PJ's Fitness Blog

A blog about a fitter you. Come find out what is on the cutting edge of fitness science and be a part of the ongoing conversation.


Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones, But Words Can Make You Lean!

Posted by PJ Glassey in Health & Fitness, Mental programmingJul 12th, 2009 | Comments Off on Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones, But Words Can Make You Lean!

speechbubbleIt might sound crazy, but changing your vocabulary can actually make you burn more fat. It can also make you stronger and build up your body. This is due to specific effects that words have on your physiology.

Most men can think of 3-5 positive or negative emotions in 10 seconds. Most women can think of 4-7 positive or negative emotions in the same amount of time. Try it yourself. In 10 seconds, think of as many positive emotions as you can, and then in another 10 seconds think of as many negative emotions as you can.  Write them down, and you will be looking at your most common experiences in a typical day.

Expanding your emotional vocabulary will expand your experiences, and it can even help you get leaner. Every time you (more…)

High-Carb Foods Harm Your Heart

Posted by PJ Glassey in Eating Right, New ResearchJul 10th, 2009 | Comments Off on High-Carb Foods Harm Your Heart

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When researchers talk about “carbohydrates”, they really mean sugars and refined flour products like white bread. These empty-calorie foods dominate most Americans’ diets … and when consumed in excess, they cause fat gain, raise blood sugar levels, promote inflammation, and raise heart and diabetes risks.

There is already plenty of evidence that diets high in carbohydrate-laden foods like pastries, white bread, and refined-flour cereals can be detrimental to cardiac health, but in a new landmark study, research from Tel Aviv University now shows exactly how these high-carb foods raise the risk of cardiovascular disease (Shechter M et al. 2009).

The Israeli researchers divided 56 healthy volunteers into four groups and assigned them to eat one of four things: (more…)

Hello Alki X Gym!

Posted by PJ Glassey in PersonalJul 5th, 2009 | Comments Off on Hello Alki X Gym!

Alki X GymThe first few days at the Alki X Gym went well, despite the fact that there were only 8 clients left for us by the time we took over last Wedesday (down from 110 about a month ago).

New clients are joining, past Alki X Gym members are returning, and some are coming over from Belltown, so things are looking better every day. We have some great plans to repair the damage that has been done, and our new outdoor boot camp program is already breathing new life back into it as well (contact Kailyn through k@xgym.com to get in on the classes).

Evan, Joanna, Steve, Mike and Kailyn are the best trainers in the world, so I couldn’t have a better team to make this the strongest X Gym ever. I am very excited to make this succeed again with the help of such a fine group of people. It will make us closer, tighter, and even better than ever before!

My specialty is start-ups, and it looks like we have been handed one here for sure. Besides, everyone likes a comeback kid…