Back 2 The Basics... Getting Started

I can't even begin to tell you how many times I have to "go back to the fitness basics!" Getting fit and staying fit is not an easy task and requires a lot from the individual making the change. However, whatever your reasons are for making the decision to change your life; it's worth it. So, lets establish what the basics are. Well, my back to basics anyways. :-)

1. What are your goals or what are you trying to achieve?

This is sometime very hard to flesh out as most times we have many goals. Like I want to be able to run a gazillion miles but I also want a muscular body and be able to lift a ton of weight! Well... those two things may not go hand in hand at the same time so you have to pick one. Most people want to lose fat or get to a healthy weight. That can be done by running and can be assisted by lifting heavy weights. I told you this crap wasn't all easy, so you really have to figure out what your short and long time goals are.

2. What am I physically able to do?

So this one will help you with establishing your goal(s). I live on the 3rd floor of my apartment building and I would be so winded going up and down the stairs. So building my wind capacity was my first goal and I chose to do that by implementing as much cardio as I could. I started with walking, doing Zumba, using the step-mill, and then I started running. My first goal was to be able to run 1/4 of a mile without walking. Once I hit that goal I increased it to 1/2 mile, then 3/4 mile, then 1 mile, and so on. In less than a 5 months, I was running up to 10 miles without stopping!!! If I can do it, you totally can!!!

3. What bad habits can I ditch immediately?

Food is a double edged sword. You have to eat to be healthy and live, but if you struggle with weight, more times than not you probably have developed some not so helpful eating habits. What you put in you mouth can make or break your plans to truly get fit, therefore you have to  make some decisions. For example, the very first thing I did was commit to STAYING THE HELL AWAY FROM FAST FOOD! I would not purchase anything from fast food places, including water. Seems extreme but sometimes you have to be to succeed. For those who have an affinity for fast food but want to get fit; you will have to stop the fast food. Sorry, I'm not sorry! Give up what is keeping you from reaching your goals!!! THERE IS NO WAY AROUND THIS! PERIOD.

4. Increase your water intake.

Most of us do not drink enough water each day and in order for your body and organs to function at an optimum level, you have to be well hydrated. For those of you just getting started, if you drink 1/2 of your body weight of water in ounces (weight 200lbs/drink 100oz) each day, you will be fine. Those who work out hard, you need to drink more! There are so many cool apps out there to help keep up with drinking the amount of water you need each day so there is no excuse. Oh, a helpful tip... Drink from a straw, it makes it go down easier (it may be a mental trick but it worked for me).

5. Make a pact with yourself or a friend who also needs to change their lifestyle.

There are reasons that most people want to get healthy. Either the doctor has warned them of their failing health or they want to be around to see their grand-kids grow up, or they just want to look good for the summer. Whatever your reason is, make sure that it's deep enough to keep yourself in check when you are tempted to deviate from your plan. I have a ton of reasons for getting and staying fit and I think of them often because, like I said; THIS ISHT IS NOT EASY! I know that in order for me to unleash my inner Wonder Woman, I have to continue shredding fat and building muscle. A doughnut is not going to help me achieve that and I will not go into Summer 2016 without a tank top and shorts on! BAMM!!! I have now redirected by thoughts and well on my way to reaching my goals. Hold yourself accountable. Or if you have a fit partner, hold each other accountable.

6. DO NOT MISS ONE DAY OF WORKING OUT OR ENGAGING IN SOME SORT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY THAT GETS YOUR HEART RATE GOING FOR YOUR FIRST 90 DAYS!!!

You have to establish your new lifestyle and many who start making excuses as to  why they can't workout or go to the gym will fall right back into those familiar bad ass habits (eating junk, laying around, doing nothing)! For at least the first 3 months, make getting up and getting to the gym or working out part of your daily rituals. Just like getting up and showering or brushing your teeth. In fact it's just as important! After the first month or two it will start to get easier and by your 90th day, it will be a breeze. If for some reason it's not, then commit for an additional 30 days or until it is.

