Archives for September 2009

This is something that I’ve been wanting to write about for some time now… and in fact, I’ve had bits and pieces of this rolling around my head for the last few months, just waiting for an opportunity to chime in on what I feel is one of the most important concepts… as a man… you should wrap your mind around.

And that concept… is… “GRAVITY“…

(and yes – I’m coining a new term here when I talk about ‘gravity’… and how it relates to your success in life)

For all practical purposes, “gravity” is the amount of “pull” or “core influence” a person has on his or her peers.

Quite frankly, it’s a measure of power and ultimately comes down to not only IF you can get people to do what you want them to do, but at what magnitude.

Some may confuse this with “status”… but I assure you, “gravity” and “status” are not the same.

You can have a lot of status, yet people ignore you when it’s time to influence them to do what you want done. For example, celebrities have “status”, but only a few get the endorsement deals due to the amount of perceived “pull” that person has with the core demographic that the marketing group is targeting.

Also, make no mistake. “Gravity” is not a selfish measurement… and in fact, men with high gravity tend to be quite unselfish in their behavior – looking out for people, doing high level favors, etc.

“Gravity” just IS.

And why would I bring this up right now – and more importantly, why would you even be interested in the concept?

Well, as you know, one of the core fundamentals of Adonis Lifestyle, Eat Stop Eat, and even the Adonis Effect is for you to live your life. But, in living your life, these programs and systems have been developed to help you get a specific physiological result, yet STILL be able to do what you want socially.

This is important.

When it comes to fitness and diet advice, you see a lot of demonizing as far as foods and activities are concerned. Eat this, not that… exercise this way, not this way.

No coffee
No alcohol
No meat
No carbs

… all of which can have a profound effect on your social life in general.

Think about it.

If you want to ask the cute girl out for drinks… well, you can’t because you’ll look weird.

A coffee date? Negatory

Hitting a high level dinner discussing a critical point of emphasis with your biggest clients? Pass the carrots please. WTF?!?

Seriously, if you don’t want to drink because you don’t like the way it feels, then that’s cool. But if you’re doing it because you want to drop a few pounds… I’d say you’re crazy because there is – in fact – a way to drink alcohol and lose at the same time.

If you don’t like the way chicken tastes… perfect, don’t eat it – eat something you like.

Here’s the truth: Social pressures determine diet and fitness success MORE than most would believe.

But do you know what the messed up dichotomy of the situation is?

ALMOST EVERYONE I KNOW WORKS OUT, DIETS, RUNS, WALKS, in order to ULTIMATELY increase the amount of core influence they have over other people.

– a man breaks up with a woman… whats the first thing that happens (works out more)
– guy gets bumped around in a elevator, decides he needs to “bulk” up to get respect
– guy talks to woman in bar and gets shut down… well, you get the picture

So, if the whole idea of you working out, dieting, and getting in better shape revolves around you increasing your “gravity”… why in the hell would you engage in activities that would TAKE AWAY from your opportunities to connect with others.

I know this next statement is going to bring the hellfire, but I can say this with absolute conviction and after seeing and talking to literally THOUSANDS of people all across the United States while I co-owned a health club promo company…

… men that make fitness stuff THEIR LIVES, have FAR LESS gravity among their peers than you would imagine.

And, just as my friend Stephen Nash said in his post:

“If meeting, dating or relating with women, and the improvement of this area in life, is your NUMBER 1 priority you are already screwed”

… I’m going to put this out there and let the haters have their field day.

“Unless your goal is to be a PROFESSIONAL in diet, health, or fitness… if this is your NUMBER 1 priority in life, you’re screwed… PERIOD”

You can kiss your social life goodbye.

All that core influence and gravity that you’re looking for:

POOF! Gone in a puff of smoke.

Because you can’t build connections and increase your gravity living like a hermit.

So, in talking about this whole “gravity” deal – and rolling the idea around in my head, I’ve decided that it’s time for VOLUME 2 of the Weapons Of Mass Influence Series to be introduced:

==> “Return Of The High Gravity Male”

Naturally, it’ll be free and I should have it available in the next couple of weeks for you to feast your eyes on.

This report will bridge the gap that a lot of you are looking for and will reveal some of the cool fundamentals about core influence I’ve haphazardly discovered in my life, with 2 or 3 of them NEVER being discussed anywhere else before…

… I think you’ll enjoy it.

But for now, just remember, the role of fitness, like women… isn’t to BE your life.

It’s a part of your life… a part that you work INTO your life and WITH your life.

Not the other way around.

And, as John Barban told Brad Pilon today as I wrote this (great minds think alike, huh? lol):

John Barban: The entire industry is built around teaching people to try and use/manipulate massive lifestyle changes in order to make minute physiological system changes

Brad Pilon: yep

John Barban: In other words, OVERHAUL your life on the outside, in order to try and change a few calories worth of fat burning or a pound or two of muscle building on the inside.

Comments? Clarifications?

The Adonis Index workout program doesn’t look like most weight training programs. One of the things that seems to catch peoples eye is the breakdown of the daily workouts. It seems that many people think it might be too much, or maybe too often.

So I often get questions about overtraining, and if this program somehow will lead you to overtraining. This however raises a much bigger question, and that is “what is overtraining”.

Overtraining is actually poorly defined in the scientific literature. It seems to be a state of exhaustion that combines a feeling of fatigue, general weakness, sometimes even getting sick flu like symptoms, and an inability to perform exercise or physical activity at your previous level.

I guess the simple description would be feeling exhausted, tired, sore, restless and under the weather.

So how much exercise will get you to this point? The short answer: A LOT!

In most cases overtraining is only seen in elite level athletes who are training at the very peak of their physical ability. To actually get into this state of overtraining you would have to be doing maximum levels of intensity, frequency and volume.

In other words, working out 6-7 days per week, 1.5-2.5 hours per day, and pushing at world class intensity.

Unless this is a good description of your weekly workout schedule, you’re most likely never going to experience true over training.

What most people call ‘overtraining’ is simply ‘Underconditioning’.

Underconditioning is the simple matter of trying to do more exercise than your body can currently handle. For example if you just started weight training today, almost any amount of lifting will make you very sore. And you will most likely not be able to push very heavy weights yet.

This doesn’t mean you’re over training if you try to do more work, it just means that you’re not accustomed to it yet. As you build up your strength, power and endurance you will be able to handle more and more weight, sets, reps and intensity.

2 workouts per week, will soon become 3, and then 4 per week. 35 minute workouts can be extended to 45 and eventually 60 minutes and longer.

Working out multiple days per week on the same muscle groups will not cause over training. But if you’ve never done it before you’ll have to ease your way into it. This means starting with less sets and lighter weight at the beginning, and then adding sets, reps and intensity over time.

This is how true progress is made.

John

P.S. The Adonis Index workout system is designed in a way unlike most other programs, but that is also why it is so effective. Check it out here:  Adonis Effect Workout