Distance Client Review (from Canada)

Back in November, I received an email inquiring about my Individualized Training Services. After a few email exchanges and a meeting over Skype, everything seemed good to go.

David works an active job and more than 8 hours a day five days a week (and even a sixth day). However, that was never an issue. While he was following a four day routine, I didn't pile on the volume or weights. Instead, we focused on how he felt week-to-week.

That's how it went for the next four months. We discussed details through emails and took care of longer topics over Skype. Along with programming and troubleshooting, I offered diet and supplement recommendations. Outside of that, he oversaw the day-to-day organization of his plan.

Here are his thoughts on working with me.

Age: 32
Before (Dec.05/2013): 138 lbs
After (Apr.05/2014): 148 lbs

I've been playing around with weights for a couple years, though my lifts had been mostly sub­beginner, so it seemed it was about time to get some help. Looking through Niel's site, he clearly knows his stuff, and really, I considered (and still consider) the price to be a bargain.

My goals were pretty general, mainly just building some muscle and getting stronger. Both were accomplished, though my BF% went higher than I had hoped, but this might have had more to do with being overenthusiastic about the instructions to raise calories (a lot of the weight came on around the holidays). 

The program was more strength-based than I was used to, which meant that I was moving around heavier weights than normal. The reps and volume were initially relatively low, and quality reps took priority throughout. The program was based around barbell lifts, with a bit of assistance and some fun stuff thrown in (push­ press, grip work). The intensity, volume, and assistance varied across the training blocks, and were adjusted based on how the previous week went. Tweaks, variations, and drills were added and removed as needed. This was the first time I've used RPE's to set intensity, which took some getting used to, but I'm going to try to incorporate them in my future training.

There was a lot more easy, light training than I was expecting, but it usually followed a peak in volume or intensity, just as I was starting to get sore and tired. The form work and deloads were always beneficial, even if it felt like it was slowing progress, and I was consistently surprised by how much stronger I was when the work got heavier again.

One of the big things that made me to decide to work with Niel was his knowledge of technique, and I wasn't disappointed. First, he sent videos demonstrating form (along with cues). Then, we did a skype training session to try and work out some of the biggest errors. Through the entire time, I sent form check videos, all of which I received critiques for within a day, the same goes for any questions I had regarding training, nutrition, etc. I had been staying away from some of the lifts I assumed I'd never be good at, but by the end, I'm mostly comfortable with all the big ones, and had set PR's on every major lift. Even lifts which I had written off as hopeless greatly improved, and continue to improve.

Overall, I'm very happy with my experience training with Niel, and would recommend him to anyone looking to get stronger.

In the third month, there was a personal best he hit that made me happy. While I was reviewing his previous week, he commented that despite being at a higher bodyweight, he hit a PR for his pull-ups - which he couldn't do before.

Nice work David! And remember, stay strong!

Client's Review (This Made Me Happy)

I don't train many people. The individuals I do train see positives results but we work together anywhere from one month to four months. It's usually enough time to accomplish small goals and/or teach weightlifting basics.

The most recent person I had the pleasure to work with was my friend. We talk on the regular and during April he would tell me about his current exercise and diet. His progress eventually stalled and he wasn't happy. Rather than let him regress, I offered to help him with his exercise programming. I wrote the programs and demonstrated how to do basic exercises such as rows, deadlifts, squats, and presses.

That's how it went for three months. I'd ask questions about his workouts the day after as well as how he felt. If something didn't feel quite right, I'd explore it with him to troubleshoot it. I never monitored his training sessions outside the one weekly conditioning day in the program.

During mid-July, we decided everything would come to a close at the month's end. I asked if he would write a review for me to which he promptly replied,

"Total ass. That's complete."

With such a lovely response, I didn't think he was serious. Three weeks later, he sent me the following:

Start Date: 4/22/2013                     Starting Weight: 244

End Date: 7/30/2013                       End Weight: 234

Niel’s exercise regimen for our 3 month course was an overall positive experience. Each month had a specific role with the 1^st month being introductory, 2^nd month for building strength, and 3^rd month for building volume. Although, I may have not lost all the “weight” I wanted to do by the end date, I will say that I am currently at the strongest physical state I have ever been in my life. I feel confident enough to say that the amount of weight I lost was mostly body fat. Unfortunately, I did not have a max session when I first started, but my max for bench, deadlifts, and squats are as follows:

Max Bench: 245 – Repped 135 at beginning – Now rep: 185

Max Deadlift: 315 – Repped 135 at beginning – Now rep: 205

Max Squat: 335 – Repped 135 at beginning – Now rep: 225

Max Push-Ups Before: 25 – Now: 40 (I didn’t do push-ups while working with Niel)

Initially, I was skeptical of using Niel’s workout plan when I first took a look at the program. I have been working out prior to asking him for advice and just needed some simple guidelines as to what to do on certain days at the gym. So after taking a look at the program, I thought that the program was a bit weak and that the exercises I have been doing were much better than what he had offered me.

