desired

Evenly divide meat into 4 portions. With a light touch, gently form each one into a ball, then shape into a 3/4-inch-thick patty. With thumb, make a 1/4-inch-deep indentation in the center of each (this prevents burgers from getting rounded tops during grilling). Transfer to a plate; cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to cook, up to 1 day.

Heat grill to high (it should be difficult to hold your hand above the grates). Moisten a folded paper towel with vegetable oil; grasp with tongs, and quickly wipe over the grates.

Generously season patties on both sides with salt and pepper. Place patties on grill; cover, and cook to desired doneness, 2 to 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Serve burgers on buns with desired toppings.

Staying fit with only 3 short workouts a week and eating pizza and burgers?

For you busy dads looking for workout routines and healthy eating, the Dad Fitness System allows you to have your cake and eat it too!

...and I did have a piece of birthday cake;-)

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Dad Fitness Meal of the Day

2009-03-05T09:44:00.010-04:00

Vegetarian dads look away!

Yesterday's Dad Fitness kitchen experiment, or what I like to call dinner, went pretty well.

After taking inventory with what we have left in our fridge, I used a pack of chicken breasts, 2 packs of local caribou sausage, some crushed tomatoes and veggies to come up with what I like to call.

Crockpot Chicken And Caribou Paella

I love getting local wild meat as its leaner and a lot higher in omega 3's because the animals get to graze in the wild and eat what nature intended them to eat, grass.

Unfortunately most supermarket meat is from cows stuffed full of drugs and corn. Not good for the cow, and not good for us!

I took a well know Spanish dish and gave it some Labrador flavor! My parents also dropped over and they loved it as well.

Crockpot Chicken And Caribou Paella

2 chicken breasts
grapeseed oil to coat both pans
6 caribou sausages, cut up in pieces ( or you can use turkey sausage)
1 large onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
a dash of oregano, sea salt and black pepper
half a box reduced-sodium organic chicken broth
1/2 c. water
1 can of crushed tomatoes
1 orange bell peppers, cut into very thin bite-size strips
1 c. frozen corn
1 potato cubed
1 bag of instant brown rice

In a large skillet brown chicken pieces, in other pan brown sausage.

In a 5 quart crock pot place chicken pieces, sausage, and onion. Sprinkle with spices Pour broth and water over all. Add the tomatoes, sweet peppers, corn and potatoe

Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 8 hours or on high-heat setting for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. , Serve over the hot rice.

Makes 6 servings*

Another great meal made at home that can keep you and your family full while living a fit and healthy lifestyle.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

5 New Ways to Workout

2009-03-04T05:23:00.005-04:00

The idea of these workout tips came to me while watching one of the classic episodes of Seinfeld, "The Bizarro Jerry" episode.

The concept behind this episode was of having a world made up of everyone's total opposite, which is based on the Bizarro World stories featured in the Superman comic books.

The Bizarro versions of Jerry, George, Kramer and Newman were called Kevin, Gene, Feldman and Vargas.

So if you are not getting results from your workouts, maybe it's time you do the opposite of what you see most people doing in the gym.

A lot of regular gym goers continue to look the same year after year despite how often they make an appearance and I am sure you don't want to look like "most" people, as over 60% of people today are obese.

For the first time, the number of overweight individuals around the world rivals the number who are underweight.

In fact a new word - "globesity" has now been coined to reflect the escalation of global obesity and the overweight!

Remember, Albert Einstein once said "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results".

Think about this quote for a second and ask yourself, does this quote apply to the way I workout?

If so, it's time to stop being a workout slave to your old school workout routines and time to break away from the crowd by doing the opposite of what they are doing.

The results just might surprise you.

1. Quality, not Quantity- Don't fall for the cardio confusion where you think the more time you punch on a cardio machine the more fat you burn. You don't need to spend hours working out everyday to get those rock hard abs or bulging biceps. The key to effective workouts is intensity. With shorter weight training and interval cardio workouts you spend less time working and more time burning fat. High intensity workouts elevate your metabolism up to 36 hours after your workout.

2. Mirror Muscles- Most guys love training the muscles they can see in the mirror like their chest and biceps. But 50% of your muscles are on the back of your body. Muscles of your upper and lower back, hamstrings and even your triceps on the back of your arm are often neglected in favor of pumping up those mirror muscles. This contributes to overuse and imbalances in the shoulders and spine making you more susceptible to shoulder and back injuries. Do more pulling than pushing when you are in the gym and you will really be glad with what you see in the mirror.

3. Bet on Low- Betting on high might be the smart choice in a game of poker, but for better workouts, go low. Instead of following the classic "3 sets of 10 reps" routine, go bizarro and do the opposite with "10 sets of 3". This will allow you to focus on the performance and quality of your repetitions instead of fatiguing your muscles with higher reps. Most people train to improve appearance; you should train to improve performance and your appearance will improve as a result.

4. Step Away From the Machine- You don't need to workout on expensive equipment that isolates small muscles and put your body in unnatural positions all while you sit down. When you perform an exercise using machines you force your body to follow the range of motion dictated by the machine, when it should be the other way around allowing your body to control your range of motion. Besides some cable movements. which are actually closer to free weight movements than machines, stick with barbells, dumbbells and bodyweight exercises so you build functional muscles that you can use in the real world.

5. Be Flexible- I am still amazed at how many people still don't pay proper attention to warming up before their workout and stretching at the end of their workout. If you want to have healthy joints and pain free flexibility, follow a proper warmup and cooldown. Get your body primed for training with dynamic movements like bodyweight squats and pushups, then help to lower your heart rate and relax your muscles with some stretches after your workout is over. This is not something that you can afford to ignore if you want a healthy body for many years to come.

Follow these 5 tips in your next workout and if anyone asks you "what your doing?" tell them the opposite!

Apparently you can learn a lot from comic books

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Healthy Homemade Enchilada Recipe

2009-03-02T14:03:00.011-04:00

With no workout scheduled for today I am busy at home with our baby daughter.

Feeding her, changing her, putting her down for a nap, cooking and cleaning, repeat cycle until wife comes home...

Just another day living the Dad Fitness Lifestyle.

But I certainly know I had a workout yesterday as my hamstrings are sore as hell from all the leg work!

After we all had breakfast and my wife headed off to work I got started on prepping dinner while Matea was playing in her exersaucer in the kitchen.

On today's Dad Fitness Menu is Enchiladas. Made with wholesome and healthy ingredients that will rival any artery popping Enchiladas at your local Chilis, Fridays, Tuesdays or whatever they call some of these restaurants these days!

You can feel good about feeding your family REAL food that everyone will love and will keep you burning off that belly fat with your workouts.

Just be sure to keep the portions under control and have one Enchilada with a side salad.

That's the SECRET to eating good food and staying fit!

Here's the recipe.

1 pound extra lean ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
6 whole wheat tortillas
2 cups low fat shredded cheese
1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
1 can of black beans

*Feel free to add some diced bell peppers or chopped spinach if you want to increase the nutritional value. Your kids will never know;-) I was all out so I used what I had.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium skillet over medium high heat, cook the ground beef and onion until beef is evenly browned and onion is tender.
Prepare the enchilada sauce according to directions.

Healthy Homemade Enchilada Sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Heat oil in large 2-quart saucepan; stir in flour and chili powder cook for 1 minute. Add remaining ingredients bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes.
Pour 1/4 cup of the sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
On each flour tortilla, place an equal portion of the ground beef mixture and about 1 ounce of Cheddar cheese, reserving at least 1/2 cup of cheese.

4. Then tightly roll the tortillas and place seam side down in the baking dish.

5. Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with the remaining cheese and olives.

6. Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and cheese is thoroughly melted.

Serves 6.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Weekend Workout Update

2009-03-01T14:34:00.008-04:00

My patio deck is here somewhere?

Man, didn't we get dumped on this weekend here in Labrador. Close to 30 cm of snow fell on Friday and Saturday!

The guy living across the street wishing he lived down south!

Despite another winter blast this weekend I had a great afternoon workout today after getting to sleep in, (which for me is 8am) and having a power breakfast casserole that my wife wiped up.

It was tasty and nutritious, 8 omega 3 eggs, a couple potatoes, mushrooms, onions, spinach and cheese layered and baked in the oven for 45 mins.

Matea was with the in-laws for the night last night so my wife and I enjoyed a relaxed evening as we dropped out for a bite to eat and then we picked up a movie on the way home.

Ended up getting the new fright flick called Quarantine. It was a little too much in your face gore for me as I don't really have the stomach for these types of movies anymore.

I kept turning the volume down thinking Matea was upstairs asleep! Really strange to get used to her being out of the house.

My workout today was Day 2 of my new workout routine, mostly lower body and some grip work. Think I am going to be sore tomorrow as I might of overdid it a little!

Box Squats, 1 max set of 5 reps
Barbell Step Ups, 4 sets of 10 reps
Romanian Deadlifts, 4 sets of 8 reps
Plate Pinch Gripping for time, 3 sets
Band Pull Aparts, 1 set of 15

I managed to get through everything without much shoulder pain as it was lower body.

On the way home I dropped into the supermarket and picked up a rotisserie baked ham for dinner and a chocolate milk for my post workout drink.

The rotisserie chickens, roasts and hams are a great option for a quick meal for you and your family for those days when things get hectic or if you are just feeling a little to lazy to cook!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

A Baby Driving a Truck!

2009-02-27T19:40:00.006-04:00

No workout scheduled for me today. My shoulder is still bothering me and I will try to get to the gym tomorrow and work lower body if I can get out the door,

read on to see why...

I was inside with the baby all day and never got out much because we are getting nailed with a snow storm with heavy winds and a heavy snowfall warning of 15-25 cm.

Then Saturday it's going to dip down to a frigid -43 Celsius with the wind!

So Matea and I spent lots of time playing with her toys and riding around the house on her little toy truck. Oh the life of a stay-at-home dad...

Being such a blustery winters day it was a perfect day for breaking out the slow cooker and making something hot and bubbly, and of course nutritious.

Nothing says home like a hot bowl of hearty soup. But I didn't just make soup, I made what I call Snow Storm Soup. It's a mix between soup and chili!

Here is the rundown:

I fried up a pack of lean ground turkey in grapseed oil with 1 onion.

Chopped up 2 sticks of celery and some baby carrots.

Added two cans of Alymer Chili style crushed tomatoes, 1 can of Campbells tomato soup, 1 cup of whole wheat elbow macaroni and 1 can of kidney beans to the crockpot.

Added the cooked turkey and veggies to the crockpot.

Threw in a dash of sea salt, ground pepper, red pepper flakes, oregano and basil.

Then added 1 cup of water.

Mixed it up and let cook on low for 4 hours. Supper was ready and waiting when my wife got home from work!

