I'm not the type that likes to get too out of shape. Don't get me wrong, I don't "eat for the abs" all year and I certainly don't carry around a knapsack full of Tupperware. And while I may get hungry when I'm out, you'll never hear stories of me stuffing cold cuts down my pants in case I get a hankering for a "clean" low carb snack at the club. Still, if you earn a living in this industry -- in...

Shameless plug for an original piece I have running at the awesome Men's Health website. Personal training is a huge business. Back in 1997 (when I started) it was just a way for young, fit people to earn spare cash that didn't involve waiting tables or standing out front of lame night clubs asking 17 year-olds for photo ID. Nowadays, forget about it. According to the New York Times, it's one of...

Check Your Head! Most NYC gyms leave a lot to be desired. Typically they’re crowded, cramped, sweltering places filled with equipment that was already out of date back when Arnold was flubbing his lines shooting Hercules in New York. As such, I joined a franchise gym that allows me to bounce around from location to location. Mostly this was to alleviate stress -- if I get annoyed trying to squat...

Big Fish, Little Pond So I finally made it to my first Mr. Olympia. No, I wasn’t competing (thanks for asking). I wasn’t even in Las Vegas to attend the event. I was in town for a wedding that just happened to coincide with bodybuilding’s biggest show of the year. And my bodybuilding brethren were there in full force -- in the hotels, at the buffets, cruising the strip, and of course, lounging...

Death, Taxes, and New Year's Fails There are only three things in life you can truly bank on, after the standard death and taxes: Number one: a strip club will have an ATM. Number two: when you call the credit card company to question activity on your account the night after visiting a strip club, it will be a cute sounding girl on the line. And number three: any resolution made on New Year's...

The first text I read when I rolled out of bed at 11:07 on Black Friday morning was from a buddy back home. “You out shopping for deals?” I had no work or training on the agenda, but I certainly knew what I wasn’t doing today. “Nah I’m good. I got everything I need.” Less is More You’ve heard it before. We’re obsessed with the acquisition of things. In our society, “Living life to the fullest”...

I'm a big believer in expressing gratitude for the good things in your life. It's human nature to focus on things in our lives that we don't have or are just outside our grasp. In some ways that's a good thing, as wanting more is the first step towards achieving success. However, at a certain point you need to take stock of what you have and say, "While this shit ain't perfect it could sure as...