Eddie Baran's Body Sculpting Blog

Some years back, I volunteered each week on suicide and
crisis line. Once a week for four hours a night I'd answer
calls from all types of people in need.

We might get a woman calling who wanted to die to just
completely end her pain; she was looking to this phone
call as a last resort, for someone to tell her why she
shouldn't kill herself.

Or we'd get the man who wasn't suicidal but was in severe
crisis, nonetheless; he'd feel as if his life were falling apart -
wife was leaving him and taking the kids all at the same
time he just lost his job. He'd need to talk to us to get his
emotions out and in order, and to get temporarily balanced.

And then there were the many who were just lonely and
wanted to talk to anyone who would listen and be there.

With all callers, we'd listen without judgement, lift some of
that pain off their shoulders, lighten the load, give them some
light, even if it were temporary.

We weren't a substitute for therapy but we used some of the
tools. We'd ask them tough questions to get to the core of
the problem. Some of the times the caller wouldn't even know
what was causing her turmoil. We went by saying "you gotta
feel it to heal it."

If you're not feeling what's really bothering you, you'll never
get better. All that repressed emotion buried deep in you.
To get better you've got to get to the root of the problem.
You'd have to talk about these painful things. If you were
stuffing then you weren't feeling. And if you're not feeling,
you're making things much worse and setting yourself up
for a world of hurt.

It was critical that you confront your fears and problems;
Don't ignore your areas of need. It might hurt but in the
long run you'll feel much better.

On the phones, we'd have to make the callers feel things
they might have never felt before. It wasn't easy for them
but it was the only way to get the healing process moving
along.

So how does this relate to exercise, you're wondering.

Well, as most of you know me by now, EVERYTHING relates
to exercise because everything relates to your body. The
rules of the mind are also rules of the body: You gotta feel
it to heal it.

You've got to feel your muscles working.
You've got to feel your body moving.
You've got to feel exactly what your body's doing in the NOW.
You've got to feel on what you want your body to do and be

Where does the healing part come in?

By exercising the muscles and feeling how they're supposed
to be, you heal them.

"Heal them?" you ask.

Yes.

Most people have sick bodies, weak and out of shape. Ignoring
your body and muscles is like ignoring your feelings. Most
people have neglected physical activity like some neglect
emotions, burying them only to become completely dysfunctional.
It's like having a dysfunctional body. A body that has repressed
muscles like the mind has repressed emotions.

Just a little bit at a time, start feeling your muscles, then healing
your body. Eventually you can handle more physically, like the
more you feel your emotions you can handle more psychologically.
Soon your body will be strong and bullet proof. But you gotta
start healing it now.

It might be strange and foreign when you first start exercising,
but when you're in touch with your body - like when you're in
touch with your emotions - your health and happiness is assured.

Wishing you the best,

Eddie Baran

P.S. Talk about feeling and healing. My Gymnastic Abs
program http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html will
heal you of any bodily weakness. When you FEEL these exercises
not only will you HEAL your body, you will STEEL it, i.e. turn your
body into steel - strong, resilient, bullet proof, rock solid.

P.P.S. These gymnastic ab exercises feel great. You've got to
try them to feel.

Posted by Eddie Baran at 07:55 AM | Permalink

At the age of 45, Louise Achey found herself with an embarrassing
problem: Urinary incontinence, which is a fancy name for
accidentally wetting your pants.

In Louise's case there was no rhyme or reason for it, no fair
warning, and it'd always come at the most inopportune
times. She didn't even have a full bladder when she had a
"moment." It just happened. The only thing she could do was
wear adult diapers to prevent leakage.

But what about stopping this? You don't want to be wearing
diapers in the prime of your life.

Louise researched drugs and surgery. Neither was an option
because they were both ineffective.

Kegels? She tried that. Thousands of them, in fact, but that
was a dead end too.

Then she discovered a very simple routine that eliminated
her incontinence once and for all. It was simple to do and
took all of 3 minutes a day. In no time she had eliminated
her embarrassing problem. No more diapers, no more
embarrassment, no drugs or surgery, and no thousands of
kegel exercises a day.

I wasn't aware that millions of women have this problem so
this is very important. If you or anyone you know (wife, mother,
sister, friend) suffers from urinary incontinence, you need to
read Louise's story http://eddiebaran.com/eliminate_incontinence.html

and how only 3 minutes a day will give you a permanent
solution.

Wishing you the best,

Eddie Baran

P.S. Louise tells me that her 3-minute has also really helped
her husband and her in the bedroom. That's reason enough
to look into this http://eddiebaran.com/eliminate_incontinence.html

Posted by Eddie Baran at 03:18 PM | Permalink

Yesterday I, Easy E as they call me, spoke to you about easing
into exercise. I said it was important not to rush anything,
start where you are and don't overdo it. You don't want to
do too much too soon until you've accustomed your body
to exercise.

So what about eating right? Is it recommended to eat perfectly
right off the bat and drop all the bad stuff (that tastes so good)?
Are you supposed to swear off the bad stuff forever and
completely?

