The National Press Club

With the "NPC Beat the Deadline 5K" quickly approaching, it's time to shape up for the race. Here's some help from our own Race Marshal Tony Horton, creator of "P90X Extreme Home Fitness Training System." Watch for weekly Tony's Tips between now and race day, July 17. You'll find them on "The Wire" and posted on our NPC website and Facebook pages.

Just two weeks before the big race, and you may be getting hungry. Here are some of my favorite snacks to keep you going before race day. No more excuses!

Tony’s Top 10 Snacks

1. My sticky bar, of course (with banana, peanut butter, and granola).
2. Almond butter (thinly spread) on organic whole-grain toast
3. Snyder's of Hanover Organic Oat Bran Pretzels
4. PROBAR® nutrition bar (original blend)—380 calories of pure joy and 100% vegan
5. Protein shake: banana, half cup of frozen blueberries and strawberries, tablespoon of flaxseed meal, two ice cubes, protein powder, and rice milk
6. Half cup of fresh blueberries, and Food For Life's Ezekiel 4:9 cereal with almonds, mixed into 8 oz. of plain nonfat yogurt
7. Handful of raw mixed nuts
8. MI-DEL Honey Grahams (whole wheat; 8 crackers are 280 calories)
9. CLIF Nectar bars: I like the cinnamon pecan flavor (4 organic ingredients and only 170 calories)
10. LaraBar snackbars (ingredients: dates, pecans, and almonds; 220 calories)

10-Minute Recipe: Tony's Sticky Bar
1/2 medium-size banana
1/4 cup chunky peanut butter (organic minus hydrogenated oils, preferably)
1 cup unsweetened granola
1 sheet wax paper

Mix all three ingredients into a bowl. Spoon onto a sheet of wax paper. Roll up into a hot dog/cigar shape. Stick in the freezer. Ready in 90 minutes. Eat frozen or throw it in the microwave for 10 seconds. Serves two. (Calories 389, Protein 14g, Carbs 47g, Cholesterol: 0 g, Fat total: 17 g, Saturated Fat 4 g)

Peace,
Tony H.

Sleep does more than make you feel rested. Two recent studies with healthy volunteers demonstrated suppression of immunological function in participants after one night of modest sleep deprivation. The activity of certain white blood cells and the production of chemicals essential for immune system performance significantly decreased. After a good night's sleep, most immune functions went back to baseline levels. About 40 percent of adults experience sleepiness that interferes with daily activities. Most U.S. adults get less than 7 hours of sleep per night during the workweek, while research has determined that certain parameters of immune function are enhanced by more than 7 hours of sleep.

Another study showed that the leading cause of traffic accidents in this country is NOT alcohol but sleep deprivation. If you don't have enough energy to stay awake to drive your car, how will you have enough energy for a 6-day-a-week workout plan? We're not sleeping enough hours, and the limited time we spend trying to sleep is filled with so much mind chatter that we never get the rest we need.

My dictionary defines sleep as the natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored. In the Taoist philosophy, there's a belief in yin and yang energies. These are opposing energies that create balance. Exercise is yang energy. Sleep and rest are yin energy. There must be proper balance between vim and vigor (yang) and inward calm (yin). If you don't get enough sound sleep, your body will NOT receive the proper restoration it needs to complete or succeed with any fitness program. So TiVo American Idol and go to bed!

Peace,
Tony H.

Flexibility is the fountain of youth. Flexible people are much less prone to injury. Yoga and stretching allow you to bring more intensity to your workouts. Flexibility is the key component to becoming less vulnerable and more durable. Aging has a funny way of making everything we do harder. Staying limber and flexible is the way to prevent that from happening.

Back in the '60s (yes, I'm that old), there were benchmarks that determined how fit you were: push-ups, pull-ups, dips, sit-ups (not crunches), the 100-yard dash, and touching your toes. The first five items on the list involved strength and speed. Some kids had it, while others did not. I was in the "did not" category. (That changed later.) Touching your toes was a breeze for all of us. Even out-of-shape kids like me could touch their toes.

Back in the day, proper stretching didn't happen. For most adults it still doesn't. Studies show that pulled muscles (due to lack of flexibility) cause as many people to quit their fitness programs as joint injuries. Back and hamstring muscle strains/injuries can take as long to heal as broken bones . . . or longer.

People hate to stretch because they think it's too boring. They believe stiff, tight people can't become flexible. They say stretching and yoga are too uncomfortable, and they don't see results fast enough. I'm here to tell you it's time to rethink the importance of flexibility.

Stretching, yoga, and Pilates improve overall body awareness, enhance all aspects of physical fitness, reduce muscular soreness, and increase skill levels during training and athletic performance. Flexibility increases mental relaxation, greatly reduces the risks of various injuries (like back problems, muscle strains, and joint sprains), and slows the aging process in muscles and joints. Who wouldn't want all that?

The only reason people don't become more flexible is because they're not willing to put in the time. The axiom for other aspects of fitness also applies to flexibility: you get better at the things you do often. Stretching and yoga are just as important as strength conditioning and cardiovascular fitness. Stretching and yoga can replenish the natural flexibility and durability we have when we're younger. If you decide and commit to becoming less vulnerable through flexibility, you will also discover a calmness (much like meditation) that comes with stretching and yoga.

