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6Mar/139

Is Exercise a Waste of Time?

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

I have heard people from time-to-time say things like, "Workout, eat healthy, and die anyway." Or they might ask, "Don't you think that working out is a waste of time you could better utilize?" I have thought long and hard about these kind of naysayers. I've drawn my own conclusion that I decided to share.

Last year I exercised for 155.5 hours. This year I anticipate beating that number. So ... Was that time that I could have used for something else? The answer isn't a simple yes or no. You see, by working out (properly) you do things to your [...]

4Mar/134

How I Stay Fit

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

I will be 46 years old next month. And, I manage to stay in the best shape of my life. If you're wondering how I do that, read on...

V in tip top shape

I often get told how fortunate I am for my good genetics. That my [...]

19Jan/132

The Cowboy-up Workout

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

Today I am back in motivational mode. We are going to learn what Cowboy-up means to me.


No, I do not wear cowboy boots and a six-shooter during my workouts. These are merely props to demonstrate my euphemism. Besides, they look cool next to the iron.

I must start this blog article with a [...]

1Jan/131

Resolutions for 2013

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

Every year most of us come up with a list of resolutions to accomplish during the new year. I did some research and found several surveys that list the top ten resolutions that folks choose. I took the liberty of compiling my own list based on several lists I found. These appear to be the most important [...]

31Dec/120

Another New Year

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

In circa 1973, Frank Zappa released a song about television. This song, I Am the Slime (Oozing Out of Your TV Set), tells a tale of how bad TV can be ... Well, I often think of this song with a futuristic slant on it. I think in the 90's you could have replaced TV with video games. Nowadays you might be able to say the same thing about the Facebook. To me, it is a necessary evil ... Yet I also think its the slime oozing out of our computers.

You're probably wondering what Facebook has to do with [...]

21Nov/120

Observations of a Commercial Gym

Posted by Guest Blogger

For the past three years or so I’ve been training at a small private facility that caters mainly to powerlifters and Olympic weightlifters. It was a phenomenal place to train – packed with very strong, smart people who had forgotten more about building strength and increasing performance than most “personal trainers” will ever know. Recently, due to life circumstances, I had to transition to [...]

16Sep/121

Distraction Tactics

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

This article might or might not be what you expected when reading the title. Essentially I was thinking about how we humans use diversionary thoughts and practices to avoid facing the tough challenges we tackle in everyday life. Sometimes this strategy is on purpose and sometimes it is subconscious and we have no control over it. Even more important is [...]

24Aug/120

Chiseled Abs

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

It seems that the whole world argues about whether big muscular men are attractive. Some believe that a sinuous (almost skinny) body of a runner looks best. While others look at the swimmer's build and wish to replicate it for themselves. And, yet another group looks at the massive bodybuilder physique and find that appealing. Regardless of which body type you dig on, there is one thing we can all agree [...]

27Jun/123

P90X Redux

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

Many moons ago (actually two years ago) I bought and started the P90X® training routine. It was crazy tough and time consuming ... I only made it [...]

28May/126

Mountains of Misery 2012

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

I have a mighty tale of intrigue, adventure, and excruciating pain. A few months ago my good buddy, Keith, sent me an email calmly asking if I'd like to join him on a century. For the uninitiated, a "century" is a 100-mile long bicycle ride. As you can imagine, 100-mile on a bike is a long and painful trek. This particular ride (aptly named: the Mountains of Misery) was beyond [...]

30Apr/120

Why I Powerlift

Posted by Guest Blogger

With my third powerlifting competition coming up, I’ve been mulling a question that seems to recur before each competition: Why do I powerlift? I mean, it’s not like I don’t have enough to do, so why do I devote so much of my spare time and energy to getting stronger at the squat, bench press, and deadlift. Here’s what I’ve come up with.

What is Powerlifting? First, for those of you who don’t know, [...]

7Apr/122

Fit4LifeTraining

Posted by Vaughn Ripley

You've probably seen me touting Fit4LifeTraining lately (especially if you follow me on twitter @vripley). The hashtag #Fit4LifeTraining says it all. It encompasses so much in a compact package of words. As most of you know, I will be in an upcoming issue of Competitor magazine (I think May). There is a reason for that. Besides the fact that I've befriended professional athlete and one of my triathlete mentor/inspirations, Pip Taylor (she authored my article). And, [...]