Fortunately, steroid use may eventually be a thing of the past.  That’s because medical researchers studying how the human body builds muscle and endurance are developing safe and legal substances which can increase the body’s ability to build muscle, without the health risks associated with steroids.

One of the most interesting fields of research surrounds a naturally occurring chemical compound called nitric oxide. Nitric oxide is a vasodilator, which means it helps move oxygen to the muscles when they need it most. Increased nitric oxide in the blood stream signals the blood vessel walls to relax, which allows more blood to flow to the body’s muscles, thus delivering more oxygen and nutrients throughout the body.

It’s been shown to lead to:

• Drastic Muscle Gains
• Increased Blood Flow and Oxygen Delivery
• Boosted Strength, Endurance, and Power
• Support for Your Immune System
• Immediate Results
• Total Body Transformation

While the body naturally increases nitric oxide during workouts, it’s only a limited amount and researchers have been focused on artificially increasing your nitric oxide levels.

One of the most successful products that has emerged from this research is called Force Factor.  It uses “arginines,” special amino acids specifically linked to nitric oxide production to significantly increase oxygen and nutrient flow to the muscles during workouts.  As a result, it can safely spark powerful muscle growth, muscle definition, and strength.

Force Factor is now the recognized leader in nitric oxide stimulation and legal, safe muscle and strength enhancement.  It was Bodybuilding.com’s Best New Brand of the Year (2011) and pro athletes are taking note.

3-8-

Hormones and diet make the sexes different, but women can still build muscle and gain strength. You don’t want to look like a man, but you need to become a stronger woman!

Many women make a huge mistake when they step foot in the gym. They assume that heavy weightlifting will turn them into gargantuan man-ladies. If you’re a woman, answer this: when you go into the gym, what is the typical tact you take to your workout program?

Do you first do a light warm-up on the mats? Then do you head over to the cardio machines for a good 20 or 40 minutes, thinking you’ve gotta blast that cheesecake you mashed last night? Then, do you flex with a few rounds of lightweight circuit sets? Finally, maybe you head off to the exercise mats to crunch for 10 to 20 minutes trying to lean that tummy?

If this is your patty-cake program, it’s time to change your course! The program above illustrates most women’s workout programs. They don’t want to get big and ‘bulky,’ so they gravitate toward exercises they think burn the most calories and ‘tone’ their muscles. “No bulk needed. Thank you!!

Lift, Ladies!

These women actually accomplish very little. They may burn a few hundred calories during the cardio workout, and possibly a hundred more in the circuit training, but they won’t reshape how their bodies look. A complete body transformation cannot take place when you’re pushing daisies instead of iron.

If you want that complete body transformation, to the point where your family hardly recognizes you, then you have to sit up and change, right now. Take action and start lifting heavy weights.

Q: “But won’t I get bulky?”

A:  No – and here’s why.

Female Testosterone Levels

The first reason lifting heavy weights won’t make you don tights, rip sleeves, and become the next Incredible Hulk is that you don’t have the testosterone levels to pack on tons of mass.

Men have higher testosterone levels than women; women have higher estrogen levels than men. Compare testosterone levels in a man to the amount in a woman and you find a large gap. Why? Simply put, women don’t have testicles. The lion’s share of male testosterone comes from the testes.

Women do produce the hormone, but it comes from your ovaries and adrenal glands in smaller doses. Talk to your doctor and have your testosterone levels tested, especially if you’ve had your ovaries removed, as you will produce even lower levels of the important hormone.

Testosterone is the primary muscle-building hormone in the body. Since women have significantly less of this “Heracles Hormone,” they cannot put on muscle mass as easily as men.

Even women who want to build bigger muscles and work extremely hard to bulk still build muscle mass at a fraction of the rate that men do. Stop worrying and start lifting – you won’t turn into the Hulk overnight … unless you get blasted with weaponized Gamma radiation.

Greater Muscle Definition

The next benefit to lifting heavier weights is that you’ll see greater overall muscle definition. When you lift such a light weight as most women do (really? 2-pound curls?), the muscles are barely challenged.

As a result, your muscles won’t feel any need to adapt (grow) since they can easily handle what you throw at them.

Push yourself harder and take the weight up to the next level – that’s when you see muscle definition and form improve. Provided you also follow a proper diet for fat loss, heavy weights will create the greatest change to how your body looks.

