SHREDbyCROM™: 10 Week Battle Ready Nutrition Program Blog 1

by Nathan Aripez

This is my first blog entry for what I expect to be a great lifestyle change for myself. For those not familiar with me, my name is Nathan and I run MuayThaiAuthority.com. I love Muay Thai and Kickboxing and providing the best information available on the sport. I first started training Muay Thai when I was 20 years old, and now at 31 I am nowhere near the shape I was in back then. As the years go by the distance between myself and training becomes greater and so has my gut, life just gets in the way. I really noticed the change about 3 or 4 years ago when I stopped being active as my day job and website duties made it hard for me to get in the gym. 

Aside from not having time to train, I love to eat food and that has made things worse. I finally decided enough was enough and I reached out to Chris Romulo who had been contributing some great fitness and nutrition articles to Muay Thai Authority. We decided to do this blog with his SHREDbyCROM™: 10 Week Battle Ready Nutrition Program and use me as the subject. I looked at it as the perfect way for me to get back in shape and live a healthier lifestyle. Being that my journey would be documented; having people read my blog weekly would hold me accountable.

Chris and his team, Sarah Romulo and Marycatherine (MC) are great. Being that they are in New York and I am in California we had a phone conference where they explained how the entire program would work. They sent me a detailed guide structured for my first week on what I could eat and what workouts to do.

Week one started out rough, but I was prepared as they explained to me that the first few days would be hard because I was going to be taking in less carbohydrates than I was used to. I was the type of guy that got to the point of basically eating 3 things, burritos, cheeseburgers (with fries), and pizza. I decided I was focusing on sticking to the diet and not what I was eating so I made very basic meals for the week that I prepared in advance. I wasn’t thinking about how good the food tasted just making it past the week. 

I felt really tired the first 3 days from Monday to Wednesday because of this I was only able to work out one day. I tried to go to bed as early as possible so I would not be thinking about food. I was getting plenty of food but not the fatty greasy food that I was used to. It was lean meats and vegetables that I was eating now.

Thursday I started having a bit more energy and by the weekend I was feeling like a champion. I had been planning my earned meal all week. They don’t call it a cheat meal on this program because cheating is something you’re not supposed to be doing, an earn meal you achieve by being dedicated and working hard, and therefore you should not feel guilty. I was feeling so great on Saturday that when I got to the restaurant instead of ordering what I originally intended to order (which was a great huge sandwich at this restaurant called The Mill by my house) I opted for an omelet and some potatoes that were a normal portion size. I felt like I had done so well and I didn’t want one crazy meal to send things out of control. 

I ended the week strong with some exercise and was able to continue to eat well the rest of the weekend. I went shopping for the second weeks supplies after Chris sent me the updated plan for week 2, and I prepped everything at home on Sunday. What made the first week easier was the plan was simple. I am not nutrition expert and the plan laid out how it should work and I just stuck to it. If I had a question I messaged the CROM team and they would tell me if I could do or not do what I was thinking about. I have tried to do things like this before on my own and after a few days it is easy to fall off, but I know it is time for a change and with my mind set and the CROM team behind me I am more than 100% sure I will succeed. Now I am looking forward to the new exercises that the plan calls for and this week upcoming week I am actually trying to get creative with meals.

I started by weighing in at 243.4 LBS on Monday 11-16-2015 and when I weight in Monday 11-23-2015 my weight was at 232.6 LBS. The CROM teamed prepared me by informing me that the first week weight loss would be fast, but as you start getting leaner as the program goes by it will get a little harder as your body starts adapting. I am definitely pumped for week 2 after those week 1 results.

SHREDbyCROM™ Goal Tracker:

FEELING: Great! First few days were tough, but now I am more focused and determined after seeing the results.

WEEK 1 STARTING WEIGHT: 243.4 LBS

WEEK 1 ENDING WEIGHT: 232.6 LBS

WEIGHT LOSS FOR WEEK 1: 10.8 LBS

You can get the SHREDbyCROM™: 10 Week Battle Ready Nutrition Program at http://chrisromulo.com/nutrition/

CROM’s Corner: Finding Your “CORE 8”

by Chris Romulo

The history of the kettle bell dates back to the 1700’s, primarily used by Russian farmers to weigh crops.  Those same farmers eventually evolved in to using them to show off their strength at local festivals.  Today, kettle bells are the ultimate tool for any combat/martial athlete, if used efficiently. 

