Jamcore Training Blog

Everyday when I wake up, I think about how fortunate I am to have my health. Some people think about their next cash bonus, or next vacation, but I think about my fitness. I don’t consider myself boring by any means. I just understand one thing: if I don’t workout 5 days a week my body will shut down.

This morning, as usual, I was doing my warm up routine to get ready for my workout after three days off. I turned to Scott, my training partner, and told him I couldn’t understand why people don’t workout more. I had only stopped for three days and I was dying. Scott said to me, “Well Jamo not everyone is like you, many people aren’t as motivated as you are.” I replayed, “Come one, we’re all human and go through aches and pains that I’m getting right now. I even get frustrated with myself at times.” Scott said, “What is your secret for staying motivated and not eating the ice cream and brownie, like you could have had last night at my party? I could tell you were dying to eat it.”
I replayed, “I did have it when you weren’t looking!”

So here are some motivational tips to keep you upbeat and positive:

•Don’t put too much pressure on yourself

•Start eating basic wholesome food with great tastes

•Train always at the same time each day, and have a routine that you stick to 5 days a week (I know this can be boring, but it will only be boring if you let it be)

•Don’t buy junk to fill up the fridge, only buy it when you crave it don’t do the same workouts ALL the time, changing up your routine every 4 weeks (the JamCore site has many different routine, especially the JamCore training system based ones. They are fun and have many creative exercises incorporated. Try Them!)

•Spend the weekend doing an outdoor activity with your friends and family

•Become a creature of good habits. I understand that changing your behaviors is not always easy. If you start by making gradual differences, I can guaranty you will become more organized including in your training and eating. A helpful way to start is by first making your life simple and clean. A good example of this lifestyle is Japanese people. Their houses are very uncomplicated and organized, which makes them a power to be reckoned with. My point is you are the product of your own environment.
A messy environment = messy person

What will keep you thinking about your health and fitness?

Look around you at your local gym. You will notice that, the older generations are much more of gym users than the young generation.
They have concluded that they don’t want to wake up with aches and pains, like I did when I stopped training for three days and I’m only 40. So the older generations are making sure to stay pain free, by exercising and eating healthy to live longer.

YOUR WEALTH IS YOUR HEALTH and people are holding on to it. This makes me wonder what will happen to our younger generation 10 years from now. I said it before and I say it again, the day you stop moving, is the day you die.

You made a decision to have a retirement fund, or saving up your bank account. Make sure you make the same decision when it comes to working out and staying healthy.

Comments and questions are always welcome.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Mind over Muscle: Steps to a healthier you, for the ladies. Hello all, this is
Mona Liza Reyes the NPC California Figure Overall Champion 2006.

Though this particular blog is speaking directly to the girls, the topics can be just as effective for starting a guy out in the right direction for healthier living.

So you’ve finally made the decision to become healthier and drop some extra pounds you’ve gained over the years. Before I even begin to take you through the physical baby steps on how to get there, I feel its my duty to disclose this much to you. Your mental preparedness is just as important as your physical willingness. To all my beautiful lady friends out there, this is my friendly public service announcement: IT WONT BE EASY!

Those moments on the lips that are now a lifetime on the hips are maybe more apparent now than they were 2 years ago. But there is hope and it doesn’t have to be a lifetime, especially during your lifetime for you make those hips, just a little bit smaller. You can totally achieve a healthier and leaner version of you, in addition to all the rewarding experiences that come with it. It will, however, take some time. And know that during that time, your dedication, consistency and most of all patience will be the key to your success. With that said, are you still willing to make the change? I surely hope so, because I can promise you with everything I love wholeheartedly that it will be absolutely, positively worth it!

Don’t let the pictures on my page fool you as I have trained hard for a total of 4 years to date and I do not look like pictures EVERYDAY 365 days a year. It’s a great motivation factor to post pictures of the ideal physique you’d like to obtain and by all means, it’s totally possible to achieve. However, please bear in mind that 9 times out of 10 the shots of your favorite celebrity or fitness model was strategically planned to coincide with dieting and exercise beforehand to ensure they look their absolute best.

Are you ladies up for the challenge? Here is the list of some basics that I write about in the posts, which include:

Post 1
JUST DO IT (getting started)

JUST DO IT
Even if you have only 15 minutes to incorporate some type of cardio activity in your daily routine, just do it. No excuses! It can be as simple as using your lunch break to walk, go to the gym, park your car farther or simply take the stairs. Treat yourself as if you would an important client that you cannot break an appointment with. When you do make the time (whether in the gym or at your local park) and you’re just starting out, start with at least 20 minutes of cardio. Acknowledge how your body is feeling and get a feel for what is comfortable for you.

