The First Step Toward Lasting Fitness
“Fitness - If it came in a bottle, everybody would have a great body.”
–
I wanted to take a few minutes today and talk about a category that I’m going to add to the Alchemist. Fitness is very important to the actor because not only are our bodies our instruments and must be cared for, but ours, sadly, is a profession based largely on looks. Actors are judged everyday based solely on our faces or body types long before anyone even sees what our talent can do. It may not be fair, but it’s the name of the game, so we’re going to have to rise to the challenge or get crushed underneath it.
I’ve struggle with my weight since I was a child. I never ate very well, my diet control was nil and I loved Coke. I still have a Coca-cola addiction, but it’s being broken as we speak. Like most Americans I spent my childhood eating mostly empty calories that tasted good going down, made me feel full but did me more harm than good. I’ve never been severely over weight, but I’ve never been the weight that could remotely be considered healthy. To this day I’m still not the picture of fitness and health, but it’s a goal toward which I’m working everyday, which is why I wanted to begin this Fitness category here. There isn’t much I can share in terms of diet and nutrition because I’m no expert by any means, but I want to help others with tips about how to begin their exercise journey. The more I work toward my weight goals, the more I’m learning about how to help myself along and I thought perhaps this information could help others who wish to do the same.
I Needed a Teacher, and You May Too
My biggest problem loosing weight over the years had more to do with my exercise habits than my diet habits. I couldn’t ever seem to get off my lazy tail and do anything. My problem lay in two main areas: 1. Establishing a habit & 2. Creating an effective routine. I realized very quickly that I needed a teacher, but couldn’t afford a gym or a trainer.
My girlfriend, Amanda, and I had decided to begin exercising together and motivating each other. So one day as we strolled through the local Dick’s Sporting Goods we came across a set of exercise DVDs. I always thought that these DVDs were hokey and more scams than anything, but Amanda had gotten some of her own and had really enjoyed them. She urged me to give them a try so I figured the only thing I had to loose was a little money, a little time and I figured that any exercise would be better than what I was already getting. The set was Billy’s BootCamp Elite by Billy Blanks, the creator of Tae Bo. The box set consisted of DVDs, a nutrition and exercise guide and rubber resistance bands.
Even after we’d gotten back home and I was examining my purchase, I couldn’t decide whether or not this was really going to do me any good. I’d never worked out in front of the television, or with rubber bands, but I just shrugged my shoulders and decided that my routine couldn’t get any less effective, so what the hell?
To My Surprise, Billy’s Boot Camp Worked
To my absolute amazement, the first work out was really invigorating. The guide in the box said I’d feel the difference right away and sure enough, I did. From day one I just felt better, more energetic (though fairly sore). I felt ridiculous the first time I stood in front of my television with rubber bands attached to my feet, but that feeling went away as sweat started pouring down my face and those rubber bands proved to be a serious work out. After that first experience, I was convinced.
Like Having a Personal Trainer
What I love about Billy Blanks’ work outs is that they’re just like having a personal trainer there with you. Billy’s really motivational and gives me the structure and the push I needed in my work out. I had spent years half-heartedly working out, never driving up my heart rate or pushing myself; these DVDs took good care of that problem right away! I feel motivated to work harder and not to stop too early and the included schedule makes creating the work out habit extremely easy.
Billy guides you nicely from the beginning of the routine to the very end, giving you an all around work out. You go through stretching, calisthenics, strength training, Tae Bo-like combat punches and kicks and abdominal exercises. There’s a DVD for a basic all-over work out, a DVD for an abdominal work out, one for cardio work outs and the final advanced work out DVD.
Try It Yourself
Realizing how much it helps me, I thought maybe there would be some readers that this might help as well. I decided when I started this site that I would never put up affiliate links unless they were products I had used and found helpful; well Billy Blanks’ has extremely helpful products. If you decide to purchase Billy’s Boot Camp from any of the links on this page I will receive a portion of the money as a commission which will go toward the upkeep and improvement of this site. I would greatly appreciate the commission, but if you aren’t comfortable with that idea, I understand. If you’d rather not purchase the Boot Camp work outs from me but would still like to try them, which I would still urge you to do, you can find them at any local sporting goods store or from the Billy Blanks official website.
The Basic set includes three DVDs, the Elite set includes four. Both sets include a nutrition guide, exercise schedule and the resistance bands, all of which are of the highest quality. If you’re like me and you have a problem establishing a routine or need a personal trainer you can afford, I urge you to purchase one of these sets; they are well worth the time and money.
Whether you buy it through me, off the official webpage, or from a sporting goods store, I highly recommend this and any of Billy Blanks’ products. I urge everyone to join me on a journey to become fit and train our instruments. I’d love to hear your success stories with these products or any tips you’ve discovered for making your work outs more effect. Feel free to share any of these with other readers as we kick off this new Fitness category on the Alchemist.
Click below to try Billy’s BootCamp for yourself and start your fitness journey:
Filed Under Articles, Personal Development, Fitness
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Do you know anyone who’s used the P90-X dvd’s I keep seeing?
I’ve been interested in those and I have weddings to go to this summer.
I haven’t, but they look intense and therefore probably pretty effective. I have heard that Beachbody is a fairly reputable company for these sorts of products as well. Having said that, I haven’t tried any of their products so I can’t speak from experience. Amanda has tried some, perhaps I’ll see if she’d like to write a review of them.
Good luck with the fitness and wedding attending, Thomas.
-Danielro