Albert K. Park

                        Hey there, it’s Albert and I hope everything is going good for you… this is the article where I am going to reveal 1 kick ass workout that is going to get your body to burn body fat and get lean fast.

                        I actually just got done doing some weighted chain pull-ups for max reps in between training two of my favorite small groups. The second group has one of my clients that “love’s” this workout and I think he may have thrown up doing it last time.

                        Despite his weak stomach he really does train hard but there is one thing that bugs me about him. He has this cousin and his cousin is a douche bag. One thing that gets under my skin is when people put others down for being successful and reaching their goals.

                       Let’s call my client Zanzabar (sorry I didn’t ask him yet if I could use his real name so I just gave him this sweet ass name) and through hard training, Zanzabar lost about 20 lbs in around 4 weeks earlier this year. Pretty awesome right? His cousin didn’t think so and has been trying to put him down and make him feel inferior to his “Bodybuilding, bench press on Monday, and finish every workout with bicep curls” training style.

                        After Zanzabar told me about this I got a little crazy and told him that I wanted his cousin to come in for a free training session with me! It’s been 5 months and I am still waiting.

                        Let me get one point across, your body is amazing in the sense that your muscles will respond to nearly any kind of training as long as it’s challenging and not the same workout you have been doing for the last 3 months.

            It’s called Escalating Density Training or EDT for short. What the workout calls for is performing all the exercises for the set amount of reps as many times through for the set amount of time!

One thing you will notice… This is completely different from what you are used to. Don’t underestimate the simplicity of this workout. Intensity will be the X factor here.

Perform all exercises back to back with no rest for the entire time period.

Time period: 10 min

Perform all exercises back to back with no rest for the entire time period.

            This workout will get you pushing past your usual comfort level and if you bring the intensity, I guarantee you this will be a fat shredding and lean muscle-building workout. If you are looking to top your workout off with a crazy ab finisher, try this – 2 minute ab finisher.

            I know that all of you are going to go out there and crush this workout and I really want to know how it went and how you got through it, post a comment, it really does mean a lot to me. While all of you are out there training to burn body fat and get lean fast I will still be waiting for Zanzabar’s cousin to come in and get his ass kicked.

                        

                       

                         

            

            The quality of your workout is influenced before you even walk through the doors to your gym. Believe it or not your training starts the moment you decide that you even want to workout. Your attitude towards your commitment, training, and the workout that particular day can set the pace for your results. So ask yourself, can you already tell what kind of workout your going to have before you’re even at the gym?

                        Okay, I know that this sounds like another self-motivational book or a Tony Robbins seminar but I am only bringing this to your attention because we can all so easily get lost in Bad attitudes. I’m talking about Bad attitudes like a teenager dealing with roller coaster hormones, pro active worthy acne, and a serious identity crisis. But unlike teenagers, we don’t have a parent, teacher, or coach to tell us to “Check our attitudes.” So, here is your chance.

            One of my favorite fitness coaches, Todd Durkin – trainer to Drew Brees and owner of Fitness Quest 10, says, “Your attitude can reflect your altitude.” Damn, isn’t that the truth. Your perception of your training easily effects how successful you are in reaching your goals. If you are dreading your workout and have to keep writing it down on your to-do list, chances are your progress is going to be suffering from a serious lack of results.

            Here are some ways to overcome bad attitudes..

                        For a lot of individuals, (men, cough, cough) commitment can be a scary thing. In fitness, this is no different. Everybody wants to lose weight, get lean, and look great but when it comes time to seriously commit, people quickly shy away.

                        Verbal commitments don’t count for much these days, I’m sure you have a sketchy friend who says they will always be there, if you don’t, you probably are that friend. I see the same dry verbal commitments in fitness. So, the first step to the right attitude for training is writing your goals down. Write it down the old fashion way with a pen and a paper. Yes, Microsoft word will spell check it for you but there is something about writing it by hand that makes it so much more official.

                        Another thing you should incorporate into this hand written document is “BE SPECIFIC”. Writing down I want to get in shape is not enough. Sit down with a cup of coffee and seriously think about what you want to achieve. How much weight do you want to lose, when do you want to lose it by, and why do you want to lose this weight are all great starting points for you.

