THE STRUGGLE
I struggled yesterday, she needed me.  She struggled yesterday, I needed to be there.  I struggle to leave but not today.  She won't struggle if I stay home, so I did.  The bell rings, will she struggle today?  I struggle with did we?  Did I?  Will she?  Do it better today.  Can I struggle through holding my breath until I know she did it better today.  Yes I can because she's my wife, she's my daughter and the best part of me is ALWAYS them.  She did it better today.  Now I struggle with nothing... at least for today.  


Being a parent is absolutely the most amazing and amazingly painful thing we do.  There is nothing better than putting in the work and feeling the joy when progress appears.  Had one of those days that started great then quickly descends into 6 shades of shit.  I have never really been happy with the fact that every morning when my daughter wakes up, I'm already at work.  Many mornings when I wake up I find that she has crawled into bed with us.  It's those mornings that it's tough to go to work.  
I love my job and I rarely find that I need what many call a "mental health" day away from it.  The 'on-air' part of my job is much like therapy in that I can walk away from my issues and get lost in entertaining and being entertained.  After 4 1/2 hours of that, I've gained a new perspective on my own problems.  All bets are off when your child is struggling with something.  I started writing that first paragraph in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep and I thought about not including it in this post but I changed my mind hoping that it might be read by someone thinking about not putting in the work on their child's behalf.  At the end of the day, I don't care if my daughter is not the best or the brightest as long as she's a good person that people want to be around and contributes more than she takes.


EATIN' CLEAN & GETTIN' LEAN

What did you promise yourself?  What did you say you were going to start doing?  Or, NOT do anymore.  I won't use the "New Year's" word... How about a new one... RITUAL.  I like the way Ritual sounds... it's a strong word.  Athlete's have a pre-game ritual, musicians have pre-show rituals, and without them there's no success.

What's your new ritual going to be?  And more importantly, what (or whom) is going to inspire you.  Just get started!

Nine weeks into body building with Daniel Stevens at Premier Fitness and I've put on 22 lbs of muscle.  The amount of work this takes is kickin' my ass.  I have never sweat, spit, gagged, shouted, cussed, near-vomited, strained and iced this much in my ENTIRE life... and I LOVE IT.

If I ever start another band, I'm going to do what you should never do... have a name first.  I think I'll name my next band Blood Volume.  I love the way those words sound together!  I love the picture it puts in your mind!  In my mental picture, the speaker is bleeding and the veins are filled!  From my training I've learned that Blood Volume is the key to muscle building... fill them with as much blood as possible.  Squeeze the shit out that rep, hit from all angles, bring it down slow & explode up, keep the tension, go till failure then 1/2 reps... all of that.  From the gym to the stage, that attitude is contagious!  BLOOD VOLUME - I want to play in that band, I want to hit the gym everyday!

While doing 'real-guy pushups' (I'll explain later) yesterday, my trainer says; "I've got to take a picture of something when you do that push-up, something is popping out and you won't believe me when I tell you."  He was right.  This is what keeps you going back, this is what keeps the fire burning, this is what makes it worth all the effort and sacrifice... right here.  I have guns... HOLY SHIT... I have guns & veins!  Look out ya'll, I just got my Dwayne Johnson-starter kit.

About the 'real guy pushup' remark.  My trainer says; "new goal today, no more knees on the floor, you're going to do real guy push ups today until failure and then you can go to your knees and go to failure."  No offense ladies but I no longer do (new term) Vagina Push ups!

My trainer said to me 8 weeks ago that 'great abs' are made in the kitchen.  I finally asked him if he'd tell me what to do because apparently my kitchen isn't hittin'.  I can feel something brewing under my new, smaller stomach and all this 'ugly as hell' extra skin.  I need help uncovering my hard work.  Here's how he cleaned it up specifically for me:



Meal 1.  1 scoop ON Performance Whey, 2 whole eggs, 2 slices whole-wheat toast, ½ cup berries


Meal 2.  6 oz. Chicken breast, 6 oz. potato, 1-cup green vegetable


Meal 3.  (Post-workout) 1 scoop ON Performance Whey


Meal 4.  6 oz. Chicken breast, 6 oz. sweet potato, 1-cup green vegetable


Meal 5.  6 oz. lean ground beef or sirloin (90% or better), 1-cup brown rice, 1 small salad with ½ tablespoon of low calorie dressing


Meal 6.  1 scoop ON casein protein

Alcohol is out for now

25 ounces of water with each meal

I can switch out chicken once in a while for some fish - following the S.M.A.S.H. rule

S.M.A.S.H. Rule

I can substitute any fish for chicken as long as it's not

Sardines

Mackerel

Anchovies

Salmon/Swordfish

or Herring 

These fish have much more fat than chicken and wouldn't be close to an even trade.

And I get a 'cheat meal once a week

You know I hate the scale, it was never part of my goal.  My goals were to get rid of my type 2 diabetes and be able to buy clothes in any store.  But to see if this new way of eating would work for me, a scale had to be purchased.  I bought the cheapest one Walmart had, $7.  And guess what that little, cheap-ass scale told me in a week?  252, 247, 242.  WTH!?!  OK Daniel Stevens, explain how after eating so clean for a week this happened.

Premier Fitness owner Daniel Stevens 

More often than not when people begin a really clean eating meal plan, they see a large drop in weight quickly, especially if they have a good amount to lose. This is perfectly normal and means all cylinders are firing correctly. Is it really possible to drop that much body fat that quickly? Well, no it isn’t. That weight is a mixture of a few things. Carbohydrates help hold water within a body. Lower your carbs, lower how much water you retain thus you drop weight. So can you still lose a little body fat in that initial weight drop? Of course, but keep in mind that there is a little more within that number. 

COMING SOON:  MY DATE WITH THE EXILIS LASER

So many tools to put in the arsenal to use in building the body you've always wanted.  My primary physician and the person who showed me the best way to lose the 60+ lbs. I've already lost, Dr. Lydia Savic, will be introducing me to another tool.  COMING SOON!  My date with the Exilis fat-melting laser!  Sounds like sci-fi stuff right?  Believe me when I tell you, my 'bra-fat' is anything but fiction!  My total weight loss over the last 10 years of 120 lbs. has left  some strange areas that have been less than helpful in responding like the rest of my body has from my hardcore training sessions at Premier Fitness


FIRST THE KING, NOW THE QUEEN
I found a pretty good mash up of Michael Jackson & Whitney Houston that will almost bring tears to your eyes.  Imagine what it would've sounded like if these two would have done a song together?

PARTY WITH A PURPOSE

The last time I played a party at the Kaney Hangar, it was in front of an L-39 2-seat Fighter Jet and an enormous Boeing 737.  VERY SURREAL to see the crowd shakin' and the music boomin' in that setting.  I get to do it again on Friday, April 20th!  Check out the flyer (copy & share)!

One Nation, One People... Peace!