This morning Janet arrives and we are heading north to the Gold Coast, Queensland. There are currently gale force winds courtesy of a cyclone spinning just off the coast, which for me means cranking waves on the world class point beaks of the area. Not the best intro for my lady but that’s the luck of the draw when planning holidays. The weather is perfect here in Sydney; the last 2 days not a cloud in the sky and 85 degrees. No sharks here??...ahhhh ok there are a few! Happy New Year!

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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Walking Your Talk

“Walking your talk is a great way to motivate yourself. No one likes to live a lie. Be honest with yourself, and you will find the motivation to do what you advise others to do.”
- Vince Poscente

This is my final daily quote of 2007 but, I hope you'll agree, a very apt one.

You see, I've spent a huge amount of time this year observing and learning from some of the most successful people in a wide range of different jobs, vocations and professions and I've noted that WITHOUT FAIL, each of them has developed the habit of walking their talk.

They do WHAT they say they are going to do and WHEN they say they are going to do it.

In these individuals, word and deed are the same.

I've also observed, however, that those people, who seem to be perpetually struggling and courting failure after failure, are those who say one thing and do another.

They promise themselves that 'this year will be different' and then start out following the EXACT same plan that they followed last year.

They promise themselves that they'll look after themselves better, join a gym, eat healthier and then say 'I'll start Monday'.

They promise themselves greater quality of life, better relationships, more adventure and then spend all day everyday, nose to the grindstone at work, ignoring their partners, their children and the opportunities for growth and happiness that come their way.

In short, they're not honest with themselves.

They're telling themselves lies.

But that's THEM, right?

What about YOU?

How will 2008 start for you?

Will you commit to walking your talk this year?

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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Not the Usual Carlin

This from the beautiful lady in my life Janet. She loved it, as I do...

What a difference a sad event in someone's life makes. GEORGE CARLIN (His wife recently died...)

Isn't it amazing that George Carlin - comedian of the 70's and 80's - could write something so very eloquent...and so very appropriate?

Do Your Best

In my role as a fitness coach I get the opportunity to speak to people from many levels within many companies. I get to hear their joys and frustrations firsthand.

A common pattern I see is that the most joyful people are the ones who consistently focus on doing their best, each day, no matter what event or crisis may be occurring.

In contrast, the people who express the most frustrations are those whose focus is on the event or crisis that is occurring.

The first group asks themselves:
"How can I keep doing my best while XYZ is happening?"

The second group tells themselves:
"I can't do my best anymore because XYZ is happening."

I've fallen into the thinking of that second group myself from time to time. It means I've lost sight of my goal, and have become focused on the 'how' of that goal. Instead of keeping my eyes and heart on my goal and designing a new 'how' (a new action plan) I kept my eyes on my old action plan and kept trying to make it somehow work without taking into account significant new variables.

If you or I stop focusing on doing our best, the company, project and/or our customers lose. They don't get our best. It's a LOSE-LOSE approach for all concerned.

If I fail to do my best, at some level I know this. That knowledge quietly eats at my self-esteem, because I know I am compromising my personal integrity. I like to think of myself as a person who delivers high quality and value. If I choose to give less than my best, I've just chosen to deliver less value and service. As I execute that choice, and hold back my gifts and talents, I've just compromised who I am.

This is inner stuff that's happening. I'm rarely conscious of it, but somehow I feel it. Other costs to me of holding back my best include the fact that once I start holding back and giving less, it can very quickly become my new pattern. Also, if I hold back in one area (e.g. job), I lose my momentum, and now I bring less to other areas of my life (e.g. family). It's a downward spiral that takes a lot of energy to reverse again.

The bottom line is: No matter what circumstances or changes are happening around you, continue to take the high road and do your best, adjusting your 'how' as necessary. It's the Win-Win response. Even if you don't particularly care if your company (the other party) wins, it is very important that you win in this way.

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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Home Sweet Home!

I am finally on Aussie soil staying at the home I grew up in at North Curl, Curl on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. It is great to see Mum and Dad, sister Frances and brother PK. Fran’s son Jack has really sprouted up and the twins are powering along. I finally met the little bundle of joy Jessica who is a princess waddling around smiling with her big blue eyes.

