Max Power is a fitness experience in Lancaster, PA. Certified personal trainers use a combination of powerlifting, olympic lifting, circuit and interval training, and plyometrics to increase power, speed, strength and endurance.

Last Friday, I took the gang out to the Central Pennsylvania Warrior Challenge, a local mixed martial arts fight night. Trainer Nick’s friend was slated to fight in the 205lb amateur class. Unfortunately, we had to sit through 15 other fights before we got to the 205-pounders.

Wasn’t really impressed by a lot of the amateurs. You could tell right off the bat which guys were serious about fighting. They were the ones who looked like they were ready to fight – strong, low body fat, explosive once the bell sounded, didn’t gas out after 2 minutes.

Of course, the kid who was the least impressive physical specimen of the night – poor posture, no muscle definition to speak of – ended up getting the knockout of the night. Just goes to show, you can train and hit the gym all you want, but it’s not really much good if you don’t keep your hands up.

Here are some lessons we took away from the night -

Losing weight is easy. There’s no magic solution, no magic pill you can take, no magic button you can push. But it is easy. You eat less and eat better. Throw in a little exercise and you’re good to go.

Losing weight is not easy if you want to keep doing all the things you’re doing. Because those patterns of behavior have obviously led you to a point where you want / need to drop some pounds. Changing behavior patterns can be daunting (and unappealing) but technology makes it a lot easier.

Want proof? Here’s an email I received from an acquaintance who has been very successful on her weight loss journal -

Hi Michael,

So far I have lost a little over 60 pounds.

To lose weight, I am writing down everything I eat. I use the free web site sparkpeople.com to record my meals. I like this site because it automatically counts the calories and gives me nutrition information.

At first the site was time consuming but after my favorite foods were already listed, and certain meals were entered as groups, recording has not been complex. At the end of the day, I know how much protein, fiber, carbohydrates, fat, and the many vitamins I have consumed, along with the goal of what these numbers should be. I try to match what I eat to get the correct nutritional numbers. I eat fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low sodium, skim milk, and very very rarely eat sweets.  I am not eating just low calorie food but sticking with healthy food so I include nuts and avocados.

For exercise, I use my exercise bike and I have 5 pound weights.

“I’m in the pain cave!” Will shouts from across the field, after Mike asks him how he’s doing.

Trainer Ted’s got his group doing one-minute circuits of kettlebell swings, bodyweight squats, sandbag presses, medicine ball throws and walking lunges carrying a huge PVC pipe half-full of water.

I know how Will feels. I’m fighting the urge to grab my knees (”If I catch you bent over it’s 20 squats!”) after a round of tire flipping and jumps. My lungs are not happy with me.

Ted’s group takes over the Prowlers and the tractor tires while Mike runs us through some agility drills and burpees on the speed ladder.  My lungs are increasingly cranky…little do they know Mike has suicides planned after the speed ladder. During the suicides, my hamstrings chime in to agree with my lungs about my general lack of cardiovascular endurance and my day is pretty much over.

All in all, a great Saturday afternoon out in the sunshine running around, jumping around, and throwing things with a fun group of people.

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More images are up on the Max Power Facebook fan page. Thanks to Will for the first image at the top of this post.