I received an interesting email from one of my Fit Fun Bootcampers Angela. You may remember she is the one with only one arm that made a really cool video about the process she goes through before bootcamp to put her other arm on, and what she is able to do in the workout. In case you missed it here it is.
Here was her question:
Hey Dustin,
I don’t know if this is a more appropriate forum for my comments or not but I am trying to refrain from writing random thoughts on your blog that don’t answer the question you ask 
Awhile ago you wrote about a long bike ride you took and asked yourself the question “why do I do this?”. I get this question a lot, mostly due to the 5:30 bootcamp start time. I usually throw out the very profound “because it’s fun”. I decided to ask myself this question, not only as it relates to bootcamp but with the martial arts stuff I do as well. Obviously it isn’t always “fun” so there must be more there. I tried out the “it’s just what I do/who I am” thing, but again it is a choice, so there is more to it. I’m still working on figuring out what is true for me but I do know what the answer should be. Although on the surface it isn’t more profound, your reposting of your interview with Megan reminded me that the answer should simply be, “because I can”. I don’t know if I see it as a responsibility, or what I think of the “to whom much is given, much is expected” idea. I do know how lucky I am to be able to run the hill, even if it isn’t always fun. I’d be interested in knowing what you came up with for an answer (and everyone else for that matter). Can you make it an official blog question sometime?
Thanks for all you do!
Angie
Here are a couple of my thoughts.
-The feeling I get immediately after the workout.
-The sense of accomplishment.
-The adage, how you do one thing is how you do everything… If I slacked in my workout, quit early, or didn’t try hard, it would be the same way with any other area of my life.
-I always want to be getting better as a person in all areas, so I want to continually improve my body.
-The knowing and belief that exercise will help me feel better long term, allow me to do whatever I want, give me more energy… etc…
Hope that helps!
Dustin
Question: Why Do You Workout Hard and Push Your Body?
The possibilities of different exercises are endless if you have a knowledge of the body and how it moves in addition to a little creativity. In this CBS episode I show some exercises you can do on a picnic table. My guest today is Emily a Fit Fun Bootcamp veteran of over two years. Like we mention in the video, she is 48 years old, but doesn’t look a day over 35. Her positive energy and enthusiasm is contagious and we are very blessed to have her in our bootcamps.
Question of the day: What are some fun workouts you do outside?
Recently ABC came to Fit Fun Bootcamps to try to experience what a workout with us was like. They got in for a playground workout that really hit every singe muscle group. Enjoy the video and I hope it give you some new ideas when you are out at the park.
I have been receiving numerous questions about detoxing and if it is worth it or not. I have studied detoxification a little bit, but I wouldn’t consider myself an expert, so I asked Tracie to help out with the subject.
If you want to check out her facebook page click here: http://www.facebook.com/itsyourplate
Please click here to find out more about an upcoming 8 week seminar series that Tracie Hittman Nutrition is hosting starting on the 28th of this month. You do not want to miss it!!! If you would like more information about Tracie please check out her website at www.itsyourplate.com.
If you are looking for one of the most complete and best cleanse programs I have ever seen, click this link. This 30 day cleanse is from world renown trainer and my good friend Yuri. The thing I really like about the cleanse is that it is all natural and doesn’t involve fake things or supplements. Yuri uses natural foods in specific order to clean out and cleanse your body. This comprehensive program is definitely worth the investment. Click here to check it out.
Here is what you get
Question of the Day: Have You Tried a Cleanse Before? If So, What Did You Experience?
I like to show a lot of big transformations to help get you excited and motivated to make change.
Click here to see how boot camp changed Kris forever…
Click here to see how the resistance training changed Tracy’s life…
I know that for every 1 quick transformation, there are another 5-10 that are much slower. Maybe it is because a person is struggling to follow the plan, or that their body is out of whack hormonally and is being stubborn by holding onto the body fat. Whatever the case may be, it can be very discouraging for people who lose slowly to see that others have lost 15-20 lbs. in 1-2 months. I totally understand this, and I believe Melissa’s story will encourage those of you who do feel this way.
Melissa is an amazing mom who, even though she still feels like she struggles quite a bit, has made massive changes in her life and health. Despite the struggles, she is well on her way to achieving optimal health, and I am 100% convinced she will get there even if it does take her a little while longer.