My flight was the best ever. I flew Qantas and asked and secured the bulkhead row where you can stretch your legs right out and believe you me...you need to in a 14-hour flight. Luckily I had a couple of nice fellas next to me, a clergyman from Dunedin, New Zealand and a Texan bloke that was on his way to Brisbane for business. I was sandwiched in between these two guys and it was good to have some banter in between sleep and movies. I watched an Aussie comedian Carl Barron on my personal screen and I laughed so loud I think I was annoying the other passengers but this guy is hilarious; great Aussie humour. Sure the flight is long but if you prepare yourself (I took 2 servings of chicken broccoli and 3 egg white protein pancakes, and a protein shake) the flight is a good time to relax.

Arriving in Sydney, I flew thru customs but my bag didn’t show with all my clothes so that was a bummer but, I was assured it would turn up today.

This morning refreshed I woke deciding to hit the gym, so I headed over to my bother’s place to get some runners. The day today is beautiful sunshine and the waves were a nice 4 feet, and I am thinking “why go to the gym, when you are in this beautiful weather.” So, I parked my car at home and my dad was just leaving for his morning walk, so joined him for a bit. I walked 5 minutes then off running along the headland of the beach.

I ran for 10 minutes getting a sweat up then knocked out a couple of leg cranks, then continued on till I saw a park bench and knocked out some step ups followed by lunge jumps and squat jumps. Now I was really cooking ran for another 5 minutes and did 20 squat jumps/20 squat thrusts/20 squat thrust jumps. Pushing on I did 20 Bulgarian split squats and some more lunge jumps and off home. I finished it off with a beautiful swim in the ocean.

I came home to hear that my luggage is being delivered here this morning and my brother is picking up my custom made Surfboard at lunchtime and I will be riding my beloved waves of North Curly this afternoon.

It’s good to be home!!

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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Politically Incorrect Secrets to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

I was at a big gathering last week and was reminded how important it is to have strategies for this season of high-calorie parties and busy schedules. But I get ticked off by the tired old suggestions you find on the Internet or in magazines like Woman's World.

Often the suggestions lack any substance, because the writers don't want to imply you actually have to make a sacrifice to succeed. They make fat loss sound easy, as if all you had to do was park at the far end of the parking lot and you'd burn all the calories from 5 shortbread cookies.

Well it doesn't work that way...So here are my politically incorrect, unique training strategies to help you keep off the holiday pounds.

By the way, I "borrowed" a few ideas from contestants in Craig BallantynesTurbulence Training Transformation Contest. The Transformation is rocking with social support and success stories right now, even while the rest of the world struggles with weight gain, these TTusers are losing fat over the holidays.

Strategy #1 - Green Tea & Almonds

One of the most common tips you'll hear is to "fill up" before you go to a party where there will be lots of goodies.

Unfortunately, most people I talk to have no luck with this tip. Most people still go to a party and eat everything in sight.

But recently TT users have told me that having a cup of Green Tea and one ounce of almonds has helped them avoid holiday cravings better than anything ever before.

The fiber from the almonds reduces appetite while the small amount of caffeine from the Green Tea seems to increase mental alertness and keep you "energized" at the party.

Hopefully that might work for you...

Strategy #2 - Don't waste your time on any fancy cardio programs. Listen, the bottom line over the holiday season is that your success depends almost entirely on your nutrition.

You can't expect to hit the cardio confessional and burn off last night's 2000 calorie smorgasbord. That's a 4-hour workout. Instead, don't get into that situation in the first place.

Here are more nutrition tips:

• Focus on portion control (and if you have no discipline, forget even trying to eat just one)
• Nix all drinks mixed with calorie-containing beverages, or better yet, just stop getting drunk. Period.
• Write down everything you eat to identify your problem spots. Then do whatever you need to do to eliminate your weaknesses. If you don't record your nutrition, chances are you'll miss big opportunities to change your diet and lose fat.

Strategy #3 - Take care of yourself first.

