This is one of those posts that was fun for me to write.  Sometimes I get emails from readers and subscribers asking me how I “do it” or how I manage running a business, 2 websites, coaching and running a club volleyball team, being a husband and being a father to 5.

I’m sorry to disappoint, but I really don’t have any secret.  It just happens and my wife and I just do it (maybe that’s what got us in trouble in the first place ).

That said, I can give a little introspective into my life.  I hope you find this list as fun as it was for me to look inside myself and write it out!

-Chris

23 Random Things about ME

1. My wife is my best friend and keeps me grounded.

2. I get more enjoyment and fulfillment out of coaching than I ever did out of playing any sport.

3. This year (2010) my wife and I will celebrate 10 years of marriage. AJ is 12 years old. You do the math.

4. All of my daughters have “boy” nicknames – AJ, Joey, Frankie & Mikey – but very feminine first names – Angelica, Josefina, Francesca & Michaela.

5. My son’s name is Joaquin. You pronounce it “Wah-Keen”.  Or you can just call him “Q”.

6. Despite popular belief, I did not name my son (“Q”) after my favorite rapper (Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest).

7. I did, however, name my oldest daughter AJ (Angelica Jordan) after my all-time favorite athlete, Michael Jordan.

8. I am a big believer in failure as a learning tool. You can’t know or understand success otherwise. Therefore, if my daughter doesn’t make a team, I think she’s better for it. Ironically enough, she got cut this spring from the soccer team she was trying out for.

9. The Notebook is one of my favorite movies and I will watch it anytime it is on TV (even if there is a basketball game on).

10. 300 is also one of my favorite movies, but I will still watch The Notebook even if both are on.

11. I played sports when I was young because I loved it. My parents never had to look for teams or leagues for me to play in. I did all the legwork and research myself from the time I was 8 years old. There was no internet back then so the only tools I had at my disposal was the home telephone and my bike.

12. Baseball was my first love. I was the “baddest” 11 year old pitcher in all of house league. One day, my house league coach tried to teach me how to throw a curve ball. I resisted because it hurt my elbow. He benched me and that was it for my baseball career.

13. I hate my Blackberry but I’m sickly addicted to it.

14. Yes, it’s true (at least on my end)…We tried 5 times until we got a boy.

15. I am a self-help book buying junkie…although I’ve probably only read 1/3 of all the self-help books I buy.

16. I think having your kid play one sport year round is a HUGE mistake and that most of the time it’s because of the athletic short-comings of the parent and NOT because your kid wants to do it.  Parents need to stop living vicariously through their kids.

17. I haven’t had 6-pack abs in 8 years mainly because I refuse to give up cheesecake.

18. As a coach, I try very hard not to be one of “those parents”. (You know, the ones that push their kids too hard, yell at the officials and the coaches, put an emphasis on winning at all costs and take all the fun out of the game).  It’s difficult sometimes, but I’m managing.

19. As a parent, I don’t believe in becoming my child’s friend.  My job is to create a competent and successful citizen of the world and if making them learn how to survive the hard way will do the job, then I’ll be a hard ass. They can make friends at school.

20. I think I have ADD and get distracted and lose focus waaaaay too much. I constantly have to shut down my internet connection and turn off my phone to get things done.

21. I don’t drink anything except water and espresso. I went for a beer with a couple of friends 2 weeks ago and got buzzed after drinking half a bottle.

22. I’m an aspiring minimalist, but does having 5 kids make me a hypocrite?

23. I’ve been waking up at 5am for the past 10 years because that is the ONLY time that I can actually get productive work done … I suggest you try it to. Those 2 hours in the morning – between 5 and 7am – are GOLDEN!

I spent this past weekend at another volleyball tournament coaching AJ (my 11 year old) and her club team.

During the breaks between games, I had several parents (some from other teams, in fact) ask me over the weekend what their child should do over the summer to help make them a better volleyball player.

Regardless of what sport or activity your child does, I think it’s a mistake to have them do that one single thing on a year round basis.

Sometimes I feel that parents end up subconsciously living vicariously through their kids because of their own athletic shortcomings.

I wrote the following email to those parents…

Dear Parents,

For those that aren’t aware, in addition to being a volleyball coach, I spend my days running a personal training and strength & conditioning company where I consult with both young and professional athletes and “regular people” like you and me.

In my humble opinion, if you want your daughter to develop into a better player, then the best thing that you can do for her is to NOT HAVE HER TOUCH A VOLLEYBALL FOR THE ENTIRE SUMMER.

