Am I “Babying” Myself Too Much In My Training…

It’s kind of sad, but I think at my age (almost 40) there are just certain records that I will never beat.

I will never beat my long jump record from college.  That just isn’t happening, I tried it last year and I was about 4 feet off.

I can still grab the rim and jump pretty high but I will never jump as long as I used to.

My bench press record is also going to be tough.

Although i can still muscle my way up to 315 lbs almost every day, it’s going to be tough for me to get past 355.

First of all, I am not willing to gain as much weight. 10 years ago when I bulked up to 205 lbs, I would bench press 315 for an easy 4 reps.

Now at 170 lbs tops and without a steady spotter, it is going to be close to impossible to beat.

For the deadlift and squat, I believe I could beat it.

Yesterday I deadlifted 375 for 10 reps and it felt like a feather.  For me to get back near my record of 585, I will need to start lifting in the mid 400’s for 10 reps, to be honest, it doesnt seem that far off.

I am still able to get my deadlift over 500 almost every year without even training.

For the squats, I feel like I break my “non-equiped” record if I had a consistent spotter.

Running is a mixed bag.

I am definitely slower in the 100, 200 and 400 meters, but I feel stronger in long distance.

I think I could still beat my 5-mile and half-marathon record and maybe have a slight chance to break my 5k record.

But that big question is, am I pushing myself enough?

I have been pretty much injury free for the last several years, so should I start pushing it a little more?

Unfortunately,  I think the answer is “Yes”.

I want to hit some strong numbers in the gym this winter and I want to run faster in the Spring and Summer.

If I dont have any injuries, why not?

It’s time to start going harder…

-John Andre

 

March 1st Is the Last Day To Start Cardio Or You Will Be Fat This Summer…

I am sorry to inform all of my competition out there, but if you did not start your cardio routine recently, you better start it now.

March 1st is the last day to start your cardio routine and still get ripped for the summer.

How do I know this? From YEARS of experience.  If you start too early you might end up “skinny fat”, if you start to late, you wont get your body fat low enough.

The “sweet spot” to start doing cardio is between Feb 14th and the first week of March.

The other question is, “what type of cardio I should be doing”? That is also important, because if you are doing your cardio incorrectly, you can also ruin your summer.

In my latest book, I tell you exactly what you need to do.

Running 2.0 The End Of Long-Distance Running: Including The Top Ten Spint Workouts To Remove Bodyfat

For me personally, my Spring training is just starting to get revved up.  I lost around 5 lbs so far and I’ve completed about 10-12 cardio sessions.

Another week or two and I will start to add my sprinting routine into the mix and then I should start to get pretty cut.

And if you do it correctly, you should end up looking like this.

Ripped abs

-John Andre

What If You Only Had 20 Years Left To Live?

Imagine that your doctor told you that you had 20 years left to live?

Would you quit your job?

Would you travel more?

Would you get married or divorced?

I think I know what I would do.  I would buy an R.V. and travel throughout the United States for several years.

In my R.V. I would pack a squat rack, bench press and up to 600 lb’s in weights.  Although it’s going to kill my gas mileage, I would be able to set up a base at different sites and powerlift.

For my cardio, well that’s easy.  I can run anywhere in the great outdoors, or alongside the truck as my wife drives.

After several years traveling throughout the United States, I would like to do the same in Europe.  Travel throughout the different counties with my 600 lb’s of weights and maybe take one or two side-excursions to Asia, most likely Japan and one other country.

Along with stopping at various churches and praying for my afterlife, I will publish two books about my travels and then I am ready to die.

So what would you plan on doing?

Or more importantly, what are you doing now?

• Do you workout 5-6X a week?
• Do you lift heavy to moderate weights?
• Do you add cardio to your routine including sprint training?

Also, how is your diet?

• Do you eat clean?
• Do you have a visible 6-pack for part of the year?
• Do you take any recreationale drugs?
• Do you drink more than 20 beers a week?
• Do you have high blood pressure or cholesterol and need medication to lower it?