My friend Holly Rigsby (of http://www.fityummymummy.com) is always reminding busy moms to take care of themselves first, and I think that suggestion applies at this time of year to everyone.

So take a deep breath. Ask yourself as you're running around to please everyone else, "Have you set aside time for yourself"

Be selfish. Make sure you have had some exercise time, some good nutrition, and some rest before overextending yourself and doing too much for other people when you haven't taken care of yourself and your goals first.

Strategy #4 - Get on a roll

This one comes from a TT Transformation contestant who is too busy losing fat to get off track over the holidays.

Don't procrastinate till January 1st. Get started now. Dozens of men and women are doing their Turbulence Training Transformations right now - through the heart of the holiday season.

They aren't waiting for Jan. 1st to show up. They are taking control now, and getting on a roll, and not letting anything (from work parties to peer pressure) get in their way.

Strategy #5 - Exercise in short bursts whenever you can

Don't be afraid to dance at your Christmas party. Don't worry, there is bound to be at least one worse dancer than you out on the floor. Have fun and get down!

On a more serious note, here's how to avoid falling off the fitness program during the busy holiday season.

Get your butt out of bed 15 minutes early so you can have 3 minutes to wake up and 12 minutes to do the December 2007 Turbulence Training 12-Minute Workouts.

Turbulence Training today: http://www.TurbulenceTraining.com

"eatclean-get lean over the holidays" - BK

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How Your Spice Cabinet Can Boost Your Metabolism

I've written before about the power of certain herbs and spices in terms of antioxidant capacity and other health benefits. If you remember, I wrote a couple months ago about the super-food status of cinnamon and how powerful a health food (or rather spice) that it can be.

The next super-spice -- Chili!

I was just reading about a recent Australian study that documented how you can burn more calories, increase your metabolism slightly, and help control your blood sugar and insulin levels by including chili peppers and chili spice (or cayenne) in your foods.

Keep in mind, this may be a minor "detail", but when you add up a lot of these types of "details", you can make significant changes to your body over time.

As you've probably heard in the past, the active ingredient in chili pepper (capsaicin) can cause slight increases in your metabolic rate and calorie burning from a meal. This has been reported many times in both animal and human studies.

However, in this Australian study, Madeleine J. Ball, MD, one of the researchers from the study, sought to find out how chili pepper affected blood sugar and insulin response after a meal.

As you know, chronically high insulin levels in your body can not only cause deposition of excess body fat, but also can lead to diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.

The study was split into groups of subjects that ate meals without chili spice, and other groups of subjects that ate meals with chili pepper.

As it turned out, the chili pepper eating groups had lower insulin levels and more stable blood sugar after the meals than the groups that ate the same food without chile. According to Dr. Ball, "the chili is probably having some effect on the ability of the body to clear -- or remove -- insulin from the bloodstream".

Aside from the temporary calorie burning boost and insulin controlling response, apparently chili pepper also has significant antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties...

So if you can handle a bit of spiciness, go ahead and enjoy adding some extra cayenne or chili pepper to your pot of meat & bean chili, your morning eggs, meat dishes, and other meals, knowing it's possibly giving you a slight edge in the fat burning department.

One of my favorite meals that I've been eating a lot of lately is my home-made chili. I make big batches of it, and that leaves leftovers for quick and healthy meals whenever you need them.

If fact, I make my own extra healthy version of chili where I use grass-fed ground beef or bison. I get all of my grass-fed meats online at: http://healthygrassfed.2ya.com.

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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The Master Class...
Thursday Dec 13 @ 5:30 pm

Ben's Last Class at Creative Health & Fitness!

All Ben's clients, past and present, are invited to participate in Bens' Last Hurrah at CH&F. Come at 5:30 for the master class and a great workout before the Holidays. Stay afterwards for Christmas drinks.

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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"life is an endless unfolding"

This week will mark the end of a 4 year journey for me here at Creative Health and Fitness. This phenomenal facility has been home to me since I stepped foot on US soil back in 03 and this week will begin renovations to merge with Planet Fitness. The Gym will get a 300.000 dollar facelift and will operate 24/7. Definitely the thing I will miss most is the friendly people that create such a non-threatening atmosphere.

