5 Excellent Reasons to Drink Green Tea

Okay… I'll admit it. I'm a coffee-holic (or java junkie, if you prefer). I love my daily cup o' joe! Actually, it's usually several cups, but you get the point. Now in my own defense, I don't add sugar or creamer, so it ends up being an extremely low calorie indulgence. However, I keep coming face-to-face with the fact that green tea provides a huge dose of disease-fighting antioxidants -- something with which my daily coffee just can't compete.

In an effort to determine if I should go back to drinking green tea regularly (yes, I was on the bandwagon a few years ago), I did a little more research, and I think it's important enough to share it with you. So, without further ado, here are five good reasons you should consider becoming a regular green tea drinker:

1. Green Tea Prevents Memory Loss

Studies have shown that older adults who consume two cups (or more) of green tea per day are 50% less likely to experience cognitive difficulties. Apparently the antioxidants that I mentioned above are excellent at preventing damage to brain nerves (commonly seen in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients).

2. Green Tea Protects Your Skin

Soaking a cotton ball in green tea and applying it to cuts, abrasions and bug bites will alleviate itching and help stop any swelling. As it turns out, green tea is a natural antiseptic and works great on skin from the outside and from the inside. Assuming that you're not in a position to be dabbing tea on your body regularly, let me assure you that drinking it can also help your skin by blocking skin cancer caused by over-exposure to the sun. In fact, if you're observant, you've noticed that "green tea extract" is showing up on the labels of all sorts of skin care products recently!

3. Green Tea Promotes Arterial Health

Consuming only 10 ounces of green tea a day will help keep your arteries healthy by helping prevent plaque from building up in blood vessels, thus reducing your risk of heart disease and stroke. And while it's keeping your arteries young and flexible, the green tea is also slowing the absorption of fat and cholesterol into the bloodstream.

4. Green Tea Provides Blood Pressure Stability

Your doctor will tell you that a healthy blood pressure is 120/80 (or lower). Achieving that level is half the battle, but maintaining it is the other half! Keep with the "half" theme, people who drink just half a cup of green tea each day are about half as likely to end up with hypertension, thanks to the internal benefits of certain antioxidants known as polyphenols. These little helpers keep your blood vessels from contracting, which keeps your blood pressure down.

5. Green Tea Pummels Cancer Cells

Studies continue to show that drinking green tea reduces the risk of multiple types of cancer, including breast, stomach, colon, and prostate cancers. Apparently a number of those wonderful little polyphenols also keep cancer cells at bay, first by discouraging growth of the cancerous cells, and then by stifling the creation of fresh blood vessels that tumors require.

And there you have it: five excellent reasons for all of us to start drinking green tea on a daily basis. I won't give up my coffee completely, but I'm sure I can find a way to fit a cup or two of green tea into my daily routine!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Printable Workout Page

Sometimes it's easy to read something online, but difficult to translate it into something you can use offline. For example, in my last post I gave you a solid, full-body workout with links to YouTube videos and exercise explanations on BodyBuilding.com... but you may be wondering how to "write it out" in a format that's easy to use. Obviously you can't take your computer to the gym or weight room with you, so you need something that you can print, fold up, and carry in your pocket.

With that in mind, I took the workout I created for you and put it into the format that I use for my own workouts. Workout 1 should be used for 4 weeks, at which time I'll design another workout for you to use for the next 4 weeks. Yes... you read that right. I'm going to go ahead and create another workout for you for free! (But as before, if you really want to send me $39, then I certainly won't complain!)

Again, here's the link to a PDF file of Workout 1. All you'll need to do is fill in the dumbbell weight you're using and you should be good to go (I've inserted "body" wherever the exercises are simply bodyweight exercise).

Oh, and I've also included an Ab Circuit that you can do on your "off" days. I combine this Circuit with 20 minutes of high intensity interval training on the stationary bike, which is an excellent way to burn excess fat. You may have to look-up some of the exercises on your own, but that'll be good practice for you!

Hopefully this printable workout will remove any last excuses you may have been entertaining. It's time to get up, get moving, and make sure our temples are healthy and fit!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Your Beach Body for FREE!

Okay... before we dive in and design our own workout, let me clarify three things. First of all, I'm not a doctor. I don't even play one on TV. So before you start any new exercise program, including the one in this post, you should consult with your doctor. Second, I'm not a certified personal trainer, certified nutritionist, or certified anything for that matter. However, I've managed to learn a lot about health and fitness over the years -- through reading, from conversations with trainers, and through trial-and-error -- so what I'm sharing today is based on experience. And third, this isn't for everyone. There is no such thing as "one-size-fits-all" when it comes to exercise. If this workout isn't for you, don't give up. Tweak it, twist it, add and subtract exercises... just focus on coming up with something that meets your needs.

Enough disclaimers! On to the workout...

In creating this workout, I wanted to accomplish 4 things:

1. Create a basic full-body workout;
2. Make it easy to do at home with minimal equipment;
3. Keep the time required to less than 45 minutes (if you hustle); and
4. Use free online resources to illustrate exercises.

The basic workout structure is to do a warm-up circuit to get your heart pumping, followed by a warm-up set that leads into the first "superset". A "superset" consists of 2 or 3 exercises where the sets are performed one after the other with little or no rest in between. The specific exercises in a superset will work opposing muscle groups (e.g. biceps and triceps) or non-related muscle groups (e.g. thighs and chest).

This is a full-body workout and should be performed 3 times per week (M-W-F).
A "rep" is one full repetition of the specific exercise.
Links are provided for exercises you may not know (and some that you probably do).

Warm-Up Circuit
Complete circuit 2 times
No rest between exercises
60 seconds rest between circuits
Increase or decrease reps based upon your individual fitness level

Freehand Jump Squat -- 8 reps
Push Ups -- 8 reps
Jumping Jacks -- 20 reps
Mountain Climbers -- 10 reps per leg

Warm-Up Superset
Complete superset 2 times
Use 75% of normal weight (e.g. 30# instead of 40# dumbbells)
No rest between exercises
30 seconds rest between supersets

Dumbbell Squats -- 8 reps
Dumbbell Bench Press -- 8 reps

Superset #1
Complete superset 3 times
No rest between exercises
60 seconds rest between supersets

Dumbbell Squats -- 8 reps
Dumbbell Bench Press -- 8 reps

Superset #2
Complete superset 3 times
No rest between exercises
60 seconds rest between supersets

One-Arm Dumbbell Row -- 8 reps each arm
Offset Push Up -- 6 reps each way (12 reps total)

Superset #3
Complete superset 3 times
No rest between exercises
No rest between supersets

Plank -- 30 seconds
Wall Sit -- 20 seconds

To complete your workout, you can do some basic stretches, and I suggest walking around until your heart rate returns to normal. Also make sure you drink plenty of water throughout your workout, and STOP if you feel dizzy, light-headed or weak. You'll have to determine what amount of weight to use for each dumbbell exercise, based upon your own strength and fitness level. And finally, if you need to increase or decrease the intensity of the workout, use one or more of these methods: change the weight used, change the number of reps performed, and/or change the amount of rest between supersets. (I don't suggest changing the number of supersets performed.)

If you cannot do an exercise with correct form, then use less weight. If you are unable to do the push ups with correct form, then start by doing them from your knees and then work your way up to regular push ups (the plank exercise will also help with this).

So there you have it. A full body workout that you can do at home, with minimal equipment, and all of the exercise explanations, descriptions, and videos can be found online for free.

Of course, if you want to send me $39 for this info, I won't complain. But I'd rather you put that money towards some additional exercise equipment that you can use at home as you continue to train the temple!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Your Beach Body for $39!

