Introduction: Get Up!

by Phil Kaplan

If you’re sitting or lying down, I’m going to ask you stand up.   Yes, right now. 

Take the book with you, and just get up on your feet. Go ahead and stand up. 

Are you on your feet?  If you are, then you’re to be congratulated.  You not only invested in a book, but you actually acted when it asked you to act!  I’d love to believe that upon reading the opening words, everyone who opened the book got on their feet, but I know better.  Most people didn’t.

I KNOW YOU, AND I HOLD THE MAP!

I know you better than you think I do, even if we’ve never met.  For over 20 years people from every walk of life have been walking into my office, visiting with me at my seminars, and have been calling, e-mailing, and reaching out asking me for “the secrets.”  They may initially appear to have different wants.

• Some insist they want to trim their thighs.
• Others insist they want to lose weight.
• Some insist that muscle gain is the ultimate goal.
• Others insist they want to capture that elusive animal called energy.

Really what they’re asking me for is “the secret to feeling good about themselves.”  Most of them have been convinced, thanks to years of advertising, marketing, infomercials, twisted research, manipulative con-men, miraculous cellulite cures, and the absurd promises of solutions arriving in little bottles, that there is in fact some magical secret and they set out like a disjointed horde of treasure hunters in search of a great treasure.  Like crazed hungry pirates they travel from health food store to health club, from internet offering to sporting goods store, hoping they’re zeroing in on the spot marked by the fitness “X.”  Somewhere along the journey they come to me hoping that I might hold the map that will finally lead them to The Buried Treasure of the Fitness Secret.Is there a secret?  Well, yes, there is, and I do have the map.  It’s just unfortunate that the true fitness secret has become harder to uncover than the lost treasure of the Incas.  The secret is simple, but unless you’re willing to act when I ask you to act, unless you’re willing to at least believe in the possibility that this secret may in fact be the treasure, I’ll urge you to sit back down, close this book, pick up the phone, and order some bleached and refined flour covered with sodium laden sauce, piled high with extra saturated fat and a heaping helping of preservatives and nitrates.  Can I say that in fewer words?  Sure.  Order a pizza with extra cheese and pepperoni and forget this fitness thing altogether.At this point you’re in one of three situations. 

Situation #1: You’re dialing the number of the local pizza shop.  That wouldn’t be the ideal situation. 

Situation #2: If you haven’t gone to the phone you’re standing wondering why the nut who wrote this book is talking about treasure and making you stand.  That’s good.  That’s exactly where I want you to be. 

Situation #3: You’re still sitting or lying down, and still reading.

I’d prefer to eliminate the third group.  If you’re not on your feet and you’re still reading . . . GET UP!

OK, now for those who have opted to remain pizza free, at least for the next few minutes (and don’t worry, nobody’s going to ask you to remain pizza free for any great length of time), I’m going to ask you to do two things, two simple things.  Consider them the first two steps toward the treasure.

1. Breathe deeply, not as you typically do, but take a breath that actually fills your lungs.  You’ll be surprised how long and deep that breath can be, and then, release it slowly, and fully.  I mean exhale until there’s nothing left to exhale, and then, fill your lungs again.  Repeat that five times.  You feel more alert?  More awake?  Even slightly energized?  That’s oxygen doing its thing, and oxygen is a vital part of this process.
2. This is a little tougher now.  Nobody’s looking, and if they are, who cares.  You’re about to get fit while they just sit and stare at you.  Let ‘em stare.  I want you to raise up on your toes as high as you can, as if you’re trying to push the ground downward using the balls of your feet.  Press your heels as high as possible and continue to press for about 2 seconds.  Then relax for a count of 3 and do it again, but the second time hold the muscle contraction for 3 seconds.  Repeat this rising and lowering for 5 repetitions, increasing the muscle contraction time by 1 second on each consecutive rep, and then relax.  You’ve just stimulated the muscles of your calf.

Now that really was simple, wasn’t it?  Don’t get overly confident.  You’re not ready to jump on stage and nab the biggest trophy at the next fitness competition that comes to town, at least not yet, but you’ve experienced the essence of the secret.  There are two physical components of physical betterment.  Aerobic activity stimulating greater use of oxygen is one, and intentional muscular contraction following a pattern of progressive resistance is the second.Now you can sit, relax, open up your mind, and prepare to live as the Champions do, with a driving commitment to betterment, one that makes the process of physical change so simple and so rewarding you’ll never go back to any other way of life.  Who are the Champions? They are the masters of this science of physical change, the individuals who comprise the ground army of fitness truth.  They walk the talk and personally live a fitness lifestyle, not because they have to, but because they thoroughly enjoy all the rewards it brings.  They are the passion-driven individuals who find a great sense of gratification in helping others master the fitness lifestyle.  They have the courage to challenge fitness fraud, the heart required to share their passion and knowledge, and an attitude fired by the ability to empower others.  They have the muscle it takes to move figurative mountains, the power required to stimulate action, and the integrity to stay on course and do the right thing, even when that in itself is challenging.  They have that special something, that optimistic “success at all costs” aura that makes people want to be around them, and they have the unyielding nerve to tell people what they need to hear, even when it isn’t what they may want to hear.  They are the true champions of fitness and the co-authors of this book.I’ve asked those individuals I feel are making a difference on a daily basis, those who have gone above and beyond the responsibilities of a Personal Fitness Trainer, those who aspire to fitness excellence, to share the information you, the reader, need to take control of the physical structure you live in so you too can live as a champion.