It’s just like Cheers where 'everybody knows your name'.

Thursday night at 6.30 I plan to have one almighty cracker of a farewell for everyone and what better way to say goodbye to this great joint than to have a banging workout. ALL PAST AND PRESENT MEMBERS PLEASE COME!!

So, if you are game and in the neighborhood, I dare you to join me for a 1 hour no holds barred class of epic proportions. We are going to jump, bounce, lift, balance dance and maybe even cry all to LOUD dance music then crack the champagne after! You game??

Change is a very, very hard thing at times especially when there are uncertainties about the future but its how you embrace change that determines whether you succeed or fail.

Below is a letter from longtime member, Denise DeAngelo, which I thought was very poignant...

"Life is an endless unfolding..."

Ben,

Last night was a very sad class because of the loss everyone seems to be feeling -- of course, there are many other emotions I won't get into as that's not the purpose of this email. CHF means a lot to many of us because of the people, not so much the training -- though I find the training to be excellent, really. I'm sorry I've not had the chance to work out with you -- but Seamus I've worked out with over the last 8 years -- and I have to say that I've never seen him as happy as I've seen him in the last 8 months. We can only be understanding and supportive of one another during these times. I do hope things work out for you -- for all of us, really. You both have a great following and I know that if you decided to make this work, there are many of us who would support you and even volunteer in anyway necessary to help keep the "CHF family" together. There are many reasons athletes make good leaders and do well in business -- too many to list here.

I'm sharing with you a letter that was sent to a firm I worked for back in December 1991 -- I was working full-time while putting myself through school evenings. Exhausted and with no plans for my future, I opened this letter and it stayed with me (literally) and I reread it every time I feel loss, void, or confusion about where life is taking me. Last night, I couldn't sleep and I found myself reading it once again and I thought it was worth sharing. The first 2 paragraphs are a bit dry, but the rest of it is worth the read, I do hope you take the time to do so.

If you need help with anything, please let us, the CHF Family, know. I'm here for you -- even somewhat patiently thanks to the following. :)