Here's the deal: In a perfect world, yes, the best thing you
can do for your body is to completely eat right, go cold
turkey. Your results will come very fast this way. No doubt
about that.

BUT... who can really do this right away? Not many. And if he
does, no doubt he will return back to the buffet and fall off the
wagon, probably for good.

When I trained my brother Andy to his remarkable results
- http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html - I had him
ease into the exercises AND into the eating. He didn't start
right out of the gate with a perfect plate of food. No, that
would have been too much for him to handle. He was used
to eating garbage so I had him start off slowly removing the
bad and adding lots of good, i.e. fruit and veggies. From
there he was able to eventually rid himself of the wrong and
eat the right.

This way it felt effortless and the results stuck.

If you're having trouble cutting down on those bad foods
that taste so good, or if you're feeling deprived, don't worry
about it. Have the crap. But realize this is only temporarily.
Wean yourself off of them at your comfort level. At the same
time, get into the habit of pounding the fruits and vegetables.
Eat lots of them. Soon the balance will tip from bad to good.

At a comfortable pace, wean yourself off the bad and increase
the good. This way you will eventually - and permanently - be
able to easily eat right.

So again, when you're starting your journey, you don't have
to be perfect. Do what you can do and don't feel guilty about
not eating great from the get-go. You'll get there in due time.

Wishing you the best,

Eddie Baran

P.S. Doing things the easy way is the only way to go. Easy E
says you should ease your way into exercise and eating. Do
it like a gymnast does at the start of his training: Gradual
and steady progressions = fast and permanent results.
Read about it here and find out what to eat and what not to
http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html

Posted by Eddie Baran at 12:40 PM | Permalink

11 years ago I got my first job in corporate America as a
web developer for a huge Japanese multinational company.
I was thrilled to have such an opportunity.

So thrilled, in fact, that I was set on learning Japanese. It
wasn't necessary but I figured it was a way to move up in
the ranks and impress the boss.

Every day for a couple hours I studied the language. I was
very motivated and diligent about it. I figured if I continued
at this pace I'd be fluent in no time.

This lasted for all of one week.

After that I just couldn't bear the thought of memorizing
another word of Japanese. I was completely burned out. I
swore off the language, never trying to learn it again until
I went to Japan a decade later. I had completely lost interest.

So what happened? If I was so motivated and disciplined at
the beginning and did put in the time, why did I give up?

The problem was that I had tried doing too much too soon.
I wasn't mentally prepared for this. Of course I'd get burned
out. Who wouldn't. I was force-feeding myself something I
hadn't yet developed a taste for, something that was foreign
to me. I was a beginner and couldn't handle the load.

If I had eased into learning Japanese I no doubt would be
fluent by now. But instead I'm back to square one. What I
should have done was start with 10-15 minutes a day and
worked up from there.

Then I would have been able to handle the load and learned
at a better pace instead of ramming it down my throat.
Something so new, so much and so fast was too much for
me too handle.

I see so many people start their exercise program the way
I tried to lean Japanese. He'll bust his hump at the beginning
for hours a day trying to make up for lost time. Or she'll start
off by jogging 10 miles a day, cramming years of exercise into
a week.

No doubt these people are gung-ho and motivated, and I
admire them for that, but they're not prepared to do so much
so fast so soon.

If you're new to exercise you need to start off slowly to acclimate
yourself. Don't do too much at first, just a few minutes a day
to ease yourself into it. This way your brain and body will adapt
and build a strong and stable foundation.

It's also the best way to get results fastest. Only when you're
more advanced can you then do a long, hardcore, intense workout.

But not when you're a beginner.

Start off easy and do a little bit, then increase gradually.
Your body will then learn to enjoy movement this way.

When my brother Andy and I developed our Gymnastic Abs
program http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html it was
specifically designed to take a beginner and progress them
through the exercises. By gradually increasing the level of
difficulty in a series of progressions, you are assured of
success. You'll build a rock-solid foundation and have a
trackable goal to work toward.

This is the same way a gymnast trains. No gymnast starts
at the top. He starts at the bottom and works his way up
through a series of small goals and progressions. Then
one day he finds himself moving his body in amazing ways.

Same goes for everyone else, no matter what the activity.
Start where you start and go up from there one step at a
time. Don't force it or rush it, or it won't happen.

Fitness is a lifetime journey. Build your foundation first by
doing it the proper way. The results will be fast and permanent.

Wishing you the best,

Eddie Baran

P.S. They don't call me Easy E for nothing. I'm an easy-going
guy who likes to ease myself into everything. I teach the
same to others, especially when it comes to exercise. The
fastest way to strength and conditioning is by easy progressions.
Start from the beginning doing easy and short workouts.
Graduate up the scale to more difficult and longer workouts.
Read how it's done here http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html

Posted by Eddie Baran at 12:22 PM | Permalink

As you all know, I've been away traveling for the past three
weeks. During this time I didn't workout as much as I would
have liked. In fact, I didn't train much at all. And I wasn't
eating to well either.

