NFL Picks for Week 4 and Fitness News

Week four of the NFL season is upon us! Let’s see what I have in store this week:

Already Played: Washington: 38; New York: 31- As you can see, I failed with this pick right here. Kirk Cousins had a rough outing, which at this point in his career, is a rarity. For Eli, it’s a rarity to see him rush for a touchdown.

Baltimore over Carolina: 24-17- Carolina struggled at home last week. It appears that their lack of talent on offense maybe catching up with them. This one may be even lower scoring here, with two very talented defenses taking the field.

NFL Rivalry of the Week: Chicago over Green Bay: 27-19- The Packers may very well be on their last chance at the division already, barring a complete meltdown by both Chicago and Detroit. If they lose here, then they sit at 0-2 in NFC North play. Not a good hole to be in.

Houston over Buffalo: 20-17- Houston has to take advantage of this situation. Buffalo is not as good as their record but Houston has the edge in talent, and the home crowd.

Indianapolis over Tennessee: 23-14- Just in, Charlie Whitehurst will get the gig in Tennessee. Like Houston, the Colts have to take advantage of this situation against the Titans. If they do that, they stand at 2-0 in the division. The problem? They’re already 0-2 against playoff teams.

Detroit over New York Jets: 21-16- The Lions Matt Stafford should have a field day here. Detroit’s offense hasn’t looked like what it should be, so look for a closer game. The Jets can score at any time but the offense is very inconsistent at times.

NFL Snoozer of the Week: Oakland over Miami: 13-9- Wow. Fans in London may see a touchdown scored in this one. Two teams with very laughable talent on the offensive side.

Pittsburgh over Tampa Bay: 31-10- The Steelers look to take their momentum in an upset win over Carolina over a struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers team. Shouldn’t be too hard.

Lock of the Week: San Diego over Jacksonville: 42-13- Blake Bortles era begins. Can he get a win this week? Not until he has more talent around him. He’s playing in real time now.

Atlanta over Minnesota: 20-19- Teddy Time begins in Minnesota. Can he hold it close? Recent history tells us that the Falcons might just be that very talented team to get upset this week, as their play on the road is meager.

Philadelphia over San Francisco: 34-21- The 49ers are struggling while the Eagles remain hot. Nick Foles and co. may not have much of a problem here.

NFC Game of the Week: Dallas over New Orleans: 34-28- The Cowboys and Saints have a little bit of animosity these days fueled by none other than Rob Ryan. In the end, the Cowboys put up just enough to upset the Saints.

AFC Game of the Week: New England over Kansas City: 21-13- The Patriots offense isn’t that hot this year but the defense is. That’s going to be big in this game.

Byes of the Week:

Seahawks- Still the number one team in the NFL according to most. I disagree (see below)

Bengals- The Bengals may be the only team in the NFL to have zero struggles on either side of the ball. Number one team.

Browns- Brian Hoyer has made it through three weeks as the starter. Don’t blame him for their 1-2 start.

Cardinals- My prediction in the pre-season was taking the NFC West. Through four weeks, they lead it.

Broncos- Still couldn’t beat the Seahawks. Maybe they just played a Super Bowl XLIX preview? Maybe one more shot.

Rams- The defense has to play up to their potential. If they do, they’re back in it.

Fitness news: Workouts

Cardio Sprint Workout:

Sprint workout coming up at six. I’ll call this upcoming workout The Go-To, since it’s becoming my recurring workout:

One Mile Run
10 Hill Sprints (jog back down the hill for rest)
10 20 yard Lunges
10 Ladder Sprints (going at least ten yards further with each set, jog back)
One Mile Run

Shoulder Centuries:

X amount of handstand push-ups (I’m on a wall, okay)
100 shoulder presses per arm
100 front plate raises
100 upright rows
100 shrugs per side (I rarely do these, but I’m in the mood)

Zero Cardio, 800 Reps, Fast As Possible:

100 Push-ups
100 Decline Push-ups
100 Two Point Rows per arm
100 Total Weighted Lunges (Weight on one side, this hits the obliques too)
100 Bicep Curls per arm
100 Suspended Dips
100 Upright Rows
100 Full Sit-ups plus about 20 straight minutes of ab work

By the way, use as little rest as possible, and get this done as fast as possible.

I sit two weeks out from the NPC Natural Pennsylvania. Time to take the carbs down just a little for these last two weeks, just a little. Still have a lot to do to get ready these days. Time to crush these final weeks.