I believe there are 8 key athletic attributes that every fighter has to some degree: agility, balance, endurance, flexibility, power, speed, stability and strength.  Every individual has different capacities with each attribute.  As fighters, our goal is to exploit as many weaknesses in as many of those attributes in our opposition as possible in hopes of dominating in a convincing fashion.  At the same time, we want to enhance our own “CORE 8” to increase our physical abilities. 

The kettle bell is one of the best ways to change the game in your training.

As I started my amateur Muay Thai journey in the mid 90’s I was only versed in minimal strength & conditioning methods that I picked up on my own as a kid.  Pull ups, pushups, benching, and biceps curls were my staples.  They were sufficient enough at the time I suppose, but as always “you don’t know what you don’t know”.

After years of dead end jobs after high school, at 27 years old, I ventured in to the world of personal training.  This opened up a whole new world of training and well being for me.  It wasn’t until 2006 when I turned PRO as a Muay Thai fighter that I understood the importance of having a complete team around to help prepare me for battle.  I sought out a strength & conditioning coach who specialized in athletic performance and as it turns out, was responsible for my love of this ancient tool.  I will never forget my “ah ha” moment when I realized that this was the way EVERY fighter should train.  It was after a 5 round scrap with an ultra tough dude from Nebraska.  I hit him with everything but the kitchen sink for 5 rounds.  I dropped him a couple of times for a standing 8 count and carefully placed a shin to the side of his head, but he still kept coming!  I stayed composed and won the fight, but after those 5 rounds I felt something I’d never felt in my previous 20+ fights…..swollen and aching fists for days. 

I believe through working with the kettle bell in a dynamic and ballistic manner, it kept my arsenal of weapons a huge threat in that fight.  I felt my opposition was off balance and kept at bay due to the quality of my attacks and counters.  Alongside power development, I was in better shape to deliver a heavier assault.

A great kettle bell complex that you can add in to your training regimen is a combination of 4 basic movements:

•    Dead Snatch

•    Windmill

•    Hang Snatch

•    Front Squat

Check out this instructional video of 4 movements and follow along at the end to enhance your “CORE 8”.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-Gh6E_PnJ8

 *****Be sure to comment on what movements you would like to see in next week’s article!

Visit Shred by CROM on YouTube to receive a complete breakdown of each movement along with the full length work out to follow along with.

Chris Romulo is a retired Muay Thai champion, Muay Thai & Strength & Conditioning Coach, owner of CROM Physical Culture and Creator of SHREDbyCROM™. After a total of 32 years of trial and error through fitness, conditioning, martial arts, sports, and “play” Chris has taken what works, sculpted away what doesn’t and painted a different way to engage in Physical Culture.

Visit www.crompc.com for more info.

FB: Chris Romulo AKA CROM, IG: SHREDbyCROM

CROM’s Corner: Inside the Mind of a Nak Muay

by Chris Romulo

Do you have the right mindset to excel in Muay Thai?

Do you understand or even have a “why” for training?

Do you have a vision in your mind of where you want to go in your journey?

My motto, which is written on the wall of my gym, and has been a concrete thought for me since 2003 is “All it takes is heart”.  I do my best to pass this on to anyone and everyone I come across in a conscious or subconscious way.  Not just for fighting or training but in a lifestyle sense.  Not only for living with courage but also for living with love, passion, and spirit.  As Nak Muays I believe that we can all relate on this level.  None of us got involved in this sport/art to become millionaires.  What helped us find Muay Thai was a deep seeded desire for something different in our lives, to feed the unknown craving for a real sense of being, your “why”.  Without your “why” you will be lost, similarly to not having a GPS in this day and age.  Whether you rely on a GPS, map, or your own instincts, along your Muay Thai journey you will come across setbacks, challenges, stumbles or flat out failures.  Are you equipped with the right mindset to keep you moving forward when you are under a relentless attack from all angles?  Do you acknowledge your lessons learned as a true warrior or do you result to placing blame on people who have no control over your own thoughts and emotions?  Are you a “keyboard killa” with experiences of watching fights and not actually earning your battle scars in the arena while telling other people how it should be done?  If you have time to talk it’s because you have time to talk, put in your work and let your actions speak! 