This introductory month looked like child’s play. He had lowered all the sets and the number of reps looked like a joke. But little did I know, there was a method to his madness. The first few weeks I did not follow his program as outlined and would do 10 repetitions for each exercise rather than what he had listed.

After having multiple “heated” conversations with Niel, I submitted and said that I will follow his every word until the end of workout. I was advised to stop the cardio sessions that I was having to mainly focus on the strength training at hand. I thought he was insane, but like I said he had a method to his madness. I was being stubborn and did not like what I had to do for the initial month because I felt I was taking a step backwards and wasting my time.

It wasn’t until our introductory month was over, that things finally started to pick up. The month of June has to be my most intense month ever in my life in terms of exercising. I was going to the gym 4 days a week and had 1 conditioning day at Niel’s house. So, I was working out 5 days a week which was something I requested for and felt really determined.

Within this month, magic happened. I thought the amount of times going to gym and the workout regimen itself would leave me feeling exhausted, but boy was I wrong. I was feeling amazing and stronger each day. This is the month where I really learned technique and form which greatly helped with increasing my weight every week. After completing the month of June, I was exhilarated. I went into the month of July feeling great.

The month of July was pretty much a breeze compared to last month’s regimen. However, the workout changed to focus on volume and the weight was largely increased with minimal reps. I finished this month feeling the strongest I have ever been in my life. When it came time for my max out sessions, I surpassed what I thought I was capable of and ended up doing more than I imagined.

I previously stated that when I finished my workout regimen with Niel that I am currently in my strongest, physical state that I have ever been. I would like to say that my mental state is also at the strongest it has ever been as well. To know that I could have completed such a workout and keep up with the regimen left me feeling ecstatic. You cannot imagine the amount of times I’ve tried sticking to a workout plan and being consistent with it.

Niel is a great person to work with and will fix a regimen that best suits your needs. If there is a specific exercise you do not like, let him know, and he will do his best to change it. Maybe he has an exercise listed in the program that is very inconvenient for you or you may not have access to at the gym. He definitely will help you find an alternative to the exercise. However, I do suggest giving all of his exercises a chance, even though you may not favor them. In the end, I fell in love with many of the exercise he provided and will now keep it in my regular routines.

Although he may have an “unorthodox” style to his training, it does work! You may be skeptical at first and that is exactly fine! Because if you are skeptical, I believe that truly means you care with what you are doing to your body and just want the best for yourself. Being skeptical will force you to do research and you will be surprised how much stuff out there is fake or a myth. Many people take other people’s words for specific exercises and techniques. This spreads like wildfire and soon becomes “truth” or “fact” for society. But a simple Google search will tell you how they are wrong. If you feel that Niel is steering you in the wrong direction and that he is crazy, I urge you to do some research and you will find that he may NOT be as crazy as he sounds. J

What a nice guy! When I read this the other morning, I was happy to learn he had such a positive experience.

Thank you my friend. Stay strong!

Visiting India, Part 2

Massive Radha-Krishna in a nearby 
office building lobby

Continuing from last time, this post will be a general overview of my observations from my trip to India.

The easiest way to describe it is that it's a different culture. Plain and simple. I grew up with a basic understanding of the culture and it made me quick to pick up mannerisms and behavior while I was there. On the other hand take a random person raised in the West and plop them in India and they will think it's a mad zoo.

Urbanization

There are a few metropolises (extremely congested), some cities, and a whole lot of villages. Very few areas had the semblance of a town. Good housing structures run 1-to-3 rooms large with a kitchen and a flat toilet. People on the lower end of the SES spectrum have a lot less space.

Depending on where you look you can see the introduction of basic modern housing utilities. The neighboring town-city has introduced gas lines directly to homes in our village - presuming your house meets the provider's requirements. Some people still use gas tanks connected to their dual stove top burners but that will become obsolete because of the new gas lines. Predating the tanks, cooking was done on an open fire.