My Next Event: Halloween Havoc! Nope, it’s not a show, it’s just Todd wanting to look good at Halloween. I’m dressing up as a Virant Knight, so I’ll def be posting some pics of that. Ordered yesterday, can’t wait to wear it.

Shoot Time: Hoping to get that last shoot of the year confirmed. If so, it’ll be around contest time too. Another event I can’t wait to get going with.

Hunt For October: In addition to the NFL and fitness, I love MLB. Prediction time, although my Rays (yes, the Rays) are missing out for the first time in a while:

Wildcard NL: Pittsburgh over San Francisco- Is anyone peaking at the right time more than the Pirates?

Wildcard AL: Kansas City over Oakland- The Royals? Yep, with the A’s faltering down the stretch, giving way to the Angels, it’s the Royals who get in.

ALCS: Los Angeles Angels over Baltimore Orioles- Hate to say it, but the O’s get eliminated here. LA is a big market but I’m a small market type. The Angels are just too good here. Hottest team in the AL.

NLCS: Los Angeles Dodgers over St. Louis Cardinals- The City of Angels reps the entire MLB in 2014. 2014 belongs to Los Angeles.

World Series: Angels over Dodgers. The Angels are just way too hot to be stopped. If one team can keep it up for one more month, one team that wants it, it’s the Los Angeles Angels. For the first time since 2002, Los Angeles gets a World Series, and it’s the “other” Los Angeles team that takes it.

The 100 Rep Method

Centuries, you know what they’re like. From the Middle Ages of the 1300’s to my noble ancestor Sir David Mathew rescuing his King in the mid 1400s (true story, look it up), to Columbus not necessarily discovering America (Amerigo Vespucci, again, look it up) but being credited for doing so, to Jamestown in 1607, to the good old colonial times, to the American Revolution of 1776 to 1783, to the birth of Lincoln in 1809, to the great Civil War from 1861 to 1865 to the first modern war, The Great War (World War I) in 1914, to the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989, to the Obama presidency of present day. Centuries, one after another. And to make matters even cooler, I just gave a brief history of the world dating back to what I believe is the twelfth century, whenever Vespucci found America but for some strange reason saw no reason to assert his power for his own self gain (look up what Columbus was really after).

Now, if I gave a brief history of wellness and fitness, I’d bore you all because about eighty million things, often contradictory, have been discovered fairly recently, try the nineteenth century when people (in the West, that is) really began to care about their bodies. No, I don’t want to hear about ancient Greek Spartans, but I will say that sometimes I have dreams from a past life that would imply that I was indeed, a Spartan. This is probably why I love Greek food, too, but I haven’t had much in a while because I tend to consider most of it cheat food. Actually, I wouldn’t if I made it myself but now I’m going completely off of my intended topic, so without further ado, let’s get to the centuries.

Centuries, by my humble definition, means one hundred of something, anything, followed immediately by one hundred more of anything, followed again by one hundred more of anything. Centuries, be it every one hundred years, every one hundred yards, every one hundred reps, or every one hundred miles, centuries is basically one hundred of something followed immediately by one hundred of something else. Make sense?

Now, since I am talking about fitness and not about world history (I still get that itch every once in a while) we’re sticking with reps, in his case. Centuries are tough, brutal, not only psychologically, but emotionally challenging to the individual. It looks like an ultra tough hill to climb, but once the hill, or rather, mountain, is climbed, one feels the sense of accomplishment. This method of training isn’t meant for only one burnout set of one hundred reps. Each, and every, exercise is going to be just that: one hundred reps.

You can perform these in several ways. My favorite way is to simply get in as many reps as I can with a desired amount of weight, usually thirty to forty percent of what I would normally get for ten to fifteen reps, and get as many clean, solid reps as I can. So, say if I can get seventy reps before burning out, it means I have thirty reps to go. What I am going to do now is rest for thirty seconds, because I have thirty more reps to perform. Once I get the desired amount of reps in, then I’m going to go on to another exercise, targeting a different body part. On Monday, I did the following movements:

Crunches: 100 reps

Decline Push-ups: 100 reps

Dumbbell Rows: 100 reps per arm

Lunges: 100 reps total (not because it’s a leg movement, it’s because my right knee is currently in shambles and I probably shouldn’t be doing any legs to begin with, so give me some credit).

Upright Rows: 100 reps.