Well, there you have it!!! My my 6 back to basic self -help tools. Again this stuff is not easy and you may have to revisit them often, I know I do. Especially after a cheat weekend or at a time in which you fall off the fit wagon. Isht happens!!! LoL!

Here are some helpful links to get you started and to help keep you motivated:

10 step guide to getting Fit:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/vm11.htm

Beginners Health and Fitness Guide
http://liamrosen.com/fitness.html

Fitness 101: The Absolute Beginners Guide To Exercise
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/fitness-beginners-guide

IF YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS THAT WILL HELP OTHERS GET STARTED AND STAY STARTED, PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT!!! WE ARE ALL HERE TO HELP EACH OTHER!

Make Way For the Chi-Town Brawler!!!!

I have to start today off by saying, Happy Birthday to the most amazing man on earth; my dad (Samuel D. Ragin)!!!! Love you daddy!!!😘❤️😘❤️😘

Also, THANK YOU! I can't even begin to tell you about the overwhelming amount of  responses I received yesterday via text, FB messaging, phone calls, and email regarding yesterday's blog post. I thank everyone who reached out to me, shared the post, and took time to read the blog. You are all amazing and I am truly BLESSED!

BOXING. Just typing the word makes me feel some type of way. I have so many great people around me that love the sport just as much as I do. Some may love it even more (maybe but I doubt it). 

Here's a memory for you. I remember this as if it were yesterday....Back in January 2001, me and a girlfriend (Kelly Dorsey) drove from Chicago to New York to see a friend of mine named Michael Bennett make his pro boxing debut on HBO, at Madison Square Gardens. Mike ended up getting a first round knock out!!! You have no idea how excited I was. Not only did Mike get that W, his entry song, Chi-town Brawler, was written and created by another phenomenal and life long friend of mine C.O. Tha Bad Black. I was C.O.'s manager at the time (but that's a long story and another post). So, for Mike to get the win and the song to be played on HBO was a huge deal. I'm sure I cried buckets! Mike had several first round knock outs following his debut performance. He was in such great shape with the work ethic of a machine. Mike was trained by the GREAT George Hernandez of the golden dome in Garfield Park (AKA, The Broke Team).  In all actuality, this is where my affinity for boxing was solidified; at Garfield Park interacting with George Hernandez. 

You guys have no idea about Michael Bennett!!! Michael Bennett had all the cards stacked against him. You see, Michael Bennett picked up boxing while serving a 26 year prison sentence that was later reduced to 15 years. He got an education, perfected his craft, and was released after 7 years; and continued boxing. This MAN was the Amateur World Champion in 1999 and was National Champion, Golden Gloves Champion, and then went on to represent the US in the Sydney Olympics all in the year 2000! I get choked up just thinking about all that he has accomplished and how ridiculously successful his amateur career was.   

Mike had a great but short professional boxing career. He had a total of 14 fights in which he faced defeat 4 times. I haven't talked to Mike in quite some time so he has no idea of the positive impact he had on me then, nor the admiration I continue to have for him. What I do know is... after Mike's last fight in May of 2003; a loss,  he decided to discontinue his career. I was crushed, because I had faith that Mike had what it took to redeem himself and get back on top. However, I quickly came to understand that one's health and well-being is way more important than Kim's aspirations or affinity for boxing. I have nothing but respect for this sport. I have nothing but respect for all boxers who get in the ring. I have nothing but respect for boxers that know when it's time to call it quits, as it is hard to stop doing what you know, love, and in some cases what has saved your life. But most of all,  I have nothing but the utmost respect and love for my friend Michael "The Chi-town Brawler" Bennett. 

I think it's time for me to reach out to Mike. I'll keep you posted. 