I didn’t get this blog post up for a few months, so you can see that the dates are a little outdated and I hope Melissa can fill us in on how she is currently doing.
I want to thank Melissa for sharing her story and supporting so many women. When I first met her, I didn’t see a spark in her; she seemed very tired and worn out all the time. It is unbelievable how different she is now! She is a totally different person to be around, she has more energy and her spark is very strong. Ultimately, I think this is far more important than weight loss or body changes.
So check out Melissa’s Story!
Measurements:
Before (Jan 2009) Now (April 2010)
Bust 38 35.5
Waist 32.5 30.5
Abs 37.5 35.5
Hips 43.5 41.5
Thigh 23 21.5
Arm 12.25 11.5
Here’s my story:
Before I had kids I was very active and ate pretty well.
When my first son was born he had colic and didn’t sleep very much. I developed postpartum depression and completely stopped taking care of myself. What little energy I did have was devoted to taking care of him.
Melissa before
A couple years after my Husband had me seek help, I felt much better. I still hadn’t lost all the weight from my first child but decided I was ready for our second. Thankfully, my second son was a much easier baby. I still felt that most of my time should be spent on my children and that it was selfish to take time for myself before everyone else was taken care of. The problem was there was never any time left to take for myself.
I didn’t even recognize the person I saw in the mirror any more. I started to resent my kids for making me give up everything I was. It took me a little time to realize that it was MY fault I didn’t know who I was anymore, and to be a good mom I needed to take time for myself. I needed to make sure I was happy and taken care of just as much as the rest of the family. I needed to make a change now.
I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep myself motivated working out alone and gym classes were OK but I wanted more. Then I stumbled on Dustin’s classes and decided to try the Mama Tone class. I loved it! I started going to Mama Tone about once a week (when the kids weren’t sick). I really struggled with feeling guilty about taking time for myself. I started feeling much better and had more energy.
Melissa now
After I went back to work I joined bootcamp and have been going 3 or 4 days per week ever since. That was about 9 months ago. So far I’ve lost 14 pounds and 3 sizes. I still have about 20 more pounds to go, but for me it’s more about making a lifestyle change that I can sustain than about rapid weight loss.
I’ve started focusing more on my eating and getting my giant sweet tooth under control. When I get sweet cravings I have a piece of fruit instead of a candy bar. I’ve been incorporating more fat in my diet to try to avoid the blood sugar crashes from too many sweets and carbs. I have learned how to balance the ratio of carbs, protein, and fat in my meals. The only fats I use are coconut oil, butter and a little olive oil on my salads. I’ve also noticed I’m less prone to cravings throughout the day if I have a really big breakfast in the morning. I still really love chocolate, so I stick with at least 70% cocoa because I don’t eat nearly as much of the dark chocolate.
I’m still not consistent with keeping a food journal but I plan out the entire weeks meals before I go grocery shopping. When I know I have something healthy and filling planed out, I’m much less likely to eat junk food. On the weeks I don’t plan, I feel hungry, tired and crummy all week. We also get most of our fruit, veggies, eggs and meat from CSA shares. It makes it a lot easier to eat organic and in-season healthy foods. I once again love to cook and now that my kids are a little older they can help out. I’ve built up my collection of quick healthy meals and stopped relying on processed foods. On Sundays I make a meal that’s more involved and double or triple it so that I have backup dinners in the freezer for times when what I had planned just won’t work.
Melissa's goal
I never though I’d be able to sustain getting up at 5:00am every morning to go workout. But bootcamp has become the best part of my day! I’ve been having a lot of back trouble lately and have been stuck on a plateau for a couple months now but I’m just going to keep
doing the best I can and I’m sure I’ll drop the remaining 20 pounds. So stay tuned!
Dustin here again: I totally understand frustration and feeling like there is little progress happening. Here are a couple things I would like you to remember.
1. Enjoy the journey. I am a total type A person, so when I reach a goal I set a new one bigger and better. I find myself beginning to just live my life goal to goal never being satisfied or enjoying how I am changing as a person and the results I have already achieved. So what I would encourage you to do is write down everything you have achieved relating to your health. It doesn’t have to be big.
