What if Money Was No Object: A Self Indulgent COVID-19 Blog

Hello there, this was originally going to be a newsletter about ways you can train on your own. However, I'll go ahead and throw in a little of my own "self-indulgent this sucks story." I guess I'll be another person filling up your Gmail inbox: What Would You Do If Money Was No Object? In 2013 I decided to take six months off from work to do nothing but train and fight in Thailand. I was 31, hit my current career goals, and figured now was the time to live the life that 15-year-old me wanted to. This trip started with raveling around Thailand for two months, trying different spots until I found the one I felt would be best for me. For me, this was Sitsongpeenong in the outskirts of Bangkok.

An artist rendering of all of us trying to stay positive around March 17th

What Would You Do If Money Was No Object?

In 2013 I decided to take six months off from work to do nothing but train and fight in Thailand. I was 31, hit my current career goals, and figured now was the time to live the life that 15-year-old me wanted to. This trip started with raveling around Thailand for two months, trying different spots until I found the one I felt would be best for me. For me, this was Sitsongpeenong in the outskirts of Bangkok. Traditionally in Muay Thai everyone does a long jog in the dark a.m. to kick off the training day. I remember one particular morning starting for the run and thinking to myself the usually hypothetical question, "if money was no object, what would you do?" I realized I had hit it. In Thailand I was fully immersed in the sport I loved since I was 14, training hard, surrounded by like-minded people, between workouts reading voraciously, going to fights and village markets, fun-filled communal meals in "the camp." Gyms are called camps in Thailand, in no small part because you eat, live, train in the same spot. Maybe if I were a millionaire, I'd have some extra fancy gear, but even then probably not. I'm not saying I wanted my life to be this forever or even for 5 years, but for this moment in time, "this was it."

Fast Forward

Leaving the situation I detailed above is also slightly melancholic because you ask yourself, sure things will be cool, and there will still be life's high points. But will I ever hit that "what if money was no object?" moment ever again? For most of 2013-2019 I was pretty content with the answer being "no," and consider myself to be a blessed to be the rare lucky person to attain that sort of consciousness congruency at least once. I felt that way until about mid 2019. The business is great, I feel younger at 38 than I did at 28. Right before all of this happened, I felt like I had created that ideal life again. Here's a secret, if I had all the money in the world, I would still train people, write programs, and make fitness content. All be it with Uber rides instead of ever getting on the F-train again, better videography, and possibly some custom steaks delivered to my door. I'm not special, nor are any of the hundreds of million of us. People have been having their ideal (and not so ideal) life disrupted by things out of their power since people have been people. I just wish if I had to deal with this, it would have happened when I was younger and didn't have my shit together anyway. I think there are two extremes to avoid in processing this disruption. The one extreme is the "why me, this is the worst thing ever to happen." And the other, "well, I didn't have my family murdered by Vikings, and my village burned down, so I shouldn't admit this sucks at all." There is probably a more happy medium.

So, Enough About Me

Many, if not most of take for granted how much walking in our commute adds a necessary dynamic stretch for our hips and lower back Here is a strategy you can try. Set an alarm for shortly after you wake up, mid-day, and the early afternoon when most of begin to reach for that second or third cup of coffee. For each of these alarms perform some workday resilience. Here is an example of one, knees-to-chest dynamic stretch:

Your Body Is A Son-Of-A-Bitch

So, I hope you enjoy this attention grabbing headline. That being said your body is an amazingly adaptive, resilient, complex, some might argue divinely inspired machine. However, when it comes to fat loss it is indeed a son-of-a-bitch. But for good reason. In a not-entirely scientific blog I’m going to talk about why. Also, why tons and tons of yoga and cardio is just going to make you “skinny-fat.”

If your genes didn’t at some level tell your body to store fat they would not have made it this far in evolution. In the rapidly developing nascent study of genetics, science is discovering evidence that are genes “remember” famines. Fat is an essential component for energy as well as hormone production. Your genes survived this long because your body is efficient at storing fat for times of famine and want. Also, it takes little to no energy for your body to keep this fat around. It’s not evolutionary costly. So, what about muscle? Your body sees muscle beyond what is immediately required as a luxury. 

A coach of numerous physique and bodybuilding competitors I asked had this to say: 

“When I’m programming for photo shoots or stage, the primary goal is looking good and part of that is retaining muscle mass. While I like to maintain some sort of heavy training elements within the programming (i.e. 1 -2 compound exercises per workout, I tend to lean more towards hypertrophy programming ranges for the majority of the exercise."