Read the rest of If You’re a Parent To A Young Athlete, You NEED To Read This

I hate protein shakes.

When I was young and was caught up in the whole “supplement thing”, thinking that if I didn’t consume 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight that I was going to shrivel up and turn into a skinny, non-muscular piece of nothing, I drank protein shakes until the cows came home.

And as a result, my family hated me for it. Not because I would go through “protein shake rage” or anything like that, but because I STUNK!!!

During my protein shake phase, I used to fart so much (I can say “fart”, right?) that my wife and daughter would leave the room as soon as I walked in because they knew the inevitable was about to happen.

NOT ANY MORE.

First, I don’t do whey protein anymore – I found out that I was intolerant to dairy which was probably causing my massive rear explosions (sorry for the horrible mental picture).

And second, I believe in consuming REAL FOOD. Unlike the powders, potions and bars that I used to eat thinking that it was “muscle building foods”, I now eat fruits & veggies and if I do consume any supplement, I make sure it’s from a reputable company that uses only plant-based foods in their products.

So, check out this video of me and my son Joaquin (pron: “wah-keen”) making my latest, non-dairy, smoothie. You’ve got to try the recipe, IT’S DELICIOUS!

Have a great weekend! I’m off to Barrie, Ontario for AJ’s volleyball tournament.

-Chris

It’s been a long time since my last post and for good reason…

Read the rest of 6 Essentials For 2010

ON October 22nd at 2am, Rozanne, my wife, gave birth to our son … Joaquin Gabriel Lopez.

Needless to say, I’m on cloud 9 right now and our friends and families seem to think that I’ve got a certain “glow” because …

1) The “Lopez” name will get carried on (my brother and I were the last in our line of “Lopez’s”) and

2) I now have a male ally in this estrogen dominant family.

Even though it’s been a little over 2 years since we last had a newborn in this house, I (read: my body) seems to forget how inconsistent and unexpected the scheduling is.

Some nights I get 7 hours of sleep, some nights I get 5, but most often lately, I’ve been getting 2 or 3 hours.

I have, however, been able to maintain a certain amount of energy and haven’t really “hit the wall” just yet … and I don’t expect to.

Sleepless nights, inconsistent scheduling, never having things go as planned come part and parcel with being a busy parent.

Managing your energy and having enough of it to function throughout the day will give you the ability to interact with some competence with your peers at work and your family at home.

Here are 7 things that I’ve been doing since the birth of “Q” (that’s what we’re calling him) to help me maintain my energy levels…

1) Stay on Schedule (even though every ounce of your being is telling you not to) – Regardless of how much sleep I get, I’m still up at 5am. Some days I feel like a truck hit me, but most days it seems that my body recognizes that everything is as it should be. I try to go through the exact same schedule/routine everyday – training, studying, working, eating & meditating at the same time.

If something comes up, like last week when I had to pick one of the girls up from school because she was feeling sick, then I accept it, let everything else go, and once order is restored, I get back on schedule.

This alone has been the biggest difference in me maintaining my sanity over the past 3 weeks.

2) Drink lots of water – I can’t stress this enough. Staying hydrated will keep you alert and will keep your brain functioning efficiently. Water (and sleep) as far as I’m concerned, are nature’s medicine.

If/When I get sick, it’s usually because I’m not getting enough sleep or I’m dehydrated. Making sure you’re drinking enough water is even more important if you drink coffee or tea or anything caffeinated because caffeine is a diuretic.

3) The 20-minute nap – This is the one thing that I do “unscheduled”, but I feel refreshed and rejuvinated immediately after. Dozing off for 20-minutes is like hitting the reset button in the middle of the day.

Sometimes I play my meditation CD while I’m napping and other times I just lay down and doze off while “the boy” is asleep on top of me. Either way, when I wake up, I’m almost as good as new.

4) Avoid sugary foods – I’m not a big junk food eater to begin with, but sometimes when time isn’t on your side and you just feel lazy, it’s so easy to just order a pizza or sneak some of the kids’ Trick or Treat candy.

I’ve had my slips and believe me, I’ve paid for it. The sugar highs are great while they last, but the crashes are brutal. In addition to that, excess sugar increases cortisol levels and inhibits immune response … not a good thing if you’re dealing with not getting a lot of sleep.

5) Caffeine management – You may already know this, but I’m an espresso junkie. I love the stuff. I’ve talked about the benefits of drinking espresso instead of the slow drip sludge that you can get from the local “Dunkin’Bucks” HERE.

