Archive for the ‘Fun Stuff’ Category
Listen to Churchill
“If you’re going through Hell, keep going.”
One of my favorite quotes of all time. I am a short and simple kind of guy and Mr. Churchill pretty much sums it up.
Why couldn’t he have been American?
Life Lessons from Henry Rollins
I’m a big fan of old school punk rock and came across this Henry Rollins (of Black Flag) quote the other day and freaking loved it.
The iron never lies to you. You can walk outside and listen to all kinds of talk, get told you’re a god or a total bastard. The iron will always kick you the real deal. The iron is the great reference point, the all-knowing perspective giver. Always there like a beacon in the pitch black, I have found the iron to be my best friend. It never runs out on me, never freaks out. Friends come and go but 200 pounds is always going to be 200 pounds.”
Little meat headed? Sure, but there is some serious truth to the use of training as therapy or solace from the daily grind. I think we can all related to it on some form or another.
New Format
Good morning, guys! Hope you all had a nice weekend. In case you have not noticed we now post the workouts for the day directly on the home page. We had it re-done so that it would be both easier to post (read: no picture taking and uploading on our end) and view.
This blog format is now going to be used to update something quick and fun each day. Our goal is going to be to teach or share something each day that can better us all. Blog posts, linked articles, recipes, video, joke, whatever.
Today we bring you the proper way to row. Please demonstrate during tonight’s workout.
6-Week ‘Beat the Soft’ Holiday Challenge
Get your game faces on…
As we near the madness that is the Thanksgiving and Christmas season we want to prep you guys on the 6-Week Open that we are running at P360 from November 21st through December 31st, and alert you of the new Grand Prize of $300 cash!
Now who couldn’t use 300 bucks around the holidays?
Registration starts now and ends this Sunday.
THE CATEGORIES
Beat the Soft is going to have three categories, each with a female and male division and the categories are are as follows.
- TOTAL FAT LOSS (measure by pounds)
- PERCENTAGE FAT LOSS (measured by pounds lost divided by body weight)
- PERCENTAGE STRENGTH INCREASE (measured by adding percentage increase in deadlift, squat and push press)
We are taking participants from now through the end of this week so get INVOLVED!
If you are self-concious, then I encourage you to let that go once and for all. If you are still feeling weird about your results in front of this gym’s ownership and members then you need to get over it and embrace the communal aspect of this challenge.
We are all working together towards bettering ourselves so let’s see as many participants as possible. Hell, I’ll even be competing in this!
We have the sign-up on the board so next time you come in you can register for any/all of the categories.
THE MEASUREMENTS
- Weigh-Ins: For those participating in the weight loss categories, all weigh ins will be done at the same time of day throughout your participation. We will not be sharing your weight with anybody, only total pounds lost. If you want to weigh in the morning, that is fine. As is evening or afternoon so long as it is consistent. We will be weighing in Wednesday or Thursday of week.
- Testing Days: For those participating in the strength category, we will be testing the three main exercises (deadlift and push press) approximately one every two weeks and on the first week of the competition. All measurements are going to record your 3-rep max. I also know what every single person in this gym has lifted on each week so no sandbaggin’ it.
GRAND PRIZE
We have changed up the scoring system to encourage more of you to enter and so that the winner gets hooked up. We are going to have a Grand Prize Raffle of $300 cash to the winner and here’s how you gain entries.
FOR EACH CATEGORY
- Male and Female, 1st Place = 15 entries (20 for the overall category winner)
- Male and Female, 2nd Place = 5 entries
- Male and Female, 3rd Place = 4 entries
- Male and Female, 4th Place = 3 points
- Male and Female, 5th Place = 2 points
So, let me know if you guys have any questions and let’s see that board fill up with people refusing to be soft this holiday season.
-DT
‘Staches for Soldiers
It’s time to set aside your vanity and increase your charity.
We just made the executive decision in an easy thirty second conversation. We like the Wounded Warrior Project, we like helping them with what limited funds we can raise and we LOVE mustaches. This was an easy call.
‘Staches for Soldiers!
For those of you unfamiliar with Movember you can read all about it here. While it traditionally calls for charitable efforts towards men’s health issues we feel it perfectly acceptable to substitute for the WWP. And if you don’t like it, then screw you.
