Training Blog- 08/22 ESP-XC

Well last week was not a good week for me.  The week started fine, but I finished with a popped rib.  This is my third one this year!  I don't know how or why I have been targeted for this rib popping but I'm done with this injury!  This first 2 ribs this year I was out 2 and 1 weeks respectively.  What can I say I have a high tolerance for pain, but this one was more painful than the last 2 it actually took my breath away!  So I don't know how long I will be out.  Since you use your core muscles for almost everything in BJJ, I'm gonna play it by ear.  Same with the ESP-XC workouts.  I can't do the Core stuff, I can't move too fast right now, so pretty much all exercises have been shelved for the time being!  This happens to me everytime I am working towards something.  I get to the point where I'm feeling great, training great in all aspects and boom I get injured.  I'm sick of it.  This weekend I was really down in the dumps... I haven't touched a beer in a while, but this weekend I made an exception.  I watched some football, drank some cold beers and ate some bad food to make me feel better LOL!  I know its just another bump in the road that I will have to overcome, I just need some time to recover fully again.  Once I've healed I will jump back on to that horse again, but until then there will not be a training blog!

Product Review- USP Labs Prime

For those of you that know me, know that I'm far from a body builder.  I workout and train BJJ, but a body builder is something that I will never be mistaken for.  With that being said I wanted to try something in conjunction with all the workouts that I have been doing from my training blog.  As most of you know all supplements work differently for everybody.   If you are like me and love taking supplements properly to help you achieve your goals, then you are already aware that USPLabs puts out great products, but of course   there really isn't that LEGAL magical pill out there that will help you get stronger, gain muscle mass, and stay lean.  Or is there???  I just finished taking PRIME from USP Labs, and let me tell you this supplement is as close to magic as they come.  When I first started taking them with in the first 2 or 3 weeks I noticed something different within my workouts.  Workouts that used to leave me on the brink of death, I somehow began to run through them and want more.  Weights that I would struggle getting the last 2 reps out of, I would finish the set easily and add more weight or reps to the next set.  When I first started using these pills I weighed 211 lbs, after one bottle of Prime I am at 216 right now.  Now you would think that my diet is horrible, but I will tell you that my diet is clean about 90% of time. It would be impossible for me to gain weight without gaining fat, right?  Here is the kicker to the whole thing, I gained this weight all while getting leaner!  I look leaner, my clothes fit more baggy, people have been asking me if I am losing weight, but really I'm not my numbers on the scale have increased, but my fat has not.

For you BJJ guys out there let me tell you how this helped me out on the mat.  Along with a proper diet and workout, Prime has given me on the mat:

1. Muscular Endurance beyond belief
2. Fantastic Recovery ability, in between sets, in between rolls with little rest, and very importantly in between those mad scrambles that you tend to have during the course of a rolling session.
3. Strength, now regardless what you may think, you use strength in BJJ.  You have to have strong grips, you have to be able to explode in certain occasions, if you are competing against some one with a similar skill level and weight as you, the person with the better strength and conditioning more than likely will come out victorious. 

So if you are like me and really want to excel on the mat, you put in extra work in the gym, and eat right.  This product maybe for you.  Combined with proper diet and workout regimen this may help you get to where you want to be.  I think this product is great for anyone not cutting weight, because of the size gains, but leaning up, gaining that needed extra strength and endurance, and recovery I give it a 10!  In the past 3 months I feel like my BJJ training has grown in leaps and bounds, not just from this pill, but putting in the work on and off the mats as well.  If you want to learn more about this product and all the other fine products USPLabs offers check them out here USPLABS Direct Product Page Now that I am out of the product I need to get some on order very soon!

Training Blog- 08/16 ESP-XC

Week 2 of the power phase has ended. Everything is still going strong. I have 2 more weeks in the current program and when that is done I plan on continuing down this same path. Maybe I do the power phase again or start over and do the strength phase again just to keep the workouts going. My time is very limited so I will have to see what and when I can do this again. The power phase is definitely not for the weak of heart. Its a good test for your physical conditioning. Tonight I will train BJJ for the first time since Thursday, our gym has moved locations so as an employee of the gym I was in the mix this weekend helping getting the new spot all set up. With this I had trouble getting all the workouts done in the correct order last week but I still got them done. So hopefully tonight I will hit the upper body workout and go from there.

Hahahaha check this "friendly" Muay Thai sparring match!

