Todd Durkin Tips for Success

My favorite conference every year is the 3-day Functional Training Summit hosted by Perform Better. One of the speakers who is all about HIGH ENERGY is Todd Durkin. Recently, Todd presented his 83 tips to make this year your best ever. Check them out below:

Be the most positive person you know.

Get 1% better everyday.

Define your “game-changing” move in 2011. Then get it done!

Take more risks.

Do something that scares you everyday.

Regardless of your title at work, be a team-builder.

Remember that business is about relationships & connections.

People need motivation, accountability, and know how. Deliver it to them.

Write your eulogy and then live your life backwards.

Know your Big 5: the 5 most important things that need to happen by the end of the year to make it feel like it truly has been the best year of your life.

Read your Big 5 every morning.

Post affirmations on your bathroom mirror.

Don’t focus on making money; Focus on creating value.

Leaders execute & get results. No excuses.

Strive to be ‘World Class’ in all you do.

Read The 4 Agreements by Dom Miguel Ruiz.

Train like a pro athlete; Exercise more.

Eat higher quality foods.

Get a massage one time per week.

Attend 1 destination spa vacation per year.

Have at least one other “dream” vacation per year.

No one has ever regretted a great workout.

Be obsessed with learning.

Be part of a Mastermind Group. It will accelerate your results, positively affect your mindset, and provide you fertile soil in which to grow.

Be impeccable with your words; Don’t complain, gossip, or be negative.

Be careful with who you surround yourself with. Just as much as the right people can push you up, the wrong crowd can bring you down.

Plan as if you will live forever but live as if you’ll die tomorrow.

Say ‘please’, ‘thank you’, and ‘I love you’ more.

Give someone a massage.

Write love-letters like you used to.

Call up someone you always wanted to talk to but never thought you could.

Call up an old coach or teacher and thank them for positively impacting your life.

If you want to resolve a conflict, call them instead of emailing them.

Write a hand-written note to a client or customer.

When you travel, send letters to your kids on hotel stationary.

If you want more, GIVE more.

Do or do not, there is no try.

The way you do one thing, is the way you do everything.

Journal. What are you thankful for? What are your intentions for the day? Whom do you pray for today? Where was I outstanding today?

Clarity precedes genius. You can find clarity in writing and in times of solitude.

Track your success.

Slow down in order to speed up.

Be willing to fail. It’s the price of greatness.

Spend at least 10 minutes every AM in quiet time, prayer time, or meditation time.

Listen to inspirational music. Create your favorite play list for chilling out as well as working out.

Listen to books on tape and podcasts.

Read The IMPACT Body Plan!

Read the 7 Habits of Highly Successful People.

Read Robin Sharma. The Leader Without a Title; The Greatness Guide; The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari.

Watch the Rocky “marathon” with your kids on a rainy day.

Do what you do best and hire the rest.

Sometimes good is good enough. Don’t let “perfectionism” rob you of getting things done.

“Color code your life” says my mentor, Wayne Cotton. Green machine, blue sky, red tape, and mellow yellow. Visit www.nobrowndays.com for more information.

Complete a 90 Day Wonder. What have I accomplished in the last 90 days? What are my current challenges? What will I accomplish in the next 90 days?

Remember the 10,000 hour rule. It often takes about 10,000 hours or 10 years to be recognized as an “expert.”

Success takes time. Be patient, but continually invest in yourself.

Work on your business, not in your business.

Your big ideas typically come when you are sitting on a beach or skiing in the mountains.

Hire only “A” rate players; otherwise you will have an organization made up of average people creating a mediocre business.

Cut the bottom 10% of your players.

Everyone in an organization should be considered a “leader.”

Always believe in your dreams, even when they don’t seem possible or other people doubt you.

Focus, focus, focus!

“Water people everyday”—lift people up instead of tearing people down.

One quick “No” is better than 10 “maybe’s” or “I don’t know’s.”

Win the day!

Remember what Walt Disney said, “Everything speaks!”

Be more spontaneous.

Develop a hobby.

The bigger the dream, the more important the team.

Run your own race; Be authentic and original.

Speak more, write more, read more.

Turn OFF your TV!

Eliminate excuses.

Track your success.

Organize your time more effectively.

“Eat that Frog” says Brian Tracy. Do the things that you don’t like to do or want to do but have to do early in your day.

Get your mind right!

Do more of what you love to do.

Action is like gas in the car. Without it, you will not go.