The above workout took me about thirty minutes to complete. Then I did my ten minute non-stop ab circuit, which I am notorious for, after I wrecked out a good five hundred reps. So, I completed five centuries here. Sometimes, I’ll up the ante and shoot for ten exercises of one hundred reps each. What I am doing here is mostly bodyweight exercises, two to three for larger muscle groups and only one for the smaller groups. With this, I like to do the following:

Pull-ups

Suspended Dips

Bodyweight Curl

Decline Push-ups

Chin-ups

Deep Bodyweight Squats on Plyo Box

Single Leg Speed Squats

Suspended Push-ups on TRX

Shoulder Presses with half of my current bodyweight on the bar.

TRX Bodyweight Rows

Sometimes, a 1,500 rep workout is in order. Assume that I have the above workout intact, but I’ll add in a cardio movement after some exercises:

Burpees: You can get really good at these after several weeks.

Step-ups with bodyweight only

Speed Box Jumps (much easier on the knees)

Battling Ropes (consider this movement a break)

Kettlebell Swings

Boom! A 1,500 rep workout is now in order. I think I did hit the 2,000 rep mark once, but that was because it was about zero degrees that day and there was snow on the ground from the night before and I had nothing better to do. It was a good two and a half hour workout! It rocked!

Here’s another fun thing to do to. Want some history lessons? Start with the first century. For us Christians out there, the significant aspect should be an easy one. Name a historical event, then do the movement. Why? It kind of takes your mind off of what’s at hand when you’re in the eighteenth century and the Battle of Yorktown is going through your mind. Or, you’re in the 2,100 rep range and the event in mind is the ISIS conflict, you really can take the mind elsewhere in the world while still crushing the workout. It’s seriously a psychological thing.

For instance, when doing workouts like this one that’s seriously taking your body to the absolute limit, why is it a good idea to have your favorite music blaring in your ears? Because certain music will create certain psychological responses in individuals. If I have Blink 182 in my head, then my workouts will always be harder and I’ll be more focused. If you don’t believe me then try it. Though I’m not a big fan of the TV on cardio machines, that’s usually annoying.

Getting It All In

Moderation is key, and to be completely honest I really don’t care how long your workout is, because being in the gym for two plus hours at a time (if you don’t work there) on a weekday where you are not having a day off from work is just not necessary. It’s either you’re wasting your time mixing in your social life with the gym, you’re underemployed (especially if you’re living off others trying to make the gym a reality), or you have no idea how to workout. Yesterday I trained clients for nine hours over a fifteen hour span, from 5:00am to 8:00pm. I also got to study for two hours and then workout twice, once in the morning between clients and then once in the evening after my last client. I still was able to get in a good six hours of sleep, which for me is a lot. 

My activity level these days is through the roof, and it’s going to be even more hectic come October, and then even more hectic come January. First off, I’ve come a very long way in my twenty three and a half years of experience on this Earth, and that’s a testament to God. I could have very well gone the other direction for those who know my story from 2009 to 2011. I won’t go there yet, but my followers will get to hear this tale in due time. It is a thriller indeed, but first I need to recollect from my memory bank. Second off, my activities range from the following: work, school, networking (such as this article, plus other outlets that allow me to draw a base of fans), competition prep (food prep, show prep, shoot prep), and then maintaining my share of duties at home. Oh, and I forgot my workouts! That’s a lot in one avenue, and this isn’t even counting hobbies and this time of the year, I probably spend at least twenty hours a week on my main hobby. 

So, if you’re a busy person, and most of America is, then as I stated in an above paragraph, I don’t care how long a workout takes. There’s only one element anyone and everyone should be concerned about, and that element is Time Under Tension (TUT). TUT is the amount of time the body is under tension during a workout, meaning that the workout itself is only as long as the body is under tension for. Breaks are not included in TUT. At work, I typically only have a half hour towards each one on one client, if it’s a class or a small group session, the time may be forty-five minutes to an hour. This means that the style of training must emphasize on TUT. This means limited breaks.

For those who need to consider time as part of their workouts, consider my morning workout:

10 minutes nonstop abs

Do as many reps as you can before taking a break. However many reps you have left is how long you get to rest for, so if you have thirty left, you get a thirty second break.
100 reps Dumbbell Curl
100 reps Skull Crushers with Dumbbells
100 reps Incline Dumbbell Curl
100 reps Dips

Finale: CTFletcher‬ style
10×10 (no rest in between) Cable Pressdowns, changing weight each time
10×10 (no rest in between) Cable Barbell Curl, change weight each time

How long did this thirty-six set workout take me? It lasted about forty minutes tops. TUT was probably around thirty-four to thirty-five minutes. Considering that the workout was thirty-six sets, that’s a very solid TUT. 