Place the fueling agents in the crater, ignite, then
rest your cookware on top of the open flame to begin cooking

Another village we visited didn't have gas lines but direct water lines to the homes. In contrast, our village relies on an underground well that has water pumped to the homes during mid-morning. There's progress in the country but it's slow and very dependent on the region. As a result, many of the infrastructures present here and in other developed countries are not as widespread in India. The mix of urban and rural areas don't have connecting utility systems. Take rest stops for example. Because many are situated out in the middle of nowhere on the highway, the facilities are latrine-based due to the fact there is no sewer system. Unfortunately, this is the case with a number of basic services.

10 years ago I noticed people openly littered on the ground. It was a very minor problem then and little trash was noticeable outdoors. 10 years made a huge difference because there is a ton of garbage strewn about everywhere. The increase in non-biodegradeable materials - namely plastic - combined with the lack of garbage processing centers and nonexistent waste disposal practices are major contributors to the pollution. The problem is further magnified due to the large population. The only method of waste disposal I saw was garbage burning. Whatever natural scenery remains in India is in jeopardy of disappearing if these conditions continue or worsen over time.

Roads, Highways, and Everything on Them

I initially thought to exclude this section of the trip. I thought to myself, "Why bother? It's not that important." Then I thought about it again and realized it - yes it is important. Highways look almost identical to the ones we have here and appear very new and modern. Not all portions of it are like that but I'd say close to 90% of them are similar. When you get to the local roads then everything becomes a big mess.

Road systems seem to be reliant on whatever pathways were previously in place. These avenues are shared by everyone and everything. Motorcycles, bikes, cars, rickshaws, pedestrians, water buffalo, goats, you name it. I'd presume these paths were originally made for pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles but that's no longer the case. Dense areas have motorcycles and cars attempting to squeeze through crowds of people.

While there are cars available, not everyone can afford one nor do they need it unless traveling long distances. On the other hand, tourists need someone to chauffeur them around because they're unfamiliar with the locale. Consequently, this has given rise and value to the driver profession. It's a lucrative business and career choice if an individual can drive well. It's similar to being a truck driver - drive frequently for extended periods of time except that they're transporting people from point A to point B. However, instead of trucks, 5-9 seat passenger vehicles are popular. Some resemble a minivan, others are more of a mini-hummer in appearance. Often you could spot the Toyota Qualis on the roads:

Typical packed car

Why buy a massive car? The more passengers you can fit the more money you make. Even with less passengers, such as our small party of three, we had quite a bit of luggage leaving and going to the airport. It wouldn't have fit in a regular-sized sedan. Large vehicles make sense but their use in villages and small towns is an issue. The aggressive driving style is dangerous because rules and penalties are not in place and are not enforced by authorities.

People's Living

India has over a billion people. With a population of that size, the SES stratum is diverse. This actually made it difficult to distinguish who was indigent at times. For instance, an individual who earns 100 rupees* a day - roughly equivalent to 2 US dollars - is considered to have a low income. Yet, the same person can live in a one room home without any transportation means, but own a standard definition TV and a cellphone. It's a bit tricky to define "destitute" when odd variables like those are thrown into the mix. In fact, one night a neighbor and I were talking about how everyone in the village is glued to their TV at night which is contrary to a few years earlier. Everyone use to sit outside and talk to one another. A TV in each home has become the norm whereas ten years ago our home was the only one with a TV. As you can tell, that's quite the opposite!

*One dollar is roughly equivalent to 50-55 rupees depending on its current value. 50 is used as a base for easy calculations.

To better put things into perspective, I'll go over a few values and costs of goods I noticed there and discussed with my mother. First she explained that 100 rupees is a lot and is considered the same as $20 here (but remember the true currency conversion is $2). Our family's okay with giving money as a gift to a relative whether it's a birthday, Christmas, or a small occasion. This is usually when a niece or nephew is given about $20 as a nice little gift. Typically, 100 rupees isn't given to someone as a gift. It's more common to give around 10 rupees. Several prices I recall were,

• 1lb. of chicken = 200-300 rupees

• 1lb. of goat = 500 rupees 

• 20oz. of cow's milk everyday for 3 weeks = 700-800 rupees 

• full tank of diesel or petroleum fuel for a car = over 1,000 rupees

If you think about it on a $20-base scale, that is incredibly expensive! Going by those numbers, a pound of chicken would cost a minimum of $40 here in NJ. That's more than four times higher than its current cost. A gallon of milk? For one week, it's about $40 (231 rupees for 7 days [700/21 days times 7 days in a week]). The cost of living for the citizens of India is much higher than our standards.