A key mindset that I attempt to live by that might apply to you as well is “my actions speak so loud you can’t hear what I’m saying”.  Believe, accept and understand as a fighter, enthusiast or coach that disappointment will be a part of the process.  To think otherwise will only make getting through difficulty a much harder process.  This mindset will be a major tool in your Muay Thai path.  Through all of my injuries, losses, and life’s unexpected surprises, I took the time to go back to my “why”.  I believe my version of physical culture has been the number one factor in getting me through all of the major obstacles in my life.  In turn, my “why” is to help others understand that whatever interpretation of physical culture that you choose, it can and will be your main weapon in this fight of life.

**My version of Physical Culture is a lifestyle of dynamic thinking, eating and moving.

What I see for myself is being a practitioner of Muay Thai until the very end.  I fell in love with this art 20+ years ago and it has given me the life I never could have dreamed of.  I met my wife, who helped me raise my 1^st son at the height of my fight career.  We started a Muay Thai gym together in an old school little town where some people still mistake us as the karate people 7 years later ;-).  We added to our family with another son who has been growing up in our gym since 6 weeks old, starting his physical culture early.  Outside the gym I have faced many challenges such as being homeless with my family for 6 months after Hurricane Sandy destroyed our home and gym here in Rockaway Beach in 2012.  What kept me on the path was again, my fighting spirit that I honed through my career in the ring.  There are many things to be learned through the trials and tribulations through combat sports that will directly make life seem like a stroll in the park.

3 years post Sandy, having taken some solid shots to the chin, backed up in a corner, fighting off of the ropes, and taking a few standing 8 counts we have been blessed to be able to recover in the championship 5th round with a facility triple the size of what we lost in the storm, a membership which has quadrupled, and a community inspired to change their lives.  I am not writing any of this to impress you, my goal is to impress upon you in hopes you will take the time to answer the 3 questions we started with….

Do you have the right mindset to excel in Muay Thai?

Do you understand or even a have a “why” for training?

Do you have a vision in your mind of where you want to go in your journey?

Chris Romulo is a retired Muay Thai champion, Muay Thai & Strength & Conditioning Coach, owner of CROM Physical Culture and Creator of SHREDbyCROM™. After a total of 32 years of trial and error through fitness, conditioning, martial arts, sports, and “play” Chris has taken what works, sculpted away what doesn’t and painted a different way to engage in Physical Culture. Visit Shred by CROM on YouTube for free workouts and instructionals! 

Visit www.crompc.com for more info

FB: Chris Romulo AKA CROM, IG: SHREDbyCROM

CROM’s Corner: Developing One Shot Knock Out Power

by Chris Romulo

As we all know, the “one shot” knock out is the final word of a Muay Thai bout.  It is the pinnacle of any exchange where you render the opposition unable to continue their campaign.  As a newbie you watched highlight clips over and over again so you could analyze and cringe on the impact.When you first started training, whether you were hitting the bag, pads, or your fellow training partner, you were thinking“that what would have been a knock out in a fight”.  With the 8 weapons we have as Nak Muay’s, we can all imagine even one of those tools being able to stop our opponent dead in his/her tracks and not having your win or loss being decided by 3 people with differences of opinions.

So how do we ensure that you don’t leave the fight in the hands of the judges? In my 20 years of training, fighting and coaching, there is no sure fire way to stop your rival every time.  No matter how good you think your set-ups are, your feints that make every one flinch, or your look low/go high round kick that works like a charm in the gym… you need something else.  You want to have a few more tools in your bag to increase your chances of landing the “one-hitter quitter”.  These tools can be sharpened, not just on the heavy bags, pads and drills/sparring, but honed-in on with some extra-curricular work off of the mats.

Remember, “The harder you work, the luckier you get”!

Just like the 8 Limbs of Muay Thai, there are 8 attributes you want in order to enhance the possibility of landing that night ender!  Agility, balance, flexibility, endurance, power, speed, strength, and stability are going to get you where you want to be.  If you possess and sharpen all 8 of these attributes not only does it increase your ability to land the knock out shot, but it will increase your longevity in the sport.

