Some of you may be aware that aside from my devotion to training and nutrition, I carry a competing level of devotion to music. I not only seek out music, but I also create it. Over the years, I have collected guitars, keyboards, pedals, software, microphones, etc. You name it and I’ve dabbled in it on some level. My primary abilities rest in vocal work and guitar, with sampling and electronic work close behind.

It is safe to say mastering instruments and the creation of music are extremely difficult. It takes a high level of desire and music knowledge. It takes dedication, technique, and education.  I, like most who start out in music, was self-taught. Aside from chorus work with my school, I never saw the walls of formal music education. I wish I had, but it wasn’t in the cards during my youth. As I got older, I cared a lot more about the art and integrity of music (whatever that means) than my technical expertise. I had this idea that music shouldn’t be organized and rigid. It should be free. To make a long anecdote short, as the years went by my creative desires didn’t match up to my technical ability. There were things my heart and mind wanted to express, but my hands wouldn’t allow. The result often left me frustrated and ultimately not achieving the success I wanted.

What is the moral of the story? Never forget the importance of the doing things right the first time.

Greg’s Story

If you didn’t know, sometime in the next year or two I will be releasing 16 stories based on my clients.  It’s called “Desperate To Lose” and was born one night during a pretty intense personal event. Each story has its own lesson and client their own journey. Not everything is full of rainbows and sunshine. Through my training time, I have experienced new life, death, and unstoppable desire.  At this point, I have written 20 of them, and will narrow it down to 16 to share in that release. Greg’s story is one that will not make the book, but I think will be fitting for this situation. Here is a snippet of that material:

Greg is just about as stubborn as an individual can get. I don’t say was, because he still is. If Greg had a nickname, it would be “delusions of grandeur.”  I would have called him DOG for short, but I feel that is being to mean to dogs. They have more common sense than Greg does. When my dog reaches an object he can’t clear, he goes around it. When Greg reaches an object he can’t clear, he goes through it and falls flat on his face.

Contrary to my tone and statements, I like Greg. He is a swell guy and we had a hell of a time hanging together outside of the gym. But, inside the gym, he was an idiot. Greg was full of piss and vinegar as my southern heritage would say. Country boy to the core, he stood around 5’11, 192 pounds, and roughly 16% body fat. There was nothing overly impressive about his body composition or much in the way of physique building. He wasn’t exceptionally strong for his size or training years. Greg in the gym was the precise definition of mediocrity.

You might be thinking “Geez, take it easy on the guy.”  “Is this how you talk about your clients?” Understand, this has a happy ending and Greg would now say the very things I am saying about his formal self. In the beginning, Greg wasn’t my client, he was a fellow gym goer at a facility I was helping. Mostly, I am using this strong language and discourse as a warning shot being fired into the air. It is an alert to anyone who relates to Greg (and don’t assume that you women can’t).  I have no reservations about being blunt.

The reason Greg was approaching new heights in mediocrity was because everything he did, he did wrong. When he trained, his form was wrong. When he ate, he ate wrong. His supplements were wrong, his attitude was wrong, and his ego got him in loads of trouble. For example, when Greg went to do an RDL, he didn’t only try to lift weight he wasn’t ready for, he lifted weight on his toes with a caved chest. It’s a wonder he never popped a disc.

Greg was doing what a lot of people do in the gym and often increased postural problems, worked at the wrong levels of intensity, and was void of any proper form or firing.

Outside of the gym, things were not much brighter. Greg’s diet consisted of eating out and mass consumption of low nutrient value items. He seemed to justify it because he took a hundred dollars worth of “muscle building” and “fat loss” supplements a day. The laughable part is a simple multivitamin didn’t even make the list. He had no method of measure for intake and finished off each day looking more like a bloated pig than someone making advanced in their body composition. But don’t worry, he had his muscle milk.

One Thursday night, I went to the gym to get a quick session in. Greg was there and doing a seated row when I walked in. He would fall and slump forward with every release and jerk back with every contraction. It would have made sense had he been a slave shoved under an ancient boat made to row with guards whipping his bare back skin. But, there Greg was in an eighty-dollar under amour shirt and I didn’t notice any slave drivers around him. I decided I couldn’t take it anymore and said, “Jesus Greg, I can’t take looking at your sloppy ass form anymore. You do realize you aren’t going to get anywhere rowing like that, in a boat or gym, right? Get up.” Greg got up. I sat down and proceeded to explain to Greg the proper mechanics of the row. I also explained to him why he should be doing the row in the first place.

Surprisingly, Greg was receptive.  He went through the proper rowing techniques, decreased the weight and made immediate improvement. He made an extremely powerful and often understated comment. He said, “This feels good.”

A training session shouldn’t leave you searching for your spine on the gym floor. Too often we are seeing people spouting a “Puke hard, move heavy, or go home!” attitude. While that type of training has its place, the guys that do it right, know every training session shouldn’t be that way. The guys that actually know what they are doing know conditioning, muscle building, and strength is made over time and in phases. There is a time and a place for pushing the limits, and those who do it right already knew how to do it light.

For a short stint, Greg and I worked together on bring him from the comfort of mediocrity to the beauty of exceptionalism. We tackled his mobility, recovery, form, and nutritional habits in a crash course 14-week period. Greg went from being “that guy” in the gym people looked at and laughed to “that guy” people looked at and wanted to be. Without much of a pause, Greg went from being an average chump to being a 9% body fat man. All because he started doing it right.