Another hot and hearty meal Dad Fitness style that your family will love on those stormy winter days.

Get your kids involved in the kitchen when it's too stormy for them to get outside. Crock Pots are great for this as there is no risk for little hands to be around hot burners or stoves.

Always add your ingredients to the cold crock pot, then throw on the lid and turn it on your desired setting.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Get Some R&R- Rest and Recovery

2009-02-26T21:57:00.004-04:00

Despite suffering from some pain in my right shoulder I still managed to get to the gym today.

With my wife working I dropped Matea off to my moms for an hour. She loves to have her visit and with my Dad Fitness workouts only being an hour, 3 times a week it isn't a big hassle.

My right shoulder has been acting up the last few days. I haven't had any shoulder pain in a long time. I don't remember doing anything specific. I just think it soon maybe time for a week off from the gym.

I usually try to take a recovery week off from the gym every 8-10 weeks just to give my mind and body a little rest from a couple months of hard training.

You can still do some light bodyweight workouts and stay active during your week off from weight training, just stay away from intense workouts.

I also find this a great time to try some different activities during my would-be workout time or even catch up on some reading as well as plan my next phase of Dad Fitness Workouts.

Today I started a new set of workouts and plan on doing them for the next 3 weeks if my shoulder don't get any worse.

Day 1 is Max Effort Upper Body

Day 2 is Max Effort Lower Body

Day 3 is High Rep Day Upper Body

Here was my workout for today. I was able to do these exercises without much discomfort.

Max Effort Upper Body

Barbell Floor Press, 1 max set of 3-5 reps
Decline DB Press, 4 sets of 6-10 reps
Chest Supported Barbell Row, 4 sets of 10-15 reps
Bent Over Lateral Raise, 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Cable Crunch, 3 sets of 8-12 reps

Here is a fitting article for today's post.

Get Some R&R- Rest and Recovery
By Sean Barker,CPT

It happens to us all every now and then, even the most passionate of trainers. We reach a point in our workout when we lack motivation to train, eat right and we feel tired or come down with the flu.

These are usually the symptoms of over training or lack of recovery. But it is not always solely based on "over training". It's usually a combination of a lot of things. This is mostly based on the "Training Triangle". Training, Nutrition, Recovery.

You're probably training too much, too often. Not getting enough of the proper nutrients your bodies needs to recover from hard training. Then recovery is short changed by the lack of the first two. Also, doing the same routine for a long period of time will make you mentally stale as well as physically. Most experts agree that you should change your workout routines after every 4-8 weeks. Then you should also take an entire week off from hard training every 8-10 weeks.

When this happens it's time for change. Usually this means taking some time off from the gym. You will need more than a couple days; usually a week or two is needed. This will give your mind and body time away from the gym to regroup. After a week or two away you will be anxious to get back into the gym and hit it hard for another couple months. But, before you do you should change up your workout program. Whether it's exercises, or the days of the week, this will keep you mentally fresh to attack your training.

So when your body starts to tell you it wants a break from your weightlifting workout, listen to it!

It's the only body you will ever get...

Someone likes her R&R

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Breaking Bad News...

2009-02-25T06:14:00.003-04:00

Yesterday started out like any normal day here in our house since I became a stay at home dad.

I got up at 5am before anyone wakes up, to work in my home office until 7am.

Being a busy dad who needed to find more time to get things done and work on my online business and writing projects for magazines, this is how I "made" more time in my day. I got up earlier.

Think about this the next time you say I don't have time to exercise. Make the small sacrifice and stay up a little later or get up a little earlier so you can get in a short workout.

Yeah it might seem tough at first, but if you want to be successful in whatever you work towards in life you have to be willing to do what others are not willing to do.

So after having breakfast with our baby daughter my wife headed off to work and Matea and I headed downstairs to play.

Unfortunately, that's when I got the phone call, and it wasn't good news.

My aunt Violet, who is my mother's closest sister, passed away in her sleep...

At 65 she had been battling blocked arteries and a bad heart and encountered many health problems over the years including brain surgery many years back.

She was also a long-time heavy smoker who didn't take good care of herself.

I could go on about how this can happen to you if you don't start living a healthy lifestyle, but I won't because I think these events speak for themselves.

To make matters worse my mother was out running errands and we needed to get a hold of her to break the bad news.

As I was trying to put Matea down for a mid-morning nap, Mom happened to drop in for a visit... Now I was the one who had to tell her she just lost her sister!

Well as you can imagine, we all had a sad day here yesterday. Our thoughts are with my uncle Dallas (her husband) and the rest of our extended family.

Aunt Violet was the nicest, warmest, person you could ever meet. She came in to visit us from Montreal many times for Christmas, my high-school graduation and I will never forget how she catered to me in the summer of 88 when we stayed at their cottage on vacation and I came down with the chicken pox!

Give your family a big hug today, because you never know what tomorrow will bring...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

5 Exercises You SHOULDN'T Be Doing

2009-02-23T08:15:00.005-04:00

================================
5 Exercises You SHOULDN'T Be Doing

by Sean Barker, CPT

================================

Old habits are hard to break. But if you keep doing these 5 old school exercises in your muscle building workouts you will be breaking more than old habits.

1. Leg extensions- Unfortunately this exercise seems to be the extent of most guys leg training. Probably because sitting down and pumping out reps of leg extensions are a lot easier than squatting down with hundreds of pounds on your back.

Despite the "burn" you may feel from your upper thighs when performing this exercise, it is not a very efficient leg exercise as it only isolates the muscles above the knee.

The only time this exercise has much benefit is in a rehab setting where these muscles directly surrounding the knee need to be developed for stability and strength. Otherwise opt for any variation of the free-range squat.

2. Behind the neck pulldowns- This is another exercise that I still see people doing in the gym. I cringe every time I see someone take a wide grip on the angled ends of the pulldown bar and start pulling it down behind their neck.

The angled ends of the bar are an outdated design and are not where you should be gripping the bar. This puts your shoulders and rotator cuffs in a very vulnerable position. Putting most of the stress on the shoulders and limiting range of motion away from the back muscles this exercise should be crossed off your list. Work on being able to do bodyweight chin-ups instead or at least pulldowns to the front.

3. Behind the neck shoulder press- Similar to the behind the neck pulldown, the behind the neck barbell shoulder press places your shoulder in a delicate position. It is basically the same movement but by adding additional weight to the bar and pushing up in the vertical plane you are putting your rotator cuffs at an even greater risk of injury.

With the extra weight you can pile on the bar with this exercise, trying to even unrack the bar will soon send your shoulders screaming in pain. Switch to the safer option; the front barbell shoulder press.

4. Concentration Curls- Probably the most popular bicep exercise for beginners wanting to "get the pump" and get Arnold-like biceps. It's too bad a lot of experienced trainers still waste their time on this exercise.

No matter how many reps of concentration curls you do, you won't get that bicep peak like the Terminator, as muscle SHAPE is genetically determined. Muscle SIZE on the other hand can be increased through basic exercises that allow a heavy weight while using many muscles instead of isolating one smaller muscle.

Standing barbell or dumbbells curls are a better choice for bicep development, but better again are close grip chin-ups, which put a lot of stress on the upper arms while working many other muscles.

5. Crunches- It would be nice if all you had to do to get that ripped six pack would be to lie on the floor and pump out hundreds of reps of back breaking crunches. Despite what the infomercials want you to believe, this is NOT true!

You wouldn't build your biceps by doing 100 reps with no weight, so why would you think you would develop your abdominals by doing 100 crunches or more? Your abdominals primary purpose is to actually stabilize your spine and to keep your torso from twisting in half under times of physical stress, not lift your neck off the floor.

Overall, the best exercises for your abs are exercises that allow your body to use your core the way it was meant to be used: for stability and support. Bodyweight planks, and compound exercises like squats and overhead presses will work your abs better than any crunch will ever do. Combined with a clean diet you might just see those abs looking back at you in the mirror.

...OK quiz time. Do you see a trend with these 5 exercises?

They all involve sitting or lying down, (which we are all experts at already) and they work only a small section of muscle, allowing you to pump out endless reps without much effort.

For you busy guys who want to get the most out of your short fat loss workouts, stop wasting your valuable time on these old school exercises that break your body down instead of building it up...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose Your Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Food, Fitness and Family

2009-02-22T15:11:00.007-04:00

Had a relaxing night at home with the family last night, rented the flick Lake View Terrace, it was pretty good.

Samuel L Jackson is an awesome actor and made the film for sure.

We put baby Matea to bed around 8:30pm and she stayed asleep so we managed to get through it without any interruptions. Not a common occurrence with a 9 month old.

With both of us home together this weekend we got up this morning and cooked a breakfast of bacon and blueberry pancakes. This is an occasional treat and can be part of living a healthy lifestyle if you exercise consistently and eat these foods occasionally.

Try to workout on the days you decide to eat a reward meal so your metabolism is elevated and primed to burn up some extra calories.

I hit the gym this afternoon and had a great workout of:

Trap bar deadlifts
Bulgarian split squats
Leg Curls
Heavy DB Holds for time

I also used my new Crock Pot that we picked up yesterday. I have put off getting one of these despite how great they are for easy cooking healthy meals only because I actually enjoy cooking and putting meals together!

For busy families a Crock Pot is awesome for hearty and healthy meals that can be thrown together in the morning and ready when everyone gets in the door. Just "set it and forget it!"

But I am glad I finally got one as I whipped up some tasty chili this morning in the Crock Pot before I headed to the gym and a few hours later I am enjoying a tasty and healthy bowl of chili and a cold certified Coors Light while watching my Pittsburgh Penguins play the Washington Capitals.

Matea cheering her team.

Not a good day for the Pens as they just lost 5-2. They are certainly not helping their chances at getting a playoff spot.

Here is a funny commercial I just saw during the game that all you hockey dads will appreciate!

Oh well it was a great weekend of food, fitness and family.

That's what I love about living the Dad Fitness Lifestyle.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

PS - If you are still frustrated and don't know where to start...

...please remember that you have 8 weeks to try out Dad Fitness to see if you like it.

If you don't, just let me know and you'll get all your money back and you can keep all of the programs and bonuses (just in case you ever feel like giving it another try in the future).

You have nothing to lose. That's my promise to you.

And if you are still skeptical about Dad Fitness and how it can make you the strong and healthy Dad you want to be, you can take the $4.95 trial offer and test out Dad Fitness for 21 days.

Get your trial offer here:

=> Click here for the Dad Fitness Trial Offer

Babies, Burgers and Barbells

2009-02-20T13:44:00.006-04:00

Well, I made it through my first week as a stay-at-home dad!

Despite the trials and tribulations of daily life with our 9 month old daughter, I must admit I enjoy it more than I did working at my regular job, which I am currently laid off from.