2. Realize numbers aren’t everything. Yes I tell you to weigh yourself, measure yourself, and get your body fat taken, but although these are measures of progress, there are so many other measures that can’t be defind by numbers. Make a list of all the bad habits you have broken. All the new healthy habits you have formed, and the people you have influenced.
3. Be thankful for a body that can take you from place to place and do what you tell it to. We never know when that could get taken away from us. If you remember back, I shared with you a powerful story of a teenage girl named Megan who instantly became paralyzed. In this interview I get the closest ever to crying when interviewing someone. Her attitude and presence was powerful. I am getting goosebumps right now typing this. So please check out her video and story.
Question to answer on this blog: We have all experienced times when we don’t think we are getting the results we deserve. Instead of dwelling on that, what changes HAVE YOU MADE? I look forward to seeing your responses.
I look forward to hearing your responses to the question at the bottom of the post.
I want to share a story with you that happened to me sophomore year in high school, which was 10 years ago, and the valuable lessons that have helped shape me into who I am today.
It was spring time, which meant prom season. I wasn’t dating anybody, so I needed to find a girl that I would have fun with at prom. I had a list of girls I was thinking about asking, but the one that I really wanted to ask, wasn’t even on my list because I didn’t think I was good enough for her, or deserved it.
Let me back up a moment. I would describe my high school popularity as average, I was a decent athlete but not all-star, I didn’t party like many of the other guys, and I was in all the advanced college classes. So I was friends with everyone, but not close with any specific click. I had average self esteem, but very poor confidence level.
The girl I really wanted to ask was THE GIRL that every guy had their eye on. Not only was she extremely attractive, she had high morals and standards. The only problem was that she had a boyfriend a couple towns away from where we went to school. But word quickly spread in my large high school that her boyfriend didn’t want to go to prom with her and she was looking to go with someone.
I remember that day thinking, could I actually get the hottest and most popular girl to go to prom with me? “No, never I told myself.” As time went on she was not getting asked out even though just about every guy wanted desperately to do so, but nobody had the balls to do it.
I had a conversation with my parents about it and they told me something that stuck with me, “Dustin, you are a great guy and a great catch and you deserve the best. So why not ask her out.”
What, my ultra conservative parents actually encouraging me to ask her out?
This was all I need to take the massive leap of nerves and faith to ask her out.
My prom date!
That evening I wrote a long letter telling her that I wanted to ask her out and that I knew she had a boy friend and I would treat her right. I had a class with her and it was test day, and I had to wait until the end of the class to give her the letter. That was the longest test of my life! I quickly went over to her desk and said, “Hey I was wondering if you would be my date for prom, but before you respond please read this letter.”
The next hour seemed like eternity, but the end of the day came and she approached me (she was very shy) and said yes. To say I was excited would be an understatement. I decided to try to not make a big deal about it, but word spread like wildfire in the 2000 plus student high school, and I instantly became the most popular guy, even if it were just for a few weeks.
High School Basketball
I would be walking down the hall and guys would be yelling things like “Stud” and congratulating me. Even some teachers were congratulating me for taking the chance. I even had a senior who was very popular stop me in the hall and tell me nice job.
The next week was weird because between my excitement and nervousness of prom coming up, I lost my appetite. I weigh about 200 lbs right now and back then I was still about 6’4 and only weighed about 165 lbs. That week I lost 7 lbs!
Prom went off without a hitch and we had a great time. At least I did, I hope she did as well.
Why do I share this story with you?
There were many lessons I learned from this that have helped me achieve all I have since then. I am in a great relationship now and not looking, but if I were single and interested in a girl, I would have no intimidation or anxiety in approaching her.
Here are some of the lessons I learned:
1. Most things that are great in life take risk and chance. Sure there was risk in me asking her, because she could say no and I might feel rejection. But, I decided that the possible positive outcome was worth the risk.
2. Getting told no, isn’t really a big deal. So what if she would have said no. I wouldn’t have had a chance to go with her if I didn’t ask her in the first place. So I was no worse off if she said no.
3. Don’t be afraid to ask. So many times we disqualify ourselves and psyche ourselves out of doing something because we are scared. We need to live our lives in a state of fear, I believe staying in our comfort levels have devastating consequences towards achieving our goals and dreams.
