YOUR SOAP MAY BE LOWERING YOUR TESTOSTERONE

Your personal care products may contain PHTHALATES which are chemicals found in plastics and personal skin care products proven to be feminizing males by blocking testosterone production.

DID YOU KNOW that Phthalates are found in all personal skin care products unless noted on the label by the manufacturer?

DID YOU ALSO KNOW that one of the easiest ways to help optimize testosterone production is to choose better skin care products, free from phthalates?

Over the years I have slowly but surely found products for my skin that help me stay fresh and also decrease phthalates in my life.  @herbancowboyofficial products are a go-to for me.

Lifestyle Coaching for Testosterone Optimization is one of the areas of EmpowerU Men. I cover all areas of skin care products to optimize your success so you can thrive.

Are you ready to become a thriving man?

Then Apply to WORK WITH ME via the link HERE

Space is LIMITED to only 5 guys!

Upon submission, I will review your application & contact you within 72 hours if I think we might be a good fit, & with any next steps. Submission does not guarantee a coaching spot.

WISH TO BE BETTER!

Today’s post comes from @willroundtree

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I heard Will speak on the podcast QOD with Sean Croxton. I highly suggest this short daily podcast to all!

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“NEVER WISH THINGS WERE EASIER, WISH THAT YOU WERE BETTER”! This quote absolutely fired me up!  It was awesome.  It spoke to me on so many levels.

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Quick example that we are in control of getting better.  Sitting back & wishing it were easier is a passive way in life.

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Take action, wish that you were better.  Wish that you will get better, then take action & GET BETTER!

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As a healthcare provider & coach, I only choose to work with people who want to GET BETTER.  It’s just not in my personality to just provide a passive treatment or coaching.  It’s not in my personality to just stand off and not provide the highest quality coaching to clients and students.  GET BETTER and it can get easier!

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Getting better through set action items is the foundation of the EmpowerU MEN program I offer. We have a consultation via ZOOM & then weekly calls to check in on your progress with the program I design for you based on your goals.

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Apply to WORK WITH ME via the link HERE

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I am looking for 4 more guys looking to GET BETTER! Space is LIMITED to only 5!

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Upon submission, I will review your application & contact you within 72 hours if I think we might be a good fit, & with any next steps. Submission does not guarantee a coaching spot.

5 RULES TO OPTIMIZE TESTOSTERONE!

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Optimizing testosterone can be tricky but if you work on these 5 rules you will be well on your way to feeling better, and more importantly…GETTING BETTER!

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1. Have Patience

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It takes time to begin the process of having your hormones operate optimally.  I remember it took me close to 4-6 weeks before I stated to notice any changes from the testosterone therapy I was undergoing.  Once I started to feel the effects, it was like a switch had be hit. Then all the dominos started falling in the right direction & I started feeling great!  In the picture you can see the difference from 2015 to now.   4 years of patience!

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2. Be Consistent

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Consistency is KING. Keep following the plan. Hormones are slow responders & it takes time & repeated consistent interventions with all areas. Be consistent & success will follow!

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3. Get Sleep

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Get your sleep.  7-8 hours each night is best.  I understand it can be a challenge.  But set a small goal & try to hit it.  I tend to set a small goal of getting to bed 15 min earlier each night in the work week.  If you can hit this goal, then move on to another to help satisfy your sleep needs. Sleep is critical for stress relief, tissue repair & fat loss.  Work on SLEEP & you will feel much better.  Plus, your testosterone will increase!

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4. Cut our SOY & FLAX

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STOP eating SOY & FLAX. Plain & simple STOP.  They are both estrogenic foods & will hinder your goals of testosterone optimization.  The research is solid on this topic.  Tough part is you have to watch for both of these in all foods.  Manufacturers use SOY as a cheap additive in many foods. This past weekend I saw soy lectin in an organic chocolate bar!  You also see flax seeds being added to any & everything because it is thought to be “healthy”.  Again, stop eating these!

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5. Manage Stress

Watch all stress levels. This includes work, workouts, and life. Look to be more aware & decrease the stress in your life.  Try doing small bouts of meditation.  Meditation does not have to be sitting & thinking in peace.  I find meditation in walking my dog Bruno.  It is relaxing and calm.  Take a 10 min walk & this simple act can reduce your stress levels!