I could have worked out in my hotel room., and I could have
eaten well. But I didn't. No reason, really, for when I travel I
still eat and exercise right. But this trip I didn't. Even I have
my moments. I knew in the long run it wouldn't affect me
because I've made eating and exercising part of my life,
and this slight little change wasn't going to make a dent
in my overall health. It's so rare that I knew it wouldn't
matter much.

I guess you could say I fell off the wagon.

But I got right back on. It wasn't a big deal because being
idle and eating poorly are not the norm for me. It's perfectly
okay to fall off the wagon once in a while as long as you're
exercising and eating well most of the time.

A little slip amounts to nothing. It won't derail your progress
in the least.

So don't beat yourself up or think you're doomed because
you're not perfect. No one is. If you fall off, get back on and
continue the ride. Don't try to speed things up by starving
yourself or working out for 8 hours a day to make up for
lost time. This will throw you off the wagon faster than
anything.

Just stay the course, maybe even slow it down until you
can accelerate to a safe speed. This is what I'm doing at
the moment. My first workout back was a bit of a nancy one,
just an easy session to get back into it. You can't start up
the wagon at full speed.

But just make sure you do start it.

Wishing you the best,

Eddie Baran

P.S. Don't forget to eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Even
if you're not yet ready to cut down on the bad stuff, increase
your produce. You'll find that this in itself will do wonders
for your body. Eventually you'll replace the bad with the good.

P.P.S. To learn how to tie in the best exercise and eating ideas,
check out this http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html
and this http://www.eddiebaran.com/body_sculpting_women.html

Posted by Eddie Baran at 10:50 AM | Permalink

I've just returned from a long trip to Finland and then New
York. As I told all of you, I was in Finland with some business
associates.

However that trip was unexpectedly cut short when, as many
of you know, my good friend Matthew Furey had to undergo
emergency eye surgery.

We were in a small town in Finland when the vision in his right
eye completely fogged up. Turns out he had a detached retina
and required emergency surgery. Rather than risk his vision at
the hands of Finnish physicians, we high-tailed it back to the
States where he got the best medical care available. I'm happy
to say he's doing great and will recover fully.

There's much more to the story which I will talk about later
in a detailed email to you all.

But for now, let me answer an important and very common
question about vegetables:

Eddie,
You stress the importance of eating lots of fruits and vegetables.
I hate vegetables. Never liked them. I can tolerate them if
they're on pizza or fried. How do I eat them without forcing myself?
Chris

Chris,
I understand that it's not easy to switch gears completely and
eat all the right foods. Some people can go cold turkey and be
perfect. Most can't. I know I couldn't.

I tell people the same thing when they're first learning to
eat right as I do when they're first learning to exercise. Start
off slowly and gradually ease your way into it.

Begin with one serving of a vegetable, preferably fresh, grilled
or steamed. Add some flavor to it. Salsa is always good, as
long as it doesn't contain garbage like corn syrup or excess
salt. Instead of chips and salsa, eat carrots and salsa, or celery.

Add a serving of vegetables every few days to your meals.
Very soon you will develop a taste for them, as this is your
body's natural way of eating. It's hard-coded in you so it
won't be a struggle for you to do once you've built a habit
of it. And in no time you will feel better and look better.

Remember that very few people come out of the shoot with
perfect habits. If you can switch gears and go from flawed to
perfect in a snap, well then, congratulations on that. But most
of us need to ease our way into the right habits. This way is
actually the fastest, easiest and most permanent way to change
behavior.

So don't feel rushed or pressured. Just go about it in your
own natural time and it will happen. No matter what your
pace, though, you do have to start.

Wishing you the best,

Eddie Baran

P.S. For a food program, and for those wanting the strongest
body on the planet, you need to train your abdominal muscles
like the strongest athletes do - the gymnasts. Read more here
http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html

Posted by Eddie Baran at 10:37 AM | Permalink

Today I am writing you from beautiful Finland.
I have been traveling for the past week so I
apologize for my neglect in writing you lately
but have lots to report, especially about
Finnish Fitness.

I will be telling you more about my travels
through this great Scandic land but as of the
moment I gotta run.

Anyway, I just wanted to drop you a quick note
and let you know that stay tuned for some
exciting info on health, fitness and nutrition.

I also wanted to say "kiitos paljon" (Finnish
for thank you very much) to all who have purchased
my revolutionary Gymnastic Abs program http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html
You will soon discover what training your midsection
in the best way can do for you.

Nahdaan,

Eddie Baran

P.S. I'm getting fantastic feedback on my Gymnastic Abs course -
http://www.eddiebaran.com/gymnastic_abs.html Everyone who has done the course as instructed agrees that it is by far the best abs course they've ever done. They absolutely LOVE the program. Try it for yourself and see what they're experiencing.

Posted by Eddie Baran at 09:12 AM | Permalink