Be humble…be hungry.

Create IMPACT everyday.

Live by the mantra, “And then some.”

Woburn, MA Group Exercise feedback

I wrapped up an 8-week Grp. Ex. program last week with a WONDERFUL group in Woburn, MA. It's my third time back there and it seems we have more fun and work harder every time I visit. At the conclusion of each class, I hand out evaluation forms and always enjoy looking over them- particularly if they come back good :-)

Here are a few comments based on the program I just concluded:

• "Paul explained every exercise as we were participating and made sure we were doing it the correct way...he made the program awesome!"
• "Paul Connolly gives a great class/workout. His knowledge of activity, nutrition, and what our bodies need to perform at their best, is unmatched! It's a rewarding and beneficial experience for me."
• "Paul was most respectful of our ages and abilities."
• "...enthusiastic instructor helped keep me motivated. His weekly emails were informative, and a good reminder to keep up with fitness in between classes."
• "Paul made the class fun with his great sense of humor."
• "Paul was great at pushing us to do more than we think we can do."
• "Paul Connolly demonstrated all exercises so that I could follow. I did more than I thought I could. I thought the entire program was beneficial to me."
• "Paul is the 'Trainer Bob' (Biggest Loser) of Woburn."
• "Paul's class was full every week. People did not try it and quit- they kept coming which indicates that it was a success!"
• "I appreciated Paul's positive approach."
• "Paul's upbeat personality is motivating and his expectations are appropriate."
• "The class was great. I really noticed an improvement in my balance and my abs felt tighter."
• "Paul was so motivating and I enjoyed his program once again."

Nutrition Rules

Strength Coach Jason Ferrugia recently posted his top 50 nutrition rules and I wanted to share a few of my favorites:

• Drink half your bodyweight in ounces of water per day.
• Make sure your fish is wild caught and not farm raised.

• Rotate your food choices. Don’t eat the exact same thing day after day.
• Buy locally at farmers markets as much as possible. Stick it to the man.

Nutrition Labels finally arriving on meat products

On March 1, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced that packages of ground or chopped meat and poultry, such as hamburger or ground turkey, will now feature panels containing nutrition facts on their labels. Yahoo! Additionally, 40 of the most popular whole, raw cuts of meat and poultry, such as chicken breast or steak, will also have nutritional information either on the package labels or on display to consumers at the store.

Excellent Playground Workout

Interesting video

High Fructose Corn Syrup

Dr. Weil on Carbohydrates

A Question to Ponder

NFL Superstar- and VEGAN-Tony Gonzalez makes a Super Shake

NFL superstar Tony Gonzalez puts together a delicious protein vegan Super Shake.

First Lady Michelle Obama does push-ups with Ellen

Chipotle video

Resistance Training

In a recent study performed at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, researchers wanted to determine whether the composition of body weight (fat vs. muscle) regained after intentional weight loss is similar in composition to the body weight that was lost. Muscle is a metabolically active tissue, which means that it's burning calories even while we are at rest. Fat mass, on the other hand, is relatively inactive tissue; it keeps us warm and protects our organs, but it's not burning any calories. These facts are important to keep in mind when thinking about losing weight and maintaining lost weight. This study included 78 women with an average age of 58, who recently lost about 25 pounds. Researchers assessed body composition (muscle mass vs. fat mass) immediately after the weight loss, then at 6 and 12 months after the end of the weight loss period. They found that when the participants lost weight, about 30% of that was due to a loss of muscle mass. When the regainers gained weight over the course of the next year, only 20% of the weight regained was muscle. This means that the women gained back a higher proportion of fat than they lost. For most people, losing that metabolically active muscle tissue and regaining fat makes it harder to lose weight in the future.

Barramundi

I'm excited to try this for dinner this weekend.

The Difference Between Men & Women

Aspartame- and a little bit more...

I read an interesting piece from Jay Robb this week as he answered a viewer email. The person asked about the difference between ASPARTAME, ASPARTAMINE and ASPARTIC ACID. They received the following response from Jay Robb which I found quite informative.

Aspartame is an artificial sweetener made from a combination of ISOLATED phenylalanine and aspartic acid. Both are amino acids but never is this particular combination of amino acids found in nature as two concentrated and isolated amino acids. Both of those amino acids are naturally occurring in many complete proteins, including our whey protein isolate. This is natural and what you want. Aspartamine is NOT aspartame. Aspartamine is just another name for the amino acid aspartic acid.

