2012 london olympics.com

The Purpose of Bodybuilding

It is amazing how we all put labels on things. When you hear the term bodybuilding, you immediately think of Arnold Schwarzenegger. A bodybuilder has to be a huge steroid-taking giant, who struts around the gym trying to intimidate everyone who does not look quite as big as he or she.

Well - that is not true. Anyone who goes to a gym, or decides to use some weights to change the shape of how they look, is bodybuilding. That goes for the person who is overweight to the really thin person. Weight training, or resistance training, is bodybuilding.

In this day and age, where it seems the media are all out to spread doom and gloom to the world, we need an outlet - a way of reducing and releasing stress and built up frustration. Lifting and training with weights is absolutely fantastic for this. You can never reach the end. Each time you can lift the weight easily, you add a bit more and start all over again. It is one of the most motivational things I have ever done and fits in perfectly with my day job. I try to help people be their best with the way they think, and I can guide and help them with not only the mind but the body.

Having a healthy body is halfway to having a healthy mind. Training has this amazing way of giving you energy to work better and longer - to clear your thoughts so you think better and can be really creative.  It is one of the very best ways to develop great self-esteem. When you have a great self-esteem you will have a lot of confidence - not a false put-on confidence to cover up a poor self-esteem. There are so many people with huge confidence, to the point of arrogance, but have a very low self-esteem.

Bodybuilding has so many positives and almost no negatives. If you have never considered training before, give it a go. You will surprise yourself. By the way, you cannot, under any circumstances, turn fat into muscle or muscle to fat if and when you stop training. That is absolutely false. What happens is, when you train you will tend to eat a bit more, and if you stop training most people carry on eating the same and then gain fat. That has nothing to do with stopping weight lifting. Getting fat is about eating too much (unless you have a medical problem) and getting a great shape is about using resistance to change the current way you look.

It is amazing how we all put labels on things. When you hear the term bodybuilding, you immediately think of Arnold Schwarzenegger. A bodybuilder has to be a huge steroid-taking giant, who struts around the gym trying to intimidate everyone who does not look quite as big as he or she.

Well - that is not true. Anyone who goes to a gym, or decides to use some weights to change the shape of how they look, is bodybuilding. That goes for the person who is overweight to the really thin person. Weight training, or resistance training, is bodybuilding.

In this day and age, where it seems the media are all out to spread doom and gloom to the world, we need an outlet - a way of reducing and releasing stress and built up frustration. Lifting and training with weights is absolutely fantastic for this. You can never reach the end. Each time you can lift the weight easily, you add a bit more and start all over again. It is one of the most motivational things I have ever done and fits in perfectly with my day job. I try to help people be their best with the way they think, and I can guide and help them with not only the mind but the body.

Having a healthy body is halfway to having a healthy mind. Training has this amazing way of giving you energy to work better and longer - to clear your thoughts so you think better and can be really creative.  It is one of the very best ways to develop great self-esteem. When you have a great self-esteem you will have a lot of confidence - not a false put-on confidence to cover up a poor self-esteem. There are so many people with huge confidence, to the point of arrogance, but have a very low self-esteem.

Bodybuilding has so many positives and almost no negatives. If you have never considered training before, give it a go. You will surprise yourself. By the way, you cannot, under any circumstances, turn fat into muscle or muscle to fat if and when you stop training. That is absolutely false. What happens is, when you train you will tend to eat a bit more, and if you stop training most people carry on eating the same and then gain fat. That has nothing to do with stopping weight lifting. Getting fat is about eating too much (unless you have a medical problem) and getting a great shape is about using resistance to change the current way you look.

2012 London Olympics| The Joy of Relaxation

I have to come to realise - we are a nation of people who are over-stressed and tense. We are constantly on the alert for the latest news, and most of the time that is not good news. I find that, because of this, we seem to be looking for all the bad that is going on. I am not sure if this is to justify why we achieve the results we do. I know, sometimes, the results we do achieve are not worth too much. 

Athletes are constantly under pressure to perform better and this will put a lot of tension on them - especially now that the 2012 London Olympics approaches.

People are taking more and more tablets for headaches and for tension. I know a lot of people are trying to take the more natural remedies, but we are still taking them. This is because of the pressure we are putting on ourselves with the need to achieve and succeed. The fear of money shortage, the fear of criticism and ill health are all fighting each other for the top place in our lives.

There is a way to overcome all of this and to put it into perspective, with a simple technique - Relaxation. Most people do not know how to relax. They will say they relax watching TV or walking the dog. Now of these are rrelaxation. Relaxation means putting your body in a state of total relaxation and giving your mind a holiday at the same time.

