Introduction
It all starts with the mind.
Have you ever wondered how a young child can do a back flip without anyone teaching him? If a five-year-old sees an older kid do a back flip and makes up his mind that he wants to do it too, that child is often able to mimic what he just saw. The eyes send a message to the brain, the brain instructs the body, and by instinct the body responds to what the mind tells it to do.
For years people have asked me what method I used to get into such incredible shape, and my answer has always been simple: Think about what you really want to accomplish. Tell your body what you want it to do, and then do it!
That may sound simplistic, but it really isn''t. Physical success starts with the mind. It''s a remarkably straightforward and effective approach that anyone can use. For instance, I didn''t always have this body; as a teen I was tall and lanky. Even in my early days in the NFL, my body was a little above average at best. Yet no matter what I lacked in size, mentally I knew my body could do extraordinary things. That mental focus -- not natural physical prowess -- is how I went from an undeveloped rookie to the NFL''s number one wide receiver. And it''s what I''m going to teach you in this book.
<>Finding Fitness will show you how to use the power of your mind to lose weight and get into your best shape. But more than that, this book will help you love your body and unlock the door to your untapped abilities. Finding Fitness is the tool that will help you unleash the You you were designed to be.
Whether you''re a stay-at-home mom, a college student, a weekend athlete, or an NFL star, Finding Fitness will help you make the mind-body connection that will ultimately bring out your own best body.
Mind over Matter -- Show Versus Tell
I could easily write a book that simply tells you about my workout, my lifestyle, and my diet. But that wouldn''t be the best way to help you.
My approach emphasizes more show than tell. The mind understands one thing: Either I can do what I see, or I cannot. For me, "cannot" is not an option. I''m going to show you how to determine the most effective way for you to get into shape, rather than just tell you what works for me. Once you learn how to make your own success instead of just reading about how I became successful, you''ll be on your way to discovering the fitness routine and eating plan that works best for you.
My hope is to get you to move past the superficial expectations set by others, and determine and achieve goals that will make you happy.
I''ve found that for me, the best method of learning is sight recognition, then verbal or written instruction, and then trial and (sometimes) error, repetition, and ultimately perfection. That is the method I will employ in this book.
With each exercise, I''m going to first provide a visual example of form at a beginner level, an intermediate level, and an advanced level. Each photograph focuses on an important aspect of the exercise so you can see exactly what''s happening during each movement.
My personal trainer and fitness expert, Buddy Primm, offers tips and techniques for getting the most out of each exercise.
Buddy also provides easy-to-follow diet and exercise plans based on his many years of personal training, as well as my twelve years in the NFL working extensively with NFL trainers and doctors. Some people search their entire lives to find the knowledge about fitness that is provided in the pages of this book!
I''ll share some of my best moments and some of my worst, including accounts and illustrations of some very serious career-threatening injuries. I will show and tell you how I overcame those injuries and persevered through those challenging times.
How I''ll change the Way You Think About Fitness
I believe fitness is individual: It should never be patterned after someone else''s body or lifestyle. You can''t just look at me and say, "I want Terrell''s body." What you should say is "I want my body to look that fit and healthy, and I can do what he does in order to get there." That''s achievable!
With my help, you''ll be able to determine what balance of exercises gives you the results you want instead of what someone else''s program says you should achieve. You''ll also begin to ask yourself questions about food -- what can it do for and to your body -- as well as understand why your body responds to food in certain ways. This book will give you the mental capabilities to accomplish your physical goals.
Finding Fitness can work for you whether you want to lose ten pounds or two hundred. Beyond weight loss, it can help you change behaviors that are not working. If you can find the things in life that make you happy and can push through and past the things that cause you distress, you will achieve the extraordinary success that all of us were intended to have. Now let''s get started!Copyright © 2008 by Terrell Owens Enterprises
Foreword
Jerry Rice
In 1985, as a first-round pick by the San Francisco 49ers in the NFL draft, I boarded a plane for the first time in my life and began to practice with the greatest team ever assembled. Having been drafted high from a small southern school, Mississippi Valley State, I had something to prove. The team, under the direction of head coach Bill Walsh and then George Seifert, developed a winning formula for how to practice, how to play, and how to act. As part of that process, the veterans passed on their knowledge of football and of "the 49er way" to the rookies. I was in awe of Joe Montana, Roger Craig, and Dwight Clark, and I soaked up everything I could. When I struggled mightily out of the gate, the veterans and Bill Walsh picked me up.
