What’s up everyone it’s Coach Byron from Bluprint Fitness in West Town Chicago and I was working out earlier and a thought popped in my head about how boring cardio can be and wanted to jump on and talk about improving your cardio aka the health of your heart aka not getting out of breath walking up the stairs, but having fun doing it! At first glance, magazines, the Internet, and even your friends will tell you to get on a treadmill, bike or stairmaster and get on it for a LONG-TIME. Now I don’t know about you, but that sounds hella boring to me! What if I told you that improving your cardio could be fun, challenging and engaging all at the same time? That’s how cardio works at Bluprint Fitness. We are generalists! Which means our programs will use bodyweight movements, dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, medicines balls, and other...Read more

I’ve had so many conversations with athletes that reveals a sad truth. The negative self-talk and body hate is stomping on our self-worth. This is heartbreaking to me. My favorite part of my job is that I get to coach athletes of all ability levels, shapes, and sizes. I watch them develop into amazing athletes – conquering the barbell, conquering cardio, and conquering gymnastics movements they never thought possible.  I watch them methodically transform their bodies – It is SO rewarding to see.  What’s crazy is how little credit they give themselves for their successes and how much bad energy goes the wrong direction.  The part of my job that is probably the hardest is listening to the self-doubt, the negative self talk, and the self body shaming even after they’ve come so far.  So my main question is… What will it take, what does your body have to do,...Read more

It’s a common myth that in order to lose body fat you must: Spend countless hours in the gym.Spend most of that time doing “cardio” In reality, losing body fat is about a good mix of nutrition, fitness, and accountability and that’s what Bluprint Fitness is built on. Those 3 pillars are what help athletes create their personalized Bluprint for health & fitness success. So what does this mean at Bluprint Fitness? It means athletes receive a healthy habits handbook to help guide them toward a healthy relationship with food.It means that athletes have access to coach led & scientifically proven fitness classes.It means that we, as a coaching staff, will teach you everything you need to succeed and hold you accountable to reaching your goals. If you remember only one thing from this blog remember this: It’s not just about working harder and it’s not just about working smarter…...Read more

Because I have experienced it myself, too many times to count, I can see that face coming from a mile away.  “Coach Selby, what are you talking about?”  Do you ever feel light headed during the workouts?Does your vision ever get blurry during a workout?Lastly, Do you ever get that empty stomach feeling that makes you feel like you are about to use the bathroom? I’m sure many of you have experienced these feelings before, but there are some of you who experience this every workout or almost every workout.  Far too many times I see people only after the first round or first two minutes of the workout, looking like they have gone blind and can’t hear a single thing. I walk up to them and ask, “When was the last meal you had?” If it’s an evening class then the answer will be one of two things.  Athlete:...Read more

As a coach, I get the opportunity to answer this question often. In this particular circumstance I am referring to body fat loss. What are good results? The complicated answer…It depends. Where did you start and where are you going? The simple answer. Good results are results that are moving in the right direction. If you have a goal and your numbers show that you are moving closer towards this goal…those are good results. Good results are numbers that match your level of effort in fitness, sleep, recovery, stress, nutrition, hydration… MYTH BUSTER Some athletes believe that if you purchase a gym membership the results are a sure thing. That couldn’t be the furthest from the truth. That is like buying a car and expecting it to take you anywhere you want without putting any gas in it.  You have to give to get. Make change to see change.  And just...Read more