Much to my chagrin, I end up spending an inordinate amount of time checking out different exercise programs online. Have you noticed how many "experts" are out there? Everyone has the greatest new thing, with hundreds of dollars worth of "bonuses", all for just $39!

Wow! Achieve the ultimate beach body for less than 40 bucks?! Count me in!

Unfortunately, a $40 ebook isn't going to transform your physique. Only proper nutrition and exercise will do that. Of course, there is a lot of information that you need to know to achieve "proper nutrition". There are also a bajillion exercise programs to choose from, and they are not all created equal. But do you really need to plunk down 40 simoleons to get an effective exercise program?

The answer, my friends, is "no". With a little work, you can put together excellent workouts all on your own. And with the help of exercise videos on YouTube and a searchable encyclopedia of exercises on BodyBuilding.com, the task becomes much easier. (In fact, you can find full workouts on YouTube but, again, they are not all created equal.)

Regardless of how you come up with your workout, there three things you should keep in mind:

1. Use proper form when doing exercises, even if it means using lighter weights.
2. Set a weekly workout schedule and stick to it for 4 weeks, then change up your workout and stick to that for 4 weeks, etc...
3. Focus on body measurements and body fat percentages, not weight!

Obviously there are many more things that you should know in order to physically train your temple properly. If there weren't, then I'd be done blogging very soon! For now, spend some time checking out the sites I mentioned above. And in my next post, to prove to you that I'm not just full of hot air, I'll actually create a 4-week workout using only free online resources.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Evolution or Revolution?

It's easy to look at my life and come up with all sorts of things that I should change. Because I'm not perfect (really... just ask my wife), there are always new skills I want to learn, and old skills I want to improve; new knowledge I want to gain, and old knowledge I should brush up on; new habits I should develop, and old habits I need to change.

Is it just me, or do you see a pattern there too?

It seems that my life is a constant battle between the old and the new, and I'm not always sure which one should win. For instance, old habits aren't necessarily bad, but are they helping me as much as they should? Would I better off tweaking the old habit or trying to drop it altogether and replace it with a new habit? The same is true for skills and knowledge. Do I work towards an evolution of my abilities, or should I be striving for a revolution? Steady change or upheaval?

When I read about people who have become very successful, I find myself longing for revolutionary change. I want to be like that person! The skills, knowledge, and habits that they've developed could propel me to success too! I should scrap the things I've been working on and make massive change! Re-engineer my life! Woo-hoo!

Luckily, the initial euphoria wears off and my common sense and better judgment prevail.

The skills, knowledge, and habits we need are the ones that support what's important to us. They are the tools we need to move us towards our goals and answer our calling, whatever it may be. If we come across a new skill, some excellent new knowledge, or a great new habit, and it would be useful on our journey, then we should embrace it.

That doesn't mean we need to scrap everything else... or anything else, for that matter. If it makes sense to exchange the new thing for an old thing, that's fine. If it ends up being a revolutionary change for us, then that's fine too -- as long as it improves our ability to answer our calling.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Feelings Should Trump Emotions

I spent many years working with teens and had countless informal counseling sessions during that time. One of the things I often tried to help teens do was draw a distinction between feelings and emotions. Emotions are fleeting, flashes in the pan that come and go, changing with the wind. Feelings, on the other hand, run much deeper and are intricately tied to our experiences, our knowledge, and our basic beliefs and understandings of creation and the creator.

Remember the first time you held the hand of that special someone? Your heart raced and the butterflies in your stomach went crazy! You would have given anything to spend the rest of your life together!

That's an emotion... and it's fleeting. A month later, holding hands doesn't do anything except get your hand all sweaty. What you felt before wasn't love; it was some form of excitement, but nothing deeper than that.

After you've been married for 13 years, you argue once in a while (but quickly forgive), you hold hands without thinking when you're walking into the grocery store, you really enjoy just being in the same room watching TV or reading a magazine, and you can't even imagine what life would be like with anyone else... that's a feeling. It's love that runs deep, is based upon experience, knowledge of the other person, and an understanding of one's own beliefs. At some level, it is also based upon a conscious decision -- a choice -- and we continue to make the choice every day.

As I look at successful people around me, it seems that passion is an emotion, but it stems from a choice that people have made. And the more deep-seated the feelings behind that choice, the more likely it is that passion will erupt.

It is very rare to find someone who is passionate all the time, regardless of their "cause". But when they've chosen their cause in line with their fundamental beliefs, they will continue to succeed even during those times when the passion isn't there. They will keep moving forward, even when most people would lose energy and fizzle out. They will push, and push, and eventually something will change and the passion will return, for at least a while.

Passion is an emotion and is usually fleeting. But if you make your choices based upon what truly matters to you, then you'll have the drive to make it through during times when passion fails. And that is a critical key to success, because feelings should trump emotions every time.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Passion!

Passion. It's something you read about all the time. The small business owner who continues to thrive in this down economy. The athlete who does amazing things without the use of performance enhancing drugs. The missionary who braves jungles and armed militia to bring medicine to small villages. All of these people are passionate about what they're doing. They feel so strongly about their chosen endeavor that it gives them strength and energizes them every day when they arise, ready to take on the world all over again!

Passion! That's what we need in order to succeed at following our dreams!

Sounds awesome, doesn't it? Don't you wish you felt that way about something? If you do, that's wonderful, and I'm extremely happy for you. Unfortunately, most people don't have that sort of fire in their souls. And when they do find something to be passionate about, those feelings are often far too fleeting.

Want some concrete examples? Start randomly checking out the blogs available on Blogger.com or other blogging platforms. Go back to their earliest archives, and you'll almost always see a flurry of activity, with tons of posts, links and trackbacks. But as you continue through the archives, witnessing the evolution of the blog, you'll almost certainly see the posts become fewer and farther between... until the posts end altogether. Obviously the blogger started out with passion, but fizzled out in the end.

Is passion sustainable? Are there things we can do to stay passionate about something? Or is there something else that drives people, and passion is merely an outward expression of it?

A few things to think about until next time.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Through to Completion

One problem I have is that I can't seem to stay focused on a single thing for too long. It's not because I have Adult ADD. It's because I have RCIS -- Rampant Creative Idea Syndrome. Coming up with a single creative idea is never enough. I'll no sooner get working on implementing an idea when a couple more pop into my head. And then those ideas force my thinking onto different tangents, which generates even more ideas!

Of course, having a lot of creative ideas isn't bad in and of itself. The problem is that researching those ideas is just so darned easy when the Internet is at my fingertips. An idea will pop into my head and I'll think, "Let me just take one minute, while I'm thinking about it, and 'google' it." An hour later I realize I've gone 59 minutes past my original allotted time, and haven't actually worked on the project I was supposed to be focusing on!

After having experienced the same thing many, many times, I've learned to avoid the temptation of "just checking" on something immediately (unless I really don't have anything else to do). What I do now is always have a couple 6"x9" notepads on hand: one for my "day job" and one for my "entrepreneurial" stuff. When I'm working on something and find myself experiencing a bout of RCIS, I quickly pull out the appropriate notepad, jot down the idea in three sentences or less, and then get back to the task at hand.

Mary Kay Ash said, "Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who implement them are priceless." Knowing how easy it is for me to fall victim to RCIS, I couldn't agree more! I can crank out creative ideas all day long... but what good are any of them if I don't drive them through to completion?

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Dog Daze...

I had planned on dragging my butt out of bed around 4:45 this morning so that I could get in a good workout before heading to the office. I had my workout clothes ready to go, my new weekly workout sheet printed and on the clipboard, and the alarm set when I went to bed. It was going to be an excellent, healthy start to what promised to be a long week!