4. I deserve the best and am worthy of it, so why not go for the best. Changing my self image allowed me to see what was possible, when I saw what was possible I took the necessary actions to make it a reality.
5. Celebrate small successes. It is much easier to do something uncomfortable, if you have had small successes in the past. This made it much easier to approach other girls in the future, as well as future clients, and business partners.
So I challenge you! When it comes to your health and fitness, what have you disqualified yourself from by saying you don’t have enough time, you are too old, you are too out of shape, you don’t have the money, you will wait until later, I don’t deserve a healthier body than my family? Whatever limiting beliefs you are telling yourself, stop it now! They are lies that will keep you from getting what you want.
I have a couple great resources if you realize you have been not experiencing the health and fitness in your life that you deserve and can achieve.
If one of your desires is to have a strong core that not only looks good, but is going to keep you from experiencing back pain, I challenge you to invest $29.95 in my Got Core DVDs and put the DVD in and do 1 of the 8 15 minute workouts on the stability ball. Do that 3 times per week and believe that your core will be stronger than ever, and I promise you it will! Click here to learn more about the Got Core DVDs.
Another self limiting belief I hear about those thinking about coming to my Fit Fun Bootcamps is, “I have to first get in shape before I start.” You have no idea how frustrated I get when I hear that. If you are ready to make drastic changes, we are ready to help you transform your life. So if you live in the Dane County area feel free to come check out Fit Fun Bootcamps for a FREE WEEK and see if it is the right program for you.
Here is my question: What limiting beliefs have prevented you from attaining the health and fitness that you rightfully deserve and what belief will you now tell yourself.
My mom is back with another great recipe. It has been awhile since she has shared her favorite recipes that she creates or modifies in the testing kitchen. I have had these muffins a couple times and I would say they taste “good” or “healthy,” not quite like biting into a nice soft chocolate chip muffin, but definitely good tasting and packed with protein, fiber, healthy fats, and whole grains. Here she is! Well, Dustin ate salads on the 4th as a bit of a mini cleanse; today we will add a whole lot of fiber to those salads in the form of a healthy muffin. My friend Terrie would sit beside me at my woman’s group at church and share her awesome muffins with me-I finally got her recipe (originally from Prevention but she changed it up too) and played around with it and here is what I have come up with so far-trying to work in extra protein and coconut as well as the fiber 
. 
Terrie’s Muffins: 2 peeled oranges 1 c. honey or sugar 1 c. coconut milk 1/2 c. applesauce 1 mashed banana 2 eggs 1 tsp. baking soda Put all in the food processor and mix 1 1/2 c. oat bran 1 c. ground flaxseed 2 scoops prot. pwd. 1 c. oat flour 1 c. unsweetened dried coconut 1/2 c. ground almonds 1/2 tsp. seasalt 1 Tbsp. baking pwd. 1 Tbsp. cinnamon 
Stir and add to liq. mix. Add up to 3 c. of any combination of the following: raisins, chopped dried apricots, chopped dates, raisins, chopped dried apples or peaches, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, or whatever else you have around! (scissors work well in snipping dried fruit) Bake at 400 degrees for 20 min. Makes around 30-35 small muffins. If you make them bigger, be sure to bake them longer-there is so much liquid that they can remain mushy inside. I like to bake one trial muffin to be sure to get the time right and not ruin a whole batch! When I experimented with this recipe, I just tried to keep the same ratio of liq./dry ingred. The applesauce was in place of the original half cup. of oil…..use coc. oil if you wish, or, I also used 2 bananas last time instead of the applesauce. Sweetness: I first made it with some org. sugar (I like Sucanat), and last time with honey. Dustin and I agree that the batch with honey could be sweeter, but two more taste testers, Sabrina and Charell, said sweet enough! So far I have not been into baking with stevia, but have read those cookbooks and need to try. For the oranges, I peel just a thin layer off and leave as much of the white stuff that has the flavanoids; if you don’t have a food processor, blend them, then just use your beaters for the rest of the liq. ingred. For the coc. milk, I like to use the Thai Kitchen brand, full fat; shake up the can good before opening, in case you haven’t used it before. I realize you could freak out at the fat content and calories, but go to www.itsyourplate.com and let Tracie educate you about coc. products.…they are wonderful! The original recipe calls for buttermilk….you could use a combination. 