The core is composed of 4 different parts. Below I will discuss where each are located, what its function is in the body and also a couple exercise you can do to stimulate the muscle.

Abdominals:         

Rectus Abdominus:

• Location:      Covers the area from sternum all the way down to the pelvis bone.
• Function:      Pulls the upper torso to the hips
• Exercises:      Crunch or Sit Up

Oblique:

• Location:      Side of the waist.

• Internal       Obliques
• Transverse       Obliques
• External       Obliques
• Function:      Tilt and twist the torso
• Exercises:      Side      Bends and Decline      Oblique Crunches

Intercostals:

• Location:      Between the side of the rib cage. It comes into play when you flex the      torso and twist from side to side.
• Function:      Elevation and depression of the ribs
• Exercise:      Air Bike

Serratus:

• Location:      Between front abs and lats.
• Function:      Pulling of the scapula forward and around like in the motion of throwing a      punch
• Exercises:      Barbell      Pullovers and Cable Crunches

Obi, I’m ready to
rock ‘n’ roll 2012, but I need to know what foods are best-suited to help me
burn fat while also building the muscle I want. Give it up, man – what are your
top 10 choices?

Happy
New Year! Yes, soaking yourself in champagne and dancing the night away could
be a great way to ring in 2012, but I’m glad you’re thinking about your New
Year’s resolution to get fit and stay healthy.

One of the best ways to begin reaching your goals is to learn which foods do good things to your body. These 10 fat-burning foods should be included in the diet plan that will help make 2012 your best year.

1 Oatmeal

Aside
from being easy to cook, oatmeal is a great fat burner because it is rich
in insoluble and soluble fiber. Read the label on those pre-measured packets
though, most of them have lots of sugar.

Oatmeal Macros

1 cup (cooked):

• Calories: 111
• Fat: 2g
• Carbs: 19g
• Protein: 5g

2 Chicken Breast

Nope,
it’s not your momma’s fried chicken, although I’m sure that was delicious. I’m
talking about lean
chicken breast without skin or bone. It’s one of the best
fat-burning foods you can eat.

Chicken Breast Macros

In 1 breast (3 oz):

• Calories: 142
• Fat: 3.1g
• Carbs: 0g
• Protein: 26.7g

3 Egg Whites

Egg whites
are low in calories and high in protein. This equation equals energy for fat
burning and building muscles.

Egg Whites Macros
In 3 egg whites:

• Calories: 34
• Fat: 0g
• Carbs: 0g
• Protein: 7g

4 Brown Rice

Packed
with fiber and essential nutrients, brown rice slowly
absorbs in the bloodstream. You can’t go wrong with this fat-burning carbohydrate.

Brown Rice Macros

In 1/2 cup:

• Calories: 109
• Fat: 0g
• Carbs: 23g
• Protein: 2g

5 Fish Oils

Omega
3 and Omega 6 fish
oils have some incredible qualities. They increase your thermogenesis,
making you burn more calories; they have an anti-catabolic effect, which
prevents muscle breakdown; and they are anti-lipogenics, which means they
reduce fat-storage. What more reason do you need to include them in your diet
plan?

Fish Oil Macros

In 1 tablespoon:

• Calories: 113
• Fat: 12g
• Carbs: 0g
• Protein: 0g

6 Asparagus

Asparagus
contains the plant chemical asparagine, an alkaloid that directly affects cells
and breaks down fat. It also contains a chemical that helps remove waste from
the body, which in turn helps reduce fat.

Asparagus Macros

In 4 spears (cooked):

• Calories: 13
• Fat: 0g
• Carbs: 2g
• Protein: 1g

7 Almonds

Loaded
with Omega-3 fats, Almonds have been proven to increase fat-burning
properties in the human body.

Almonds Macros

In 4 spears (cooked):

• Calories: 216
• Fat: 19g
• Carbs: 8g
• Protein: 8g

8 Garlic

One
of the best components of garlic, besides its flavor, is Allicin. Allicin
is a compound that helps flush fat from the body. Garlic has also been known to
help maintain healthy blood-pressure levels.

Garlic Macros

In 1 clove:

• Calories: 4
• Fat: 0g
• Carbs: 0g
• Protein: 0g

9 Tomatoes

Tomatoes
are soldiers in the war to stay healthy! Not only are they great oxidizers and
metabolizers of body-fat, but they might also help lower blood pressure and
fight certain types of cancers.