Yet despite limited resources and technology, by our living criteria, Indians manage to do pretty damn well. They create efficiency out of inefficiency. The phrase "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade" perfectly illustrates this concept.

The dabbawala highlight how efficient and resourceful Indians truly can be. Recall last time I wrote about how women are able to carry heavy bulky items on their head as they walk. No one owns a wheelbarrow to transport stuff around the village. Another example is the use of cow dung. It's shaped into discs and set to dry. Then in conjunction with wood it's used as a burning agent (wood alone in India is not enough to keep a fire lit). That actually doesn't seem efficient at all but my dad told me before detergent was available the ashes from the fire were used to wash clothes. To my surprise he said the laundry came out very clean.

While the dried cakes are not good for the atmosphere,
this must eliminate a great deal of animal waste

Anyone who knows how driving is in India would exclaim it's erratic and absolutely crazy. To a certain extent it's true. A whole lot of honking and one car over taking another doesn't make sense. On the contrary there is a rudimentary style of how one should drive: use your horns and high beams liberally to inform the nearby vehicle of your presence or to move aside so that traffic can flow smoothly. And slow down or stop if something is in front of you. I didn't claim it was a great way of driving but it works for them.

Patriarchy

While there are very efficient processes present in the country, the huge glaring obstacle I saw was the lack of women's presence. India is a patriarchal nation. The women are tough as nails and religious scriptures highlight their value but their role in society is minimal. From what I know, women in the state of Gujarat are treated better than women in the other states (Rajasthan being the other exception). However, I'm not talking about oppression or abuse. Outside of being a stay-at-home mom, only a fraction of women are visible in the workplace. Hell, we didn't even see one driving a car in the entire 3 weeks. But the status of women became glaringly obvious when we were out shopping for women's saree. These huge fashion stores had men as their sales associates. That's not to say men can't sell women's clothing or be in the fashion industry....but not a single woman was a sales associate? That's funky. Only one store had women employed and they were in charge of administrative tasks (tracking customer orders, noting tailor requests, payments, phones, miscellaneous duties).

Outside of that, most jobs appear to be dominated by men. I won't say all jobs because I did hear neighbors mention a few women go to work in newly built factories because of the good pay. We even came across one 22 year old who runs a coconut business with her mom. And while we didn't see women driving cars, 10 years ago only men were riding around on motorcycles and scooters but now it's more common to see women dipping and diving through traffic. Like I said earlier, there's progress in the country but it's slow and dependent on the region.

People as People

Being visitors, we met quite a few people during our stay. We also visited others who weren't able to come to our neck of the woods. Let me just say that when you visit another person's home that their hospitality is unbelievable. They are EXTREMELY kind and welcoming to their guests. They want to treat them well and give them the most pleasant experience possible. At times it can be overwhelming. One memorable instance was when I stopped off at an extended relative's home after spending the afternoon out in the city. They were being so over-the-top kind to me that at one point I was beginning to feel awkward. They told me,

"Come! Come! You've been out all day. You must be tired."

Yes! Here lie down. Put your feet up.

Let me get you fresh coconut water."

You know, things of that nature.

Strangely though, there are no set formal manners, if any. No please, excuse me, your welcome, bless you, or any phrase of that sort. If you burp, you burp. No one cares that you did it because it happens and no one minds it. "Thank you" does exist in Hindi as "dhanyavaad" but no one uses the expression. They definitely need "excuse me" because people have no words to say if they want someone to step aside. I saw one guy simply waiting for another person to move. Aside from that, it did make me think if we're sometimes overly polite here.

But unfortunately, just because those individuals are kind to their guests doesn't mean they're kind to everyone. Sadly, attitudes towards a person are based on their background. If you don't come from a certain status/background or position of "power" (for a lack of a better term) then you will be treated poorly. What makes it worse is that it's tolerated and expected to an extent. I wouldn't call it discrimination but maybe it is and I'm blind to the truth. Either way it's not good for the people.

I've written a lot detailing my trip. However, words on a screen cannot convey the true experience of visiting India. I left out an incredible amount of information and what I did share only scratched the surface of the adventure. Trust me when I say a lot happened.