Unfortunately, our dog had different plans for me.

Murphy is getting very old, and his stomach isn't quite what it used to be. After dinner last night, my wife gave him some table scraps... and we paid for it all night. Our poor dog was up at least once an hour needing to go outside and relieve himself. Needless to say, by the time 5am rolled around, I was in no shape to workout.

Life is like that sometimes. We can have everything planned -- have everything all laid out -- and life throws us a curve ball and our plans seem to fall apart. When it comes to health and fitness, we need to be a bit flexible. I prefer to workout in the morning, but I'll compromise today and squeeze in my workout after the kids go to bed tonight. Not an optimal time for me to be sure, but it's far better than skipping the workout altogether (or bumping it a day, which throws off my entire week).

Planning is generally good, but don't rely so much on a plan that you become paralyzed or demoralized when it doesn't go the way you expected. Just shake it off, refocus on your goal, and make do with the situation at hand... even when an old pooch with a stomach ache keeps you up all night and leaves you in a 'dog daze'!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

New Life and Transformation

Spring is a time of growth and new life. The long, cold, lifeless days of winter are becoming a distant memory, while mother nature is busy bringing forth buds, blossoms, and blooms. With the world around me bursting with vitality, it seems like the perfect time to begin the next phase in my own personal transformation.

In August of 2008, I was tipping the scales at 258 pounds. About 3 months after that, I had only managed to lose 10 pounds and was basically stuck. That was when I stumbled upon Craig Ballantyne's "Turbulence Training" program... and what a difference it made! Here we are, 5 months later, and I've managed to drop another 30 pounds without a whole lot of focus and effort. (I'll spend more time in later posts explaining exactly what I did so that you can do it too.)

Now, you may look at that and say, "Wow! You've lost 40 pounds! You should be proud of how far you've come!"

Well, I don't know if "proud" is the word I'd use; "pleased" is probably a better choice... but that doesn't mean I'm satisfied or finished. In fact, the progress I've made has given me even more motivation to do better!

The Easter Season is Perfect for Transformation

I look back over the last 8 months and I know that I wasn't very focused. I know that I wasn't very disciplined. I know that I didn't train anywhere near as hard as I should have. Sure, I've had some good results. I look a lot better and I feel great, but I KNOW that I could've done much, much better than I did. But rather than beating myself up for sub-optimal performance in the past, I've decided to look ahead to the future.

For Christians, this is the Easter Season; a time when we focus on the resurrection of Jesus and the promise of new life. It is the perfect time to begin a physical transformation through improved nutrition and increased activity.

Some people have argued with me about this, claiming that the season of Lent is better because it's a time when we remember the suffering of Jesus, and then our "transformation" coincides with Easter and the resurrection. I absolutely disagree with this because I completely disagree with making temporary changes in order to get fit. I strongly believe that we need to make gradual changes to our nutrition and activity that will be permanent. And if those changes are going to be permanent, I certainly don't want to associate them with suffering! I want those changes to be associated with resurrection and new life! I want those changes to be associated with good, positive things so that my subconscious mind helps me and isn't working against my conscious mind.

A Change in Presentation (Posts That Are Personal)

I started this blog with the idea of sharing my knowledge and ideas regarding improving ourselves so that we can better build God's Kingdom on earth. Until know my posts have been relatively impersonal (though I hope you've considered them well-written). From here on out though, these posts are going to be a lot more personal (but still well-written, I hope). I've decided that the best way to share my knowledge and ideas is to document my own attempts at training the temple and give you a glimpse of the thoughts and information that motivates and drives me along the way.

It's not a change in direction; just a change in presentation. I think you'll enjoy it!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Understand the Value of Your Work

If you ask someone how they think people define spirituality, they will most likely tell you that people's definitions will vary widely, because that is the conventional wisdom on the subject. Most of us assume that spirituality is something extremely personal and thus our definitions are situational and individual.

Interestingly, the few studies that have been done on the subject indicate that respondents tend to have a very similar definition and understanding of spirituality. In the book A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America, author Ian Mitroff uses the results of one such study to offer this definition of spirituality: "[Spirituality] is the basic desire to find ultimate meaning and purpose in one's life and to live an integrated life."

Given this definition, I think it becomes pretty clear that there is a significant difference between spirituality and religion. Obviously, spirituality will be strongly connected to religion because the focus is on living an integrated life, but it's important to acknowledge the distinction between the two. Because of this distinction, I would argue that spirituality is a very appropriate topic within the workplace even though religion is not necessarily safe ground.

But how do you find ultimate meaning and purpose in your life? If you work 40+ hours a week at a job, doesn't that job need to enter the equation? In fact, don't you think that the work you do during the bulk of your waking hours should play an extremely prominent role in helping you discover that ultimate meaning and purpose?

The fact of the matter is that understanding the greater value of the work you do gets you one step closer to living an integrated life.

Action Exercise (10 minutes): Think about the work that you do on a daily basis. What value does it create? How does it help others? How does it make the world a better place? If it's a small part of a much larger system, then also think about that larger system. How does it create value, help others, and/or make the world a better place?

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Get Off the Negative Bandwagon

Unemployment is on the rise. Layoffs are commonplace at many companies. Benefits for both employees and retirees are being cut more and more. Cash is king... but there's less and less to go around. And many people are finding that there is more month at the end of the money.

How can you not be pessimistic? How can you not join in with co-workers who seem to find ever more creative ways of predicting doom and gloom? Like so many things in life, moaning and complaining is a bandwagon that's easy to hop on, but hard to get off.

What I find rather interesting is that the "doom and gloom" people at most workplaces are treated as if they are all-seeing prophets who have a crystal ball that they use to scry the future. Yet someone who is upbeat and positive, on the other hand, is treated as if he or she has some sort of psychological malaise.

I could go on and on describing this phenomenon, but I'm sure you know exactly what I'm talking about. So instead, let me just explain what I think we need to do:

1. Don't be a sheep and blindly follow the naysayers and negative ninnies.
2. Remember that the choice is always yours.
3. Choose optimism.

Will you be wrong sometimes? Absolutely. But that's not the point. The point is that negative words and ideas create negative energy, and negative energy saps your spirit. And considering all of the truly serious problems that we're facing today, none of us needs any additional negativity if we can help it... so get off of the negative bandwagon! The choice is yours.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Health and Fitness Myth Busters: No Pain, No Gain

The Myth: The best indicator of an excellent workout is that I should be really sore, especially on the day after.

The Reality: Muscle soreness is expected to some degree, especially if you're either a beginner, you have not trained in a long time, or you've made significant changes to your routine. But muscle soreness is certainly not the only way to tell that your workout was effective. In fact, if your nutrition is good and you are allowing adequate recovery time between workouts, muscle soreness should be minimized.

Given proper training, nutrition, and recovery time, strong muscles should be exhausted immediately following a workout, but you should not be in pain the following day. The "pain" you feel when you properly push your muscles is better described as "strain". If you are pushing to the point of true pain, then you need to either adjust the weight, the number of reps, or the intensity of your workout because over-training will definitely slow your progress. The truth is that training to pain will minimize your gains.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Health and Fitness Myth Busters: Cardio Burns More Fat

The Myth: The only way I'm going to burn off that layer of fat is to put in some hours on the treadmill or elliptical machine (or some other form of cardio exercise).