Tomato Macros

In 1 tomato:

• Calories: 15
• Fat: 0g
• Carbs: 3g
• Protein: 0g

10 Apples

Apples
are a great fat-burning fruit, in part because they are high in fiber.
Moreover, the pectin in apples restricts fat absorption and encourages water
absorption in your body’s cells. Other great fat-burning fruits are oranges,
peaches,
grapefruits,
and other citrus fruits.

Apple Macros

In 1 apple:

• Calories: 91
• Fat: 0g
• Carbs: 24g
• Protein: 0g

Remember,
80 percent of obtaining your fitness goals comes from your diet, so pay close
attention to what you put into your body. We’ve all heard the saying, “You
are what you eat.” Eat these awesome fat-burning foods and become a
fat-burner yourself!

Training: Routine

Day 1: shoulders/heavy

Exercise

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

3 sets of 10-12 reps

Superset

Side Lateral
Raise

3 sets of 10-12 reps

Front
Dumbbell Raise

3 sets of 15 reps

Superset

Seated
Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise

3 sets of 15 reps

Standing
Dumbbell Triceps Extension

3 sets of 15 reps

Exercises

Standing
Low-Pulley Deltoid Raise

3 sets of 20 reps

Arnold
Dumbbell Press

3 sets of 15 reps

Day 2: back/calves

Exercises

Wide-Grip Lat
Pulldown

3 sets of 15 reps

Seated Cable
Rows

3 sets of 12 reps

One-Arm
Dumbbell Row

3 sets of 15 reps, per arm

Underhand
Cable Pulldowns

3 sets of 12 reps

Seated Calf
Raise

3 sets of 15-20 reps

Standing Calf
Raises

3 sets of 20 reps

Day 3: hamstrings/glutes

Superset

Lying Leg
Curls

3 sets of 15 reps

Crossover
Reverse Lunge (with dumbbell)

3 sets of 15 reps, leg

Superset

Seated Leg
Curl

3 sets of 15 reps

Dumbbell Step
Ups

3 sets of 15 reps, per leg

Superset

One-Legged
Cable Kickback

3 sets of 20 reps

Barbell Side
Split Squat

3 sets of 15 reps, per side

Exercises

Barbell
Deadlift

3 sets of 20 reps

Dumbbell
Lunges

3 sets of 15 reps, per leg

Day 4: Rest

Day 5: shoulder(light)/calves

Exercise

Dumbbell
Shoulder Press

3 sets of 10-12 reps

Superset

Side Lateral
Raise

3 sets of 10-12 reps

Front
Dumbbell Raise

3 sets of 15 reps

Superset

Seated
Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise

3 sets of 15 reps

Standing
Dumbbell Triceps Extension

3 sets of 15 reps

Exercises

Standing
Low-Pulley Deltoid Raise

3 sets of 20 reps

Arnold
Dumbbell Press

3 sets of 15 reps

Day 6: Rest

Day 7: Heavy Quads

Exercises

Leg
Extensions

5 sets of 15 reps

Leg Press

3 sets of 15 reps

Hack Squat

3 sets of 15 reps

Dumbbell
Lunges

3 sets of 20 reps, per leg

One-Legged
Cable Kickback

3 sets of 20 reps

Cardio
is 5 days a week at 30 min. I will also take a spin class 1-2 times per week.

Good Luck….

1. Arnold Schwarzenegger: Arnold Press

Target: Shoulders

Execution:
Arnold began his shoulder presses by holding a dumbbell in each hand with his
palms facing his body and the weights at shoulder height. As he pressed the
dumbbells to overhead extension, he twisted his forearms so that his palms
faced away from his body at the top of the move.

Who knew you could rotate your way to being

the greatest bodybuilder of all time?

Purpose: Arnold
claimed this was the best move for developing shoulders. “This move
creates a greater range of motion than standard dumbbell presses because it
incorporates rotation, an important function of shoulder movement that few
other moves include,” says Tom Seabourne, Ph.D. “When you raise an
object overhead, you will naturally use rotation.” Seabourne says this
move is also great for working around a shoulder injury. “Finally, this
move provides the variety needed to stimulate more muscle fibers and
growth.”

Comment:
Before he terminated or governated, Arnold supinated.