But it was amazing. When I got back, the trip felt like a fleeting memory that didn't even happen.

It dawned upon me that I was in India one early morning. My dad asked me if I wanted to visit our family's farm lots. We hiked through the tall grass and thickets then began to walk on a narrow dirt path. About a quarter mile in, I looked behind and in front of me. Not a soul could be seen. There was only my dad treading ahead of me pointing out and explaining the various fruit trees and how it was when he grew up, feeling the red sun warming the cool air, and listening to the peacocks' high pitch calls.

That was India.

Related content,

• Web Album: Pictures from the Trip
• Web Album: Pictures of Food from the Trip
• Visiting India, Part 1: Food & Fitness

Visiting India, Part 1

The medium-sized city of Navsari has the best food

(Click to enlarge even more)

Thieves looting before the sun rises, a monkey hanging out on an electrical wire, driving in the opposite direction of traffic on the highway, and spices so strong you would have thought Columbus could have smelled his way here instead of trying to follow a map.

Yup. This is India.

I last went to India with my family in the summer of 2002 for six weeks. We spent the first week sight seeing the cities of Mumbai and New Delhi with the remaining five weeks living at my paternal grandparents' rural home in the state of Gujarat. Despite it being the hot and humid monsoon season, a language barrier, and being far from the comforts of home, I found the vacation fun.

This time around I was there for three weeks with my parents at the start of the cold season. Again we stayed at my grandparents' home - we don't go anywhere else - but it was different. Since the doors remain locked, only to be opened when a relative may visit, the house has not aged well. However we didn't have any problems with it as you'll see in these two posts.

I could recount the entire trip except that would exceed well over what I'd like to write. Rather I want to share my experiences and what I learned over the course of my stay. Visiting after ten years gave me a much different perspective than I can remember.

To better group my thoughts from this trip I'm dividing this excursion into two posts. In this first part I'll be discussing a wide range of items regarding food and exercise/fitness. In the second post I'll do a general look at the environment, people, and any changes I took notice of since my last trip.

Food

The food was great. For us it largely meant produce cooked at home as opposed to eating at restaurants or street shops. Restaurants have become very generic highway stops commonly referring to themselves as "hotels." You'll find terrible restrooms, so-so/bad service, and a menu full of Punjabi dishes & Chinese-inspired ones. If you plan on going to India I suggest avoiding any place situated off a highway that has shirt-and-tie service.

What I do suggest is finding small street shops. The food has a more authentic taste, the people are friendlier, and the prices are better.

Fast food: real samosa
Not the knockoff kind you find here in restaurants

During this time at home the only vegetable in season was a type of spinach. Hence our diet consisted of different beans, beets, tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes eaten with sorghum* flat bread. Because the vegetarian meals were surprisingly satiating we ate meat less often. The meats we did eat were chicken, crayfish, shrimp, and goat all of which had a denser texture, but less volume compared to the meat found here in the US. The same held true for the vegetables and fruits - they were comparatively smaller.

*In the Indian grocery stores here it's listed as "juwar" flour but isn't that great.

Looking at foods between the two countries, here it's all about quantity and size. Our produce looks completely cracked out on steroids. I found everything in India had a better taste. Here the quality costs us extra: organic foods are the norm there. Additionally it helps that each dish is cooked in the deliciousness that is peanut oil.

Half the size garlic

The best food there was the raw milk provided to us from our neighbors. The cow was fed grass, vegetables, and bean peels leading to a fresh rich milk. Daily right after dawn our neighbor would provide us a quart of milk that we used to make our morning chai. Just enough of it remained for me to drink a cup later with my afternoon lunch. Drinking chai again with the usual American grocery store milk I've noticed it's thinner as well as giving the chai a bitter taste. It's only palatable after adding a heavy dose of sugar. Not only that but the milk leaves my mouth tasting and smelling rancid.

The biggest surprise was after we returned home I noticed a meal never satiated my hunger and it caused me to use the bathroom more frequently. When I spoke with my dad he said he had the same problems plus a strange itching feeling on his skin. Physically I see my skin produces more oil and that my hair smells within 24 hours. I really believe these weird symptoms are due to the food here. Add to the fact that my mom's acid reflux and dad's gout didn't act up a single day there but immediately began irritating them again upon returning to the states, it makes you think.

