Here are the 6 WORST things you can do if you want to ignite your body’s own fat-burning furnace and get lean, strong & totally ripped in less time:

Mistake #1: Doing isolated exercises

Doing isolated exercises like bicep curls and tricep kick-backs will not get you any significant results. These one-muscle-at-a-time moves simply don’t stimulate enough muscle fibers to build lean muscle or expend enough energy to maximize your calorie burn.

If you want to build lean muscle while burning fat so you can get serious definition, you need to perform exercises that stimulate as many muscles and expend as much energy as possible at the same time. Using these types of exercises (which I’ll reveal on the next page) will dramaticallyaccelerate your results.

Mistake #2: Working out with machines

Fancy machines may make the gym look high-end, but truthfully, about the only thing they’re good for is for sitting down while you tie your shoes or catch your breath! The problem is this: Machines alter the way your body naturally moves and restrict your range of motion. This severely limits your ability to fully activate all of your muscles fibers — that means less fat burning and less muscle definition. Worse yet, machines can cause excessive strain on your joints, leading to nagging injuries down the road.

If you want fast results, it’s critical that you incorporate exercises that allow your body to movenaturally with full range of motion so you can skyrocket your metabolism and tone your entire physique. In minute, I’ll explain the 6 primary movements that are the foundation of these full-body exercises…and I’ll also fill you in on the best types of weights to use for your workouts.

Mistake #3: Doing long bouts of cardio

Look, you need to do cardio if you want to lose weight and burn fat…BUT there’s a right way and awrong way to do your cardio workouts. If you’ve been pounding the pavement or the treadmill with nothing to show for it (except sore joints and a pair of stinky worn out sneakers), you already know it takes a lot of effort to get minimal results.

In this article, I’m going to reveal the most effective way to pump up your cardio routine that will get you insane results in half the time of your regular cardio workout — without causing unnecessary stress on your joints. Seriously, don’t skip this article because once you learn this simple trick, you’ll kick yourself for not doing it all along.

Mistake #4: Doing crunches and sit-ups to get 6-pack abs

If you want washboard abs, doing traditional ab exercises like crunches and sit-ups WILL NOT get you a six pack. In fact, doing any exercises that target your abs won’t get you a six pack either! These so-called “ab” exercises are a complete waste of time. They don’t make your abs get any more defined and they definitely don’t burn any fat.

The key to getting sculpted abs is to burn off that stubborn layer of belly fat that’s hiding them! In the next few minutes, I’ll show you how to burn away the “ab flab” while stimulating all 6 of your abdominal muscles at the same time so you can finally carve out your six pack abs.

Mistake #5: Repeating the same workout routines over and over

Repeating the same workouts over and over is a surefire way to STOP getting results. We’re creatures of habit and we tend to stick to things we’re familiar with and good at. But when it comes to your workouts, if you want to keep making progress and keep seeing changes in your body, you’ve got to start switching things up.

You see, your body has an amazingly ability to adapt quickly and when it does, that’s when you hit the dreaded plateau and you stop making progress. On the next page, I’m going to tell you exactly how often you need to change up your workout routine so you can keep your body guessing to accelerate the results process.

Mistake #6: Doing long workouts

Longer workouts do NOT equal better or faster results. If you’ve been slaving away at the gym and your body isn’t visibly changing, you can’t do more of the same thing and expect a different result.

When it comes to getting lean and fit, your body responds to quality over quantity.

1) What are we called to do?

2) What would we like to be able to do?

3) What can we afford to do?

What are we called to do? To lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ.

How does technology play into that calling?  We use technology as a tool to enhance the message that God wants us to hear.

The message needs to be easily seen, and clearly heard. It isn’t necessary to invest a ton of money into the glitz and glam, flash and trash that comes with a large production rig. However, in my opinion, I do believe you should invest your money in quality sound and projection, and let the lighting be the icing on the cake (if you can afford it).

As is the case with our campuses and network churches, we utilize video teaching for the message in place of a live teaching pastor.  In this scenario, it is vital that you have a reliable video presentation, whether that be through a projector or as simple as a TV. Either way you decide to go, you want your attendees to be able to easily see the lyrics to the songs and, more importantly, the pastor bringing the message.