WHAT DO YOU NEED?

Many infomercials and advertisers will tell you what you need to get fit, and those needs will often come in the form of pills or products with price tags ranging from three easy payments of $12.99 all the way up to three easy payments of $1299.  Do you need anything at all?  Yes, you do, but what you need can not be valued with a dollar amount, and in fact, it already exists somewhere within you.  You just have to find it.In order to make a physical change, desire becomes the first necessary requirement.  I’ve never met anyone who told me they “accidentally” got into great shape.  No, it always has to begin with a desire, so you need the desire, but desire alone isn’t enough.  Desire must be accompanied by belief.  I don’t mean an unwavering belief.  I expect there to be some doubt, especially if you’ve tried to get fit before and failed, but at the very least you have to find a belief in possibility.  Many of you may approach this with a “prove it to me” attitude, and that’s quite alright.  Just realize, unless you believe the change is possible, you’re not likely to follow the steps and actions required for it to manifest.  Some of you weren’t even willing to stand up when I asked!  Why?  Because you didn’t believe it would have any impact.  Belief is essential for this process of change.  As you read through this book, your belief in possibility will escalate, and when results become apparent, belief will be unshakable, but for now you have to at least buy into the fact that we share the truth, we share a proven technology of change, and we have all come together to lay out a path with the potential to lead right to the ultimate you.  Some of you will jump right in, others will tiptoe, but at this point, desire and belief are the requirements.

THE IMPORTANT “OPTIONS”

I told you desire and belief are essential.  I also told you that you didn’t need anything else.  That’s true, since I know you already have this book and the book shall reveal “the secret” one step at a time.  With that said, there are some aids that might make the process simpler, might make the results more dramatic, and might allow you the flexibility to pursue limitless exercise routines.

A couple of pairs of dumbbells or an adjustable dumbbell setA good pair of walking or running shoesA stability ballA heart rate monitor

IDENTIFYING AND DISEMPOWERING YOUR ENEMIES

There should, at this point, be a true sense of optimism, a sense that this really is going to work, but before I share the starting exercise routine, the foundational eating strategy, and the advice of the champions, I feel it important to warn you, enemies are lurking nearby.  There are four primary enemies, and if you recognize the damage they can do, you can shut them down completely, destroying any power they have to stand in your way.  Here are the four primary enemies:

• Television – the television will subtly convince you that you don’t have time, but it is the ultimate time parasite.  In fact, according to A.C. Neilsen, by the time the average American reaches the age of 65, he or she will have watched the equivalent of 9 years of television!
• The Recliner – a conspirator in cahoots with the television, this reclining seat makes you feel so comfortable in the short term, but inactivity, failure to ask the core muscles to support the body, and a firm commitment to a lounging position simply amplify the value of the old adage, “use it or lose it.”
• The Little Sneaky Devil in your Head – you know, the voice that shows up to tell you it’s better to skip the workout than to get all sweaty.  We all have those little competing voices playing against each other.  As you begin to recognize your self-talk, you’ll also begin to control it, and mentally, quietly, firmly, ask that little discouraging to voice to “Please Shut Up!”
• The “YUCANT” Bug – the “YUCANT” bug is contagious and is spread by notorious spreaders of negativity.  They’ll every reason in the world “you can’t” get in shape, “you can’t” eat supportively, “you can’t” find the time to exercise.  Here’s a simple suggestion.  Look at them.  Then look at the champions who wrote this book. Which group would you rather emulate.  The best prevention of being infected by the YUCANT bug is a simple exercise.  Put your hands over your ears and scream as loud as you possibly can!

This book is going to start with a program, a simple program that you can follow for a week, a month, or literally for the rest of your life, but the book is NOT a program driven book.  The book is an idea driven book.  It’s going to plant vital knowledge, treasure, in your head, and that knowledge will not come from me, but from more than 100 champions of fitness.  If you limit your expectations to the hope for a more attractive physique, a better beach body, you’re missing out on the true juice of this book. It goes way beyond the ability to control the way you look.  It’s about empowerment, physical empowerment that can roll over into every aspect of your life.

[ Order the Power of Champions for only $24.99 ]

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