Fat Loss – Body Transformation – Advanced Nutrition

Great Nutrition Question from a reader of the personal trainer in San Antonio blog:

Hey Boyd,

I am not bullshi**ing you when I tell you that by simply following your basic nutritional guidelines that you have posted on the blog I’ve made more progress in the last month then I have ever made following any nutritional program or diet in my life. Your food list is very broad and I like that you give many options, but I happen to be a person that prefers limited options. What are your favorite sources of foods from each header?

Samantha, Hollywood Park

Hey Samantha,

I’m very much a creature of habit as well. During contest prep, I like to think as little as possible, and to lower the risk of deviating from my regimen, I limit myself to very few foods. I still choose foods that give me the full spectrum of amino acids, vitamins and minerals.

I do want to throw out a few caveats: first and foremost, I do not enjoy eating vegetables. With that being said, they are ESSENTIAL for vitamin and mineral content and digestive health, so I make it a priority to eat them. Also, I despise chicken breast, so you will not see it on my list. I’m just not a chicken eater. Considering that, I will say that a chicken breast is typically a good serving size and it’s simple. I totally recommend it, I just personally don’t like chicken!

Sources of Protein:
-extremely high grade lean beef
-yellowfin tuna (seared ahi)
-egg whites
-Protein powder blend (I like Syntha6 by BSN)

Sources of carbohydrates:
-oatmeal
-whole grain rice
-sweet potatoes

Sources of healthy fat:
-almond butter
-avocado
-salmon
I like to get my fats in oil form for ease of measurement, so I also use flax, fish oil, and Sesamin oil.

Veggies:
If it’s green or white, I suggest you eat it.

Bonus – supplements that I recommend no matter your goal:
-Scivation Xtend (BCAA Supplement
-Scivation Sesamin
-Probiotics
-Digestive Enzymes
-Protein Blend

Sesamin has nutrient partitioning capabilities. What does this mean? It stores the protein and carbs where they need to be stored, helps you burn what you want to burn (adipose), and also has antioxidant properties.

Do a blog search on BCAA on the right side here – I cover them extensively, and recommend them to anyone who is serious about changing their bodies.

Digestive enzymes and probiotics are key for digestion. It doesn’t matter what you put into your body if you are unable to absorb it, and your body is only as healthy as your digestive system!

Thanks for the reader questions – even when I don’t mention it, typically, it is a simple reader question that gives me an idea for a specific post, so keep them coming.

Oh, quick video of me doing Stiff-Leg Dead Lifts :)

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Hey everyone,

Here’s next month’s segment from San Antonio Public Access’s Springtime65 show on hydration.

San Antonio Master Fitness Trainer Boyd Myers discusses the importance of hydration

A few things to remember about hydration:

-Hydration is a 24 hour process that cannot be accomplished in a few minutes.

-Most people do not drink enough water. An active individual should drink at least .5 to 1oz of water per pound of bodyweight.

-You should be regularly drinking water throughout the day – never guzzle, keep your drinking rate the same throughout the day

-Exercising in heat is DANGEROUS and DOES NOT yield any results whatsoever. I see a lot of people running during the hottest part of the day – that is dangerous and provides absolutely NO extra fat loss benefits.

-Caffeine and alcohol are diuretics, meaning they force excess water from the body. If you are consuming drinks with either of these ingredients, it is important to compensate by drinking more water.

-Do not confuse being bloated for being hydrated. As a matter of fact, the best way to remove excess water from the body is to consume more water. If the body senses dehydration, it will retain water.

-There are a lot of people that buy those sweat suit exercise bags. These things remove water that your body needs and do not reduce body fat. These things are a severe health risk and are completely dangerous. Yeah, I am wearing a Hefty garbage bag in the video!

-Don’t depend solely on sports drinks – in extreme situations, their electrolyte content is beneficial, but be mindful of the caloric content.

-The best drink for hydration is simple water. Of course, there are different qualities of water, each containing different pH levels and electrolytes. If you go to my blog (www.personaltrainerinsanantonio.com) and search for Water Quality, you’ll find a list of the best bottled water brands by pH and electrolyte content.

Be safe – dehydration is dangerous and results in thousands of deaths each year. Don’t become a statistic. Remember that you are only able to lose so much fat in a given time period – you are not going to expedite that by training in intense heat.

For more information on pH levels of popular brands of water, check out this link:
Water Quality – Bottled Water pH List

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

This is a portion of my monthly fitness segment on the Springtime65 Show on Public Access here in San Antonio. Sure, it is kind of humorous, but today I saw people wearing those ridiculous plastic suits while they sat in the sauna. I saw several people running in full sweats at 4pm. It’s 100 degrees out – that will KILL YOU. Sweating profusely does not lead to accelerated fat loss, it leads to dehydration and DEATH.

Enjoy the video – I’ll post the entire segment on hydration later!

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

To all of the fathers (and single mothers who play both roles), I want to take this time to wish you Happy Father’s Day. I believe that as a father, the holiday is everyday, as there is absolutely nothing that compares to being a daddy.

Peyton and I had a great breakfast together, and while he played in the pool, I was able to get a head start on the week and get a nice, intense workout in. The workout of the day was Push muscles (benching, shoulder work, triceps, etc) but I finished off with some calf work and then several sets of what I’ll call light box jumps, as it wasn’t scheduled to be a plyometric day – my entire posterior core is still on fire from a few days ago.