The Reality: Sure, cardio can burn calories, but it isn't the only type of exercise you should be doing. In fact, many experts agree that it's not even the best exercise for significant fat loss. Slow, steady cardio burns calories while you're exercising, but a short while after you stop, your body settles back into its basal metabolic rate (BMR). Strength training, on the other hand, using a varied program that is changed up every 4 or 5 weeks, causes muscle confusion and keeps your body burning more calories for around 38 hours after the workout. Also keep in mind that muscle tissue is extremely active and burns 5 or 6 times more calories than fat when your body is at rest (a pound of muscle burns 10-20 calories a day).

Cardio is excellent if you're training for an activity that requires physical endurance, but it is not the best solution for fat loss. Stick to strength training and high intensity interval training (HIIT) to burn the most fat in the shortest amount of time. Then when you need to shed those last couple of pounds and get totally shredded, feel free to hop on the stationary bike and pedal to your heart's content!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

More Energy for Hectic Days

Okay... so who hasn’t been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Well, regardless of whether you agree with the statement or not, there is one thing that everyone seems to agree with: A healthy breakfast is certainly a good thing. Of course, there’s also another statement that many people will agree with: Eating a healthy breakfast can be difficult with the fast pace of life today!

With that in mind, here are two suggestions for ensuring that you get a decent breakfast, even when you’re on-the-run!

1. Prepare something the night before. Most of us underestimate the time we’ll have available in the morning, so take breakfast out of the equation by preparing something the night before. Throw some nuts, raisins and sunflower seeds into a plastic bag for an inexpensive, homemade trail mix. Likewise, you could throw some granola or other healthy dry cereal into a plastic bag to munch on during your commute. Or what about some low-fat cheese slices and some whole wheat crackers? Or pre-peel an orange, slice an apple or pear, or clean some grapes and have them bagged and ready to grab on your way out the door.

2. Focus on the right foods, not on breakfast foods. Cereal and oatmeal are fine, but you don’t have to limit yourself to traditional breakfast fare. The key is to shoot for the right types of foods. Go light on the sugar to avoid a ‘crash’ later in the morning. Focus on fiber by going for complex carbs, not highly processed white flour foods. Try to add in some protein for more sustainable energy. And if you can, include some healthy fats for added brain performance (throw some almonds or walnuts in with your trail mix, or have some omega-3-enriched hard-boiled eggs on hand).

Regardless of whether or not you think that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, the fact is that it is important... so don’t skip it. Prepare something the night before and make sure you’re eating the right types of foods, and you should have more energy to get you through your hectic day!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Health and Fitness Myth Busters: Toning Up

The Myth: If you want nice muscle tone, you need to use lighter weights and higher repetitions (more sets might help as well).

The Reality: The theory sounds good: lighter weights and higher reps will give you a lean, supple, musculature; while heaving around heavy weights with fewer reps will bulk you up and make you muscle-bound. Apparently the belief is that this style of workout will burn more fat, leaving you with a sleek, athletic physique.

The fact of the matter is that this style of workout is not a magic bullet to solve your fat loss dilemmas. And light weights with higher reps certainly won't "tone" your body unless you also manage to create a calorie deficit and lose the right amount of body fat. Workout all you want, but don't expect to see those muscles until that layer of fat is gone!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Health and Fitness Myth Busters: Spot Reduction

The Myth: You can burn fat from around your belly, hips, thighs, (fill-in a specific body region) by doing certain targeted exercises.

The Reality: Factors such as genetics, hormones, and age are what determines where we store body fat. Because of this, we tend to lose fat in the reverse order from which we put it on. For example, I put on fat around the middle first, then around my arms and chest, and then my face and backside. When I started losing weight, my face and rear were the first places that thinned, followed by my arms and chest, and... well... you get the picture.

Doing intense, focused abdominal workouts might give you six-pack abs, but if your body stores fat around your belly, your six-pack may be hidden from view. And although there is (allegedly) a recent study that shows a slight thermogenic effect in the immediate vicinity of a working muscle, it’s doubtful that it makes a difference (and frankly I couldn’t find the study “cited” by another author).

As disappointing as this might be for some people, keep in mind that now you’re free to avoid endless crunches or leg lifts and start focusing on full-body strength training that will help you in a number of ways (see 3 Good Reasons for Strength Training and 3 More Good Reasons...).

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon T Jubar

7 Snacks for 7 Hours of Sleep

Getting a good 7 or 8 hours of sleep each night is one of the best (and cheapest) ways to lose weight. But with all the stresses that many of us face today, getting a “good” night’s sleep is becoming more and more difficult.

In looking through my personal notes, I came across the following list of foods that make a good night-time snack. For various reasons, snacking on these foods (don’t eat more than 200 calories) won’t tax your digestive system and will help you relax, calm your racing thoughts, and in some cases even provide serotonin and melatonin, two hormones that help us sleep.

1. Warm milk – contains some tryptophan, which also acts as a gentle sedative (and it appears that the calcium helps the brain use the tryptophan).
2. Chamomile tea – acts as a gentle sedative, great for calming the mind.
3. Honey – causes the brain to stop releasing orexin, which is a neurotransmitter linked to alertness (don’t over-do it though, because too much honey has a stimulating effect).
4. Banana – releases serotonin and melatonin; also acts as a natural muscle relaxant.
5. Oatmeal – provides melatonin, and it’s filling without loading you up with too many calories.
6. Almonds – contain tryptophan and also act as a natural muscle relaxant.

Turkey on Whole-wheat bread – the carbs in the bread cause your body to release insulin, which then helps the tryptophan in the turkey get to your brain, where it’s converted to serotonin and thus encourages sleep.

Generally speaking, you can mix and match items from this list, just try to keep it below 200 calories total and you won’t experience the typical negative effects of eating late in the evening.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Have More Than 2 Modes of Operation

One trait displayed by some of the most successful managers I’ve worked with over the years is that they have more than 2 modes of operation -- they have a variety of moods, demeanors, and feelings. Some of the worst managers I’ve worked with, on the other hand, have had 2 modes of operation (or only one).

Let me explain with a story that happened several years ago...

I had been working as a supervisor on the factory floor for a number of months, in one of the worst areas in the plant. One night, production had ground to a halt and everyone was upset. The details aren’t important. What’s important is that all of my employees were gathered around me, most of them yelling. The Union Committeeman, the Alternate Committeeman, and two Shop Committeemen were also there, most of them yelling as well.

After a few minutes of trying to get people calmed down and back on the job, I finally lost it. And I mean lost it! I don’t remember what I said, but it wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t polite, and on a scale of 1 to 10 my volume was at least an 11. In less than a minute, the production cell was up and running full speed and the Union reps were telling me that they’d stop and chat with me later.

Why did everyone scatter when I started yelling? Was it because they were intimidated by me? No. It was because only a couple of them had ever heard me swear, and none of them had ever heard me yell. It took them absolutely off guard and they knew that they had pushed me too far. They understood that their concerns of the moment did not outweigh my anger with them, and they quickly returned to work.

Roger, on the other hand, yelled all the time. Roger had been a foreman for 30 years and he had exactly 2 modes of operation: he was either laughing or yelling. There were no in-betweens. Unfortunately, because of this, his people never knew when Roger was truly mad and when he was just being Roger. Over the years, they learned to just treat him the same regardless of whether he was laughing or yelling, and that often made it really hard for Roger to get the job done.

Now I’m not perfect -- far from it -- but I’ve tried to take on some of the traits that I’ve seen in people who are truly thriving, and being generally level-headed while still exhibiting a full range of (appropriate) emotions is one of those traits. It allows you to incrementally increase your intensity when dealing with people, which allows them to react more appropriately to your requests (or demands, as the case may be). It may take some practice to know what is and what isn’t “appropriate”, but the key thing to remember is that you need to have more than 2 modes of operation!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Can't Buy Happiness

Unhappy and unsatisfied people pay self-help gurus millions of dollars each year in the hopes of becoming wealthy. They don’t pay all that money to become happy and satisfied with their lives. They throw good money after bad in hopes of getting rich and living “the good life”. What makes it such a sad situation is that most of them fail, and none of them really need to do it!