Watching her crawl for the first time, saying "Dadda" and seeing her grow up right before my eyes is such a daily treat.

It is nice when my wife finally gets home from work though as I could use a little break by then. "Momma" even made us her tasty turkey burgers last night for dinner.

Whip these up as a healthy alternative to regular burgers and your kids will love them!

Tasty Turkey Burgers

1 pack of lean ground turkey
1 tsp of savory spice (I think this is a Newfoundland spice)
whole wheat bread crumbs
1 omega 3 egg
sea salt and black pepper

mix it all in a bowl to make 4 burgers, add to heated pan coated in grapeseed oil until cooked through.

(cooking them in grapeseed oil is good as its a healthy oil good for frying and it smells like fried chicken when you cook with it!)

place on toasted whole wheat buns topped with baby spinach, tomatoes, sauteed onions, whole grain Dijon mustard and salsa

For dessert a little treat of dark chocolate packed full of antioxidants. Yes this chocolate is actually good for you! Try to get the stuff that is at least 70-80% cacoa, which gives you the health benefits.

Don't confuse this with milk chocolate! That is pure junk.

I also had a great workout today at the gym as I trained chest, back and abs.

Flat Bench Press
Flat DB Bench Press
Bent over DB Rows
Rope Face Pulls (for upper back)
Barbell Twists

Looking forward to a nice weekend with the family as my wife is off for the weekend.

Might hit the gym tomorrow or Sunday, see what happens.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Winter Fun In The Sun

2009-02-18T21:21:00.007-04:00

It was such a beautiful winters day here in Labrador, Canada.

With the crystal clear sky and the sun beaming down it just gives you more energy to get out in the snow and enjoy the fresh air.

As I am now an official "stay at home dad" I was looking forward to getting out of the house with baby Matea. Luckily my wife got off work early as well, came home and made us lunch and we headed out for another snowshoe adventure.

Yeah I know us Crazy Canadians do some strange stuff for exercise. But don't knock it until you try it! If you want to relieve some stress, exercising outdoors in the sunshine has got to be the best.

Looking forward to trying out my new snowshoes I got for Valentines Day, we packed up the car and headed to a local walking trail that goes around a lake.

But this time I made sure to spice things up. Instead of pulling Matea in the baby glider sled, I had her on my back in a special backpack carrier for babies.

We had a great trek across the glistening powder, saw lots rabbit tracks, snowmobilers and even passed another couple snowshoeing.

See, we are not the only ones who do this!

We had a great afternoon and Matea loved every minute of it.

No matter what your current situation, make time for family fitness.

It's one investment that is guaranteed to pay off...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The World's Shortest Workout

2009-02-17T14:48:00.005-04:00

Well, starting yesterday I am officially Mr.Mom or a stay at home dad.

Whatever people call it these days. I just call it parenting.

As I mentioned awhile back I received notice that I will be laid off from my regular day job as a heavy equipment operator. It came into effect on Monday.

I am anticipating I will not be laid off for too long as I only have 5 people ahead of me on the seniority list to get recalled. If you have been also affected by the economic downturn and been laid off from your job as well, post a comment below and share your thoughts.

So in the meantime I am home full-time taking care of our 8 month old daughter Matea as my wife returned to work. I just put her down for a nap, Shhhhh!

Things are going good so far as I am getting along well with Elmo and Ernie.

Bert keeps giving me a nasty look...or maybe that's just his unibrow!

My wife came home for lunch so I could "get out" and hit the gym for an hour. With Dad Fitness I only need to workout 3 days a week to stay fit so there is no problem with that.

As I was warming up at the gym this afternoon I seen what must of been the worlds shortest workout. A guy came in skipped rope for 30 seconds, then did one set on the forearm gripper machine, got up and left!

I am not joking!

Oh well, I continued on with my workout of:

Perfect Pushups ,<==Click Here to see how I use these

Decline DB Extensions

Lat pulldowns

One arm DB shoulder presses

Thick BB Curls

Abs circuit of cross body mountain climbers and planks

3-4 sets, 8-13 reps of each exercise.

I pushed hard but wasn't at my strongest today.

Heading over to my parents for dinner so that gives me a break from the kitchen.

The adventures of Mr.Mom will be continued... Stay tuned!

Sean Barker, CPT Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Heart Shape Meatloaf and Snowshoes...

2009-02-15T15:30:00.007-04:00

Me and my wife celebrated Valentines Day on Thursday as you can read here.

Mainly because I had to work this weekend so we got to have a night out that way.

But Saturday when I came home from work I was surprised to see what she had ME for Valentines Day.

First, she made heart shaped mini meatloaves for dinner! Seeing as she knows I don't have much of a sweet tooth, I would much rather have this tasty dish than chocolate and candy.

All you do is take your favorite meatloaf recipe and shape the meat into these silicone flexible baking pans.

Then a big package showed up at the door for me. When I opened it up...

It was a new set of high end snowshoes! After our snowshoe workout adventure where I had to rent a pair of snowshoes my wife wanted me to have my own pair so I could do this more often.

It was quite the Valentines Day for the both of us. But what really matters is not what you do to show your love on this day but the other 364 days of the year...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Baby faced boy is father at 13

2009-02-13T10:34:00.003-04:00

Wow, this story about the baby faced boy is a father at 13 makes me feel old!

After my wife and I had our baby daughter at age 30 I thought we were prepared but we still got a kick in the butt. Life is funny that way.

I think this little "kid" will have to grow up pretty fast. Lets hope he has good family support because this baby is going to need it for sure!

If you are a busy dad yourself and want some quick fat loss workouts to support your fitness efforts,

you can download your Dad Fitness workouts instantly below so you can get started on losing that belly fat right away with only 3 short workouts a week that you can do at home or at the gym.

Click Here ==>Download Dad Fitness Workouts

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Fit and Fast Oven Stir- Fry

2009-02-12T12:13:00.007-04:00

No workouts scheduled today.

Just home with the baby. She woke at 3:30am last night and never went back to sleep until 5am. She is now off having a nap while I am planning an evening for me and my wife.

We are celebrating Valentines Day today as I will be working on Saturday.

I have Aqua Massages booked for the both of us and then we are heading out to dinner. The in-laws are dropping over to watch Matea for the evening.

For those evenings when you want to stay in and still have a tasty gourmet meal for dinner I served up a quick and easy chicken recipe last night that will help you and your family stay fit this winter.

Fit and Fast Chicken Oven Stir- Fry

Boneless, skinless, chicken breasts are a great source of high quality protein. Try to choose the grain fed brands if possible, as the stuff they feed chickens these days well... you just don't want to know!

Frozen mixed veggies come in many varieties, are full of nutrients, fiber and antioxidants and are easy to prepare.

What You Need

1 bag of mixed frozen veggies

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

1 pkt. SHAKE 'N BAKE Classic Herb & Parmesan Crusted Seasoned Coating Mix

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Spread vegetables into shallow baking pan lined with parchment paper.

COAT chicken with mix as directed on package; place evenly over vegetables. Sprinkle with any remaining coating mix.

BAKE 20 min. or until chicken is cooked through. Spoon veggies onto serving plate; top with the chicken mixture.

PS.Be sure to pick up the February/March issue of
Inside Fitness Magazine as I have two new articles published there.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

How To Build A Home Gym

2009-02-11T13:56:00.005-04:00

Thanks to my wife, I got to workout at the gym today.

She came home from work for lunch and watched Matea while I was at the gym. She even cooked me a tasty postworkout meal of an omelette and potatoes, shes awesome! ( I just booked an Aqua massage for her for Valentines Day)

The rest of the day I am playing Mr.Mom and staying home with Matea.

I had an awesome Dad Fitness workout, one of the best in a long time!

Here is the rundown:

Flat BB Bench Press,1 max set of 3-5 reps

Flat DB Bench Press, 4 sets of 6-8 reps

Bent Over DB Row, 4 sets of 10-12 reps

Rope Face Pulls, 3 sets of 15 reps

BB Russian Twist, 3 sets of 8 reps

For times that you can't make it to the gym here is

How To Build A Home Gym
by Sean Barker,CPT

You don't need to buy an expensive gym membership so you can use all those complicated machines to get in shape. People were building muscle and burning fat long before any of those strange looking machines were invented.

Also a treadmill or stationary bike would be a bonus for cardio exercise but not necessary as you can still do cardio exercise with your body weight, some light dumbbells or outdoors.

As long as you have enough space to fully extend your body vertically and horizontally you can setup a small home gym. You can get a set of adjustable dumbbells up to 40lbs which would be enough for most people at your local Walmart or sporting goods store for around $40. Stability balls are also inexpensive at around $20 as well as a mat for $10. An adjustable exercise bench will run over hundred bucks but most sporting goods store have previous used ones for half price. So for convenient exercise on a budget you can setup your own home gym for under $100 bucks and if your are really determined but tight for cash, you can get a great workout with just your body weight.

Here is a great body weight workout that can be done anywhere at anytime. Plus it won't cost you a penny! Do tens reps each with no rest, then repeat the circuit 3 times.

Bodyweight Squats

Pushups

Forward Lunges

Abdominal Planks (hold for 30-60 sec).

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Snowshoe Workout

2009-02-08T09:12:00.007-04:00

Wait until you see what I did to get some exercise this weekend!

...But first I want to hear about YOUR workouts.

Tell me how you get creative with Dad Fitness to stay fit this winter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post.

Saturday was such a beautiful winter day here in Labrador, sunny and -10 degrees Celsius. Yeah, that is tropical for us up here in Northern Canada during winter.

So with the days slowly getting longer, my wife and I took our baby daughter out on the local cross-country ski trails. But we didn't use skis, that would be too easy!

...We rented snowshoes for ourselves and this cool Baby Glider sled that you strap around your waist so you can tow your little one behind you. Pretty cool!

We did the 6 km trail around Dumbbell Lake, (that really is the name!)

It took us almost 2 hours over the groomed trails and picturesque winter scenery but we enjoyed every minute of it, and baby Matea was so cozy she fell asleep for the last 3 km.

After all that we were starving and we were luckily invited to the in-laws for a hearty and healthy meal of homemade beef stew with lots of fresh vegetables and tender cuts of meat. A great way to end a picture perfect day...

So make your weekends or days off between your Dad Fitness Workouts time for trying different fun activities with your family no matter what season it is.

There is nothing like getting out in the fresh air, spending time with your family and getting fit, all at once... That's what Dad Fitness is all about!

The Dad Fitness Snowshoe Workout Video

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Fancy Meals For Fit Families

2009-02-03T10:01:00.007-04:00

Now that my wife has returned to work full-time after maternity leave I am playing the role of "stay at home dad" on my days off.