What I mean by caffeine management, is strategically planning when to drink your coffee (or green tea) at specific times in the day to help you stay alert, prevent the jitters and still allow you to fall asleep at night.

If you wake up at 6am, then your first dose of caffeine can be taken as late as 9am. That’s about enough time for any caffeine addicted body (like mine) to NOT get any headaches. The main thing to note is that caffeine has a 1/2 life of about 6 hours – that’s the time it takes your body to eliminate 1/2 the amount of caffeine you injested. So if you set a 10pm bedtime for yourself, then you should ideally have your last dose of caffeine by 4pm (I have my last espresso at 3pm for safe measure).

7) Get outside – It’s November here in Toronto, and despite it being a little chilly, the sun is out and the skies are clear.

I dropped the kids off at school this morning, quickly returned home, parked the car and got on my bike to head over to the coffee shop and then to my first client.

Nothing beats riding a bike in this city. No traffic, fresh air and a feeling of freedom. If you want to wake up and get some activity in your life, commute to work using a bike – you’ll save money on gas and parking and will be reducing your carbon footprint at the same time.

So those are the strategies that work for me to keep my energy up while I battle 2hr nights of sleep, 3am diaper changes and going to work with spit-up on my shirt.

What are some of your favorite Energy Management strategies? Please leave a comment and let everyone know.

-Chris

Yes, I know it’s been about 3 weeks since I last posted.

A lot has happened over that time.

1) First, this little man entered our lives.

Introducing Joaquin Gabriel Lopez, aka #5, aka “Q”. Life’s been quite a transition since October 22nd when he was born.

My wife is a Superstar.

She went through 3 hours of drug-free labor – no epidural, no pain killers, no nonsense. The woman is a she-God.

Now with “Q” home, the adjustment’s been pretty smooth …

AJ’s taken the role of 2nd mom and does an amazing job. My only concern is her growing up too fast now.

Joey has taken her role as “leader of the young pack” quite well keeping the younger 2 (Frankie & Mikey) in check. It helps that her methodical personality and organizational skills are a perfect compliment to this role … and yes, she is only 6 years old.

Frankie (aka “Sparkles”) is her usual entertaining self. We’ve got this new thing where I say, “Show me the gun show” and she proceeds to flex her biceps and then kisses each one (a la Paul “Pile-Driver” Orndorf, the WWF wrester from the late 1980s).

For some reason, this kid has freakishly developed biceps and delts!?!

Then there’s Mikey. So cute, so deceivingly cunning.

Of all the Lopez children, she’s the one who is challenging us. Who can blame her? She went from being the baby of the family to being “one of the middle kids” and went from the top of the totem pole to one notch below (I am burried way beneath the ground on our family totem pole by the way).

I must admit though, this one’s got me wrapped around her little finger, probably because she looks just like her mother …

2) I started and am coaching my own volleyball club.

This has been my dream. I’ve gotten a lot out the sport and have been positively affected by my coaches (one in particular) and friends who have played the game. This is my chance to give back.

They say that when you do things with good intentions, only good things can come out of it. I have been BLESSED with a group of kids (and their parents) who are not only enthusiastic about learning the game and getting better at it, but who are also respectful, courteous, appreciative and hard-working.

These kids make it so that I don’t feel bad about having to take time out from spending with my family 2 nights per week to coach them (although AJ’s on the team, so I get some one-on-one time with her). They come prepared to learn, they put up and take down the nets without me having to ask them, they hustle everywhere and among all 26 of them, there isn’t a bad attitude in the bunch.

It is an absolute pleasure coaching these girls. I only hope to do for them what my coaches have done for me.

3) The Minimalism Process

I wrote about minimalism HERE. Minimalism for the Lopez Family 7 went from being a “project” to a “PROCESS”. It started with the kitchen.

Then moved to the basement…

Where I created my home office space…

I’m spending a lot more time working from home these days because Rozanne needs help and because I’d like to get to know my son (that’s got a nice ring to it) a little bit better and reconnect with my girls.

I needed a home office space that was clean, with minimal distraction, a little zen and very motivational. So I picked up a succulent plant that my kids affectionately named “Spike” to give me a connection with nature. I found a 24″ Dell monitor on craigslist for dirt cheap (that I connect to my MacBook) and I put up a Michael Jordan poster from my childhood to provide me some inspiration.

The end result will hopefully be more blog posts, more videos, more interaction with you (my ever patient readers) and more fun.

The bottom line…

I love being a dad.

I love coaching, mentoring and inspiring young athletes.

I love living a healthy life.

And I love reading, writing and talking about all of the above.