Even though I don’t actively fight anymore, the preservation of my attributes over the last 20 years keeps enable me to train and learn on a daily basis.  As I turn 41 next month, I can safely say that I am a better athlete presently than I was when I first started training Muay Thai.  Back then I had age on my side, but now I train smarter and harder than the old me ever did.

Though there are multitudes of ways to enhance your 8 athletic attributes to make you a better Muay Thai fighter, I developed a movement that hitall 8like a sledgehammer!  Best of all you need no equipment as this move relies solely on bodyweight. I call it the CROMplex.  Whether you are a seasoned vet or a green newbie, the CROMplex will challenge any level of athleticism.  It consists of 4 dynamic bodyweight exercises performed one right after the other.  The CROMplex is best used as a burn out drill after a proper warm up and/or skill training.

-Knees to feet

-Reverse burpee (deck squat)

-Burpee

-Tuck jump

Start with 2 minutes on the clock, then repeat as many as you can with explosiveness, grace, and most of all controlled breathing.

Check out this video for a step by step CROMplex tutorial: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgOZOuciEfc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOEYimu-SGQ

Visit Shred by CROM on YouTube to receive a complete breakdown of each movement along with the full length work out to follow along with.

Chris Romulo is a retired Muay Thai champion, Muay Thai & Strength & Conditioning Coach, owner of CROM Physical Culture and Creator of SHREDbyCROM™. After a total of 32 years of trial and error through fitness, conditioning, martial arts, sports, and “play” Chris has taken what works, sculpted away what doesn’t and painted a different way to engage in Physical Culture.

Visit www.crompc.com for more info

FB: Chris Romulo AKA CROM, IG: SHREDbyCROM

CROM’S CORNER: Get A Grip For Your Muay Thai Clinch

by Chris Romulo

Do you train as if your life depends on it? One of the most primal skills in existence, climbing, will test your every being, much like ring combat.  Let’s learn this vital self-preservation skill, to keep you the dominant opposition.

Climbing a rope can and will improve a multitude of athletic attributes in your body, while enhancing your fighting capacity.  As you sharpen the “art of 8 limbs” I believe that there are 8 qualities that you want to build upon as a Nak Muay stylist.  Agility, balance, endurance, flexibility, power, speed, strength and stability will all be tested in a rope climbing trial.  As a Thai Boxer, all these facets will help you dominate in the clinch.

Rope climbing or “scrambling” a rope is an ancient endeavor that was not only a survival skill, it used to be an Olympic sport!  There are a variety of ways to scramble the rope but for the purpose of strength and conditioning for Muay Thai practitioners, we will be thinking about the full body method.  Before we get in to what to do and how to do it, lets talk about “the why”.

As we are all familiar, the practice and fighting of Muay Thai is ultra dynamic and challenges all 3 energy systems of the body.  With out going in to the science of it, they are called the Phosphagen, Glycolysis, and Aerobic systems.  As a Nak Muay it is important to address these 3 systems to ensure efficiency and/or victory.  Whether you are an amateur fighting at 3x2 minute rounds, a pro at 5x3 minute rounds, or brand new to the training of Muay Thai, learning or practicing the rope climb will get you to work the 3 systems.  If you’ve never climbed a rope, your first attempt will help you understand why it should be part of your regimen.  You will be breathing heavily as every single muscle and major joint will be dialed in to get you up and down the rope safely.

If and when you use the full body method to the scramble, you will utilize your feet/legs to lock and push you up, while your arms and hands pull you up.  Your torso/core will be the center point of how your limbs will be moving, just like in a fight.  As your hands and feet lock you on to the rope, your strength, speed, and agility will keep you moving.  Think of how this will be useful in the clinch as you jockey for control, position, and balance.  You will engage full power as you initiate the start of the climb and your endurancewill kick in as you perform a number of repetitions in a timely fashion.  Your stability and flexibilitywill be tested while you crunch and extend on your ascent, the same way you would as you fluctuate between offense and defense in a fight, extending to throw a punch or kick, crunching to check or cover an attack.