For every day you grow and maintain a mustache over the course of the month we’ll donate $1 to the Wounded Warrior Project.
It’s simple. It starts when you stop shaving and ends when you start shaving.
If you are joining us from abroad, simply post a picture of your mustache on our Facebook every three days to prove you are maintaining it and we’ll count you as a participant.
Ladies, you can participate, too. Simply pick a man at the gym and ‘sponsor’ him. The person that you sponsor will put you on the hook for donations. So, for example if Jill sponsors Jack who wears a mustache for 21 days then Jill would owe $21 to the pot. We take the pain of wearing a caterpillar on our face for a month and you fork over a little bit of cash for an outstanding cause.
Simply post on our Facebook wall if you are in and let’s start the ‘staches.
-DT
“Flight” & “Fickle”
Just a reminder to don your finest today if you got it! Little preview from the 6:30 am class, haha!
Stewie Griffin takin' a lap.
Also, we have Surf n’ Turf Boot Camp tomorrow at 11 am so get on it!
Today’s Daily Challenge.
Today’s Outdoor Challenge.
Enjoy!
-DT
We’re Not Worthy!
We’ve got a long one today and frankly…it’s your guys’ fault.
Pritz and I were talking the other day and we honestly feel like Wayne and Garth when they meet Steven Tyler Aerosmith in the green room.
That’s the feeling I often get when I take a step back and realize the amazing progress that our members have made over the last near three months. It’s incredible and we seriously bow down to you guys.
It’s easy to expect people to show up regularly and work hard because obviously I enjoy the gym and it’s more than a built-in part of my life, it’s my job. Considering you guys have regular jobs and are often working eight hours a day it’s unbelievably impressive that you come in four, even two or one day a week and make the progress you’re currently making.
Dee Nipper, Carol Parma, Letty Young, Kutay Elgimez, Allison Fitzgerald, Brenda Morrison and Tracey Ruane are a group of 40/50+ ladies that truly inspires. Dee and Carol have each lost 20 pounds of fat! They can deadlift over 100 pounds for reps, do pull-ups on their own and are among the most physically capable women in the gym…oh, and they’re each over 40 years old.
Dee has lost 23 pounds and look at the weight she pulls at 52 years young!
Danny Scott has lost 25 pounds in a month thanks to nothing but hard work and commitment to clean eating.
Ann Marie Smith has increased her strength by 15-20 pounds on all exercises and leaned out very noticeably.
Brandon Flora has lost eight pounds of fat, replaced it with lean muscle, increased his 5-rep deadlift by over 100 pounds (345 lbs) and holds the P360 overall record for “The 600″ (15:05).
Matt Nipper fights all kinds of ailments, gets here regularly and knocks out pull-ups better thas his counterparts half his age.
Jacquelyn Molino managers her busy job and triathlon distance training with strength training in here three to four times per week and most recently placed Top-5 in the SD International Sprint Tri.
Jacquelyn knocking out full pull-ups with no band assistance
Robbie Davis has leaned out substantially and hang cleaning over 200 pounds, deadlifting 300+ and pressing 150.
Tim Kuzmuk has increased his 5-rep deadlift 90 pounds (225 lbs) and dropped over 11 pounds of fat in the process.
Tyler Chernack’s strength has increased across the board in squats, deadlifts, push press and bench press – now repping his bodyweight in many exercises, while also setting the gym record in pull-ups (27).
Alex Vekich has doubled her squat weight and most recently squatted 115 pounds for 15 reps, a P360 female record!
Alex squatting 115 pounds for 15 reps!
Amy Turner graduated from barbell to weighted deadlifts faster than any female at the gym.
Rachelle Rulenz puts on a clinic on how to deadlift, clean and press as good as any female in the gym and shows that being strong and lean can both be achieved.
Sean Mackin box jumps 40″, increased his 3-rep deadlift to 385 pounds and is the most consistent morning member.
Valerie Henry has lost 8 pounds in her first month (last we heard) and is quickly and noticeably increasing her strength.
Heather Dentz is probably the smallest member we will ever have and can move more weight than most other girls, can do a complete full pull-up and press 55 lbs.