Flexibility is the Fountain of Youth. Give yourself that amazing gift. Here's to touching your toes.

Peace,
Tony H.

Intensity is the final ingredient that gives you results. For a physiological change to occur, there first needs to be a stimulus. This stimulus comes in the form of an overload. This principle is known as GPO-gradual progressive overload. As you train over time, the overload should be slowly increased. Too much overload too quickly can result in injury. Lack of increased overload over time will result in plateaus. People who plateau often get discouraged and quit. Here are the 3 rules of intensity to help you succeed.

The 3 rules of intensity:

1. Find the line. The "line" is that special place you need to get to if you want any program to work. It's the desire to do the extra reps on push-up day or increase the depth and range of motion of your lunges and squats, and not being afraid to add more weight and resistance as you get stronger. It's discovering your pain/discomfort threshold so you can get the job done without jeopardizing good form and without injuring yourself. If you undertrain or just plain old "give up" because you "can't" do something the first few times, then you'll never know what it's like to be fit and lean. Find the line, do the best you can, and maintain good form.
2. The over/under. You need to understand the difference between undertraining and overtraining. Undertraining is what happens when you keep doing the same thing, with the same weights, at the same intensity, and nothing much is happening. You know you're overtraining when you can't get through workouts without hurling (see "Give yourself a break" in #3 below), and you're so sore for the next 3 days that you can't walk, sit down, or feed yourself. You're training properly when you have some soreness in your muscles-not pain in your joints.
3. Put on the "breaks." I'm a big believer in listening to my brain's interpretation of what's going on with my body while I'm exercising. When looking for the "line," you sometimes discover you've already gone over it. When this happens, it's time for a break. Here's a list of when to take breaks:
   • Midset minibreaks. Say you're working your biceps and you've mistakenly chosen a weight that's a bit too heavy. You've set a goal of 10 reps, but on rep six, you know you're not going to make it unless you start crossing the line. Stop and hold the weights down by your side for a breath or two (chill!), and when you're ready, continue to rep 10. You can also put the weights down and grab lighter ones. This technique will work with almost any exercise. This is why I tell you to keep your remote nearby. Think of it as a minivacation.
   • Give yourself a break. Far too often I see people trying to be superheroes the first couple of weeks of a program. This aggressive attitude can often cause a phenomenon known as vomiting. To prevent this from happening to you, I recommend NOT trying to "push through it." Superman wasn't built in 2 weeks. He was born on an icy planet and . . . That's another story. Do yourself a favor and kick it down to 80 percent when you're starting out.
   • Illness or injury breaks. If you're getting sick or you're injured, then do the right thing: back off, back down, or modify. Hard exercise when you're injured or ill can be disastrous. You have to think long-term. More often than not, taking a break is the smartest approach for your long-term success.

Peace,
Tony H.

There are several themes that rise to the surface on the P90X® Message Boards, and one of the most popular themes is MOTIVATION. How does anyone accomplish anything without staying motivated?

Getting from A to Z only comes with commitment. Being committed is one thing, but for many of us, staying committed and motivated seems impossible at times.

It's easy to think of valid and legitimate reasons NOT to do exercise on any given day. We get sick and tired, overwhelmed, discouraged, overworked, and stressed out, and we travel too much and undersleep, and well, the list goes on. So what do we do about it? QUIT! Some of us do. What about the people who don't quit? Why are some folks successful and others aren't? The answer is that the successful, committed, and motivated people have tricks. They've found a way to do it anyway. Here's my list that will help keep you motivated:

1. Stop beating yourself up if you miss a workout! It's OK to miss a workout once in a while. It doesn't mean the whole thing has gone to hell in a handbasket. Life happens. Priorities shifted that day. So what? Start where you left off. No big deal.
2. Don't freak out if you don't see results in the first 30 to 50 days. What, no results in the first month and a half? See, I knew you'd freak out. The point I'm trying to make here is that we all have a different starting point. Some will see results the first week. Based on age, body weight, how out of shape they were when they started, flexibility, athletic backgroubnd, etc., others will have to wait a little longer.
3. On your most exhausting, overwhelming, lackluster days, stick the DVD in the player and see what happens. Be fully committed to having a lousy workout. You must be OK with the fact you will be weak and puny and rotten at it. Any workout, no matter how bad it is, is always better than NO workout at all. You just can't feel bad after a workout. Ever! If you've got good energy and you do the best you can, you'll have a great workout. If your energy and motivation are in the toilet and you do it anyway (even poorly), you've had a great workout!
4. Buy a calendar and a big, fat red marker. For those of you who are having trouble with motivation, I want you to place this calendar where you see it all the time-on the front door, bathroom mirror, or refrigerator, or next to the TV, etc. For every day you workout, write a big, fat red X. You might also want to write down if it was a Sculpt or Cardio day. I still do this after 20 plus years of training. X means I showed up. No X means I didn't show up.
5. I want you to write this on your calendar: THE JOY OF DISCIPLINE OR THE PAIN OF REGRET, WHICH WILL IT BE TODAY?

Well, I hope that keeps the fire burning. We have this powerful temple called the human body. If we treat it right, the world is our playground.

Power on!
Tony H.