Training Blog- 08/8 ESP-XC

Still going strong... I finished up week one of the Power phase over the weekend with the cardio combo workout.  Last night was the beginning of week 2 and it started with the upper body workout.  Yesterday I trained in the MMA class and did some live training in the BJJ class.  I hadn't done an MMA class in probably about 2 years, since then I have been just sticking with BJJ.  I was surprised with the amount of the endurance I had while training in the MMA class, since it was something that I had been away from for a while.  I went through rounds of takedowns off the cage, rounds of getting back up while being up against the cage on my butt, a few rounds of side control drills,  and a couple rounds of no gi rolling.  It was kind of a accident that I did train because it was a small class and some of the bigger guys were going to be too tired to finish it so the instructor requested that I train with them to keep from dying.   So I did.  After that I did 3 rounds of Gi BJJ and my wind felt great.  After I left the academy I had to hit the garage for my upper body workout.  I did get very tired during this workout.  My heart rate was elevated throughout, but I was able to push through and finish every exercise including the finale which is 100 weighted punches.  The weighted punches were Left and right punch equals one rep.  By the end of the workout I was drenched with sweat!!!! 
Tonight I will train just BJJ and take a day off from the ESP-XC workout.  Today I am a little worn down and sore, I guess its from the MMA training since I haven't done it in a while.  Regardless my body just doesn't recover like used to and today was hell getting out of bed.  Hopefully tomorrow will be a better morning.

Training Blog- 08/03 ESP-XC

Second workout of the power phase was completed last night. It was an upperbody workout what had some full body exercises thrown in there. There was db snatch, chest clap push ups, db deadlift to pull and jump, and many more. It was a great workout, another one that had my heart rate pounding. I felt great afterwards, didn't get that same "I'm gonna die" feeling that I had the night after legs, but I definitely felt tired afterwards. This phase has you working out 4 days a week, so tonight I will be taking off and training BJJ.

Training Blog- 08/1 ESP-XC

Well I have completed the first two phases!  This past weekend I finished the final workouts and Monday I started the last phase which is the Power phase.  People from the gym who haven't seen me in a while always give me same reaction "damn man you are losing weight!"  I don't think I'm losing weight per say numbers wise but I feel like I am losing fat and leaning up quite a bit. 

As for the first power workout last night, it was legs!  All I can really say is "WHOA!!"  No exaggeration here whatsoever, I really thought I was going to die!  My heart was racing, my legs were like jello, and in the Texas heat in my garage I thought I was training in Hell!  The torture that I went through was a variation of many different plyometric type exercises that included but not limited to Jumping Romanian Deadlifts, split squat leaps, prisoner squat jumps, and many more.  It was a great workout!!  Nothing against the other two phases because I did like some of workouts there as well, but this was the type of stuff that I expected.  I totally get the fact that the other 2 phases were used to help you build up to this power phase, it makes total sense.  This phase I completely look forward to and at the same time will dread almost dying on a nightly basis.  I think this blog has just gotten a little better!  Stay Tuned

From the Mind of Babalu #8- Eating

Guys I know my site hasn't had much updates besides the training blogs.  I plan on changing that from here on out.  I could give you all the excuses in the world as to why I've been slacking but that will just take up more time than its worth.  So I am kicking things off here with another great installment of "From the Mind of Babalu"  Today's topic is my opinion of food, what we eat and what some people eat when trying to lose weight.  These are MY OPINIONS I'm not saying that they are the be all end all, its how I feel about food and what will help people maybe understand some things that they are doing wrong.  This all stems from a conversation that I was having with a few of the parents yesterday at the Academy.  So here it goes, if you had something to add please do so.
To lose weight, you have to eat food!  The end.... ok well really its not that easy, I am firm believer in calories in and calories burned.  I'm not a body builder or trying to look one so I'm really not concerned with macro nutrients such as Proteins and Carbs so much, yes they are important but for someone who is beginning to try to lose a little extra weight it just adds alot of confusion in my opinion.  So the most important thing is getting food in your system.  I've discussed before that maintaining and losing weight have a lot of determining factors such as the calories that you consume and the calories that you burn each day in your day to day activities which boil down to the calories that you need to maintain your weight and lose weight.  I have done the math for you in a previous post so I don't want to do that again ( I think) So if we take out the science of dieting and focus on eating and the kinds of foods you should eat this will help all beginning dieters take a step in the right direction.
First and foremost it is MY OPINION that everyone should have something for breakfast.  That something shouldn't include doughnuts (my love), kolaches (my second love), etc... Eggs is a great staple for breakfast!!!!  Not just egg whites but even the ENTIRE EGG!!!  I am not discounting people who just eat egg whites, because that used to be me, but I feel like the entire egg has some great nutrients and good fats for your body.... regardless what you may think GOOD FATS are GOOD for YOU!  Now of course you just don't want eat just eggs in the morning, I mean really how boring is that.  Everyone knows regular bacon is not great for you, even come to find out turkey bacon is just as bad.  So what kind of meat can you add to this so breakfast isn't boring???  What about Canadian Bacon, in the past year I have discovered that I really like this stuff, its very lean with some good proteins for you or even your everyday slice of ham is another way to satisfy your meat cravings in the morning.  Throw in a couple slices of WHOLE WHEAT Toast and you have a very complete breakfast.  Not a toast person, what about a whole wheat english muffin.  Whole wheat is the key here and if your eating bread and want to lose weight this is the route you take... I didn't make the rules I just follow them! If you don't like the bread part throw in some fruit instead, most fruits are good source of carbs for you so it would complete the breakfast just as toast would.  Other breakfast options may include:

• Whole Grain Oatmeal- the old fashioned kind that come in the big container from Quaker Oats.
• Cereal like Special K, Wheaties, whole grain Cheerios etc... not Coco Puffs or Trix
• If you are on the go, Subway has some great options for breakfast take a look at their menu

Another important item in your diet should be snacks.  You should eat something in between each meals that leave you satisfied and helps defeat those nasty cravings that we all give into.  Here are some snacks that I eat on daily basis, maybe you have different taste but these are just my options.

• Fruit- Bananas, apples, oranges, watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, I don't discriminate I eat all kinds of fruit.  Yes some have more sugar than others but who cares, its better than eating that snickers or my favorites Hostess cupcakes and chocolate frosted doughnuts!
• Tuna Fish, if you can get over the smell of this its a good snack just leave out the Mayo.  I will take a can of Albacore all white tuna add mustard, alittle dill relish and eat it on a whole wheat sandwich thin or regular whole wheat bread.  If you haven't seen the whole wheat sandwich thins check them out, they are good for snacking or even regular sandwiches for lunch.
• Peanut Butter, if you have a sweet tooth this will hit that craving.  You can add it to an apple or just eat a Peanut butter sandwich or on just toast.  Depending on the Peanut butter don't go crazy, I use an all natural PB called Smart Balance check it out.
• Lastly I eat alot of mixed nuts.  Just a handful here and there and you are satisfied.  Very easy and simple.

For Lunches and Dinners just eat in moderation.  Everyone knows what is good for them and what is not good for them.  Chicken Breast, Turkey Breast, Lean Beefs are all a staple of my diet.  Even ground turkey is a wonderful item to have in your freezer.  I eat in my spaghetti and can't tell a difference, but if you are having spaghetti use whole wheat pasta.  They have all kinds of whole wheat pasta from spaghetti noodle to elbow macaroni.  Veggies are good for you so eat them... it took me about 29 years to begin to enjoy veggies, but I eat them now with every meal not smothered in cheese either.  If you are a meat and potato kind of person, get a sweet potato instead of a regular potato.  You can do all kinds of things with Turkey and Lean beef you should be good to go, as well as a grilled chicken breast is simple and quick.  If you want to cheat, then cheat but do it in moderation and not every single day.  Then you just defeat the purpose, but there is no sense in craving something and not eating it.  That craving will be there with you forever until you breakdown and eat whatever it is you are craving and by that time you may eat WAY too much of it.  Just remember portion control, cheating in moderation, and you will be golden.

Those of you that know me, know that I am no Nutritionist, Dietician, or doctor.  You also know that I love food and if I want it I will usually eat it, but I follow my own rules as well.  Keep in mind that this isn't the only way to lose weight and be healthy.  There are many other ways to do this, but this is MY WAY of doing it and it has worked for me.  I have followed low carbs diets, paleo diets, diets that I had a menu to follow,  and they all worked, but always left me with terrible cravings.  So I usually eat what I want, to an extent and just work extra hard on the mat and in the gym to keep my weight under control.  I have breakdowns like yesterday and eat everything chocolate in sight but those days are few and far between.  Hope this helps you guys!

Training Blog- 7/29 ESP-XC

Friday is here, tonight I hit core/balance workout.  Tomorrow is another legs day and Sunday will be cardio and then finally I move to the next phase!  Like I said in the last post I feel like the workouts are paying off...  I feel great on the mat, my endurance has been great, strength wise I still feel great.  What does really make a difference is a clean diet.  My diet has been somewhat clean, as you all know throughout this process I have had my ups and downs diet wise.  I have tried to clean it up after my vacation and have done really good in that department.  I still allow myself one cheat day during the week and 2 cheat meals throughout the weekend.  My cheat days usually aren't terrible, but yesterday was an exception.  My sweet tooth showed its ugly face and I really felt sluggish training.  Well I guess I can't say sluggish it was more like just an off night.  Technique training was fine, but during live and situational training I made some stupid mental goofs that left me pissed off.  So the lesson I learned through this is diet is really important for me.  I can't eat this sweet junk and think that my body will perform for me the way I need to.  I love sweets just as much as the next person but from now on I will not use it to fuel my body. 