Jason Weber has lost 20 pounds of fat and increased his 3-rep deadlift max 100 pounds (405 lbs), a P360 record.
Web pulling 405 pounds for 3 reps
Yashar Norhashemi has dropped at least 15 pounds of fat and increased his strength roughly 30% across the board, as well as his box jump by a foot.
Chris Sieberkrob (weight loss unknown) has changed the composition and make-up of his body as much as any other male at P360 and increased his squat and deadlift in the process.
Andrew Dallman has increased his strength by 40% and recomposed his body by dropping fat and replacing it with muscle.
Lise Milano has lost almost 15 pounds in 7 weeks.
Kristen Petersen has lost 7 stubborn pounds and has squatted 155 pounds, a female P360 record!
Marissa Dubolino dropped over 15 pounds at one point with me and committed to her diet more consistently than any person I’ve ever trained.
Emilie Krajan has become just an all-purpose badassette. She has the gym record for female box jumps, can deadlift over 100 pounds, squat press 75 pounds, can do over 40 full pushups and weighs under 120 pounds!
Emilie on 30" box jumps! (2nd highest level)
Nick Cadiente has increased his strength 30% on deadlifts and become noticeable more lean in a few short weeks.
Ian Sells has dropped weight and increased strength, working through previous knee and back issues only to look better than ever.
Mike Helms comes in he moves man-sized weight with minimal effort.
Catherine Malone has seen her squat rep max go up to 85 pounds.
Missy Hodle saw her leg and core strength just about double, her body melt away fat and is one of our most consistently attending members.
Missy reverse lunges with the 25. lb. bag
Hillary Green came to Surf n’ Turf Boot Camps with a previous back injury and is working her way towards better core strength, health and posture.
Nikki Hass has increased her strength, developed arguably the most toned female arms, crushes all runs and gives the best high fives at the gym.
Kristin Spitz would give Nikki a run for her money in the toned-arms category and completes Surf n’ Turf Boot Camps as fast as any boot camper.
Anthony Webster came in with very lofty goals and is fast picking up deadlifts, kettlebell swings and variety of tough exercises. He has gone from beginner to intermediate at a fast pace and we’re excited to his development.
Rick Dengler absolutely demolishes his male counterparts in sprints and also happens to be the oldest male member. He cleans, deadlifts, squats and presses a growing amount of weight and is a great example of just gettin’ it done even with a full plate of work and family responsibility. Rick proves there are NO EXCUSES.
Chris Cisek has lost eight pounds in 13 days.
Andrea O’Donnell has dropped over 20 POUNDS ON HER OWN in the last four months, looking absolutely fantastic and getting stronger by the session at P360.
Lee Alcorn came in with no formal weight training experience and quickly saw his squats and deadlifts creep over 100 pounds while “feeling incredible”.
Aly Rea has changed her body as dramatically as any member and looks amazing. Her strength is going up and we expect big things from her in her first sprint triathlon coming up!
Laura Stomber commutes from downtown to train for her triathlon and has seen her most recent marathon time cut in half by a near HOUR, is up to 105 lb. squats for 10 reps and owns the female record in “The 600″ (16:57).
Laura squatting 105 pounds for 10 reps!
HD has been here a full month and missed one Surf n’ Turf, a 96% attendance rate.
Dana Olson has taken a runner’s background and excelled at a lot of the more complex weight training exercises, posting a sub-20 “600″ time.
Billy Votava makes weight training for guys who are 6’5″ look easy. I would challenge most men that tall to knock out over 50 pistol squats like he has done and all with a commute that involves the 5.
Jen Baker went from a complete beginner to comfortably squatting in a just a few short sessions.
Rob Foresta started triathlon training with us a few short weeks and already had days where’s he finished faster than any other member.
Andy Bayon trained strength for his marathon and completed it in ~3:20. His strength has sky rocketed and he remains the best male runner at the gym.
Briana Robertson has increased her squats by 37% and is becoming more toned and lean by the week.
What we’re trying to say is,
“We see you.”
We see, notice and are impressed by every improvement. There is no achievement that goes unnoticed at P360 and we want you guys to know that the effort is appreciated and what you guys have done with us in three months is nothing short of amazing.