Lifestyle Coaching for Testosterone Optimization is one of the areas of EmpowerU Men. I cover all areas of lifestyle, nutrition, and workouts to optimize your success so you can thrive.

Are you ready to become a thriving man?

Then Apply to WORK WITH ME via the link CLICK HERE

Space is LIMITED to only 5 guys!

Upon submission, I will review your application & contact you within 72 hours if I think we might be a good fit, & with any next steps. Submission does not guarantee a coaching spot.

Eating high quality food should always be a top priority when looking to optimize your testosterone. Eating the best PROTIEN, CARBS, & FATS will be the building block!

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Keep your foods to the best nutrient dense possible. Stay away from the processed junk & even the highly processed so call “health” foods. These days the term “healthy” gets thrown on so many labels.

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1. PROTIEN

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Lean animal proteins are best. They provide the building block for all soft tissue functions & help to support the production of testosterone in your body. Look for beef, chicken, turkey, & egg whites. Lean pork can be good too. But I see the most success with lean cuts of the animal listed above. You have to have appropriate amounts too.  Figuring out your lean protein needs is an area of my EmpowerU: MEN coaching program!

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2. Carbohydrates

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Carbohydrates are essential in the optimization of testosterone also. Some great complex carbs are plain oatmeal, sweet potatoes, & rice. Having balanced carbohydrates fuels the body & your energy systems & even timing them helps to optimize all hormones for energy & recovery.

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3. Veggies

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Eat your damn veggies! Broccoli, kale, chard, pretty much anything deep green & leafy. Some people like a carrot & pea mix. I love a frozen veggie stir fry mix. Pretty much any veggie is good. Just eat them and eat a bunch of them.  They are loaded with all great things, too many to list here. I usually have 3 handfuls with each meal!

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4. Fats

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Fats are a fine balance for guys. Healthy fats can come from tree nuts, peanuts, nut butters, avocados, coconuts & clean oils from anything listed.  We need fats, but not too much.  This is something that needs good attention to detail. I used to over eat them & this held back my fat loss. For me, I usually don’t add in any extra fat to my meals. I feel the small amount of fat in my lean meats is enough. If the protein is too lean & I don’t feel satisfied, I will look to add in a small amount of avocado, or some clean cheese.

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Nutrition Coaching for Testosterone Optimization is one of the areas of EmpowerU Men. I cover all areas of nutrition planning to optimize your success so you can thrive.

Are you ready to become a thriving man?

Then Apply to WORK WITH ME via the link –> CLICK HERE

Space is LIMITED to only 5 guys!

Upon submission, I will review your application & contact you within 72 hours if I think we might be a good fit, & with any next steps. Submission does not guarantee a coaching spot.

Feel free to send me a message if you have questions!

What exactly is Living Lean?

Living Lean is working to establish a healthy and strong body and mind.  Living Lean is establishing a nutrition plan to help you live life to the maximum.  Living Lean is learning that your life does not have to be spent in the gym for 2 hours 5-6 days a week.  Living Lean is learning that a healthy sustainable nutrition and exercise plan will support a lean and healthy body.

So why should we strive to live a lean healthy body?  Well, the most important aspect is decreasing the amount of body fat in our abdominal area is to decrease our chances of cardiometabolic diseases (CMS), including diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and coronary heart disease (CHD).  Multiple studies of peer reviewed journals describe establishing and maintain a healthy waist to height ratio.  What is a healthy waist to height ratio.  First find out…what is your height in inches.  Then take that number and cut it in half.  This number should be the size of your waist when measured at the navel area.  For example:  I am 66 inches tall, therefore the area around my navel “waist” should be 33 inches.  33 inches is my target to decrease my chances of developing CMS.

Cardiometabolic syndrome (CMS) is a clustering of interrelated risk factors that promote the development of atherosclerotic vascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Here are a few Journals to support this (these are medical journals, NOT fitness fraud!):

**http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4157748/

**http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3810792/

**http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e010159.full

Many popular groups right now are supporting a healthy, positive body approach and this is great.  But, as healthcare providers, strength coaches, fitness professionals we also have to be the bad guy and tell our clients the truth to help them be healthy and strong.  We must embrace the healthy body approach to get all people exercising and loving themselves.  But, with that love we must accept the responsibility of helping to change the body, if the body does not fall in the parameters of decreasing chances of cardiometabolic diseases.