Quick Home Training Session

I was crunched for time today and got thinking about how everyone always says they don't have time to work out. I used the "K.I.S.S. Principle" and kept things super basic. I simply did what I learned from a Yvonne Ward quote: "Push, Pull, and Do Something for Legs." Here's what that consisted of this afternoon:

• DB Renegade Rows (see above pic #1): 4 x 5ea
• Decline Push-ups (see above pic # 2): 4 x 10
• DB Goblet Squats (see above pic #3): 4 x 10

I followed this with some conditioning work on the Air Dyne Bike.

Can Diet Affect Your Alzheimer's Risk?

I was reading the Boston Globe this morning and came across MORE good news for those who supplement with fish oil and Vitamin D.* According to the article:

In the study published online in the journal Neurology, researchers measured the level of nutrients in the blood of nearly 300 seniors and found that those who had high levels of vitamin D and omega 3 fatty acids -- both found in salmon, tuna, and other fatty fish -- as well as vitamins C, E, and B -- antioxidants found in fruits, nuts, and green leafy vegetables -- appeared to have somewhat more protection against early symptoms of Alzheimer’s. They were less likely to have cognitive difficulties, memory problems, and brain shrinkage -- an indicator of Alzheimer’s -- than those who had low levels of these nutrients.

*The researchers, though, didn’t distinguish between nutrient levels raised due to foods rather than supplements, so it’s tough to say whether seniors can simply pop supplements to reduce their risk of Alzheimer’s or whether they need to rely on a nutrient-rich diet.

Health Club trends

• The total # of US health club consumers reached 58 million in 2010, up 10.4% from 2009
• Over half of all new members (57%) are females
• The average age of club members is 39.5 years
• Consumers paid an average of $39.99 in monthly dues for their memberships
• The three states with the highest consumer participation rates are, in declining order, Massachusetts, Colorado, and California.

Your Own Personal Year in Review

I posted this article (http://articles.boston.com/2011-01-02/lifestyle/29343630_1_quiz-review-lists) last January 1 and challenged my clients to complete it. I took it upon myself to print it out and fill it in every year. It's interesting to see how my responses compared to last year. Give it a try and let me know what you discover.

"What Do You Work on With Your Clients?"

I get this question now and again. Interestingly enough, I assist clients in meeting their goals, in addition to what they need to improve based on variously types of analyses I run them through. Some of the agenda items we seek to improve upon are as follows:

• Muscular strength (concentric, eccentric, and isometric)
• Power
• Mobility
• Agility
• Reactive coordination
• Balance
• Cardiovascular endurance

DVD Recommendation

I had a chance to re-watch "Food Matters" over the weekend and forgot how good it was. It's a "Must See" nutrition documentary that proves food truly is medicine- as the great Hippocrates once said.

Top 10 Body Transformation Lessons

Precision Nutrition recently posted a great article about Body Transformation. A "Top 10" List accompanied the article. I'm a big fan of lists/charts, and wanted to share it with you here:

1. Realize that exercise alone doesn’t work.
2. Find a big motivator.
3. Find something to lose.
4. Choose proof over theory.
5. Do one small thing every day.
6. Make your commitments a little too easy.
7. Find someone to answer to.
8. Focus on behaviors, not outcomes.
9. Let your coach track the results.
10. Get a support network.

Words to Live By!

And remember — it doesn’t matter what you eat or how you exercise between Christmas and New Years. It matters how you eat and exercise between New Year’s and Christmas!

2011 PC Conditioning MVP client

This past week I was thrilled to crown my 2011 PC Conditioning MVP. It's something I've never done in the past, but after brainstorming one day this past summer about ways to reward clients, I thought this would be an interesting thing to implement. The winner this year received a gift certificate to a local restaurant.

What are the characteristics of my MVP for 2011, you ask? It's simple. He/she...

• Arrives early and stays late when need be
• Rarely/never complains
• Is constantly positive
• Loves to train and embraces temporary moments of discomfort
• Never gives up
• Trusts me when I push them each session
• Does EVERYTHING- and then some- I tell them to BETWEEN sessions
• Tracks their exercise and nutrition progress in a journal
• Surrounds themselves with positive influences
• Eats a well-balanced diet with plenty of good fats and lean protein
• Utilizes rest and recovery (sleep, soft tissue work, etc...) effectively

Awesome Home Workout

Chin-up bar, a couple Kettlebells/Dumbbells, and a desire to work hard is all you need.