I’m currently in week ten of a twelve week cut. The various motivations for this cut will be revisited in a following www.sayerfit.com newsletters, but one reason why my cut has been successful from an aesthetics stand point is that my program has largely consisted of big volumes of hypertrophy work (think generally the 8-12 rep range). To demonstrate here is a pretty sweet video of me doing my 4th set of 8 rep rack pulls at 378lbs.

So, my point. Your body is supremely adaptable. But what messages are you sending it? If you are cutting calories but only lifting 3lbs weights, the message you are sending is “food is low, need for muscles (which burns calories just existing) is low as well.”  You must threaten your body into building and retaining muscle.

Me after having less than a great time crashing to 159lbs

I say fat is like a car that's paid off already, not pleasing to look at, it does a job sure but you don’t even have insurance for it because it’s so replaceable. Muscle is an awesome sports/luxury (whatever your’e into) car that the insurance is through the roof because hey frankly “it’s fun and badass.” If you had this car and it cost $300 a month in insurance and you never got to drive it, would you keep it around? That’s how your body feels about a shapely pair of glutes, sick biceps, or pecs.

Gradual Cut 9 Years Later, Much Happier This Go Around.

So, this is in no way meant to be an all inclusive guide to your fat loss journey. But next time someone tells you they are planning to lose weight by drastic calorie cuts and Pilates (which is actually WWI era physical therapy), Yoga, and tons of cardio think about what adaptive signals might be sent to their body & brain and suggest they throw in some squats. Or don’t, unless you really care about their results because sometimes the best way to make an enemy is to tell someone something they need to hear (whoa things just got dark for a second). Ok, in closing I hope you gained a new insight or were at least entertained. If you want help with your own journey, I offer detailed training and nutrition programs customized to your schedule, gym access, and life $250 a month with Interactive Coaching.

Toxic Positivity

TOXIC POSITIVITY VS VICTORY EXPERIENCES 

This was one of the more popular Instagram posts I put out in the last month, so I though I would expand a bit on it. One of the several reasons why, in large, the "fitness" industry is cancer. Let's pretend I don't know you. And although I don't know you, or anything about you, or your goals, I want you to believe in yourself and be confident. This type of false cheerleading is one of the reasons people DON'T believe in themselves. If I simply tell you to be confident, with no actions or reasoning, of course, you won't be. You have no reason to be. Then maybe you'll wonder, "what's wrong with me?" Nothing is wrong with you; you're just not an idiot because you do not believe in something you have been given ZERO reason to. 

Before I delve more into why I despise the talking heads of the fitness industry, I feel the need to clear something up. I do not believe in negative reinforcement. I will never tell anyone they're not good enough or that your goals aren't necessary. I don't think that type of coaching is productive. It can be productive in specific environments, but it doesn't last, it is like setting the living room furniture on fire to stay warm. Sure, you achieve your goal but at the cost of eventually burning the whole house down. 

So why are the yoga pant clad ladies and fake smile gents of the fitness industry so nauseating? Because they tell you to believe in yourself but give you no justification. You're not stupid, you know this, people fail at things all the time. You're smart enough to know that you might be one of these people who does. But hey, "believe in yourself."

What is a possible answer? I think it is in a coach who facilitates VICTORY EXPERIENCES. An alternative to Jillian Michaels talking head or even worse Tracy Anderson (she is to fitness what ISIS is to humanity) "believe in yourself" schtick is to begin to create victory experiences. These need to be large enough to mean something but achievable enough to where it's not easy to find an excuse not to back out. 

I suggest you, or you and your coach, start wit action goals. Outcome goals can be tricky. To say I will squat 400lbs and I will lose 10lbs this month are goals that have numerous factors that are out of your control. If you are starting and need to build confidence, begin with a goal like, "I will walk into the gym." Just do that. If you're having a hard time starting, just walk inside, then you can go home. YOU DID IT! Then a day later, walk inside and do 10 min on a piece of equipment, it might not seem like much. However, you are doing what you said you would and building these victory experiences. Also, you are enforcing the habit of following through with assigned tasks.

For a nutrition client, I might start them out with "you need to write down everything you eat today." The trainee does not even have to show me, they can throw the piece of paper away tomorrow, but they need to be 100% honest with themselves and write everything down. Just that action of being honest with yourself, consciously knowing what they are eating in a day, and being accountable is a huge step. Boom! "You did it," that's a victory experience, "now you're on your way." 