WAKE UP STUPID!

Your life expectancy is probably only 20 years right now.

Travel…

Exercise…

Run…

Eat right..

Pray…

And enjoy your life…

-John Andre

Check out my books on amazon.com…

Lift Heavy/Run Fast

 

Baseball Cards, Pawn Stars and Heart Attacks…

I am a big fan of the show “Pawn Stars”.

If you have never seen it, it’s about a family that owns a pawn store on the Vegas Strip where people bring all types of crazy historical items to sell.

What I like about the show, is that they really get into the history of the items being sold.  They discuss who made it, the year, the popularity, etc.

And when they occasionally make an offer to buy an item, they always question the conditioning.

Is it in mint condition or is it torn up and aged?

The conditioning is what really determines the value.

I was watching the show the other day and a guy brought in an antique toy from the 1950’s.

Old-fashioned toys are very popular, but then again, it depends on the conditioning.

If you are missing the box or if some of the components are rusted; then you will never get top value for it.

It’s also the same with baseball cards.  Someone also brought in a rare baseball card and it reminded me of when I started collecting cards in the late 80’s.

When I was in elementary school in the 1980’s, I used to go to card shows and buy and trade from my collection.  As of today, I still have two sets of the full 1988 Topps season and I realized that I started my baseball card collection exactly 30 years ago.

Wow, am I getting old.

Yet, I still have the same legs, arms, veins, heart and every other major organ since 1988.

Similar to my baseball cards, are they still in mint condition?

Can I still run at a fast speed? Can I throw a baseball, jump and swim?

Are my arteries unclogged and my cholesterol still low? Or am I close to a major heart attack.

What type of value am I really worth?

I am really any different from an antique that they sell on pawn stars?

Let’s face it.   If you don’t keep yourself in mint condition, then you ain’t worth sh&t.

Eat healthy.

Lift weights

Cardio.

Until you die.

-John Andre

Lift Heavy/Run Fast

I Love To Get Ripped For The 4th Of July…

July 4th is a great holiday.

Not only is it the biggest American holiday over the summer, but it is also a patriotic and symbolic occasion.

As we honor those that have served and sacrified, I am also reminded of American exceptionalism.

Although the world is becoming smaller than ever, there are still certain American characteristics that make this country unique.

One the biggest difference that I find between Americans and the rest of the world, is our proud tradition of “individualism“.

We are not scared to be individuals.

Although soccer may never become a very popular sport in the United States, a sport like bodybuilding has always been popular and the U.S. has traditionally been a world leader.

One of the greatest examples of American invividualism and exceptionalism would be with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Although I have better abs than him, Arnold’s life truly embodies the American dream.

 

He emigrated to the United States as a young man, at one point became the highest paid movie star in the world, and he is generally considered the greatest bodybuilder of all time.

When I think of the 4th of July, I think of people like Arnold Schwarzenegger.

I don’t know what it is, but I love getting ripped for the 4th of July.

Ripped abs

There is just something about drinking a Budweiser, eating a Nathan’s hot dog and ripping my shirt off on the beach and showing what can be achieved with hard work.

God bless the United States!

-John Andre

Lift Heavy/Run Fast

Why Can’t I Be A Champion? I Have The Same Body Parts As Every Other Chump…

I think it took to about age 25 that I realized that I will never become a professional athlete.

By age 16 I realized I would never become a professional basketball player. By age 21 I realized I would never become a professional runner.

And by age 26, I realized that I would never become a professional powerlifter

But at age 30, I realized something else.  By using my stubborn gym work ethic, I was able to get pretty ripped. More ripped more than anyone else in the neighborhood.

 

And better abs than Arnold.

But who am I kidding, I will most likely never compete on a body building stage.  I will also never make it into a magazine.

So what?

Bodybuilding and running are the same for everyone.  You might be taller, have better muscle structure or have insane genetics.

But, on game day, all is equal.