2. Steve Reeves: Pinch-grip Deadlift

Target: Legs, back and grip

Execution:
This 1950 Mr. Universe, who acted in numerous Italian muscle films, performed
this signature move to help build his Herculean physique. He put 45-pound plates
on a barbell in the reverse position so the numbers faced out. Reeves grasped
the rim of the weight plates rather than the barbell itself, bending at the
knees and hips. Driving through his lower body, and maintaining the integrity
of his lower back, he pulled the weight off the ground until he was standing.
Then he lowered the weight by bending at the waist and knees until the weights
returned to the ground.

A truly wide back needs a truly wide grip—duh!

Purpose: Reeves
claimed this version helped further widen his already wide back.

Comment:
It’s certainly hard to argue with the results that this best-of-his-era legend
achieved. Reeves is said to have been able to perform this move with 300
pounds. Grip athletes such as rock climbers can also benefit from this move.

3. Dave Draper: Curl and Press

Target: Biceps and chest

Execution:
Lie on a low incline bench (15-20 degrees – about the height of a cinder block
under one end). Hold a moderate-weight dumbbell in each hand, with your arms
extended and below the bench. Using a slow action, curl the weights up until
they’re close to your armpits. Then twist the weight and begin to press the
weight above your chest, performing an incline press. “Keep your form
meticulous and perform 10-12 reps per set,” Draper
says.

Two exercises in one—efficient AND
excruciating.

Purpose:
“This move is great for warming up, for using as a multi-body-part
stimulator — you also use your triceps and shoulders as supporting muscle
groups — or for rotator cuff conditioning,” says Draper. But he cautions
against using a heavy weight if you’re rehabbing.

Comment: “It’s
the thrusting transition from curl to press that really grabs you,” says
Draper. “At the beginning, the set is fun, but then it turns nasty.”
That’s particularly true if you maintain a slow pace of about five seconds to
perform the full rep with good form.

4. Larry Scott: Spider Curl

Target: Biceps

Execution:
Grasp an EZ curl bar in both hands, and place the backside of your upper arms
against a Spider curl bench (a vertical “preacher” bench). Press the
backside of your arms against the vertical pad. Raise the weight until it’s at
shoulder height. To complete the rep, lower the weight, feeling a nice stretch
in your biceps as you go. “Once you feel the much deeper contraction that
you get at the top of your biceps with this move, you’ll want to do it every
time you train biceps,” says Larry Scott, the first-ever Mr. Olympia.

Not so “EZ” now, is it?

Purpose:
This move targets the development of the peak of your biceps, the part many
consider most essential for showcasing impressive guns. “It also works the
inside of the biceps, while the preacher bench works the outside,” Scott
says.

Comment:
“I used to say that the only way to change the peak of your biceps was to
change your mother,” Scott says. “But I was able to improve my biceps
peak by performing spider curls.” Scott says the name of the move comes
from the first bench, which had eight legs and was designed by Vince Gironda.

5. Eugen Sandow: Screw Press (a.k.a. Bent Press)

Target: Shoulders, legs and back. This is a whole-body strongman feat.

Execution:
Stand a barbell upright (perpendicular to the ground), grasping it with one
hand near the middle. Bend down and put your shoulder under the bar as the
barbell begins to tilt to parallel to the ground above your shoulder. Place
your free arm on your free-side knee for support as you fully extend the arm
holding the barbell. Then stand up so that the barbell is held with your arm
fully extended over your head.

If you don’t like this exercise, then screw
you!

Purpose:
To impress. Still, you can use this move to enhance your own power and
strength.

Comment: This
move sounds more like tabloid journalism than a typical muscle-building
exercise. But few people get a prestigious trophy named after them — Oscar,
Emmy, and someone’s Grammy. But Eugen Sandow, who made this move famous, is on
this short list: Each year the Mr. Olympia winner is awarded a Sandow.

6. Vince Gironda: Sissy Squat

Target: Your legs, not your ass

Execution:
To perform sissy squats, take a hip-wide stance and place one hand on a support
at about hip level. Hold a weight plate against your chest with the other hand.
Bending only at the knees (keeping your body straight from knees to head) lower
your body. Your knees travel forward as your heels come off the ground, and
your upper body moves toward the floor. You’ll feel a deep stretch along the
tops of your legs. Straighten your legs, pressing your body back to the
standing position, feeling a contraction in your quads.

What? Can’t handle this squat, you sissy?