If you need help to determine a course of action, and how to best build these victory experiences, message me so we can discuss the benefits of Interactive Coaching or to set up a consult. START TRAINING TODAY! 

6 Week Cut Progress

NOTE: Below, is re-blogged from my newsletter 1st Feb 2019.

I’m currently in the middle point of a diet for aesthetics. I’ve cut weight for fighting numerous times, but I’ve never followed a program specifically for aesthetics before. I have several  reasons for doing this.

 I feel that as a fitness professional there is a huge difference between being in the game 10 years growing constantly, and doing the same year over ten times. If you don’t try running the programs yourself how can you confidently implement them?

Maybe most importantly, the idea of being restricted in food (for comfort or socialization) and alcohol made me a little scared, to be honest. The idea of working a thirteen-hour day and then coming home and not being able to have something delicious made me uncomfortable. So, I felt this was something I had to do, we all know growth happens outside the comfort zone. Lastly, I need six pack abs if I’m ever going to destroy my enemies in the fitness world (not hyperbole).

I posted this photo recently on Instagram and I received a lot of positive feedback, for which I am very grateful. Also, all this encouragement I see as another layer of accountability, but even so, I felt the immediate urge to qualify it posting thIs comparison photo.

Posting this comparison photo I felt the immediate urge to qualify it. I wanted to say “hey you can still sort of kinda see the top two abs, or mention my recent squat/deadlift PR.” I felt the need to qualify looking puffy. I don’t really like the photo. Don’t like how I look, bad lighting (#fitspo is 85% lighting) but I think it’s important to share how much change can happen in 5 weeks. Also, I think it’s important if I’m going to LEAD you in your journey you understand I’m not a robot. I feel vulnerable, weak, and unsatisfied at times also. If I didn’t I wouldn’t be able to help you.
 

I wanted to say “Hey, you can still sort-of kinda see the top two abs,” or mention my recent squat/deadlift PR.  I felt the need to looking looking what I saw as puffy. I don’t really like the photo. I don’t like how I look, there’s bad lighting (#fitspo is 85% lighting), but I think it’s important to share how much change can happen in 5 weeks. That was a photo after completing week one of my diet and program. Also, I think it’s important if I’m going to LEAD you in your journey you understand that I’m not a robot. I feel vulnerable, weak, and unsatisfied at times. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to help you.

 THE DIET

I received several inquires to what the diet I’m doing includes. My knee jerk reaction was to explain it’s complexity with: “well you train like a Viking and don’t eat like an asshole, repeat to desired effect.” In all seriousness, well actually in all seriousness, DO THAT! But, to be more specific I simply tracked all my food, kept protein consistent, and slowly dialed down the calories for the energy macronutrients (fat & carbs). To get slightly more detailed I try to time carbs around my workouts. No foods are off limits except alcohol (the 5th food group).

For the most part everyone already knows how to get leaner. If I showed you grilled chicken and broccoli and then a plate of pasta, you know which is better for weight loss! Eighty percent of results from a weight loss plan is hitting the appropriate number of macro nutrients and total calories. A widely excepted rule of thumb that predates the world wide web, blogger “experts,” and skinny jeans is that you should have roughly one gram per pound of bodyweight. I don’t want this to turn into a discussion of protein, if you want to delve deeper look into the material published by Renaissance Periodization.

Also, I’m not drinking. This goes back to my main point that unless you want to get bodybuilding competition shredded, you already know how to lose weight. I especially already know! So, why am I successful (at the moment)? I have layers of accountability, I know why I’m doing this, and I have confidence in the program.

THE GIGGLE TEST

 Does your diet pass the giggle test? What do I mean by that? Well, if you tell someone your new cockamamie diet plan and their first reaction is a giggle it’s probably not the best idea. “Jill I’m only eating foods in blue packaging on even numbers of the the clock.” That being said, this diet will work at least at first. Because any diet that reduces the number of calories in versus out will work (for a time). Keto, let’s just cut the shit please. You don’t actually believe it’s a good idea you just want to be able to eat bacon wrapped avocados all the time.