Regardless of how it’s packaged – and I’ll admit it’s packaged attractively – the solution that is usually offered really comes down to making internal changes. It almost always comes down to changing the way we think and feel about our situation, about events that occur, and about the people with whom we interact.

It sounds simple, but it’s certainly not easy, which is why we spend millions and millions of dollars each year to learn how to do it. What I find disheartening is that where we really should be starting is at a local place of worship. When we talk about changing thoughts, feelings, and beliefs, we’re talking the language of faith and spirituality. And the basic help that we need on such a journey is available for FREE!

Sure, you can donate all you want, but most places of worship aren’t going to charge you a membership fee or monthly dues. They’re also not going to lace every sermon with barely veiled plugs for their latest audio program, ebook, or success symposium. Most worship communities don’t list “profit” as their number one goal. In fact, most worship communities only focus on donations so that they can afford the resources necessary to share their message with as many people as possible.

If you find yourself feeling unhappy or unsatisfied, don’t drop $49 on yet another audio program to listen to in your car. Instead, take a trip to your local place of worship, whether it is a church, synagogue, or temple, and get involved. Attend worship services, but also find out about prayer groups or various ministries, and become active in the faith community. That will take you much further along your journey to happiness than any product you get from a self-help guru. You’ve heard it before, but it’s worth saying again: you can’t buy happiness!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Grapefruit Diet? Not quite!

Okay, so that ridiculous grapefruit diet was just that... ridiculous. That doesn’t mean you should completely write-off this wonderful citrus fruit! Grapefruit is actually a whole-body food that is great for you in plenty of ways. Many people don’t realize that grapefruit can protect your skin, improve your breathing, and it really does help you lose weight (though not in the way prescribed by the infamous Grapefruit Diet).

Grapefruit, like other citrus fruits, has high levels of d-limonene in the zest of its peel. D-limonene is a compound that appears to help suppress skin-cancer cells. But don’t worry. In order to get these healthful benefits, you don’t have to eat the grapefruit peel and all. What you can do instead is grate a bit of grapefruit peel over salads or grilled fish. Likewise, you can add some of the zest to hot tea or water.

Another added benefit is that grapefruit is loaded with vitamin C. This top-notch antioxidant may lessen the breathless, gasping symptoms of adult asthma. (Obviously grapefruit will not replace other asthma medications you may be taking, though it may bring some relief, along with great taste and a wonderful smell!)

Okay. Those are some nice benefits of eating grapefruit -- but is that really so incredible? No, not really; but I’ve got one more thing to share with you. For years, many doctors, nutritionists, dieticians, and fitness professionals have slammed on the Grapefruit Diet. Heck... Weird Al even wrote a song about it! But here’s the big shocker: some very well-respected scientific muckity-mucks did a study and found that when a person began each meal with half a grapefruit (or even a glass of grapefruit juice), he or she lost about half a pound a week. Big deal, you say? Well, consider this: the people in the study lost that half a pound without dieting! Nor did they spend extra hours in the gym or doing cardio or blasting through high intensity intervals. In fact, they didn’t do anything differently except eat a boatload of grapefruit.

Now, before you click away in disbelief, let me explain that there is a seemingly valid scientific explanation for the weight loss. Apparently grapefruit contains specific compounds that lower insulin levels in most people, which tends to promote weight loss. And lest you think that the results are scoff-worthy, consider this: Eat about a dozen grapefruit a week, don’t change anything else that you’re doing, and you could weigh 26 pounds less next year!

Somehow I think you’ll be sick of grapefruit long before that happens, but you’re welcome to try! My advice is that you get active, eat unprocessed foods (including plenty of grapefruit and other fruits), get plenty of rest, and drink water by the gallon. Oh... and keep reading the TrainingTheTemple blog for plenty of inspiration, hints and tips along the way!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon

Treat Everyone with Respect

Dealing with difficult people is the subject of countless tomes and many experts have spent years and careers studying the intricacies of interpersonal relationships. Yet even with all the tips, tricks and tactics made available by self-help gurus today, the fact is that it doesn’t always have to be that complicated.

I spent a number of years as a first-line supervisor on the factory floor. One of the last assignments I had was as the foreman of an engine cradle welding area. It was incredibly hot, extremely noisy, and widely considered to be the least desirable place to work in the entire plant. I suppose it’s not surprising that I had many discipline problems and the departmental attendance rate was atrocious when I first took over the area.

I had the 2nd shift crew and we were working from 3pm to 3am, Monday through Friday, 10 hours on Saturday, and 8 hours on Sunday. Our wallets were full from months of overtime, but nerves were frayed, tempers were short, and exhaustion was absolutely rampant. It’s no wonder that one of my guys took an extended lunch break one evening.

Unfortunately, that extended lunch break -- he came back to his station 90 minutes late -- caused my to shut-down half the cell because I had no extra people and his was a bottleneck operation. I placed him on notice of possible discipline, he called for his Union rep, and the three of us sat down for a chat.

I checked with our Labor Relations rep and found that the employee already had two penalties on his record, which meant that he would lose pay for the balance of his shift and one day if I penalized him that night. Well, after going through a thorough fact-finding interview with the employee and his Union rep, I did just that. I wrote the penalty and accompanied the employee to the gate. Before he walked out, he shook my hand, apologized, thanked me, and left the building.

The Union rep was looking at me like I was some sort of freak of nature (imagine the cartoon character with the bulging eyes and his jaw hanging down to the floor). He looked at me and said, “He shook your hand. He thanked you! In 35 years, I’ve never seen anything like that!”

I looked at him and said, “He was wrong and he knew it. I was fair with him. And I treated him with respect.”

And that’s exactly what happened. I wasn’t rude. I didn’t yell. I didn’t try to make him feel bad or guilty. I wasn’t sarcastic. I didn’t talk down to him. I treated him like a human being and gave him the respect he deserved because of that humanity. And you know what? He didn’t file a grievance against the penalty and I never had any problems with him again.

There are countless books and articles available on how to deal with all sorts of people more effectively. In my opinion, one of the best places to start is by simply believing that people deserve respect and then treating them that way.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

3 MORE Good Reasons for Strength Training

In a previous post I shared 3 good reasons for strength training, but I know a lot of people who swear by their treadmills and elliptical machines and are afraid that pushing some iron will turn them into muscle-bound, uni-ab meatheads. So with that in mind, I’ve decided to offer up three more good reasons for strength training:


Strength Training Improves Muscle Control, Coordination, and Balance. Nobody wants to be a klutz, and strength training goes a long way toward accomplishing that goal. Especially when you focus on compound exercises that call upon many different muscles and muscle groups, your muscles get stronger AND learn how to work together better. Your muscle control will improve, which in turn will help your over-all coordination and balance.

Strength Training Protects Your Joints from Injuries. As we get older, our tendons and ligaments (connective tissue) gets weaker and less flexible, which is often a contributing factor in joint pain we experience. Strength training increases muscle strength and improves the strength and flexibility of your connective tissue, which in turn helps protect your joints from harm.

Strength Training Helps Strengthen Bones. Let’s face it: none of us is getting any younger, and studies show that our bones lose mass and can become more brittle as we age. Studies also show that strength training not only strengthens muscles, but also strengthens bones. Exercising with weights helps your body to conserve its existing bone mass and stimulates new bone growth.

