Keeping Your New Year's Resolution

Here are some tips to help you succeed at reaching your goals. 1) Assess where you are now and where you want to be in five years. 2) Set realistic goals and choose 4-8 not 20-30 different things. Make your goals achievable. 3) Set a deadline and don't procrastinate. Make various targets that you can achieve along the way. Use the ladder approach so your goals are broken up. 4) Get a resolution buddy or a trainer to help keep you accountable. Even if you can only see a trainer once a week for a workout and a weight in, it will keep you from backsliding. 5) Visualize for 3-5 minuets a day and see yourself where you want to be. Studies have show how the mind can't distinguish between real and imaged memories. ( This may be the biggest bang or secret for your success) 6) Set a measurable place where you want to be in three months. Three months is a long enough time frame to see results or make adjustments that may be needed. Finally, after you get ready in the morning, smile in the mirror. Tell yourself, This is going to be a good day and I have what it takes to get where I want to go. All these steps may sound easy or unimpressive. Put them together and give it a few months. What do you have to lose? (No pun intended)

Fat Free Equals Fat Gain

Many people are now trying to lose a few pounds for a good New Year's start. You may think of buying a few items that are fat free to help get the scale moving in the right direction. Here are a few examples of why that's often a bad idea. Two tablespoons of peanut butter are 191 calories but a reduced fat alternative is still 186 calories.( Not much of a help) A 1/2 cup of regular granola is a whopping 257 calories and so is its reduced fat partner at 237. Fig newtons are only 180 calories a serving but non fat newtons are 210 calories for the same amount. ( That was a surprise to me)
The main problem is, when they take out fat they add sugar, flour or some fake stuff that may be worse that the fat they replace. In addition some people eat more of non fat items thinking they are eating lower calorie. As you see by my examples, this can result in weight gain not weight loss.
When it comes to sweets, look at labels and watch your portion size. You may want to try fruit or even frozen grapes or other fruit to help slow you down a bit. Remember you need to take in fewer calories than you burn to lose weight. A few sweets a the end of the day can turn a day that would of been a win and turn it into another day of stagnation or even weight gain.

Burn Fat and Stay Motivated

People often ask me, what's the best way to burn fat. A few thing may help your chances of success in fat burning and therefore successful weight loss. In general you need to add weights to your cardio if that's all you do. Add cardio to your weight program if that's all you do. Weight lifting adds muscle which speeds up your metabolism and working in you target heart zone burns fat. One thing to remember, moderate intensity and longer duration is more effective than a 20 min. sprint when you hit the elliptical, bike or treadmill. Go for about 30 to 45 mins. at a rate where you could carry out a conversation. When you go full out you burn more glycogen (carbs) than fat. After min. 20 you start using fat as an energy source. Fat was initially intended as a slow burning energy source for our hunting ancestors. It takes a while to get it burning.
If your time is limited you may want to try circuit training. Most of my clients workout with a heart monitor which allows for cardio and weight training at the same time. The idea is to get the pulse up first with a 3-5 min. warm up. Perform various sets of weight lifting exercise then return to the cardio machine of your choosing. You can either talk or walk between exercises. One may be more fun but the other burns a lot more fat.

Get Fit for New Years

The best time to get fit has always been the beginning of January. In addition to wanting to lose the additional pounds we put on during the Holidays, the new year always has a clean slate feel to it. In my opinion, the best way to accomplish your goals is to be realistic and take it slowly. Remember a practical weight loss plan is one to two pounds a week. I know we all see the Biggest Loser and want to lose double digits a week but that's TV and we live in the real world.
If you start with a sound and practical plan, there is a better chance you will get where you want to go. One of the biggest mistakes people make is that they cut too many calories all at once. If you start to aggressively, you can slow down your metabolism and you'll be doomed from the start. Never cut more than 500 calories at a time. This is easier to do and much more beneficial in the long run. The best piece of advice is to get a book on food calorie counts. If you learn how many calories are in the foods you eat you will start making better choices.
As far as exercise, a good place to start is two days of weights and one day of walking or cardio. You want to increase your metabolism as you tone the muscles and this will help in both areas.

