The general consensus is to avoid fats when trying to change your body composition, however, your body needs fat to function optimally. Fat not only provides fuel as a secondary source of energy, it is important in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, insulation and the protection of vital organs. 25% of your daily diet should be consumed as healthy fats.
We should consume the right kinds of fat and practice moderation. Some fats are actually good for you, while others should be completely avoided. Mono-saturated fats and poly-unsaturated fats are healthy fats and saturated fats should be consumed in moderation. Trans fat should not be consumed.
So what are some examples?
Mono-Unsaturated fat: Good sources are olive and canola oils, most nuts and avocados.
Poly-Unsaturated fat: There are two types of poly-unsaturated fat, omega-6 and omega-3 fats. Omega-6 fats are found in vegetable/soybean oil and omega-3 fats are found in fish such as salmon or tuna, flaxseed and walnuts.
Saturated fat: Red meat, fatty meats such as salami, dairy such as cream and butter and thicker vegetable oils such as palm, coconut, and kernel oil.
Trans fat: This is made by adding hydrogen to vegetable oil, which will extend the shelf life of packaged goods. Trans fat are generally in processed foods, including cakes, cookies and crackers. If it tastes really good, sweet and fattening . . then it probably has trans fat!
The percentage of daily intake is found in the nutrition facts on your food packages. Pay attention to them.
Remember, your body needs healthy fats for optimal functioning. Consume saturated fats in moderation and avoid trans fats altogether.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Why You Should Strength Train
If you have not heard, Oprah fell off the wagon last year and she is not alone. Many people echo her words year after year and some add, they fell off and the wagon backed up and ran over them. As a trainer, I can provide my theories and suggestions as to why one needs to exercise and strength train, but when Oprah gave her confessional on national television last week, she spoke and related to many people.
Oprah stated, "What I've actually started to enjoy is resistance training. Yes, working with weights." Her explanations continued by stating that as you get older, you lose more muscle which needs maintenance. For her, resistance training has been fascinating because she can see that even though the weight is not dropping as quickly as she would like, she can see her shape changing. She is firmer and her clothes are looser.
If you refer to my entry entitled Dieting Truths, dated 7/1/2008, I also talk about these same principles. During strength training it is possible to get smaller and not lose much weight at the same time. Muscle is a much denser tissue than fat. A pound of muscle is very solid, while a pound of fat is like a big fluffy bunch of feathers. The fat takes up more space in your body so when you strength train you are losing inches first instead of pounds and your clothes start to feel different. Always rely on how your feel and look because the scale can be misleading and discourage you when you are doing a great job.
When I talk about this topic, I often ask people to think about how their bodies have changed and how subtle the weight gain may have been, especially in their 30's and 40's. At this point, if you have not been exercising regularly your muscle development has peaked and is actually headed in the other direction. In short, if you do not strengthen your muscles, you lose them. When you have more lean muscle in your body, you burn calories even at rest and weight gain is minimal or non-existent. It definitely assists a weight loss goal.
So carve out some time, at minimum 30 minutes twice a week to strength train. Work on all muscle groups; chest, triceps, back, biceps, shoulders, legs and core abdominals.
If you need to lose weight and know you could be healthier physically and emotionally, remember strength training is a necessary part of an overall fitness regimen. This goes along with cardiovascular exercises and smarter food choices. Even if you do not need to lose weight, strength training and exercise are always a part of a healthy lifestyle. Live Well!
Oprah stated, "What I've actually started to enjoy is resistance training. Yes, working with weights." Her explanations continued by stating that as you get older, you lose more muscle which needs maintenance. For her, resistance training has been fascinating because she can see that even though the weight is not dropping as quickly as she would like, she can see her shape changing. She is firmer and her clothes are looser.