Ideally, you should do at least 30 45 minutes of intense cardio and break a sweat. Cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach is the best way to maximize your fat burning process. Whichever cardio activity you choose, make sure you have fun! If you can read a magazine while you’re doing it, chances are it’s not intense enough. So download your MP3 with your favorite tunes, put on your headphones and break a sweat! Or better yet download your favorite JamCore workout to your video players and get help breaking a sweat!

Post 2 / Post 3 / Post 4

Popularity: 14% [?]

Besides my love of personal training as part of my life I always wanted to help other in the gym that either couldn’t afford or couldn’t schedule the time to work with a personal trainer. While working out with clients I always found myself helping other work on their form and giving out other advice.

So long story short I started JamCore Personal Training to give everyone access to the benefits of working with a personal trainer. We will give you the tools needed for overall good health and fitness and teach you things such as good poster, great form, and training systems to get in the best shape of your life.

As we all know, personal trainers can be pretty pricey, personal trainers can cost on average $60 to $75 an hour. JamCore is a computer and video iPod based personal training system. For $19.95 per month (less for multi-month packages) you can have our training tools with you anytime you need them. Want to work on a new body part or learn how to use a fitness ball download the segment to your video player and it is ready to use when you are.

With JamCore training you can have the workouts whenever you want to do them and whenever you have time to do it. You are in control of when you workout, you’re not on someone else’s schedule.

So you can join and download the straight to your computer or to your iPod. For a list of some video iPod opiton checkout the following link: iPod Prices

Ready to join the community, please post question or contact me or any of our team on The Team page.

Popularity: 22% [?]

This morning I woke up late around 5 a.m. Jamo’s day usually starts at 3 a.m. to go to the gym with my training partners Scott and Dana. I had 5 minutes for breakfast; I open the fridge and guess what I saw there, a big nothing. Busy all day I forgot to do the shopping last night.

I opened the kitchen cabinet, only to find all I had was dry oatmeal, frozen strawberries and protein powder. At this point, I had only 2 minutes left for breakfast with legs to train, and as you may know, legs are one of the hardest body parts to train.

I took the blender, put 2 scoops of protein, 5 frozen strawberries, and half cup of dry oatmeal and blended the whole thing together. WOW! It was nice. Call it JamCore Strawberry Blazer! Try it and let me know what you think. I followed Brian philosophy of using common sense when eating. I know the ingredients I used were healthy alone and better that a donut or sweet muffin.

I am interested to know what our nutritionist Brian thinks about my creation. I will ask him to post on the JamCore Strawberry Blazer. How creative have you gotten with your nutrition, any examples or creations of your own?

Popularity: 21% [?]

Hello everyone, Ves here, and I want you to see a bit of what JamCore Personal Training is all about. I show you proper technique and good form to help you get the most out of your workout. So checkout my video, it’s short, simple and a good intro to me. Let me know what you think and what topics interest you most. Questions or comments, just ask we are here for you! Have fun watching!

Popularity: 8% [?]

Anyone who knows me is aware of my life philosophy…the KISS system. It stands for Keep It Simple Stupid, and there are many theories about its origin, from the US Army to Albert Einstein. In addition to living my life in a KISS system kinda way, I also apply this principle to my favorite topic of discussion—good ‘ole nutrition.

Applying the KISS system to nutrition is really about using common sense. Obviously nutrition can be incredibly complex and confusing, but when you take a look at the basics, making some healthier choices is actually pretty easy. Just do some simple comparisons and you’ll see what I mean. What would be healthier…having some baby carrots or some potato chips? I think we all know the answer to this one, but let’s assume you really wanted some chips. How about going with some BAKED chips instead of the regular version. Certainly this is a better alternative, but not necessarily the best choice possible. You could easily go with the carrots or even a piece of fruit if you wanted to take the overall nutritional value up another notch. Rationalizing food choices in this way doesn’t seem that hard when you put a little thought into it, huh?

This actually brings me to another important issue about food choices. Your environment plays a key role in your daily food intake. If you go to a party at someone’s house, you’re sort of a victim of what they serve. It’s unlikely that you’re going to lobby for certain food items when it’s not your shindig…that might be rude. In a similar vain, when you go to a restaurant, you’re also limited by the offerings on the menu. Obviously you can try to make the best choice possible (which is recommended), but if you eat out once a day or more, you’re really behind the 8-ball if you want to keep your health and weight in check. It’s doable, but difficult!! When you’re at home, your environment is up to you—and it all starts at the grocery store. You need to make decisions about buying healthy foods or not, but at least you’re in control. So, next time you think about your health or your weight, just think about what you’ve surrounded yourself with recently, and then adjust accordingly using some common sense.