LAYERS OF ACCOUNTABILITY

I have a coach. Yes, coaches need coaches, especially good ones! I have a very supportive girlfriend Cara (@captainstarbuck). As far as not drinking I told my girlfriend I was going to cut out alcohol on our anniversary until the project is done. Then on Christmas numerous people gave me bottles of whiskey. Which I asked Cara what that means people think? To which she replied: “well it’s because you’re like a man’s man, or they think you’re a functioning alcoholic, or a little of both.” Also, I now have this post on IG now I’m for my half-way mark, so I need to show change once I’m at 12 weeks. Next and maybe most important I paid money for this diet, I suggest you do too. This is isn’t even a sales pitch because I can’t legally tell you specific guidelines but I’m going to let you in on a secret I learned the hard way: people don’t respect things that are unconditionally free! So, throw down some cash. Even better keep a tally of all the money you’re saving by making your own meals and not drinking. Especially if you live in New York you’ll see this add up. Then get yourself something nice.

Also, postscript for next December my brand is Talisker.

Easy Meal Prep Under 10 min and $20

Meal prep is one of the less glamorous elements of your fitness journey. Especially if you are new to taking control of your nutrition, making pounds of chicken, sautéing vegetables, while you burn rice to the bottom of the pot can seem like a kitchen destroying Sisyphean task. Instead of letting this take the spirit out of you I am going to provide some easy meal prep ideas in a series of blogs that will soon be a e-pamphlet.

First Question

“What level of coaching are you at?” Nutrition coaching is often divided into three levels of intensity and detail. Most people will never need to be at level 3, unless you plan to compete in bodybuilding or physique. Even then though most advanced athletes/dieters cannot realistically stay at level 3 without psychological and/or physical burnout. In this level everything is taken into account. You are even measuring asparagus spears, nothing is eaten that you do not measure or weigh first. Also, a level 3 trainee is most likely timing their meals around their workouts for optimized muscle growth or fat loss. An example of detail the majority of that day’s carbs would be eaten in a three hour window arounds workouts. Whey protein would be consumed following a workout because of its quick absorption rate and casein taken prior to bed because of its slow release. For most individuals you will never need to be at level 3.

Myself after about two months of level 2 intensity and one month at level 3.

Level 2, I will define as you are measuring calories but you are not striving for the same level of accuracy. Also, timing is not really an issue. A note on accuracy, most food labels are estimated to only be within the 20-30% accurate range to begin with. For a food item to be close to 100% accurate every item would need to be placed in a bomb calorimeter.

Level 1 is simply basic consciousness of what you are eating. At level 1 you simply use your fist to measure protein, palm for carbs & vegetables, and your thumb to estimate fat.

Three common items less than 20 dollars. Also, I recommend purchasing broccoli florets and not cuts.

Four Meals Under Ten Minutes

For the level 3 trainee: divide the chicken into white meat and dark since you will enter them separately into your tracking app. Even if you are trying to cut I would recommend keeping the skin on at least the dark meat because of the vitamins. Next weigh four equal portions of each. Microwave the pre-packaged rice, use a spatula to divide each two serving packs into individual portions. Microwave your vegetables in a glass container and then divide those up. For the level two trainee, simply find in My Fitness Pal, or your chosen app, an entire rotisserie chicken then enter the serving as 0.25 of the whole chicken. The rice and vegetable set up is the same. If you are a level 1 trainee simply rip, shred the chicken up and use your eyeballs.

Cost Effective

This approach is not a only a great way for you to track your nutrition, but you can save considerable money. Especially if like me you live in New York City. I purchased all these items for under twenty bucks. The chicken was $7.99, two pre-cooked rice packs for $2.50 a piece, and two bags of broccoli for $2.49 a piece. I made four filling meals which in NYC would easily run $10-15 a piece. I chose not use oil on the rice and to keep the skin on the chicken for my fat calories. That being said each meal was still around 500 calories total. If you liked this article and would value more similar content please leave a comment below. Best of luck on your journey whatever your goals are. It will not happen overnight but probably will not take as long you think either. Be patient. strive to find satisfaction in the challenge and process.

“Patience is not simply the ability to wait, but rather how we behave while we’re waiting. ”

— -Joyce Meyer

Note using the lids for each container to make it easier to measure and divide the portions, the finished product (far right).

