You are not the biggest loser

This a blog for anyone discouraged about weight loss. Although I find the show “The Biggest Loser” very entertaining, it also makes me very mad. I have helped hundreds of  clients lose thousands of pounds. This show makes normal weight loss seem like underachieving.

The solution is to weight loss is very simple on one hand but following through is another story. The first thing to consider is basic math. Your metabolism begins to slow after age 30 and you need to burn more than you consume. So basically just move more and eat less. The trouble comes because we live in a microwave society and we all want it yesterday.

To lose one pound a week, we need to burn off 3500 calories or eat 3500 calories less. This is not a quick process. People need to think of a pound or two a week as a major success and look at the big picture. You didn’t get it over night and it you won’t lose it overnight either. If you lose a pound a week for a year you’re down 50.

One thing to feel good about: your success rate doubles if you take the weight off slowly. Rapid weight loss increases in abundance a hormone called lipolipophase. This is the body’s defense mechanism to return fat stores anticipating times of famine. The “yoyo syndrome” is caused by more than a lack of willpower. Be patient and you’ll have better long term success.

The final point that most people miss is, you need to continually challenge yourself with regard to muscle fitness. You can lift small weight and still get the benefits. The most important thing is to change it up. If you’ve been doing the same thing for more than a month, you’re not maximizing your efforts. If your muscles never get sore, chances are you need to change what you’re doing.

For more tips visit us at body-mastery.net.

Tips To Help You Get healthy

Most people know what they should do. The problem usually is finding the time or just digging down and making the tough choices. If you’re looking for a way to get fit and become healthier I have some suggestions.

First, you need to make a regular time to exercise that doesn’t revolve around your busy schedule. You need to pick a day of the week or maybe two that you’ll keep on a weekly basis. Weekends for most people will give you one day for starters. If you have to decide on a daily basis you’ll never make exercise a routine.

The most important thing is to choose something that you don’t hate. If jogging is too hard, try walking. If walking on a treadmill is work, go outside on the trails. Set the bar to a level you can jump over easily. Fitness can be fun, if not at least tolerable.

Another winning tip is to start with a goal that’s easy to attain. To go from a couch potato to a gym rat is unrealistic. Exercising three times a week for an hour is a great weight loss recipe, but not for a beginner. If you just want to get going try moving more two times a week for 15-20 minutes. You can build from there little by little.

If weight loss is you goal, try to eat more fish. It has been said, if you eat fish twice a week you will improve your health. The good news, there are frozen fish dinners that I am amazed by. Costco has a tilapia with pesto that even fish haters would enjoy. If you check the labels you’ll find most fish dinners are high protein and lower carbs. and calories.

Finally, the new reality for weight loss means stay away from starch. This means breads; pasta and even rice should be used sparingly. What you can do here is have a lean protein source with your meal but have double veggies or start with a salad. This is a hard one in the beginning but is guaranteed to yield positive results!

The Beauty Of Stretching

I want to spend some time on the biggest bang for your fitness effort. Most people know about eating right and keeping at a proper weight. You often hear about the importance of doing regular exercise which usually includes cardio and weight bearing lifting.

Little is spoken and less written about stretching. The best thing before I continue is the length of time required to reap these terrific benefits. In two to five minutes you can begin to improve flexibility and relieve tension in tight muscles.

The first thing to do before you stretch is to warm up for a few minutes. The easiest way to warm up is walking. If you don’t have a treadmill or elliptical you can hit the streets or walk around the yard for a few minutes. 

I’ll give a few of my favorite stretches but first some simple rules to follow. You should hold every stretch for at least 15 seconds. The muscle only begins to let go after it is gently pulled in a controlled manner. This also means no bouncing. Yes what we saw in the Olympics from the Russian Gymnasts is called ballistic stretching and it’s not for us.

My favorite stretch is what I call the “good morning”. Lie on your back and bend your legs to one side. Put your hands over your head and bend to the other side. Do this for 15-30 seconds and repeat to the other side. This helps relax the lower back and shoulders.

Another feel good stretch is to bend over and pull the door frame with one hand at about waist level. Keep the knees bent and keep your back flat from your shoulders to your butt. This gives a good pull from the wing muscles of the upper back all the way down to the lower back.

I took a seminar from Paul Check a world renowned fitness authority. He taught us that the two major causes of back pain were poor posture and tight hamstrings. This one is not a feel good stretch but a good way to stretch your hamstrings. Lie on your back, keep one leg bent so your back remains flat. Raise the other leg up and try to straighten it out. It’s OK if  the leg stays a little bent. Pull the leg gently towards your stomach. I find this hurts the neck of people who aren’t that flexible, so here is an easier method. Put a towel around your leg so you can pull the towel with both hands with your leg in the middle. Keep your head flat on the matt and pull very slowly until the hamstrings start to give. You will be surprised how much the leg starts to move after a few seconds.

Do these stretches every day for best results. If you forget a few days it’s OK. The more the better so find a time that works. For more stretches and tips visit our website at body-mastery.net.

Improve Your Balance and Have Some Fun

As we age our muscles get weaker if they don’t get challenged. As a lifelong fitness buff I have always done conventional weights and cardio. The more I work with seniors the more I see the need to work the muscles that effect our balance.

The first place to start is with the feet and then the ankles. After that we can work on the legs and hips. The good news is that many of the exercises that help one area will also build strength in other areas as well.

A good example is standing on one foot. Go to the corner of a room or stand by something you can grab when you need to steady yourself. Lift one foot and count so you can access tangibly how well you’re doing. You may only last five seconds but don’t worry improvement is guaranteed as you practice.

 

The surprise for many is how hard this is on the feet and ankles. Every time you sway corrections are made by tiny movements, from the feet all the way up to the hips. This is one way you can work multiple muscle groups by just doing one move.