Why can’t I win a race?

Why can’t I have the best 6-pack in history this summer?

Why can’t I sell a 5-million dollar condo?

Why can’t I sell 200,000 copies of my next book?

Who says I can’t?

-John

Lift Heavy/Fun Fast on Amazon.com!

 

Choose Either A Race Or A Spring Break Vacation For Motivation…

Although California may have better weather, NYC is still a good place to bodybuild.

Seasons are not a problem.  In the Winter we can bulk up and lift heavy, cut down slightly in the Spring and then get ripped in the Summer.

The 4 distinct seasons work great for me.

I couldn’t imagine living somewhere where I need to take my shirt off all year round.  You need some time to gain weight otherwise you will keep cutting down to a bag of bones.

If you live in a cold region, the Spring is very important.

If you jerk around in the Spring, you will never get cut for the summer.

Losing body fat is hard.  If you think you can wait until June and then start getting ripped, you are in trouble.

You won’t even be in good enough shape to burn the fat off.

There are two ways that I try to stay motivated in the Spring.  The first is to choose a race.

2-years ago I choose a 5k race to train for in New Jersey.  It wasn’t anything crazy, just a small community race in park that I wanted to run.

I used that race for my motivation, I trained hard, lost weight and I actually ended up winning the race.

That was the first time I ever won a 5k.

The second best way to stay motivated, is to plan a vacation.

SPRING BREAK.

I went on a Spring Break trip almost every year until I turned 30.  There was just no way that I would allow myself to fly someplace warm and show up overweight.

For my spring break trips I would still carry a small amount of bulk, but I would cut down enough so I didn’t look fat.

Motivation is important.

Whether it is training for a race, training for a vacation or trying to get back at your ex-boyfriend/girlfriend; you need some motivation.

Something has to light a fire under your ass.

Find it grasshopper.

-John

Lift Heavy/Fun Fast on Amazon.com!

 

The Training For Running And Weight Lifting Is Very Different…

Weight training and running are very different.  When I get cut for the summer, I use a combination of running, weight training and a proper diet.

This year, I skipped running almost completely for about 4 months so that I can bulk up.  Occasionally,  I will run the entire year. But this year, I wanted to make sure that I put on enough size.

Around February 14th I decided that I would stop bulking up and start to slowly cut down for the summer. Although I am not dieting super hard yet, I am slowly cutting down on my calories and I also started running 3x a week.

One thing that I have noticed right away, is that the training used for running is very different for than it is for weight training.

With weight training, you definitely need extra rest.

When I deadlift or squat, I need an entire week of rest and for chest, I can do it twice per week at most.

You also need more calories when you weight train.  If you do not consume enough calories or rest enough between heavy workouts, you will never grow any muscle.

Running is a different story.  I can get in pretty good shape by just running hard 3 or 4x a week, but If you really want to get fast, rest is your enemy.

When I am running fast, it means I am training all the time.

You also lose your running stamina quickly.

I can skip 3 months of weight training and still be pretty strong.  With running, if I skip 3 month of training, I will lose it completely.  It’s almost like I never ran before.

In the Spring is when it gets weird.

I am going to have to lift heavy weights, which requires rest, while running several times a month that requires no rest.

I also need more calories for building muscle, but less calories for getting cut.

So, how do I lift heavy weights for muscle and run for cuts at the same time?

It’s not easy.

That is why you need to start off with some solid muscle before you starting cutting up, because you will lose some of it.

The key is to try to hold on to as much muscle as possible, while still removing all of my body fat.

It is tricky.

I compare it to a chef.  If you take 100 chef’s and ask them to bake the same cake, there will always be several cakes that stand out.

Why?

Everyone has the same recipe, the same ingrediants.  So why doesn’t every cake taste the same?

It’s tricky.

-John

Lift Heavy/Fun Fast on Amazon.com!

 

Don’t Run Slow. Run Hard Or Don’t Run At All…

Now that my winter bulk up is over, I am starting to add some cardio back into my routine.