2 Box or Not 2 Box.... That Is The Question???

As many of you know, I LOVE BOXING!!!! Love is actually an understatement. Boxing is really the only sport that I'm into and for many reasons (too many to outline in the post). I know a ton of really great boxers, coaches, and trainers; amateur and professional. I have trained with some great talent and I have trained some great talent. I know A LOT about the sport and I love the conditioning, drive and focus that a boxer must have to do well in the sport. Boxing is actually what sparked and hammered away most of the 130+ pounds that I've lost.

It started out with a great amateur boxer by the name of Jerome Brantley training with me daily. With a little more work, I have no doubt that Jerome would do well as a pro. Jerome and I hit the pads, sparred (and yes he would get me good), ran, jumped rope, did plyometrics and a bunch of other craziness!  When I started working out with the boxers, the weight began to fall off. He encouraged me daily and I made ridiculous progress in a VERY short period of time. 

 I have worked with other boxers as well. Joe Brantley, Jerome's brother is a beast out of Detroit. The talent and fearless mentality of this kid floors me, plus he's an all around great guy. My hope is that one day he will end up moving to Chicago, as he is also pro material. I would love to be part of his story. 

There are 2 phenomenal female boxers Meagan Maupin and Chayanne Carroll. Both have hearts of warriors, great hands, and just really good people. Chayanne is headed for nationals and I have no doubt she will be racking up those W's. Both live so far away from me now though. Chayanne is now in Florida and Meagan live 4-5 hours North of me but does come and stay the weekend with me when possible. I really love these two bad asses!!!

Then there's Dustin "The Destroyer" Pearson; another great guy. Historically a body builder, and I mean he's BIG!  He killed his opponent in the ring this past summer and I openly take a little (a lot) of credit for that. Hahahaha!!! Dustin wants to start training for more bouts in 2016 and I'll be right there to help him.

Okay so, here's the thing.... I am supposed to get in the ring this upcoming May. I really would like to do it and I never stop training so physically I CAN do it. However, when it comes to boxing it takes a team. My team, the individuals mentioned above, have busy lives or live a gazillion miles away, so I understand that they cannot dedicate the time needed to help me prepare. There are so many people that want to see me fight and I really want to, but I also know what it takes to be prepared.

Now, I could get some training from Justin and Kevon of DBB Boxing, but our schedules just don't jive. I can fly to Vegas and train with Train2Perfection's Brother Fareed and at Mayweather's but not for 6-8 weeks, which is the time one should take to prepare. Brother Fareed Samad who himself is a champion and the trainer of world champions has been supportive of me since day one. I know that all I have to do is show up in Vegas and he's got me. 

However, what I don't think yal know is that....  I seriously have some mad boxing skills yal!!! I'm confident that I would knock somebody THE HELL OUT in the first round, because I don't have time to be playing with nobody in the ring!!! OKAY, yal can STOP laughing now!!!  Maybe I'm being a little cocky? I really don't think so.  That's another one of my problems, I don't even have anyone to critique me currently. Yeah, I'm kind of disappointed but I still have some time to get a team together. February 15th is my drop dead date. If I don't have a team by then, I will not fight and will continue on my current path of transforming into the darker, sexier version of WonderWoman, which is not a bad thing because I'm totally into it. 3reFit is currently responsible for re-awaking the weight training/fitness beast within me, which has been asleep for way too long. Again, another phenomenal individual within my personal fit circle who plays a role in my journey. He's also a freaking MANIAC on the training side! I'm truly blessed. :-) 

So, the  WonderWoman transformation will be the crux of what my blog will be about this year so try and keep up. Boxing training wouldn't necessarily slow down this process but it may complicate things.  Anyhoo.... Please understand that I do not want ANY of the GREAT PEOPLE mentioned in this post to feel obligated to make anything happen for me on the boxing tip, no matter how badly you want to. This process has to fall in place naturally or it may start out great and end up not so great. I really just wanted to clear my mind and heart of this, but your thoughts are welcomed.
I love all you guys, for real! You all have touched my life in many different ways but you all mean a lot to me on so many levels.