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The Goal For This Challenge

There are some members who are still failing to understand what I feel are some basic principles and habits. There are lots of questions about mobility, training form, measurement, etc. Rather than you being dependent on the mercy of the forums (or worse, mainstream media), I determined I would take this challenge and provide you with education. I will also reward you for taking part in that education.

This is exciting because for the next 12 weeks we are going to focus on new education regarding your goals.  The result will leave you prepared to face the world of fat loss and training on a new level. I am not naïve and know I am not always going to have your attention like I have it right now. I am taking it for all it is worth. Instead of throwing a workout program at you, one that you will trade-in 4-weeks down the road, and then another, I am going to educate you on what you need.

At the end of these 12-weeks, if you complete all the modules, you will know more than most trainers know. Yes, I didn’t say most laymen, I said most trainers. You will shoot laymen out of the water. After all, we have star celebrity trainers on national television explaining things so horribly wrong, I don’t know where to begin. These are trainers who have board status with certification agencies. It’s painful.

You will know more and be better for it. You will look better for it. You will feel better for it. Do it right, and you will succeed better because of it.

Challenge Requirements To Win Prizes

1. You must be a member of Leighpeele.com

2. In order to check-in you must complete the following:

  • a. 7000 steps daily (exception for injuries if stated publicly)
  • b. Be taking part in a body or weight resistance training program (not just cardio). It doesn’t have to be mine, but you need to be training.
  • c. Complete the education module for that week (read further to find out about the modules).

3. In order to win a prize you must check-in on the forums. You are only eligible for the prize of the week for the week you check-in. If you check-in all 12-weeks you will be eligible for all 12 drawings.  If you check-in 1 week, you will only be eligible for that week and so on.

Check-In

1. Check-in will be every Monday on the forums in the log section. You will get an email the night before as a reminder if you forget. If you are not on the email list, please contact us at support (@) leighpeele.com and with subject “members email list” and the email you wish to be notified at. We will take care of it from there.

2.  You will check-in on the forums or through email. You will simply write “Did it!” if you completed the challenge requirements. That will formally enter you for the drawing. This is an honor system challenge.

3. Wednesday after the check-in there will be a drawing for the people who checked-in.  Each week a winner or winners will be announced.

When The Challenge Starts And Ends

Start Date: September 19th 2011

End Date:  December 12th 2011

You will have your first check-in on September 26th 2011. You do not have to do anything to say you have entered the challenged, but you are more than welcome to drop a line in the challenge check-in thread.

Your first education module and steps will start on September 19th 2011. From there everything you do for that week counts.

Education Modules

Each week I will release a module on a different topic. You can find these modules here. These topics will cover issues ranging from exercise to lifestyle education. They will be delivered on a weekly basis in the form of an article, audio, video or the combination of all three. They will also have assignments for you to ensure proper use and understanding of what you have learn. The best part? These modules will be short and concise, so you do not feel overwhelmed. You will have an entire week to look over the material before the next module. It is important you do your education, because it is part of the challenge and checking in.

Here are the names of the modules (in no particular order):

1. Maximizing Mobility

2. Macronutrient Strategies

3. Static Stretching Factors

4. Lethal People

5. Core Targeting

6. Exercising Deficits

7. Progression Mythology

8. BYOR (Bring Your Own Results)

9. Deficit Muscle Building

10. Tissue Release

11. Lessons In Muscle Activation

12. Essential Recipes

You will find these module updates listed here.

FAQ

What if I know about (x) subject already?

You may think you know everything about the subject or topic, but you might find there is a surprise or two in there. Even the highest level of coaches still go to seminars and educate themselves on topics and talk further. There is almost always a deeper level or a way of saying things that helps you understand. In short, take the few minutes out of your week and focus on it anyway.

Why do I have to take 7000 steps a day? I already train.

The amount of steps we take in a day is extremely important to the lifestyle we live and how much caloric expenditure we get in a day. For a 155lb woman, 7000 steps barely equals 350 calories in activity if just walking. 7000 steps is extremely low in the grand scheme of things and is the least you can do.

What if I don’t have or can’t wear a pedometer?

If you know without a doubt and with 100% honesty you are hitting those steps and have previously tracked your steps and know your habits haven’t changed, then I am fine with you estimating your steps. This is an honor system. You are the one who loses out, not me.

What if I have a day where I am sick or legitimately can’t hit my steps? Can I still check in?

Of course, this is about the overall attitude and loyalty to the challenge. I am not going to penalize for a “day out of school.” Again, only you are cheated if you lie or don’t do what you should, not me.

What if I have questions about one of the module?

Great, just post them in the forums!

So, all I have to do is check into this thread and type “Did it!”

Yes, it is that simple.

If I missed weeks, can I still check in for the weeks I didn’t miss?

Yes. Each week is a “fresh start” for drawings and check-ins.

What will be some of the prizes offered?

TRX Training Systems, Cash Prizes, Gift Cards, Books, Videos, And More!

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To Join The Challenge

Become a member of Leighpeele.com right now and go to this page to download your material.

If I Am Already A Member Of LeighPeele.com

Go to this page to get your material.

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