It's never a dull moment being home with my 8 month old daughter especially now that she is starting to say "momma" and "dadda". Gotta love it!

So when my wife got home from work I surprised her with a fit and fancy dinner set for the three of us. Matea even got a little fancy baby food with pureed carrots over the top.

We can no longer use place mats as Matea likes to clean the table her way by hauling them off and everything that goes with it!

I made a super simple baked chicken breast done in Italian Shake & Bake, topped with a little spicy red pepper pasta sauce, a slice of deli ham, and a piece of cheddar cheese on top.

On the side I tossed together a quick veggie salad of baby spinach, broccoli, baby carrots, green pepper, clementines, cubes of cheddar and topped with toasted almond slivers. I opened a bottle of red wine as my wife LOVES red wine. I am not a huge fan myself but like an occasional glass.

The dressing was a healthy Caesar dressing from the Gourmet Nutrition Cookbook
==>Gourmet Nutrition Cookbook.

It's the only cookbook I personally use.

For more great food ideas check out my new article at TheFatherLife.com
==>5 Foods Men Should Be Eating

Sean Barker, CPT

PS. - Instantly download 16 weeks of workouts and nutrition bonuses for five bucks!...

You can take the $4.95 trial offer and test drive the Dad Fitness workouts for 21 days.

=> Click here for the Dad Fitness Trial Offer

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Best Way To Fix Diet Damage After The Super Bowl

2009-02-02T09:36:00.005-04:00

Don't watch the Super Bowl and avoid the foods that go with it!

That's what I did yesterday mainly because I am not a big fan of football.

But for you guys who sat back to enjoy the game and consumed an extra 1200 calories (which is the average excess calories consumed during this day!) here is what you should do to get over that football food hangover.

"Forgetta bout’ it!"

One meal won’t make you fat. Even one day of downing beer and chicken wings won’t do it. You might feel bloated from all the salt and fat but that is only water weight which will go away in a day or so ONLY if you get back on track with your workouts and healthy eating right away.

Start the next day off with a healthy high protein breakfast and get in a high intensity workout of weight training and interval cardio that will help to jumpstart that metabolism and sweat out all the excess water you are holding from eating that Super Bowl full of artery clogging potato chips.

Most diet plans actually recommend a cheat day once a week to eat what you want without sabotaging your weight loss goals. I like to look at it as a “reward” meal opposed to cheating which sounds like you are doing something bad. This gives you a mental break from your weekly planned meals as well as there are some biological benefits to consuming excess calories every so often when you are following a weight loss plan. The excess calories convinces your body that you are not starving and it will continue to burn bodyfat as you return to your healthy eating patterns.

But you can only benefit from your reward meals if you follow a structured workout and diet plan 90% of the time. This is what makes The Dad Fitness System so effective for busy dads and how you can lose that beer belly while still enjoying some of your favorite foods without the guilt.

Whether it’s the Sunday football game with the guys or wing night at your local pub, enjoying a reward meal once a week while following your fat loss plan will keep you burning fat long after those other guys following those starvation diets give up before the next big game rolls around.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Bodyweight Workout In The Snow

2009-01-30T06:53:00.002-04:00

There is never an excuse to skip a workout no matter where you are or how little time you have.

Here is a quick bodyweight workout you can do even outdoors before you go for a walk with your family.

It can serve as a great warmup or even a challenging workout if your just starting out with your Dad Fitness exercise program.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Stroller Workout

2009-01-28T22:10:00.006-04:00

I had a busy day of exercise and activity today.

I went to the gym this afternoon and had a good workout of:

Seated One Arm Cable Rows
Standing One Arm DB Shoulder Press
Bulgarian Split Squat
Standing One Arm Tricep Extensions

10 reps each and 4 sets to reach a goals of 40 reps for each exercise. Took 75 secs rest in between sets.

If that wasn't enough after I got home the whole family went for a winter walk with baby daughter Matea in her winterized BOB Stroller.

Then we were all so hungry we headed to the in-laws for dinner consisting of pork roast, bbq chicken breasts, garden salad and some Mexican rice. I finished it off with a banana muffin for dessert and a hot cup of green tea.

When you keep active all year round you can eat good wholesome foods without the guilt!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Welcome To the New Ice Age

2009-01-26T14:42:00.004-04:00

I am getting real sick of these brutal cold temperatures here in Labrador!

It's been around -50 degrees Celsius with the windchill for most of the month of January!

After a weekend of busted snowmobiles and frozen trucks I bundled up to head out to the gym this afternoon when I realized I had my gym bag left in the car all weekend in these frigid temperatures.

My water bottle which I had some water left in was frozen solid, the batteries in my MP3 player was dead and even my pen in my workout journal was froze up as I could barley scribble my workouts down.

But once I got to the gym things started to heat up and I had a great workout.

Chinups
Close Grip Decline Bench Presses
Deadlifts
One Leg Standing Calf Raise

25 total reps for each exercise in the 4-6 rep range.

I am working nightshift tonight so I am off for a bite to eat and to get a little nap before I head to work tonight in what I think is the new Ice Age!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Great Outdoors

2009-01-25T18:54:00.002-04:00

I hope you had a good weekend.

Keep reading to see the crazy luck I had this weekend!

Remember Sunday is the day when you should be planning, shopping and preparing your food for the week.

It makes eating healthy so much easier when you do simple things like planning your meals and pre-chopping all your veggies and putting them in tupperware containers in your fridge.

...As for my weekend, my wife and I headed down to the cabin Saturday with my parents and some of our friends. Kathy's parents were excited to take Matea for the night to give us a rare night out.

With a cold winter windchill of -50 degrees Celsius, us Canadian nuts braved the weather, but I encountered bad luck as soon as we headed down the trail on our snowmobiles.

BING-BANG-BOOM was the sound that came out of my ski-doo. Which is not a good sound. After all was said and done, I ended up blowing the engine in my ski-doo!

We all made it to the cabin anyway and we had a great night enjoying a delicious dinner of roasted chicken, pot roast, veggies, a few drinks and a little dessert.

For breakfast, I took over the kitchen and made everyone my famous omelets, which everyone loved.

BUT our troubles weren't over...

As the next morning with the temperatures so cold, we had to plug our trucks into the generator for a couple hours to warm the engines to get them to start.

Oh well, just another wacky weekend for us Crazy Canadians!

Get Crazy Fit this winter with Dad Fitness<==

PS. I would have some pics but it was so cold the batteries in my camera died!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

7 Secrets to Better Workouts

2009-01-24T08:00:00.001-04:00

My wife and I are getting ready to get away for the night and head down to the cabin with my parents and some friends.

My 3 short Dad Fitness Workouts are done for this week so I have the freedom to enjoy my weekend with my family.

I will be putting my snowmobile in the back of my truck and we will make the 45 minute drive down into the snowy northern wilderness of Labrador to enjoy the great outdoors.

I hope we get a clear night because you haven't seen nothing until you seen the Northern Lights up here in Labrador on a cold, clear, winter night!

But before I go I have a new article for you.

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

7 Secrets to Better Workouts
by Sean Barker, CPT

If your workouts seem to be getting you nowhere, read on to get the 7 Secrets To Better Workouts.

1. Start your engines

As your old high school gym teacher might have led you to believe, stretching before weight training is not the best way to warm-up. Recent reports show that static stretching before exercise can reduce muscle strength. Stretching relaxes your muscles, so why would you want to relax your muscles when you need to lift explosively during weight training? The proper warm-up for weight training should involve 5-10 minutes of Dynamic mobility movements. These drills help improve active range of motion and activate the nervous system. Exercise like bodyweight squats, pushups and lunges help to fire up the nervous system, increase blood flow and fluid to the surrounding joints in preparation for intense lifting. In addition, a couple acclimation sets of the first exercise in your workout will get you prepared to train with your maximal weights.

2. Train What You Don't See

One of the most common complaints you hear from long time lifters is a chronic shoulder problem. This is mainly due to imbalances in their exercise selection where they perform more pressing exercises like bench presses than pulling exercise like bent over rows. You should be doing equal exercise volume in the horizontal push and pulls as well as the vertical push and pulls such as shoulder presses and chin-up variations. This will ensure proper balance for the muscles you don't see in your back to prevent tight upper back muscles, which contribute to most shoulder problems. Including some old school traditional pushups in place of bench presses also allow your scapula muscles in your upper back to move freely enhancing shoulder health unlike any lying bench press movements. Pushups are referred to as a "close-chain" exercise because during these movements, your hands or feet are in a constant, fixed position (usually on the ground) during the exercise.

3. The New Cardio

High intensity interval training has been proven to be nine times more effective than steady-state cardio for burning fat. You don't have to do cardio in the traditional form of what most people think. People were burning fat long before treadmills and stationary bikes with old-fashioned manual labor. You need to be doing high intensity exercise that revs up your metabolism each and every workout. You could run, sprint, swim, lift weights, do supersets with weights. Remember you don't really burn much fat when you are actually exercising, except for a small amount of fatty acids that are in your bloodstream. It's the calories your body burns during the other 23 hours of the day that count. With exercise and a clean diet you will put your body in a caloric deficit, which is still the ONLY proven way to melt off that unwanted fat.

4. Times Up

Standing around chatting about the news of the week for 5 minutes in between sets is not the most effective way to get a great workout. Keeping track and shortening your rest periods between exercises is an awesome away to burn calories and increase your conditioning. There is a BIG difference in "keeping track" of your time in your head and actually using your watch. Most people don't realize how short a 60 second rest period is once they start watching the clock. Increasing training density by shortening or eliminating some rest periods in between sets is a great way to get a lot of workout volume done in a short amount of time. Keep your headphones on to avoid unwelcome distractions and keep your eye on your watch!

5. Be Cool

You started your workout off right with a dynamic warm-up, now its time to call it a day with a proper cool down. This is when you should be doing some old school Static stretching, which basically consists of stretching a muscle as far as your flexibility will allow and then holding that position for 10-15 seconds. Static stretching is of value primarily for preventing or correcting excessive muscle tension and establishing proper muscle length at the joints, both of which will improve movement efficiency. This type of stretching is best performed post-workout or several hours after the exercise session. Always easy into a stretch while gradually increasing the range of motion as your flexibility improves.

6. Spice it Up

Most training research shows that your body begins to adapt to a training program after 6 weeks. More specifically, you adapt to the rep range before everything else. Like the saying goes, "variety is the spice of life". The same holds true for weight training. Ten reps might sound like a nice even number to aim for during each sets but that doesn't mean it's the most effective. For strength gains stick to the 1-3 rep range. For muscle growth work in the 4-6 rep range. For fat loss keep reps higher in the 10-12 rep range. Vary your workouts to prevent your body to adapting to the same training stress.