We will call our method the “Crunch and Break”, or the over/under scramble. First you want to learn to use your feet to brake on the rope with the over/under foot method.  Once you feel comfortable on the (brake) foot hold you’re going to practice the crunch, which will pull your lower body up the rope.  As you crunch you will apply the brakes with your feet to lock in to position.  As you stand with the brakes on, your hands will assist in completing your standing position.  You will repeat this process until you reach the top of your rope.  Remember, what goes up must come down…Slowly, release the breaks just enough while keeping your feet in the over/under position so that you can walk your hands down the rope.  Depending on the height of the rope or the height you can handle, lower yourself enough where you can jump off.  Rinse and repeat…

Whether you’ve scrambled or climbed a rope before or not, make it a part of your training routine to ensure that every muscle in your body is being put to work.  When you scramble, know that it will help you literally get a grip in the ring.

Follow this work out:

Amateur’s:

6-10 minute AMRAP (As many rounds as possible)

1 Rope Scramble

5- Hindu Push Ups

Pro’s:

15-20 minute AMRAP (As many rounds as possible)

1- Scramble

5- Hindu Push Ups

Link to CROM’s Rope Scramble: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7VKLHE3rA8

Link to CROM’s Hindu Push ups:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pznl6wbPM28

Visit Shred by CROM on YouTube to receive a complete breakdown of each movement along with the full length work out to follow along with.

Chris Romulo is a retired Muay Thai champion, Muay Thai & Strength & Conditioning Coach, owner of CROM Physical Culture and Creator of SHREDbyCROM™. After a total of 32 years of trial and error through fitness, conditioning, martial arts, sports, and “play” Chris has taken what works, sculpted away what doesn’t and painted a different way to engage in Physical Culture.

Visit www.crompc.com for more info

FB: Chris Romulo AKA CROM, IG: SHREDbyCROM

BattleRock 3 set for Setpember 27th in Rockaway, NY

Rockaway Beach has become one of the fastest-expanding cultural hot-spots in New York, with top taste-makers from all five boroughs bringing their respective cuisines, sports, arts, and lifestyles into this growing community.
 

On September 27h at 6pm Rockaway staple CROM MARTIAL TRAINING will host BattleRock 3: A Night of Muay Thai at Beach Channel High School. After 2 extremely successful shows (May 3rd and June 28th). BattleRock’s first show drew in 500 spectators and the following show had a 20% increase in attendance. BattleRock 3 expects close to 700 spectators at it’s upcoming show due to an all star line up of the east coast’s best up and comers along side more seasoned amateur Thai boxers. The evening’s main event is sure to bring fireworks featuring a USKA Welterweight title fight between Omar Estevez of Sitan, NY and Julio Pena of Hard Knocks Muay Thai in Boston, MA.
 

CROM's owner and head coach Chris Romulo says of his inspiration for his BattleRock promotion, "Besides being a huge fight fan and wanting to put on some of the most exciting and well matched fights for the general Muay Thai fan, our main goal is to create more exposure for the art of Thai Boxing here in Rockaway. We are already known as a surf and skate town, but I see Rockaway as a fitness and martial arts town as well! The Rockaways are my stomping grounds, and I hope to lead the community into different ways of evolving, as Muay Thai has helped me stay on the straight and narrow for many years. 

If you are in the Rockaway area make sure to go and support one of the fastest growing amateur Muay Thai promotions.

Live Audio Stream of "Fight for Rockaway" tonight on FridayNightFights.com

Friday Night Fights (@FridaysFights) in conjunction with CROM Martial Training is holding an event tonight at the Broad Street Ballroom in New York City to help raise funds for the Chris Romulo to rebuild his gym. Romulo's gym (CROM Martial Training) was destroyed during Hurricane Sandy.

The event will feature a night of exciting Muay Thai fights with proceeds going to Chris Romulo and his family. If you are anywhere in the New York area make sure to stop by and support this event. If you can't make it you can listen to the nights action live for free on FridayNightFights.com. Listening to live audio of Muay Thai fights is better than nothing.

Last chance to purchase a "We Storm Back" t-shirt

MiddleEasy.com and Artlete teamed up to create this limited edition one of a kind t-shirt to help raise funds for CROM Martial Training. The gym which was home base for Chris Romulo and located in the Rockaway Beach area of New York was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The proceeds of the shirt sales will go to help Chris and his wife Sarah completely rebuild their gym. T-shirts will stop being sold tomorrow at 9 PM E.T./6 PM P.T. Shirts can be purchased by following this link, http://bit.ly/U6aIR7. It's a cool looking shirt for a great cause.