Right now, my job doesn’t feel like a job … it feels like living.

Right now, I’m living my passion.

-Chris Lopez, The FitAndBusyDad

P.S. Don’t forget to check out my other blog over at KettlebellWorkouts.com where I just wrote a post about The Death of The Personal Training Industry

“People will do almost anything to stay in their comfort zones. If you want to accomplish anything, get out of your comfort zone. Strive to increase order and discipline in your life. Discipline usually means doing the opposite of what you feel like doing. The easy roads to discipline are 1) setting deadlines, 2) discovering and doing what you do best and what’s important and enjoyable to you and 3) focusing on habits by replacing your bad habits and thought patterns, one-by-one, over time, with good habits and thought patterns.”
-Dave Kekich, Kekich’s Credo #1
(click HERE to download Kekich’s Credo)

Kekich’s Credos are 100 inspirational and motivational affirmations that were turned on to me by one of my friends and business coaches.  Since he sent them to me, I have been reading ONE credo per day for the past couple of years and they’ve made a world of difference in my mindset and attitude towards business and life.

The “success secret” quoted above, by far, has had the most impact.

Getting out of your comfort zone is an integral part in achieving success.

In physics, it’s called overcoming Inertia. A law that states that an object at rest will stay at rest unless an external force is acted upon it.

It’s much easier to sit on the couch and not move than it is to get up and exercise.

It’s much easier to stay at a job you hate with an abusive and unappreciative boss because you get a “steady” paycheck than it is to follow your passion and start-up that new business that you’ve always wanted to.

But think about how that helps us as humans.  Our job is to overcome inertia and evolve. To become better than we are now and to not just settle for mediocre.

From a fitness standpoint, changes to your body will NEVER occur unless you constantly venture out of your comfort zone.  Your body wants to be comfortable and stay the way it is.  And until you apply a different stimulus to it – by lifting more, doing more reps with the same weight, cutting your rest time down, or doing something faster than you previously have – you will see little change (if any at all).

It blows my mind when I see people who make all the effort to drive to the gym, pay a premium for a gym membership and waste their time doing the same routine day in and day out.

To paraphrase, Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity is “doing the same thing, over and over again, expecting a different result”. By this definition, most of our society is insane.

If you don’t like the way things are.  If you feel like you’re stagnant in life.  If you feel like you’re in the rat race or trapped on the spinning treadmill with no way to get off, here’s some good news…It’s within your power to do something about it.  It may feel weird and it may feel uncomfortable at first, but that’s just you overcoming inertia.

The Lopez Boys: Rich (my little bro), Chris (me) & Titus (my dad).

Two years ago, my dad experienced a “force” to help him overcome inertia.  He had a heart attack the day before his 60th birthday.  A week later, he had quadruple by-pass surgery.

Having that heart attack was a big wake-up call for him. The threat that he may never see his grandchildren again or be able to travel with my mom, or be able to do all the things he loves – like working with his hands in the garden or tool shed – was enough for him to rehab and get himself back in shape.

Now, he walks everyday, partakes in a resistance training program (designed by his oldest son, that’d be me) and only eats fruits, vegetables, healthy fats and lean protein.

It took a heart attack and a quadruple by-pass for my dad to change his habits. Hopefully it won’t take anything extreme for you to change the habits that YOU KNOW aren’t contributing to you living a healthy and happy life.

Overcome inertia, get out of your comfort zone and live passionately so your kids can witness that and be inspired!

-Chris, a.k.a. The FitAndBusyDad

So, What else is NEW?

I’ve got a new tumblr blog over HERE – http://fitandbusydad.tumblr.com

Just posted a new 10-Minute workouts HERE – http://kettlebellworkouts.com

It really helps me when I plan out my week.

You and I both know that as parents, NOTHING ever goes as planned, but to just have guideline as to how things should run  usually means the difference between “flying by the seat of my pants” and getting nothing done and actually being productive.

I have a friend who plans his day out to the minute!  And he gets more done than anyone I know.  (Mind you, he’s single with no dependents, other than a dog).  His life isn’t like mine or yours, but nonetheless, his success is shows and a lot of it is due to his meticulous preparation.

Having a general idea of how things should go -ask any productivity expert this- is the path to success.  It’s like having a road map to your destination.

So for transparency and accountability purposes, I’m going to show you what my upcoming week looks like and how I’ve planned it out.

If you’ve got any questions, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or hit me up on email.

The FitAndBusyDad 7-Day Plan for the Week of September 28th...

