“5 Strategies To Achieve a Celebrity Body”

Hey, have you ever wondered when you looked at some of the hip hop videos or maybe some of the rock star videos how all those people in there look so fit? Or maybe even some of the Hollywood stars? Well I’m here to tell you about some simple strategies, five, for example, that will help you achieve that celebrity body.

Now, they really are not any different than you and I and the things that they do on a day to day basis may be a little different as far as scheduling, time so on and so forth. They work just like we do but in a different manner, long hours, impossible schedule sometimes. But they manage to fit it in. And I think part of why they are able to fit in they have a strong enough “Why?” The why for a lot of celebrities is they get paid a lot of money. But the desire that they have to achieve that look and how they feel with that look is just like it is for you.

So, one of the things that we really want to look at out of the big five, is we want to take a look at our food and meal choices. We want to make sure that the foods we are eating are in line with the goal we have chosen. If you’re carrying a little bit of extra weight, obviously we are going to have to lose some of it. How do we determine how much fat we need to lose? Have your body fat checked by a professional at one of the big gyms or hire a personal trainer. That is the best place to start. From there, you find out how many calories you should be shooting for as far as the consumption quantity per day. Then you determine how much protein you need and how much fat you need to take in. And after that we can use a baseline of about 100 grams of carbohydrate consumption per day. This is a starting point. This is what we call a ketogenic diet.

The second strategy is an appropriate training schedule for strength training. It doesn’t have to be too elaborate. It can be home training, it can be calisthenics or using free weights or bands or medicine balls or a combination of all of those items. A lot of times people think you need to go to a big gym…this isn’t necessarily the case. You can actually do it outside at one of the local parks or in the comfort of your own home. Provided you have a few basic pieces. One of the things that I usually recommend to my Hollywood clients, a medicine ball series maybe something light to start, 5 pounds, 10 pounds, in that range. A small set of dumbbells anywhere from 5 to 25 pounds. A matt of some sort, something that will give you enough padding on a wood floor or linoleum floor is fine. Obviously with carpeting you can use a regular towel. Maybe a very good ball, a Swiss ball, something that you might find at a physical therapy office. There are some types I recommend a Duro-Pro ball. You can go online to Paulchek.com and find that particular ball. It is ideal because it is puncture proof. Some of the balls you might find at some of the big chain stores and athletic stores are not necessarily the best because they can pop if you get on them. I’m not saying if you are bigger. I’m just saying they are inferior products. So you want to take a look at that.

The third thing that we want to look at after our diet, after our strength training, is our cardio. Now a lot of times people really think that they need to go out and run like a marathon runner. I found that for some people this may be necessary in an attempt to build a good cardio base. But typically what we do when we start with new people is get them to do a walking program. Walking programs will help build some of the muscles in the legs and the lower body as far as from the knee to the ankle and the shin. This is where people typically will experience something called “shin splints” some of the time. So we start with a simple walking program. Then we progress into something that might incorporate a light jog interspersed with walking. This may go on for two to four weeks. Now you can fast track it, but I usually advise against it so we can build up a good level of endurance first.

Then, after that’s done, we may attempt something called high intensity interval training. This would be a series of 30, 60 or 90 second sprint bursts followed by a walking or jogging at a recovery rate until our heart rate gets back down to about 120 beats per minute. This seems to be about the most effective way and the fastest way for most people. Do I advocate using machines in a gym or at home? Yea, I do. If you have no access to those, than the running is always the best. But the machine based cardio sometimes are a better choice if you have injuries. There will be less body impact. If you have other mind or body challenges, then the machine based cardio may work out. And it really doesn’t matter what piece. My only advice is if you are going to use machines in the gym, alternate between the different types. Maybe the step mill one day, rower the next, seated bike position, maybe even a spin class, or jogging on the treadmill. So try to break it up so that you don’t do the same type all the time.

Next component that I would like to discuss is the flexibility issue. Of course with all the additional weight training that we are doing, and cardio, a lot of our muscles basically get a little bit tighter. Or you may have something going on with your body already as a result of your occupation or sport that you like to play. Because of the repetition action of that sport or your occupation, for example a cashier at a check out line using the big scanners and she is moving possibly cases of water and big bottles of Tide and so on and so forth, she really gets tight on one side of the body. Or how about the repetitive motions use by a golfer, tennis player or the baseball player? So we want to look at some of the movements a person might do and then stretch those movements so they get a really good range of motion and of course with our strength training, develop the strength on the other side of that motion. Kind of like a playground “teeter tooter”….balance each side out.

The flexibility is very important. It is part of our recovery strategy and I think it is something that you really want to look at incorporating post workout. That means after you are done doing your weight training or cardio, finish off with more of a static stretching routine. That means sitting and holding while you use deep diaphragmatic breaths or deep belly breathing for maybe three to four pulls or three to four inhale, exhale cycles. This is usually enough time to let the body relax so that you can get a nice stretch in the muscle. Do you need to do it everyday? No, you don’t need to. Do you need to go to a hot sweaty room or one of the classes? No, if it is convenient do it on the comfort of your floor at home, or in the park. But just at least stretch the muscle groups that you just finished training and the tighter areas of your body at a minimum three times a week.

The next area that we would like to discuss is our mental aspect. Now, are these all in an order that I think is the best? Maybe not. You might have an area that you think is more important, but this last area, our mental attitude, our mind over matter philosophy. I think that most of us with the lifestyles that we have can become overwhelmed from time to time. And it is very easy to let our life overcome us from time to time and cause us to become derailed on the goals that we have selected for our self.

So some of the strategies that we use are a series of focus cards (3x5 index cards) that we will write down maybe the five or six major areas of our lives that we really like to focus on changing for the better. Our health, our career, our education, our spirituality, relationships, maybe issues regarding finance. Some of the things that we would really like to do like trips or things that we want to buy ourselves or any such items along those lines. And then on these cards, write down on the back of the card all the steps that will help you identify more specifically, a measured amount of time and steps that you need to take so you will see yourself achieve that goal. For example, in the fitness realm I would like to lose 15 pounds in the next 90 days and I would like to drop from 20% down to 15% by this date. And then establish a “why?” behind it that is very, very powerful for you so that you really give yourself a reason to achieve that goal.

I think this is an important part of the process. And I think with daily reference to our focus cards it allows us to keep our goals fresh in our mind. I encourage my clients and people that I work with, look at the cards in the morning, possibly review them during the day and definitely before you go to bed. And then ask yourself, “Did I do something today moving me closer to that goal?” If not, why not? And if I didn’t, get up immediately and do something to help you with that goal. It is very important that you achieve success with that so you feel a sense of accomplishment.

Do these five things and I know you are going to achieve the success that you would like to see with your body and life. I’m Emile Jarreau, M2 Fitness Pros, Long Beach, California. Also, MrFatLoss.com and the developer of the “In home Celebrity Training System” at M2Celebritybody.com. Thank you.