Picking The Right Muay Thai Camp in Thailand

So you’ve saved up your money and vacation time and you’re ready to pull the trigger. If you are anything like myself and the generation of marital artist like me who grew up on Kickboxer you dreamed of training in Thailand. Well, you might not realize this but you’re not the only one. Foreigners, or farrang, training in Thailand is a huge business and you’ll be one of thousands. That’s not to say you shouldn’t, nor does it mean you won’t be on your own unique adventure, just don’t expect be going down a path that hasn’t been tread. Over the course of 5 trips spanning decade and totally over a year of time in The Kingdom I would like to give 3 tips for choosing your first Muay Thai gym to train at.

1. BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF: What type of experience are you looking for? If you really want to be secluded and do nothing but train, great. Also, if you are working a stressful job in your home country and this is your only chance to get a vacation in, as well as train, that’s great too. If you want to have access to other activities like SCUBA, snorkeling, trekking, maybe pick a gym in one of the more frequented spots like Chiang Mai or Phuket. It’s ok, Van Damme will forgive you.

1. WHAT LEVEL ARE YOU AT: Another question where you will need to be honest with yourself. I’ve trained at gyms that were the perfect environment for foreigners coming who have already fought and are looking hone their skills and conditioning. The caveat with that is at times such gyms can be unprepared, or unwilling, to take the time to get you technically up to speed to where you’re getting the most out of your training. If you’re a beginner don’t necessarily look for a spot where the best fighters from the US & Europe go to prep, or a gym that boasts a roster of stadium champions, possibly seek out a “Mom & Pop” operation instead. A great example of that type of gym is Santai Muay Thai located in the outskirts of Chiang Mai. If you are already an experienced fighter it possibly doesn’t get better than Sitsongpeenong where I spent four months living.

1. Do your research, and look for the most current information you can find. Plenty of forums exists and there are several Muay Thai gym review sites on the internet. Just keep in mind these gyms often shut down or change owners with little to no notice. If you read an awesome review of a place that sounds like it’s perfectly tailored to your needs, be sure to check the date. The Muay Thai community at large is welcoming and ready to help. Personally I’m more than happy to message back anyone on Instagram or Facebook who shoots me a question.

1. Do you want to still cross-train? If you want to still keep up with your ground game or Western Style boxing there are options to do both and learn authentic Muay Thai. If you’re looking to particularly hone your stand up skills for MMA, you might be best served by one of the gyms that regularly sends fighters to promotions throughout Asia for MMA. A good location for the MMA focused trainees would be to get a hostel on the street of Chalong Phuket. You can take Traditional Muay Thai at Dragon Muay Thai, western Boxing & BJJ at Phuket Top Team, and then take MMA class at Tiger Muay thai all with in walking distance of each other.

Respect for the Beginner

It’s natural for us as humans to want to compare, rate and rank. Now, let’s say you’ve been boxing and training for about a year. You now crave a good training session. The next few days after class your body no longer feels like it was hit by a car and will revolt against you any moment. Another human tendency, and one of our less admirable ones, is to gain a feeling of superiority by comparing ourselves to those less skilled. Remember you will always be a beginner compared to someone else out there.

Thailand Lessons

In Thailand over the course of 4 months I lived in a room underneath the gym at Sitsongpeenong Muay Thai Camp. I showed up to Sitsonpeenong with a couple of decades of experience, in shape (but still fat by Thailand standards), and 20 fights under my belt. However, compared to many of the Thai 16 year olds there, who will already have close to 100 professional bouts at that age, I was a rank novice. Also, fighters in camps such as the one I was at are usually there because there is no other choice for them and their family. Despite sweating all over the place, being comparatively a beginner with motivations most likely perplexing to someone fighting for survival, I was never treated with anything but respect. I strive to, although not always successfully, to remember this lesson in humility and graciousness.  

Back to New York

So, back to New York and group boxing classes. Even though you are now finding a “groove” there will be times when your motivation begins to flag. You might know exactly what to do at this point. “Jab,” “cross,” “slip,” and “weave,” are now all part of your vocabulary. You have all the right gear, you have a gym community, your comfort level is higher, yet still sometimes you might find it difficult to make it to the gym. Take a moment and think how much more of a challenge it is for someone new. Someone who feels awkward, doesn’t know anyone, and isn’t speaking the language yet. 

It’s Takes a lot of Heart to Begin

There is a difference between knowing because you’ve experienced something and knowing because you have been told something. If you have been in shape before, or used to be an athlete, you have a tremendous advantage over a beginner. You truly know that the results can and will happen with work, fuel, rest. The true beginner is venturing into uncharted territory with their body. In many ways what they are do is the more than just difficult, it’s courageous. They deserve our respect.