This is where my story begins, for my whole life I have been constantly seeking the method to live within or at a balanced to waist to height ratio.  Get my waist to 33 inches!  This has always been my goal as an adult.  I do not worry too much about the scale.  Just focus on getting to 33 inches.  You might ask, why did you ditch the scale?  Well,  many weeks my weight would not change, but I would see a decrease in the number around my navel area.  Hence, maintaining healthy muscle tissue and decreasing fat tissue.  This was great, I was building and maintaining muscle tissue while also decreasing my body fat in my abdominal/torso area.

It has not always been easy for me and never will be easy for me.  I grew up a “husky” kid.  Got the jokes cracked on me and this is the original reason I began weight training at age 14 and then playing sports.

Want proof…see pic below.  My days as an Ilion Angel in my hometown.

I wish I had a picture at my biggest size.  I was a junior at Canisius College and I tipped the scale at 220 pounds at a height of 5 foot 6 inches.  I was fed up,  I took more responsibility for my body, I began to watch more of what I ate and it did the trick.  I also put a hold on my weight training and began more of a “cardio” phase of my fitness.  I would spend an hour on the elliptical.

Now, this was when the elliptical was HOT and everyone was crushing calories on those things in 1999!  

Once I got to a more manageable weight I did transition to running.  I ran for a solid 10-12 years and just remained the same.  I would participate in 3 triathlons in the summer time and my body would not change.  I ran, biked, or swam at least once a day 6 days a week.  I ate the right food….but I was still triathlon fat!  I carried a bunch of weight in my torso.

It just was not working!  I then came back to weight training.  Weight training with the kettlebell.  The kettlebell allowed me to train well and move well.  It allowed me to accomplish many of my goals and have fun doing it.  But, the mid section stayed the same…

Lets fast forward to this past May of 2016.  This past May I decided to purchase and follow a fat loss template written by Renaissance Periodization(RP).   RP is backed by science and written by professionals to help you to reach your goals.  This was the answer I was looking for!  Within the first 30 days I started to see changes in my body and in my torso.  I followed the templates well and even made some modifications as needed with the help of the RP Facebook support group.  I continued with my regular exercise plan and was excited because the RP template told me what to do for “off days.”  RP gives you several templates based on the level of exercise you participate in and also the time of day you are training.  In my quest for the the “leans” I followed the “off day” and the “light training” day.  These worked very well for me and have even laid the foundation as I am maintaining my “leans!”

Left is beginning weight of 176 and 36 inches around the navel. Right is 60 days in at 165 and 34 inches around the navel.

This picture is approximately 90 days out from the start of the program. You can see a difference from my 60 day pic and my 90 day picture!

This coming Fall at Iron Body Studios we will be launching our Living Lean Program.

I am excited to share this program with everyone who has walked a similar path as myself.  A certified Eric Gahan No Fitness Fraud Program!  If you have looked everywhere for answers to become leaner and healthy with nothing helping.  Then the answer is here and the answer is Living Lean!Living Lean is our 60 day on-line transformation program that will give you the keys to unlock your own health and Iron Body “Leans” with our special blend of adventure and proven serious fitness techniques. This quick start program has helped several Iron Bodies, chasing the “leans” just like you to make the lifestyle changes necessary to live a life of fitness dreams.

Here’s What’s Included:

• 3 Living Lean Workouts per week(24 total) — $450 value
• PLUS a BONUS 4th workout each week (8 BONUS Workouts) –$150 value
• TOTAL of 32 Living Lean workouts during your 60 days on the Program — $600 value
• Workouts delivered to your computer or smart device via exercise.com — $200 value
• Regressions and Progressions so YOU can complete each training session — $200 value
• Access to instructional coaching video designed to teach and correct form and technique — $200 value
• Daily online support via very private Living Lean Facebook group support — $200 value
• Nutritional Guidance: Fat Loss Template via Renaissance Periodization (RP) (must purchase separately)

Link to Renaissance Fat Loss Template (this is a must purchase via renaissanceperiodization.com to be part of the program): Use discount code “Artemis10” at checkout.

http://renaissanceperiodization.com/shop/renaissance-diet-auto-templates/

OVER A $1,400.00 VALUE in training material FOR ONLY 1 PAYMENT OF $125.00

Use the code

“LivingLean60“

at the check out for

20% off thru September 5th!