                        This step is easy because the hard part of writing your goals down is over. Now, you need to put this piece of paper somewhere you can see it every single day. It’s not only going to be a reminder of what you committed yourself to but it’s going to be an attitude check system whenever you start acting like a punk ass teenager.

                        Just because you wrote your goals down doesn’t mean your going to remember them. It’s like that ab crunch machine you purchased on a TV infomercial that promised you a 6 pack in 3 weeks. It doesn’t work if it’s sitting in your closet, out of sight, and out of use. So make sure you put this attitude check system paper somewhere you can “REALLY” see it. I mean really see it.

                        Before you take this advice to heart I will share a small story to put the main idea into perspective. I used to always run into this guy at the gym I worked out in college. He was a nice guy but every time I talked to him he rambled on about how he was trying to bulk up and hit PR’s on the bench press and bicep curls. His rant was endless and made me want to shoot myself in the face. So when I say tell people about your goals, I want you to tell people in the less annoying way possible. Don’t be the douchebag at the gym everyone goes out of their way to avoid.

                        By telling your friends and family about your goals, you are creating a personal accountability circle for yourself. The next time you see them, if your not ranting on about your fitness goals all the time, they will probably ask to see how your training is going. I am always adamant about doing something I said I was going to do and when people know about it, I go out of my way to get it done fast.

                        We have all heard “Have a positive attitude!” all our lives that a lot of us are desensitized to the intention behind the overused coaching slogan. In fitness, it’s not just having a “positive” attitude but an attitude that is serious about training and seeing real results. This has truly been the secret to my results. Ice cube said it best in this case, “Check yo’self before you wreck yo’self!” 

                                     When a group comes together to achieve a common goal, each individual increases their chances at getting closer to achieving their ambitions. In fitness this couldn’t be truer. Group training stretches far and wide including: military forces, professional sports teams, and even chemotherapy patients all train together. The group dynamic offers such key elements to becoming successful in obtaining your goal; I can’t believe that people still train alone. It’s like seeing somebody with a box Nokia cell phone playing snake, (I loved that game by the way) it’s just outdated.

                        I remember in college my friends and I headed down to Mexico for spring break. (Don’t judge me) As we walked the streets in search of any kind of cheap alcohol, it seemed as if every single business was promoting this club called Iggy’s. Being the 19-year-old testosterone raging college males, we instantly got excited. That night we walked into a giant club, only to see 15 people. The place was deserted and we were heartbroken and vowed to never return.

                        The next night we sifted through a huge crowd on our way to the beach in search of, yes you guessed it, alcohol. The line was so huge that we had to ask what the hell was going on, it turned out that the line was for none other than club Iggy’s. We were confused but immediately got into the line deserting our plans for the beach. With some 2000 people packed into the club we found out that Young Buck from G unit (again, please don’t judge me) would be performing. The night was epic.

                        The level of fun, performance, and effort you put into an activity or workout can depend on the atmosphere. Training in a group that shares the same fitness passion that you have can provide an environment ideal for intensity and obtaining results. The difference can be as drastic as Iggy’s with 15 people in it and Iggy’s with 2000 people + Young Buck.

                        Are you competitive? If not, maybe it’s time to try it out. I see athletes hit performance levels they never could have ever dreamed about when they are competing. It’s inevitable to not compete a little when you are training in a group setting. Don’t think of it as who is the best but how can I push myself and others in my group.

                        The easiest person to convince is you! Imagine coming home after a long day at work after your boss just chewed your ass out and all you want to do is grab a beer or glass of wine and sit. You know you need to go to the gym but you want to sit on your ass. Finally, you tell yourself that working out can wait until tomorrow. Pattern repeats throughout the week.

                        Not going wouldn’t even be a choice if you had a training partner or group you were suppose to meet at the gym. Accountability is something that we all need in many areas of our lives and finding people who keep us chasing our goals is vital to our success.

                        Safety is first. A lot of trainers and gyms will share this rule, rule #1 don’t get hurt. When your hurt not only does it suck but it means that you can’t train anymore. By training in a group you have the valuable asset of a spotter if not multiple eyes watching you all the time. I don’t know about you but the more people making sure I don’t get hurt, the better.

                        Numbers 1-4 are all great but number 5 is what it all boils down to. If there are no results then there is no reason to even be in the gym. Training in a group straight up produces results. You push harder, stay consistent, and see results. Get in a mother freaking group.