This week I ran 4 times.  I ran Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.

I was considering running on Sunday, but I decided not to.  When I use my running for cardio, I like to run HARD.  Easy running is for marathon runners and it doesn’t burn off a lot of body fat.

If anything, most marathon runners are skinny fat.  Skinny fat is where you have a low body weight but still a high body fat percentage.

The key to cardio is intensity.  Run hard, run fast and push it.

This year, my goal is to run 3 miles under 21 minutes without running for than 3 or 4x a week.  I also never run more than 3-4 miles in my training, when I run, it is short and fast.

I meet runners all the time that utilize a ton of mileage in their routine, but their running times never go anywhere.

It’s truly a waste of time to go outside or on a treadmill and start plodding along.

The key to cardio is to work on your SPEED.

You don’t really lose a lot of endurance as you get older, but you definitely lose a lot of speed.

Speed is the key to life and vitality, not endurance.

Sprints, tempo runs and even sports are the cardio routines that you can use to get into great shape and remove body fat.

Last summer I was running outdoors and when I would start to feel burnt out, I would switch to basketball.

But overall, I would never run more than 12-15 miles a week, max.

Today I ran 2 miles in 15:00 minutes (7:30 per mile pace).  I’m only into my second week of running, but I am quickly starting to feel pretty good.

Running is a weird sport, it usually takes me around 15-20 runs before I start to get into the “groove”.

But once my legs and my breathing starts to make the adjustment to the training, I can really start to push it hard.

Remember, start training outside now so when the weather changes, you will be ready.

By the time Spring rolls around you want to be in the middle of a hard training routine, not at the beginning.

-John

Lift Heavy/Fun Fast on Amazon.com!

 

If It’s Working, Don’t Stop. Don’t Be Stupid…

Bodybuilding is a funny sport.

You can read all of the articles written in Flex magazine by the “so-called” experts or you can follow workout routines you find in the online forums, but unfortunately, most of it is bullshit.

I am not saying that some of it isn’t solid advice, but you have no idea how your body is going to react.

For myself, nothing ever goes to plan. Never.

For example, I have always been a great deadlifter.  In College I got up to 500lbs really fast and was almost lifting in the mid-500’s as a teenager.

Eventually my progress started to slow down and I made a fatal mistake.  I started to add extra sets.

Not only did I get weaker, but I ended up pulling my back out and It took over a year to heal.

I see people making the same mistake with the bench press all the time.  They start to add sets on the bench press, then they go over to the incline and then they move on to the decline.

End result? They never progress.

I just turned 38 years old and I might be able to break my bench press record this year.  In 4 or 5 weeks I am going to try to get 365lb’s at around 181lb’s of bodyweight.

Don’t get me wrong, that’s not any type of record breaking lifting, but it’s pretty strong for a regular gym lifter.

When I try to get stronger, it usually comes down to 3 things:

• Speed.  I do my reps really fast, including my warm up.
• Less Sets.  Sometimes I will only do one set after warming up
• Eat more.  If you don’t eat, where is the magical muscle going to come from?

Also, you might find an exercise that works great for you.  If you do, don’t change anything up!!!

This year, I was doing bench press on Monday’s and I was doing shoulders on Friday’s.  I wanted to focus more on bench press, so eventually I substituted shoulder Friday’s for dumbbell chest.

From adding a second chest day, I started going up like crazy.  I shot my bench press up over 315 lb’s almost immediately.

Last week I decided to go back to shoulders and I started to add shoulder Friday’s back.

Result?  I started to feel some injuries come back and my bench press started regressing.

If something is working, DON’T STOP.  Even if it doesn’t make sense.

If pretty girls always compliment your favorite blue shirt, then wear that shirt!

Don’t try to overthink things.

Right now I have about 6 weeks of my bulk up left before I get into Spring Training.  Although I enjoy being strong, I have to admit, I am starting to feel overweight.

Good luck!

John

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