7. Failing To Plan

"If you fail to plan, you plan to fail". This rings true with a proper workout program as well. All of these workout secrets should be part of a long-term training plan. Certified personal trainers spend years learning proper methods for kinetics and exercise design. So why do everyone think they can just slap together a bunch of exercises and think it's going to get them the results they are after? Plan your workouts based on your goals. Are you looking to lose fat, build muscle or get stronger. It's better to focus on one in each training phase. The most common method most gym rats might use wither they know it or not is Linear periodization. This is when the reps are decreased and the loads are increased over a period of time.

Recent training research has shown that a method of structuring your workouts called undulating periodization - has proven to be more effective in inducing maximum muscle gains when compared to traditional linear periodization models. Rotating from heavy (4-6 reps), to medium (8-10 reps) to light (12-15 reps) all in the same week will ensure your make steady progress and prevent that dreaded training plateau.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Feel Good Workout

2009-01-23T15:38:00.003-04:00

TGIF! I am excited that it's Friday today as I am off from work until Monday.

I am writing this today from my parents house while enjoying a hot bowl of homemade moose stew for my post-workout meal! Mmmmm. Immediately after my workout I had my 500ml of chocolate milk and a banana. Just as effective as any of those overprices buckets of junk at your local supplement shop.

Today is also a Mr. Mom day for me as my wife is gone to the office for the day as she is only working one day a week right now while still on maternity leave.

I started the day early at 4:40am this morning as baby Matea woke up crying as I think she must of had a bad dream, poor little girl. Daddy gave her nice warm bottle and she went back to sleep.

I managed to drift off for a couple more hours and then we both had breakfast and I got ready to head to the gym. So I dropped Matea off at my parents as they always love her to visit, while I was at the gym. Which is only across the street from where they live, nicceeee!

For you busy dads, there is ALWAYS a way to get your workouts in while balancing work, family and friends. You just have to make exercise a priority!

Todays workout was a high rep day in the 20 rep range. I find this to be a great change of pace as somedays I don't feel up to training real heavy. The program I am doing now I do 4-6 reps one day, 10-12 another day, and 20-22 reps for the 3rd workout.

I am focusing on TOTAL reps, this workout calls for 25 totals reps. However many sets it takes to reach that is what I do with 60 seconds rest periods.

This was today's Dad Fitness Workout:

High Pulls, 20 reps, 5 reps
Incline DB Press, 20 reps, 5 reps
Front Squats, 20 reps, 5 reps
Hammer Curls, 20 reps, 5 reps

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Free Home Workouts

2009-01-21T07:00:00.001-04:00

I hope you don't miss out on this.

On Wednesday, January 21st at MIDNIGHT EST., all of the new free bonuses in the Dad Fitness System will be gone!

After Wednesday all these bonuses will be only available at their current retail value. So why not get them for FREE while you can? Busy dads around the world are using Dad Fitness to get fit in only 3 hours a week .

The "proof is in the pudding" as they say. That reminds me, Dad Fitness also comes with an awesome recipe book for quick nutritious desserts!

And I know that if you are a busy dad who is juggling work, family and friends, I promise you with Dad Fitness you will get the body you want while still living the life you want. You have nothing to lose except that sagging beer belly. Try it for 8 weeks and if you don't love it just return it no questions asked.

So remember all the new bonus workouts will be removed from this incredible offer at MIDNIGHT (EST) on Wednesday, January 21st.

The clock is ticking on your health. Make sure you are there for your family for many years to come. Don't waste any more time.

Visit Dad Fitness to instantly download your workouts.

=>www.DadFitness.com

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Don't Miss Out On These Workouts!

2009-01-20T07:51:00.002-04:00

Don't miss out on this special offer from Dad Fitness!

In case you haven't heard The Ultimate Workout For Busy Dads has just added 3 new FREE bonuses to the already jam packed fitness system for overweight busy dads.

If you didn't already know The Dad Fitness System already includes 8 additional bonuses to help you lose that bulging belly in only 3 hours a week!
Check out all the details and get your copy here:

=>www.DadFitness.com

You'll get 16 weeks of belly busting workouts, easy to follow nutrition programs for real dads, and all the tips and tricks to lose that fat you don't want to carry around another year PLUS due to the Dad Fitness innovative exercise design it only requires 3 short workouts a week!

Don't forget for 3 days only in addition to the 8 regular bonuses you get with the Dad Fitness package, you will also receive:

1) No Gym-No Problem, Dad Fitness Home Workouts
(Retail Value = $29.99)

Dad's Fitness expert Sean Barker releases the Ultimate Home Workout for busy Dads who don't have time to get to the gym. Full of fat blasting workouts you can do in the comfort of your own home before work of after the kids go to bed.

2) Fat Loss To Go-4 Minute Abs
(Retail Value = $39.99)

You want abs...you got abs! In this book Ed Scow, CPT and super busy dads shows you how to get those rock hard abs you've always wanted and the workouts only take 4 minutes! Add them to the end of your workout and you've just turned a great workout into a phenomenal workouts!

3) Perfect Posture in 30 Days
(Retail Value= $27.95)

Finally get rid of those nagging back pains and improve your posture so you can play with your kids or do things around the house. You CAN, and now personal trainer Vince Delmonte is here to show you how. Discover how posture can make you healthy and a few simple exercises that can radically improve your posture fast!

Don't delay, because these new bonuses will NOT be available after Wednesday, January 21st!

Visit this site to get the Ultimate Workout System For Busy Dads and all of your fast action bonuses before time runs out:

=>www.DadFitness.com

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Something Every Dad Must See!

2009-01-19T15:24:00.001-04:00

I got some exciting news to share with you!

Even though the holidays are over I have some gifts to give you and if you are REALLY serious about getting in the best shape of your life this year despite your busy schedule as a time crunched Dad then keep reading...

As an expert fitness trainer to busy dads around the world I have put together the The Ultimate Workout System For Busy Dads - and it is GUARANTEED to help you lose that sagging beer belly that has gotten mysteriously bigger again this year.

For the next 3 days only I am having a New-Year New Dad Giveaway to help you start 2009 off right. Not only will you get the proven Dad Fitness System with the 16 weeks of workouts and nutrition programs, but I am also giving away THREE extra new bonuses to celebrate my New Year-New Dad giveaway.

So in addition to the 8 regular bonuses you get with the Dad Fitness package, you will also receive these 3 new bonuses:

1) No Gym-No Problem, Dad Fitness Home Workouts
(Retail Value = $29.99)

Dad's Fitness expert Sean Barker releases the Ultimate Home Workout for busy Dads who don't have time to get to the gym. Full of fat blasting workouts you can do in the comfort of your own home before work of after the kids go to bed.

2) Fat Loss To Go-4 Minute Abs
(Retail Value = $39.99)

You want abs...you got abs! In this book Ed Scow, expert trainer and super busy dad shows you how to get those rock hard abs you've always wanted and the workouts only take 4 minutes! Add them to the end of your workout and you've just turned a great workout into a phenomenal workout!

3) Perfect Posture in 30 Days
(Retail Value= $27.95)

Finally get rid of those nagging back pains and improve your posture so you can play with your kids or do things around the house. You CAN, and now personal trainer Vince Delmonte is here to show you how. Discover how posture can make you healthy and a few simple exercises that can radically improve your posture fast!

The only catch is that I don't open the doors on this amazing offer until 12 noon (EST) TODAY, Monday, January 19th. So mark that in your calendar, program it into your Blackberry or IPhone so that you don't miss your chance at the limited time bonuses!

So be ready at NOON today when I open the doors on the New Year New Dad, Dad Fitness Giveaway.

Here's the site where you can grab your copy of the Ultimate Workout System For Busy Dads and all the extra new bonuses:

=> www.DadFitness.com

Lets make this the best year ever!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Healthy Food Ideas to Stay Fit

2009-01-16T19:17:00.002-04:00

If your training hard in the gym and looking to build muscle, lose body fat, or all of the above; you realize how important it is to feed your body the right healthy food at the right times.

Then people say, "I don't have time to eat and cook 4-6 times a day!" Well, with the right amount of planning, you won't have to.

Aim for 3 regular meals plus 2-3 snacks.

For your protein needs have your freezer well stocked with chicken breasts, lean cuts of beef, pork, and fish. Have lots of skim milk, and lean deli cuts of turkey, chicken, and roast beef in your refrigerator for additional protein. Combine this with a protein shake or meal replacement smoothie, and your protein needs should get met.

As for sources of carbohydrates. Keep your kitchen well stocked with oatmeal, whole wheat breads, (100% multigrain if possible), brown rice and sweet potatoes, as well as fruit for snacking or that post workout insulin spike to top of your energy supplies. Don't forget to have lots of fresh and frozen veggies on hand for most of your daily carb intake.

With a well-stocked kitchen, even if you're rushed, you can make a quick and tasty meal in no time. Try different recipe combination's by taking one of the above protein sources, frying it up in a skillet or on a grill, throwing in some frozen stir-fry vegetables (they come in many flavors), and add a complex carb source on the side.

Make large amounts so you have leftovers and have healthy meals that you can take to work or when you are rushed for a quick bite.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Best Movie I Seen This Year

2009-01-15T13:13:00.003-04:00

Even though Christmas is long gone for another year, I still received a late gift yesterday in the mail. Thanks Santa!

STRONG, the documentary. It's by one of the top trainers in the fitness industry.

This is one amazing story of how one man built a gym that changed hundreds of lives and ended up producing thousands more amazing stories.

STRONG is a powerful motivational movie that will leave you inspired and convinced that hard, smart work can take you anywhere.

Pick up your copy at strongmovie.com. It's a great story about one of the hardest working guys in our field - a guy who is in the trenches every day training people.

I gotta say this was the most inspiring and emotional documentary I have ever seen on human drive and emotion.

After watching this you will be climbing the walls to workout!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

I bet it's colder here than where you are...

2009-01-14T14:01:00.002-04:00

As I glanced at the forecast this morning it showed that here in Labrador City, Labrador, Canada we are in for a balmy -53 degree Celsius with the windchill this evening!!!

Ya gotta love living in northern Canada. To find us on the map of Canada, look up, WAYYY up to northeastern Canada.

But being the trooper that I am and being used to these winters I headed out to the gym.

Today was a designated light day with all sets in the 20 rep range. Again I am focusing on TOTAL reps. Today the goal was 25 reps, and it only took me two sets to get there. It was short and sweet and I got a great pump!

High Pulls
Incline DB Press
Front Squats
Hammer Curls

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Will Smith, Turkey Bacon & Dumbbells.

2009-01-11T15:27:00.008-04:00

As I mentioned in my previous post of The Top 10 Things I Did To Improve my Health, Wealth & Happiness in 2008 my wife and I make sure to have a DATE night at least every 2nd weekend when I have the entire weekend off.