Blog readers, fitness freaks, and boxing fanatics!!! Check out the Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages of the great things individuals mentioned within this post. They are all really great contacts to have and people to know. NETWORK!!!!  FOLLOW THEM!!!

Jerome Brantley
IG: bambambrantley
FB: Jerome "Bam Bam" Brantley

Joe Brantley
IG: j_brant313

Meagan Maupin
IG: Meagan_maupin
FB: Meagan Maupin

Chayanne Carroll
Twitter: @carrollchayanne
FB: Chayanne Carroll

FB Athlete Pg: Chayanne Carroll. Athlete
IG: chayannerose06

DBB Boxing
FB: Dream, Believe & Become Boxing Gym

Train2Perfection (Bro. Fareed)
Web: train2perfection.com
FB: Fareed Rafeeq Samad
IG: brother_fareed
Twitter: @t2p_boxing

3reFit
IG: 3reFitLife

My Twitter is @kimWWragin (Follow Me!!!)

Training Thoughts.... Plus, Leg Day Is Dead. I Killed it!

Day 4 into the new year and I'm really pleased with how things are going training wise. I have decided to break my training focus down into quarters, but I still have not fully planned it all out. However, I know for this first quarter I will be focusing on shredding fat, therefore I have already lightened my weight load and increased my reps. Some may be under the impression that lifting lighter load for more reps is easy, but they are wrong. I'd rather be lifting heavy. Anyhoo... I'm also incorporating some light cardio between reps. Either jogging in place, jumping jacks, or pretend jump rope. I also do 20 mins of cardio before lifting and 10-15 mins of cardio after my session is done. I've been following a split schedule that 3reFit created and we discussed that since my goals have changed a bit, then that split schedule may change a bit. In my brain I will be doing legs every 4 days and back every 4 days and other body part which are to be determined as I go along on other days along with a lot of cardio. So, today was leg day and in the middle of my lunge work, this really buff dude came up to me and asked if he could work in his sets, so I said yes. For those of you who are not familiar with someone "working in" it means that after you get done doing a set, they get their set in and so on. The only thing that I don't like about it is, it makes me feel rushed, and I despise feeling rushed. Anyways, it worked out okay, I guess. I just don't like the distraction or having to wait for others while they finish because when I'm ready to go, I'm ready to go. Good thing is, he didn't change the weight I had on the bar which made that go a lot smoother. Maybe it's just me, but it's kind of creepy working out with people you don't know. I mean he just sat there watching me do my lunges,  I walked the gym while he was doing his squats. LOL! It was just weird. Anyways, if you have any suggestions for me regarding my goals of shredding fat, building muscle, and keeping my running up let me know. The two seem to counter each other but I love both lifting and running. I will continue to do both as I am trying to build both simultaneously. I think I can with phenomenal results. We will see!

Starting The Year and Week Off Blessed!

Decided to blog in between sets of seated upright rows. It's not easy but I'm trying! Lol! Okay so most of you may not know that I grew up in the baptist church but converted to Islam about 15+ years ago. Well yesterday, my heart told me to call my daughter and see what time her church started but she didn't answer so I stopped by my parents house and made the decision to attend their early church service with them. I also invited my friend Jenise. Bare with me, this post is related to fitness! 

So the message in this morning's church service was "out with the old and in with the new." It hit me in a special way. You see, I have been in the habit of putting the needs of others before my own. I can't remember the last time I told someone no when I should have. Well, the message that I received today was powerful and I plan to apply it to how I have historically lived my life; for others. That's dead. I'm not saying that I will become totally selfish. That's just not me but I will make sure that I am taken care of before I take anyone else into consideration. There are exception to this but that's another post. When it comes to fitness, I have tried to drag friends and family members to the gym with me. Not because I need company, but because they need to take better care of their health. I have missed out on the gym trying to get others to come or waiting for them to show up. My point here is, do not miss out on what you are trying to do for you while trying to do for others. Your fitness (and life) comes first. Period. All others have to jump on board and keep up or get left the hell behind. Those who want your help will make sure they ask and follow through. If not, keep it moving and don't look back. Okay, my workout is being interrupted by blogging so I've gotta go! WonderWomanStatus!