You need to find a quite spot to sit and close your eyes. While breathing slowly and deeply start at the top of your head and tell yourself to relax. Feel it happen. Move slowly down throughout your whole body. You should, by the time you reach your toes, feel like a limp warm face cloth. It must be an absolute effort to lift an arm. This should take around 5 minutes. Then give your mind it's holiday. Picture a tranquil spot like a deserted beach or a walk in a rain forest or sitting by a lake. Picture everything you can see and make sure you include all the natural sounds. If you hear real noises, try to make them blend into the natural sound so your mind does not move to current things.   Do this for about 5 minutes and you will find both your body and mind will have had a well earned rest. Before you get up, repeat to yourself, with as much feeling as possible about 5 times, “Relaxed body, Relaxed mind” If you can, do this at least twice day for 10 days.

You will feel a different person and ready for the day's challenges. If you feel you are getting stressed, then repeat to yourself breathing slowly and deeply “Relaxed mind, Relaxed body”. You will find you can handle things a lot better.

I know that with my training with weights, the more I relax the better I train. I am sure this will do the same for the athletes that will be taking part in the 2012 London Olympics.

2012 London Olympics| Relaxation

Nothing worthwhile has ever been achieved when we are up tight and fighting with life to get what it is that we want. The minute we allow ourselves to believe that we have to attack to get results, we put ourselves under a lot of stress. We then try to force a result and that never works. Imagine an Olympic hurdler who did not relax with the jumps and tried to force them - they would never be fluid and smooth over the jumps.

Our 2012 Olympic Swimmers learn how to relax on the side of the pool so their bodies can put in the best effort. I can remember when I swam, the best results I have ever achieved were when I was relaxed and not trying too hard but just let it happen.

If our athletes prepare now, not just with the training to get fit, but how to be mentally prepared and to be relaxed for the 2012 London Olympics, we are going to be in for a real show and some great results.

Learning how to put the mind and body into a relaxed state is one of the best things we can do. It allows us to be connected with ourselves. I think sometimes we can go overboard with techniques and they then start to consume our lives. Putting it into perspective and in moderation, I have learned how to relax properly and what a change in my life.  I am training better then I have ever trained. I am achieving results in life that I often only dreamed about. I feel at peace with myself. I too am going in for a big competition in bodybuilding, and much like our 2012 London Olympic athletes, it is stressful. I have doubts and I want to do well. Being able to relax just for 10 minutes twice a day has changed my whole outlook, and I am now achieving with ease.

2012 London Olympics| Intentions

There is an old saying – “the road to hell is paved with good intentions”. This saying is true today of people in life. “The road to failure is full of people with good intentions”.

We have the London Olympics coming up in 2012 and I am sure there are many young sports people that have the intention of taking part in these Olympics. Unfortunately intentions are not going to be enough. It takes a lot more in life than just intentions. It takes commitment. A commitment that you are going to give it your all. You are going to have to make certain sacrifices where others will be enjoying themselves and you will not. These sacrifices will mean your time and most important your energy. It is all very well to have good intentions but you have to have a plan to carry those intentions out.

Once you set the target you have to carry the load. You cannot give up. You have to see it through. I sincerely hope that our 2012 Olympic athletes do not have only good intentions for London, but have a commitment and a plan to get them the medals.

For all those struggling in these difficult times, forget about all the good intentions and start taking action. Take that action right now, today. There is always a reason to delay. Make the commitment to follow through and then go for it.

2012 London Olympics| Basics

I had a chance to watch the International Rugby this weekend. I saw South Africa give England a lesson on how to play rugby. England suffered one of their biggest defeats ever against a supposedly fatigued team. The whole secret behind the South African win was doing the basics well.

I have seen here in England that the media has a lot of influence over the people and how they think and do things. They talked certain players up before the game to make them bigger than the game. That is normally a recipe for disaster as it proved again this weekend. The reporter than went on an all-out attack on the England Manager, Martin Johnson. This does not help. The reporter is not a solution to the problem - he is the problem.

Doing the basics well will win in any situation. The sports men and women training for the 2012 London Olympics need to learn to just do the basics well. There is no need to over-elaborate with the training. They need to make themselves immune to the media because, in the build up to the 2012 London Olympics, some are going to shine in competitions that they enter. This is the exact ammunition the media wants because it will then go overboard, building the sports person up. Then one small failure and that is it. The sports person will be slammed with the full venom of the media. Confidence that has taken months to build up is damaged in one article.

The 2012 Olympics in London has the potential to produce some unbelievable results provided we just stick to the basics. Do what you know very well and you will get the results. Ignore the media because they have moved away from reporting on events to rather giving personal opinions on what they believe. That is always dangerous and extremely harmful.

Remember DO THE BASICS well and this will be a memorable 2012 London Olympics.

2012 London Olympics| Willpower

All my life I have wanted to train. I have trained for a few months and then lay off for around 6 months to a year, and then go back to training. Each time I use what most people consider to be the only way to get results - WILLPOWER - gritted teeth and sheer willpower to achieve anything in life. If this was right, then why have I always failed - by doing it for a while and then stopping? If willpower worked, surely I would have started and not stopped?

I am sure there are many of our 2012 London Olympic sportspeople using this same strategy. Using great willpower to turn out to train every day.

