Simple Life, Simple Fitness

I often get caught up in discussions with people about fitness. Usually shortly after meeting someone they'll ask what I do to “work out.” Since the latest fitness craze is Crossfit people usually assume that is what I do. I've been training since I was 11 years old. I have my own style, lets call it “Dragon Style.”

Dragon Style consists of a very simple way to stay in shape for anything that life might throw at me. I don't do “cardio” type workouts although I'll throw some Tabata in from time to time or get a desire to go run stadium stairs with one of my running athletes. I find that training with weights and walking provides all the fitness I need.

Recently a friend asked me what I do to stay in shape. I told him I weight train three to four times a week. I take BCAA's before and after training and sometimes between my upper-body and lower-body sessions depending on how long it's been since I've eaten.

Here are the simple things I keep in mind on a daily basis:

Supplements:

I wake up and drink water. I then drink warm water, honey, fresh squeezed lemon and organic cinnamon. I take kelp, zinc, and pycogenol in the morning and magnesium at night before bed. Because I'm slightly allergic to eggs I take Acetyl-L-Carnitine, N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine and DMAE in the morning for brain and hormone health. Eggs would negate the need for those supplements.

If time permits I'll take L-Arginine and L-Citrulline before I train. If not, I still train.

Training:

3 to 7 times a week, usually 3 times.

1 or 2 pushing exercises superset with 1 or 2 pulling exercises for 2 to 6 sets. (I use dumbbells or kettlebells)

1 to 4 unilateral movements for legs.

I'll often jump onto and step off of an object for up to 13 singles.

Sometimes I'll throw in some Tabata and I do something I call shoulders from hell or do curls and extensions. I rarely rest even a minute between sets and I do focus on the muscles and my form.

I do one of these things daily: walk, yoga, martial arts, swim, any other activity.

Nutrition:

When I have a home I cook food, real food. Meat, vegetables and rice or organic potatoes. I eat fruit for desert and occasionally ice cream. I'll have beer a few times a week or wine. I stay away from bread, I don't eliminate it completely. When I'm living in a hotel I eat smartly. If I eat a hamburger I don't eat american cheese and I rarely order french fries. I don't drink soda or any sugary drinks to include fruit juices. I do eat fruit.

I drink mint tea and a slice of ginger after my meals to aid in digestion.

Simplicity

As you can see none of this is complicated. This is all simple and none of the supplements I take are designer supplements. They are all simple mostly consisting of minerals or amino acids. I simply live by these precepts most of the time. I'm not strictly religious about it, but I am consistently religious about it.

What do I mean? I mean that if my child is having a birthday party I'll have cake and ice cream. I will deviate, my life does not revolve around deviating, nor does my life revolve around “fitness.” As my good friend +John Davies says, “Fitness” should enhance your life, not take away from life. (I'm paraphrasing)

I'm Amazing

No I'm not. After that initial question about my “workouts” I usually try to deflect and in my most serious voice I say that I've never touched a weight. I simply take Austrian Bull Semen. You've been warned that this is an adult blog right?

From experience I know that if I talk about the truth of what I do I'll get some responses like: You must have great genetics most people need more work than that. I used to workout 5 days a week for 1.5 hours a day. A friend of mine who is a little bit bigger than you... I use xyz supplement, what do you use?

Most don't believe that fitness is simple. Our society thinks that they need designer supplements, long tedious training sessions, the latest training program. I rarely hear anyone talk about health when they consider how they look naked.

Longevity

Staying fit for a long period of time, hopefully until we die, takes consistency. That doesn't mean that we have to go to the gym Monday through Friday for an hour everyday. It does mean that we should take 20 to 60 minutes 1 to 4 times a week to strength train. It does mean we should play as much as possible during the week.

I see fitness enthusiasts train with gusto for a few months and then inevitably get injured. From a lot of young men I hear something like, I'm going to put 20 pounds on in 6 months. Then a month or so later they have a shoulder injury and they usually deal with that shoulder injury for life. The problem is that many people want to accomplish something that takes consistency like it is an order at a fast food restaurant.

Staying Injury Free requires patience and going through a process. What good does it do us to accomplish a look very quickly if we get injured and can't maintain that look in the later stages of life? If we build a house on a rock that house is more stable than being built on sand. Patience grasshopper.

Injuries happen in life, in sport and in training. We should not seek them and we should do everything we can to avoid them, but eventually we all suffer an injury. Finding out how to work around an injury without further causing damage takes time and imagination. You can hire a good coach who can help in that if you are completely lost.

Fitness should not take away from your life. Fitness should not take you away from your family unless you are a professional and plan to get paid for it. Fitness should make it easier to play with your kids or compete in your sport. Fitness should improve your blood work and keep you from disease. Fitness should enhance your life.

The above is a concept we don't seem to understand as a society. Entertainment should also enhance your life, not steal from it. Think about that in everything you do, in every relationship you have. Does xyz enhance or take away from my life.

Sometimes we associate pain with bad, sometimes we associate pleasure with good. These two concepts are not true. Many times pain is exactly what we need and will bring lasting pleasure. Many times pleasure will bring pain that lasts and takes us down a trail we will regret later in life. Action trumps all things.

Live Passionately, Live Aggressively

Matt Dragon