Popularity: 21% [?]

People always ask me, “Jamo how do you stay in such good shape at 40?” The first thing I want you to understand is that Rome wasn’t built in a day. To get the perfect six-pack, and a great body, you need smart training, consistency, and the right tools. By the right tools I don’t mean, an abs swinger, a magic pill, or a Hollywood star that got paid making you believe that the machine they used gave them their great body.

Getting the perfect six-pack can be achieved; the first step is to have structured training. It’s a ten-week program, of workouts not lasting longer than one hour. You work on your abs three times a week with one or two other body part, with a day break in between where you do 30 minute cardio x 2 (morning on empty stomach and evening after your workout). Let me break it down for you.

Monday: Start the day with 30 min cardio on an empty stomach. At night workout 45 minutes chest and arms with 10 minutes of abdominals. Add another 20 minute of cardio to finish your workout, you shouldn’t spend more than 1hour and 15 minutes in the gym.

Tuesday: Start the day with 40 minutes of cardio on an empty stomach. At night workout 30 minutes cardio with 10 minutes of abdominal work.

Wednesday: Same as Monday but train legs and abdominal work.

Thursday: Same as Tuesday.

Friday: Same as Wednesday but at night train back, shoulders and abs.

Saturday and Sunday: Take off to recover

These are the kind of routines that I want to teach you. Through this blog, I can fill you in on different ways to get in great shape, and a great six-pack. Our nutritionist, Brian, will also be a big help to your overall fitness goal. If you want to know more ask me and I can answer any questions you have. The videos at JamCore Personal Training show you the correct exercises, techniques and form used in the routines. The only real way to achieve the perfect six-pack is to make a commitment to yourself, and stick to it. Start by making the commitment, then come back here and I will help train you.

Who’s first?

Popularity: 12% [?]

I thought I’d start by saying thanks for checking out the JamCore Personal Training blog. As the anywhere/workplace workout partner for JamCore, I thought I’d jump right into the meat and potatoes of it and talk about something we can all relate to: Stress at Work.

The mind and the body work together in mysterious ways, work related stress affects our health in ways that scientists don’t even fully understand. Some of the stress factors that are known to include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, chronic headaches, fatigue, and panic attacks. The reality of it is that everyone responds to stress in different ways, depending on their environment and depending on their personality. Being the creative director for Vyant and DegreesInc, I am constantly hit with situations like tight deadlines, marketing and design challenges, client meetings, and time management decisions. Long story short, I have a LOT of experience with stress at work, and I’m sure we all have a story to tell.

Here are some ways to lower stress at work.

Posture:
If you are in an office punching a keyboard all day, posture and ergonomics are the first point to address. Is your chair, desk and computer setup for you? Checkout these tips for setting up your office and posture to reduce stress.

Short hourly breaks from computer work:
It has been shown in studies* that short 3-5 min breaks each hour from your computers will lower your stress and increase productivity. The break can mean a period of other work, not involving a computer, or a full break during where you do no work. Ideally, the alternate work should be as dissimilar from computer work as possible. Stretching will also help you lower stress and improve you performance.

So what kind of stress do you encounter at work? How do you deal with it? What do you think you could do better?

* As reported on PudMed.com a service of the National Library of Medicine
Henning RA, Jacques P, Kissel GV, Sullivan AB, Alteras-Webb SM.
Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut, Storrs 06269-1020, USA.

Popularity: 14% [?]

Welcome to the Jamcore Personal Training blog, the purpose of this blog is to interact with the health & fitness community and educate people on living a healthier lifestyle. I’m excited about our blog as it allows me to communicate directly with you! Remember, it’s a place where anyone can get in touch with the team and me so that we can help you meet your goals.

So let’s get to know each other: What are you here for? Do you want help with fitness, nutrition, or personal training (or all of these)? Do you want to live a healthy lifestyle and make some new friends?

How about becoming a JamCore ‘success story’ or one of our team trainers? We’ve made some great connections and keep growing. We’d also like to get out into the real world by planning events such as group trips, singles or community nights, training sessions, as well as many more exciting activities. Now that you’ve come this far, I truly hope we can help you take the next step to a life-long love of healthy living. So, let us know your ideas and welcome to JamCore Personal Training!

Popularity: 17% [?]