Now, having a limited amount of time to get a workout in has more benefits than one would think. If you only have a limited amount of time to get a workout in you are probably doing one of the following:

*Working instead of talking

*Burning fat more efficiently. Sound odd? Not really if you think about it. You have a limited time to workout, so a workout as little as only thirty minutes is going to burn fat better than one who has a longer amount of time to get a workout in. Why? You’re more likely than not going to keep moving as fast as possible throughout the workout instead of taking your time during the workout. 

*Working multiple muscle groups at once. Again, sound odd? And again, not really if you think about it. If I only had a half an hour per day to workout with my current lifestyle, which would probably be closer to the case if I weren’t single and owned a home my workouts would train drastically. For instance, instead of doing the above example I had set, I would utilize more total body movements, such as kettlebell swings, thrusters, one-arm TRX rows with a rotation, anti-rotation overhead presses, and squat-rows instead of my usual isolation movements. All of these moves incorporate many, many muscle groups. For instance, the squat row will target my legs, lats, and core. The thrusters target legs, shoulders, triceps, and obliques. Multiple muscle groups are still being worked multiple times per week.

*It’s also realistic to think that you will do more sets. When you only have a limited time to workout, you have to think outside of the box sometimes. This means that you can workout in a style that many simply won’t do because of the demands and tenacity of the style. For instance, on cardio day, you are more likely to do sprints than just run or incline walk at a leisurely pace. When you lift, you could incorporate what I had shown in the above example or you could do something like a top of the minute routine, which means thirty sets in thirty minutes. Do each exercise for fifteen to twenty reps, rest for the remainder of the minute, then do a second set at the beginning of the next minute. 

*In addition to cardio, one of my favorite workouts that Alloy Personal Training Solutions has distributed in recent years are the after-burn programs. After-burn speaks just as it sounds, you’re going to burn calories after a thirty minute workout. You’re going to burn calories up to forty-eight minutes after a thirty minute workout. Sound too good to be true? It’s not. This isn’t P90X, this isn’t Insanity, because it’s way better and a lot safer. For starters, there are three levels of difficulty for each exercise for the individual to choose from based on their current fitness level. In addition, the workout is very, very fast, resembling a crossfit style workout. As I had explained in the past, after-burn incorporates times such as thirty seconds on, ten seconds off, sixty seconds on, five seconds off, top of the minute, three sets of fifteen reps of full body movements as fast as possible and do as much as you can in a thirty minute time limit. It also incorporates a group or team style mentality, meaning that the individual is likely doing the workout with multiple individuals. This encourages competition between those participating in the workout. And for those who do have more time, if thirty minutes isn’t enough, then try two after-burn style workouts back to back.

This is coming from someone who uses the program and does not in any way, shape, or form receive compensation to endorse the program. I have been doing this for a year and here are my results from both afterburn and just quick burst workouts that utilize the TUT method over time actually spent in the gym:

August, 2013

September, 2014

One year of transformation right here. I thought I looked great in the above picture. I think I look good now, but I can’t wait to laugh at this latest progress picture one of these days. 

So, if you only have a very limited time to train, never fear. You won’t fail at fitness. You may even have plenty of advantages. You may have many more advantages than you would think. These advantages are plenty and motivating enough to keep to a strict, committed fitness life. And that’s the good news. 

 

 

Todd Matthews is currently an ISSA Certified Personal Trainer at an Anytime Fitness franchise. He has been employed at Anytime Fitness since 2012. In 2009, he earned his first CPT from the American Fitness Professionals & Associates three months after graduating from Edison High School. He is also currently a Wellness and Fitness student at California University of Pennsylvania. Todd also is a lifetime natural men’s physique competitor in the National Physique Committee and the National Gym Association. He has also participated in three fitness shoots on bbpics.com. 

 

The Most Killer Home Gym Routine Yet

I hope you all have read and liked my recent writings on my dumbbell and kettlebell workouts, designed for the busiest of the busiest. Those with maybe thirty minutes a day to get into a gym (or their basement) to bust out an effective workout want to take a look at these posts, because they are designed especially for the busy population.

Some of us just never get a break. We wake up before the sun, not with it, and we’re at work as the sun is coming up. We may or may not have the greatest opportunities to eat solid meals on a consistent basis (look into meal replacement shakes or the Quest product line). And then the obligations at home take over once the work day is over.