For you busy parents out there make sure you don't let life get in the way and schedule time for just you and your wife as often as you can. Don't be afraid to ask for help from family or friends to watch the kids every now and then.

Our parents take turns on taking baby Matea for the night and we have a rare night to ourselves to go out or stay in depending on what we feel like doing.

Last night we decided to stay in and rent a movie and I grilled some steaks outdoors on the BBQ in -30deg Celsius. To see how I do this check out my new article on FatherLife.com,
==>King of the Grill.

The movie we rented was Hancock, the Will Smith superhero action flick. We both really enjoyed it as the visual effects were incredible and it was a different twist on a common story.

This morning we slept late which for us is like 8am and I got up and cooked a rare Sunday breakfast feast that we only have a couple times a month.

Despite a higher calorie meal I still try to stick to nutrient dense foods to get the best of both worlds. I knew I would be hitting the gym later and would be sure to make use of the excess calories.

Turkey bacon, omega-3 eggs, cantaloupe, pineapple, cheese, clementine, tomato, half a whole wheat roll with natural peanut butter, 4 fish oil caps on the side and a glass of water and a cup of mint green tea.

Usually I would hit the gym early and have this breakfast afterward but with my gym's new hours of not opening til 12pm! I had this a couple hours before my workout.

Today at the gym I did this.

Workout B, 10 -12 reps, 25 total reps for each exercise, however many sets it takes to complete until my form slows down. Mostly 4 sets of 10.

Dynamic Warmup

Seated One Arm Cable Rows
Standing One Arm DB Shoulder Press
Bulgarian Split Squats
Standing One Arm Overhead Tricep Ext.

Static Stretching

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Perfect Pushup?

2009-01-08T19:06:00.001-04:00

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Healthy Fish & Chips For Busy Dads

2009-01-07T18:40:00.004-04:00

I finally headed back to the gym today.

Unfortunately it wasn't until 12pm this afternoon because my local rec centre has cut back its hours and don't open til 12 noon.

It's certainly a little shift in schedule for me but I had a pretty good workout anyway. It was a fairly easy workout as I have been easing myself back since my Christmas break.

I will start my new routine on Friday and start to turn up the intensity as the weeks go on. I am actually a bit sore from my Dad Fitness home workout of chinups and perfect pushups!

For dinner last night I decided to come up with a healthy Dad Fitness version of a classic favorite that is usually one of the worst offenders in terms of unhealthy fat.

Fish & Chips.

Here is the recipe that I used from the shake & bake box. Pretty simple actually. It turned out pretty good and shows you that you can take any unhealthy food and turn it into a more healthy version when you cook it yourself.

Dad Fitness Oven Baked Fish & Chips

Prep Time:

5 min

Total Time:
25 min

Makes:
6

1 pkg. (400g) frozen whitefish (Do not thaw.)I used cod fillets.

1 env. SHAKE'N BAKE Fish Crispy Original Coating Mix

1 sweet potato cut into wedges, tossed in olive oil and spices

PREHEAT oven to 450°F. Lightly moisten block of frozen fish with water. Add to shaker bag with coating mix; close bag and shake until evenly coated.

PLACE on ungreased baking sheet; surround with potatoes.

BAKE 20 min. or until fish flakes easily with fork.

I then took things a step further and created my own tartar sauce.

1/2 cup of plain yogurt
1 tsp of lemon juice
t tsp capers
dash if dill week, salt, pepper
fresh parsley

Mix up in bowl and drop a spoonful over fish

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Top 10 Things I Did To Improve my Health, Wealth & Happiness in 2008

2009-01-06T01:00:00.001-04:00

1. I became a father. This is number one for a reason. Becoming a father has been the most rewarding and precious experience I have had since the day I was born. With all the mixed emotions being a new dad brings and no matter what may be going on in the unpredictable moments of daily life, all I have to do is see the face of my baby girl Matea and I have a guaranteed smile.

2. I finally took the plunge to follow my lifelong passion for health and fitness. Despite continuing to work my regular job as a heavy equipment operator I got certified as a personal trainer, and started my online business called Dad Fitness. I plan on eventually making this my full-time job so I can create my lifestyle around my career and be in total control of my income so I can be there for my family.

With the current news that I will be laid off from my operator job due to the economic downturn I feel the time is NOW to "feel the fear, and do it anyway". How can I someday tell my kids that they can be whatever they want to be when they grow up, if their Dad is afraid to do the same. It's not what you say, its what you DO.

3. Dating my wife. After having our baby daughter no matter how much we thought we were prepared, we were hit with quite the wake-up call. As we got busy being parents, we let "life" get in the way of us being husband and wife. After realizing it was OK to accept help from our family once in awhile, we started having a date night at least once every 2nd week. We hope to even make this happen once a week in 2009.

4. "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." This quote comes from my favorite book of 2008. In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. I realized even following what has been considered a healthy lifestyle of eating for the last 15 years, that I was obsessed with food. "Eat this, at that time, so many times a day" was making me not enjoy food anymore. This book has changed my entire outlook on how we eat as a society and specifically how I eat.

5. I invested in MYSELF. With the world economy in a downturn I continue to make an investment that will NEVER fail me. I try to read an hour each day, 3-4 books a month and continue to advance my personal training certifications with advanced courses in training and nutrition.

I try to surround myself with positive people who are successful at doing what I WANT to do. I even traveled to Toronto this year to attend my first Mastermind meeting. I also read a lot on self improvement including success, business, money, time management, relationships and anything that I feel will help improve my health, wealth and happiness. You will never get dumber by reading a book...

6. Total Body Workouts. Like most guys who started training in the gym my background came from bodybuilding. I even went a step farther as my interest in the sport grew and competed in a few contests. But after 15 years in this industry my training philosophy is changing. For most regular folks you just want to get in shape, bodybuilding style workouts are NOT the best way to go.

That's why the last year or so I have been designing my workouts around full-body workouts opposed to the typical body part splits such as a chest day or arm day. Most busy dads want to get the best bang for their workout buck and working your entire body with compound exercises that use a lot of muscles together is the most effective and most functional way to workout. This is the backbone of my Dad Fitness workouts and is why you can lose fat and build muscle with just 3 short workouts a week.

7. I replaced supplements with food. This year I have been gradually cutting back on the supplements that I have been taking for years and relying on whole natural foods for my vitamins and minerals. Instead of taking vitamin C, I eat more oranges and bell peppers. Instead of taking additional vitamin E, I eat more mixed nuts. I even give up taking a protein bar to work for my mid-morning snack and eat mixed nuts instead.

I also recently give up taking my post-workout protein shake and replaced it with chocolate milk. Studies show chocolate milk works just as well to help your muscle recover after a workout. Now I only take fish oil and a multivitamin twice a day to supplement my diet. As for all those empty protein tubs, they make great piggy banks for all the money I am saving!

8. Be ruthless with my time. Since becoming a busy dad who works a full-time job and running my own business I have had to better manage my time before someone else would. Making my family also number one on my priority list I had to make sure I blocked out time in each day to get things done. I don't need a blackberry or an iphone to help organize my time as I think they are ironically time-stealers, not time-savers. I use a basic planner that I write in every day to keep me on track with work, workouts, appointments, business contacts etc. I review this every night and make sure things are planned to the best of my ability for the next day.

Another big change I made was to outsource any tasks that I have no interest in doing or think I could be doing something better with my time. Instead of spending 4 hours snow blowing our driveway I pay a company to clear my driveway with a loader that takes 5 minutes and use that time to work on my business or spend with my family.

9. I stopped microwaving plastic. You probably heard about the warnings of heating plastics and specifically the chemical found in plastics, BPA. The problem with BPA is that it doesn't stay in the plastic. It leaches into whatever food or beverage you put in a plastic container, canned good, or plastic baby bottle. And if you microwave the containers or bottles, you are likely increasing the amount of BPA that leaches into your food.

BPA mimics the sex hormone estradiol, which can trigger major changes in your body such as brain damage, hyperactivity, abnormal sexual behaviour, increased fat formation and risk of obesity and early puberty and disrupted reproductive cycles. I simply switched to the Pyrex glass containers to store and warm my food at work and at home. This is the only time I use a microwave as I stay away from any processed foods that come in a box or container that you can heat in a microwave. I suggest you do the same.

10. "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." This is a quote from Theodore Roosevelt. I have this posted on the wall of my home office and this simple phrase really helps me get through the tough times. Personally at this time my wife and I are looking to leave our current jobs and move across the country to follow our true passion in life and to explore better opportunities for our family. Making such a big change and taking risks are hard to do.

But you MUST fight the fear and do things anyway if you want to be successful in all facets of your life. If you are feeling frustrated with your current situation in life, realize you can't change everything overnight, but in the meantime keep working towards your goals and do what you can, with what you have, where you are.

PS. Don't forget to check out my latest article posted on TheFatherLife.com.

==>King Of The Grill

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Dad Fitness Home Workout

2009-01-05T12:53:00.003-04:00

TGIM.

Yes, Thank-God its Monday!

After working three 12 hour shifts this weekend I am glad to be off for a couple days.

So this morning I got up eager and ready to head back to the gym to start the New Year off right.

After getting up bright and early at 5am and doing 2 hours of work in my home office, I headed out to the gym at 8am.

As I approached the rec centre where I workout I noticed there were no vehicles in the parking lot???

Uh-oh, this didn't look good.

As I approached the main door I seen the notice stating that due to cutbacks, they won't be opening until 12pm! Nooooooooooo!

Over the years I always preferred to workout in the mornings as it makes me feel good for the rest of the day and by doing it first I don't have any chance to skip it when things come up.

So I wiped the frozen tears from face, drove home and did a fast and furious Dad Fitness Home Workout.

Check out the video below of the Dad Fitness Fast and Furious Home Workout.

With this workout you will lose fat faster than I am losing my hair!

I was soaked by the end and finished in less than 30 minutes!

I kept the day going strong with a healthy post-workout meal of 3 omega-3 egg omelet, 2 slices of 100% mulitgrain toast with natural peanut butter and a clementine.

Even if you like going to the gym like I do, make sure to have a back-up plan.

Get your fitness back-up plan here
==>The Dad Fitness System

It's going to be a good-year!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

How is Your ROM?

2009-01-02T22:08:00.001-04:00

Range of Motion is Critical For Building Muscle

By Sean Barker, CPT.

If your not sure what I mean by ROM, its Range of Motion. This is the complete range of movement that you perform every exercise from start to finish.

But how many people get carried away with increasing the weight they lift only to sacrifice the proper exercise execution in which the exercise should be performed. A good many, and I admit I have done it in the past as well.