And finally, one “bonus” reason for strength training is that it increases your self-confidence and self-esteem. As you lose body fat, increase strength and stamina, and your body really begins to feel stronger and healthier, your confidence will increase and you’ll feel better about yourself.

What’s really great is that you don’t need an exclusive gym membership or expensive home equipment. I do strength training at least three days a week using body weight exercises, a stability ball, a few dumbbells, and a simple weight bench. (Check CraigsList for local deals on a weight bench.) You’re never too old to begin, and you don’t need to do anything overly complicated. Stay tuned for future posts where I’ll offer up some free sample workouts that you can do at home with minimal equipment!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon T Jubar

3 Good Reasons for Strength Training

The three best reasons for strength training are to have (1) huge, bulging muscles, (2) large, visible veins, and (3) no neck.

Wait, wait... I’m just kidding! Unfortunately, when we talk about strength training, that’s exactly what most people imagine. Luckily, that’s not really what happens when you add strength training to your weekly exercise routine.

Another common misconception is that lifting weights is only for bodybuilders, athletes, and other meatheads. The reality, though, is much different. Strength training can be beneficial for anyone, no matter their age or gender. It is a great way to help you reach almost any of your fitness goals, and here are three reasons why:

Strength Training Helps You Lose Fat. Two cars are idling at an intersection. One has a big V-8 engine and the other has a little 4-cylinder. Sitting still, which burns more gas? The same is true with your body. A pound of muscle burns 10 to 20 calories more than a pound of fat. Ergo, the more muscle you’re sporting, the more calories you'll burn throughout the day. (Remember that muscle is dense, so a pound of muscle doesn’t take up anywhere near as much space as a pound of fat!)

Strength Training Helps Burn Calories. Muscle burns more calories than fat while in a resting state, and muscle also burns more calories during a workout. Additionally, strength training will cause the muscle tissue to continue to burn more calories up to 38 hours after the workout session. (With long, steady cardio, your body settles back into its resting state almost immediately following a workout.)

Strength Training Helps Improve Strength and Stamina. Given a proper strength training program, your muscles will become significantly stronger and will be able to endure more work for longer periods of time. This increase in strength and stamina will make it much easier for you to handle your everyday activities, and not just those activities related to exercise. (Regular strength training actually increases your energy level, which is closely related to strength and stamina.)

If you’re not incorporating strength training into your weekly exercise plan, then please consider doing so. And stay tuned for future posts where I’ll offer up sample workouts and other ways to make strength training an integral part of reaching your health and fitness goals!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Valentine’s Day the Single Way

It’s almost upon us! The second largest greeting card day of the year. That day when lovers express their love for each other by spending money on boxes of chocolate, heart-shaped everythings, and over-priced baubles. Cupid has packed his quiver to the bursting point and will be breaking flight speed records trying to skewer people the world over!

Ahhhh. It’s a good day to have a “significant other”! But what if you don’t? What if you’re happily single? Heck... what if you’re unhappily single? What in the world is a single person supposed to do on Valentine’s Day?

Have no fear, the idea man is here with four ways that single people can have a very fine Valentine’s Day.

Idea 1: Treat yourself to two nice meals for the price of one. Quite often, lesser-known local restaurants will offer 2-for-1 entrées on Valentine’s Day in order to draw in new customers. Make a reservation, show up with a rose, order two entrées, and then pretend like you’ve been stood up. Enjoy one of your delicious entrées and take the other home for dinner the next day!

Idea 2: Treat yourself to a movie on the big screen. It’s amazing how many couples go to see movies on Valentine’s Day. What’s the point? They can’t talk during the show, so they just sit there and quietly watch the screen while the guy’s arm goes numb draped across his date’s shoulders. Go to the same movie by yourself and you’ll experience the same lack of conversation, your arm won’t be numb, and you’ll get all the popcorn for yourself!

Idea 3: Treat yourself to a box of chocolate... the day after Valentine’s Day. Save your money on Valentine’s Day by having a quiet evening at home, but then hit your local drug store on February 15th to get some great bargains for your sweet tooth!

Idea 4: Use Valentine’s Day as an excuse to tell people how much you care. Instead of eating out, going to the theater, or planning your chocolate binge, why not sit down at your computer and spend the evening letting people know that they’re special to you. Login to facebook and write on some walls or send some private messages. If you don’t use social media, then crank out some old fashioned emails. Remind old friends (or old flames) of a special time you shared. Tell your current friends how much they mean to you. Let your family know that you love them (or start mending relations if you’ve had a falling out). Make Valentine’s Day a time to share your love on a wider scale!

Being single doesn’t mean that you have to feel lonely and depressed on Valentine’s Day. And trust me – you may be single but you’re certainly not alone! There are plenty of other people in the same boat. So I’ve given you a few ideas, but I’m sure you can come up with some ideas of your own. Whatever you do, just remember to have fun with it. It’s very possible to be extremely happy spending Valentine’s Day the single way!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Do Three Important Things Each Day

During these difficult economic times, we need to be focusing more on bringing value in an efficient, focused manner. Whether an employee, an employer, or a small business owner, we need to work harder and smarter, and allocating our time wisely will go a long way towards meeting that goal.

The pareto principle, commonly known as the 80/20 rule, states that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. One of the ways we can apply this is to realize that 80% of our results will come from 20% of the tasks that we perform. Given the fact that most of us are severely time-constrained, it makes sense that we would try to tackle the 20% of tasks first.

Of course, that's easier said than done!

The first step in tackling the 20% is to really put your focus on planning ahead. If you know your job well enough, it won't take much thought for you to identify those things that are the most important to accomplish. Let me clarify that we're talking about those things that are the most important, which are not necessarily the things that are most urgent.

Sure, urgent things will need to be completed as well, but it's far too easy to get caught up in "fire fighting" and then lose track of those things that are extremely important but not yet urgent. Unfortunately, those things may eventually become urgent, causing us to lose site of other non-urgent but important tasks. It's a self-perpetuating cycle.

Luckily for us, breaking the cycle is not that difficult if we do a little planning to help us focus on the important 20% and track our results. In fact, here's what you need to do:

1. Schedule 10 minutes of thinking/planning time either at the very end or the very beginning of the day.
2. During your thinking/planning time, identify 3 tasks that are important but not urgent.
3. Keep your list of 3 tasks in front of you all day, and make sure you complete the 3 tasks.
4. During your next thinking/planning session, track your results.

If you find that you cannot complete the 3 tasks consistently and seem to frequently roll them to the next day, don't get discouraged. What you've done is clearly identify the fact that you have a problem. You're caught in a cycle of urgency. You can either put off some "urgent but not important" tasks, or you can put in some extra time specifically for completing your 3 "important but not urgent" tasks. Doing one or both of these will help you break the cycle of urgency and move you closer to bring the greatest value with the least amount of time and effort.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Recharging Ourselves Through Prayer

In Mark 1:35, we read that "Rising very early before dawn, [Jesus] left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed." The verses around this passage in Mark's Gospel call us to heal the afflicted. But in order to answer Christ's call, we must also follow his example when it comes to preparing and maintaining ourselves and our ministry.

As we see in this passage, Jesus took time to rest and pray. After healing ills and driving out demons, he slept and then went to a secluded place to pray. He rested his body and then tended to the needs of his spirit before heading out to other villages.

Regardless of our ministry -- whether we are clergy or laity, ecclesial ministers or marketplace ministers, formal educators or parents -- we need to remember that we're running a marathon, not a sprint. Ministry is a long-term endeavor, so we need to take care of our bodies and minds so that we can continue to effectively minister for as long as Jesus needs us to.