I was able to get a vid of me jumping on to a 36″ box (one guy was saying 42″, but this one is the one I’ve always called 36″ and I’m pretty sure I’m right) holding 25lb plates in each hand. Later this week, I’ll try to get a vid of me actually doing this with the bar on my shoulders (a jumping squat).

Nonetheless:

Sorry for the quality of the vid and my lack of energy, but this was more than 2 hours into an already intense workout in a very hot gym!

Now Peyton and I are going to get cleaned up for a nice, early dinner. I look at everyday I get to spend with him as a great day, and I’ve cherished absolutely every single day since he was born.

I hope everyone is enjoying this special day. I will be posting more workout related videos over the next few weeks as I start focusing on the insanity I like to train with!

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Hey San Antonio,

Here’s the segment that will be airing on the Springtime65 show in June on Public Access TV here in San Antonio. In this segment, I discuss what types of cardio you should do, reading food labels and the importance of leg training.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

So, curious as to where you stand performing certain exercises? Welcome to our friendly competition!

As I mention in the video, you can perform all or some of these exercises and post your numbers in the comment section of this post. Videos are always welcome, but not required.

Here are the “events”:
1 mile run:
How far can you run in 16 minutes?:
(treadmill if you want)
Pushups:
bodyweight lunges:
Males:
Squats + bodyweight:
Dead lifts + bodyweight:
Bench Press + bodyweight:

Females:
Squats + 1/2 bodyweight:
Dead lifts + 1/2 bodyweight:
Bench Press + 1/2 bodyweight:

Feel free to post your numbers now and every week to see how well you’re making progress – the goals are clear cut, so I hope this inspires some of you to make progress!

Good luck to everyone!

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

This is my client Courtney, who has been working with me for just over a year. Below is her video and then her written testimonial, neither of which I can come close to doing justice by commenting on them. Courtney, you’ve been amazing to work with and I’m so very proud of the progress you have made. You’ve been a model client from the start, and an inspiration to everyone that has watched your progress.

Please take a second to watch her video and read her amazing body transformation success story, as it is very inspiring.

Courtney’s written testimonial:
I started training with Boyd 4 weeks to the day after my third baby was born. I was almost 40% body fat with no athletic experience, and desperately wanting to be the girl I always admired in my thin, healthy friends. The first day I consulted with him, I could see in his eyes that he already saw me as that girl. He was the first person to look at me for who I could be, and all he needed to do was take my motivation and combine it with his abundant knowledge of fitness and nutrition. He knew what I didn’t, that all of my goals were achievable with a little determination and a lot of sweat.

Over a year later, I’m down to 16% body fat and I can do things I’d never dreamed of. I couldn’t do one body squat before, now I squat with 45 lb plates on each side of the bar. I couldn’t do a lunge, now I can do 60 each leg in one set. I can leg press over 300 lbs. More importantly, I can wear shorts. I can smile at myself in the mirror. I can go out in public in my workout clothes, sweaty and red-faced, because I don’t care what anyone thinks. I know who I am now. I’m that girl that Boyd saw, hidden under 40% body fat and a thick layer of insecurities.

Boyd is my trainer because he believes in his clients. His holistic approach to changing your entire life and shaping you into the person you want to be is earth-moving. He invests himself wholly into each client. I see people walk in and out of his studio, looking up to him with such admiration because of the way he makes them feel. I know that look well.

Any trainer can show you how to bench press, how to use an elliptical machine, or how to eat vegetables instead of French fries. It might even work too. I’ll take my experience with Boyd over any trainer in this world. My whole life has changed, he has completely shifted my reality, and now I’m a different person because of him. He is an expert and deserves recognition for his work, with me and everyone else he’s encountered.

Boyd, thank you. You are the greatest decision I ever made. You’ve been with me since that first, awful attempt at a body squat and I appreciate that you’ve never made me feel embarrassed or out of place at your studio. You empower me and I am lucky to have you!

-Courtney L.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Hey San Antonio,

Here’s another video of my client Julie, who has now only been performing dead lifts for one month, dead lifting 205lbs – she weighs 135lbs. She continues to become leaner and leaner, and is anything but big and bulky!

Ladies, I say it over and over – not only is weightlifting empowering, it is a vital part of the overall program to help you become leaner and more defined, and is key to obtaining that evasive “toned” look that so many desire. Cardio does have a place, but hours of it every week will not help you get to where you want to be. Ab work? Only for functionality – it will not tone your mid-section. Starvation? Only if you’re trapped on an island. My clients regularly tell me that I have them eating more than they’ve ever eaten, yet they lose more fat and their bodies get more and more lean. Stop listening to the myths of “higher reps, more cardio and starve!” (For those who are curious, we train at every rep range from 1 to 100)

Knowledge is key!

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Our Facebook Fan Page:

Hey San Antonio,

Here’s a video of my client Andy dead lifting 225 for 12 reps at 170lbs of bodyweight. The impressive thing? He couldn’t do one single solitary push up. Not even ONE. He seriously struggled with bodyweight squats when he first started! Here are some pics of him when he first started… He’s down 50lbs and more than 10″ on his abdominal circumference.

Awesome work, Andy!!!

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454

Hey San Antonio,

Here’s a quick video blog explaining my nutrient timing concepts. I know that most people have been led to believe that a calorie is a calorie, but when you’re changing your body, it is important to understand that when you eat what plays a huge role in determining what your body uses for fuel during activity, the metabolic rate and how the body uses each nutrient (protein for muscle repair, carbohydrates for glucose in the muscles, fat for essential organ function and stored fat being burned for fuel). What you eat is very important, but I can’t emphasize how important eating the right things at the right times is.

Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454