For the dry ingred., just use what you have around in whole grain things; again, Tracie has suggestions about grains that are easier on your digestion than others, but in the meantime, start with what you have. For the oat flour, I just use my seed grinder and organic oats. Skip the prot. pwd. if you don’t have any around-PLEASE don’t go out and buy some with fake sugars!! This should be gluten free as is, I think, providing those oats are not contaminated by equipment…..those of you into this can correct me! I actually did spend the time and figure out all the carbs and fats, etc., but with all the variables, I’ll just let it go at the cals being under 200, if not huge, and know that sometimes a healthy investment is worth a smoothly running digestive system . Dustin likes to grab these on the run to bootcamp in the morning….I was able to send out a batch last week when “little” bro Chris came to spend some vacation time with you all in beautiful Madison! He had an awesome time, inspite of the fact that big bro dominated in MANY games of frisbee golf!
Well, time for you to share your experiments-my favorite part, you know .
Keep eating…..healthy! Dustin’s Mom~Joy
Here are some of my mom’s past recipes.
30 Healthy Snacks, 21 Healthy Snacks, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Tofu Pie, Pureed Vegetables, Roasted Veggies, Quinoa, Chicken, Omelet, Pizza, Guacamole, Hummus, Carrot Soup Campfire Food Protein Bars 7 Day Meal Plan
The past 18 months I have flown more than all my other years combined. Traveling can be a stressful and tough time to make healthy choices. But when I hear people saying the can’t eat healthy when traveling, or use the excuse that it is impossible to make healthy choices, it really gets me upset. These are just excuses to help make us feel better. I had a bootcamper recently tell me she was having trouble eating healthy because she lives alone and doesn’t cook. Again, that is just another excuse to help justify a current behavior. Sure things might not be ideal, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make the right choice with a little planning. Jillian Michaels from the Biggest Loser, has probably logged close to a million frequent flier miles since the start of Biggest Loser, but I have heard many interviews with her explaining that she refuses to eat any processed food and packs all natural all organic snacks and meals. It shows in the way her body still looks despite the fact she says sometimes she goes weeks without working out.
Ok, I will get off my soap box now…
I am writing this from UC Irvine, just got done with a great workout with my friend Andrew and we are headed to the Huntington beach. Yesterday I had 10 hours of travel with a 4.5 hour layover. I wanted to show you how I am able to make healthy choices when traveling.
I have to give a shout out to my girl friend Abby who made these snacks for me to take.
What are some of your strategies you use when traveling and trying to eat healthy?
Summer is in full swing and finding places to workout while you are with your kids becomes important. Playgrounds can provide an great array of equipment that you just can’t find in your house. Marsue, my trainer for the Oregon and McFarland Fit Fun Bootcamps, puts together insane playground workouts using bands, ropes, and TRXs (I might try to film a video sometime of her doing this). But sometimes you don’t have any equipment at all, so I have put together 3 exercises that you can do at the playground. Sure you might get some looks and some negative comments, but usually you don’t want to look or feel like the person that is doing the ridiculing or staring.
My little brother was in town and he made his TV debut. I think he did very good! He is a great example of not letting genetics be an excuse to getting in shape. All through high school he was about 6’4 and only weighed 160 lbs and got made fun of for it. The past few years he has changed his diet and works out extremely hard and has put on about 50 lbs of muscle and now weighs 15 lbs more than me and is quite a bit stronger than me.
A couple more of my favorite playground exercises are:
-Knee tucks on the swing: Be in a pushup position, hands on the ground and feet up in the swing. Pull the knees into the chest.
-Swing rollouts: Put your forearms in the swing and kneel on the ground, slowly lean forward straightening out your arms. This works the deep core.
-Dips on parallel bars: This is more advanced but you put your hands on two parallel bars and lower your body down until your shoulders are at your elbow height, and then press back up.
Do You Have Any Ideas, Suggestions, Or Comments About the Playground Workouts?
Melissa Before at a Size 10
I am excited to share another success story from a woman named Melissa. She goes to Mt Horeb’s bootcamp with my awesome instructor Deb.