With a full line-up of new faces on trial, we are really excited about adding many more names to this list of personal accomplishments.
Imagine where you’ll be in three more months?
Thanks for making our job truly enjoyable day in and day out every time we see the collective group finished and tired after giving it maximum effort.
-DT
P360 Training Insider: 6/13
Hope everybody had an excellent weekend and enjoyed watching Dirk and the Mavs get their first title as much as I did. You can consider me firmly entrenched in the haters corner for the Miami Heat so yesterday made me happy. Good dudes like Dirk and Jason Terry deserve to win titles and I was happy to see a hard worker like him finally bring one home.
We’ve got a fair amount of thing to cover this week so let’s get to it.
Please Keep Voting!
Thank you guys very much for baring with us and continuing to vote for P360 as San Diego’s Best Alternative Exercise Studio. We are still shocked that you guys got us to the final balloting, and now that we are here we want to win the damn thing! So please help us by voting each day (you can click the banner at the top of the page) and if we win we’ll throw a huge free BBQ to celebrate!
Referral Contest: FREE Boat Rental
We settled on the Grand Prize for June’s referral contest: Free 4-Hour Boat Rental from our neighbors, the Mission Bay Sportcenter. It’s an awesome way to spend a Summer Saturday – take a few friends out, bring some cold ones and some tunes and make an afternoon out of it (feel free to invite me and Pritz, too). We are off to a red hot start with the referrals as you can see below, four already!
New Class Times Start
You have probably already noticed that the class times for Tuesday and Thursday are different for this week. As a reminder, we are trying out our new class schedule those days in anticipation of rolling them out full time as membership continues to expand. The class times are only slightly different on those days, but we feel it will continue to provide you guys with good times and allow us to space the times out over the course of the evening. Continue to drop us your feedback.
Member Shout Outs!
This week was a big week for three folks. While it might seem like that kind of jump in pull-ups is not that big of a deal, it’s huge in actuality. To be able to either pull you own bodyweight up once or consistently rep your own bodyweight is a tremendous improvement in strength. Seeing Carol execute a full pull-up was awesome to see and hopefully a real inspiration to those ladies who are working towards doing one!
Carol right before getting that chin past the bar!!
We also just found out today that Carol has lost 15 pounds, as well! Way to kick some ass, Carol!
New Athletes
We’re very excited to announce the arrival of Taylor Johnson and Mackie Caldwell to our athlete base. Mackie trained with us last year prior to starting his freshmen season for the USD Torero soccer team, and Taylor comes to P360 from SDSU’s Women’s Track & Field team. Taylor is an Arkansas transfer who was formerly an SEC All-Freshmen and both are looking for very big things in 2011. We’ll be updating their progress as their seasons get started, but we know there are some Torero and Aztec alums in the house so show both some support over the coming months if you see them around P360.
What’s the Deal With: Post-Workout
We have some bullet points about post-workout nutrition on the Food Science board this week. Basically, in the most condensed nutshell as possible, after you train hard your body generally is need of restoring glycogen (glycogen is the primary fuel source for most P360 workouts). So, when you consume complex carbohydrates or fruit, your body is going to take the majority of those carbs and put it to refilling the glycogen tank rather than fat storage. Always pay attention to your goal and where you need to be for total daily carbohydrate intake, but if there is a time to eat pure carbs it’s immediately after class.
Good Eats: Southwest Breakfast Bites
Saw this incredible recipe on Mark’s Daily Apple and absolutely love it. It solves the ‘what do I eat for breakfast’ question once and for all for those looking for a high protein, quick prep time combination.
12 Eggs (do not fear egg whites)
1 lb. ground turkey sausage
1 bag spinach
1 diced onion
1 cup aged Parmesan cheese
Sautee the sausage, onions and spinach in a pan until the sausage is cooked about 75% of the way. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the 12 eggs and combined all of the ingredients and stir. In a butter coated baking dish, add the contents of the bowl evenly so that it forms a casserole. Bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees and you have breakfast for the entire week.
Drop us a comment with any questions or feedback and we’ll see you guys soon.