It is also important that you have a sound system that is clear, without distortion or muddiness, and can be easily heard throughout your venue. I have been in some churches where they had plenty of PA but wouldn’t turn it up so that you could hear the pastor. I literally had to strain to hear the pastor speaking…it was painful and a major distraction! I’m not saying that you should run the PA at a screaming 110db, but a comfortable 94-100db during worship is ideal, and 80-86db for spoken word is ideal.

You may be thinking, “man, I wish we could afford to do all of that, but our budget just won’t allow it.”  I’m here to tell you that you can do it for a lot less than you might think.

While our goal as the creative and technical teams is to create the best experience possible for our attenders, it doesn’t mean you have to break the bank to have all the bells and whistles that come with big PAs and intelligent (moving) lights!  You can actually do it for a lot less money and a lot less stress than what you might ever realize!

Keep your setup simple…somewhat like a “Church in a Box”.  To get started takes a relatively small investment, doesn’t require much technical knowledge to operate, and takes little time to setup.

Here is what it could look like:

- iMac with Pro Presenter is your complete presentation package. It allows you to have moving graphics behind your lyrics, while at the same time giving you a platform to play all your videos, including the message!

- Pro Presenter…this game changer from Renewed Vision has forever changed how churches do graphics and video!

- A Projector…or a TV…you will need something to show your content on.

- ROKU…this streaming device requires minimal setup and a quality internet connection.  But the trend in some technically advanced churches is to create their own channel from which you can stream the content, including the weekend message.  Check out LifeChurch.tv’s Roku channel for the latest from our weekend experiences!

- Internet Connection (preferably not dial-up)…but something that will allow you to pull large files down and show in Pro Presenter or stream from another device.

- Fender Passport…this is just an example of a small, portable PA that can fit in your car and allow you to setup church in any small venue!

As far as projection screens go, you have many options that range in price from $ to $$$$$.  Here are just a few of the lesser expensive surfaces you can do on a budget:

- TV

- Projection screen (Da-Lite is normally one of the lesser priced, but is great quality in performance and durability)

- Spandex…if you want to get creative and change the shapes of your screens, Spandex is an option. While not as efficient as a hard surface, it is still reflective enough to get the job done!

- Paint screens on the walls and frame it in with black trim…this is the cheap of cheap, but it works all the same!

Some of you might already have an initial site and are now thinking multi-site.  There are many cost effective options that will allow you to launch without a lot of overhead. Beware of the mighty “consultant” who will over quote what you really “need” to do it “right”.  We have done our best at LifeChurch.tv to keep our technical setup at the campuses as simple as possible so that volunteers can easily operate the equipment and so the staff doesn’t have to stress about training them on how to use it.

The great thing about production equipment is that it’s scalable to your budget.  It doesn’t take a lot to make a BIG impact!  Take that same approach to your churches. Use the “Church in the box” approach…keep it simple and spend your time focusing on what you’ve been called to do…to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ.

Things that I’m thinking through are:
-How do you find the best people for your team?
-How do you balance quality and expectation with team chemistry?
-How does daily operations differ from weekend operations, and how do you staff accordingly? Do you have staff that only handles maintenance and other staff that is operational?
-When choosing equipment, do you pick equipment that may cost less but gives you the option of purchasing a backup, or do you spend more and hope you can find a rental house with one on hand when you need it?

There are so many different directions that this session can go…

Feel free to give me your thoughts…

CWF 2010 :: Drummer Boy + Deck The Halls + The Grinch + Thriller from Church on the Move on Vimeo.

and…

For me personally, I have to get back in the routine of exercising. It’s been WAY TOO LONG since I’ve been on track to being even sort of in shape…and my body is screaming this to me!

I’m thinking about starting the year with this plan…The Couch to 5k Training Plan

Then following it up with this training schedule…OKC Half Marathon.

I think all in all this is a training schedule of 22 weeks which may be a little tight considering that the race is on May 1, but hey it’s a lofty goal and hopefully my body will make it there! Now all I have to do is get off my butt and do something about it!

Great Advice for Worship Leaders

Keenan as Jimmie McMillian on SNL