If you refer to my entry entitled Dieting Truths, dated 7/1/2008, I also talk about these same principles. During strength training it is possible to get smaller and not lose much weight at the same time. Muscle is a much denser tissue than fat. A pound of muscle is very solid, while a pound of fat is like a big fluffy bunch of feathers. The fat takes up more space in your body so when you strength train you are losing inches first instead of pounds and your clothes start to feel different. Always rely on how your feel and look because the scale can be misleading and discourage you when you are doing a great job.
When I talk about this topic, I often ask people to think about how their bodies have changed and how subtle the weight gain may have been, especially in their 30's and 40's. At this point, if you have not been exercising regularly your muscle development has peaked and is actually headed in the other direction. In short, if you do not strengthen your muscles, you lose them. When you have more lean muscle in your body, you burn calories even at rest and weight gain is minimal or non-existent. It definitely assists a weight loss goal.
So carve out some time, at minimum 30 minutes twice a week to strength train. Work on all muscle groups; chest, triceps, back, biceps, shoulders, legs and core abdominals.
If you need to lose weight and know you could be healthier physically and emotionally, remember strength training is a necessary part of an overall fitness regimen. This goes along with cardiovascular exercises and smarter food choices. Even if you do not need to lose weight, strength training and exercise are always a part of a healthy lifestyle. Live Well!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Stages of Change
We all know that losing weight and improving overall fitness are things that don’t happen overnight. But, did you know that in order to be truly successful important mental steps need to be taken before you even start a diet or exercise program? The first thing you should do is identify where you fall on the behavioral change spectrum. There are five distinct stages of behavioral change based on the Transtheoretical Model (TTM). Do you know what stage you currently fall under?
In my last entry dated 12/30/08, I stated that change is not easy and you really have to make a commitment to yourself that you are starting a journey for the long haul. Knowing what stage you are in will help you to create a road map to the subsequent stages and ultimately help you to be successful in your fitness goals. Below are the five major phases:
Precontemplation: This is the point where you don’t feel that any change in your lifestyle is necessary. You may think exercise takes too much time or fast food is too convenient to even consider giving up. Starting a fitness or diet program during this stage could probably result in failure. The best thing you can do during this stage is to educate yourself further about health, diseases and risks.
Contemplation: During this stage you may start to think change is necessary. So, you consider cutting back to eating fast food three times a week is not so bad and you might be able to at least take a walk once in awhile. This is a good time to learn more about the benefits of healthy eating and regular exercise.
Preparation: At this point you are getting more serious about taking action. You’ve penciled in a walk with a friend for next week and are planning to grocery shop to cook healthier meals at home. You may want to research exercise equipment, gyms, personal trainers, diet programs and online media to learn more about what you can do (with the help of a professional and/or equipment) to get in better shape.
Action: Here’s where you actually take the first step. The first step may be as simple as taking a daily walk, reducing your fast food visits to twice a month or just cutting back on high sugar drinks. You also could hire a personal trainer to assist with motivation or join a gym. During this stage it is very important to learn coping mechanisms that will help you to avoid re-lapse into your old behaviors. One way to avoid being a part of the high exercise dropout statistics is to start slowly with a new program and make permanent lifestyle changes versus temporary ones.
Maintenance: This is, of course, the phase that everyone should strive to be at. This means that you have been doing a regular fitness program consistently for quite some time and that you continue your new lifestyle. It’s important throughout this stage (which should last a lifetime) that you include a variety of workouts that change frequently. You should also seek social support of family and friends.
So what stage are you in? You may find that you are in the contemplation stage for nutritional habits but that you are in preparation stage for exercises. That’s okay. It is not critical for you to force both areas into the same stage. You can work on changing your nutritional and exercise habits separately.
The key to success is first identifying your stage and then take steps to advance to the next level (unless you are already at the Maintenance stage). Use the suggestions mentioned above in each stage to help you move to the next phase.
For example, if you are in the precontemplation stage, research and read as much as you can on the subject of health risks and how they relate to an individual’s lifestyle. From there you will probably want to learn more about the consequences and benefits of specific lifestyles. Education is a powerful thing. The more you fully understand and can relate directly to the causes and effects of your action, the more inclined you will be to change.