While in the US we are fortunate to have an abundance of food, high standards of practice, and an excellent process that delivers it from the farm to the plate, it's somewhat questionable on the quality front. What I really do enjoy is the availability of fruits. Because none were in season this time of the year, the few that were available to us were expensive (based on the locals' income). Season or not, the amount of fruits here are a real treat. The pomegranate I ate here tasted as good as the one in India showing that not everything comes in second place in terms of quality. 

Lastly, despite many homes owning a half-sized refrigerator few use them to store items for an extended period of time. Instead the norm is to consume an item of food the day it is received [meat & dairy] or within 3-4 days [vegetables]. This is one of the more valuable lessons I learned and think is imperative to put into practice. For something such as milk it's not possible to purchase everyday and I don't expect anyone to do so, but aim to refrigerate/freeze foods less. Make the effort to go to the grocery store each week putting a maximum shelf life of 5-6 days on fresh produce. Combine that with eating local and in season produce will make your health better than most people.

Exercise & Fitness

While I was away I did about five or six workouts using a combination of isometrics, bodyweight exercises, and a stalk of sugarcane. I let my mood dictate if I wanted to exercise but it also helps that I planned accordingly before I left - two months straight of hard sessions. In reality there was no need to train on vacation because three weeks of little-to-no exercise wasn't the end of the world.

Also just as important to exercise, or even more so, is recovery. Down time from exercise does the body good both physically and mentally. Naturally being on vacation it's a relaxing experience but the absence of electronics really let us unwind. The only piece of technology we used was a phone. Add the warm weather into the mix, it made for a pleasant atmosphere. Even with hard beds we had to use the sleep was particularly restful.

As for the people, muscle mass appears to be in short supply and winged scapulas in excess - I saw more people with them than without. What makes it worse is all the gluteless guys wear tight jeans. The jeans I wore there split completely down the middle from squatting down and they weren't even tight on me. But despite individuals being thin this shouldn't be confused with weakness because the people who do hard labor are strong at what they do. For instance, I saw a woman carry a 70 lb. gas tank on her head and walk roughly the distance of two city blocks. I think if any of us tried that our necks would snap.

If I had to guess why people in that region carry low muscle mass I would attribute it to the less amount of food they eat. Quantity of food is not as readily available for families as it is here. A household rations their portions sparingly due to their low income. Other individuals who aren't skinny just lack adequate resistance training to build bigger muscles. While there aren't barbells or similar equipment readily available I saw a ton of other stuff in the area that could be used as resistance - namely stones of various sizes. I know in other states of India that stones are used in training (pehlwan).

What's crazy is that if the Indian population took up barbell squatting (and had better upper body strength), they just might wreck everyone else in squats. I saw people in deep squats for just about anything you can imagine - squat to eat, squat to go to the bathroom, squat to relax/hang out, squat to clean, squat to wash clothes, hell I even think I saw guys squat to urinate on the sides of the road. Indians do not mind an ass-to-grass squat. They actually find it comfortable. I'll add that while they do squat deep without knee problems, they squat into an extremely lax position with a pelvis tuck and a slight forward lean.

Squatting becomes a daily affair when this is your toilet
(But don't worry, we had an American style toilet in the adjacent bathroom)

Being back, I feel more sluggish. I have no idea why. Chalk it up to the weather, food, beds, or a combination of factors. I have to make more of an effort here to maintain strength and body composition as opposed to there. The first few days back home I felt stronger than when I left. Of course that quickly waned and I started to feel stiff, lethargic, and weaker in subsequent days. Luckily by starting to lift again that's no longer the case. Just as I did in India I'll make sure to pay attention to how I feel to structure my workouts.

There's still a lot more to cover in the second half. With that said it will be posted sometime in January. Enjoy the holidays and have a happy New Year's Eve everyone!

I'll see you in 2013.

Related content,

• Web Album: Pictures from the Trip
• Web Album: Pictures of Food from the Trip
• Visiting India, Part 2: General Overview

Understanding Research

The joy of reading journal articles.

When it comes to research I'm average at best. During undergrad I took stats for research, evaluating health programs, writing research, and worked in a research lab. I'm happy I learned a bit but there's still a lot I don't know/didn't pay attention to in class. I can however make sense of an academic paper.

Of course if you're not dealing with it for work or academics then it isn't necessary to read any research.

Then when will you encounter it? Typically, "New research shows....." from a news reporter. It's fairly common for media to pick up a new study's findings.

In the event you are affected by said "new research," here are things to keep in mind.

