Today's The Day

It's Monday, June 1st 2009.

It's the first day of a new month and it's a Monday. The weather is better, the days are longer and with the new season, you feel a refreshed and ready to go.

There's about 4 weeks until the July long weekend (the "official" start of summer, in my opinion, if you live on the East Coast).

So why not set your sights on that weekend, take the next 4-5 weeks to work your tail-off, and get in great shape - lose some fat, put some muscle on, get your strength up and just feel better and more energetic overall!!!

Here's your SIMPLE 4-Step Action Plan...
1. Write your goals down. Pick 2 or 3 REALISTIC and SPECIFIC goals that you'd like to achieve over the next 4 weeks, write them down and make 3 copies...

-stick one copy on your refrigerator door
-stick the second copy on the dashboard of your car
-put the final copy in your wallet

Your goals could be anything from...

"Over the next 4 weeks I will exercise and/or be active every day" to

"I will lose 2 inches off my belly" to

"I will spend at least 1 hour of devoted time with my son everyday"

It doesn't matter what it is, as long as it's specific and it's something that you feel passionate about and motivated to accomplish.

Review these goals daily, if not more. Come back to them as often as you can to keep you focused with your eye on the prize.
2. Tell somebody about what you're doing and why you're doing it. Tell your wife, your boss, your best friend or tell US. You need a support system to hold you accountable and to help you get through those times that you don't want to do things even though you KNOW you should.

Having that support system will pull you through.
THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP.

If you need to turn to a group of like-minded individuals, sign-up for the FitAndBusyDad Community. We're just a bunch of busy dads, just like you, who focus on staying in shape, living healthy and being there for our families.

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3. Get your nutrition in check. When you get home from work tonight, go through the pantry and the fridge/freezer and get all the indulgent crap out of your face. Fine, if you want to give the kids a treat now and then.

But if it were me, I'd just throw it all out. Teach your family how to eat well too.

Ice cream, chips, cookies, crackers, gummy bears, rice cakes (yes, even rice cakes)...get rid of it. These types of foods WILL NOT help you achieve your goals over the next 4 weeks.

Instead, you'll be focusing on eating a lot of fresh fruits & vegetables, lean protein (chicken, fish & some red meat) and healthy fats (like nuts, avocados, seeds, olive & coconut oil).

Try to buy whatever's fresh and in-season. Peppers & asparagus are great this time of year. Strawberries & blueberries are good, and if you really want a treat, grab some mangoes from the supermarket. They are ridiculously sweet this season!

Over the next 4-weeks (and hopefully the rest of your life), you'll be focusing on eating REAL FOOD. Nothing packaged, no GMOs, nothing processed or unnatural. Eat foods the way Mother Nature intended and you will lose weight and be healthier.

Guaranteed.

4. Do this workout. It will take you about 21-minutes. If you like it, come back tomorrow and I'll give you one to do for tomorrow (Tuesday)...




Helping you get your best phsyique this summer!

Chris
The FitAndBusyDad

P.S. Want more workouts like these? Check out the entire FitAndBusyDad System

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My BIGGEST Transformation Obstacle

When it comes to changing my body, I know what to do.

My workouts need to be intense and I need to be breaking records everyday.

My diet needs to be tight - meaning that I should be sticking to the 90-10 Rule focusing on eating fresh, unprocessed, HIGH-QUALITY foods. I should be eating at least 1-2 servings of fruit and/or vegetables at every meal and should be eating lean protein like chicken, fish, eggs & lean cuts of beef and pork AND consuming good fats like olive oil, nuts, seeds, avocados and saturated fats from naturally raised animals.

But, for me, that's the easy part.

In fact, I attribute my slight gain in belly fat to stress and lifestyle factors. And the biggest culprit, I believe, is me not getting enough SLEEP.

I've written about what I need to do to make sure I have a productive day when I'm SLEEP DEPRIVED. But that's just a band-aid solution.

In order for me to get to where I want to be, I need to tackle the problem head-on.

It's tough, because as soon as I get home, I'm on point - pick-up the kids, get dinner ready, help with homework, feed them, bath time, story time, bed time...when it's all said and done, it's about 9pm.

After that, I like to spend time with my wife (whom I haven't seen all day) and sometimes there are miscellaneous things to get done at home - paying bills, filing, laundry, clean-up, etc.

When that's all done, it's usually 11/11:30pm. That's not a bad bedtime when you get up at 7am...but I wake-up at 5am (sometimes 4:30). 5-6 hours of sleep per night is NOT going to cut it if I want to lose 5-6 inches off my waist.

Lack of sleep causes your body to produce the hormone cortisol. High levels of cortisol are directly related to the storage of belly fat.

So I need to create a better routine and better habits.

Over the next 12-weeks, for my FitAndBusyDad Transformation Challenge, I'm going to form the habits of...

-Getting to bed by 10pm
-Watching less TV (with the NCAA tournament going on, that'll be tough)
-Reading 1hr everyday
-Shutting the computer down between 4pm and 9pm so I can spend dedicated time with the family
-Spending at least 1-hour of alone time with each one of my girls individually (that includes my wife) once per week
-Avoiding "eating out" at all costs, EXCEPT once per week (which will constitute my reward meal)

What are you going to do to help TRANSFORM your body and BE A BETTER DAD?

(make sure to leave you comments below!)

Chris Lopez
The FitAndBusyDad

P.S. Are you up for the CHALLENGE? Get on board with the other guys in the FitAndBusyDad Community and start your Transformation Today for your chance to win $750 CASH!

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Can I Win My Own Transformation Challenge?

It's March Break (or Spring Break as my American friends would say), and we took the kids to the Art Gallery.

As I was getting dressed this morning, I noticed something that I've never seen before...




Check out my "BEFORE" pictures by becoming a member HERE.

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Follow me on Twitter to get updates of what I'm eating, how my new habits are coming along, and what I'm doing for my workouts. Click HERE.

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Chris Lopez

P.S. I'll be using these workouts to build muscle and get my 6-pack back. Click HERE to get started with my workouts!

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