We all like to load up that bar giving us the feeling that we are super strong by slapping plate after plate onto the barbell. But doing this only builds your ego, not your muscles. It also greatly increases your chance of serious injury when performing exercises without a complete range of motion.

Increasing your poundage's over time is the cornerstone of getting bigger and stronger in the gym. But not if it comes at the expense of doing the exercise with improper form. Whether it's bench presses, squats or any exercise that requires you work the muscles over a complete range, people have a tendency to slowly develop bad training habits of limiting the range in which they complete the exercise.

This might enable you to use a heavier weight, but its not maximizing muscular overload it's limiting it as the muscles are only getting half the stimulation that they should be. Plus, your joints and ligaments are picking up the slack, which is provoking injury.

Adhere to proper weight selection that allows you to work the intended muscle with your desired number of reps. Always remember that your weight should be chosen based on how well you can perform the exercise, not the other way around...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Best Health Tip of 2008

2008-12-28T19:33:00.007-04:00

Santa was here

Well, we made it through another Christmas!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas with your family.

Someone is sleepy

We sure did. Seeing our 7 month old daughter ripping open the wrapping paper of her first of WAY too many presents, was pretty special. She must of been a really good girl this year because she really cleaned up!

For me?

Santa brought me one of those new chin-up bars that attaches to your door frame and a pair of those Perfect Pushup handles. I already gave them both a try and I am really impressed with the quality and feel of these pieces of home exercise equipment.

Daddy was good all year

These will go great with my Dad Fitness Home Workouts and I will keep you posted on how they work.

I know you are probably feeling bad about all the eating and drinking you have been doing over the holidays.

But guess what...It's OK.

Trust me I know how you feel. I ate and drank too much as well.
But I am not worried and I don't want you to worry either.

What I want you to do is turn these feelings into ACTION.

There are only 2 days left in this year!

I know you still have New Years Eve to contend with but you don't have to wait until the clock strikes 12 to make a commitment.

Start TODAY and ask yourself.

"What are my goals? What are my behaviors?

Do my behaviors match your goals?"

What you did in 2008 doesn't matter - the year is GONE. Just be aware of how effective your behaviors were in reaching your goals.

The real question you should ask yourself is what will the next year hold for you?

Will 2009 be any different?

Click Here To Be Different in 2009.
==>Dad Fitness, The Ultimate Workout For Busy Dads

Sean Barker, CPT

PS. Here is the best health tip of 2008.

It doesn't matter what you eat or how you exercise between Christmas and New Years..... But it matters how you eat and exercise between New Year's and Christmas !

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Hells Kitchen & Christmas Vacation

2008-12-23T11:13:00.004-04:00

You should have seen our kitchen last night. When I came home from some last minute shopping it looked like a 6 year old was let loose with bags of flour!

Well, that's EXACTLY what happened.

My wife had my 6 year old niece, Grace over for a sleep over and for her annual Christmas cookie bake. I think some flour did end up in the bowl as some ginger bread men were created in the process.

Baby Matea even got her little hands in on the action as there were flour hand prints everywhere!

This was only the beginning...

Then we all camped out downstairs in sleeping bags and watched Christmas movies. My favorite is National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. No matter how often I see this, it makes me laugh every time.

Ah, the joys of the holiday season!

Today was my last workout before Christmas.

I started to follow my planned Dad Fitness Workout this morning at the gym but decided half way through to have a little fun and add in a few other exercises.

I also kept the sets and reps fairly low so I wouldn't be sore for the next few days.

It might look like a long workout but it was only an hour as I only did 2 sets of 5 for each exercise and pair up some supersets.

Underhand Bent BB Rows
DB Incline Press
Wide Grip Pulldowns
Dips
Inverted Rows
Block Pushups
BB Shoulder Press
Side Lateral Raise
Cable Curls
Overhead Rope Tricep Extensions
Reverse Curls

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

5 Tips For a Healthy Holiday

2008-12-20T18:31:00.004-04:00

By Sean Barker,CPT

This time of year should be a time of family and fun, not guilt over blowing your diet.

These 5 simple tips will help you have a healthy holiday without gaining a bowl full of jelly.

1. Keep moving. I know the gym will probably be closed a lot during the holidays. But remember you don't need to go to the gym to get a great workout in little time. Before you start your busy day of putting up Christmas lights or getting some last minute shopping done, drop down and give me 20! With some basic bodyweight exercises of pushups, prisoner squats and abdominal planks you can get a great workout done in less than 15 minutes with NO equipment. Or you can save your energy for the dance floor!

2. Don't run on empty. Don't allow yourself to go too long in between meals. If you let yourself get too hungry especially this time of year, you will pay for it dearly when you try to tighten your belt come the new year. Make sure to eat your regular 3 meals each day plus 2 snacks such as fruit and mixed nuts.

3. Plan your reward meals. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Decide what reward meals you are going to have such as Christmas Dinner, New Years Eve or the office party. Stick to a couple special occasions and follow a healthy plan for the days in between.

4. Smart snacking. When you are entertaining guests or you are attending parties elsewhere you can still enjoy some finger foods, just be smart about your choices. Avoid the artery clogging chips, dips and deep fried foods. Fill up on raw veggies, cheese, nuts and even some dark chocolate.

5. Think before you drink. If you are drinking down some Christmas cheer, beware. One regular beer contains 150 calories and a glass of eggnog 350 calories! Stick to one or two light beers, a cocktail with diet soda or a glass of dark red wine. Make sure to drink a tall glass of water before bed and upon waking to avoid a "heavy head" the next morning.

Seasons Greetings from The Barker's

Sean, Kathy and baby Matea

I want to take this time to sincerely THANK-YOU for you reading my blog, for following Dad Fitness and I would like to wish you and your family a MERRY CHRISTMAS and HEALTH, WEALTH, and HAPPINESS in 2009!

Stay tuned for more great things from Dad Fitness and I look forward to you joining me as we continue to invest in fitness and family...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Workouts That Work!

2008-12-19T13:06:00.002-04:00

I had a good workout this morning despite venturing out in the BRUTAL cold.

-42 degrees Celsius here today with the windchill!

Workout:

reverse bb rows, db incline press, wide grip pulldown, dips, reverse crunches, side planks. High rep day, 3 sets of 15, only short 45 sec rest periods.

If you want to see why the Dad Fitness Workouts are so effective for burning fat for busy dads.

Click here to read this article from Experience Life Magazine talking about how interval cardio works so well for fat loss.

==>Oh yeah, The Dad Fitness Workouts uses this exact method in EVERY workout so you get BIG results in LESS time!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Ten Tips for Thriving in This Economic Winter

2008-12-18T13:16:00.002-04:00

After sharing the shocking news I received yesterday (if you haven't read it, read it here) and realizing that so many of us are going through these tough times together, I wanted to share with you some good tips that James Arthur Ray sent my way.

You might remember James from the movie "The Secret". I just read his new book, Harmonic Wealth and I would highly recommend it!

Ten Tips for Thriving in This Economic Winter
by James Arthur Ray

Well, you asked for some quick, easy-to-apply tips on how to thrive in this economic winter and on how to apply the knowledge you learned during our conversation... So here you go!

Clearly define what inspires you.

There's a big difference between taking action out of inspiration versus desperation. Use this season as an opportunity to hibernate into the recesses of your own mind and define what you choose to create in your next spring.

Control your focus.

Energy flows where attention goes. Are you focusing on lack or opportunity?

Feed your mind.

What's your constant mental diet? Do you spend hours in front of the scare news or are you reading good books, attending more positive seminars, watching uplifting DVDs and listening to powerful CDs?

Strengthen your body.

Your physical health and vitality have a tremendous impact on your performance as well as your mental and emotional fitness. Exercise releases stress as well as strengthen your body and mind.

Inventory your friends.

Doom and gloom attracts more doom and gloom. Jettison those "energy vampires" around you and surround yourself with opportunity seekers.

Quiet your mind.

Take time to meditate daily and to slow down if only for a few minutes. Ten to fifteen minutes of meditation will relieve hours of stress and increase creativity and resourcefulness.

Rid your life of escapist activities.

Overindulgence in TV, sleep and alcohol only accelerate the problems you're attempting to avoid.

Make a daily gratitude list.

Focusing on all the good, gifts and God in your life puts you in the right line of thought, feeling and their subsequent actions, which will attract and create more good, gifts and God.

Change your attitude.

Realize that everything that's happened in your life thus far is here to serve you, teach you and help you grow. Find the lessons in your past results, forgive yourself for anything you could have done better and apply the lesson to move forward and create a better future.

Get resourceful.

For the next three days, go to a place where you can have uninterrupted time... Come up with 20 new ideas to grow your income, create new results and improve your life. You cannot leave your spot until you have twenty. And no editing! All ideas are good ideas. Do this for three successive days with 20 new ideas each day.

Now take your list of 60 unique ideas and pick the three to five most powerful and leveraged ones to put into action. Pick these three to five based on: ease of implementation, rate of return and speed of return.

And so during this winter season, remember: It's not about resources... there are plenty of them. It's about resourcefulness. Get resourceful and get busy.

To your continued wealth and happiness,

James Arthur Ray
President/CEO
James Ray International
http://jamesray.com/

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Devastating News...

2008-12-17T11:11:00.007-04:00

I have been waiting for this for the last few days.

The mailman delivered IT this morning.

A letter that states...

"Please be advised that unfortunately due to current economic conditions you will be laid off from your employment at Wabush Mines, commencing on February 16th, 2009 and continuing until notice of recall is issued. At this time the company anticipates that the layoff will continue until at least the middle of 2009."

Yes, I lost my job!

Working as a heavy equipment operator with Wabush Mines has been my regular day job for the last 5 years. It pays really well with full benefits for me and my family. The last few weeks we heard the company will be laying off almost 50% of its workforce!

The other nearby iron ore mine here in Labrador City, IOCC is also expecting to get hit with massive layoffs.

Unfortunately this is all we hear everyday now with the world continuing to plummet into an economic downturn. As the iron ore mines here supplies the steel to markets such as China, they rely on the demand for steel in order to produce.

As devastating as this news is to my family. There is a silver lining.

We had plans to leave our jobs here this spring anyway and move to western Canada, specifically Calgary to pursue our passions and a higher quality of life.

This would allow me to follow my passion in health and fitness and work full time on my Dad Fitness business. My wife already has no problem to transfer her job as a Wildlife Biologist.

The mailman said "I am sorry" as he passed me the envelope holding a huge stack of these letters that everyone around this small town expects to get today.

Looking over the letter there must of been a mistake.

They forgot the line: MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I honestly believe EVERYTHING happens for a reason.

If you and your family is effected by this worldwide downfall post your comments I will continue to invest in the only thing that is in my control, my HEALTH.

To invest in your health, join me and get started with
==>The Dad Fitness System.