Let us show you how a busy schedule doesn’t have to ruin your fitness and nutrition goals.  Learn to nourish your body based on the level of exercise you do.  Learn to spend time with food prep to yield maximum results.  Let us teach you…life does not have to be spent in the gym for hours at a time.  Life can be spent LIVING and eating a nutritional plan that meets the all your your demands!  Eat and train SMART…eat and train for the “leans!”

Click HERE if you think you want to be one of the eight to train in this exclusive transformation challenge!

Hamstring mobility always seems to be a hot topic for being strong and decreasing a chance of injury. Take a look at my follow up video below on quick tips to get you started and create sustainable mobility.  Give this simple set of drills a try and enjoy moving better and moving stronger!

Also don’t miss out on our Summer SWAGGER promo packs at Iron Body Studios.  These are a great opportunity to get into training in our exclusive West Roxbury studio space.  These packs are on sale through June…so don’t wait…there are only 10 packs available for purchase!

Click Here to see Iron Body Studios Schedule and to sign up!

In this video blog I outline some simple and systematic programming to improve group training.  At Iron Body Studios we use these programming concepts to write effective and exclusive programming to ensure success of everyone who comes in to train with us.  These concepts can also be carried over into writing more effective rehabilitation programs.  Simple and Systematic is the key!

I cover many of these concepts in my Kettlebell Fundamentals Workshop.  As well as developing great communication with Strength and Conditioning Specialists; Read that post HERE.  If you’re interested in having me come and teach to your staff please fill in the contact form below and I will be in touch with you ASAP!

Read my Bio with over 16 years of clinical practice and presentations: HERE

One of the most common questions I receive is “Eric, How did you develop such great relationships with strength coaches in the college setting?”

I take pride in the fact that at every college and university I was lucky to be part of; I always worked and fostered a great relationship with the strength coach.  From the University of Kentucky, St. Bonaventure University, Ole Miss, and Boston University I was always a student of the strength and conditioning coach…I actually prefer to call them the Strength and Conditioning Specialist.  They are truly the specialist of the fundamental strength patterns.

In the short video below I share some insights into developing a great relationship with a Strength and Conditioning Specialist and becoming a better Athletic Trainer.  When we become masters of the fundamental movements we can ONLY then become experts in rehabilitating patients and athletes to return to sport and life.

Contact me below to schedule a Kettlebell Fundamentals Workshop in your Athletic Training room TODAY!

[Birthday Celebrations!] This coming Monday April 25th I will be turning 38!  To celebrate my birthday I am running a special on the Iron Body Studios Vimeo OnDemand [Kettlebell Fundamentals].  You will get a 38% off the complete collection of 10 videos when you use the code: EricBday.  They are the complete guide to kettlebell fundamentals. If you are a rehabilitation specialist, personal trainer, or strength coach or training for yourself.  These videos will teach you the fundamental of working with kettlebells.  Exclusive coaching cues and movements to allow you to have grace and power with the kettlebells!  Over an hour of material and coaching with 10 videos.  Again 38% off the complete collection use code: EricBday.  **Time is limited…this code is only good through 4/25.  Check out the link below and the short video: Remember use the code: EricBday

Link to purchase with discount code EricBday–>> https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ironbodystudios

In my newest video blog I discuss strategies for having nutritional success.  Topic covered here is Planning for Success.  I tend to think of the Seven 7 Ps!  Seven Ps stand for Proper Prior Planning Prevent Piss Poor Performance.  Heading into the store we need to have a proper plan to achieve success and overcome “false marketing”.  I hope you enjoy this video blog on helping you to achieve nutritional success.

Please feel free to contact me for nutritional coaching and training!  If you missed last weeks video blog please head on over and check it out.