- One study's results does not hold substantial grounding. Rather it paves the way for more studies to be done on the subject. A large number of studies should be examined to note similar OR dissimilar findings.

- Studies are controlled and cannot be wholly externalized to the real world where variables are innumerable. To account for everything in the day-to-day isn't possible. Not only that but even certain factors within a study can't be manipulated and/or observed.

- Study design is very important! A poorly designed study will yield equally poor results. Take for instance the recent women's vitamins study. Each participant took varying supplements compared to one another. Postmenopausal women consuming iron wasn't necessary either. Consequently, the data was negatively skewed and the broad statement "vitamins are bad" was reported by many news outlets.

A study should have better execution. I recall one study had two groups. The first group of men & women was split 50/50 but the second group had a contrasting 30/70. That doesn't look right does it?

- Experience has merit but the ability to have it as measurable data isn't easy. Studies provide quantified numbers easier to use and understand on an analytical scale.

- Studies can contain flaws and how a researcher or author presents the results can be biased. This is why it's important to take a look at the study itself.

Every study can be criticized. You can find studies both supporting or against a certain viewpoint. An article will you give you a brief piece of the entire study.

Use the knowledge you have to determine for yourself the meaning behind the data.

Further reading,

• Research 101 by Leigh Peele
  

It Looks Good On Paper

What's written isn't
the same as what happens.

Before embarking on an endeavor or project it helps to write out a rough draft highlighting the major points. Doing so helps refine the plan further guiding it to become more structured. What we end up with is something a little more concrete to follow than the initial rough draft.

In an ideal world, execution of the plan would be perfect to what we wrote down. Unfortunately the ideal world is just that - ideal. Realistically speaking, the plan that's been created can't be prepared for every curve ball thrown at it. Whether we like it or not, there are always a host of variables at play.

As a result we have two opposing ends on a spectrum. At one is the perfect "ideal" plan where everything goes accordingly, while at the other end is the real world where everything can change in an instant. The former contains our original plan while the latter is the first trial run of it. Usually there are a few problems encountered when we try to enact the hard work we wrote out.

I'm certainly not trying to shoot down anyone's hopes. Rather I want to point out it's not always - more like never - straightforward in life. When it comes to exercise and nutrition, micromanaging every detail will only make you obsessive. For short term plans it is possible, but in the long run you need to keep your sanity.

From personal experience in the gym, I don't get to do everything I ponder up in my own head. Sure new exercises sound good in my mind, but when I attempt to do them in the gym it may be a total wreck. At other times availability of equipment might force me to switch exercises. In the realm of nutrition, I don't get to choose every meal if I have to attend a social event or if something comes up last minute. Instead I'll have to consider substitutes and alternatives.

Understand what looks good on paper isn't necessarily how it will turn out. Be prepared to make adjustments and adapt when the moment calls for it rather than having a failed effort or giving up.

Art of Writing (How to Write a Blog Post)

My actual keyboard doesn't look this nice.

Most likely due to the 88 posts I've written.

Real quick before I start, Dave could use some help. If you don't mind & have the time, go check out what he needs a hand with here.

Now, onto me post writing manifesto! Yes, I just wanted to use the word "manifesto," sue me.

There are a lot of blogs out there. From what I've seen, a good bulk of them seem average. It might be due to the lack of originality and writing very base posts, which leads to a lot of overlap with blogs already discussing the same areas. It's hard to compel people to visit your site if there's already another one - or many in this case - writing on the same topic.

I like to think I'm not one of those generic blogs. This is my 89^th post and almost 1 year running this blog, which has required fine tuning over the months. Mike Robertson and Tony Gentilcore wrote a post each on how to run blogs, but the posts themselves make the blog.

Here are things I've learned to make your posts,

1) Have a purpose
Have something worthwhile to convey to the reader. Not only that, but do it in a way that's entertaining, concise, and precise. Try to make it flow as smooth as possible.

And there's nothing wrong with short posts. In fact those are the ones most likely to be read.

2) Art of words
Stories are wonderful to illustrate points. So are analogies, metaphors, and examples to get your message across and break down information.

Likewise, use flavorful vocabulary to avoid repetition which gives the illusion of a post being longer than it is. Search Google with "define: [word here]" to truly understand the multitude of meanings a word can have, even the ones you know, and use it to your advantage.

3) Capturing attention
Speaking of words, titles and the initial portion are what get people to continue reading. Make them exceptional to attract the reader to keep reading.