Purpose: Sissy
squats directly target the quads, helping to avoid overtraining your glutes
when you train legs. Gironda believed that all other leg moves, isolation or
compound, were superior to squats for developing legs.

Comment:
This famed gym-owner — and one of the original celebrity trainers–was an
in-your-face, “get-off-my lawn” curmudgeon. Gym members who performed
squats in his gym were threatened with expulsion. Squats were to Gironda as
psychotropic drugs are to Tom Cruise.

7. Reg Park: Double Barbell Press

Target: Chest

Execution:
Lie on a bench holding a weighted barbell in each hand near the center so that
the barbells are parallel with your palms facing one another. Maintaining control
and balance of the weights, lower them until your hands are near your armpits.
Press the weights back into place using the power of your pectorals. Maintain
strict control of the barbells; avoid letting them sway left to right or up and
down.

One barbell not enough?

Try this exercise on for size.

Purpose: This
impressive strength feat develops the pecs and, secondarily, the triceps and
shoulders. “It’s an intense stabilizer workout based on the enormous
balance challenge,” says Park’s son Jon Jon Park, a trainer. It translates
well to helping you improve strength for easier moves such as regular dumbbell
or barbell presses.

Comment: Reg
Park, the 1958 and 1965 Mr. Universe winner, was known for his
well-balanced development, his incredible strength, and for mentoring Arnold
Schwarzenegger. “My father performed this as a strength feature
at exhibitions with 150-pound barbells.” Park says. But don’t try this one
on your own. “You should have a spotter for each barbell, Park cautions.

Tip #1 Know Your Limits

Seriously, know your personal limits. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen somebody give up too early or get hurt during training or racing because they simply had no idea what their real thresholds were. The whole idea behind training and/or competing is to push your thresholds to the limits to fulfill your potential. If you don’t know what your limits are, how can you possibly know what your potential is?
How do you figure out your limits? It’s not easy, and it’s the #1 reason why people hire coaches. Experiment with training variable until you establish your comfort zone, and then systematically push out of that zone to force adaptation. If you’re competing in your comfort zone, then you’re not trying hard enough.

Tip #2 No Pain, No Gain!

You would think that this myth has been beaten to death or at least shooed from popularity, but I hear it surprisingly often from people who honestly believe that they need to kill themselves every day during training to maximize their workouts.
Don’t do that.
Is your resting heart rate jacked up today? Are you too sore from your last workout to walk? Did you only sleep a few hours the last night? Skipped breakfast and lunch? Congrats, you just earned yourself a rest day. In other words – go home. You aren’t going to get anything but an increased risk of injury by training in any one of these conditions.
Forget about fighting through the pain.
Discomfort is your body telling you that you’ve stepped well out of your comfort zone. Pain is your body telling you to knock off whatever you’re doing. If you’re an endurance athlete, listen to it.

Tip #3 The Farce Of The Low-Carb Diet For Athletes

True, monitoring carb intake is one of the best ways to play around with your weight, I don’t dispute that. I do it myself, and it can be a powerful tool for people who need to lose a significant amount of weight. But the everyman athlete has no need to go bonkers cutting out all kinds of carbs just for the sake of it, because that sort of eating behavior is not sustainable for an endurance athlete.
Atkins crazed low-carb lifestyle promoters need to buy a clue. Carbohydrates are absolutely essential to your diet, especially if you’re an athlete.
There are no such things as good carbs or bad carbs – just too much carbs! If you’re an athlete on a low carb diet, you’re basically sabotaging yourself. Good luck topping off your muscle glycogen stores by eating a protein and fat centric diet.
Put the proverbial fork in this one – this fad diet has finally bit the dust amongst athletes who know better. Next time your spin instructor starts touting the amazing low-carb lifestyle he or she leads, throw your used sweat towel at them and switch gyms.