Read the rest of The FitAndBusyDad 7-Day Plan

I can’t take a kettlebell with me everywhere, especially when I travel. And it sucks.

I can’t take a chin-up bar either.

I tried taking an ab wheel one time when I went to NYC last year and they confiscated it because it looked too much like a weapon. (I took it apart so the handle was actually an 8-inch metal bar).

So when I travel and don’t have any equipment I rely heavily on bodyweight workouts.

The only problem with bodyweight workouts is that there are only so many push-up and squat variations that you can do. So, even though I consider myself to be very well versed in the “science” of bodyweight training, when things go stale, I turn to my friend Adam Steer for advice. After all, together with his partner Ryan, these guys are known as “The Bodyweight Coaches”.

But like I said, this isn’t a “do 100 push-ups and then do 100 squats” type of workout. They use a system called Circular Strength Training (CST) that incorporates several bodyweight exercises together in a “flow” pattern where you go from one exercise to the other, with no rest, in a logical and progressive “flow”.

It’s one of those things that my words can’t do justice to. You’re better off watching it in action….

Right now, Adam and Ryan are giving away a bunch of their stuff for free (a full bodyweight/equipmentless program called “The 12-Minute Stage Crazy Workout” AND a series of follow-along videos).

You can go HERE to pick them up or click on the link below…

=>The 12-Minute Stage Crazy Workout and Videos

I’m doing these CST workouts now (for the next few weeks) and then finishing my workouts by doing KB Swings or Snatches (just because I like to be different).

Make sure to pick-up the complimentary workout and videos soon because I don’t know how long they’ll leave them up.

=>The 12-Minute Stage Crazy Workout and Videos

Chris

Bora Bora

Do you have a Life List?  A list of all the things you want to accomplish in your life before you “pass on”?  (Also known as a “Bucket List” or “BAHGs – Big-Ass Hairy Goals”, a term coined by one of my earlier business advisors, marketing genius Glen Hunt, who wrote THIS.)

I was inspired to do this list after reading this post by Chris Gillebeau of The Art of Non-Conformity.

According to Gillebeau, “A life list is simply a list of long-term personal goals, often expressed as “X things to do before I die.” Life lists are related to, but also different from the Ideal World (how things are in your world now) scenario, the Annual Review (as in monetary or business related goals), and your ongoing list of active projects.”

So, for example, one my major goals is to get out of debt.  And although this may be a HUGE achievement on my end when it does happen, it wouldn’t be included in my life list because of it’s practicality.

The purpose of this list to show myself how wild I can dream or to challenge myself…

1. To do things that will make me feel alive,
2. To do things for the betterment of human kind that I can have direct influence on
3. To do things for those that I love because, well, I love’em.
4. To experience life as a child again.

So based on that criteria, here is a list of things that I’d like to do before I leave this world and enter the next…
Chris Lopez’ Life List

1. Learn how to surf in Maui.

2. Take my wife to Bora-Bora and stay in one of those private huts in the middle of the water.

3. Take my wife and each of my daughters to Paris individually.

4. Build a school in Africa with my family (that’d be Me, Rozanne & our 5 kids…obviously when everyone’s grown up).

5. Take my parents, my brother and my in-laws to Disney World for a week (Purely selfish. I want them around so that they can babysit and Rozanne and I can get on some rides!  J/K.  My parents & my brother have never been!)

6. Go to a soccer game in Spain.

7. Go to the Summer Olympics.

8. Meet Michael Jordan.

9. Get a tatoo.

10. Play beach volleyball at Manhattan Beach, California (the Mecca of beach volleyball).

11. Open an Organic Espresso shop (espresso is another passion of mine).

12. Drive the entire Pacific Coast Highway (Route 1 in California) in a convertable staying at really cool B&Bs and watching the sunset.

13. Train with The Harlem Seals.

14. Do what I love for a living. check!

15. Publish a book on Fatherhood.

16. Spend a month in a Shaolin temple learning from monks (I’ll obviously need more than a month, but I’m thinking practically here).

A Fixie: No gears, no brakes, no nonsense. Simple.

17. Build my own fixie.

18. Watch the EBC at Rucker Park in NYC (I was going to say “Play in the EBC at Rucker Park”, but I’m not stupid).

19. “Semi-retire” for a year (a la Tim Ferriss) to give myself time to do all of the above.

Now, it’s your turn….

So what’s on your life list?  Is there anything that you’d do differently or anything wild and crazy that you’d like to do?  Write it down, focus on it, and it’ll happen.

…and please share some of your Big-Audacious-Hairy-Goals!