All in all, life can be a roller coaster for many of us and as a trainer I’ve seen many individuals give up on their fitness goals because they claim life gets in the way. They may work twelve hour days, have a family at the house, or have many other obligations on top of all of that. The truth is that by giving thirty minutes of the day directly to a daily workout isn’t as complicated as it looks. Get the workout in first thing in the morning, directly after work, or before going to sleep at night, which is my favorite time to get my main workout in.

But, there are times when my schedule is ultra booked for the day, I got to be here, then there, then across the county for something, then maybe my workout time gets cut a little short because I’m waking up two hours before the sun the next morning. In these hectic situations, I keep my workout, even my main workout, short. Sometimes, I don’t even use the gym and I’ll do this very workout I’m about to write up in my basement.

Workout A:
4 circuits/25 reps each. 30 minute time limit if time is limited.

Push-up with Snap Jump
Plate Curls
Bench Dips
Jump Lunge (25/leg)
Touchdown Squats
Front Plate Raise
Squat Press
Diamond Push-ups
Up-Downs
Mountain Climbers (25/leg)

Workout B: 30 for beginners, 60 for intermediates, 100 for advanced in as many sets as it takes. Cannot do next movement until 100 reps are performed for the first movement. 30 minute time limit if time is limited.
Spiderman Push-up
Band or Dumbbell Curl
Suspended Bench Dips (use a flat bench, coffee table, bathtub, etc and place a chair a couple feet from the bench)
Jump Squats
Tactical Lunge (50/leg, use a dumbbell or kettle bell, do a reverse lunge with weight in one hand, switch to other hand under the legs, like a basketball player does)
Band or Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Leg Raise
Band or Dumbbell Rows
Lateral Mountain Climbers (100/leg)
Snap Jump

Upper Body Workout Series In the Gym

So, you aren’t entirely too sure on whether or not you should do what the two jacked up guys on the bench are doing if you’re working out alone. No problem, everyday I see guys and girls in the gym take a pair of dumbbells into the backroom and use things like kettlebells and TRX in addition to these simple tools and I’ve seen some killer workouts being done! So, sit back and the two jacked up guys on the bench or in the squat rack will look on with shock and awe at the intensity being unleashed in the room behind them or maybe even right in front of their power rack!

 

Workout One: Dumbbells Only: A Todd Time Original

You’re the boss, dumbbells are your employees. Bosses must utilize to their employee’s strengths, although this very rarely if ever happens. What we’re going to do here is pair up chest with back, legs with shoulders and abs, and biceps with triceps. These will be done in super-sets.

Heavy Lunges

super-set with Dumbbell Lateral Raise

super-set with Dragon Flags

We’re going to start with the largest muscle group, the legs. Take a pair of dumbbells and hammer out eight lunges per leg, 12 dumbbell lateral raises, and 30 dragon flags. For the first two movements, raise the weight if the desired number of reps are reached. Go ahead and try four sets.

 

Incline Dumbbell Fly into Press

super-set with Dumbbell Rows from the Bottom Rack

We’re going to combine two favorite movements to hit the upper pecs here from two different movements at the same time. We’re going for 15 reps here. Same goes for the rows. Raise the weight once the target amount of reps are hit. Four sets.

 

Dumbbell Hammer Curl

super-set with Dumbbell Overhead Extension

Two of Todd Time’s favorites combined into a super-set. Yes, I actually do these on a regular basis. Four sets, 10-15 reps. Make sure you fall into the range. If you do, increase. 

 

 

Dumbbells Only Part II

So, you did Part I a couple of times and want to mix in some more movements? Look no further, as Part II is right below.

Once again, the dumbbells submit to the exerciser. We’re going to do the same style we did in Part I, beginning with legs and ending with arms, except…..

Giant Set:

Dumbbell Stiff Legged Dead Lift

Seated Dumbbell Press

Dumbbell Russian Twist

Dumbbell Side Bend

For legs and shoulders, go heavy with ten reps, then go heavier if you get the amount of desired reps. For Abs, go lighter and for twenty to twenty five reps.

Flat Bench Dumbbell Press

super-set Dumbbell Pullovers

super-set Double Dumbbell Rows (do these standing, no hands on the rack or bench)

Do one set for fifteen reps, next a second for twelve, then a third for ten, then a fourth for eight, and finally a set of six. Yes, increase weight each time substantially, since the amount of repetition drops.

Standing Alternating Curl

super-set Dumbbell Kickbacks

What we want to do here is do three sets, but the catch is ten reps with a heavy weight, drop the weight, fifteen more reps, then up the weight again, and go for as many reps as possible. Note that this is only one set. Two more rounds to go!