Tip #4 Create Variety In Your Training

Any good training regimen needs to include variables that can be toggled to alter training for specific purposes. A weight lifter, for example, would take into consideration their specific exercise techniques, pounds lifted, sets per lift, reps per set, tempo per rep, rest between reps, rest between sets, emphasis between concentric, eccentric, and/or static contractions, number of sets, set order, supersetting, and so on, ad nauseum.
That’s a lot to take into consideration, and by adjusting just a few of those variables you can focus your training down to hone in on your strengths or weaknesses.
Perhaps most important though, is that creating variety in your program keeps you from getting bored with what you’re doing.
Obviously though, no matter how many variables you might switch around during, say, your bench press, if you are just plum bored with bench pressing, you’re still stuck.
So don’t be afraid to completely switch around your workouts to keep yourself entertained and sharp. If you’re an endurance runner, toss some speed work into the mix, or vice versa. If you’re a power lifter, mix in some yoga.
Adding variety is the best way to keep yourself on track without getting bored, as well as a great way to keep your body sharp by forcing it to adapt to something new.

Tip #5 Always Second Guess Yourself

That’s right; always second guess your motives, your training, your goals, and your accomplishments. Keep a running tally of where you are, where you want to be, and what you need to do to get there. Don’t kid yourself into thinking you can do this on autopilot – this needs to be a conscious effort.
Always ask why. Why am I running stairs? Why am I doing this particular exercise? Why is my 400 meter split time still not improving? Why did my trainer/coach have me do this? (If your coach can’t answer this, get a new coach.)
Why did I just eat that whole pizza?
You get the picture.

Tip #6 You Cannot Spot Check Fat

If I had a nickel for every time I heard this myth, I would be a very, very rich man.
The fact of the matter is that fat goes on to, and comes off of, your body the way it wants to, not the way you want it to. The only way around this is targeted liposuction.
A brief, fairly unscientific explanation will do for this one. You cannot work the fat off any specific area of your body because, well, you cannot work fat. People mistake that good old muscle burn for something that magically removes adipose proximally from wherever it burns. Those were your oblique abdominals being worked, not the love handles next to them.
There are only two ways to shed those lbs, and they work best in tandem; diet and exercise.
Create a reasonable caloric deficit as often as you can while eating in a manner that’s in line with your nutritional needs (a third curtain call please for the low-carbers) and get yourself into an exercise regimen that will help you maintain your lean body mass and prevent catabolism.

Tip #7 You Need To Supplement Your Diet

Because of the specific training many enduroletes employ, many supplements are basically useless, or at best, cost prohibitive for endurance athletes. It’s a much different game than, say, bodybuilding, where intensive supplementation is absolutely critical. The key is to understand the basics and use supplements that have real application for an endurance athlete.
It is quite difficult to achieve competitive success without proper supplementation. For example, you could easily replenish your carbs on an Ironman course with white bread and Fig Newtons, but you’d have to carry a backpack full of the stuff to ensure your calorie intake was adequate. It’s much easier to supplement with a carb/sodium replacement gel.
If you’re going to consider supplementing your diet, keep it simple. Think natural whey, soy, and caseinate proteins, creatine monohydrate, electrolytes, BCAAs, recovery formulas, a multivitamin etc.
But just because you take a vitamin, don’t think you can skip out on those leafy greens. Remember, the multivitamin is supposed to supplement your diet, not replace any part of it.
As a general rule of thumb, if you can’t pronounce the ingredients, don’t ingest it until you’ve done your homework to understand what it is! Take responsibility for what you put into your body.

Tip #8 Play The Mental Game, Too

The best athletes in the world train not only their bodies, but their minds, for success in their sport. Why not take a page from their playbooks and do the same?
Visualize your goals, and visualize yourself achieving those goals. Imagine the emotions you might experience during a competition, and think how you can prepare for them. Visualize possible setbacks and visualize how you’ll overcome them.
Visualize your success. Now give yourself an imaginary high-five.

Tip #9 Plan For Adequate Recovery Time

You can’t train 24/7, unfortunately. If we could, we’d all be stellar athletes. Between those beatings you place on your body, it needs time to recover.
Fill up your glycogen tank after a workout with carbs (do I have to even say it, carbophobes?) to prepare yourself for recovery and your next workout, get enough sleep every night, and drink more water than you think you need. In fact, if you think you’ve had enough water, drink more, because odds are you haven’t.
Periodize your training – you can’t go up, and up, and up, forever. You have to build in rest days or rest weeks to allow your body to get its bearings and adapt. Every season has to also have an offseason.
Train. Overreach. Recover. Adapt. Repeat.

Tip #10 Set SMART Goals

This is simple enough, just like the nifty little acronym that helps us to remember proper goal setting, SMART. Make those goals Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time bound.
Your goals must be all of those things for you to succeed. Write them down if you have to, and keep track of your progress.