The next thing is to try various things while standing on one foot. Swing your arms over your head like “The Wave” at sporting events. Lift your arms out to the sides up to your ears. Do some curls while alternating hands. If you do this in front of a clock with a second hand you can keep track of how well you’re progressing.

If you want to have some fun, get a Swiss Ball. These come in various sizes and colors and only cost about $20. You can do a whole workout while seated on these balls and when that gets easy, try lifting one foot while doing the exercises. One of my favorites is to lay on the ball with the ball under you stomach. Start with the feet and hands touching the ground. Lift the right arm and the left leg at the same time and hold for a

second or two then switch. This will not only improve your balance but work more muscles than almost any other exercise you can think of.

Finally for the advanced: get a Bosu Ball. These are the blue half dome balls that you can stand on. Without exception this is the best piece of exercise equipment for the advanced fitness buff who want a challenge. They cost about $100 but you can do about 50-60 real tough and effective exercise that you can’t do with anything else. Look forward to more info on the Bosu Ball in future blog entries.

The Best Reason to Exercise You've Never Heard

Most people who call a personal trainer are looking to lose weight and tone up. There are lots of people who want to look younger. If you want to beat depression you may also look to start an exercise program. In a nut shell most of the reasons for exercise come under the category of wanting to look and feel better.

One of the best reasons to start your fitness program may be staying healthy. A little known fact to most: even moderate exercise helps bolster the immune system. After every session, people who workout experience a heightened T-Cell count. T-Cells are the tiny elements in the body that fight infection. They basically attack little things that grow up to become big things. One the small scale this means the cold and flu. The bigger problems include cancer and other terrible disabling diseases.

I’ve worked with cancer patients who have come to me by way of Doctor's suggestion. Other clients have contracted cancer and tripled their medical prognosis in terms of longevity. Many of my clients have beaten the odds and are in total remission. They live lives like nothing has ever happened. Google “exercise and cancer” and you’ll find a limitless source of reinforcing data.

If you don’t worry about cancer, exercise can just help protect you from getting sick. If you talk to a lifelong fitness enthusiast, ask them: when was the last time you got sick? I once heard a simple analogy that made a dramatic impression on me. After a workout, think of a cleaning lady going through your body for four hours and cleaning out all the garbage. What this references is the increased immune response that takes place after every exercise session for about four hours. Like the expression goes “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.

Drink More Water to Feel Healthy and Lose Weight

If you want to lose weight and be healthier, you may have heard to drink more water. The first reason you may have already heard. Our bodies are composed mostly of water and enough water helps us stay hydrated and makes everything run more efficiently. There are a variety of other reasons so I’ll bring up one you may not have heard of.

Our liver and kidneys only function at full capacity if we drink lots of water. There are various opinions but most stress eight to ten glasses a day. If we make an effort and do these two things happen. Our liver functions at full capacity and our kidneys don’t have to help the liver clean the blood supply. This frees up the liver to help remove fat and cholesterol from our bodies. In short drinking lots of water will make us lose weight!

If you already know you should be drinking more water, I have some tips that may help you fit more water into your daily routine. 1) Find a container that hold about 16ozs. Bring it in the bathroom as you get ready in the morning and you’ll see how easy it is to finish it. You will already have achieved 25% of your daily quota.

Second, fill a glass pitcher with the remainder of the six to eight glasses. Glass I find is helpful because it makes the water look more appealing than plastic containers. In addition you may want to cuts some lemon or lime slices or even add some fresh mint to the pitcher. When the pitcher is empty you know you’ve hit you goal.

Third, drink your water when your home out of a nice glass tumbler. Plastic bottles are fine on the run but seem silly to me if your at home. One of my clients told me she used a champagne glass to make the water seem special. If you like your water cold put your pitcher in the fridge. If not keep the pitcher where you’ll see it during the day.

If you work at an office try to have a water container on your desk. Having a big glass before all your meals is also a good way to not only get your water but also make you feel full and eat less.

Bust Through That Weight Loss Plateau

There is a large group of people who do everything right and still have a hard time making weight loss progress. I have little sympathy for people who want to look better and lose weight but don’t eat right or attempt to increase their activity. There are a few solutions I can share that may help people break through their weight loss plateau.

 

The first thing makes perfect sense, modify your diet. If you eat low cal. all the time you can be slowing down your metabolism. Most people eat the same thing every day. If you have 1500 calories a day, switch to 1200 one day and 1800 the next. Go really strict with only 1000 calories and the next day have 2000.  Try adding more protein and more veggies and cut out the starchy carbs. It’s hard to believe but sometimes it’s more than just math.

Like the first tip of modifying your diet, you can also change up the times you eat. You can actually reset your metabolism by changing your eating schedule. The one exception is breakfast. Eat as soon as you wake up. This will give your body a nice jump start to begin the day. Also you can make your snack more like a meal and your meal more like a snack. It may be hard to switch your times during the weekdays, so try different eating times on the weekend.

For people who already exercise, change your workouts. It has been proven for years that the body respond better when challenged. If you do the same thing for over a month it begins to get easier. Advanced workout buffs change their workouts daily. Most people need something new at least every few weeks. Change the exercises, speed, order, pairing and even frequency of workouts. You will not only get stronger and more fit but will also avoid injury.

The last tip is to assess your diet. If what you’re doing doesn’t work, it may need to be modified. The biggest mistake people make is portion size. Most food manufactures make servings smaller than what an average person would usually have. If you get a food scale you will be amazed at what an ounce of cereal looks like. Buy a book on food calorie counts and keep a food diary. Information is power, so get informed and get the scale moving in the right direction.