It is also important to tune-in to your fears, past struggles and expectations. Making nutritional and exercise changes is challenging and should be approached slowly. Remember to make small changes. Avoid jumping from a completely sedentary life to an hour a day of continual exercise in just a few weeks. Build up to increments starting with just 10 minutes at a time 3 times in a day for 30 minutes a day. Lastly, be sure to inform your family and friends of your plans and enlist their support. Support is extremely important for your success.
In my last entry dated 12/30/08, I stated that change is not easy and you really have to make a commitment to yourself that you are starting a journey for the long haul. Knowing what stage you are in will help you to create a road map to the subsequent stages and ultimately help you to be successful in your fitness goals. Below are the five major phases:
Precontemplation: This is the point where you don’t feel that any change in your lifestyle is necessary. You may think exercise takes too much time or fast food is too convenient to even consider giving up. Starting a fitness or diet program during this stage could probably result in failure. The best thing you can do during this stage is to educate yourself further about health, diseases and risks.
Contemplation: During this stage you may start to think change is necessary. So, you consider cutting back to eating fast food three times a week is not so bad and you might be able to at least take a walk once in awhile. This is a good time to learn more about the benefits of healthy eating and regular exercise.
Preparation: At this point you are getting more serious about taking action. You’ve penciled in a walk with a friend for next week and are planning to grocery shop to cook healthier meals at home. You may want to research exercise equipment, gyms, personal trainers, diet programs and online media to learn more about what you can do (with the help of a professional and/or equipment) to get in better shape.
Action: Here’s where you actually take the first step. The first step may be as simple as taking a daily walk, reducing your fast food visits to twice a month or just cutting back on high sugar drinks. You also could hire a personal trainer to assist with motivation or join a gym. During this stage it is very important to learn coping mechanisms that will help you to avoid re-lapse into your old behaviors. One way to avoid being a part of the high exercise dropout statistics is to start slowly with a new program and make permanent lifestyle changes versus temporary ones.
Maintenance: This is, of course, the phase that everyone should strive to be at. This means that you have been doing a regular fitness program consistently for quite some time and that you continue your new lifestyle. It’s important throughout this stage (which should last a lifetime) that you include a variety of workouts that change frequently. You should also seek social support of family and friends.
So what stage are you in? You may find that you are in the contemplation stage for nutritional habits but that you are in preparation stage for exercises. That’s okay. It is not critical for you to force both areas into the same stage. You can work on changing your nutritional and exercise habits separately.
The key to success is first identifying your stage and then take steps to advance to the next level (unless you are already at the Maintenance stage). Use the suggestions mentioned above in each stage to help you move to the next phase.
For example, if you are in the precontemplation stage, research and read as much as you can on the subject of health risks and how they relate to an individual’s lifestyle. From there you will probably want to learn more about the consequences and benefits of specific lifestyles. Education is a powerful thing. The more you fully understand and can relate directly to the causes and effects of your action, the more inclined you will be to change.
It is also important to tune-in to your fears, past struggles and expectations. Making nutritional and exercise changes is challenging and should be approached slowly. Remember to make small changes. Avoid jumping from a completely sedentary life to an hour a day of continual exercise in just a few weeks. Build up to increments starting with just 10 minutes at a time 3 times in a day for 30 minutes a day. Lastly, be sure to inform your family and friends of your plans and enlist their support. Support is extremely important for your success.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Every Fitness Journey Starts With a Simple Step
2008 has come to an end and 2009 begins. With the start of a new year, there are common resolutions, goals or changes you may plan to make in the new year. Is one of those to change your body composition through better eating choices and exercise? As long as I have been in the fitness industry, I see the generic fitness goal to do some type of exercise. This usually comes after an overindulgent holiday season. People join gyms or other forms of group exercise and usually stop after a few months. If you are paying a membership, you are wasting your money at that point. Change is not easy and you really have to make a commitment to yourself that you are starting a journey for the long haul. For example, if you need to lose 30 or more pounds, you have to remember that it probably did not appear in the last few months and it is going to take time, hard work and determination to lose. Unfortunately, those extra pounds appear much easier than disappear.