Check out her story:
It all started on June 28th 2009 when I went to check out to see what boot camp was all about. (Thanks to my good friend Jody who is such an inspiration to me and many friends!) I honestly thought that I was in pretty good shape. HA! I really got my butt kicked that day and what a wake-up call it was for me. I knew when I left there that day that I had to join and make some improvements in my life. I’ve been going ever since and I’ve improved my speed, strength, and endurance.
I love how I feel on the days I go to Boot Camp. I feel like I’m a better person with a better attitude, more patience and I get so much more accomplished on boot camp days. That one good decision I made by getting up and going to boot camp leads to other good decisions like eating healthy and going for jog on my lunch hour.
The way I look at food now has really changed and I have gotten to the point where I really don’t have to think about it. I used to read every label, measure and try to figure out what was best. Now, it’s become more natural for me: I know portions and what the best options are. Most of my groceries are now bought in the produce section or at the farmers market. I now make sure that there are veggies in everything I eat.
In the morning I usually cook up some mushrooms and tomatoes in olive oil and add 1 beaten egg (kind of like an omelet that isn’t folded). I usually have a snack around 10 am, which is usually an apple (or some sort of fruit) and string cheese. For lunch I normally have a spinach salad (which is funny because I never used to like spinach and now eat it almost every day!) My spinach salad has a few almonds, a few craisins, or I change it up by slicing a strawberry or two on it or cutting up an apple. My dressing is an oil/vinegar dressing that I combine from Vom Fass (wonderful place on University Avenue). My current dressing I use ½ TBS of Hazelnut Oil and ½ TBS Waldburg Star Forest Raspberry balsamic vinegar –yummy! I also never leave the house to come to work without a can of tuna – I have tuna almost every single day now.
Melissa Currently Wearing a Size 4 Dress
I have a family, so for supper, I cook for them and have changed their way of eating now too. I never make potatoes anymore and try not to have carbs at supper time. I basically have a make your own salad bar most nights and I make grilled chicken or some sort of meat that goes with the salad, but everything is now centered around the salad or veggie. With my family I also have make your own wraps. Mine looks a lot different than my husbands, because I load mine with spinach, salad peppers, tomatoes, deli turkey (and I do a mixture of a little mayo and a lot of mustard to avoid having only mayo). Mustard has pretty much replaced the mayo in my life. I keep a 22 oz. cup at my desk and drink water all day long. Now this isn’t a perfect world and I do have a lot of outings with friends and parties with unlimited food options… but I do feel I make better choices now in these situations than I did in the past!!!
Some additional tricks I’ve learned are… When I eat bread – I only eat 100% whole-wheat (the 45 calorie bread). If I make a sandwich, I use mustard instead of mayo and always add lettuce/tomatoes to get veggies in it. I eat brown rice as a side, but limit my portion of it! I also drink 1% milk (I used to have 2%) and eat 1% cottage cheese. If I have cereal in the morning, the first thing I do is put blueberries in the bowl so there will be less room for cereal. I make stir fries for supper with extra virgin olive oil or my garlic grape seed oil. I also like making shish kabobs, sometimes with chicken, sometimes with beef, scallops or shrimp. They are fun to grill and you can change up the veggies and even have pineapple on them. If we stop somewhere as a family for fast food, I usually order grilled chicken and tell them not to put the mayo on it. We don’t go out to dinner often but, when we do I try the different seafoods they have to offer, like grilled tilapia / grilled shrimp or take their small filet and will order veggies or a baked sweet potato as a side.
Here is a quick little video from the Fit Fun Bootcamp Melissa goes to!
All of these changes have really paid off. I don’t weigh myself anymore, but enjoy the fact I can wear a size 8 dress pants and actually have them be a little loose on me. One of the best moments was when my mom and I went shopping a couple months ago and she had me try on a dress that I fell in love with. We never looked at the size of the dress and I would have never tried it on if I would have looked at the size ahead of time, because here it was a size 4. (I’ve double checked the size on the tag a few times just to make sure.) That day I got home and emailed Deb, our instructor in Mt. Horeb, and thanked her and boot camp for changing me! I’ve never felt better ~ I’ve been in boot camp 1 year now, and I’m planning on staying for a long time!!! Thanks Dustin for your great program!