4) Creating posts
They need to be original (for the most part). Put the time* into making something worthy of reading. Write and save drafts if you can't find the time to finish it in one sitting. It shows when you write in a hurry because the quality of the post sucks.

For me, ideas come and go all the time. If it seems like it would make a nice post, write a note down reminding yourself to flesh it out more later. There are plenty of times I've lost great posts because I forgot to write them down. Now I keep a notepad file on my laptop to keep track of posts to do and ones I've completed. Hell, this post has given me the thought to do a future post on how to run a blog.

As for fleshing out a post, do a rough draft somewhere - notepad for myself - and jot down whatever comes to mind. Get a sense of what you're trying to do and have your writing flow naturally.

Click & enlarge to see
me working on this post.

5) The body
The longer a post is, the more interesting/entertaining or insightful it needs to be. People are reluctant to read long lengthy posts.

Piggy backing - or chicken backing since I don't eat pork - on the topic of length, formatting your post so it looks neat is ridiculously important. Big walls of text are the 2^nd most unattractive thing you could do. (#1? A site with too much going on like tons of ads/links, no organization, ugly colors, etc.)

A large paragraph can be broken down into multiple lines to trick your reader into thinking it's less. I do it all the time. Seriously, just look at this gargantuan post.

Images and videos make a post less boring. And use the wide variety of tools your blogger's composer mode has available. Bullet points, block quoting, italics, bold, font sizing, number lists, so on and so forth. Above and beyond the buttons offered on blogspot, refer here to see what you can change in "Edit Html" mode.

6) Competency
Show you're not an idiot.

Make sure your grammar & spelling are correct and you have coherent sentences. Proofreading goes a long way. (As I proofread this, I'm finding a crap load of errors.)

7) Be eclectic
To a certain extent. Rather, read other blogs to get an understanding of how your writing style contrasts and what, if necessary, you could do differently. Learn if you could change anything to improve your posts.

8) Who's reading?
Know your audience and write FOR THEM! (Well...actually I have no idea who visits here.)

You can't please everyone. Give your attention to the people who take the time to come read your material. Honestly, it's the least you could do. What can you offer them?

If your writing style is too dry or overly informative/geek-speak, you'll repel even the mightiest of nerds (and women if you're a guy). Write naturally as if you were speaking to someone, but don't write as if you're lecturing a person - you pompous jackass.

9) Ending
End on a good note. It's not terribly difficult to end your post with a simple sentence or two on what you were trying to get across to your reader.

*This post took forever.

Darn! One short of a full 10, oh well.

A lot of these points are similar to giving a good presentation. For those interested, check out this article from the Harvard Business Review, courtesy of Carter, and Boris's presentation post - full of other resources - for more details on writing and presenting. They're not about blogging, but they can be applied to it.

Be innovative and creative to distinguish yourself from others. And above all else, enjoy doing it. Put some music on while you write and don't think of it as a chore.

Otherwise, go do something else. If you didn't know, blogging's optional.

But I do it, and it's awesome.

So does this baby.

Limiting factors of life

Reading, do you do it?

2 1/2 year through college and a few things hit you. Here's 3 of them that I believe apply to life and training.

1) Going it alone

People don't like to do things alone. While it may not be great, it does help to be ready to do activities by yourself. Whether training alone in the gym or out somewhere, self-confidence and ability is key. Do it yourself and do it well.

But, that doesn't mean partners need to be completely off limits. They can be motivating and helpful for the stuff you may not know. Just don't become completely dependent on other people.

2) Learning & reading

If you're reading this, good start. It helps to pick up a book, read an article, browse websites, or anything to increase your knowledge. There is so much information, how could you not? Especially if it gets you closer to your goals.

Will knowing more really be bad? I'd expect it to help you progress in one form or another.

3) Fear

The big bad one and the most important. People are often scared about little details which are made worse than they truly are. Trying something new, going out of your comfort zone, new exercises, different food, unfamiliar places, you name it.

If there was no fear, imagine how great your potential really would be, the things you can accomplish.

And honestly, what's the worse that could happen? You do it wrong? Who will judge you? Someone you don't know? Is it really so bad to mess up sometimes?

We learn by mistakes and we get better because of them.

The difference between the ordinary and the great are little, but make a world of difference.

Which one will you live each day as?

Ordinary and being content with average?

Will that make you happy?