The best and most efficient way is to see the end result in your mind - then, believe that is who you are, mentally. When your self-image is in line with what you are doing, you are congruent.

I changed from using to willpower to using mind power. MUCH BETTER. I first decided why I wanted to train, and what was going to be the reward and result for me. When I realised it was worth it, I did not then turn to willpower. I put the pictures of the end result and how much I was enjoying this right now in the present, even though it had not happened. I made it happen in my mind.

Now I do not need willpower because I believe I already have the result. I just have not physically taken possession of it - so it is a pleasure to train every day.

Think of overweight people. If they believed in their minds that they were thin, why would they diet ? They would just eat right and not set themselves up for failure with willpower.

I really hope our 2012 London Olympic athletes use this same method and see themselves wearing the gold right now - then the training will be a breeze.

2012 London Olympics| Blame

It is quite interesting how we all want to blame someone or something. I see Tessa Jowell recently saying that if they had any idea of this recession, they would not have put in the bid for the 2012 London Olympics. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. The media is having a field day with suggestions everything is going wrong including the project being way over budget.

All of these things might be true and correct, but the decision has been made and now it is time to make the most of it. Not keep blaming anyone and everyone. If there was no recession, it would have been the best decision ever.

If everyone stopped fault finding and took responsibility for what they are doing, this would be a different place and the result would be a lot better.

You even see it with the athletes (some of them - not all) who blamed team mates for failing. When you are part of a team you all stand up and be counted. As a nation, it does not matter who his right and who is wrong. It is far more important to realise what is right, and then go for it. If we all stood up and tried to make this work, I am sure it will have a far better outcome. It is not going to please everyone but then that is the case with most decisions. They never do.

Lets all stop blaming and complaining and get on with the task on hand - to make this 2012 London Olympics one to remember and not for the negatives but for the positives.

2012 London Olympics| Who Packed your Parachute

Charles Plumb was a pilot and fought in Vietnam. He was shot down and spent 6 years as a prisoner of war. When he returned to the USA he was publicised as one would expect. He went for a meal and a man came up to him and said “You are Charles Plumb who was shot down over Vietnam”. He asked how the man knew and the man said I packed your parachute. Plumb go to thinking about what happened and how he needed an emotional parachute, a courage parachute, a mental parachute and all the other parachutes to get him through his ordeal.

How many people had packed these parachutes for him that he did not even know.

Our athletes are going to need a great many parachutes to get them through the 2012 London Olympics. It is a tough competition that is going to take a lot of strength and character from each sports person.

We need to think of what parachutes we can pack for them. It might be a good time to think of all the parachutes that have been packed for you by others. It might be a good time to have real gratitude that you are around, no matter what your circumstances are.

Let us really support our 2012 London Olympic athletes even if it is just in thought.

2012 London Olympics| Aiming for Gold

As with all things, target have to be set in order to make them viable for the money that is spent. The UK Sport Agency agreed on the amount of money for the Beijing Olympics, and the target for GB was set. They decided on around 35 to 41 medals in total, with 10 to 12 of those gold. Our team certainly out did them selves they achieved the highest number of medals since 1908. The Beijing Olympic Games total was 19 gold’s, 13 silver and 15 bronze medals which made a total of 47 altogether.

Money goes a long way to get things done, but it also takes talent. Our 2012 London Olympic athletes certainly do have the talent. We have some of the top sports people in every sport, but do we have the desire to want gold badly enough ?That has to come from the management and the coaches. They need to instill into the sports people a belief in themselves that they can achieve top results.

The great British public can also play a leading part by giving encouragement to the sports people as we build up to the 2012 London Olympics. There are many sports activities taking place and they need to be supported. By attending different sports activities we will give the athletes the idea that they are being supported. This will certainly encourage them to not only train harder but to have that self belief to win.

2012 London Olympics| Sports for all

The 12th World Sport for All Congress started on the 3rd November in Genting Highlands, Malaysia. The theme is to get all fit. We live in times of fast food, single parents and no time. Everything is done at pace - and with motorised vehicles wherever possible. This is killing people. Walking is a thing of the past and so is going for a morning jog.

With all of this, obesity is now very real, and the costs of looking after overweight people, with all their medical problems, is becoming a huge burden on the NHS.

We have the 2012 London Olympics in less than 4 years. This should and could be a great incentive to get the nation fit. If we started off with proper eating plans that would make a big difference.

Exercise should be fun and something the whole family can join in. Instead we arrive home, open a box of something we picked up in a drive-through, and then turn on the TV and sit for the rest of the night snacking. Then off to bed to sleep - ready for the next days drag - normally, tummy full of junk.

Our 2012 Olympic athletes have to have discipline on how they eat, and see that they train almost every day.

Why should it be any different for us ? We are in the Olympics of life. We should have a quality of life and not an existence. Too many complain of being bored yet they do nothing. That is absolutely ridiculous.

If we all mobilise and start doing something, our lives will be different and the 2012 London Olympics will be one that will feature in all the history books   as one that had meaning...National meaning.