By David Tepera, February 12, 2020

Well, Valentine’s Day is only two days away, which creates panic for those who procrastinate.

The average consumer is expected to spend $196.31 for Valentine’s Day, which is up 21 percent from last year’s $161.96, according to the National Retail Foundation.

The overall expected amount consumers will spend in the United States is to be around $27.4 billion, which is up 32 percent from last year’s $20.7 billion, according to the foundation.

Even with people spending more money, the number of people celebrating Valentine’s Day is only at 55 percent, but it was up from last year’s 51 percent, according to the foundation. People who spend the most money are from the ages of 35-44 at $358.78, according to the foundation.

With Ageless Muscle being in the health and fitness industry, it’s been a nice surprise to see spouses are purchasing personal training for their significant others. They come to us because of the friendly family atmosphere we’ve created. Our gym is not intimidating for first-timers, women, medical conditions or the older population.

What new creative ways are you looking to express your love? Does your loved one want some type of exercise apparatus, equipment or athletic apparel?

There’s always the running joke if you buy your wife a treadmill, you’re calling her fat, and that might not go so well. But, I argue a different point because it depends on the presentation.

If you’re a romantic, still give the tradition of a personalized card, flowers, chocolate, but this time, include a form of health and exercise. What will make it more special is for you to join them.

Tina and I have rescue dogs, including a foster. One of our special times together is walking the dogs. Nothing says “I love you” more than talking and picking up dog poop.

One of our delights at Ageless Muscle is training husbands and wives. There are a few who train together, and those who train with their own perspective trainer. Our goal is to educate them, so they are comfortable to come in on other days and train together.

Just recently, the wife of one of our male clients thanked us for helping her husband become comfortable in a gym environment. They now spend time together every weekend in the gym, which has helped bond their relationship even stronger. This could be each of you.

So, make this Valentine’s Day a little different with a gift of health and fitness. It could be as easy as a promise note stating you love them and want them to be around much longer, so let’s start a new chapter in our lives to become healthier. All it takes is grabbing them by the hand to head out the door for a walk.

By David Tepera, February 9, 2020

Recently, I was having a conversation with one of our clients, Don Filidei. Seventy-one-year-old Don has been with us for a little over two months, and is excited about his strength gains.

You see, Don came to Ageless Muscle due to a severe shoulder issue, along with a knee replacement. The pain in Don’s shoulder had become so overwhelming, he was in need of immediate help.

So, I asked Don what made him finally make a decision to improve his health condition? Don’s reply was quick as he told me, “I was sick and tired dealing with constant extreme pain.”

Of course, we are excited to help Don as he continues to make progress. Now, his improvements are steady because Don is staying consistent with the Ageless Muscle program.

How about all of you out there? What areas in your life are you sick and tired of? Could it be from lack of exercise, addictions, relationships or occupational? You must recognize depression can be created from any of these choices.

How often do you get upset with yourself for not eating healthy or exercising? Have you already given up on your new year’s resolution? If you have, just get back on the wagon. Try to make one healthy decision each day and it will make you feel better about yourself.

Years ago, a distant friend came to me because he struggled with alcoholism. He was sick and tired of waking up each morning with a severe hangover, which led to an unproductive lifestyle. I introduced him to the gym and made him meet me there several times a week until he developed new healthy habits. It took some time, but he succeeded.

Now, what’s it going to take for each of you to change your life? Do you really need to hit rock bottom? You see it coming, so do something about it today. You keep putting it off, and all you caused was another day dealing with depression.

Today, you’re going to jump out of your comfort zone and take back your life. You alone get to make that decision. You don’t need to ask permission from anyone but your conscience.

Starting today, you’ll no longer will be sick and tired of being sick and tired. You got this!

By David Tepera, January 29, 2020

As you know, the Ageless Muscle team frequents many gyms. It’s quite often we observe people misusing the weight equipment, which can ultimately lead to either hurting themselves or not really getting any true benefit.

I would like to share a few weight lifting tips that we see most common. First, for whatever reason, people think to lose “love handles,” they must perform multiple sets of side bends while holding weight.

Guess what? The only thing you accomplished was building your obliques muscles and NOT burn any fat in that area. So, what this means is you made your waist wider and more-blocky. It’s like the worst possible exercise to build a smaller waist.

Listen, the only way to make your waist smaller is in the kitchen. Yes, you should perform abdominal exercises to help build a strong core, but not side bends.

Another bad no-no is pulling the lat bar behind the neck all the way to your shoulders. Huge no-no because you’re over-rotating your rotator cuff and putting unnecessary stress on the neck. The safest range of motion is to pull the lat bar to the front of the body right below the chin. Just squeeze your traps along the range of motion and you’ll feel the difference.

We see the leg press machine abused way too often. Remember, place your feet up high on the platform, so that your knees will not flex over your toes. If not, you’re putting stress on your patella and achilles tendon which will result in injury.

Look, I understand if you’re not familiar with the gym, the above explanations probably didn’t make any sense to you. But, I have a strong presence of gym readers who’ve been asking for help, and we take pride in educating people all over the country.

I cannot express the importance of weight training, especially as we get older. It’s fantastic if you’re out walking, riding a bike or performing some type of cardio, but it’s a must to incorporate weight resistance.

Weight training is our path to the fountain of youth. I don’t care how old you are, weight training is a game changer. Our oldest clients are in their late 70s, and now have more energy than over the past 15 years.

I know the weight room can be a scary and intimidating, but don’t let that stop you.

We’ve created a friendly family environment at Ageless Muscle. Even though we are professional athletes, our gym is for people like you, who want to just be educated and train safely.