Eating right, exercising, and getting plenty of rest will help maintain or physical bodies. But we need to recharge our spiritual batteries too; and we do that through prayer. That's what Jesus did -- and not just in the Gospel verses cited above. There are many, many times throughout the Gospels when Jesus goes off to spend time with his Father. If we expect to follow his example in ministry, we need to do that as well.

One final thing we should consider is that, when Jesus was done with his prayer, he didn't go back to the same village. In Mark 1:38-39, we read: "He told them, 'Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come.' So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee."

The important point is that Jesus went out to new villages, healing and bringing hope wherever he went. In this way, he helped spread the Good News throughout Galilee. Likewise, the apostles headed out into the world, often going from place to place, delivering Christ's message to people everywhere.

We need to do the same thing. We need to expand our ministry horizon. Parents should not only teach and nurture their own children, but their children's friends as well. Teachers should not simply teach at school, but everywhere the opportunity presents itself. Clergy should not only tend to the people of their parishes, but any who need their help. Lay men and women should not only discuss Christian principles and ideals at church on Sunday, but in the workplace, at the gym or out with friends.

As Christians, we are called to help alleviate the pain and suffering inherent in the human condition, and to help bring Christ's message of hope to the world. But in order to do effectively deliver the message, we must take care of our physical and spiritual needs. If we do that, we'll be much more able to sow the seeds of the Good News everywhere we go.

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Pick-Me-Ups that don’t Pack-It-On

In spite of what the candy bar manufacturers would have you believe, a sugar-packed candy snack is not the best way to get past a mid-afternoon energy slump. Likewise, firing up the coffee maker again is not the best choice (even though coffee may not be the evil drink that many people would have you believe).

So when your eyelids are weighing heavy in the afternoon and you’re struggling to stay awake while the boss drones on and on, here are three things you can try in order to keep you going for a few more hours!

1. Drink water and walk around. Especially if you’ve been chugging java in the morning, your feelings of fatigue may actually be dehydration. Drink some water and then take a walk to get your blood flowing better. After your walk, drink some more water and continue to sip for the rest of the afternoon. This is a no-calorie tip that will actually help you burn more calories throughout your day.

2. Fresh fruit, tempered with protein and fat. Instead of grabbing a candy bar, get an energy zap from a high fructose fruit such as watermelon. You’ll get your sugar rush, but also a dose of fiber and a shot of vitamins (A and C), all for about 100 calories for 2 cups of fruit! Throw in some protein and a little fat (low fat string cheese, seeds, or nuts) and the sugar will metabolize slower and make the energy boost last longer. Keep it to 1 cup of fruit and 1/4 cup of nuts (or one serving of cheese) and you’ll keep it around 200 calories for this excellent pick-me-up.

3. Ye’ old PB&J on whole wheat bread. Much like the fresh fruit with protein and fat described above, this old childhood favorite packs quite a wallop because of its wonderful combination of carbs, protein, and good fats. And if you only make a one-slice sandwich, then you should come in at about 200 calories.

So when you’re eyelids are droopin’ and you don’t know how you’re going to make it through the rest of the day, try one of these 3 tips to get a pick-me-up that’s not a pack-it-on!

Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Flex Those Prayer Muscles

When we say the word "prayer", images of darkened rooms, flickering candles, and quiet reflection usually pop into most peoples' minds. But prayer is about communication with God, and communication can take many forms. For some people, quieting the ruckus in their minds is much more easily accomplished not through stillness, but through motion.

For thousands of years, many Asian cultures have practiced meditation in motion. One such art is Tai Chi. Though a martial art, it is also an excellent way to quiet the mind, center the body, and open your heart to the Lord. The flowing sequences of memorized movements allows one to expend nervous energy and anxiety, and the repetition acts like white noise, helping block out the thoughts that can interfere with prayer.

Likewise, regular exercise can be used in this fashion. Putting your body through its paces of familiar exercises can help raise your overall energy, improve your focus, and make it far easier to listen for what the Lord has to say. It's as if the exertion of one's physical being occupies the body so completely that the mind is left to other things.

Spirituality & Prayer Tip #1: Whatever form of exercise you choose, whether it be weight-training, running, martial arts or anything in between, it can be combined with prayer to create a good spiritual workout as well. Exercising the body and the soul -- the ultimate in cross training!

Train hard but pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Do You REALLY Listen?

"Oh. Yeah. Uh-huh." (I can't believe the boss wants that report by 8am...) "Really? Wow." (I really need to write a blog post about these ridiculous talking heads on TV...) "What? Yes, of course I'm listening!"

Have you ever had a conversation like that? You know the kind... when someone is talking to you but it seems like your mind wants to focus on everything except what the person is saying to you. Perhaps you start out okay, but then they'll say something that makes you remember a story on the news, which gets you thinking about the news in general and how you can't stand that new obnoxious little weather guy and... you've completely missed what the other person was saying to you!

These are incredibly interesting times we're living in. Technology has absolutely exploded in recent years and we have truly entered the "information age". I mean, when my mom tells me to "Google it" and my 11-year-old son asks if he can set-up a Facebook profile, I'd have to say that the Internet has finally become ubiquitous. Of course, with all of this information literally at our fingertips, it's easy to become overloaded and unfocused.

At least in the US, we tend to have a tradition of poor listening. Oh, we can 'hear' just fine, but we generally have trouble truly listening to the ideas of others. We listen long enough to jump to a conclusion about what you're saying, and then we turn our brainpower towards planning our response so we're ready once you finally stop to take a breath.

Now if all you do is spend time debating with people, this may work out just fine for you. However, if you're at all interested in building friendships and maintaining relationships with loved ones, then you must practice your listening skills.

Active/Reflective Listening is something that I was trained to do a long time ago, and what it basically boils down to is that you ensure comprehension by reflecting back what you've just heard the other person say... and mean. For example, if your spouse is going on and on about how terrible the boss was and how bad traffic was and how rotten lunch was, then you might respond by saying, "Wow! Between your boss, your commute, and a cold hamburger, it sounds like you've had a horrible day!"

Of course, that's a relatively easy example. Oftentimes the meaning behind what a person is saying can be significantly different than their actual words. Whether intentional or not, it's fairly common for people to veil their true feelings, especially if they haven't really dealt with those feelings. When that's the case, active/reflective listening takes a much greater effort.

Unfortunately I don't have time to do a thorough training treatise about active/reflective listening right now, and (luckily) that's not the point of this post. The point of this post is that when we do more than nod and say "uh-huh" when someone is talking to us -- when we try to be more actively engaged in what they're telling us -- the more likely it is that we'll be able to stay focused, block out the "noise" from other thoughts, and show the other person that we really do care.

Family & Relationships Tip #1: Really listen to people when they talk to you. Become actively involved in the conversation and ensure your understanding by reflecting their ideas back to them, but in your own words. Don't let your mind wander and don't be thinking about what you're going to say next. Place all of your attention with the person to whom you are speaking.

Family & Relationships Bonus: If you're really good, you'll not only listen and reflect back, but you'll start to ask open-ended questions as well. These questions should not be "leading" questions that guide the conversation, nor should they be "yes/no" questions. Try to ask questions that encourage the person to share more information with you. It can be something as simple as asking, "Can you tell me a little more about that?"

Train hard but pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Keep a Spending Log

In these difficult economic times, it can be very hard to remain positive or optimistic... if we're focused on the wrong things. Let's face it: when times are good, many of us get focused on "stuff". We mortgage bigger houses. We buy nice furniture on credit (0% and no payments for a year). We splurge on that 52" HD TV. We take the family out for a nice meal once or twice a week. We... well... you get the picture.