It's comes with a 100% risk-free guarantee. Unlike some other things in life...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Got Moose?

2008-12-15T22:14:00.004-04:00

Things are certainly looking like Christmas here in Labrador, Canada.

We just got hit with 20 cm of fresh powder today!

With all the houses around town lit up with Christmas lights and lots of snow falling, it's a perfect scene for this time of year.

As for me I didn't have a Dad Fitness Workout today as I worked a 12 hour shift.

My next scheduled workout is Wednesday morning. With Dad Fitness I only workout 3 times in an entire week so I don't have to worry about missing my workouts when things get busy!

I also mixed up a great recipe last night that I want to share.

Moose Sausage Stir-Fry

4 moose sausages
1 yellow bell pepper
1 onion
sun dried tomatoes
mushrooms
garlic, salt and pepper

I fried up the sausages first, cut them up and set aside

Then I stir-fried the veggies and added the sausages back in for 10 min.

It was damn tasty!

You can't beat wild meat for a lean high quality protein source that is naturally grass-fed therefore containing high amounts of omega 3 fats, opposed to most grocery store beef which is grain-fed and fattened up in large scale feedlots and pumped full of hormones and antibiotics.

Cows are not meant to eat corn, they are meant to eat grass!

If you can get access to wild meat such as venison, bison, buffalo, caribou or moose get some and you will never want to switch back to supermarket beef.

Luckily living in Labrador, Canada we have easy access to caribou and moose.

I also have a package of Moose ground beef in my freezer. Can't wait to whip something up with that.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

4 Interval Workouts That Burn Fat

2008-12-12T18:42:00.000-04:00

If you are struggling to lose fat with cardio, I have great news for you. Men's Health expert trainer Craig Ballantyne sent me these 4 interval training workouts to help you burn fat!

There are all types of ways to do interval training, and research hasn't shown us a best way yet. There is NO best interval training workout for fat loss, however, some of my favorites are:

a) 1 minute on, 1-2 minutes off, repeat 6 times.

b) 30 seconds on, 90 seconds off, repeat 6 times.

c) 45 seconds on, 90 seconds off, repeat 6 times.

d) 20 seconds on, 40 seconds off, repeat up to 8 times.

Make sure to include a warm-up and cool-down after each.

And remember, you can use all types of interval training methods for these workouts.

You can do treadmill running, hill walking, stationary cycling, sprinting outside (if you do extra warm-up), kettlebell swings, medicine ball power woodchoppers, rope jumping, rowing, swimming, or even the elliptical machine (if you think it works).

One research study even used 8 seconds on, 12 seconds off for a total of 20 minutes, but these short intervals are almost impossible to do on regular gym equipment.

For more in-depth, step-by-step fat burning plans, visit:

==>TurbulenceTraining.com

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Proof That Fish Oil Will Make You Smarter!

2008-12-10T09:39:00.006-04:00

If you haven't heard of all the healthy benefits of omega 3 fats and specifically fish oil check out this video.

My wife supplemented with a high quality fish oil while she was pregnant. Besides all the healthy benefits it provides for the mother and baby, studies have shown that babies who get the proper amounts of omega 3's before they are born score higher on IQ tests.

Here is the proof.

Our baby daughter Matea reading at 6 months old!

Alright...she might be just trying to fool Daddy by pretending to read but I am glad she is in the Christmas spirit!

I also had a fast and furious Dad Fitness Workout this morning:

Deadlifts
Bulgarian Split Squats
Goblet Squats
Reverse Cable Wood Chops
Planks

4 sets of 8, 60 sec rest.

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Winter Workout

2008-12-08T15:42:00.003-04:00

I headed out to the gym this morning in -30 deg weather and a snow blizzard.

But my warm-up started sooner than I expected.

As I was stopped at the stop sign at the end of my street I noticed a man trying to push his wife's car out of the snowed in driveway.

I watched as many cars drove on by.

So I pulled off the road, jumped out into the cold and blistering wind and jumped behind the car to give the guy a push.

This guy was SHOCKED that I stopped to help and together we helped push his wife's car out of the snow!

He thanked me and wished me a very Merry Christmas.

Then I hit the gym and had a great Dad Fitness Workout

Barbell Rows
Incline DB Press
Lat Pulldowns
Dips
Reverse Crunches
Side Planks

6 sets each, 5 reps, with 90 secs rest between sets.

You never know when you need to use all those muscles!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Consistency is the Key to Fitness

2008-12-06T21:10:00.002-04:00

By: Sean Barker, CPT

www.DadFitness.com

This article not only applies to achieving your body shaping goals but it also shows how if affects your whole life.

To make progress in the gym you have to focus on consistency.

No matter how good your current training program may be or how perfect a diet your have planned to follow, none of it matters if your are not consistent in your training and nutrition habits.

Consistency really is the key to lifelong fitness. A bad training program will always outperform a good training program as long as someone remains consistent to the not so great training program.

This is because the longer you are consistent with your training the better you will become mentally and physically. The more years you train,( not weeks or months), the greater amount of experience you obtain.

As with anything in life, experience is the greatest teacher. With experience usually comes knowledge or wisdom. This is the ability to relate to or handle certain situations. In terms of training, you will run into times when your training is not going well, you feel unmotivated, or even worse, you get injured.

These are the times when experience really pays off. Unlike the over enthusiastic beginner who usually tries to tough out these situations, ignoring their bodies signs of over training or shear pain.

Sometimes "biting the bullet" and relying on your previous experience is the best bet. It might not be the quickest solution but in the long term it is the best decision to continue longevity with your workouts.

Always realize that no matter how much experience and knowledge you think you might have, never think you know it all.

Be open to learning to new things inside as well as outside the gym and you will be a better person for it...

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Total Body Workout

2008-12-04T17:12:00.002-04:00

Finally got back to my Dad Fitness Workouts after a few days off from my trip to Toronto.

Seeing as I won't be able to workout all weekend as I will be working 3 12 hours shifts Fri, Sat and Sun, I did a total body workout.

This allowed me to hit every major muscle in my body in one simple workout with the best and most basic exercises.

Each exercise I did 3 sets of 4-6 reps.

A Squats
B1 Chin-Ups
B2 Flat DB Bench Presses
C Deadlifts
D Rope Cable Crunches

Monday I will be starting a new workout routine for the next 4 weeks.

Check back to see how a busy dad stays fit in only 3 hours a week!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

Finally, something new in ab training

2008-12-03T18:14:00.004-04:00

I am finally back home from an AWESOME weekend in Toronto networking with the top fitness professionals in the industry.

It was also great to meet-up with my wife and baby daughter on the same connecting flight home as she was returning from her trip as well. I missed them both so much!

As I will be returning to my Dad Fitness workouts tomorrow I thought I share with you some cool news on ab training.

This is probably the fastest, surest, shortest route to getting a great set of abs that are not only lean, and defined, but also strong and functional...

David Grisaffi, who is widely known as "the abs guru" and Tom Venuto, who is well known as "the fat loss guru", have just released a brand-new and exclusive interview called,

"The Ab Guru Speaks: Straight Talk About Core Training, Abs And Fat loss."

The best part is: You can get a copy of the interview for f-r-e-e, for 72 hours only during a special promotion. (Yes, there IS a "catch", but if you want great abs, it's all good news for you, so read on to find out more...)

This interview transcript is published in a professionally designed and edited PDF e-book format (suitable for printing)

Inside, you will find valuable information about fat burning nutrition, supplements, core training, cardio, abdominal exercise, and especially the "lifestyle factors" (such as how stress and sleep deprivation can deprive you of your abs!)

You will be especially surprised when David and Tom start talking about fat burner supplements - they give them a real grilling - while being honest about what they can and cannot do, and when it might make sense to actually use them.

The answers revealed in this eye-opening resource are so candid and open that you may be shocked and astonished as you read it. It's not the kind of info you typically read in the magazines, which must protect the vested interests in their supplement
lines or advertisers.

More importantly, after reading "The Ab Guru Speaks," you will understand not only how to avoid gimmicks and rip offs, including supplements as well as exercise machines and so on, but also how to slash your body fat level and develop great abs that will be admired and envied on the beach, at the pool or in the gym.

Here's the deal:

For the next 72 hours only, from Wednesday December 2nd to Friday December 5th - you can get a copy of "The Abs Guru Speaks" report absolutely f-r-e-e when you purchase the Firm And Flatten Your Abs e-book Package from www.FlattenYourAbs.net

I've seen the Firm And Flatten Your Abs training course myself and it's no surprise that it's been a best seller online for nearly SIX YEARS, while so many other programs come and go.

Firm And Flatten Your Abs is definitely "the bible of core training" and if you don't own a copy yet, then this is a better time than ever because you will get "The Abs Guru Speaks" f-r-e-e with your Firm and Flatten Your Abs order.

This special offer expires on Friday, December 5th at midnight PST. I highly recommend you visit David's website now and jump on this deal while you still can.

Click Here To Finally Flatten Your Abs
==>www.FlattenYourAbs.net

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

The Secret To Fat Loss

2008-12-02T08:59:00.002-04:00

Today I am coming to you from what some people call the big "TO"!

That's Toronto by the way...the biggest city in Canada.

I am staying smack in the middle of downtown in the Hilton Hotel with a cool view overlooking city hall with the big Christmas tree and all the Christmas lights .

I wish my wife and daughter were here to share this with me but she is having a fun trip visiting her sister in New Brunswick. I will connecting with them on the trip home on Wednesday in Quebec City. Can't wait to see them!

Yesterday I had an awesome day attending Day 1 of business meetings with all the top guys in the fitness industry like

Craig Ballantyne of Men's Health & Tuburlence Training

Brad Pilon of Eat Stop Eat

Vince Delmonte of Your Six Pack Quest

Along with 6 other fitness professionals we all headed out to a nice dinner at Red's Steakhouse. I would highly recommend it if you are ever in Toronto.

...and NO we didn't all eat salads and chicken breasts!

We had a couple beers, appetizers, AWESOME steak and even a little dessert.

The SECRET to fat loss and getting the body you want while enjoying the foods you like to eat is this:

Do short intense workouts just 3 times a week, eat real healthy natural foods most of the time and when you feel like treating yourself go ahead and enjoy it!

...BUT the key is to get back to your healthy foods and Dad Fitness workouts the very next day.

For those of you who didn't get to read this article in last month's newsletter check it out in the second installment of my Dad Fitness monthly column on TheFatherLife.com

Click Here==>3 Simple Steps To Awesome Abs

Gotta go get started on Day 2 of our meetings!

Sean Barker, CPT

Learn the "The Truth On Fat Loss, How To Finally Lose That Beer Belly" in this FREE report from Sean Barker at www.dadfitness.com

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