Start with small, realistic goals such as losing 2 pounds a week. This is more manageable than always thinking that you need to lose those 30 pounds. If it does not seem like it is disappearing quick enough, frustration sets in. With exercise, find what inspires or motivates you. Start with a simple walk and when it gets cold, head to your largest local mall. Walk the floor and take the stairs several times to increase your intensity. Do you like to dance? There are latin, ballroom, line and belly dancing classes. Whatever it is, make it consistent. When it comes to changing your eating habits, this is the HARDEST component of changing the body composition, but is the MOST important. Trying to go on a "diet" by changing everything you eat is not suggested because it usually does not create long lasting changes. Changing how you eat and what you eat should come in stages because it should be for the rest of your life. This too will take time, hard work and determination. What is one thing you can eliminate this week that adds unhealthy, empty calories? Is it those 2 bottles of soda a day or that bagel every morning? Start with gradual, small changes.
Ok, so maybe you have reached your weight loss goal and you have entered a maintenance stage. You have a new goal to gain more definition in your body so that when you wear a certain type of shirt, your arms are enviable. You have to start with simple steps here, as well. You want to gauge the intensity that works best so that it is manageable and you are motivated to stick with it to attain results. Every fitness journey starts with a simple step. Are you ready to take that step?
Start with small, realistic goals such as losing 2 pounds a week. This is more manageable than always thinking that you need to lose those 30 pounds. If it does not seem like it is disappearing quick enough, frustration sets in. With exercise, find what inspires or motivates you. Start with a simple walk and when it gets cold, head to your largest local mall. Walk the floor and take the stairs several times to increase your intensity. Do you like to dance? There are latin, ballroom, line and belly dancing classes. Whatever it is, make it consistent. When it comes to changing your eating habits, this is the HARDEST component of changing the body composition, but is the MOST important. Trying to go on a "diet" by changing everything you eat is not suggested because it usually does not create long lasting changes. Changing how you eat and what you eat should come in stages because it should be for the rest of your life. This too will take time, hard work and determination. What is one thing you can eliminate this week that adds unhealthy, empty calories? Is it those 2 bottles of soda a day or that bagel every morning? Start with gradual, small changes.
Ok, so maybe you have reached your weight loss goal and you have entered a maintenance stage. You have a new goal to gain more definition in your body so that when you wear a certain type of shirt, your arms are enviable. You have to start with simple steps here, as well. You want to gauge the intensity that works best so that it is manageable and you are motivated to stick with it to attain results. Every fitness journey starts with a simple step. Are you ready to take that step?
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Breakfast on the Go
When I initially meet with clients and discuss their daily food intake, breakfast is one meal that usually falls by the wayside. Excuses are they got up late, had to get the kids ready or just did not think about it. Breakfast is the one meal that should not be missed. Here are some reasons why you should eat breakfast:
- When you wake up, your body has not consumed food since (preferably) two hours prior to going to sleep. During sleep, your body is on its longest stretch of the day without food, still functioning and using energy (calories). When you continue this stretch of time without eating, your body responds by diminishing its metabolic rate and burning fewer calories to conserve energy. By eating breakfast, you jump start your metabolism for the day.
- Research has shown repeatedly that when people eat breakfast, you have a better chance of losing weight and keeping it off. When you skip meals, you get really hungry and make poor choices for your next meal because you want to eat anything in sight.
- When you eat breakfast, you are more focused and alert. Eating breakfast helps improve memory and positively affects tasks that require your attention.