Water, Health and Weight Loss

Sweating is your bodies cooling mechanism. When you exercise intensely, you can lose two quarts of water in one hour. To determine how much water you need to drink during and after exercise, weigh yourself after exercise. For every pound lost during exercise, you need to replace with two cups of water.
Symptoms of dehydration are dry mouth, cramping, headaches and muscle fatigue. When the body becomes dehydrated our total blood volume is decreased, due to a loss of fluid lost through sweating. Since blood plasma is mostly made up of water, the oxygen carrying capability of our blood is decreased causing our working muscles and organs to be deprived of oxygen. Sometimes when we are feeling fatigued or hungry a glass of water is all that's needed to improve physical performance and curb the appetite. The color of urine can also be an indicator of dehydration. If it is dark or cloudy you need to drink more water.
To prevent dehydration, follow these guidelines
1. Drink a cup of water one half hour before exercise.
2. Drink fluid every 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Don't wait until you're thirsty. At this point, you have already become dehydrated.
4. Drink cool fluids because they absorb into the bloodstream faster than warm or ice-cold fluids.
Water is the beverage of choice for healthy people. Sweetened drinks such as soda and iced tea do not have the same effect as water. Caffeine and alcohol are diuretics. They signal the kidneys to release water into the urine. If you need that morning cup of coffee to get your engine going, drink water as well. Drink water consistently throughout the day. A home water filtration
system can give you all the pure water you need for a fraction of the cost of bottled water.
Drinking water on a daily basis will help you with many important areas. By maintaining the proper level of water each day, you give your body the best chance to fight disease, eliminate stress and maintain focus. In addition, drinking enough water can boost
your concentration and keep you from overeating. It helps to flush out toxins and promotes health.

Eight glasses of water a day is recommended for adequate hydration.
If you fall short of the mark it's okay. You can consume water
through your diet by eating fruits such as watermelon, peaches,
oranges and grapes.
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An Easy Way to Lose Weight- Add Fiber

A recent study is The Journal Of Nutrition states that by increasing your fiber intake from 16 grams to 25 grams per day could help you lose 10 lbs. a year. Increase this to 35 grams a day and you could lose over 15 lbs. a year. Another quick fix is to have oatmeal for breakfast which has been shown to help reduce hunger cravings for lunch. One thing to remember, if you want to put on muscle. Oatmeal is mostly carbs. so add a scoop of protein powder.
Although you can get fiber in supplements it is best to get them naturally in food. If you start looking at labels you will find there are many places you might not of realized. Raw fruits and veggies are also great place to increase your daily allotment of fiber.

Am I Getting Enough Protein

If you ask a dietitian or go by the RDA you may of heard you need about 50 grams of protein a day. As a life long weight lifter and personal fitness trainer this has always irked me. Novice weight lifters learns early in the game, you need extra protein if you want to build muscle. There are a few ways to calculate this. The conservative estimate is .5 grams times your body weight. This would be about 75 grams for a 150 lbs. person. The most common viewpoint is .75 - 1.5 gram per lb. which would be a whopping 112 - 150 grams. The most important thing you can learn from this is, going low fat for breakfast can often ruin your chances for muscle gain and fat loss. A bowl of grape nuts or shredded wheat and you're shooting yourself in the foot. Most people who try to get fit, skip the bacon and eggs. They switch to low fat choices that often exclude protein.
For muscle growth, the most important thing to remember is... you need a minimum of 30-40 grams of protein per meal. For a woman this makes three meals close to all you need. A man who is lifting and serious should have a few protein shakes or protein snacks between meals.
A few suggestions for breakfast (because lunch and dinner a pretty easy) would be cottage cheese with fruit, oatmeal with a scoop of protein powder or egg beaters.