I'll admit that I was in the same boat. Of course, much of my predicament happened because my job moved south of the border so I had to move from Michigan to El Paso, Texas -- and ended up with a huge mortgage (to get the type of house my family needs) and a cottage in Michigan that we can't unload for anything! But I digress.

The point is, when times were good we tended to be focused on acquiring more "stuff". Unfortunately, most of us did the acquiring through the use of credit. Now we find ourselves with limited options because our bills exactly match our paychecks. There is no money left at the end of the month. In fact, there is often more month left at the end of the money! For all intents and purposes, we've become serfs, indebted so much to the banks and lending institutions that we can't leave the fiefdom.

Career and Personal Finance is one of the Triple-T Key Components because it's absolutely critical to our overall freedom. If every cent I make is needed in order to pay my bills, do I have the option of changing careers? Not unless I can move to a better paying job in a different field, and that's rarely possible. When I'm a slave to my paycheck, my options become few.

But all is not lost. As overwhelming as it may seem, I can still get things under control, and the first step is to understand exactly where all my money is going. Just as the first step towards losing weight is to keep a food log, the first step towards taking back control of your finances is to keep a spending log. What I did was put a little notepad and pen in my pocket and carried it with me wherever I went. In that notepad I jotted down everything I spent money on, whether it was a coffee in the morning, a salad for lunch, or a pack of gum from a vending machine. Once I really started noting where every penny was going, I was amazed at how much money I frittered away on a weekly basis.

After reviewing my spending results I was able to make some quick changes that have had an immediate bottom line impact. For example, by setting up the coffee maker the night before, I had hot coffee ready in the morning and didn't have to stop at the Circle-K on my way to work, which immediately saved me almost $8 a week! That's about $400 a year, just by changing my routine a bit. And don't get me started on lunches! Wow, can you save some money there!

Career & Personal Finance Tip #1: Keep a spending log and track every penny you spend for at least a month. Using that info, start making changes that reduce or eliminate your discretionary spending.

Career & Personal Finance Bonus: Be on the lookout for convenience spending, such as my morning coffee purchase. When we have more money than time, it might make sense to pay for convenience. But when we're trying to cut our spending, convenience may very well be the first thing that we need to stop buying!

Train hard but pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

Keep a Food Log

I don't get on the scale very often -- maybe once a week -- mainly because I don't believe that it's the best way to measure health & fitness. (Checking your body fat percentage? Now that's a bit better indicator!) However, "weight" is one of the measurements I've been tracking over the past few months, but I'm cautious about fluctuations our bodies have due to water retention or temporary dehydration. I mean, if a pro fighter can sweat out a dozen pounds in one day so he can qualify in a lower weight class, is it so hard to believe that our bodies can fluctuate a couple of pounds from day to day?

When I need to put a weight on my chart, which I had to do this week, I weigh myself for 3 days and take the highest of the three. I'm not sure why I don't go with the average. I guess it's just to make it more of a challenge.

Whatever the case, I weighed myself over the last three days and here are the results:

Sunday: 234 lbs.
Monday: 232 lbs.
Tuesday: 235 lbs.

So I noted on my chart that I now weigh 235 pounds, which means I've lost 23 pounds since the end of August.

Now I know that might not seem like a lot given the claims of all the fad diets these days. "Lose 30 pounds in 30 days!" Sounds great, but most of them basically suck. The truth is, a lot of people lose weight on those diets because the food selections are so limited that they end up restricting calories because they have no more appetite for the few things they can eat!

"Eat all the protein and fat that you want!" Sounds great, but what am I supposed to do with this stick of butter and a pound of bacon? And what about this cup of lard? Oh yeah... I forgot... I can dip my pork rinds in it.

Over the next few months, as I continue my journey to better health, I'll take the time to share what I'm doing with you. It's not overly complicated, but it is too much to share in a single post.

However, here is the first thing you should do (it's the very first thing that I did):

Start keeping track of everything that you eat and drink, every day.

I began by jotting everything down in a little notebook. Eventually I opened a free account at FitDay.com and started tracking everything online.

I'll be very honest with you: this was an absolute pain when I started, and sometimes I still have to make myself do it. BUT it's worth every second of time that it takes!

If you struggle with your weight like I did, you will probably be absolutely amazed at the amount of food that you eat! And don't, don't, don't just guess at quantities. Get yourself a little kitchen scale and really weigh that chicken breast or those fish fillets. Eventually you'll get better at more accurately eye-balling quantities, but make sure those eyeballs are wide open first!

Health & Fitness Tip #1: Keep a food log and use a kitchen scale to measure quantities.

Health & Fitness Bonus: When tracking your weight over a period of time, weigh yourself for 3 days in a row and record the average weight (or the highest weight, like I do). And whatever you do, don't weigh yourself every day. Fluctuations in water weight can be demoralizing when they're actually quite healthy and normal.

Train hard but pray harder,
Brandon Jubar

The thousand mile journey...

...begins with but a step. It's something I first heard a long time ago, and I've come across it in some form or another many, many times since then. It's a wonderful message and it's extremely appropriate for my first post on the TrainingTheTemple blog.

But first, let me tell you a little story about how this all came to be...

I've been involved in ministry since 1985, when I was fresh out of high school. Much of what I have done is in the area of youth ministry, but I have given workshops and seminars for both teens and adults and have been extremely active in my parish and in our diocese. Aside from that, I also have a vibrant, growing eMinistry. In short, when it comes to ministry, I have years of experience in many areas from which to call upon. And that is the first piece of the puzzle.

I earned my Bachelor in Communications from the University of Michigan, and then completed a 2-year Paralegal program at Oakland University. I decided against Law School though, and went on to earn my Master of Science in Administration from Central Michigan University. Believing I should learn a foreign language, I then took a few semesters of German. Unfortunately they canceled it as a major and I never did get that second Bachelor degree. I did, however, earn a second graduate degree by completing my Master in Pastoral Studies from Loyola University. To sum it up, I am a lifelong learner and perpetual student, and I will continue to learn everything I can about the things that fascinate me. And that is the second piece of the puzzle.

I was a high school athlete with multiple varsity awards, a trophy-winning distance runner, and a black belt in Karate. Once I entered college, I became even more focused on exercise and fitness; and I continued to read many, many books on health, diet, exercise, and fitness during the years following college. Being the perpetual learner, to this day I continue to soak up as much information as I can find on these subjects. And that is the third piece of the puzzle.

I want to help people. I enjoy helping people. In fact, my wife says my biggest fault is that I just can't say "no" to anyone! This tendency (compulsion?) also inspires me to share any knowledge that I've found to be useful in some way. I'm not much for trivia, but I definitely love to share helpful hints, tips, and ideas with anyone who cares to listen. And that is the fourth and final piece of the puzzle.

When I put all of those pieces together, I realized that I am being called to try something different. I feel called to use my knowledge, experience, gifts and talents to develop a new type of ministry -- a ministry that develops the individual so that he or she can then make an even greater difference in the world. For if there is one thing I have witnessed over the years, time and time again, it is that people who are healthier in body, mind, and spirit, are usually the ones who are better able to minister to others. By taking better care of themselves, they end up being better equipped to take care of the people around them.

That's where TrainingTheTemple comes in... and that's also the beginning of my thousand mile journey. I've spent a great deal of time developing the concepts and techniques that I'll be sharing with you over the next weeks, months, and (hopefully) years; but it is a journey! And being the perpetual learner that I am, I will continue to develop and refine things as we go. God can get it right the first time, but I'm not so vain as to think that I can.

Train hard but pray harder,
Brandon Jubar