Best,
DT
P360 Weekly Newsletter: Grand Opening, Marathoners & More
What a WEEKEND! Things could not have possibly gone any better at P360 as we were fortunate enough to have so many of you show up for our Grand Opening. Then, when we thought the good times were over we see three of our members go out and CRUSH the Rock & Roll Marathon on Sunday.
We also have some really important announcements regarding class times starting next week, so please be sure to read those if nothing else.
Class Schedule
Next week the Mission Bay Sportcenter launches it’s Summer Kid’s Camp that goes from 9 am to 4 pm, Monday through Friday. To be frank, it’s going to be busy as hell around here during those hours which is perfectly fine for classes since they run before and after. However, for those groups and classes that meet during the day we will be figuring out a solution for you. More than likely, we are going to the following schedule but we will be in touch as soon as we can figure it all out…just a heads up.
- 6:30 am – Daily Challenge Class
- 7:30 am – Daily Challenge Class
- 7:30 am – Boot Camp
- 5:45 pm – Daily Challenge Class (at least a few times per week)
- 6:30 pm – Daily Challenge Class
- 7:15 pm – Daily Challenge Class
The Kid’s Camp will have no ill effect on parking for morning and evening classes. We’ll be as proactive as we can be to accommodate everyone who currently trains during other hours.
P360 for Best Exercise Studio!
We can’t possibly thank you guys enough for nominating us as San Diego’s Best Alternative Exercise Studio. We are seriously so grateful and appreciative that you guys took the time out of your days to cast votes.
Now that we are actually in the final ballots, we need you to keep helping us bring home the bacon! If you can please take a minute to create a quick account and then vote daily until voting closes, we will figure out a way to reward everyone for a big bash on our dime.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/bestof/2011/vote/sports-recreation/alternative-exercise-studio/
P360 in the Rock and Roll Marathon
Okay, ‘WOW’ is all that we can say in regards to our athletes in the Rock and Roll Marathon this past weekend. We had three people run it and all of them posted awesome times. Check them out below.
- Laura Sumrow – Full marathon in 4 hours!! (she set her PR by 58 minutes!)
Laura training for her race.
- Jacquelyn Molino – She did a ‘show and go’ half marathon, with a cold, in 1:44!
- Andy Bayon - Full marathon in 3:21 even with a hammy that acted up during the race.
Pretty impressive, right?
Grand Opening
Pritz and I had an incredible time hanging out with everyone on Saturday, and if you were able to swing by then you saw the great turnout we had. The day was a blast, we had some active things going on, some leisurely events and gave away some great prizes.
- Andy Bayon – Free Membership for Life Grand Prize Winner
- Nick C. – Free Month of Unlimited Classes
- Billy Votava – Free Month of Unlimited Boot Camps
- Brandon Flora & Matt Nipper - $60 to Sneak Join, Cornhole Tournament Champs
- Matt McKee – IronMan Champ, Free Month of Classes
- Robbie Davis - IronMan Runner-up, 50% off 1st Month
- Becca – Obstacle Course Winner (female), Free Month of Classes
- Brandon Flora – Obstacle Course Winner (male), Free Month of Classes
- And a bunch of other people came away with gift cards to Trader Joe’s, Starbuck’s, Paddle Into Fitness, Sneak Joint and Rubicon Deli
Here are some of our favorite pictures from the event.
From the IronMan Challenge…
Flora immediately after his sub 11 IronMan Challenge.
Matt on rep 17 of his 95 pound push press.
- Jennifer on rep 12 of 75 pound squats
- Robbie after his finish.
- Flora, Matt and Robbie post IronMan
Fun & Games…
Head on over to our Facebook page to see the full album.
Thank you again to Sneak Joint, Rubicon Deli and Zico Coconut Water!
What’s the Deal With: Omega-3s?
Head on over to the Food Science board next time you are in class. Essentially, omega-3s and omega-6s serve to counter balance each other but you really need to watch your omega-6 intake. Omega-6s, most commonly found in grains and grain-fed meats promote inflammation by nature, so it’s important you are balancing them out with a healthy dose of omega-3s (most commonly found in seafood & fish oil).