By 1996, the 49ers had already won three Super Bowls on the shoulders of giants like Montana, Craig, Clark, Steve Young, and Ronnie Lott. Given my own experience, when another high-draft-pick wide receiver from a small southern school joined the 49ers in 1996, I took a keen interest. Terrell Owens played at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, not exactly a football power similar to Mississippi Valley State. (I didn''t know it at the time, but Terrell had chosen to wear number 80 -- my number -- in honor of his favorite receiver.) The young man from Alexandria, Alabama, had had a difficult childhood, yet managed to excel in any and all sports. Football was a passion, and, as he developed at UTC, the NFL scouts took notice. He put up decent-but-not-great numbers his senior year, mostly due to double teams by opponents, but the 49ers took a chance -- again -- on a good-sized wide receiver from a small school.
It might come as a bit of surprise to those of you who now know Terrell as T.O., but he was a quiet, shy kid when he arrived at the 49er camp, in awe of his new teammates, as I had been more than ten years earlier. He had a chance to listen and learn during that first season with the Niners; he watched the receivers break in stride, he watched as we finished every play in practice and games, he watched as we treated the game as our job. One of the first things I noticed about Terrell was his work ethic. He was always picking my brain about how to run a route better or how to extend his fingers when making a catch. He busted his butt in practice and in the weight room. At 6 foot 3 and 200-plus pounds, Terrell wanted to add muscle to be more effective off the line of scrimmage against defensive backs, so every day, before or after practice, you could find him in the weight room, benching, squatting, and doing just about everything else imaginable with a free weight. Despite his willingness to learn and work hard at the wide receiver position, Terrell saw action mainly on special teams in the first months of that first season. He felt he had something to prove, and he excelled, even had three special-team tackles in a game against Atlanta.
When one of our receivers, J. J. Stokes, went down with an injury in October 1996, Terrell stepped up and, in his first game against Cincinnati, hauled in four catches for 94 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown. He never looked back. As the seasons progressed, Terrell became stronger, faster, and a more precise receiver, and his numbers exploded. My career with San Francisco wound down, and I remember my final home game against the Chicago Bears in December 2000. The 49er fans were so gracious to me that day, but it was Terrell who was the star. He caught twenty passes for 283 yards. After the game, when the team awarded me the game ball on my special day, I, in turn, passed the ball on to Terrell. It was his team now.
Despite his stardom, Terrell has never turned his back on what helped get him to the top: hard work. He still hits the gym and the track on the hot summer days as he did as a rookie in 1996. He knew early on that fitness was not only key to being a better player but essential for a more durable and longer-lasting career.
When I played for San Francisco, my off-season workouts on the hills of California became legendary. Though I no longer play football, every day that my schedule permits, I am in the gym by 7:30 a.m. Three times a week, I do two hours of cardio -- bike, stairs, treadmill; the other days I hit the weights. Like Terrell, I understand the importance of taking care of your body and mind, eating right, having an exercise regimen, and putting a positive spin on your day. I keep myself in shape not only because it helps prevent injuries but because I know that it takes a lot more work to get back into shape than it does to stay in shape!
Fitness is focus. When I am at the gym, you won''t see me listening to an iPod or watching SportsCenter on TV, unlike almost every other gym patron I see. I don''t need the distractions. I am so focused on my workout and what I need to accomplish that time flies by. Focus leads to a better workout, which in turn leads to better fitness.
Staying fit is a lifestyle choice. It is more than a daily trip to the gym. It''s about taking the stairs instead of the elevator; ordering water instead of soda; asking yourself, "Is this good for my body?" before making a choice. I''ve made the lifestyle choice, and so has Terrell.
Beyond the hype, the touchdown celebrations, and the flash, Terrell is the same young man I met in 1996, with the drive, passion, and commitment necessary for excellence. He has become one of the best wide receivers of all time, and he will continue to make his mark in the record books. A core reason for his success, even after twelve years in the game, is that Terrell knows, and understands, the importance of fitness.
Now, if I can only get that 2000 game ball back from T.O.!Copyright © 2008 by Terrell Owens Enterprises
Continues...
Excerpted from T.O.''s Finding Fitness by Terrell Owens Copyright © 2008 by Terrell Owens. Excerpted by permission.
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