Message from Jay Robb

I was reading a recent newsletter I receive from Jay Robb, the individual whose company produces the only protein powder I use and recommend to my clients. He spoke about the hustle and bustle of the holidays and I really liked what he had to say. Allow me to share it with you below:

The holiday season to me is about peace on earth. I am not sure how we got to the point where Santa is the main character, it is better to receive than give, and slowing down is not an option. Perhaps I am an odd bird, but peace on earth during the holidays means more “quiet time” not more “shopping time”. And if non-stop shopping, decorating, and partying aren’t enough, when we do have quiet time, we often spend it in front of the TV or at the movie theater watching someone else’s creation instead of experiencing the joy of the present moment.

So what would make this the perfect holiday season? To me, the answer is always, “slow down, do less, give more, and be aware.” As humans, our minds are bottomless pits for “stuff, pleasure, and excitement.” The mind will never be satisfied. Unless you can control your thoughts, your thoughts will control you. The easiest way to control your thoughts is to meditate daily. Twenty minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening is ideal to turn down the mind chatter and turn up the peace and quiet. It may seem that I always oversimplify things, but the answer to most of life’s problems can be discovered in silence.

Happy holidays!

May the “hurry of the holidays” NOT be with you...

9 Things Young Athletes Need to Master

Strength and Conditioning Coach Julia Ladewski recently wrote a piece for Elite FTS discussing simple things kids should be able to do, yet most high school freshmen lack the ability to do. Check them out here:

1. Body Weight Squat – The squat is one of the most basic movements for body awareness and strength. It is also a precursor to other movements like jumping, hopping and bounding. Toddlers just learning to walk and pick things up off the ground start off doing a perfect squat and somewhere along the way, we mess it up.
2. Skipping – This is a basic fundamental motor pattern that should be mastered. It teaches opposite arm and leg relationship and takes a bit of coordination. Not to mention, the basic movements needed for running, like staying on the balls of the feet and proper arm mechanics.
3. Pushups – While this is on every Dad’s list of “Things To Make Your Son Do Every Day To Stay Ahead Of The Game” it can easily get out of control if not done properly. I’ve seen many kids who say they do pushups every night, yet they are done poorly. Whether you start with plank holds or incline pushups or any variation, young athletes need to learn body position.
4. Chin-ups/Flex Arm Hang – Apparently this is part of most kids’ Presidential Fitness Test…yet when I ask kids how often they practice them in P.E. class, they say never. Hmm…that’s another conversation for another day. Again, there are a million ways to help kids learn to do a chin-up or flex arm hang, but I think we can all agree that it’s a fundamental skill (mastering your body weight) that all kids should have.
5. Jump Rope – I’m surprised at the amount of kids that don’t know how to jump rope. Rocky would be ashamed of us.
6. Hip Hinge – Hinging the hips, while keeping the spine in alignment, is extremely difficult for most young athletes to understand. Most just bend forward at the waist, rounding the back. This is a key position for teaching them to create spinal stability.
7. Lunge/Split Squat – Another basic movement that not only builds into more difficult strength moves, but can be a great movement screen as well.
8. Landing – Learning how to stick a landing position and absorb the forces through the body are another key thing to teach young athletes. They need to know how to keep their posture in the right position (not letting their chest flop to the floor), and have a soft landing.
9. Jumping and Hopping – While many coaches would argue that a kid should know how to land before they can jump any higher (and I do agree), basic jumping skills should be mastered. Again, timing of the arms with the legs and overall body control. And with hopping, again, I’m surprised that most kids don’t have the body control and strength to hop on one foot.

Very Impressive Relative Strength Here

Can you limit your sitting & sleeping to 23.5 hours/day?

Fresh versus Frozen

The debate continues about which is better for you, fresh produce or frozen? Personally, I tend to stick to not just what is more affordable, but what is in-season. The other thing to factor in is transit time (how close are you to the source of the farming). For example, I'd rather choose fresh local blueberries than those that have had to sit on a truck for a week coming in from across the country.

Many people assume that fresh is healthier, while I disagree because flash-frozen veggies are frozen right on the spot to help preserve their nutrients. 1 cup of frozen broccoli, for example, has nearly TWICE the protein and fiber that fresh broccoli does. It has also has TWICE as much iron and slightly more Vitamin C.

Long story short, frozen produce is a fine choice. Choose local fresh when in-season and frozen when it's out of season.