Ask for a tour at your local gym, along with no more than two or three personal training sessions. If you don’t gel with your trainer or gym, search and seek others.

The biggest lesson of all is to understand the no-nos, and keep it safe.

By David Tepera, January 22, 2020

We frequently have people reach out to us because of being stuck with current exercise routines and diets. For some reason, even though they’re being strict and consistent, people’s bodies are no longer making changes.

It’s what is known as “plateau,” and it will happen to everyone who stays on the same routine week after week.

I’m going to try to explain this as best as possible. You see, our body’s job every single day is to survive. If we start overheating, the body will perspire for coolant. When we get too cold, the body will shiver to produce heat. When the body needs food for energy, it creates hunger.

When you lift weights, it produces micro tears within your muscles. At night, during rest, the body will repair itself and build more muscle tissue to take on that same weight. If you continue to use the same weight, the body will no longer build more muscle. It has already survived the weight you placed upon it. Make sense? To build more muscle, you must use more weight, including changing you weight routine.

The key is to keep confusing the body into building muscle tissue. If the body is confused, it has to keep making changes to survive.

This phenomena is the same process for dieting. For those of you who go on these strict or crazy diets, once your body has adjusted, you will no longer lose weight. Remember, after a period of time, the body has already survived. That’s why diets don’t work!

A good friend of mine went on one of those no carb diets and lost plenty of weight in the beginning. She was depressed and frustrated that she was stuck and plateaued. I told her because of the lack of carbs, it’s time to throw down some pizza, burgers and fries. She thought I was crazy, but when she did, her metabolism kicked back in and lost more weight. It was time to confuse her body.

If you deprive your body from certain important food vitamins and nutrients, your metabolism will shut down to survive.

When you start a diet, you must ask yourself, “Can I stay on this diet the rest of my life?”

Whatever is going on in your life, do not accept or be satisfied being “plateaued” because today, you’re going to mix it up.

By David Tepera, January 1, 2020

OK, here we go. It’s not only a new year, but a new decade. When I was much younger, I’d wake up Jan. 1 with a hangover and not get anything accomplished. Now, for countless years, I’m up and ready to begin the year with my new set of goals.

If you’re in need of a list of goals, make your topics — mental, physical, occupational and spiritual. Believe me, none of these topics will be accomplished without getting into the right state of mind, thus mental.

Who do you surround yourself with? Are your friends in destructive behavior? Do you have a support system or negativity? Where does your mind spend its day? Successful people will tell you where they are going, and others will tell you where they’ve been.

Almost everyone wants to get in better shape and lose fat weight. Make your physical goals achievable. Set small goals per month where success will be attained. Don’t ever get discouraged over one bad day. Giving up on your goals because of one setback is like slashing the other three tires for one flat.

If you’re unhappy with your current occupation, what will it take to change? If you want to move up with your company, show your worth by taking on projects, getting there earlier and staying later.

Maybe, it will require night school, trade school or starting your own company because you have a unique set of skills.

When starting a new business, it’s important that your business creates a benefit or improves lives. If so, through time, you’ll succeed beyond expectation. That’s what we did at Ageless Muscle, and business is booming.

I understand many people question spirituality, and there’s multiple religious beliefs. My suggestion is if you’re not happy with current status of life, you have nothing to lose but to seek a higher power. I promise, it will change you.

Now, if you want 2020 to be your year, you can’t sit and wait for it. It’s time to get up and go after it. This will consist of all the little things like smiling more, being friendly, getting rid of all the clutter, delete negative people on social media, and just be fierce and brave.

Now, take a deep breath, get you game face on because today is a new year, new decade and a new you.

By David Tepera, December 25, 2019

Remember, when you were a kid, got a new pair of sneakers, then all of a sudden, you could run like the wind?

I received my first Chuck Taylor Converse basketball shoes in junior high. I could jump so high, that I almost touched the net. True story.

So, where is all this leading in today’s column? There are many of you receiving some type of exercise apparatus, device or apparel as Christmas gifts. Hopefully, you’re just as excited to get started as the kid with new sneakers.

Whatever the exercise gift is, take the next six weeks and give it your best. If you give full effort, I promise there should be some type of body change. This could be from losing fat weight to adding muscle. The key is consistency.

Now, Wednesday does mark Christmas holiday 2019. There’s only one week left and a new decade will follow. Enjoy all the festivities in front of you over the next week, then start gearing up for 2020 to become the new you.

It’s been an interesting holiday season for us. We’ve been attending two or three parties each weekend through the month of December. Even though we don’t over-indulge, we have enjoyed all the holiday foods and festivities. We allow Christmas time as an opportunity for non-guilt because of the special times with family and friends, and you should, too.

To me, it doesn’t matter what your religious beliefs or not, at least take Christmas day as a reminder that we are celebrating a miraculous moment in time. The birth of Christ was a new beginning for us to recognize that a Savior will help us through times of diversity and challenges.

If you haven’t already, there will be a year where the new passing of a special loved-one won’t be attending Christmas celebration. Today will be difficult, but I encourage you to reflect on all the past wonderful memories.

As most of you know, I lost my 23 year-old son Dustin many years ago. I changed my thinking to instead of missing him on holidays, to reflecting of all the crazy fun moments. I choose laughter over sorrow. Believe me, this will help you get through it.

I know I’ve been a little all over the place with today’s article, but I felt compelled to touch a few subjects. My desire was to reach each of you because today will have mixed emotions.

So, get into a positive mindset, love all those around you, and make this a very merry Christmas to all.