I look forward to starting the power phase of this workout.  This workout program is nearing the finish line but in no way is going to be the end for me.  With the way my schedule is set up, I may not be able to workout 5-6 times a week but I will with a doubt continue to use this program in some capacity once its finished.  I feel the hardwork paying off and see the results in the mirror (well at least I do) So far the workout is doing what its supposed to do in my eyes.  And just to think about 4 years ago I was a 270 lbs 28% bodyfat former athlete who was fat, miserable and making excuses for my fatness.  Now being about 213 lbs and 13-14% my journey is not done.  I still have a ways to go, I won't win any bodybuilding contests but I am much happier now then I was then with myself.

Training Blog- 7/23 ESP-XC

So I've made a decision... I'm not going to flood this page with posts every single day... There is not enough hours in the day and plus, I do not want bore you guys.  So I'm gonna do maybe 2 posts a week on this subject and give you same information that I have been giving you.
 
Saturday morning I rolled 3 ten min rounds!  They were all fun and Poppa Rotzee got some of the action on video.  The past few times on the mat I really feel the fruits all of the hard work I've been putting in with the ESP-XC workouts.  I feel stronger rolling, I am able to go long rounds with out muscle fatigue.  They are starting to pay off.  Saturday evening I had to hit 2 workouts in one day because of a busy Friday so I did upper body and Core/ Balance.  The strength and muscle endurance is starting to show here as well.  I'm really rolling through these workouts.  Feeling great doing them, making sure my form and posture are on point all the time.  Honestly I was a decently strong dude before the workouts, but this is something a little different.  I'm not getting to that exhausted muscle state, but still feel like I'm getting a great workout.  What it tells me is that these work outs are well... working out for me!  Last night 07/25 I did the lower body portion of the Strength phase.  As a matter of fact I started week 4 last night!  One more week and I move on to the Power phase.  I haven't looked at the videos of this yet, but just by looking a the listed exercises and knowing some of them I can tell it will be a challenge.  Tonight is a bjj night and another workout but I don't know yet which one.   Later next week I will upload blog, until then see ya!

Training Blog 07/19-07/20 ESP-XC

So the past couple of days have been great.  Tuesday night I put in some work on the mats, we did about 45 mins of what we call competition training.  Competition training is starting standing up, so it includes takedowns and BJJ.  We go until the first points are scored or some is submitted.  Its like a king of the mat format so if you win you going to have to deal with some who is rested.  These are the toughest trainings because everyone is going full speed. 

Last night, was a lower body workout.  I feel myself getting stronger in almost all these exercises.  I am able to complete each set with a higher weight from when I first started the Strength phase.  During this workout I felt really great, I was motivated to get going last night and made myself push through every rep.  It was really strange last night because something was different, I usually find myself really laboring through these leg workouts and feeling pretty spent afterwards.  Last night I was going through the exercises one by one with relative ease.  I didn't start getting worn out until the last couple of exercises, but even then I still had some left in the tank.  I'm not completely sure but I think tonight is a core/balance workout.  I should be doing this after BJJ so it could be interesting.

Training Blog- 07/18 ESP-XC

So after a week of vacation of eating bad, drinking, and doing nothing else I got back to the grind last night with week 3 of the Strength phase.  Last night was an upper body workout and felt great to really get back in the swing of things.  The workout didn't kill like I thought it would but, I really felt great throughout the workout and this morning woke up feeling pretty energized.  Which was short lived because it is now 9 AM here and I'm sleepy!  I'm not sure what workout is on tap for tonight, but I will on the mats tonight and expect to sweat out some of the junk I put into my system this past week.  After the BJJ I will be doing another workout so it should be interesting to see how I feel during and after the workout.

Rickson Gracie Interview

There aren't many people out there that when you say their first name only, that people know who you are talking about.  Here is a great interview I just ran across with one of the Legends on the mats Mr. Rickson Gracie.  If I would have just said Rickson, all of you would have know exactly who I was talking about.

Rad Martinez and his Promise

I saw this a few days ago and wasn't able to get it up on the site until now.  This is a very touching story of a man named Rad Martinez and up an coming MMA star in Utah that made a promise to his Grandmother before she passed away.  I've said it before and I will say it again, this story shows me that there are still some great human beings out there.  Rad puts his family and their needs before anything that he does.  Do you think you could do the same?  Watch this story.  Rad I hope you continue down your path and hope great things come your way.

Training Blog- 07/6 ESP-XC

Tuesday after BJJ class I was feeling a bit under the weather so I decided to take the day off from the ESP-XC workout and get some much needed rest.  I felt sluggish all day that day, and forced myself to get on the mats that evening, thought I could sweat it out... well after not having a great time on the mats I felt some rest was in order.  So I picked up where I had left off last night.  It was an Upper body day and I felt great.  I got a great sweat in the Texas heat and was able to go through the entire workout without a problem.  Again I'm really pushing myself trying to get the most out of each rep and really focusing on doing each rep very slow and controlled.  Tonight will be a core and balance workout.  I will let you know how that goes.