Fight for Rockaway charity event set for December 15th in New York

After Hurricane Sandy ravaged Rockaway Beach and many other areas of the east coast Chris "Mr. Classic" Romulo's gym and home were destroyed. A great part of The community of Rockaway Beach where the Romulos lived and their gym was located suffered severe flooding resulting in the complete loss of many homes and businesses, including the Romulo’s. Now many Muay Thai fans, and good Samaritans have stepped forward to help raise money for Chris Romulo and CROM Marital Training. Today, Justin Blair, President Justin Blair of Friday Night Fights and the Romulo’s have jointly announced that they will be hosting a charity Fight Night event on Saturday December 15th to help raise funds for Romulo and CROM MT. A fight card for the event has not been announced, but not only is there one more event in the year which is great, but it is being put on for the benefit of raising money for the Romulo family and CROM MT which is makes it event better. 

Full press release below:

Friday Night Fights, President & Chris Romulo team up to benefit the CROM Martial Training Center.

Former WKA North American Super Middle Weight Champion, Chris Romulo announced earlier today that he would be working with long-time friend and president of Friday Night Fight, Justin Blair on a fight night to benefit the CROM Martial Training Center that was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The gym, which was started by Chris Romulo and his wife, Sarah Romulo, was located in Rockaway Beach, New York, one of the hardest hit areas in the region devastated by the Hurricane. 

CROM Martial Training, or, CROM MT as it is known by, quickly earned its stripes as a legitimate fight gym with Sarah Romulo winning a match at the Rumble on the River in 2010 and team member Melvin Vega winning this year’s New York Golden Gloves title at 119lbs. Earlier this year, the Romulo’s held their own fight event for charity on the Rockaway Beach Boardwalk aptly titled “Battle on the Boards” further establishing the club’s legitimacy within the fight community.

Chris Romulo had this to say about his gym and the upcoming event:

Obviously it has been a difficult time for many people in the area. Our gym was far more than our livelihood, we were honored to have created a sense of community built from the sport we love so much. Our members, teammates, friends and family were what made our gym what it was and that’s not something that goes away so easily.

Sarah and I are committed to remaining in Rockaway Beach and rebuilding what we started, making our club even better than it was before. We are both looking forward to getting started. The support that we’ve received to date has touched both Sarah and I deeply however we are very much looking forward to getting back on track and our event on December 15^thwill be a big step in that direction.

Justin Blair, President of Friday Night Fights followed up with the following statement:

In addition to being a fan of Chris Romulo, he and his wife Sarah are also close friends of ours. On a personal level, Chris and I have a long history and have been through a fair amount together. We essentially “grew up” together in our respective fields (professionally) and I’m grateful for having him in my corner for so many years.

We were very fortunate to have Chris compete for us for so many year and I’d like to think that our professional relationship reflected the mutual respect and appreciation we had (and still have) for one another as friends . Chris Romulo will always remain FNF’s premier “franchise player”. Chris personifies so many of the qualities that fans of the sport of Muay Thai respect – dignity, class, honor, sportsmanship and a sense of community. Chris was and remains a member of our close knit team at FNF that identifies and values these attributes so we’re honored for the opportunity to participate in organizing the December 15^th event in his honor and benefit. 

The December 15^th event will take place at the Broad Street Ballroom on Saturday December 15^th and will feature a full card of Muay Thai fights along with a silent auction and other fundraising activities. The event will offer both table service as well as premium and general admission ticketing. For more details, visit www.fridaynightfights.com on Wednesday November 14^th. 

*Photo by Lance Burns

 

Chris "Mr. Classic" Romulo retires from Muay Thai

Chris “Mr. Classic” Romulo, professional Muay Thai Fighter and coach, will retire from active competition after 16 years in the sport. At the age of 37, Romulo is hanging up his gloves to focus on his family and coaching. Romulo started his career as an amateur in 1996 when he was 21 years of age. He had a successful amateur career posting a record of 18-3-1 (7 KO’s) and winning five amateur titles. As a professional Romulo won the WKA Super Middleweight North American title in 2010 and his professional record stands at 13-3 (10 KO’s).

Romulo took some time to answer a few questions for Muay Thai Authority about his retirement.