Take care,
Denise

December 26, 1991 “A nation is never finished,” wrote John W. Gardner recently. “You can’t build it and then leave it standing as the Pharaohs did the pyramids. It has to be built and rebuilt, recreated in each generation by believing, caring men and women. It is now our turn.” Since his remarkable Self-Renewal in 1963, through On Leadership in 1990, John Gardner, our choice this year to follow General Georges Doriot, Jon O’Brien, Chief Seattle, Sir Winston Churchill, et al, in bringing our year-end message of appreciation to friends of our firm, has been a wellspring of wisdom, common sense and down-to-earth inspiration. In a sense, he packed the “summing up” of a lifetime into his centennial commencement address at Stanford University this year, from which the following is greatly condensed: “Now you are old enough to know that most people aren't studying you critically; they are thinking about themselves. The puzzle of why some men and women go to seed while others remain vital all of their lives concerns me today. I'm not talking about people who fail to get to the top, and that isn't the point of life anyway. I'm talking about people who have stopped learning or growing or trying… men and women functioning far below the level of their possibilities. I could without any trouble name a half dozen national figures resident in Washington, who you would recognize, and tell you roughly the year their clock stopped. You can keep the zest until the day you die. If I may offer you a simple maxim, ‘Be interested.’ Everyone wants to be interesting, but the vitalizing thing is to be interested. Keep your curiosity, your sense of wonder. Discover new things. Care. Risk. Reach Out. Learn all your life. Learn from your failures, from your successes, learn by taking risks, by suffering, by enjoying, by loving, by bearing life’s indignities with dignity. You learn not to burn up energy in anxiety. You find that self-pity and resentment are the most toxic of drugs. You discover that no matter how hard you try to please, some people in the world are not going to love you, a lesson that is at first troubling, and then really quite relaxing. Your identity is what you've committed yourself to. If you make no commitments, you're an unfinished person. Freedom and obligation, liberty and duty, that’s the deal. Self-knowledge isn't enough. You build meaning into your life through your commitments beyond the self, in your family and community life, in the way you treat any and all humans, in the goals and standards you set for yourself. There are men and women who make the world better…by the gift of kindness or courage or loyalty or integrity. It really matters very little whether they are behind the wheel of a truck, or running a business, or bringing up a family. They teach truth by living it. Today our communities need us, desperately need our loyalty, our understanding, our support. I count it as one of the marks of maturity that men and women nurture the institutions that nurtured them, not uncritically, but lovingly, not to preserve them unchanged but to renew them as the times require. Life is an endless unfolding, and if we wish it to be, an endless process of self-discovery, an endless and unpredictable dialogue between our own potentialities for learning, sensing, wondering, understanding, loving and aspiring…and life’s challenges—and the challenges keep coming. And the challenges keep changing. It is my hope that you will keep on growing, and that you will be the cause of growth in others. Let me conclude by saying as plainly as I can that this nation is facing a test of character, all the more profound for being diffuse, all the more difficult for not being precipitated by enemy attack. The test is whether in all the confusion and clash of interest, all the distracting conflicts and cross purposes, all the temptations to self-indulgence and self-exoneration, we have the strength of purpose, the guts, the conviction, the spiritual staying power to build a future worthy of our past. You can help.” The remarkable events unfolding in the Soviet Union vividly underscore that nations must be recreated in each generation. It is now our generation’s turn in America. It seems to us that John Gardner has it right. To be totally committed to developing one’s full potentiality as a person, professional and citizen. To teach values by living them. To nurture our families, community, profession, institutions and nation. Freedom and obligation, that’s the deal. This has been one of the finest years ever in the 21 years of the firm, and a prime reason is that clients, associates and friends of our firm possess these qualities to an uncommon degree. May 1992 be a magnificent, happy and generous year for you and those you hold dear.

P.S. I've added a Moderate to Advanced strength training workout to do over the holiday period. Click here for the workout.

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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Core Workouts

Goals: Speed, Power, Strength, Quality
Note: Rest 45 seconds between supersets. Tempo 30x 3 seconds down then explode up.

* Do 3 plyo pushups after each bench press set, then rest 60 seconds and repeat

** Do 3 split jumps after each set of 6 split squat lunges, then immediately do PB plate crunches.
*** Do 4 squat jumps after each set of 8 DB front squat/presses, then immediately do PB lateral rolls

Click here for a printable version of the workouts.

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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Biggest Loser and a Demanding Week

Last week was one very demanding time. The possible imminent merger of Creative with Planet Fitness and a career move for me coupled with The Biggest Loser finishing will tell you that last week was out of the ordinary. To say my mind was all over the place was an understatement so…

On my last blog I literally forgot to write about one of my team members Liz Carr. Liz is someone that is not easy to forget. Liz was a phenomenal team member who I really relied on early in the piece for some inspiration. She has been a creative member for years and helped me with motivation for some of the team. Liz is very strong physically, and we constantly pushed the envelope with her. Liz told me of the struggle it would be to maintain green faces for 21 days but she stuck it out 100%. Besides refusing to drink Monavie (I wanted all members to drink this powerful elixir for 21 days) she went above and beyond in every other task.

Liz, you killed it mate.

Morgan Treat is what her name implied ... an absolute gem. Morgan stopped coming to the challenge whilst I was away in England and no matter what I did or say she wouldn’t come back. Morgan is a real character, I love her spirit and she is welcome to workout with me whenever she pleases. I count her and all the contestants friends for life.

It was Sandra and my goal to have everyone finish the gig and we had 2 drop outs, which is very disappointing for us as coaches but I believe we have grown as personal coaches over the last year with the 3 challenges.

Note: While my team did NOT lose as much body weight as previous challenges, their muscle to fat ratios were dramatically improved right across the board. They are all looking leaner, feeling tighter and continuing on the road to a healthy being.

Guys - The 9 week challenge may have ended, but your new life has just begun!!

"eatclean-staylean" - BK

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