Rest Day!!! On Second Thought....

I woke up this morning and declared today my rest day. Rest days are hard for me even though I know how important rest is. I think it's because less than a year ago I was so very desperate to lose weight that I took desperate measures to do so. I started starving myself and would be in the gym 7 days a week. And when I would eat, I would eat junk or bad combos of food which was counterproductive to all the gym time I was putting in. Now remind you, I knew better! In my time I've done so much and attained some great knowledge but didn't once apply it to myself. At an earlier age I was a nursing student, then a personal trainer, and I have a BA, MA,  and soon to be doctorate in clinical psychology. All of these great resources gave me access to information about health, nutrition, the psychology of behavior and I never applied any of it to myself and I knew better! So when people say "it's hard", I totally get it! 

Bare with me, I'm gonna circle back to rest day and eating and all that ishT! 

To get fit you have to change the way you utilize your resources. Food is a resource. A source of energy for your body to function and a source to fuel a workout. Currently, I am getting into the practice of eating to fuel the work I'm gonna do in the gym. If I'm going to spend 2-3 hours lifting heavy weight, then my body needs a big meal a couple hours before I do that. If I'm gonna have a light day in the gym, then my meals are going to coincide with that and I'm gonna eat just enough to fuel that type of workout! 

So....... after eating a big freaking meal this afternoon, it was decided that it would be a shame to let such a great workout meal go to waste when it can be utilized to fuel a great late afternoon BEAST session. Lol! Therefore, RIP rest day. 

By no means do I want to down play how important rest is. Your body has to have down time to repair all the damage done during workouts. So, get 1-3 rest days in a week and make sure that you are getting plenty of rest at night to aid in that same reapir. Your fitness progress is truly contingent upon it! If it were easy everyone would be doing it, and the world would be full of bad asses, but it's not! Haha! It must suck to be average! 

BTW, here's that meal I just let work for me in the gym! 

Now I'm killing a Chocolate Peanutbutter protein shake!!!

Day 1, 2016 ARM DAY!!!

Happy New Year!!! 2016 will prove to be one of the best years of my existence. I am focusing on improving my overall health, fitness, and well-being by 1000%. The first quarter of the year I will work on shredding more fat and doing some serious toning. I have so many problem areas that need work and I'm going to start focusing on those. I will likely go back to doing more cardio to assist in the process but I'll never stop lifting. The second quarter of the year my focus may change just a bit as I have accepted a boxing match in May. This is going to require training to begin in the middle or the end of the first quarter. There are many people that do not want me to take any fights at this time as it distracts from my other fitness goals but it's really something I want to do. I'll let you know if I decide to go through it or not. The third quarter I am going to evaluate where I am in transforming my body and then work to blast my goal out of the water. The last quarter will be fixing anything that I don't like. By this day in 2017 I will be were I want to be, PERIOD. I still have not come up with a visual of what I want my body to look like. I'm gonna have to piece together pics of body parts to come up with what I'm shooting for. It's really very hard for me to visualize me looking any different than I am and that may be part of my problem. I have to be able to see me the way I want me in order for me to get there. So, I think I will start with that. If I can't visualize what I want, I will never get there. Visualization is whole 'nother post that I will save for a later date. LOL! But there you have it. Arm Day today! First arm day with the legendary 3reFit so pray for me as I probably won't be able to move my arms afterwards. I do know that my arms are at the top of my list for transformation. I hate wearing tank tops because I see my arms as super flabby so I really want to transform those before the snow melts. This day starts that process. Whatever you goals are make 2016 your year to make them happen. Don't wait as it is already a slow process, don't make it longer! GO GET WHAT YOU WANT!!!