June Referral Contest
Congrats again to Tyler Chernack on winning the May Referral Contest and snagging the $75 Visa Gift Card. We have a completely clean slate and everyone has a crack at the Grand Prize: a FREE 2-Hour Pontoon Boat Rental from the Mission Bay Sportcenter!
Last month the winner had two so don’t go thinking you need to be Mr. or Mrs. Popular to get the prize!
Best,
DT
“Old School” Friday
Happy Friday, everyone. You gotta’ love these short work weeks after the holiday, right? In case you missed it yesterday, we had a really good workout with “Walk the Line” and we’ll definitely be doing something similar to that again.
Also, if you missed yesterday’s blog article on why we do Olympic lifts, I highly suggest you check it out. It details everything from why we do them, to what they work and why they are so effective for YOUR specific goal. Check it out here.
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Friday also means that tomorrow is the GRAND OPENING BASH! We are kicking it off at 12 noon with a spread of food (both P360 approved and P360 not approved), local craft beers and games for all. Here is the final draft of events.
- 12 pm – 3: Open House & BBQ
- 1:30 – Cornhole Tournament – it’s a 16 team tournament and spots will be filling up, so make sure you sign up either on our facebook wall or in the gym today! Grand prize are gift cards to Sneak Joint.
- 12 – 3: IronMan/IronWoman Challenge & Obstacle Course Challenge - these are optional but highly recommended. It will get you multiple entries into our raffle just for participating. Obviously, the IM/IW challenge is a bit tougher but we extremely confident that everyone can complete it. The obstacle course is more of fun event that’s geared for all fitness levels. Everyone try something! (After all, we ARE a gym).
- 3:00 – Raffle – We are raffling off some great prizes including a FREE MEMBERSHIP FOR LIFE, Free Month Membership, Gift Cards to Trader Joe’s, Starbucks’s, Rubicon Deli, Sneak Joint and also Nike Frees.
Here’s how the raffle works – if you show up you get an entry. If you participate in an event you get another entry, sometimes two…just for trying it! If you win something, you get five entries and if you place at something you get three. So, the more you do the better your chance at training here for free!
Obstacle Course includes: ladder drill –> sprint –> cone navigation –> broad jump –> bear crawl –> sprint –> hurdles –> pushup walk –> DONE!! (approx time – 60 sec)
- GRAND PRIZE – Free Month at P360 + 3 Raffle Entries
- 2nd Place – 3 Raffle Entries
- All Contestants – +1 Raffle Entry
IronMan Challenge: 500m row –> 50 sit-ups –> 50 push-ups –> 20 135 lb. squat reps –> 20 95 lb. push press reps –> 200 speed ropes –> 300n bike sprint –> 300m run (Approx time – 12 min)
- GRAND PRIZE – Free Month at P360 + 5 Raffle Entries
- 2nd Place – 50% off a Month + 3 Raffle Entries
- 3rd Place – 3 Raffle Entries
- All Contestants – +3 Raffle Entries
IronWoman Challenge: 500m row –> 50 sit-ups –> 30 push-ups –> 20 65 lb. squat reps –> 20 45 lb. push press reps –> 200 speed ropes –> 300n bike sprint –> 300m run (Approx time – 12 min)
- GRAND PRIZE – Free Month at P360 + 5 Raffle Entries
- 2nd Place – 50% off a Month + 3 Raffle Entries
- 3rd Place – 3 Raffle Entries
- All Contestants – +3 Raffle Entries
Like I said, the more things you participate in, the higher your chance of winning one of our awesome prizes so sign up on the board either today in the gym or via facebook comment!!
Some quick notes:
1) We suggest you come dressed in clothes you can be active in. You’re not going to have to workout, it will just make your day easier for some of the fun stuff we have planned.
2) If you live in PB, try and bike. Your life will be easier for parking and you can store your bike in our gym.
3) Directions: 1010 Santa Clara Place, 92109. Look it up on Mapquest. Just make SURE to veer left once you enter santa clara and FOLLOW THE SIGN TO OEX DIVE & KAYAK!
4) Our neighbors are offering some great deals on water rentals, so if you want to check out a stand up rental, kayak etc then go see ‘em!
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Today’s workouts:
…and the Surf n’ Turf Challenge
-DT