- Precooked hard-boiled egg whites
- Celery sticks with a tablespoon of natural peanut butter
- Single serving of yogurt or cottage cheese
- Fresh fruit
- Whole wheat toast or multi-grain English muffin with low-fat cheese
- Precooked turkey bacon
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Success Comes From Support
Do you have a friend that shares your goals and desire to get healthy? You may have differing specific goals, for example she or he wants to gain muscle definition and you need to focus on weight loss. Regardless of what your differing specific goals are, you both want to get healthy, which is most important. All plans to get fit and healthy should include making smarter food choices, cardiovascular exercise and strength training. You can do it together! You are more likely to be successful when you have someone to support you through the journey. Working out with someone else makes you less likely to blow off the hard work. Surrounding yourself with people who support your goals will inspire you to eat right, exercise consistently and stay motivated. Ok, maybe you do not have similar schedules and cannot work out together, you can still talk about your body transformation journey with the triumphs and frustrations that come your way. This will also help you stay motivated. When you go out to eat, dine with that person so you will stay accountable to each other. If you are tempted by foods, you can decide together what are the healthiest options.
You should also tell other people that are closest to you what your goals are. Those that truly care and love you will be supportive and help you along the way. You are not alone.
Even if you do not have people in your life that would make good partners, role models or fans, there are people out there that want to make the same choices as you. Seek them out by networking with co-workers, church members and neighbors. Maybe someone wants to hire a trainer but does not want to do it alone. That would be a perfect opportunity to connect with that person if you share a similar desire. If you surround yourself with people who support you and want to see you succeed, chances are you will.
You should also tell other people that are closest to you what your goals are. Those that truly care and love you will be supportive and help you along the way. You are not alone.
Even if you do not have people in your life that would make good partners, role models or fans, there are people out there that want to make the same choices as you. Seek them out by networking with co-workers, church members and neighbors. Maybe someone wants to hire a trainer but does not want to do it alone. That would be a perfect opportunity to connect with that person if you share a similar desire. If you surround yourself with people who support you and want to see you succeed, chances are you will.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
You Are So Worth It!
Change is uncomfortable and sometimes painful. It requires some struggle, but is so worth the effort. Every time you push yourself physically, you grow stronger and more confident in your abilities. It becomes easier each time, but you have to try. If you don't try, how will you know? You have to have faith in yourself to know you can achieve anything you put your mind to. You are so worth it!
There are many reasons that prospective clients hire me. It could be that they want to lose weight, strengthen their body for everyday movement, develop their core muscles or have visible muscle tone without flexing. The range varies, but the number one issue that most people need help with is the motivation to push them to the level they are seeking. Getting people on track is what I do, but the desire to change has to come from within.
When one struggles with change, there could be a myriad of reasons but two that have a very strong presence is fear and doubt. These feeling are very crippling psychologically, which limits abilities. For example, if you want to lose weight and have gone through the motions of starting, stopping and starting again you should stop and ask yourself, "What is really holding me back?"
Once you uncover your reasons, start the process of positive self-talks and know you can achieve change. Your thoughts are very powerful and drive you to action. If changing your body to be what you want has been a struggle so far in life, know that you can take that step. It starts from within because you are so worth it!
There are many reasons that prospective clients hire me. It could be that they want to lose weight, strengthen their body for everyday movement, develop their core muscles or have visible muscle tone without flexing. The range varies, but the number one issue that most people need help with is the motivation to push them to the level they are seeking. Getting people on track is what I do, but the desire to change has to come from within.
When one struggles with change, there could be a myriad of reasons but two that have a very strong presence is fear and doubt. These feeling are very crippling psychologically, which limits abilities. For example, if you want to lose weight and have gone through the motions of starting, stopping and starting again you should stop and ask yourself, "What is really holding me back?"
Once you uncover your reasons, start the process of positive self-talks and know you can achieve change. Your thoughts are very powerful and drive you to action. If changing your body to be what you want has been a struggle so far in life, know that you can take that step. It starts from within because you are so worth it!
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